by Meg Xuemei X
The Unseelie king and queen, both of them regal, tall, and fair, strode toward us from the Bethesda Fountain.
The eight-foot bronze sculpture of a winged female angel stood above four small cherubim, carrying a lily in her hand. Water poured from around her feet into the basin. Pyrder informed me that the holy water had healing powers.
Who would have thought this was also the secret first Hell Gate?
My gaze landed on the fae sovereigns.
I could see Reys and Pyrder in both of them. The king had reddish hair and dark turquoise eyes, while the queen had golden hair and light blue eyes.
I moved, trying to hide behind Pyrder, but he pulled me back, his arm wrapped around my waist. “You’ll be fine, Cass baby.”
“How do I look?” I asked. “Uh, have you brought a comb with you?”
“You look stunningly beautiful as usual, dulcis,” Lorcan said beside me. He looked a bit forlorn. He might be thinking of his parents. I squeezed his hand to comfort him, to tell him that I was here for him. Always and forever.
Well, maybe not forever. But I wouldn’t dwell on that now. Or maybe I should, so I could prepare all of my mates for my going away eventually.
The Unseelie king and queen reached us and stopped a few feet from me.
It wouldn’t earn me any points if I slanted a glance at Pyrder’s parents at an angle to show my dominance as I did to everyone who was taller than me.
“Hello,” I said. “Your Majesties.”
The next second, I was wrapped in the queen’s arms. Her warmth and sincerity rippled through me. If I had a true mother, she should have felt like the Unseelie queen.
When we pulled away, she kissed my forehead. “My new daughter, welcome to the family.”
The king smiled at me. “My sons have finally found their mate.”
“Well, that went well,” I said with a grin. “I’ll try my best to be a good mate.”
“You already are, Cass baby,” Pyrder said, a doting smile tugging up the corners of his sensual lips. Maybe I shouldn’t think of anything sexual when his parents stood right in front of us. But I was never the appropriate type and wouldn’t give a fuck about it most of the time.
Alaric and Lorcan nodded at the king and queen.
“Your Majesties,” they greeted.
“King Alaric and High Lord of Night, the bonded brothers to my sons,” the king and queen returned the greeting. “Shall we meet again.”
Alaric and Lorcan nodded again.
“We must go,” Alaric told us.
The fae queen and king fixed their gazes on Pyrder.
“Bring back your brother,” the queen said.
“I promise, Mother,” Pyrder said with a bow.
“Our army will fight whatever comes out of the gate when you all return,” the king said.
The armies of the immortals and mortals had come together, ready for the war that would probably start at the Hell Gate.
I waved at the fae queen and king as my mates whisked me down the granite staircases to the lower terrace.
To the Hell Gate.
CHAPTER 8
The lower Bethesda Terrace had arched entries in every direction.
The walls were divided by a variety of frescos. Portraits of female figures were the most popular. Then a thought occurred to me. There wasn’t any portrayal of the Earth Goddess. There wasn’t any shrine for her, either, not like in the ancient times.
Even though she had awoken to take care of the Earth business and alien gods’ invasion, the mortals hadn’t realized her return. They’d forgotten all about her.
She was but a dusty relic to them now.
At the realization, sadness welled within me. Would I be so easily forgotten after I was gone?
I had no time to dwell on it as we rushed by the paintings. This was my life now—moving from one location to another in such a hurry.
“Can we come back here and hang out just like any normal couple after we get Reys?” I asked.
My mates paused, a surprised expression mixed with regret and guilt settling on their handsome faces. They had never thought that I craved a normal life, since I wasn’t exactly anyone’s regular girl.
But I was a regular, normal girl in a sense, and I wanted everything girls wanted. I liked to paint my nails. I liked to go shopping and watch movies while eating salted and buttered popcorn. I liked to dress pretty and sexy and badass and go to a club. And I liked my hot guys pampering me, telling me jokes and making me laugh.
“We’ll bring you here anytime you want when you’re safe, dulcis,” Lorcan said gently. “We plan to do a lot of things with you while we enjoy eternity with you.”
