by Diem, J. C.
At that thought, twin pairs of glowing crimson eyes appeared a short distance away. The nightmares were made of shadow and pulled a carriage that had once belonged to a Demon Lord. We’d appropriated it and now it bore my face on the door.
When the carriage pulled up alongside us, I was dismayed to see that my picture had changed. My skin was darker and the horns were more pronounced. My eyes were faintly glowing crimson.
Seeing the changes compelled me to check on the wound that I’d received from the Wraith Warrior. I lifted my shirt and jacket to that see the scar on my stomach had worsened. It was thicker and the tendrils had grown slightly. They were slowly writhing, almost as if they were alive.
“I do not like the look of that,” Sam said in a disturbed tone. “Are you in any pain?”
I shook my head and let my clothes fall back into place. “I don’t feel any different yet.” He opened the carriage door for me like he was my lackey and we climbed inside. The plush seats were covered in black leather. “We should avoid as many villages as we can and head straight to the palace,” I decided. I didn’t want to be here any longer than was absolutely necessary.
Telepathic, the nightmares read my thoughts and took off. They went from a trot to a dead gallop in mere seconds. Their hooves made no sound, but the wheels clattered over the hard ground.
Thick black curtains covered the windows. We glanced out every now and then to see small villages in the distance. It wasn’t always possible to avoid them. As we drew closer to the city, they became more and more numerous. Each town held the souls of humans who had sinned enough to be sent here after death. Even above the racket of the wheels, I could sometimes hear their moans and cries of pain as we swept past them. I wasn’t tempted to peer outside to witness their torture.
Eventually, I caught sight of the red beacon that acted as a landmark. It was only a faint spot on the horizon to start with. Each time I stuck my head out the window to check on our progress, it became clearer. Perched high atop the palace, it was the only way I could be sure that the nightmares were carrying us in the correct direction. Neither of them liked me very much. It wouldn’t surprise me if they took us out into the wasteland and left us stranded there.
Sam had his head out the window to check how close we were getting. He pulled back inside to give me an update. “I can see the palace,” he said. At a rough estimate, it had taken us nearly two full days to reach the outskirts of the city that was the capital of the seventh realm.
I pushed my window up to take a look and saw the city ahead. The palace sat on the top of a hill that was shrouded in gloom. A wall surrounded the city. It, and the buildings, were made of the same black rock that all of the structures in hell were made of. The beacon blazed brightly. It was impossible to miss when we were this close.
“We should stop short of the city,” Sam advised. “If the demons see your image on the door, they will realize who is inside. It would be wise for us to avoid drawing attention to ourselves.”
He was right, of course. Having my face on display for everyone to see would make it hard for us to sneak in. The nightmares were already slowing down without me needing to shout the order. Reading my mind, they headed away from the gates to the wall that curved around the city.
We pulled up about half a mile away and climbed out. “Thanks, guys,” I said to the hellhorses. They snorted derisively and disappeared, taking the carriage with them. “That’s what I love about hell,” I said to Sam dryly. “Everyone is so friendly here.” He sniggered nervously and we hurried towards the wall.
Somewhere in the distance, I could hear moans of desolation and cries of pain. I couldn’t see the human souls that were being tortured, but they were somewhere in the vicinity.
We reached the wall without being spotted and examined the slick rock. The fence was only ten feet high. It acted as a boundary rather than a deterrent. No one in their right mind would attack a city full of demons, which said a lot about me when I thought about it. Then again, I wasn’t going to attack the populace. I was just here to take down the prince and to find the object that he was guarding.
“I will give you a boost,” Sam offered. Buildings had been erected only yards away on the other side of the wall. They’d give us cover as we infiltrated the city. He cupped his hands together and lifted me high enough to pull myself up. I leaned down, grabbed his hand and pulled him up beside me. Now that I was back in hell, I could call on the legion’s strength and speed again. I was no longer a puny mortal, but had become Hellscourge, a figure of dread and legend come to life.
In this world, I was able to take on the worst demons and conquer them. Even Hag and Orifice should fear me when I was in this dimension. Luckily for them, they weren’t able to enter the underworld. No angel could ever enter this domain without suffering terrible pain.
₪₪₪
Chapter Twenty-Eight
As each realm grew bigger, so did the population and the cities that surrounded the palaces. Demons didn’t need to sleep, so the streets were never empty. It wasn’t going to be easy to avoid being spotted with so many minions bustling about as they performed their menial tasks.
Starting at the base of the hill, we worked our way up through the winding, random pathways. Sam held my hand and walked with his other hand touching the buildings. Whenever anyone came along, we pressed our backs to the wall and blended in with the stone. Without him, I never would have survived through the ninth realm, let alone have made it this far.
We kept to the narrower streets rather than taking the main road that carriages used. We could hear them rumbling uphill on the cobbled stones in a steady procession. “The Prince must have called a meeting,” I whispered to Sam. Demon Lords and captains were travelling to the palace with their entourages in tow. The place would be crawling with enemies by the time we reached the top of the hill.
