by Linsey Hall
I clung to the seat as we bounced along, every inch of exposed skin aching. The souls glowed brighter as they neared, until finally I could pick out individuals. They looked a bit like ghosts, but faceless and even more horrible.
Worse, they brought with them a darkness that made me shudder. It crept into my own soul, making despair fill me. I gasped, trying to focus on something good. Anything good. But I couldn’t.
There was nothing but sadness and misery, spreading through my body like a plague.
“Does it always feel like this?” I shouted.
“Don’t know!” Florencia spurred the horse on, shouting encouragement in Italian. “No one has ever survived the souls. Just rumors.”
No one has ever survived.
We were only on level two. We couldn’t die now.
Not only did we need to survive to save our friends, it would be damned embarrassing to go out this early in the game.
I watched the souls approach, glowing brighter with every yard they came nearer. The horse began to whinny, a sound of terror.
The souls were twenty feet away when the horse shrieked and veered right, trying to avoid them.
But they were fast, darting toward us.
Florencia pulled on the reins, trying to make the horse cut even farther to the right. But he was too slow. “We won’t make it!”
The souls were only fifteen feet away now, so close that I could see the pale shimmer of their forms as they whirled on the wind. Sand howled around us, burning my outside as the souls burned my inside.
My heart thundered as the darkness closed in on my mind. The souls brought with them a dark magic that felt impossible to escape.
But now that they were so close, I could feel their magic even more clearly. It was the opposite of everything I held dear. It was the opposite of me.
And it gave me an idea.
I called upon my power, reaching for the light that was deep within me. This was my core power, the gift from Sulis that gave me the light of life.
I fought against the darkness that spread from the souls, focusing on the light within me.
“Brace yourself!” Florencia shouted.
Muffin hissed.
I ignored them both, zeroing in on the light that was glowing outward from my chest. I let it fill my whole body, then forced it outward, toward the souls.
It blasted from me like an atomic bomb, lighting up the dim yellow world in a flash of light.
Florencia screamed.
I focused on pushing the light toward the souls. It was so bright that I couldn’t see them, but I could feel their dark magic fading away.
I pulled back on my own magic immediately, not wanting to waste it. We had a long way yet to go.
When the glowing light disappeared, I gasped, inspecting my surroundings. The souls had gone, and even the sand had stopped whirling.
Florencia looked at me, eyes wide. “What the hell are you?”
“Dragon God.”
“What’s that?”
I was about to answer when the wind picked up, howling again, carrying even more sand than before. I shut my mouth, but not before I had a mouthful of sand.
Florencia leaned into the wind, driving the horse onward. I glanced back at Muffin.
He grinned at me, fangs glinting in the light. Nice work. I’ve heard that no one has ever driven off the souls before.
I shielded my mouth with my hand. “Let’s hope they stay off. I blasted a ton of magic at them.”
He nodded, then ducked back into the covered wagon.
“How far are we from the shortcut?” Lachlan shouted.
“About halfway there!” Florencia kept her head ducked against the sand, which seemed to be increasing.
It came faster and faster, so much of it that the world nearly turned dark.
“Something is wrong!” Florencia shouted. “Too much sand!”
“I’ve got this!” Lachlan shouted.
Thunder boomed overhead.
Florencia shrieked.
“Don’t worry. I made the lightning!” Lachlan shouted. Rain began to fall, forcing some of the sand down, out of the air.
Florencia began to laugh. “It never rains here!”
Today wasn’t a normal day.
Mud formed beneath the wheels of the wagon, but it kept rolling along, sending up sprays of the stuff. There was still sand whipping through the air, but the rain kept it minimal.
“Yah!” Florencia cracked the reins, and the horse ran faster, cutting through the mud.
With less sand in the air, the journey was easier. We rocked along, the wagon careening around boulders that appeared out of nowhere.
“We’re nearly there!” Florencia shouted. “The terrain is changing.”
The wagon veered right, and the energy in the air changed. There was something active in this area, a vibrating magic that made my hair stand on end.
I looked back toward the wagon to find that Muffin had once again peeked his head through the slit in the leather and was staring into the distance. Feels like we’re close.
“Florencia said we are.” I peered hard into the distance but couldn’t see anything.
A few moments later, Florencia pulled the wagon to a stop. “This is as close as I can get you.”
Muffin climbed onto the main bench and flew into the air, hovering in front of us. I can lead the way from here.
Lachlan and I climbed down off the buggy, and Princess Snowflake III and Bojangles followed.
“Have a good nap?” I asked the little orange cat.
He meowed, blinking sleepily.
I turned back to Florencia. “Thank you.”
She nodded. “Best of luck to you. You’re going to need it.”
Frank and Bill poked their heads out of the wagon.
“Morons,” muttered Frank.
“Idiots,” said Bill.
I waved at them. “Bye!”
They scowled.
I turned to Muffin, who was already fluttering away.
He looked back, green eyes gleaming. Come on! Hell waits for no one!
10
Muffin led us through the desert, his head bowed against the wind. Once again, Bojangles pressed his face into Princess’s thick fur as they trudged across the plain.
