Dragons’ blunder
As it turned out, it was too early to rejoice at the demon’s burning. The Mind was burning, but not burning, and the king, who came running to the screams, was ready to give any treasure to cure his favorite.
The battle with the demon was both won and lost at the same time. The dragons seemed to have won, but they were unable to capture King Serpin for Samantha. He left with the wounded demon in his arms, hooting over him like a baby. The pack of dragons giggled at the king’s foolishness, and Samantha wanted to cry herself to tears. The king’s demon was impossible to defeat. How had he gained such confidence in the king that he was completely in charge of him? Did Serpin really like being tricked? And how long before the Mind recovered from his burns and decided to take revenge on the mistress and her dragons? The imp is a very vindictive person.
Samantha peered cautiously into the king’s chambers, frying pan at the ready. A bandaged Mind lay on a pillow and groaned. For some reason, the injuries on his magical body still hadn’t healed, though they had disappeared instantly before. Probably the fire of the dragons was stronger than the demon’s magic.
By the way, the dragons, having sensed that the enemy was weakened, hovered under the ceiling and worriedly murmured. Did they want to help the injured or, on the contrary, to kill him? Samantha suddenly began to feel sorry for him at the sight of Mind’s distress. He looked even cuter in bandages. When her grandfather had gotten clawed by a boar while hunting, he’d looked just like him because the village healer had bandaged him up like a mummy. Except that unlike Samantha’s grandfather, the Mind swore like a bandit from the highway. With a claw free of bandages, he pointed at the dragons that clung to the chandelier.
«I’ll kill you all like flying fleas!» He howled. «I’ll just heal up a bit. And attack again! I’ll drive you out of my palace! I don’t care if you’re henchmen of the fairy queen! I’m practically demon royalty myself! You can’t fight me!»
For such threats, the dragons could have swooped down on the cripple in a pack, but for some reason they were slow. They’re probably afraid of the Mind. He is, after all, a demon. You never know what magic trick he’s going to pull. Not long ago Samantha would have told them to kill a demon that harms everyone, but you can’t beat a man when he’s lying down. No honorable man would do that. Samantha’s ancient ancestors were knights. So she followed their code of chivalry in imitation of them. Let the Mind recover first, if he can heal from the dragon burns, of course. Then we can decide what to do with him. If he remains an invalid, then let him live out his days in the palace, and if he recovers and starts terrorizing people around him again, then we should look for a solution.
«You’re an animal!» The Mind hissed, sensing Samantha’s presence. «What have you done to me? Shame on you! You etched dragons on a poor, defenseless animal!»
The defenseless beast was a clawed, evil demon, but Samantha felt sorry for him anyway. Even though he was grumbling, she had to do something to help him. Every time the village was raided by dragons and the burned peasants struggled to escape from the fires, her father said they should not leave the burned people in the lurch. There was room for everyone in the annexes of the manor. Why is the Mind any worse than those peasants? He’s a living being too, albeit a demonic one.»
All of Samantha’s good intentions vanished when she saw Serpin, who brought Reason a chest full of valuable elixirs and began to spoon-feed his pet. The Mind pretended to be a vulnerable creature in front of the king, while he clawed under his pillow for a frying pan to throw at the dragons if they came close.
«Why did Estella have to tell him to use the frying pan as a weapon,» Samantha sighed.
The Mind noticed her immediately. His angry red eyes flashed, first fierce and then sly.
«Tell me, Serpin, who do you value more: me or the ladies?» He whimpered playfully.
«Of course you do,» said the king, looking at his favorite as if he were a piece of paper.
«Then punish them! Look what they’ve done to me! I’m falling apart. My bones are all broken, and even my tail is crushed. And it’s her fault!» The Mind jabbed a claw at the door. The doors flew open like a hurricane, revealing Samantha hiding behind them.
«Is she a dragons’ lady?» Serpin whistled respectfully. «Is she like Sepphora, the one you chased away?»
«No. She’s not a dragon lady.»
«But you were burned by dragons. You said each one was the size of a big house, and they were going to burn all of Ivilor, and you saved the country and me.»
«That’s true,» the Mind lied without blinking an eye, «but she was the one who stopped me from saving the country.»
«Why would she do that? She’s a citizen of Ivilor herself.»
«You’re contradicting me!» The Mind exploded.
