by Diem, J. C.
A hidden door opened halfway down the smaller hallway. Bracing myself for another attack, I relaxed slightly when an imp cautiously poked her head out. Seeing us, she almost withdrew. For a long moment, she was torn, then she gestured for us to approach her.
“Can we trust her?” I said to Sam.
“Do we have a choice?” he responded and looked down at the dead hellcat. “The palace is crawling with these things. She might be able to lead us to the Prince without us being eaten during the journey.”
₪₪₪
Chapter Forty-Four
I left a trail of blood behind me as I limped down the hallway with Sam on my heels. The imp’s eyes darted up and down the passageway as she waited for us to reach her. Without saying a word, she shifted aside to let us through then pulled the door shut.
“Thank you for helping us,” Sam said gratefully.
She stared at him in wonder then reached out to touch his face. They were a marked contrast now. She was as twisted and hideous as he’d once been and now he was very nearly handsome and obviously human. “I had heard the rumors that an imp was seeking redemption,” she said in a bare whisper. “I dared not believe that it was true until now.”
“You can find redemption, too,” he insisted. “It takes only a small amount of bravery to begin the journey.”
That wasn’t exactly true. It had taken a huge amount of guts for him to sneak out through a hellgate beneath his master’s carriage. Leo and I had rescued him from the portal, but he’d already made the decision to leave the underworld on his own.
She shook her head sadly. “I am not brave. I am less than nothing and I am not worthy of redemption.”
“That is what I thought, too,” Sam told her gently. “And look at me now.” He held his arms apart and she looked him up and down longingly. “Other imps have assisted us and I think you want to help us as well.”
Looking at my demonic form, she gulped then nodded. “I will do what I can. What do you wish of me?”
“Is the Prince here?” I asked.
She shook her head. “He let his cats out of their cages in the dungeon several days ago then fled.”
“Do you know where he went?” Sam asked.
“One of the other imps saw his carriage after it left the city.” She took a breath before going on. “It was heading in the direction of the worm riddled Canyons of Chaos that lie between two distant mountain ranges.”
“‘Canyons of Chaos’?” I repeated with a near groan. “Why can’t we visit a field of daffodils for once? Why do we always have to travel to the worst area of every realm?”
“Daffodils do not exist in hell,” the imp told me seriously.
Sam met my gaze and we both had to contain our sniggers. She was helping us and I didn’t want to hurt her feelings by laughing at her. “Okay, we know where to search for the Prince,” I said. “Now I just need to grab the piece of metal from his throne.”
“That will not be easy,” the imp warned me. “Eight hellcats are guarding the throne room. They are watching every entrance.”
“Are there any cats on the upper floors?”
She shook her head. “No. They are only on the lower floor or standing guard outside.”
“Let’s head up to the next floor.” I wanted to view the throne room from above and try to work out a plan.
She led the way up the narrow staircase. The hidden passages were meant to be an escape route, but the Demon Princes would barely be able to fit inside. They were only used in the event of an emergency.
Our guide took us up to the next floor and led us to the balcony that overlooked the throne room. This palace was much larger than the previous ones. Numerous columns supported the ceiling that was high overhead. A gigantic iron candelabra hung from a chain directly over the throne. The flames had gone out days ago and no one could safely enter the room to light them. Torches that were spaced out on the walls below had also gone out.
Sam studied the room below and smiled craftily. “I think I might know a way to retrieve the object,” he whispered. Several large, glassless windows high on the wall behind the throne cast enough gloomy light for him to see.
One of the hellcats flicked an ear. We drew back before it could look up and see us. All eight cats lay facing the entrances on four sides of the throne. They had every angle covered, except one.
“I think I can crawl along that bar and lower myself down to the candelabra,” Sam went on. An iron bar stretched from one side of the balcony to the other. It was only six inches wide. The candelabra was about six feet wide and was made up of several concentric rings.
“What then?” I asked. “It would have to be a thirty foot drop to the throne.”
“I will use an improvised rope.”
Sam was a lot smaller than me and he’d had four centuries to perfect moving quietly. I didn’t like it that he’d be putting himself in danger, but I couldn’t see any other way. Not even Morax could take on eight hellcats alone. He huffed inside my head, but he didn’t deny it. “We’ll need some curtains,” I said. Sam grinned at my capitulation and rubbed his hands together nervously.
“This way,” the imp said and we followed her to a room that had a window facing outwards. Glancing outside, I saw a hellcat lying beneath us. A paw pinned a rat’s body to the ground. As I watched, it tore off a hind leg. Its purr of contentment rumbled up to me as bone crunched between its jaws.
I tore the curtains down and tied the ends together. They would give Sam just enough rope to reach the throne. We returned to the balcony and I took the backpack from Sam. Wrapping the rope around himself, it looked like he was wearing a black toga by the time he was done. I crushed him to me in a hug, lifting him off the ground in the process. “Be careful,” I whispered then put him down.