“Really?” I asked, my eyes sparkling under the gloomy lighting.
“We’ll give you everything you want, sweetheart,” Alaric said, and there was truth in his words. “We’ll even give you the impossible stars.”
“We’ll take a lot of photos of you and us when we come back here,” Pyrder said.
That was something to live for! Even for a little longer.
A twinkle appeared in his blue eyes when the fae prince saw I was laughing happily.
“Just don’t make me go shopping with you,” he added in a playful tone. “You can take Alaric.”
“Cass can take Lorcan,” Alaric said immediately. “The vampire is immune to sunlight now. He’ll enjoy a whole day in the shopping mall.”
All of our companions chuckled.
“Cass checked everything in the stores. Everything!” Ambrosia exclaimed.
“I have a curious mind,” I said. “And what’s wrong with that?”
“Having a curious mind is excellent,” Lorcan said.
My vampire mate earned my heart again.
“She almost wants to buy whole stores,” Hector chortled. “You should see how she bargains.”
Rainer nodded. “I saw that. She bargained on everything and drove the store managers to the edge of suicidal despair.”
“For one, I don’t like to be taken advantage of,” I said. “Two, I’m very careful with my mates’ money. I’m not going to spend their hard-earned money carelessly like some gold-digger!”
Lorcan kissed the top of my head. “You protect your mates’ interests and guard our treasure.”
I grinned. He appreciated my efforts, even though I kind of spent a lot of their money after the bargain.
“And even ten horses couldn’t drag Cass away once she’s in the mall,” Hector added meaningfully.
“Well, stop blaming me,” I barked back. “I just want to live a little. And you should have more passion in life. You should have a hobby, too, Hector! It’ll do you good.”
He laughed.
I just wanted to live a little. They had no idea how it was to be locked in a cage for over a decade and starved. They had no fucking idea that most of the time I’d been all alone, and the only face I’d seen on occasion was the mad woman Jezebel’s.
“The vampire should try the mall’s frozen yogurt and buttered popcorn, our mate’s favorite,” Pyrder said. He didn’t like Lorcan and me getting too tight, so he was taking Alaric’s side when usually the two always argued. “I bet he hasn’t had either for an eon. Cass baby has warned him—if he doesn’t want to be dumped, he’d better catch up with her, as she’s an independent modern woman.”
I winced. I’d said something like that to Lorcan in the early stage of our mating life. I’d told Lorcan firmly, “A hot body can hold my interest for a while, but it won’t last forever.”
The High Lord of Night had grimaced, as no woman had ever said such things to him.
But must my mates remember my every ridiculous comment?
“I’d walk over burning coals for you, dulcis,” Lorcan said. “Would a shopping mall stop me?”
Alaric warned, “Stop saying corny stuff, vampire, or mate will expect all of us to keep saying it.”
“She’s a quick study,” Pyrder also groaned.
“You brought this on yo
urself,” Lorcan said, nonplussed.
“You’re a better male than all of them, Lorcan,” I said, bracing my hands on my hips. “And you alone will be rewarded tonight when we find a shelter in Hell.”
“That’s extremely unfair, Cass baby,” Pyrder said. “You know your happiness is my—”
“Playtime’s over!” Hephaestus cut in. “Entering Hell is a serious business, and I want all of you to take it as such.” He couldn’t stand seeing other people happy, but I was glad he put a stop to my entourage poking fun at me.
The God of Blacksmiths paused before an arched wall with a portrait of a demure female saint in a modest gown.
“This is it,” he announced.
“Are you sure?” I asked. “I didn’t see any gate.”
“You haven’t opened your eyes, Cass,” he said. “As the heir and princess of Hell, you should have spotted it before anyone else.”
I narrowed my eyes. Still, in front of me there was no gate but an arched, framed wall with a portrait of a saint with a long-suffering expression.
“Just do your shit, Hephaestus,” Alaric said.
“Last time I checked, I don’t work for you, demigod,” Hephaestus said, sending me a glance. “If it weren’t for Cass, I wouldn’t even come. Hell isn’t a fun place, I tell ya.”