«I just don’t think you’re thinking straight right now. Mind, you have a fever!» The king touched his horny forehead. «You must be delirious!»
«Samantha is a witch!» The Mind shrieked. «That’s why she wants to hurt everyone! I can prove it. She has a witch mark on her shoulder. Any inquisitor who examines her will confirm it.»
That’s where Samantha got scared. The Mind is tricky! People might mistake a fairy mark for a witch’s mark.
«The Mind, you are a sweetie! You’re the one who didn’t want the Inquisitors looking in on us.»
«I can spot a witch better than any inquisitor,» the Mind said.
«Who else but a demon can do that,» Samantha muttered to herself, but the Mind heard her. His hearing was incredibly sharp.
«Burn her at the stake!» He demanded of the king, pointing his finger at the confused girl. «She’s a witch! She will get us all killed!»
Serpin hesitated. For once, the king was in no hurry to please the Mind.
«Even so, maybe we shouldn’t take such drastic measures right away,» he muttered. «Let’s wait until you recover. Maybe then you’ll come to your senses and think more rationally.»
«When I get well, I’ll judge her myself!» the Mind bent its mind. «She is the ruin of the whole country! Because of her, civilization will collapse!»
«You say the same thing about every fairy, and they don’t hurt anyone.»
«Have you ever wondered why we have rye rotting in the fields and werewolves breeding in the forests after their raids? Fairies are more dangerous than the plague! They should not be allowed in lvilor!»
«But Samantha isn’t a fairy. She doesn’t even have wings.»
«Who do you value more, her or me?» The Mind resorted to the last trump card, but it did not dispel Serpin’s doubts.
Samantha had a glimmer of hope. Had the king grown older and more independent?
«I remember when Sepphora left in anger, threatening to burn you and all of Ivilor,» Serpin recalled. «I think our first defense should be against the dragon lady, not Samantha. It was probably Sepphora who sent a pack of dragons to burn you. She’s kind of a dragon goddess.»
«Samantha is her agent!»
«I don’t think so!»
«Look at all the little dragons flitting around her,» the Mind pointed to the ceiling with a claw.
«They’re flying around you and probably want to hurt you when I leave, but I won’t,» the king gently covered his pet with a blanket. The Mind howled in pain. The blanket grazed the wounds.
«Oh, you!» he swung his claw at Serpin. «You are an ignoramus! You are empty-headed chump! You don’t even realize that you’d better get those dragons out of here. Those little buggers annoy me. Put fire nets on them!»
The dragons scurried away. A cloud of colorful clouds swept over Samantha’s head. She guessed she’d better go, or she’d be burned as a witch. Even though the king likes her, it must be remembered that the king is under the thumb of his demon advisor. Seprin is addicted to the Mind. There’s nothing you can do about it. If the demon is not banished from the kingdom, the king will not be free.
Demon Queen
All the pans, broom and pokers suddenly disappeared from the palace. The cooks complained that there was nothing to prepare a proper meal for the king’s guests and retinue.
«Let them all eat in the taverns,» the Mind said graciously. «It’s not a free restaurant for them at court.»
The king, blushing and pale, passed his orders to the servants. Everyone was shocked, but they didn’t dare to object.
«Probably, the young king for the sake of the ladies decided to go on a diet,» whispered the cooks. From that day on, cooking in the royal kitchen became very modest. Samantha didn’t like it, and neither did most of the courtiers.
Whether anyone but her realized it was all a demon’s joke was anyone’s guess. The only items that had disappeared from the palace were the ones Samantha used to defend herself against him. He had her trapped. There’s nothing left to fight with. One day the demon would probably pin her up against the wall, run its claws through her head, and make her another insane resident of the royal garden. Could Rosafeira save her in time? Though what could she do? Whip a demon with a wing? No one saved Florimonda. All day and all night, she wandered like a ghost through the thicket, humming some nonsense:
«One day all will rise from the bottom,
My retinue will be brought back by the water.»
Her songs gave Samantha a chill. Even all the bog witches left the royal garden. No one wanted to deal with the madwoman, nor did they want to deal with the Mind.
The mad princess scratched the face of the footman who tried to get her out of the garden. He feared she would drown herself, but Florimonda would not leave the pond.
«Let her drown herself! Why should she be disturbed if she so decided,» the Mind waved his paw graciously at all the king’s complaints.
