Order of the Fire Box Set

by P. E. Padilla

  Kate had seen all this before, but one difference made her mouth drop open. He rode some kind of demon beast. It was built like a muscular cat, something like a lion that had been lifting weights for years. Its rear legs were formed like they were from a mountain goat or other hoofed animal, though thicker, but its front two legs were hairless and showed striations of muscle all the way down to the four-taloned claws. A face much like a lion’s, with a mane of flame, swung from side to side, considering the path ahead of them. Its long ears and two goat’s horns swept back from its forehead and seemed to pinch the creature’s eyes so they squinted.

  The monster’s tail demanded Kate’s attention. It was a huge snake with fangs that looked like they could puncture armor. That she could see these details made her realize she was much too close.

  “They seem to be coming to the fortress,” she said. A cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

  “They’re probably just passing by, on their way to the gate,” Peiros said. “I am sure the demon lord knows that Arkith is not here. The mage is probably waiting for him at the gate.”

  “The gate?” Kate asked.

  “Yes, we discussed it briefly when you were…indisposed,” Koren said. “During the battle, I felt my stone change. Actually, what I felt was my stone cease to exist. I think Arkith destroyed it. With that connection gone, I sense the gate more strongly. It’s exactly opposite the demon army, on the other side of the fortress. Peiros is right. They are probably heading there.”

  “Opposite…” Kate murmured. “If they’re opposite from where they’re going, we can take the opportunity to get out of the fortress and head toward the gate. They may not see us.”

  “Exactly,” Koren said.

  “Then let’s hurry,” Kate commanded. “If they see us, we’re done for.”

  The team leaped up, ready to head out. Koren leaned over Jurdan’s body, whispering. Kate thought it was to pay his last respects. When the man straightened, he held Jurdan’s firestone.

  “Good idea,” Kate said. They had collected the other firestones. Hopefully Molara would be able to figure out who they had belonged to. Bringing back a soldier’s firestone was tradition.

  Then Koren slipped the stone around his neck.

  “What are you doing?” Kate asked, her face twisted into a grimace.

  “I am using Jurdan’s stone. Mine has been destroyed, and I lack protection and the ability to harm the demons.”

  “That’s…practical,” Kate said as she sighed. The anger left her in light of the reasonableness of the action. She still didn’t like it, thought it was disrespectful, but it gave them a little edge over Koren fighting without the stone’s protection. “Let’s go. We don’t have much time.”

  She placed her hand on Jurdan’s forehead. It had a few blood smears but somehow remained unmarked by the demon claws and teeth, unlike the rest of his body. She turned and headed for the hallway that would take them to the side of the fortress that was out of view of the army.

  “Pretty Kate,” Aurel said.

  She turned and saw him standing over Jurdan, a confused look on his face.

  “We have to take him back with us. We can’t leave him here to be eaten by demons.”

  Kate’s heart felt like it shattered into pieces and her throat swelled, making it hard to breathe. She swallowed and a small sob escaped her lips. “We can’t, Aurel. We have to flee. He…it will slow us down. We may all die if we try to bring him out.”

  The big man’s eyes got liquid as he nodded solemnly. Then the muscles in his jaw twitched. He tore a tapestry off the wall near where Jurdan’s body lay and in a few quick movements, he wrapped his friend up and threw him over one massive shoulder.

  “He is my friend. He will not slow me down.”

  Kate felt a warm tear trickle down her cheek. “Thank you. Let’s go.”

  Aurel smiled at her, readjusted the body resting on his shoulders, and took off out the door.

  If anyone could run with the body of a full-grown man on his back, it was Aurel. Taking one last look around the room they had paid so dearly to explore, Kate followed her team to the exit.

  The battered heroes sped through the halls, praying that none of the demons saw them when they exited the fortress. Kate wondered if the demons used scouts. Thozrixith did know the humans were in Hell, after all.

  “Make sure to keep an eye out for scouts or stray demons,” she said as they ran. “If they catch sight of us, they’ll run us down.”

  Peiros looked back over his shoulder. “If we can make it over the hill outside the fortress without being seen, we have a good chance in getting away. The army will move more slowly than us.”

  Koren burst through the door to the outside, scanned the area quickly, and turned to the right. Kate’s sense of direction was confused, so she wasn’t sure where he was leading her, but she didn’t argue. Soon, a sally door in the main wall came into view.

  The Black legend fiddled with it for a moment, disengaged the catch, and poked his head out.

  “No demons,” he said. “Not yet.” He paused, as if thinking. “Let’s make a run for it. If we second-guess ourselves, they may reach us.”

  Kate nodded and the man took off running at a full sprint. After the battles and privations they all—and especially he—had suffered, it amazed Kate that he could manage such a feat. The others followed him in the same manner, and Kate brought up the rear.

  Her lungs burned with the perpetually hazy air and her legs grew heavier and hotter. She wasn’t sure if she could keep it up until they crested the hill. It didn’t help that the ground was tilted upward.

  A flash to her left brought her out of her pondering. She was passing Benedict. Aurel was to her right, running almost as fast as she even though he carried Jurdan. Taking a second to look back and scan the fortress, she didn’t see any sign of other life. She hoped that meant that the demon army was exactly on the other side of the fortress, blocked off from her view by the massive stone structure.