Alaric rolled his eyes.
Hephaestus fumbled in his backpack, and his large hand pulled out a long black-gold key. He blew a kiss over it, as if asking for luck or forgiveness, and thrust it into the crotch of the painted female saint on the wall.
“Stop being obscene, Hephaestus!” I shouted a warning.
He was an asshole, after all, like all gods, despite the fact he’d sworn fealty to me.
“Hell is obscene, girl,” he said.
He turned the key, and the framed wall transformed into a dark iron gate. It groaned open as if it hadn’t opened for a while.
Even with superior eyesight, my eyes couldn’t penetrate the deep darkness on the other side of the gate, and a chill like no other crawled up my spine.
Hephaestus stalked into the darkness without glancing back at us.
My mates and I traded a look.
They would understand if I turned back.
But I was going to get my Reys and Amber, and no Hell could stop me.
I shoved the chill and fear to the side and stalked after Hephaestus.
Alaric dragged me back. “Mate in the middle with panther. The team on the outer ring. I lead. Vampire brings up the rear.”
Alpha males! I shook my head as my mates and the team got into position.
The Hell Gate sealed, and the mortal world vanished behind us.
“Let me light the way for you, dulcis,” Lorcan said, eager to show off the Earth fire he’d got from me.
He waved a hand, but no blue fire came out. He threw up two hands and got nothing, so he growled in frustration.
“None of your powers will work in the Underworld.” Hephaestus chuckled ahead of us in the dark, enjoying watching my mate get frustrated. “Only gods from the Underworld can wield their power, and of course, the heir should be able to access her power, too. Hell would recognize its own.”
My mates were bonded to me. If I could use my power, they could as well. I remembered that they could even enter the Court of Ice and Wind in another time and space and still survive it.
But there was no use arguing with Hephaestus, though he would love for me to try.
Alaric tossed his hands out to try his luck, and no dragon fire or lightning appeared.
“Told you,” Hephaestus said, gloating.
I threw my hands up, and my tri-fires lit my hair, giving light in the dark.
“Beautiful!” Hephaestus breathed as he turned to look at me.
Alaric growled, as did Lorcan and Pyrder.
“Careful, Hephaestus,” Alaric said. “I won’t enjoy killing you, but I’ll do it if you cross the line.”
Probably only I could kill the smith god with the Blade of Five Elements embedded in the sheath tied to my left thigh.
“I didn’t cross the line!” Hephaestus said. “I have no bad intentions. My heart is pure toward Cass. It’s every common man’s right to admire beauty! And she’s like the little sister I’ve always wanted. There’s so much I can show and teach her.”
Right, everyone wanted to be my mentor. They all thought I was the greenest grasshopper on the big Earth.
My mates summoned their flaming swords, so the lighting improved a lot as we trod through the dark plain.
“Shouldn’t Hell be full of fire?” I asked. “Where are all the fires?”
Maybe I could even eat hellfire and get high?
“We’re only at the edge of Hell,” Hephaestus said. “You’ll see what’s waiting for us in the bowel of the Underworld. Even you won’t like being in the oven, princess. Now, we’re approaching the river of Styx. Where’s your gold coin, fae?”
“What gold coin?” I asked. “I don’t like to waste money.”
Hephaestus slanted me a glance. “You’ll have to spend this gold if you want to cross the river.”
Pyrder pulled out a gold coin the size of his palm. I sensed potent magic in it right away. It wasn’t a regular coin.
“How and where did you get that coin, Pyrder?” I demanded. “And again, why wasn’t I informed?”
“You were nervous when you met Pyrder’s parents,” Alaric said, “so you didn’t pay attention when the fae queen slipped the coin to the prince.”
“Sihde had a deal with the former Lord of the Underworld a long time ago,” Pyrder said. “Fae is the only race that’s permitted to visit the Underworld.”
“And where is this former Lord of the Underworld now?” I asked.
“We’ll find out,” Lorcan said.
