by J. P. Rice
“You better not be lying,” Aka Manah warned, stepping closer and hovering above me.
“No lie, sir. It’s an honor to be selected.” I figured buttering them up wouldn’t hurt.
“Let’s go,” Aka Manah ordered, and gestured toward the door.
I hustled through the opening and up the steps. Another demon met me at the top and whisked me out the front door. We walked toward a black van with tinted windows. It could not look more like a kidnapping vehicle, which technically it was.
The demon shoved me into the back with the six other recruits including Cheryl, who smiled upon seeing me. He jumped in the passenger seat, and we waited in silence. Aka Manah strolled up to the vehicle and stood outside the driver’s door.
The huge horns on his head shrank, reverting inside his skull. I had wondered how he would fit in the van. The transition ended with just a little nub of his horns peeking out of his head. Once he had taken care of his obstruction, he jumped into the driver’s seat and started the engine.
My second trip inside the demon’s lair was happening. With the first leg out of the way, I focused on how I could get my hands on the Dagda’s Harp or find Ice Heart’s flute.
We drove to the outskirts of Pittsburgh to an area I didn’t recognize. Aka Manah turned into a big open field and drove toward a forest straight ahead. The van slid on the snow and ice, coasting to a stop near the tree line.
I jumped out of the van. Just inside the woods, a glowing burgundy portal stood out amongst the dull colors.
Aka Manah shoved each person into the portal. I walked toward the shimmering red rectangle and Aka Manah palmed the small of my back and pushed.
Chapter 13
The portal constricted my body, squeezing me through to the other side. I’d traveled through teleportation devices before and could only wonder what the virgins were thinking. It was easy to panic when the pressure increased and it felt like your body was being crushed.
The force relented and my eyelids flickered. As dim light flooded in, I was standing in the entrance to the Red Cavern. Several demons were screaming at the recruits to line up for inspection. I took my place in the line and all the memories, all the trauma poured into my head.
Taking a few deep breaths, I hoped to calm myself, but then he walked into the room. King Bres, who was better known around here as Bruceras. I wanted to kill him on the spot.
The devil had a rich background. When my father, King Nuada had lost his arm in battle, he couldn’t remain as king. The king had to be perfect. In an attempt to repair relations with the Fomorians, King Nuada named Bres the new king. Bres was then married to Brighid, my mother. Yeah, my family is pretty fooked up.
Anyway, Bres favored the demonic Fomorians over the Tuatha Dé Denaan and had even put the Dagda to work as a ditch digger. The citizens began to hate the new king. The Celtic physicians had fixed my father’s injury with a new arm and he was restored as king.
Because he was an evil ruler, King Bres and the Fomorians were sent away to a Celtic otherworld to control their behavior. My mother had decided to stay in Ireland, and they split up. Unfortunately, sending them away didn’t work, and they were eventually tossed from the netherworld too. That was when Bres had decided to start his own following and build his own underworld.
He had picked up some of the nastiest creatures the faerie worlds had to offer and brought them here. He had promised the Fomorians revenge on the Celtic Gods of the Tuatha Dé Denaan. But that was a long, long time ago. I assumed his underlings were getting restless by now.
I remembered the feeling of his hand as it hit my shoulder on that fateful day that had changed my life.
The panic started setting in, latching onto my soul and shaking the shit out of it. The overwhelming rush of memories flooded my body, overheating my systems and creating a lightheaded dizziness. I could feel the tingling sensation of Agramon lurking in the far corner of my mind, waiting for a chance to seize on my fear.
I thought I would pass out when Cheryl materialized and joined the line. I found strength in her presence.
My erratic breathing started to return to normal as I stared at the man who had caused me so much pain and suffering. The man who had ordered his minions to pour lava into my sleeping cave, killing our son and daughter. Ack, I couldn’t think about that now, but the memories didn’t want to leave.
I had to quell my hatred for Bres until I found the Harp. Considering I could kill the unsuspecting devil easily, I needed to maintain discipline and resist the urge to conjure a flaming sword and chop his head off. After I obtained the Harp, well, that was a different story.
The last recruit appeared from the portal transfer and Aka Manah materialized next to him. The three demon helpers pushed the man toward the end of the line. Bruceras paced while staring at us with an angry scowl.
Tall, dark, but definitely not handsome. The devil was dressed in a duster that covered his body, but he couldn’t hide his enormous frame completely. Standing a little over seven-feet tall, he probably weighed at least four hundred pounds. The duster stretched around his features. He wasn’t fat, but thick and wide and packing some serious power.
His face was covered in an uneven beard that blended into his short, dark hair slicked with sweat. His obsidian skin stretched with his frowning and bunched up on the bridge of his nose. Brown eyes with burning yellow pupils studied the new humans as he rubbed one of the two button horns on top of his head. The ivory features barely poked through his hair.
The master shifter was hardly ever in his true appearance, which resembled an ugly human. My father had explained what he looked like before he was chased from Ireland. I’d never seen him in that form. It was as if, he had left that person behind when he had been kicked out and started his new persona.