  She faced forward again just in time to feel her foot catch on a stone. As she flew through the air, one thing went through her mind and came out of her mouth.

  “Shiiiiiittttttt!”

  35

  Kate’s training took over. She tucked her head and shoulder, landing in a roll. While she didn’t gracefully come to her feet, she was at least able to keep from suffering a head injury. She tumbled several times and skidded to a halt.

  She was on the other side of the hill, still at the top, but out of view of anyone looking from the fortress.

  She hoped.

  The others were around her, all but Koren, who was lying down at the tip of the hill scanning the area around the fortress. He stayed motionless for a long moment, though Kate could almost feel his eyes sweeping over the landscape. Searching.

  While he tried to determine if they had been seen, she got up and dusted herself off, farther down the hill, of course, so she wasn’t skylining herself. She had held onto her shield, thankfully. She was grateful that she opted to carry it rather than to wear it on her back. With a tumble like she had just taken, she might have strangled herself with the strap.

  “I don’t see anything,” Koren said, somehow standing right next to her. She cursed under her breath that she wasn’t paying attention.

  “We’re clear to go,” Koren continued. “As long as we keep a good pace, we’ll soon be too far for them to see us, even when they crest the hill. There’s enough cover with the hills, and it looks to get more abundant as we go farther. The gate is that way.” He pointed just left of straight ahead.

  Kate did a sweep with her own gaze. The rest of the team was there and waiting. They were still breathing hard, but that meant little to these men.

  “Let’s go, then,” she said. “The sooner we can get back to the gate, the sooner we can come up with a way to take out Arkith and his invention.” She squinted her eyes and tilted her head. “Wait a minute. Where is Arkith?”

  “I am
guessing, but I believe he would either be with Thozrixith or already at the gate waiting for him,” Peiros said. “He will not go through the gate without the demon lord, if he can in fact even open it. Even with a secret weapon, his way is not to fight out in the open. He is not a warrior.”

  “Makes sense,” Kate said. But then something else occurred to her. “Wait, we should have taken the anti-firestones. Maybe Molara can study them.”

  “I have them,” Koren said. “I wrapped them in several layers of cloth. I was afraid they’d affect me when I put on Jurdan’s stone, but they don’t seem to. At least, they don’t cause the effects they cause you and Peiros.”

  “That’s good. I’m glad you brought them.” She headed down the hill without another word and her team followed her. At least for a moment. Then Peiros ranged out ahead of her to scout their way.

  That little thing made Kate feel more comfortable, gave her something familiar as a reference point. She still felt lost and overwhelmed, but Peiros scouting for them made her feel like maybe the entire world wasn’t crashing down around them. Not totally. Not just yet.

  The terrain changed again as they made their way toward the gate. Koren sometimes ranged up ahead with Peiros, making minor course adjustments according to his sense of where the gate was.

  As the land through which they traveled became wilder, the group stayed closer together. They really had no choice. Strange plants, ones which Kate couldn’t tell if they were bush or tree or something else, became more common. Rock formations, at first scattered far apart, were all too soon mazes congesting their path even further.

  “Are you sure it’s this way?” Kate asked Koren.

  “Yes.” The look on the former prisoner’s face didn’t look too sure to Kate. She waited to see if he would say anything else. “I haven’t ever seen this in all my times in Hell. I am fairly certain I came through this area before, but it wasn’t like this before.”

  “What does that mean?” Benedict asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Koren said. “It could be some spell Arkith cast, or it could be a natural feature of the place. There is too much we don’t know about Hell.”

  “You still sense the gate, though?” Kate asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Then we’ll keep moving, and once we’re through this, then we can worry about why it’s here.”

  Koren nodded and they plodded on.

  Until Peiros stopped them two hours later by putting his hand up and going motionless.

  Everyone stopped immediately at the gesture. Peiros stood silently for several minutes. Kate had no doubt that his eyes were moving, searching the mangled and twisted branches of the strange vegetation around him for anything moving.

  He finally moved, slowly walking back toward the rest of them.

  “I can hear thoughts,” he said. “There are demons near, but I cannot figure out where they are. I am fairly certain they are on the edge of my range of hearing them, so there is no immediate danger. I want to scout ahead and see if I can pick up any useful information.”

  “Of course,” Kate said. “We’ll wait here.” She took four steps and sat down on a rounded rock three feet tall. Koren muttered something and found himself a place to sit as well. Aurel gently laid Jurdan’s body down and sat on the ground next to it. Benedict and Visimar simply dropped where they had been standing. Taking the opportunity, the entire team fished into their packs for water or snacks, both running dangerously low.

  “I will be back,” Peiros said and slipped into the foliage, disappearing almost immediately without a sound.

  “He’s very good,” Kate said.

  “Yes,” Koren agreed. “One of the best I’ve worked with, and his abilities to hear the demons and translate their language is invaluable.”

  The two shared an uneasy silence for long minutes. Kate’s eyes drooped. She was exhausted from the fighting, the running, from being on edge all the time since getting to Hell. When Koren spoke again, it sounded like his voice was booming and she jerked upright. Had she dozed?

