Eryn felt a rush of pain flood from her heart down her arm, and she gasped. Blue light flashed out from her and her father's joined hands, blinding her. Blinking, she heard Ardariaen say, "I would've let you die, and to be perfectly honest, I thought she would've done the same. But she's more like her mother than I gave her credit for. Natalia didn't have her temper though. Bit of a disappointment really." There was a beat. "I'll be back for you two."

A second later, she felt her body ripple as she was shimmered out. For a moment she felt the icy cold of the Void as she passed through, then she reformed. She looked up into Ardariaen's dark soulless eyes. He smirked at her.

"At last, at last," he said, pleasure evident in his voice. He gestured to their surroundings with his free hand. "Welcome to my humble lair." Eryn looked around. Instead of the dank, dark and dingy cave that most demon overlords opted for, the PenUltimae's lair looked like it had been transported direct from an Arabian palace. Silks hangings covered the walls, satin throws adorned the furniture, and Persian rugs of all hues and designs lined the floor. She looked back at the demon and arched an eyebrow.

"Not so humble," she told him as she tugged her hand out of his grip. He shrugged.

"What can I say? I enjoy the finer things in life."

She glared at him, then glanced down at her hand. A faint blue scar marred her palm. She sighed. Another scar, she thought. Great. Just great. Well, at least it'll disappear when the oath's ended. When I die. She looked up at Ardariaen.

"So what happens now?" she asked him. She knew he was going to kill her, to absorb her powers so he could dominate the Underworld and Above-lands, but if she could find out how, and where, she might stand a chance…she might find a way to make him vulnerable…she might be able to save herself…but Ardariaen shook his head, smiling in an almost fatherly way.

"My dear Eryn. You don't think I am actually going to tell you the particulars of your death? And give you a chance to escape? No. No, of course not. You are now going to go to your rooms, and you are going to wait for your doom." He snapped his fingers. "Take her away."

One of his minions walked over and grabbed her arm. It turned her away from Ardariaen and began to lead her away. As she turned, a wave of exhaustion broke over her, making her dizzy. A mist settled over her vision, then cleared, leaving her eyesight sharper than before.

Guess that's the only perk, she thought grumpily, shaking her head to try and get rid of the faint buzzing she could hear. She had, in the space of an instant, gone from feeling like the powerful demon-Darklighter/witch-Whitelighter she was to feeling as weak as a kitten. Not good, she thought, upset. Her new scar on her palm ached fiercely. The spell, she realized, glancing at it. It had to be the spell. The Oath of Aureolus. No wonder I feel like crap. Then another thought occurred to her, and a small smile curved her lips upwards. She allowed herself to be led away by her minion escort, and as she did so she glanced back over her shoulder.

Ardariaen had turned away from her and was walking to the large, velvet-draped lounge situated at the edge of this room of his lair. As she watched, the demon staggered slightly as he walked, and for a second he looked as though he'd fall. One of his minions stepped forward to help him, but he held up a hand to stop it. An angry word was enough to halt any and all further attempts to help.

As Ardariaen sat down on the lounge (with less than his usual grace, Eryn noted) she saw, with her suddenly sharpened vision, that the demon was pale beneath his tan, and his hand shook slightly as he raised it to his brow. As Eryn looked back to see where she was going, her smile grew. Yes, the Oath may have drained her strength. Yes, she may be weak. But so was he. So…was…he.

----

Eryn walked along beside the demonic guard as it led her through Ardariaen's lair.

If this place was in the Above-lands, it would probably be the same size as a small hotel, she thought, slightly awed by her father's massive domain. She frowned slightly. Her father. Because that was what Ardariaen was. Her father. She kicked angrily at a wall as she passed, prompting her Tamget demon escort to jab her in the ribs with a hard appendage. She shot him an angry look.

"Listen, dirtbag, I may have created an Oath of Aureolus with my father saying I'd come here with him and let him kill me, but I never said I wouldn't take out his minions."

The demon, who was preparing to hit her again, paused, confused, then slowly lowered its clawed hand. She nodded to it.

"Thank-you," she said mockingly. Glowering at her, obviously angered by her tone, it hissed a string of curses in its native demonic tongue, insulting her, her mother, her siblings, the Underworld, the Above-lands, and Ardariaen. She tsked at it. "Careful, or I'll tell Dad what you just said about him."

The Tamget brightened - its way of turning pale with fear - and hissed at her questioningly. She smirked at it.

"Of course I know your language. I'm actually related to you, albeit distantly. I had to learn your language. It was one of the things my father insisted all his kids learnt. I was supposed to be the heir to all this…" she gestured around them, "…one day. That was, of course, before he decided it was better to kill me." The demon hissed at her again, and she laughed. "Because I'm too powerful, and too good. That's why."

They walked in silence for a few minutes, then the Tamget hissed at her again. She arched an eyebrow.

"What do you mean, what do I mean?"

It elaborated, its fluoro pink tongue flicking erratically as it spoke. She nodded slowly. "You want to know if I mean good as in better, or good as in Good?" It hissed a query, and she raised her hands defensively.

"Hey, I'm a little rusty where demon languages are concerned. Since half my brethren are trying to kill me, I can't exactly mingle at the demon social nights."

