by Jake Richter
Spence and the others cheered as Ash held her gun up.
Alex rode back over to the others, who dismounted and advanced up a slope toward what was left of the castle.
Camille grabbed the splintered front door and heaved it open, and before Alex could move inside, Minnie offered her sword. “Keep this, it is an extension of you now and may come in handy.” Alex nodded, and stepped inside with the sword in hand leading the way forward.
Once inside, the five fanned out as they moved through a long foyer.
Alex was in the lead, sword out, expecting crazy chaos and ready for anything. Ash shadowed him, finger quivering around the trigger of her gun.
Alex stopped and breathed deeply. The air was tinged with the odor of decomposition and the coppery funk of blood. His body tensed as in his mind's eye he could see everything that was within the castle walls and at the same time see nothing at all. The intersection of everything and nothing was a lonely and desolate place for sure.
Alex would have to rely on his physical power, not his mental strength, but didn’t believe that would be enough. He had to rely on something more. An old family prayer came to mind, something his grandmother used to tell him to soothe his anxieties when he was a child.
Alex whispered the words as he touched the cartouche.
I’m ready to do whatever it takes. I want to get our worlds right. Grant me the power that I need to make it happen. Keep my friends safe, and help us battle to the end and be victorious.
“Alex!” Ash whispered. “Say it aloud!”
Alex nodded. “What is within my power let it shine now. What is not within power, let your power shine now.”
Suddenly, a path of light appeared in the air, guiding the way forward to a black metal door at the end of a long, dark corridor.
“That’s it!” Alex said.
“What’s on the other side?” Spence asked.
“I’m pretty sure you don’t want to know,” Ash said, bringing her gun up.
Everyone in the group tensed with anticipation except for Minnie. She was not afraid, and stepped forward past Alex. Her nose lifted in the air, she sniffed in the direction of the metal door.
“What do you smell?” Ash asked.
“Temptation fairies,” Minnie replied.
“Excitable temptation fairies,” Camille said, correcting her.
Alex looked over. “Excitable?”
The door burst from its hinges and a wave of the ginger-haired fairies appeared. These fairies with their spiked orange-red hair were not for cuddles or wishes to come true. They were tiny sexy warriors with elongated ears and plump juicy lips. Every time their wings fluttered, luminescent sparkles doused with the scent of sandalwood filled the air as they flooded the hallway and attacked Alex and the others.
Alex looked as if he were consumed by light but all he could feel were kisses that felt like hot pin pricks on his skin. He was being seduced by the ginger-haired fairies as they touched every part of his body. “You were right!” Alex shouted. “They’re very excitable!”
Every touch on his body lessened his anger and fury. His mission and purpose quickly began to erode from his mind as the tiny creatures whispered against and kissed him. Their seductive movements made him feel at ease, blissful.
Ash wasn't having any of it. “Minnie!”
Minnie morphed into a temptation fairy and began chattering with the fairies in a nonstop, high-pitched back-and-forth that simply sounded like a song to the rest of the group. The singing continued as Alex watched, mesmerized and still very turned on as most of the temptation fairies continued to smother him with erotic long-lasting kisses behind his ear, against his neck, chest and down to his abdomen. He tensed and relaxed over and over again until shuddering with pure excitement as lust consumed him completely.
Minnie finally broke through and the leader shrieked. The echo of her voice sheered most of the temptation fairies away from Alex, although a few playful ones lingered but finally emerged from his pants with a sweet giggle. A single temptation fairy re-zipped Alex's pants then wended her way up his lengthy body until she reached his mouth. A tiny lingering kiss brought a smile to Alex's face as she joined the other fairies who had gathered behind their leader, a fairy, Minnie said, who was called Simone.
Minnie translated Simone's soft fairy chatter. “Simone will help us, but asks for a prize, a gift.” Alex nodded. “We need all the help we can get. What do they require?”
Minnie blushed. “Me.”
36
Alex shook his head. “No, they can't have you. We need you to help us get the sickle.”
Minnie moved closer to Alex and the group. “I’ll catch up with you. They’ll show you the way.”
Simone hovered next to Minnie. Her touches were already moving against her back and chest.
Simone pointed and the rest of the temptation fairies made their way down the lengthy corridor. They bypassed the first door that Alex had pointed out and went deeper into the belly of the castle.
After a few minutes, the temptation fairies stopped in front of a vault door. More locks than hinges, the steel frame offered no visible signs of a key hole. Alex realized that he was without Minnie, his interpreter, and mimed to the temptation fairies. “How do we get in?”
The little creatures hummed with excitement and again the surrounding area seemed to fill with a sweet song as they buzzed around. Soon their tiny little luminescent bodies formed a key, which hovered in midair for a moment then slowly lifted upward to the very top of the vault door.
A small hole appeared at its apex. It was too small for a human pinky finger but the temptation fairies’ key formation was just the right size, and they slipped inside the hole.
Each temptation fairy disappeared as their 'key' made it through the door until they were all gone, leaving Alex, Ash, Camille, and Spencer by themselves in relative darkness.