Muffin stopped at an area that looked no different than where we’d just been. If the magic hadn’t been stronger here, I would have wondered why we were stopping at all.
“The shortcut is here?” Lachlan asked.
Right below me. Muffin fluttered above a patch of sand that looked the same as all the rest.
I pointed to it. “He says it’s right below him.”
Lachlan frowned. “Quicksand?”
“Could be.”
Bojangles raced forward and leapt onto the sand. Immediately, he sank into it, the tip of his tail disappearing last.
“Looks like you’re right.” I grimaced.
Princess Snowflake had a sour expression on her face, no doubt due to the idea of getting a ton of sand in her fur. It was already a mess from the blowing grains, but I had a feeling the quicksand was going to be a real nightmare.
She stalked forward, her gait stoic, until she began to sink down into the golden sand.
Get a move on. Muffin pointed his tail toward the sand.
I followed Princess, gasping when my foot sank into the sand up to my calf. I glanced back at Lachlan. “See you on the other side.”
This felt just like jumping into the Corryvreckan whirlpool. I hoped I survived this too.
The sand swallowed me up, rising past my knees, waist, shoulders, and finally my head. I took a deep breath and squeezed my eyes shut.
The world went black as I fell, and my stomach leapt into my chest.
When I landed on solid ground, I stumbled, going to my knees. I shook my head and brushed the sand off my eyelids, then opened them.
“Holy fates.”
A world of gold spread out in front of me, endless fields of t
he shining yellow stuff. Mountains of it formed to my left and right, with a plain of gold in front. Even the sky had a yellowish tinge.
Lachlan fell to the ground next to me. He wiped the worst of the sand off his face as he stood. Muffin appeared at my side.
“This is where you ran a heist with Bojangles and Princess Snowflake, isn’t it?” I asked Muffin.
Yep. The whole reason we came to hell.
“A dragon would love this place,” I muttered to him.
No dragons here. Just misers and spendthrifts.
I turned to him. “What?”
“This is level four, where misers and spendthrifts spend eternity.”
I frowned. “I would hardly say that merits a stay on the fourth level of hell.”
This place is from the fourteenth century. They were weird back then.
“Aye, very.” Lachlan inspected the area around us, his keen gaze alert for any dangers.
The gold glittered like the sun, and something tugged at my insides. I wasn’t super into gold like a FireSoul was, but even I was interested in a place like this. It was like my Dragon God side was sitting up and taking notice of all the shiny shiny. My fingertips itched to take something, but I resisted.
There was no question that would go poorly. I’d read enough fairytales to know that.
A massive crash sounded in the distance, and I jumped. The sound was nearly deafening, and I raised my hands to my ears. “What’s that?”
You’ll see. Muffin began to fly ahead. Come on.
I hurried to join him, Lachlan at my side. “Anything I should know about this place?”
Plutus is the boss here.
“Who’s he?”
Greek god of wealth. Not the worst bloke. We ran afoul of him when we tried our heist but made amends. Mostly.
Mostly? “I hope we won’t run into a pissed-off god.”
We might. But we’re cool now. I think.
Great. “I think” was super comforting. I translated the information for Lachlan.
The ground was slick underfoot as we walked, the smooth gold gleaming bright. There was no sun up above that I could see, but somehow there was a yellow glow.
Bojangles raced ahead of us, sliding on the golden ground like he was in Risky Business. Princess Snowflake III stalked around, looking like she owned the place. That was a cat comfortable with luxury. Although luxury might not be the right word, since everything was made of gold. That’d make for some uncomfortable sitting and sleeping.
We skirted around some enormous piles of the glittery stuff, walking toward the sound of massive crashing objects. What was going on up ahead?
Finally, we made it around another huge pile of gold and caught sight of the action.
Two huge golden boulders were rolling toward each other, each pushed by a horde of people. As the boulders got closer and closer together, they picked up speed, until they finally smashed into each other so hard that they shattered, sending huge chunks of gold up into the sky.
They rained down upon us, and I dived left, barely avoiding one of the golden chunks that had to be the size of my torso.
It smashed into the ground next to me, making my bones vibrate.
“Bloody hell, that’s dangerous.” Lachlan climbed to his feet.
You’ve got to be fast.
“Muffin says you’ve got to be fast.”
“Aye, he’s right.”
We have to get to the other side. Don’t get hit.
It was easier said than done. Every few seconds, massive golden boulders were pushed toward each other. They came at uneven intervals, too, so it was hard to judge.
I told Lachlan what we had to do, and he nodded, a grim expression on his face. “Ready to get started?”
“Yeah.” I glanced down at Bojangles and Princes Snowflake III, who were staring at the boulders, ready to run. “Let’s go.”
We sprinted across the smooth golden ground. I felt like Frogger or Mario in one of those old video games as I neared the crashing boulders. They smashed into each other so hard that the air itself seemed to vibrate, and chunks of them flew through the air.
I tried to keep my eye on them, but it wasn’t easy with so many getting thrown around. My heart thundered in my ears as I dived and dodged.