The imp huddled at my side. She was trembling in fear for my friend as he climbed up onto the iron bar. With far more grace than I could have mustered, Sam walked over to the candelabra. Sliding down the chain, he balanced himself precariously on two of the concentric rings. Then he carefully unwound the curtain and tied one end to the candelabra and began to feed the rope downwards. It stopped a few feet above the throne. He gave it a few yanks to make sure it was secure, then prepared to descend.
My heart was in my throat and I realized I was holding the imp’s hand as he sat down and grabbed hold of the curtain. She squeezed my hand tightly as he pushed himself off. He slid down so slowly and quietly that the cats didn’t know he was there.
He was halfway down the curtain when one of the hellcats lifted its head and sniffed as it caught his scent. It looked around curiously, but it didn’t think to look up. Sweat beaded Sam’s forehead as he watched the feline. It eventually relaxed and resumed staring at the doorways that led to the throne room.
Sliding the rest of the way down, Sam’s feet touched the seat and he froze again. As stealthily as possible, he crouched down and picked up the tarnished piece of metal. I heard it make a faint scraping noise and all eight hellcats went on the alert. One turned, saw Sam and hissed. He shoved the object in his pocket, leapt upwards and grabbed hold of the curtain even as the feline scrambled to its feet.
Judging how close the animals were to him, I knew he wouldn’t be able to climb to safety in time. Releasing the imp’s hand, I dropped the backpack, sprang onto the iron bar and ran over to the candelabra. I didn’t have time to slide down to the curtain, so I dropped down, wrapped my legs around the bar and swung upside down.
Reaching down, I picked up the chain with one hand and drew the candelabra up high enough to grab the curtain. Sam let out a screech of fear as one of the cats launched itself at him. With one hard yank, I pulled him out of its reach. He shot towards me, eyes wide with terror. Letting go of the candelabra, I leaned out and caught him before he could fall again. I tore the curtain off him and left it to dangle from the candelabra. One of the felines reared up on its hind legs and clawed at it, tearing the end to shreds
Growling and hissing,
the hellcats circled us in frustration. Their master must have ordered them to stay in the throne room because they didn’t head for the stairs to hunt us down. His power over them was stronger than their compulsion to hunt.
Sam reached up and I lifted him high enough to grab the iron bar. Visibly shaking at his close call with death, he didn’t try to walk across it this time. Instead, he straddled it and inched his way across. Still hanging upside down, I waited for him to reach the safety of the balcony before I started pulling myself along the narrow bar. When I reached the balcony, I hauled myself upright and vaulted over it.
The imp was watching us both with wide, wondering eyes. “I cannot believe what I just witnessed,” she said in an awed tone.
“This sort of thing is normal for us,” Sam said with a modest shrug.
“Now you can stop worrying that you’ll be useless just because you’re turning into a human again,” I told him as he scooped up the backpack. “You might be losing your camouflage abilities, but your brain works just fine.”
“That is true,” he conceded with a pleased grin as he handed me the silver piece of metal. “It appears that I will still be able to help you, even if my assistance has changed since our first journey to hell together.”
I was relieved that he’d regained his confidence. I’d hated seeing him being so down on himself. Now he knew how invaluable he was to me. He came up with ideas that might not have even occurred to me.
“We should get going,” I said, tucking the object into my pocket. “We’ve probably got a long journey to the Canyons of Chaos.” Just their name was enough to make me shiver in dread.
₪₪₪
Chapter Forty-Five
Our imp guide led us back to the room where we’d stolen the curtains. I glanced outside to see the hellcat was gone. A pool of blood and the chewed bones of the dead rat marked the spot where it had feasted on its prey.
“Thanks for your help,” I said to the twisted little creature.
“You are welcome,” she replied and bobbed her head shyly. Sam hugged her and she stiffened in surprise. Her expression was heartbreakingly wistful as her thin arms came around him in return. I didn’t know how long she’d been trapped in hell, but this was the first act of kindness she’d experienced since her captivity.
At my mental summons, the nightmares appeared with the carriage a short distance below us. Picking Sam up, I cradled him in my arms and leaped out through the window. I landed beside the dead rodent and bounded over to the carriage. A startled yowl issued from a hellcat as it rounded the corner of the palace.
Scarlet eyes rolling, the nightmares shifted restlessly as I yanked the door open and stuffed Sam inside. The shadowy steeds didn’t wait for me to climb all the way in before they took off. Wickedly sharp claws dug into my calf and I was almost pulled back outside. I kicked the hellcat in the face and watched with satisfaction as it tumbled across the arid ground.
Clambering into the carriage, I pulled the door shut just as another feline launched itself at me. It thudded harmlessly into the door and the back wheel bounced over its paws. It’s screech of pain faded behind us as we left the palace grounds.
The nightmares didn’t go far before they stopped and let us out. There were too many demons guarding the gates for us to be able to barrel our way through them. I was going to try a stealthy escape this time.
Thanks to Raziel’s angelic presence inside me, I didn’t heal as quickly now. Blood continued to drip from the wounds the hellcat had given me as I limped my way down through the tiers. We headed in the opposite direction from where we’d entered the city. The nightmares took off, aiming for the main entrance. They would draw our pursuers away, giving us a chance to leave without being noticed, or so I hoped.
