Strange Fire

by Trina M. Lee

  Arrow stiffened beside me. The slightest tremble of his hands gave away his nerves. But his voice came out steady and strong. “Sorry to disappoint you.”

  A pause. And then a chuckle that made my skin crawl. “Now why might I be disappointed? Because my first-born son has made a mockery of my name in his recent failures?” The taunt dripped with scorn.

  “Fuck this guy,” Jett blurted, glancing at nearby mirrors.

  Our own reflections stared back at us.

  Arrow’s brow grew pinched, and his lips pressed into a thin line. Slowly he turned to survey every mirror in the vicinity. “If you want to shit talk me, at least have the balls to say it to my face.”

  We waited. The atmosphere pulsed with the heavy sense of dread. Arrow shouldn’t have to take this crap from a demon far eviler than Arrow himself could ever be.

  “Alright then.” The voice, closer now, pulled our focus to a mirror behind us.

  A face almost feline peered out at us with slit pupils set in crimson eyes. That angular face was more animal than human. Its fanged mouth grinned with malevolence.

  “Arrow, my son, cast out of your coven? Following the flame bearer around as if you think she’ll really save you?” Rhine’s sinister gaze slid over me before darting back to Arrow. “Such a bitter disappointment you’ve turned out to be. Perhaps your brother will fare better.”

  “If you think Rowen went dark to follow in your footsteps, then you don’t know jack shit about him.” Hands clenched into fists, Arrow spoke through clenched teeth. “He’s nothing like you. I don’t have to know you to know that.”

  “Oh, but you do know me, boy. I’m part of you, like it or not. That’s why you went dark. That’s why you make your living peddling narcotics to junkies while vying for the attention of a deluded audience. It’s why you lust for the same woman as your brother.” Hands appeared in the mirror as Rhine brought them up before him to steeple his fingers in evil contemplation. “I dwell in every part of you. Never make the mistake of believing you can escape yourself, your fate. My fate.”

  “That’s bullshit,” I butt in, unable to keep my mouth shut despite the fear-driven perspiration on my forehead. “Arrow may be dark but he’s not evil. I’ll bring both brothers back to the light. Just fucking see if I don’t, you vile piece of—”

  “Silence, thief.” Rhine’s shout reverberated all around us, bouncing off the mirrored walls until it echoed inside my head. “You won’t live long enough to do shit.”

  My grip tightened on the hilt of the Midnight Star. I raised my arms to swing.

  Arrow stopped me with a hand. “Not yet.” To Rhine, he said, “Why’d you do it? Why father us at all? It just landed you in here, and neither of us will be the heir you hoped we’d be.”

  They stared at one another for a long, strained moment. Rhine regarded Arrow with disdain. However, I got the feeling we were missing something.

  “What can I say, kid? Pussy has lured many a man to hell. And your mother was begging for it.” Rhine smirked, and it was so much like Arrow’s that I blinked a few times in disbelief. “Rowen’s mother though, she wasn’t quite so willing.”

  Bile threatened to rise. What a sick fuck. Jett’s expression matched my own. She looked ready to hurl. It was no secret that demons were evil. We all knew what that meant. Watching them glory in it made the whole sordid thing hit home though. And it was friggin’ hard to process.

  Rowen had been adopted, and I’d often wondered about his biological mother’s choice to give him up. Surely she’d known what he was. Now I knew.

  Not content to relive his memories in only his mind, Rhine drew out his words, as if savoring our revulsion. “Oh, the delights I took from that woman—”

  Arrow lost it. In a fit of sudden temper, he swung a clenched fist at Rhine’s smug face. Both Jett and I lunged for him with a shout. The Midnight Star clattered to the floor as I dropped it to grab hold of Arrow. But he’d already made contact with the face in the mirror.

  Rhine seized his opportunity. He latched onto Arrow and jerked him deeper into the mirror.

  Somewhere in the back of my mind, I puzzled over how bizarre it was that the demons couldn’t escape their solitary holding cells, but they could yank another in there with them. I supposed it would get lonely over time. Misery does love company.