“From the upper left!” Lachlan shouted.
I barely caught sight of the flash of gold in time, diving right to avoid the missile.
Bojangles dodged easily, and Princess Snowflake III used her new fire breath to melt anything that got in her way. At one point, I thought she was just having fun with it, racing toward the smaller boulders that rolled toward her and melting them with her flame.
From above! Muffin’s shriek drew my attention to a huge golden rock that plummeted toward me.
I picked up speed, darting away from it.
More ahead!
He was right. More and more boulders were beginning to roll ahead of us, some seemingly of their own volition.
“We need to be faster!” A surge of magic accompanied Lachlan’s words, and he shifted into his black lion form.
I darted toward him, and he crouched low. I jumped onto his back, and he sprang into action, racing ahead on strong legs. His gait was smooth and fast as he sprinted over the golden ground.
He dodged every boulder that rolled near us. Bojangles leapt over some of them, a big grin on his face, while Princess Snowflake III ran in front of us, clearing some of the way with her fire. When two huge boulders nearly blocked our way, she blasted her fire breath at them, and they melted into a puddle.
She leapt over the melted metal, white fur flying, and Lachlan followed. I clung tightly to his back, desperate not to fall over and land in the melted metal. That’d be a terrible way to go.
Almost there! Muffin flew overhead, darting and diving away from the flying chunks of metal. Watch out on the left.
Lachlan dived right, avoiding the speeding golden boulder.
From above!
I looked up, spotting a huge gold rock flying at us. Instinct drove me, making me reach deep inside for my control over the elements. I sent a blast of wind at the boulder, thinking how crazy the attempt was but trying it anyway. Wind couldn’t be so strong that it would divert a boulder. But it shot out of me, so strong that it blew the boulder away.
“Holy fates.” Awe surged through me as the boulder fell about twenty feet away. Good thing I’d followed that instinct.
I was getting stronger. My magic might still be only halfway there, but that was a definite improvement in my skills. Was it the Morrigan thing?
Lachlan leapt over a huge metal rock, then thundered forward on massive paws. I gripped his mane and crouched low over his back, the wind tearing at my hair.
Finally, we reached the end of the nightmarish video game scenario. Lachlan slowed to a halt, and I tumbled off of him onto shaky knees. I leaned against him, panting.
Muffin landed next to me. Let the man shift, lady.
I blinked. He was right. I stopped using Lachlan as my support structure, and he shifted back into human form.
He scraped a hand through his hair, a weary expression on his face. “Are we through?”
For now. Muffin’s eyes narrowed on something in the distance.
“What is it?”
I don’t know.
A figure walked toward us, gleaming and golden. He looked like he wore a toga of some sort.
I think it’s Plutus. Crap.
“What got him stuck with this shitty job?”
Muffin winced. Don’t let him hear you say that.
As Plutus neared, it became obvious that he was wearing a massive amount of golden jewelry. At first, I thought it might be that he was made of gold, but it seemed like he just had no self-control at the jewelry shop. He definitely didn’t follow that old rule—take one accessory off before you leave the house.
Neither did I, in fairness, but my accessories were always weapons and my job was damned deadly, so I felt justified.
Muffin shifted to stand behind me.
Perfect. That was definitely a good sign.
“That was quite the show.” Plutus’s voice was as smooth as melted gold.
“Thank you?” When I heard the question mark at the end of my words, I almost winced. But what did one say to that?
“Why are you here?” Plutus’s gaze turned to Muffin. “And with the little thief, no less.”
Muffin sauntered out from behind my legs. Good to see you, Plutus.
His brows—which had been painted gold—rose toward his golden hairline. “We’re just going to ignore it, then?”
Works for me.
This conversation wasn’t going well, so I jumped in. “We’re seeking something to help our friends.”
“They must be some friends, if you’re willing to risk the levels of Dante’s Inferno to reach them,” Plutus said.
“They are.” Lachlan looked at me like he’d do anything to save me. It warmed my insides like a big mug of hot cocoa.
It was interesting that Plutus called it Dante’s Inferno. He’d explored the place, but he must have become quite famous here if they started calling it after him.
I was about to ask when Plutus spoke. “How far down are you going?”
“All the way.” I pointed to Muffin. “We have a guide.”
Plutus nodded. “And a good one at that, despite his sticky paws. You just might make it all the way. But I have something that might help you.”
I frowned. “Why would you help us?”
Maybe the question was a bit rude, but I wasn’t used to help from strangers.
“It’s rare that I get such fine entertainment down here.” He played with the heavy golden necklace at his throat. “Though my gold is usually entertainment enough. And I would also like you to get those cats out of here. I quite like where my gold is currently stored. With me.”
Muffin gave a toothy grin. I won’t touch a single ounce.
“Thank you for any assistance,” Lachlan said.
Muffin looked at me. See, that guy knows how to be polite.
A smile emerged on Plutus’s face. He held out his arm, palm up. A golden sword appeared in his hand, and he held it out to Lachlan.