“Do you think they know we are here?” he whispered.
I shrugged. “Maybe. I haven’t seen the raven since we left the shadowlands. It acts as the eyes and ears of the Hellmaster. It could have sent a warning to the Prince.”
“Is the new master of hell not aware that the Princes are trying to kill you?”
I’d been thinking about that and had an answer ready. “I think he’s counting on it because he knows that I can kill them. If he really was one of them as we suspect, then I’m killing off his possible rivals.”
“Then why did he try to blast us with lightning when you killed the Prince of the eighth realm?”
“I’m pretty sure it was just for show. He was pretending to be outraged so his minions don’t revolt when they realize how little he cares about whether they live or die.”
“You are probably right,” he said. “Demons do not have any compassion, or the ability to care about anyone except themselves. It would have taken treachery and betrayal for him to have risen so high. If it was possible for him to usurp the true master of the nine realms, then perhaps one of his rivals might be able to topple him off the throne.”
I was still determined to take down all of the princes despite the fact that I would be doing my enemy’s dirty work for him. Having their leader murdered threw the realms into chaos, which could only aid our cause. It was my hope that, even if the gates of hell were busted open, the troops would be in too much disarray to overrun our world.
We climbed up through the tiers until we reached the base of the palace. It was surrounded by a thirty-foot-high wall that neither of us could easily scale. It took us over an hour to walk around the perimeter, searching for a way in that was less populated. The only entrance we found was the main road that carriages were still streaming through.
Ending up back where we’d started, we peered up the wide path to see a large yard surrounding the palace. Guards were stationed every twenty feet or so along the driveway that led to the front entrance. There was nothing to offer us any cover. We weren’t going to be able to sneak past them without being seen.
Carriages we
re lined up in front of the palace. Gray undead nags pulled the ones that belonged to captains. Nightmares pulled the others that belonged to the lords. The nags shifted uneasily at being in close proximity to their shadowy cousins. Nightmares tended to look at other animals as food.
Lords, captains and their entourages of five lackeys each were disembarking from their carriages. They hurried inside the front entrance where a group of guards were keeping watch. Their minions followed them inside.
This palace was three stories high. A tower speared upwards from the center of the building and stretched far into the sky. The scarlet beacon at the top of the tower cast red light on the grounds. We couldn’t see it from this angle, but the prince’s chamber would be on a separate tower that could only be reached by a short walkway.
“We will have to enter the yard and follow the wall to see if there is another entrance that is less well guarded,” Sam whispered.
We slunk into the grounds, making sure to keep in contact with the wall so he could keep us camouflaged. Moving slowly was necessary for us to remain undetected. Although we blended in with the rock seamlessly, the illusion didn’t work quite as well when we were in motion.
The prince had planned well when he’d had the lesser demons build this place. He’d ensured that no one could approach his domain without being seen. It wasn’t just demon sentries that were stationed on all four sides of the palace. Gargoyles were perched on each corner of the roof on all three levels.
They weren’t the same as the stone monsters that were part of the hellgates. These were made of flesh and bone. Squat and ugly, they were black and their faces were vaguely ape-like. Leathery wings wrapped around them, hiding their bodies. Tails with arrow shaped tips were coiled around their clawed feet. They watched the grounds diligently.
“The whole place is being guarded,” I whispered to Sam when we’d performed a full circuit of the property. There were four entrances and all were being watched by soldiers and gargoyles. “How are we going to get inside?”
I felt rather than saw his shrug since we were both camouflaged against the wall. He thought about it then came up with a solution. “We could attempt to slither along the ground.”
“I guess we can give it a try,” I said with great reluctance. The front entrance was the widest and the guards were clustered off to one side. We’d have the best chance of entering through this door without bumping into someone.
My instincts warned me that this was a bad idea, but I couldn’t think of a better one. We sank down to our knees then lay down on our stomachs. It wasn’t easy to coordinate our movements when we had to hold hands the entire time. I made a face at the thought of how encrusted with filth my clothes would be by the time we reached the building.
That concern didn’t last long. We’d only travelled a few yards before I lost contact with Sam. Without his camouflage, I instantly became exposed. A gargoyle swept its eyes across me then went rigid. It stared down at me with its head cocked to the side, trying to figure out what I was. Sam reached for my hand and the creature opened its mouth. We disappeared and blended in with the ground, but it was too late to hide. It gave a high-pitched shriek that alerted guards and gargoyles alike.
“Try to stay still,” Sam said. “Maybe they will not be able to find us.”
I moved my head just enough to look up at the palace. The gargoyle that had spotted me dived off the rooftop. Its wings spread out to reveal a hairy body that was vaguely humanoid. It zoomed towards me with its feet outstretched. I ducked my head and bit back a scream when its claws tore furrows down the entire length of my back.
More gargoyles followed after it, all aiming for us. They couldn’t see me, but they could see my blood that had just splattered on the ground. Guards were running in our direction, confused about what was going on.