  A growl sounded in my ear as Jett fought to keep her grip on Arrow’s arm. Rhine proved to be strong enough to give the three of us a challenge. Arrow struggled, but it was like trying to push out of quicksand. He only fell further into the mirror, the surface rippling like water.

  Jett and I held tight. Leaving without him was not an option.

  “Spike, do something,” Jett grunted, exerting every bit of wolf strength she possessed. “Throw a fireball in this asshole’s face or something.”

  I couldn’t do that. Not with Arrow in the way. I wasn’t entirely sure a fireball would penetrate the mirror’s surface. Risking a ricochet back into our faces seemed dangerous.

  There was one thing I could do though. It had to be worth a try.

  Concentrating on Arrow, I swiped a little piece of him. It wasn’t the shadows I wanted but his handy ability to freeze things in place.

  “Arrow,” I shouted. “Paralyze him. Now.”

  Daring to take a hand off Arrow, I thrust it toward Rhine and unleashed a matching force. Beneath the mirror’s rippling surface, I could see Rhine stiffen, momentarily paralyzed by the dual blast. His hold on Arrow slipped, and together Jett and I jerked him back.

  Jett let go once Arrow broke free of the mirror, allowing my momentum to pull him off balance. He and I tumbled to the floor in an awkward heap, me atop him. Despite the circumstances I became painfully aware of the heat of him. How soft and hard he felt in all the right places.

  Much to my surprise Arrow chuckled. “I told you a kiss would leave you on the floor, angel girl, but this is a bit of a delayed reaction.”

  “You two kissed?” Jett followed her shock with laughter. “I knew something was up with you guys. I could feel it.”

  I scrambled to my feet, careful not to touch any mirrors. The sensation of Arrow beneath me burned itself into my memory. Crap.

  Rhine threw himself against the mirror in a fit of rage. Fangs bared, he seethed. “It’s only a matter of time until you end up in here with me, Arrow. Go ahead and leave. You’ll be back. You belong here.”

  I picked up my fallen sword and began tapping mirrors to find which archway was passable. “Arrow, come on. Don’t listen to him. We’re getting out of here.”

  With Jett hot on my heels, she reached back to grab Arrow’s shirt, dragging him along.

  He wouldn’t go without making Rhine a promise. “Yeah, I probably do. But Rowen doesn’t. Don’t expect to see him. I’ll never let it happen.”

  Clinging to one another the three of us made our way through the House of Mirrors intent on the exit. My sense of time became skewed. I couldn’t tell how long we’d been in there or how long we’d been in the prison realm at all for that matter. What if we’d missed the alignment? Alarm sang through me. When at last we burst out the exit, I sucked in a deep breath of sulfuric air. And coughed my ass off.

  “I’m ready to go home,” I said between coughs. “How about you guys?”

  “Definitely ready to leave.” To my surprise Arrow had stuck a cigarette between his lips. “Hey, guys, don’t tell Rowen what Rhine said about his mother, ok?”

  Before he could light it, I snatched the smoke and tossed it. “Are you crazy? We can barely breathe here. And for all we know you could set the freakin’ air on fire.”

  Jett remained focused on the exit. “So I’m guessing we go back the way we came then.” Pointing toward the ticket booth, a claw protruded from her fingertip. “Because it looks like they don’t want us to leave.”

  I followed her horrified stare to find four hellhounds blocking the only way out. “Son of a bitch.”

  Unmoved by the row of demon dogs, Arrow cracked hi
s knuckles and grinned. “Good. I have a lot of rage to unleash.”

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Shadows swirled around Arrow as he advanced on the hellhounds. Like snakes each tendril twisted and writhed, creating various shapes before dissolving into another. For just a moment they hovered behind him like wings. Great shadow wings.

  “He’s lost his fucking mind.” Despite this opinion Jett peeled off her tank top. “Goodbye second favorite top. Nice knowing you.”

  I caught the shirt as she tossed it and tucked it into the waistband of my pants. “You’re on your own with the rest.”

  “That idiot is going to get himself killed. Watch our backs.” Naked as fast as one who stripped down often in emergencies can be, Jett shifted to wolf.