Silence rose and consumed them as they stood in the corridor. Then a loud clack sounded as the first driver pin lifted. Then another clack. The pins lifted in quick succession, followed by the sound of the wheel rotating from behind the vault door. The door slowly creaked open. A shaft of temptation-fairy light shone through.
Alex and Ash tugged impatiently on the door as it opened slowly with the speed of frozen molasses. After a minute or so, they were standing inside the vault room.
Alex squinted through the darkness. “Do you see the sickle?”
Ash shook her head. Camille snapped her fingers, and a large flame erupted from the end of her hand that illuminated the interior. Spence’s jaw dropped open. “Um, guys, check that out.”
Alex looked to see that they were inside the castle's treasure room. It contained an eclectic mix of valuable loot: everything from bars of gold to precious jewels, coins, and everything in between. Alex moved through the room and fingered the exotic booty as the temptation fairies buzzed through the air.
Ash grabbed a handful of loot and weighed it in her hands.
Spence splashed into a pool of the coins that shimmered with Camille's constant light source.
Camille stared at Alex. “What's the move, heartbeat?”
Before he could answer, the temptation fairies converged onto a wooden treasure box. Simple but expertly crafted, the mahogany finish was impeccable, the box centered with a single large lock. Alex made his way over and took a deep breath. He tried the lock, but it didn’t give. He turned to the fairies, but they fluttered up and away, hovering, unwilling or unable to open the box.
“We need a key,” Alex said.
Camille raised her gun. “I’ve got one right here.”
Alex shook his head. “We don’t know what’s in it. The sickle could be inside. If we blast it open, we might destroy it or let something terrible out.”
The temptation fairies seemed to agree with Alex's assessment as they hummed an agreeable tune that filled the large space with sweet, sweet song.
Alex lifted the top of the box and saw a single coin.
The
coin was pretty and smooth. It was a jewel fashioned into a flat disc, with the letter 'A' embossed on it in an Old English font. Alex took a moment to hold it in his palm. He could feel a sense of satiation coming from it.
“It’s a rejuvenation coin,” Ash said. “Some are used as currency in the Underworld.”
“What does it do?” Spence asked.
“It multiplies your natural abilities. Everyone has to gather around and touch it.”
They did, their eyes wide with wonder.
They reached out and touched the coin which began to quiver and shake, sending out a pulse of electricity that moved through each of them.
Alex seemed to grow a bit, his biceps bulging. The others stood a little taller, the color better in their faces, as if their vigor had suddenly been restored.
“I feel like a million bucks,” Spence said.
“Ready to kick some ass?” Camille asked.
Spence nodded as Minnie and Simone suddenly appeared.
Minnie had hickeys and love bruises over her body. She was glowing with ecstasy.
Simone, the temptation fairy, kissed Minnie on the cheek and then summoned her fairies to follow her. Their tour guide duties were over.
Alex waved them off, and then referenced his map again. “There are more doors up here.”
Alex and the group continued on. Working their way up a long winding staircase, they arrived on the second level of the castle and were well within the confines of the keep. No sound was coming in and any sounds they made were contained behind the thick stone walls.
There were two doors adjacent to each other. No locks. Alex jiggled the knobs and entered but they were dead ends.
“Empty.”
Alex looked at the map again. “There's one more on this level.” He gripped the handle to the next door. Its frame was askew, but it appeared relatively normal in every other respect.
He reached for another door when Minnie stopped him. “Danger.”
Alex looked at Minnie and then followed her eyes. Above them was another door with a knob. It was like a trap door in a ceiling.
“You think that's it?”
Minnie nodded. “Has to be.”
Ash agreed. “Drop your gear and let's get up there.”
Spence looked over. “What do you have in mind?”
Ash smiled. “We’re going in old-school.”
Alex and the group wasted no time as they formed a human ladder tall enough to grasp the handle. Alex, who was the strongest, became the anchor as he pushed up Camille onto his shoulders. She steadied herself as Minnie did a back flip to gain a position on top of her shoulders. Ash, with all of her aerobatic skill, was the cherry on top as Spence looked on.
Alex grunted but kept the tower of Belles and Ash steady.
Ash was about to turn the knob when she called down to Alex. “Do you sense anything?”
Alex closed his eyes. His efforts were to focus on the contents of the room, and to see anything that might be wrong. But all he felt was a cold breeze that left his mind wide open and without focus.
“I can't sense anything. We need to be ready for anything.”
Ash laughed. “I’ve never felt this before.”
Alex yelled up at her. “What?”
Ash sighed. “Fear.”
The words from Ash distracted Alex and he jostled a bit with a few steps, but Ash held on tightly and pushed against the door. She opened it and used all her strength to pull herself up and inside the doorway.
She leaned down and stretched her arms out. Minnie secured a grip on Ash's arm and pulled herself up. Camille went next, followed by Alex, who reached down to grab Spence who dangled below.
Spence grinned. “Best friends for life, eh?”
Alex nodded. “For whatever life we have left.”
Spence smiled as Alex pulled him up.