  “You’re doing a good job,” he said, “keeping everyone and everything together. It’s a tough task, especially for one so new to the Black.”

  A good job? “Thank you,” she said, “but pardon me if I disagree. One of my men has died, another almost lost his arm, and we’ve failed the mission I was assigned. That isn’t my definition of a good job.”

  Koren laughed. It was a scornful, pained thing. “I’ve been on teams where much more than that has happened in the first day. You can’t compare a mission into Hell with what one would normally call a successful mission in our world. It’s different here, more dangerous. It’s very rare that a team comes back whole. I’ve never heard of one that did so after being in this place for so long. That we are still alive and able to fight is an extraordinary thing.

  “And as for the mission, well, we’re not done yet. We can still succeed. The situation is fluid, and you are adapting well to it. You should be proud of what you have accomplished. I know Phrixus will be.”

  Kate thought about that for a moment. Was it true, or was the man just trying to bolster her self-esteem so she didn’t fall apart completely?

  “In case you’re wondering if I’m just blowing smoke to make you feel better, don’t. That’s not me, and as far as I’m concerned, it serves no purpose. You can believe that when I tell you something, it’s what I really think. Life’s too short to bandy words.”

  “I…thank you,” Kate said. She wasn’t sure she agreed with him, but it did make her feel better. “I just want to finish this and go home. I appreciate your help and guidance. Thank you for supporting me.”

  Koren smiled. It looked awkward on his face, almost as if he had forgotten how to do it. “Of course. I’m no leader. When someone gains my respect, I’m more comfortable following. When I’m not working alone. You have made me realize that sometimes working with others is a good thing.”

  Those words, coming from that man, made Kate’s heart soar. She wouldn’t tell him, though. The whole thing already felt too awkward. She’d accept it for what it was: a vote of confidence in her and her abilities. It was enough.

  While Kate talked with Koren, she scanned the area for dangers. Aurel was staring at Jurdan’s wrapped body while he ate a bit of his rations. Benedict and Visimar were sitting a few feet apart, but they seemed to be trapped in their own minds, each looking out at the strange vegetation around them. It was something that they were in such close proximity and not fighting. It made Kate hope that they were getting past their mistaken anger at each other.

  Peiros came back a few minutes later, appearing suddenly from the wild foliage.

  “We are close to the gate,” he said. “I don’t know where these plants came from, but I know that I have been here on this very spot before and there was no vegetation. There is a problem we will have to address, however.”

  “What is it?” Kate asked.

  “The mage is there at the gate, apparently waiting for Thozrixith. He has several hundred demons with him.”

  Kate slammed her fist into her palm. “Damn. If only we had full charges on the blinding stones. We could sneak by them and get out the gate without any of the demons seeing us. Once they open it, of course.”

  “Blinding stones?” Koren said. “What blinding stones?”

  Kate explained to him about the gems Molara made for them and how they used them to sneak into Hell during a battle.

  “Molara said it takes her a long time and a lot of power to charge the stones. Even if she was with us, we couldn’t get them powered up so we could use them now.”

  “Can I see one of the stones?” Koren asked.

  “Sure.” She handed one over to him.

  Koren squeezed his eyes shut in concentration. After nearly a minute, he opened them again and handed the stone back to Kate.

  “I think I can help you to recharge the stones, but there will be a cost. Magic doesn’t give up its power easily.”

/>   “Cost?” Kate said. “What cost? If you can charge the stones, it will be worth it.”

  “I believe I can help you, or someone else, to harness the power of your firestone. As we discussed before, though, the energy will actually come from you yourself, from your blood. To charge something like this, it will sap your strength and make you as weak as a kitten. Not the best condition for a human in Hell. Since both stones have to be charged, it may even kill the person who volunteers.”

  “If it’s that dangerous, then two people can use their stones. That should lighten the load.”

  “I’m sorry, Kate, but that’s not how it works. I’ll have to direct the flow of energy, since I’m the only one who knows how. I simply won’t have the strength to do it twice. Maybe you can get by with only one stone charged. Fair warning, though. Even one stone could kill the person lending the energy. I don’t think it will, but I don’t understand fully what the process will entail.”

  “I don’t like the thought of someone dying to power up the blinding stones,” Kate said. She turned to Peiros. “Maybe we’ll come up with something else. Can we move closer to the gate without being seen?”

  “Yes. I found a place that offers concealment and is closer to the gate than we are now.”

  Peiros led them through the peculiar vegetation to an area sheltered not only by the plants but also by a few rock formations.

  Peiros swept his hand out to encompass their surroundings. “This is the area I recognized. I have used these rocks before to hide from demons. It is what made me realize that the plants are a new addition to the terrain.”

  “I wonder what is making them grow. Do you think—” Kate said.

  “Kate,” Peiros interrupted. “Thozrixith’s scouts found some evidence of our passing. The army is coming at us double-time. We need to figure out how to get through the gate.”

  “Is the gate even open?” Kate asked.

  “No, and Arkith’s demons are between us and it anyway,” Benedict said, pointing through the trees.