  The process happened smooth and fast. The wolf emerged in a strange undulation of her body. In seconds a shaggy brown wolf stood where Jett had just been. It always left me blinking in slight confusion as my brain tried to catch up with what I’d just seen.

  She bounded off after Arrow, feet barely touching the ground in her haste. With the Midnight Star tight in my grasp, I made to go after her. A low growl behind me stopped me in my tracks.

  Slowly I turned to find half-a-dozen snarling hellhounds, ready to tear me to shreds. Mouths filled with deadly fangs, their eyes glowed a macabre red. Big, burly, and black as sin, they were more monster than animal.

  I didn’t give them a chance to act first. I couldn’t. With my free hand I launched a fireball that exploded in front of them. It gave me just enough time to turn and run, drawing them away from Arrow and Jett. Taking on so many at once didn’t seem like good odds.

  The hounds dodged the flames, splitting off into two small packs to come at me from each side. I slashed with the sword at those to my right and threw another fireball at those to the left. It kept them from getting too close but by no means weakened or deterred them.

  Past the circus tent I ran, seeking a way to circle back toward Jett and Arrow in hopes they’d be ready for more by now. Instead the hounds pushed in close, keeping me headed straight. Toward the theatre. When the beasts snarled and snapped but kept their distance, I realized they were herding me. To the theatre? But why?

  The skeletal gatekeeper had said the prison realm would try to find a way to make us stay. Was this such an effort? Shit.

  I skidded to a halt and, with both hands, swung the sword in a wide arc. One hound got too close and tasted the tip of the blade. A gash opened on his side and smoke seeped from the wound. It didn’t stop him from lunging at me though.

  Swinging the sword helped drive them back, but they just kept coming. Every time one would retreat, another would surge forward, inching me closer to the theatre. Another fireball gave me a chance to seek out Jett and Arrow.

  A great distance away, they fought side by side. Two hounds lay unmoving. While Arrow distracted the remaining pair with shadows and paralyzed them in place for the few seconds needed, Jett rushed in and tore their throats out.

  While it was nice to see them working as a team, it sure didn’t help my current predicament. When one hound succeeded in grazing my thigh with those razor-like fangs, I had no choice but to run for the theatre door.

  Blood stained my pants, burning as I ran. Though the wound wasn’t serious, it hurt like a motherfucker. I wrenched open the big wooden theatre door, half expecting it to be locked.

  It swung open so I all but fell inside. I managed to slam it shut right in the face of a hellhound. Breathing hard, sword ready, I turned to take in the theatre. There was no lobby. I stood at the back of the auditorium. The audience was surprisingly full. I presumed the patrons to be demons, but they appeared to be humans in formal dress, like they were having a fancy night out. Several of them turned to shush me.

  What had them so captivated that my sudden appearance was an annoying interruption? The answer awaited on the stage.

  I had to do a double take. Did my eyes deceive me? No, they did not.

  The stage was littered with demons in various states of torture, reenactments of death scenes with no end. The spotlight lit up an iron maiden. The audience watched with hushed wonder as the demon strapped inside was impaled by the spikes in the slowly closing door. Blood gushed from the device to stain the stage floor.

  A demon with a withered body like the Crypt Keeper opened the door with a cackle. The demon inside wailed and shouted. The audience applauded. When his wounds had healed, the door closed on him again.

  Another spotlight illuminated a guillotine. Oh boy. Arms tied behind his back, the demon unfortunate enough for that punishment was subject to the repeated removal of his head. Every time it hit the floor with a sickening thud, his body would reknit itself, and the process would begin again. A decapitation for a demon in the physical realm weakened them enough to send them to the other side for a time. But this was the other side. Part of it anyway.

  A third light over a pool of water held a tightly chained demon beneath the surface. Holy water, I determined, judging by the smoke on the water’s churning surface and the burns covering the demon’s body. He writhed and screamed, mouth open as his lungs filled with the sacred water. Over and over he drowned as he burned. Never to die.

  Yet the audience made the whole thing more sickening. Their delight in watching made me ill. Every time a head dropped or the iron maiden door closed, they burst into applause. Polite applause, like this was the fucking opera.