“Should we reveal all of the crucial information?” I asked in a hushed voice, darting my eyes around. “What if Hades’s spies are around?”
“The spies usually don’t stay on this side of the river,” Hephaestus said.
“Yeah, right,” Pyrder said. “Last time you said Hades would never come out of the third gate, that it had been abandoned ever since Persephone was kidnapped. Your false information cost me my twin!”
“How is that my fault?” Hephaestus asked. “The spot is the only place where the Blade of Five Elements—”
We shushed him at the same time.
“Keep your big fucking mouth shut, Hephaestus,” Alaric warned before turning to Pyrder. “Summon Charon now. We need to cross before it gets dark.”
“It’s already dark,” Pyrder said, about to toss the coin into the dark water ahead of us.
“Hold your horses!” I called out.
Hephaestus looked at me over his shoulder. “What now, princess?”
“Don’t call me princess,” I said. “I’m a goddess and a dragon.”
“But in Hell, you’re the princess heir,” Hephaestus insisted. “It recognizes you. And we have to bribe Charon with the gold coin to get him to ferry us. There’s no other way.”
“It’s not like I don’t want to spend money,” I said. In truth, I wanted to keep the magical coin. “I’m not the cheap kind,” I added heatedly.
None of my companions looked convinced.
“I just don’t think spending such a good-sized gold coin to cross the river is economical,” I said. “Charon should charge only eighty bucks to ferry us if he refuses to do it for free.”
Hephaestus raised both of his bushy brows. Again, he did it poorly. He really should pay Pyrder for a few tutoring sessions. I’d accept his key to Hell for payment.
“No one has ever argued with Charon on payment as long as Hell has existed,” the smith god drawled. “Not even the Olympian gods. Not even Zeus. This is the only path to the realm of the Underworld, no matter which entrance you use. This is the unbroken rule of Hell and its very tradition. Charon is not an ordinary ferryman. He’s an ancient, powerful archdemon, the Lord of the Styx.”
“Wel
l, too bad for him,” I sniped. “Didn’t Hades name me the heir to the Underworld? So I outrank him. He should carry us for free then.”
“But you haven’t claimed your birthright, sweetheart,” Alaric said. “And you’ll never claim it, because if you do, you’ll be tied to Hell. We won’t allow that to happen.”
“Let’s pay Charon, dulcis,” Lorcan said. “I’ll get you bigger gold coins than Pyrder’s after we fetch Reysalor and get out of here. All the jewelry you desire is yours. You know that, right, dulcis?”
“You have a house full of them, Cass baby,” Pyrder said, ready to toss the coin and waste it.
I moved, faster than a flash of wind, and snatched the coin out of the fae prince’s hand.
“I know that. All that’s yours is mine,” I said, waving the hand that clutched the coin with irritation. “My point is that I won’t play by Hades’s rules.”
“Our mate probably has a new idea,” Alaric said. “She doesn’t like to lose.”
Sometimes the demigod got me more than anyone, except for Reys.
Hephaestus folded his bulky, hairy arms across his chest. “Right.”
I rolled my eyes. “You all have short memories and shorter faith. I’m a dragon! Now, please give me some space.”
Alaric smirked. He was all for not following the death god’s tradition.
Everyone backed away as fast as they could, and they were all fast, while I yelled in pain.
My bones stretched, my flesh tore, and my cells transformed.
The next instant, a massive dragon spread her wings and swayed her blue-scaled tail.
This time, I ruled the dragon as Cass Saélihn. I maintained my coherent thoughts in my dragon head, even though darkness and fire roared inside.
I puffed out a streak of fire toward my companions, signaling them to climb onto my back.
“And that’s what I was talking about,” Hephaestus exclaimed, getting onto my back near my tail after everyone had settled. He rubbed his palms in excitement. “We’re rewriting Hell’s rules! We’re changing the game. Cass is a dragon now, and she’s going to carry us across the famous river of Styx. That’s never been heard of! This would be counted as my most mischievous adventure, and it’ll be recorded in the Olympian history book.”