Sam realized our cover had been blown and yanked me to my feet. Shouts rang out when we were spotted. We sped back down the road just as a final carriage was entering. We split up and sprinted around either side of it. The Demon Lord looked out the window just as I ran past. The painting on the door was an exact replica of his face. Both wore identical scowls. He roared for his nightmares to stop, inadvertently blocking the entrance just as we squeezed through.
Running full-tilt downhill, Sam reached for my hand. I clasped him tightly and we darted into the first side street that we came to. Passing several buildings, I heard the carriage finally move out of the way and footsteps pounded on the cobblestones. “Quickly, jump through there,” I said, pointing at a window. None of the windows in hell had glass, so we didn’t have to smash our way inside. Only the carriages seemed to have glass. It was probably to keep the dirt out during travelling.
Pushing Sam ahead of me, I dived through the opening and into a dusty room. A table and a few chairs were the only furniture. They were made of the same petrified black wood as the door. Sam took my hand and we hurried out into the hallway. We made our way through to the front door. It faced a narrow, winding pathway and we darted along it to another building.
Entering through doors and windows of buildings at random, we crept away from the palace until we could no longer hear pursuit. We finally stopped for a rest inside a shabby little building and sat down on hard, uncomfortable chairs. Most of the houses that we’d passed through had been empty. Whoever lived in them was hard at work somewhere. They were either lugging stone around to make repairs on the buildings, or they were possibly torturing souls.
“How is your back?” Sam asked.
“It’s healed already, but I’d like to know how my jacket is.” I turned around so he could examine my back. I’d felt the wound close some time ago and only hoped my jacket would also magically repair itself again.
“Your beloved jacket is fine,” he said.
I turned back in time to see him rolling his eyes. “I guess sneaking into the palace is out now that they know we’re here,” I said morosely.
“How are we going to kill the Prince and find the object that he is guarding if we cannot even get into his home?”
Morax had an answer and spoke into my mind. One of the lesser demons believes there is a secret way into the palace.
And he’s only offering this information now? My response was laced with annoyance. Where is this secret entrance?
He has heard that there is a tunnel that leads to the top of the hill. It is rumored to be hidden somewhere in the pit.
I didn’t like the sound of that at all. What pit?
It is where the souls are kept and it is where they are tortured. It is on the outskirts of the city.
Okay, I guess we’ll have to go and check it out. Not that we had much choice about that if we wanted to get into the palace. “I have good news and bad news,” I said to Sam.
“I take it your legion had information for you?” He’d recognized the intent look on my face. It was the one I always had when I was talking to the voices inside my head.
“Yep. Morax says there might be a tunnel that leads to the palace. The downside is that it’s in the pit where the souls are being kept.”
He didn’t look very happy to hear that. “While it is good that we have a solution to our problem, I fear this will not be a pleasant way for us to enter the Prince’s domain.”
₪₪₪
Chapter Twenty-Nine
It wasn’t difficult to find the pit. We just had to follow the moans of anguish and shrieks of pain. They emanated to the right of the gate where we’d entered the city. There was no north, south, east or west here. Left, right and up and down were the only directions that seemed to apply in hell.
Sneaking around without being detected was even harder now that the demons knew we were here. Gargoyles circled overhead as they scoured the city for us. The light was pallid and cast their shadows faintly on the cobbled streets.
Sam kept us camouflaged as often as possible. We ducked into vacant buildings every time we encountered lesser demons. They were out in force, searching for us. I
was pretty sure their intent was to kill rather than to capture. The Hellmaster might want me alive, but the Demon Princes wanted me dead. With their leader right here to punish them if they failed, the minions were wise to obey him rather than the master of hell. He was most likely far away somewhere in the first realm.
We made our way to the wall that enclosed the city and climbed over it. I paused at the top for a moment when I saw the pit. All I saw was a large black hole before I dropped to the ground. It wasn’t safe to linger and gawk. Too many gargoyles had taken to the skies and they could stray in our direction at any time
The edge of the pit was only a short distance away. Up this close, the noise was overwhelming. It was too deep to see inside, but we’d be getting a closer view very shortly.
Hunching over so we were low to the ground, we crept to the edge to peer downward. The pit was vast and it was crammed from wall to wall with souls. On their knees, they were naked and were chained together. Their skin had turned midnight black once they’d been sent here. They were hideous and twisted from all the sins that they’d committed.
It seemed that the worse their sins had been, the greater their torture became. Lesser demons walked among the throng, dispensing hell’s form of justice. They took great delight in spearing their charges with tridents, spears and swords. They weren’t the glowing weapons they used in battle. Instead, they were rusty and cruelly barbed. I saw limbs being severed, guts pulled out and throats slit. Wailing in torment, the souls healed, only to be gored all over again.
Word hadn’t yet spread to the pit that we were on the loose. The demons didn’t look up to check for intruders. It was a long drop to the bottom and there was only one way down. Two soldiers guarded the only ladder. They wore leather armor rather than the sackcloth that the lower level lackeys were forced to wear.