Florimonda didn’t want to leave the pond or anyone in the water. In a glimpse, Samantha noticed transparent silhouettes in the pond. It looked like there was an army in there.
«And you’re not going to be handled by a demon?» Florimonda shook her finger at her.
Though it is believed that the insane can become seers, but now she was wrong.
Samantha hurried away from the garden. Probably from watching the insane princess for so long, she was beginning to go insane herself. She began to think she heard the rattle of weapons and the laughter of mermaids coming from the pond.
There were no grooms in the stables, and the familiar horses appeared fed up and did not recognize Samantha as their mistress. Some gnome was obligingly pouring water into their troughs and putting hay into their feeders. Now it was clear why they had become so spoiled. Only Pegasus recognized Samantha and even took her for a ride over the roofs of the palace. He could fly better than he could ride. Rosafeira said that sometimes he needed to stretch his wings. So Samantha flew him over the palace complex until she spotted a white kitten on the roof. He slipped to the edge and almost fell. Samantha picked him up.
«Had the fairies dragged him up here? It didn’t look like fairies.»
The kitten had a satin ribbon with a bow around its neck. He didn’t look like a stray. Rosafeira recognized it as the kitten of a recently deceased marquise who had had designs on the king.
«It all makes sense now,» Samantha remembered the Mind’s intrigue. He killed the Marquise and the kitten was left unattended. «We’ll keep him and call him Snowball.»
Samantha sipped her tea and noticed a little fairy in the cup, indignantly raising a storm with her wings.
Samantha trailed off the cup. «Why is this fairy so tiny if you’re so big, Rosafeira?»
«She is not a fairy,» the winged beauty said haughtily. Then she explained condescendingly. «The tiny fairies are from the pixie family; they’re the size of butterflies, but they have the strength of a bear. Don’t make them angry, or they’ll cause a storm wind or a thunderstorm.»
There were voices outside the door.
«Why did you take the Marquise’s kitten out of the palace? He could catch mice in the cellars.»
«I can’t stand cats,» said the Mind. «They’re all trying to take my position as counselor.»
«Mind, but they can’t even talk,» said the king.
«Murray cats can! They are big, clever and cunning. If such a cat manages to get into the palace of some ruler, he will definitely become a chief advisor.»
«Is it really? I’ve never heard of such cats.»
«You are very inexperienced, so listen to me. I’m old and wise. I understand everything better than you.»
«But you’re so small! How can you be old?»
«What do you care, Serpin?»
«Yes, it doesn’t! You’re so cute, I don’t care.»
He calls a demon cute? Samantha’s jaw almost dropped. How can Serpin be so blind? Or did a cunning demon cast a spell on him? And how did the demon recover so quickly from the dragon burns? He hasn’t been in bed for 24 hours. No matter how much you poison him, he’s sitting on the king’s shoulder again, running his claws through Serpin’s hair as if he wanted to rip off his crown.
«I can’t stand cunning and dexterous Mur cats, and especially pussycats,» continued the Mind. One kitty once wrested from me a nourishing place and all my salary of the queen’s counselor. These fluffy little tricksters will do anything for profit. They love to decorate their coats with precious necklaces and bows, wear pearl diadems between their ears, and atone for any guilt with a gentle feline smile. Kings and queens love them and forgive them everything. But they won’t let me off the hook! They’ll eat me alive or throw me in the oven. I’m the only mind in the royal courts, but the Mur cats are only dressed up, and already everyone needs them. No one can live without them! They’re not much use to anyone!»
«Mind, don’t afraid! It’s not good for you to worry. You might get paralysis! Remember, I wouldn’t trade you for any cat.»
«Not even the prettiest ones?» The Mind grinned slyly and wrapped his tail around the king’s neck like a cord.
«Not even for magical ones!»
«Mur cats are all magical and talking, without exception. They’ll fool your head with a few phrases and tell you to burn me, and you’ll melt the furnace like a hypnotized man.»
«It is no way! I swear it!»
«Better not let any cats on the palace doorstep. Then we’ll avoid temptation.»
«It is all right. I’ll send all the cats to live in the villages. They’ll be better off there, closer to the cows and milk.»
«It’s also a good idea to get all the maidens out of the palace.»
«But what’s a royal court without women? They’ll think I’m turning the royal palace into a convent.»