The Tamget gave a high-pitched whistle.

"What, you think that's funny?"

It flicked its 'hands' at her - a nod. She grinned at it. "Well, I guess you're right. And I meant both ways, by the way. Good as in better, and good as in Good. And I am. In a fair fight, I could defeat him" She snorted. "But what do demons like Ardariaen know of fair?"

The Tamget shot her what may have been a sympathetic look, then stopped dead in the middle of the hall they were walking down. She frowned and stopped too.

"What are we doing here?" she asked, looking around. There was nothing in this corridor. No doors to dungeons or rooms, no staircases leading up or down, just…nothing. The Tamget slanted a wary glance at her, then rolled its head on its long, thin, scaled neck - its equivalent of a shrug - and hissed a short phrase at her. She frowned again.

"You're at the end of your jurisdiction?" It nodded, then hissed again, a longer spiel this time, and finished by tapping a small, brass bracelet on its arm appendage. Eryn stared at it, then looked at the bracelet. She'd just assumed it was a decorative piece, but upon closer examination she could see sigils for binding and entrapment adorning the thin band.

"So…you're bound here?" she asked. It flicked its hands in affirmation. "How long?" It made a weird sound, somewhere between a trill and a hiss. "400 years? Are you serious?" It flicked its hands again. She narrowed her eyes. That was off. Ardariaen couldn't possibly have bound the Tamget…not for that long, anyway. Maybe it was a spy, trying to get information of her powers out of her.

"I didn't realise Ardariaen was that old," she said casually, leaning against a wall. It rolled its eyes at her and hissed a reply. She winced.

"Oh. Mathaeri. She did it. Charming." It hissed a query, and she laughed. "No, I never have had the displeasure of meeting my paternal grandmother. She'd kill me herself, probably."

The Tamget opened its mouth to say something further, but closed it with a snap as the sound of another demon coming towards them became apparent. A few seconds later, a large, burly demon with a half-ruined face rounded the corner and came striding towards them. Eryn let her face relax into a grin.

"Didn't realise Ardariaen was using you as a lackey to transport prisoners, now, Ladsfi!" she called to the brown-skinned Kantyth demon.

He arched an eyebrow at her, then glanced at the nervous Tamget. "Why are you letting her lounge around like that?" he asked it in its own tongue.

Before the smaller demon could answer, Eryn said, "Because I reminded him that although I am my father's prisoner, I could still roast him to a crisp if I so choose."

Ladsfi frowned, then looked at the Tamget. It flicked its hands at him frantically, then hissed a panicked question. He sighed.

"Yes, you may go." The Tamget practically flew back the way they came, and Eryn rolled her eyes slightly. He caught the motion, then grabbed her by the arm and began to lead her through still more corridors. For a few minutes Eryn was silent.

"Why the hell why can't we shimmer already?" she asked, pissed off, as they rounded what seemed like the thousandth corner. Ladsfi laughed.

"Because you'd break the shimmer and leave here, that's why!"

Eryn huffed. "I may be good, Ladsfi, but I'm not that good." The older demon sighed.

"Listen, Princess…"

"Don't call me that," Eryn said, her voice low and sad and dangerous. "Do not. Call. Me. That."

Ladsfi sighed again. "Eryn, your father fears you. That's why he wants to kill you. He knows that even if he just took your powers, you would find a way to get them back, and then kill him. If you would just agree to go along with him…then when he dies, you can take over, as he intended for you to do, and you could set things right…"

"What about all the people who would die in the meantime?" Eryn demanded angrily. "All the Witches, humans, Whitelighters that will be killed? I wouldn't be able to just stand by and watch them all die."

"If you die, than so shall they," Ladsfi told her bluntly. "You're father, at his present strength, would not be able to take over the Above-lands and Heavens. Not only does he not have the power, but the Elders of the Clan forbid it…" Eryn gave a mirthless laugh.

"For once, I'm actually praising my family. They're not going to let him do it."

"…but when he has your powers," Ladsfi continued, "They will give him the 'all clear' and let him proceed. The no-one will be able to stop him, not even your twice-blessed friends."

Eryn was quiet for a few minutes, as Ladsfi led her up a set of stairs. "You really think so?" she asked steadily.

Ladsfi nodded. "Did you ever really believe they could help you defeat him?" he asked her. She didn't answer.

There was silence for the next few minutes, then Ladsfi stopped outside an archway. He led her through, into a small antechamber, nodded to the guard, then led her into the second, larger chamber. He led her over to the far wall and set about chaining her to the wall. The chains were deceptively delicate, as were the shackles, but Eryn could feel the magickal energy coursing through them.

"Is this it?" She asked him incredulously, looking around. "All my father's power, and he can't even conjure me up a nice room with a bed?"

"Don't worry, Princess," Ladsfi told her, slipping the key into his pocket. "It won't be for long." She looked at him calmly.

"You know, you should really quit Ardariaen's service, Ladsfi."

He shrugged. "What would I do instead?" She looked down at the ground and didn't reply, and he smirked. "Didn't think you could think of anything for me to do." He turned away from her and walked away. Once he was gone, she lifted her head.

"In answer to your previous question, Ladsfi: yes, I did believe they could help me kill him. And I still do."