Magic caused the war. Magic is forbidden. Magic will save us. The Relic Guild is the award nominated first book in The Relic Guild trilogy.
It was said the Labyrinth had once been the great meeting place, a sprawling city at the heart of an endless...
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They had arrived at Web Street in the western district. The impressive buildings of Western University ran along the entire length of the street, on both sides. The school was four storeys high, and from a few of its tall windows light spilled onto the cobbles. Samuel set off without a word, following the compass in his hand. Clara adjusted the satchel strap on her shoulder and caught up with him. The black tram remained where it was.
'I take it you've done this kind of thing before?' she asked, struggling to keep up with him.
'Once or twice,' Samuel replied. 'Wild demons did exist prior to the Genii War, Clara. But they were much rarer. Before they found a better home in the Retrospective, they lurked in the Nothing of Far and Deep and, occasionally, they would sneak into Labrys Town. They liked to hide in the cargo imported from one House or another. The Relic Guild would hunt them down. Nowadays, it's a job for the police.'
'But we don't want the police involved this time,' Clara said.
'No. It is no ordinary wild demon that has Charlie Hemlock.'
'The Orphan,' Clara whispered. She stopped walking as nerves fluttered in her stomach again. Samuel disappeared into an alley that cut through the school building to the left. She hurried to catch up with him.
'Some demons are more intelligent than others,' he continued. 'The Orphan, though no less a monster, is a demon of habit and purpose. And this isn't its first visit to Labrys Town. This way ...'
He led Clara out of the alley and into a large square recreational courtyard, with benches around the outskirts and a pillar of eyes at the centre. As they headed towards a gate on the opposite side, Samuel explained further.
'Back in the old days, Marney and I encountered the Orphan at a house in the eastern district.'
Clara swore under her breath. The east side of Labrys Town was mostly a residential area, full of families – mothers, fathers, children – and she shuddered to think of a demon lurking among them.
'There were reports from the east side of missing people, random bouts of violent psychosis – all the signs of a wild demon's presence. The Resident sent us to investigate. We found the Orphan and the family it had stored for food.'
'Food?' Clara was repulsed.
'The Orphan feeds on blood, and it takes a long time harvesting what it likes to eat. But to Marney and me it was just a wayward demon that needed sending home.'
'Why didn't you just kill it?'
Samuel gave Clara a quick glance, before saying, 'I'm not even sure it's possible to kill a wild demon, Clara. Not really. Magic can affect them mentally, but not physically. The best you can hope for is to disrupt its connection to this realm, stamp on its fingers so it loses its grip, so to speak.' He gave her another quick look. 'But to do that, you have to get close, within touching distance. Point blank trauma to the head usually works.'