Seven of us stood in a straight line, facing the pacing devil. He pointed to the man next to me. “What is your name?”
“Henry, my lord,” he said. We had been taught to use my lord when talking to a devil.
Bruceras walked purposefully up to the man and punched him in the nose. Blood exploded from his nostrils, his eyes rolled back in his head and the poor schmuck fell on his face.
“Let’s go,” commanded Bruceras. Aka Manah and the three demons surrounded the body. One demon pushed me back to take his place next to the fallen Henry.
“Now,” Bruceras ordered, and the team sprang into action, stomping Henry from head to toe.
Bruceras concentrated on his head, and after a couple firm stomps, the poor victim’s skull cracked. The nasty sound made my stomach roll over. The demons continued the ruthless assault, kicking the life out of poor Henry.
A minute later, an out of breath Bruceras said, “He’s dead.”
Fact check: Henry had been dead for a while. Oh, Henry. A life wasted.
With his lower half speckled in fresh blood, Bruceras said, “That was the wrong answer. And I didn’t like his stupid face. Don’t have to worry about that anymore.” He laughed heartily, and his crew joined in. “Leave the body to serve as a reminder.”
Bruceras pointed at me. “What is your name?”
He clenched his fist, and prepared to bash in my skull.
Chapter 14
I deepened my voice and said, “Whatever you prefer it to be, my lord.”
Bruceras drew back his fist and stopped, taken aback by my response. His arm dropped to his side. “We have a smart one in our midst. Forget who you were. As a human, you are dead. Life in the Red Cavern begins anew. Family, friends, forget about them. All you need is right here. That includes your names. You each will be assigned new ones.”
“If you question a superior, you will be killed,” Bruceras said as he walked down the line, inspecting each recruit. “Be glad you’ve been given a new chance in life. The whole world forgot about you. We did not. We understand struggle. And if you give everything you have to the cause, you will be rewarded mightily. It will take us all working together to achieve our goals.”
Bruceras was playing a little good cop, bad cop with us. He wanted us to understand that our lives were in constant danger if we didn’t follow orders, but we could become valued members of the Red Cavern one day. The cultivation continued.
He ran a few more intimidation tactics to scare us, then began assigning us jobs. He went down the line, rifling off job titles as he pointed at us. The long claw on his index finger stopped on Cheryl. “Kitchen.”
He came to me next, and with his finger in my face, he said, “Kitchen.”
Aka Manah said, “Take them to their quarters first.”
Two minions moved in and grabbed us. They pulled us away, steering us into a dimly lit hallway. The two green demons in hemp outfits positioned themselves behind us and poked us continuously to keep moving. After a few minutes had passed, the demons hissed and one of them grabbed me by the collar.
One demon gestured toward an opening in the wall. As they stuffed us into the entrance, I thought my heart would stop. All the memories of the lava bath rushed into my head and threatened to shut down my systems. A nervous sweat glazed over my body, creating a deep panic in my soul.
Cheryl lowered herself in first and I followed her into the small cave room. I felt like I was trying to breathe with a beach towel wrapped around my mouth and nose. It looked almost exactly like my previous dwelling area. I went down to one knee to counter the dizziness.
My eyes gravitated toward the dim torch hanging on the wall.
Cheryl asked, “Are you all right?” Her soft fingers landed on my scalp and she massaged the back of my head gently.
“Yeah,” I said, trying to come up with an excuse as I rose to my feet. “I’m just a little claustrophobic is all.”
“I can understand that. This place is kind of spooky.”
Before we even had a chance to settle in, a screechy voice sounded from above, “Aka Manah has requested the presence of the woman.”
Cheryl turned to me with wide eyes. I had warned her, but I didn’t know they would start with that right off the bat. She bit her bottom lip, lowered her head and marched shamefully up to the narrow entrance. She gave me one last look that broke my heart, then headed up through the opening.
I remembered the way Bres had treated me. Like an object. And not even one that he valued. He had used me for pleasure and tossed me aside. And the same thing was about to happen to Cheryl. I was powerless to stop it.
The worst part of this business was putting up with depraved behavior to solve a mystery. I compared it to undercover agents who infiltrated the mob. They had to put up with vile, disgusting acts before they could build an airtight case against the crime family. Oftentimes, the agents had to perform the same despicable actions.
It was a strange trade off. Kind of like scraping off a piece of your soul to serve a noble goal. If I saved Cheryl from being raped, that would eliminate any chance of recovering the Dagda’s Harp. Without that, the citizens of Pittsburgh would continue to suffer from the brutal winter conditions. If I saved one person from a heinous act, millions more would suffer.
This game had taught me one thing. Human suffering would never die.
The panic polluting my body started to melt away and I thought about this underworld.
The Red Cavern was an underground realm of demonic creatures. Originally started by King Bres the Fomorian, it had become a major force in the supernatural hierarchy. The Fomorians had been chased out of Ireland but permitted to live in the netherworld called Tir Na Óg.