«Don’t worry about your reputation. It’s such a small thing. The king’s strength is all that matters, and your strength and wisdom is me.»
«But reputation is important too.»
«How did you get so smart?» The Mind suspected it was the fairies. He noticed them hovering over the palace and, as usual, became angry, but he was too lazy to get off the king’s cozy shoulder to chase them away.
«Mind, you’re the one who taught me to be clever. Why should I be surprised, since you’ve made me smart?»
«That’s right, it’s said, but don’t get too smart, or I’ll disappear.»
ЭPlease, don’t,» Serpin was scared out of his wits. «How can I be without you?»
«That’s right, you can’t! Without me you’ll be lost, and I can cast such a spell that people will turn a blind eye even to your worst reputation. If you kill all the maidens of lvilor, you’ll still be seen as the perfect ruler.»
«But why kill the maidens? They’re all so sweet.»
«Especially it is the redheaded pest?»
«Don’t call Lady Samantha that. She’s nice.»
«That pretty little thing will rip you apart. There won’t be a dime left in our coffers.»
«But she won’t take it all the way from lvilor. Let her take it.»
«What if she sits down to gamble with foreign guests? Then all our gold will be out of the country.»
«She doesn’t gamble. She doesn’t smoke. She doesn’t drink. I’ve done some research on her.»
«She’ll drink more of your great love. Mind you, Serpin, fine ladies don’t like a fellow who’s mad with love. Adoration like yours can be hard on them.»
«But Samantha likes it when I court her.»
«Are you sure she’s not pretending because you’re the king?»
Samantha was outraged at the slander.
«Send her a simple lad, a footman or a stable boy, or better still a janitor, and you’ll see how cruel she’ll be to him. Then her mask of a girl in love will fall off. She’ll broom a beggar like me, I give you my word.»
«Have you tried to court her?» Serpin was wary.
«I was just testing her.»
«But I don’t want any other guy chasing her.»
«I’m not a guy, I’m a…» the Mind almost blurted out «demon,» but came to his senses in time. «I’m your royal mind.»
«Isn’t the mind male?»
«Mind is a sexless and international concept,» the agile imp twisted, «it is not divided into race, age and sex.
«I didn’t know that!»
«You don’t know much, so obey me in everything. I will not let you stumble.»
As luck would have it, the king tripped on a step and almost fell. The Mind immediately jumped from his shoulder to the tapestry. The imp, like the king, was terrified. If Serpin had cracked his forehead, the Mind would be in trouble. Samantha imagined how the demon would magically revive the king’s dead body to rule, hiding behind the back of a zombie who sat obediently on the throne and slowly decayed, while the courtiers lived in fear.
«That’s what he would do!» Rosafeira was hovering behind Samantha’s back in the darkness of the corridor. «He’d already pulled this kind of thing once before and ruled behind the back of a living corpse.»
«What we’ve gotten ourselves into, fighting over women!» the Mind wailed, shaking off Serpin’s camisole and taking his place on his shoulder again. «It is all right, Serpin, no more bickering over women! Leave it to me to deal with these pests. I’ll drive them all out of lvilor.»
«Maybe later, but for now, at least leave me one Samantha.»
«But she’s the most dangerous. She must be the first to survive.»
«But…»
«Be quiet!» The Mind tapped its claws on the king’s forehead, shifting the crown slightly. «I’m the one who decides everything! I am your mind!»
«It is all right!» The king shook his head.
«He obeys the demon in everything! – Samantha was outraged.»
«Serpin considers him as his best friend.»
«Friends like that should be removed with dust out of here!»
«What’s dust?» Rosafeira fluttered her pink eyelashes in amazement.
«It’s a good remedy for bedbugs, cockroaches and other pests. The housekeeper at my home estate used it to get all the insects out of the house.»
«I’m afraid it won’t work on a demon.»
«Then what can we use to get him out?»
«It is magic, but I’m not strong enough to help you.»
The fairy’s pink wings flapped anxiously, creating a breeze in the palace gallery. The candles were extinguished by the flapping of the fairy’s wings.
Samantha habitually left all business as usual and crept after the king down the hall. Serpin’s curls shone in the semi-darkness like strands of sunlight. The girl already knew that to the touch they were softer than silk. Outwardly, the young king was perfection itself. If only he were free and alone? How could it be that a demon from the underworld had become his master and faithful companion? He would have been better off with a bride, or even a wife. Samantha would figure out how to deal with a female rival. Her mother had driven a rival fairy out of the manor. But a demon, alas, cannot survive. He was more annoying than the bride, the wife, or even the mother-in-law. Samantha became despondent. Serpin treated the Mind like a tame kitten.
