Margit Sandemo: The Ice People 33 - Demon of the Night

The Demon of the Night

The Legend of the Ice People 33 - The Demon of the Night

© Margit Sandemo 1986

© eBook in English: Jentas A/S, 2018

Series: The Legend of The Ice People

Title: The Demon of the Night

Title number: 33

Original title: Nattens demon

Translator: Anna Halager

© Translation: Jentas A/S

ISBN: 978-87-7107-673-8

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition, including this condition, being imposed on the subsequent purchase.

All contracts and agreements regarding the work, translation, editing, and layout are owned by Jentas A/S.

Acknowledgement

The legend of the Ice People is dedicated with love and gratitude to the memory of my dear late husband Asbjorn Sandemo, who made my life a fairy tale.

Margit Sandemo

The Ice People - Reviews

‘Margit Sandemo is, simply, quite wonderful.’

- The Guardian

‘Full of convincing characters, well estabished in time and place, and enlightening ... will get your eyes popping, and quite possibly groins twitching ... these are graphic novels without pictures ... I want to know what happens next.’

- The Times

‘A mixure of myth and legend interwoven with historical events, this is imaginative creation that involves the reader from the first page to the last.’

- Historical Novels Review

‘Loved by the masses, the prolific Margit Sandemo has written over 172 novels to date and is Scandinavia s most widely read author...’

- Scanorama magazine

The Legend of the Ice People

The legend of the Ice People begins many centuries ago with Tengel the Evil. He was ruthless and greedy, and there was only one way to get everything that he wanted: he had to make a pact with the devil. He travelled far into the wilderness and summoned the devil with a magic potion that he had brewed in a pot. Tengel the Evil gained unlimited wealth and power but in exchange, he cursed his own family. One of his descendants in every generation would serve the Devil with evil deeds. When it was done, Tengel buried the pot. If anyone found it, the curse would be broken.

So the curse was passed down through Tengel’s descendants, the Ice People. One person in every generation was born with yellow cat’s eyes, a sign of the curse, and magical powers which they used to serve the Devil. One day the most powerful of all the cursed Ice People would be born.

This is what the legend says. Nobody knows whether it is true, but in the 16th century, a cursed child of the Ice People was born. He tried to turn evil into good, which is why they called him Tengel the Good. This legend is about his family. Actually, it is mostly about the women in his family – the women who held the fate of the Ice People in their hands.

Chapter 1

From 1901, when the previous account of the Ice People ended, we must now return to 1894 in order to learn Vanja’s strange story.

It was an enchanting midnight, cold and clear, in Graastensholm parish. Everybody was asleep except for one couple, who were on their way home from an evening party. They were in lively conversation with each other and paid no attention to their surroundings. If they had turned and looked towards the church they would have had a shock, but their topic – their hosts that evening – was much too absorbing, and they only had eyes for each other.

The church tower stood out against the moonlit sky. Precisely where the lower square tower supported the slender round spire, there was a ledge with four small pinnacles, one in each corner.

But right now, there was also something else on that ledge.

A tall, slim figure was silhouetted in the moonlight. It sat erect as a bird of prey. But it was no bird, nor was it an animal or a human being. It resembled most of all a small chimera, like one of the devilish figures that sit on the cornices of Notre Dame Cathedral to remind unbelievers of what awaits them after this earthly life.

It sat with its knees pulled up and its hands or forepaws clinging to the edge of the tower. Its head rested between raised shoulders, and a pair of vigilant eyes gazed down on the human trash passing beneath it. Its hard eyes followed the two figures but found them of no interest, instead allowing its gaze to glide over the landscape.

The moon wandered slowly and majestically across the firmament.

The two people down there parted and went their separate ways. The parish formerly known as Graastensholm lay deserted in the chilly night.

All of a sudden, the creature took flight, unfolding two black leathery wings, and was on the lookout as it glided over the earth. It was searching for a particular house: Linden Avenue.

The creature was one of the demons of the night. Her name was Lilith. Long ago, she had been the first wife of Adam, created by God long before Eve came into being. She was a creature of the night and independent. Although they had a great many children, she was most definitely not prepared to submit to Adam. Unlike her successor, Eve, Lilith did only what she herself wanted. She knew a secret magical incantation, “Shem Hamephorash,” and when she said it she would disappear into thin air. Adam, who wanted his lovely partner back, asked God for help. God sent two angels to fetch Lilith, but she had grown weary of Adam, who only wanted to rule over her, and she refused to return. Adam got the beautiful and complacent Eve instead. Their sons were then given Lilith’s daughters to choose from. Lilith had a relationship with Adam after he was banished from heaven, but that’s a different story. Since then, she has succeeded in causing much mayhem because she is the ancestress of everything in the underworld. No wonder wood nymphs, mountain kings and elves are so sexually disposed!

The demon of the night found what she was seeking: an old but well-kept farm, approached by an avenue of decaying linden trees. They ought to have been replaced long ago, but the owners didn’t dare to cut them down. They feared that the municipal authority might prohibit them from planting new ones. There was hardly any room left for avenues of trees among all the new houses.

Lilith directed her gaze to the houses ...

She dwelt in the hidden grottos of nightmares. Horrible, twisted edifices inhabited by the grotesque creatures of humankind’s sick fantasies.

Once, many centuries ago, the wickedest creature of all had wandered on earth. A shrivelled little man, who had lived so long that there was nothing human left in him. His name was Tengel the Evil. His evil power was so great that all other shadowy creatures had been subordinated to his will before they had time to grasp what was happening to them. Lilith, with her great need for independence, had loathed this and raged at it, but it was too late. Nothing could be done.

Actually, the demons had nothing against performing evil deeds and were content to obey Tengel the Evil. But they didn’t want to be slaves, which was what they had become.

Then, to their relief, he was gone. He disappeared for hundreds of years, and the nightmare spirits, the many demons of the night, thought that they could breathe freely again.

Then, one day, his dreadful thoughts penetrated their lairs once more. His mind searched until it found Lilith, the arrogant one, whom he had had the greatest pleasure in conquering long ago. His thoughts were admonitory and immensely powerful, and now her will was under his control. She felt proud and honoured to do as he told her.

Her task was to plant one of her offspring, a night demon, in Linden Avenue, where it was to live and report to him about all that the inhabitants did. This would relieve him of the effort of following their thoughts all the time himself. He was preparing to wake up from his slumber, and when that happened he needed to be strong, not worn out from keeping an eye on all his insubordinate descendants. It was only in the Valley of the Ice People that he had to maintain his shadowy presence. It was too much for him to keep an eye on each of his descendants all the time, in case they did anything that didn’t suit him – which, of course, was the case all the time. It might be that one of them was up to something that was extremely dangerous for Tengel the Evil.