They headed up into a darkened room that appeared to be without end. Alex scanned the space, waiting for his eyes to acclimate. The only light came from the open door, but Alex felt something, a disturbance in the air. Before he could react, the door slammed shut and darkness devoured everything.
They were trapped.
37
Alex and the others sat in complete and absolute blackness.
“Please tell me we’ve got a light,” Spence said.
A flame suddenly burst to life.
Camille held her hand up, fire dancing at the end of her fingers. She stood and waved her hands, revealing that the room was indeed vast. Even with Camille’s light, Alex still couldn’t see any walls or roof. He did, however, see drifting pockets of light that rose up and moved past him and the others.
“Lost souls!” Ash gasped.
“Lost souls?” Alex wondered.
Ash nodded. “I’ve run into them before in the Underworld. Rebellious spirits that are trapped between the physical world and the spiritual one. They probably thought they could take refuge down here and got trapped.”
“Are they good or bad?” Spence asked.
“A little in between,” Ash replied.
Alex held up a hand as one of the strands of light drifted through it. “What do you want from me?”
A young nymph-like spirit circled around Alex. “What can you do for us? Can you save us?”
“I don’t know. I don't know what I can do,” Alex replied.
“They need something to be set free,” Ash said.
“Like what?”
Ash looked down to Alex’s pocket and he pulled the coin out.
The nymphs shook their heads violently. “Not the coin,” they said.
Then it dawned on Alex. Maybe what they needed to be set free was a way out. The sickle! He held the map up. “There is a way to get you out of here. If we can find the sickle hidden in this Keep, then we will have the power to free you!”
One of the nymphs danced in front of Alex, “How can we trust you?”
“You have my word,” Alex said firmly.
The other nymphs, the lost souls, laughed and continued to swirl around. “We need proof that your word is good.”
“I don’t have anything else to give you.”
Alex emptied his pockets and the nymph gestured to Alex’s cartouche and took it from him. Her translucent fingers closed around the object. Alex hesitated, realizing what the cartouche signified, a connection with his grandfather. “That’s mine,” he said.
“It’s ours now,” the nymph replied.
Reluctantly, Alex nodded and the lost souls held the cartouche up. The nymph looked down, a ghost of a smile splashed across her face. “The door you seek is close. Number Nine will be your entry. If you pass through, the higher level will be waiting. Hurry and return. Hurry and return!”
The spirits swirled together as a funnel and then disappeared as a shaft of light pulsed across the room, revealing a door at the other end.
The nymph handed the cartouche back to Alex as he led the others to the door which opened to reveal a long, twisting corridor.
Alex motioned to the others and they moved down the corridor.
Spence moved up to Alex. “Hey. What do you think?”
“I’m worried,” Alex said. “My grandfather came to me before. He said one of the rooms here would be guarded by a succubus.”
“What’s that?”
“A female demon who uses sex to destroy men.”
Spence took this in. “And that’s a bad thing how?”
Alex jabbed Spence in the side.
Suddenly, a series of doors that were shaped like numbers caught Alex's attention. They moved down the hallway and stood before a door marked “9.”
Alex turned to Ash. “This is it.”
Ash nodded. “Open it.”
Alex did, revealing another hallway, a long corridor of mirrors that seemed to fit within the shape of the number nine.
The group followed close behind. They easily saw their reflections and the reflections of their reflections.
“Look at that,” A
lex noted, “for each one of us, an infinite number of mirror images of ourselves stretching into forever.”
Camille shook her head. “You don't think we got eyes, heartbeat? This shit is trippy and I don't like it.”
Then she stopped. “Shhh. Do you hear that?”
Ash shook her head. “I don't hear anything.”
Alex looked around. All he saw were the reflections. They were all getting disoriented. He reached for Ash's hand but hit a mirror.
“I’m over here,” Ash yelled, and a thousand Ashes seemed to wave at Alex.
“Stop. No one move.” Alex put up his fist. Each person in the group stood still. Alex moved his head slowly. He sensed something. “Camille is right. I do hear something.”
Alex thought, for a moment, that it might be a signal cast by the sickle. They were close, he could feel it in his bones. If they could just find a way forward, they might be able to find the magic staff and then their journey would be over.
Suddenly, the sound of glass slicing through the air echoed, and Alex felt the air move against his skin. Before he could react, the space around him had converged, sections of glass swinging down and all around him.
Shit!
He was cornered, trapped on all fours by the mirrors. He kicked at the mirror behind him, but couldn’t break it.
All he heard was the faint sounds of the other members of his team, screaming and saying similar things.
They were all trapped.
Walled up inside glass boxes.
38
Alex studied himself and the other reflections of himself in the mirrored glass. He slipped to one knee, head down, trying to figure it out. He pounded on the glass but it wouldn’t give. He shouted at the others, watching his reflection in the glass. The sound of Ash and the others could be heard in the distance.
Looking up, Alex peered down through the never-ending hallway, the glass positioned in such a way that it was filled with images of him.
A door opened at the end of the hallway.
A figure appeared.
His grandfather!
“Alex!” his grandfather shouted, holding up his hand.