«To me you are white and fluffy, and better than all the Aluar and Mur cats!» The king was proud of his pet.
«Are you blind?» The Mind growled in displeasure. «I am black, not white!»
«But I meant that you are the best in the world.»
«And I’m the best in the darkness, too!»
«That’s right! Mind, you are evaluating yourself without pluses and without minuses. You’re perfect! And you’re so smart! What would I do without you?»
The imp deftly dodged the king’s hand, which intended to stroke him between the horns. At the same time he managed to snatch the precious ring from Serpin’s little finger. Apparently, the demon had forgotten his moral that he and the king had everything in common and decided to hide something.
«Obey me, Serpin. I alone will not let you down,» he instructed. «We need to establish the first rules of safety for you. The most important of which is to stay away from women. Women will always let you down. They’re not me. They only want one thing from you.»
«And what’s that?» Serpin blushed in anticipation of interesting topics.
«It is your crown and your skin, boy,» the demon disappointed him.
«They’re not ogres!»
«They’re worse, and they look pretty, but their pretty faces are just masks for black and greedy souls. Believe me, I fell for Princess Estella’s pretty face myself. What was I willing to do for her? Anything! I flew beyond the clouds, and at the bottom of the ocean to get her the best pearls, and under the ground climbed to gather her army of demons for the defense of the country, and from aggressive fans to protect her. All the crowned barbarians from all corners of the land were wooing her. Many of them demanded her hand practically with a knife at our throats and huge armies at our borders. I scared them all away. The hardest thing was to get the Tsar’s boyars out of Lukomorye. You see, it was my Estella that the Slavic princes wanted. They couldn’t find any queens more beautiful than her. If Estella didn’t have me, her suitors would have torn her to shreds to get something for the wedding. One bride, but there are many! An army of suitors gathered. I worked hard to keep her safe from them all. Then I worked in politics and finance for her. I was sweating like crazy. I’m skinny and small, and I’ve got files of government stuff piled up like this. Estella’s daddy didn’t want to do anything but magic. Magic was his undoing, and I got Estella, but not for long.
«What happened to her? The suitors ate her alive and you had to run away?» Serpin was once again displaying the wonders of naivety and ineptitude. Apparently, the Mind had told him this tragic story not for the first time. The king even yawned.
«Estella betrayed me for the handsome enchanted king the star fairies had deliberately shown her in the mirror to confuse her girlish mind. King Gabriel slept for hundreds of years. No one could wake him. The Queen of Hell herself, Luciferina, cast a sleep spell on him. So Estella left me and rode a dragon to save him.
«Did she rescue him?» Serpin cheered up in spite of his pet. Apparently, he liked a fairy tale with a good ending. And the story of Princess Estella had happened so long ago that it could be considered a fairy tale.
«Of course, she saved him and locked me in a chest.» The Mind clenched its fists. «She betrayed me and robbed me. She even took all my savings for herself. I hoarded treasures from all over the world under her throne. I was saving for my old age. I thought I would have a rest when I retired from state affairs, but all my savings went to someone else’s private life. I didn’t get a girl or money.»
«Mind, but not everyone’s life is that tragic. What if my Samantha’s better than your Estella?»
«She’s not your Samantha, asshole!» The Mind clawed at Serpin’s head. «She’s a stranger to both of us! You and I are the family! I’m the only one who’s faithful to you, and women cheat. How many ladies and fairies have you liked? Did any of them stay with you?»
«You drove them all away.»
«And it is rightly so! If you’d married one of them and then met Samantha, you’d be embarrassed now.»
«Yes,» Serpin said happily. «It’s a good thing you saved me for her. She’s the best!»
Samantha held her breath. Did he really think so? Happy thoughts of marriage spun a merry-go-round in front of her, but the demon dispelled the dreams again.
«And with Samantha out of the picture, you’ll like someone else.»
«No,» Serpin objected sharply.
«Think of all the girls you’ve liked. You can’t count them all.»
«But I liked Samantha the best. Mind, she’s special!»