Sam watched the sky for the raven and I kept my eye on the cobbled streets for anyone on foot. When we left the top tiers, demons began to appear again. We took shortcuts through their houses to avoid being spotted and finally reached the wall that enclosed the city.
Our exit from the capital city was anticlimactic. No one saw us as I lifted Sam over the wall then scrambled after him. My carriage materialized and Sam climbed inside. “Take us to the Canyons of Chaos,” I said to my nightmares. They exchanged a look then shuddered in tandem. Even they weren’t eager to visit the place.
Hearing the flapping of wings, I ducked just in time to avoid the outstretched talons of the undead raven. It cawed in laughter then circled me from a safe distance. It made no move to call attention to us, which frankly made me suspicious.
Making sure the doors were still covered by the black curtains, I climbed inside and the nightmares took off. Moments later, the raven landed on the roof. I glowered upwards as it paced only inches above my head. Sam’s lips tightened into a grim line. “It is going to hitch a ride with us the entire way to the canyons,” he said.
“Then it’ll fly ahead of us and warn the Prince that we’re coming,” I added glumly. Each trip to hell tested me, but it ended up making me stronger. I’d already faced one worm and the experience had been far from pleasant. Soon, we’d be entering a canyon that was riddled with them. It was bound to be one of the deadliest challenges I’d have to face, but at least I wouldn’t be alone. My best friend would be at my side the entire way.
From my calculations, it took three days to reach the twin mountain ranges. We’d left civilization behind hours ago. To my surprise, we didn’t have a convoy of carriages following in our wake. Maybe our luck was changing for once.
The nightmares came to a stop and we climbed out. We stood at the top of a slope that led down to the Canyons of Chaos. Dozens of protrusions and spires made completely out of black volcanic rock were nestled between two volcanic mountains. Instead of being beautiful and mysterious, they were ugly and disturbing. Gigantic boulders perched dangerously on top of some of them. They didn’t look strong enough to hold their weight. At least the volcanos weren’t active at the moment.
“This has ‘death trap’ written all over it,” Sam said as the nightmares and the carriage disappeared. Pebbles covered the slope, making the journey to the bottom treacherous for anything with wheels. We were going to have to walk down.
Numerous holes dotted the canyon floor. We were destined to venture into the passageways that had been made by the worms. I wasn’t looking forward to it at all. Seeing something small and dark drop into one of the holes, I smirked. The raven might hate my guts, but it had just given me a clue where to search. My smile dropped away when I realized it could also be leading me into a trap.
“Why do you look so grim all of a sudden?” Sam asked.
“I saw the raven drop down into one of the chutes. I’m trying to figure out if we should follow it or not.”
“I would suggest we use another entrance,” he replied without needing to think about it. “Knowing that bird, it is probably trying to lead us directly into danger.”
“I’ll trust your gut with this one,” I decided. “Let’s head down there and we can pick another place to enter the tunnels.”
Starting down the slope, we slid and skidded our way to the bottom. The canyon was long, but fairly narrow. Monoliths loomed over us as we made our way around the worm holes. The opening that the raven had disappeared into was roughly in the center of the canyons. Sam began angling to the right and I trod after him.
Walking as softly as we could, we kept going until Sam came to a stop in front of a hole. “It is going to be very dark down there,” he said with a shudder.
“Not to mention cramped,” I added. He was afraid of being unable to see anything and my claustrophobia would be a hindrance to me.
Slipping his hand into mine, he looked up at me. “You will not be alone down there. I will be with you.”
My smile was wry at his show of support. He was so small and fragile and he was offering me comfort. “Are you ready?” I asked.
“No, but we should not delay any further. You have a Prince to hunt down and kill.”
Picking Sam up, I jumped into the worm hole and landed on the slope twenty feet beneath the ground. I slid to the bottom and caught my balance. Somewhere in the distance, I heard a slithering sound and froze. A worm had heard us and it was coming to investigate.
₪₪₪
Chapter Forty-Six
Putting Sam down, I drew my dagger and transformed it into an axe. It would be my warning when danger was approaching. It wasn’t as lightless in the tunnel as the previous one had been. Light filtered down from the chutes that led to the surface.
Sam held onto my belt loops and was soon panting for air as he struggled to keep up with my far longer strides. Following my instincts, I ducked into the first tunnel we came to. The stench of worm was strong as we headed deeper into the labyrinth of tunnels. I could hear several gigantic bodies moving along the passages. After a while, I realized they were herding us somewhere.
“I have a bad feeling again,” Sam whispered. He was nearly staggering from exhaustion by now.
“So do I,” I agreed. “I think we’re being guided towards a trap.”
“They are leading us to a nest.” His tone was grim and I remembered his warning about the flesh eating insects that kept the nests clean.
Now that we’d figured out their plan, my nervousness grew. I wanted to find somewhere to leave Sam where he would be safe, but there were no safe places down here. He couldn’t camouflage himself against creatures that didn’t use eyes to hunt with. The worms would find him and eat him. Our only option was to keep going and for him to remain with me.