  The hellhounds would still be outside the front door. Hoping for another exit, I slid along behind the last row of seats, headed for the other side of the auditorium.

  When I was almost there, a man spun around in his seat and grabbed my arm. Red eyes revealed him as demon. He jerked me close, whispering furiously. “Do you know my daughter, Winter? Have you seen her?”

  I shook my head no, afraid to speak. He reeked of desperation and fear.

  “Take this to her. Please. Tell her… Tell her I’m sorry. Tell her it’s the best I can do.” He shoved a black feather into my hand, its tip crusted with dried blood.

  I’d never heard of anyone named Winter, but we female nephilim were a rarity. Perhaps she didn’t exist. Even if she did, she could easily be on the other side of the planet.

  Because his grip on my arm hurt and he was beginning to draw glances from those seated nearby, I took the feather and nodded. It seemed good enough for him because he promptly let go and turned back to the stage.

  I knew demon and angel feathers held potent energy, but I didn’t know much beyond that. Between my fingers it felt like any other feather other than the slight vibration that indicated power. Having a demon feather forced upon me felt like a bad omen.

  As I drew closer to the other side of the auditorium, I made out a door. I prayed it led outside. A few minutes in this place and I was ready to face the hellhounds again.

  Before I could reach for the door handle, someone grabbed my shoulder and spun me around. Dressed like an usher, the demonic creature had sagging flesh that appeared to be melting from its face. It shoved me toward an empty seat.

  “Sit down. You’re missing the show and distracting fellow guests.”

  Is that why so many people sat here watching? Had they come in as visitors and ended up trapped in this theatre, unable to leave?

  “Fuck no.” I slammed the Midnight Star into the demon’s middle.

  Its mouth dropped open but no sound came out.

  Pulling the blade free, I threw the door open.

  And found myself staring into a dark corridor. I took a tentative step inside. The door slammed shut behind me. Trying the handle I found it locked. Of course.

  Well, this sucked. Should’ve stayed outside and faced the hounds.

  I couldn’t see in such absolute darkness. After tucking the demon feather into the hair tie of my ponytail and making sure it was in there good and tight, I created a flame in my palm and used it to light the way.

  The corridor was long and narrow, but from ahead a pair voices call
ed out to me in a language I didn’t recognize. Nerves had me tight with tension. Going back wasn’t an option, so I steeled myself and continued on, making an agonized effort to move quietly.

  I came to the end of the corridor and stepped into… a fortune teller’s tent? Wait, what? Doing a double take, I glanced back the way I’d come to find a tent wall. No corridor.

  Disoriented I took in my new surroundings. The tent was small and dark, lit only by a few strategically placed candles, one of which hung in a candelabra over the table. Seated at the table an old woman regarded me with expectation, like she’d known I’d come. And she was alone. Which didn’t explain the two voices I’d heard. A stack of tarot cards sat before her. A crystal ball in the center of the table glowed an eerie green.

  Though she appeared human I doubted the woman before me possessed a single human gene. Her solid black eyes betrayed her. I doubted this was even her natural form. Perhaps she wasn’t even female. Nothing presented here could be trusted.

  “Ember Evans,” she said, voice rough and raspy. “Daughter of Kai. I’ve been waiting for you.”

  “I’m kind of in a hurry.” Gaze darting about, I almost sighed in relief upon spying a slit in the tent fabric. “My friends will be looking for me.”

  Beaming a suspiciously friendly smile at me, she gestured to the chair across from her. “Please, just a moment of your time. You came all this way after all.” Her unblinking stare creeped me out in the worst way.

  My palm grew slippery with perspiration on the hilt of the Midnight Star. No way was I sheathing it now. “No offense but I’m not really into the card reading and all that jazz. I’m not much of a believer.” I wondered if I could run for the exit without her stopping me. I had a feeling she’d try.

  Like any kind grandma, she laughed softly. “You may not believe in the cards, but they certainly believe in you.”

  Um, ok. “Sorry, but I really should go.” Inching toward the exit, I watched her closely, ready for her to make a move.

  Her friendly demeanor vanished in a blink. Black eyes gleaming with malice, she shouted in a booming, inhuman voice. “Sit down!”