«That means she’s the most dangerous! Estella seemed special to me too. I had high hopes for her. And how did it end? It was a tragedy!»
«But she ended up happily married!»
«Whose side are you on, traitor?» The demon’s grumpy voice sounded offended.
«It is on yours, of course.»
Serpin shielded his head from his pet’s claws, and Samantha nearly wept. The demon’s speeches were familiar to her. All mothers sing it into their sons’ ears when they see an unwanted bride on the doorstep. Sometimes their daughters get the same lecture. Samantha’s mother, for example, if she saw that her daughter was attracted to some mower or a peddler, also resorted to such persuasions. Apparently, The Mind awoke maternal feelings towards the king, at whose expense he lives in luxury. No wonder, for if Serpin marries, the imp will be deprived of worldly goods. All affairs move in a vicious circle. As long as Serpin is successful and rich, the demon won’t give him up to anyone. The only thing to do is to ask the fairies to swoop down on Ivilor like locusts and ravage the country, then the demon will be gone and Serpin can be taken back to her parents’ estate. The thought cheered Samantha up. True, her mother would not be happy with a poor groom who was left without a kingdom, even the pedigree would not help, but her father would be glad to have a friend.
Samantha also dreamed of inviting Rosafeira to tea in her father’s library. Perhaps Papa would not be surprised that his first lover remained as young and fresh as a May rose, while his mortal wife had grown fat and old. Even the ginseng root creams that were brought to Ivilor by overseas merchants did not help her mother retain her youth. Rosafeira did not use creams at all, and therefore did not spend money on them. She wished her father had married her in his time. Then Samantha would have had a mother and a girlfriend in one person.
«You’re as traitorous as Serpin,» said the fairy hovering behind her, who could read minds perfectly.
«What can you do when moms and demons have equally impossible demands?» Samantha shrugged. «You have to live your own way. It’s not a betrayal, but a measure of necessity. By the way, let’s try to drive the demon out of the palace by drawing your protective symbols everywhere.»
«It won’t work!» Rosafeira flapped her wings dejectedly.
«Have you tried it?» Samantha took a coal from the fireplace and began to draw signs on the floor. They disappeared instantly. «What the hell is that?»
«They don’t show up where the devil’s hopping around.»
«But they did in my room, didn’t they?»
«He only looked in your room once and left no trace, but his marks are everywhere. They’re stronger than mine.»
Rosafeira swept her wing across the wall, and some black hieroglyphics suddenly appeared.
«They are the marks of the Hell Queen Luciferina, his patroness,» the fairy explained.
«Are they in the garden?»
«They are all over Ivilor.»
Samantha still tried to draw the signs in charcoal, chalk, and even with a stick on the sand by the pond, but the symbols instantly disappeared as if they never existed. The empty labor was like an obsession. Finally Samantha stopped working and began to look at the strange vibrations in the water of the pond. In addition to the mermaids, there was something living there, and it did resemble an army sleeping at the bottom. It was probably just an illusion, but Samantha could make out the outlines of cockaded helmets and scaly armor, and even spears. A water army would have risen from the bottom and gone to war against the demon that lingered in the kingdom, but alas, the warriors only protected Florimonda, who wandered the banks of the pond. Even the mermaids never once tried to drown the mad princess, and for some reason the demon could not exile her back to her homeland. What a strange situation! Samantha tried to talk to the mad princess and ask for help, but Florimonda spoke only to those she saw in the water. Sometimes it seemed as if murmuring voices were answering her.
Samantha turned into a gazebo covered with black creeper and gasped. She thought she saw the silhouette of a beautiful and sinister woman in a luxurious black dress hovering inside. The stranger’s eyes sparkled like two rubies. On her head was a crown of gilded skulls.
This must be the queen of Hell, Luciferina. But how could she penetrate into the human world? Did the Mind open her way to match her with the king? What could be more convenient than marrying Serpin to his mistress and becoming an advisor to the royal couple?
Samantha was startled, but the vision lasted only a moment, and then the dark silhouette dissolved into darkness. Luciferina probably doesn’t have enough power to establish herself in Ivilor. Sacrifices are needed. Naturally, the Mind, loyal to the demon queen, would arrange them. Samantha reached for her own throat. For some reason, she was afraid the demon’s claws were about to slash at her. Surely the Mind must have targeted her as the sacrifice for Luciferina’s resurrection.