The rascally Fomorians had caused constant problems in Tir Na Óg until they were told to leave or die. King Bres had taken his people and left, swearing revenge on the Celtic Gods. King Bres and the Fomorians had traveled the world and otherworlds to find an assemblage of creatures to bring to the underworld.
He had plucked creatures from the Seelie and Unseelie Courts to create a powerful following. Over the years, the Red Cavern had grown in size and strength. Even though I had lived here for thirty years, I hadn’t found out as much information as I’d like because they kept some secrets tightly vested.
I knew there were supposed to be thirteen devils, the highest social standing for a demon. However, I’d only seen eight of them, and never more than four together at one time. I hadn’t seen or heard about five of the devils and wondered if some had died over the years. It was a taboo subject among the demons. Although they gave blind allegiance to the thirteen devils, talking about them seemed off limits.
The demons had access to the same technology as humans, but they restricted the use of it greatly. I had to sneak away from my job tasks and watch the internet or television. As much as they hated humans, they studied them to get an understanding of the psyche.
The ultimate goal was to defeat the Celtic Gods in a glorious bloody battle. However, I had noticed that Bres had become complacent. He didn’t run the tightest of ships. Things had been unaccounted for during my previous stay that a normal leader would stay on top of. Like a criminal boss, he was constantly surrounded by creatures that would die for him. Conversely, he probably worried that his underlings were plotting his death.
The devils and Chieftains brainwashed the demons from a young age. Undying servitude had been hammered into their heads from the moment they could understand words. I didn’t know if Bres realized it, but he didn’t have much of a chance in a war with the Gods.
Instead, he irritated them by stealing objects that were important to them, like the Dagda’s Harp. Bres was more of a thorn in the Gods’ sides than a shiv in the back. He annoyed them, but didn’t pose a true threat. He knew that the Celtic Gods had a great interest in Pittsburgh, so he enjoyed pulling shenanigans around the city to piss them off.
Freezing the citizens of Pittsburgh seemed right on brand for the Red Cavern. King Bres would do it just to make the Celtic Gods scramble. Bres and Loki shared a common trait of stirring shit up just to piss off someone else. Brothers in mischief.
Probably why I hated them both.
My guts twisted and I felt a heavy pressure on my head. Uh oh. I fought off the sudden bout of nausea only to have my vision swirl and transport me to my past.
I was peeling potatoes in the kitchen in the Red Cavern. A warm hand landed on my shoulder. Hot, in fact. Helga’s eyes widened and she shook her head in disgust. Before I knew what was happening, the hand tightened on my hemp shirt and yanked me away.
Bruceras pushed me in front of him and poked me in the back to keep me moving. The devil shoved me into a cave with two dying torches. He punched me in the face, dropping me to the ground. He grunted, but it was more of a laugh. He was laughing at me.
I felt blood streaming from my nostrils. He tore my clothes off and shoved me into the corner as I bawled my eyes out. As he approached me the colors swirled again and took me to another cave in the Red Cavern.
I kissed my son and daughter goodnight, but something felt wrong. Whispers echoed from outside the cave, but just ignored them. As I lay back to sleep, I thought about taking my children and leaving the Red Cavern. I had an original mission of finding Lugh’s Spear, but now I just wanted to take care of my children.
I wanted a simple life. Enough of the undercover missions and near-death experiences. Just a mother and her children. I started devising a plan to escape the Red Cavern as my eyelids became heavy.
I woke up and felt like my body was about to explode. I stood up. My eyes had been blinded so I raised my arms above the thick liquid and felt around for my children. I worked my body up and out of the lava and my vision started to return.
Where were my children?
A rustling coming from above broke me out of my flashback. Cheryl’s feet emerged through the opening and landed on the ground. She stumbled over to me with her bottom lip trembling and tears streaming down her cheeks. I reached out and hugged her, wrapping my hand around the back of her neck and massaging it gently.
Her body became dead weight and I knew exactly what she was going through, so I fell with he
r. I nestled up next to her and put my arm under her head. I lay on my back and her head rested on my chest. I rubbed her shoulder and upper arm lovingly.
“He stole my soul,” she said and sobbed.
“I know it feels that way now,” I told her. “It will fade over time.”
She pulled away. “Oh yeah. What the fuck do you know about it?”
I’d forgotten that I was in the form of a man. “My sister. I wanted to kill the son of a bitch. But she stopped me. She didn’t want me going to jail. She saved my life because I would have gone to prison for a very long time.”
“Sounds like she loves you.” She sniffled. “Thought you said you didn’t get along with your family.”
I stared into her frightened green eyes. “Things change and bad things can happen. It’s not important what happened to my sister. What’s important is that you understand everything will be all right. You’ll get your soul back. My sister did.”
“Thanks.” She swallowed and softened her tone. “Sorry I snapped on you.”
“No worries. You can snap all you want.”
“What was her name?” she asked.
“Name?” The question had taken me by surprise.
“Your sister.”
“Oh,” I said. That was another problem with lying. “Karen.”
“Cool,” she said and sniffled again.
Cheryl moved closer and we lay back down. I didn’t say anything. She didn’t need more words from a man. She needed comfort and understanding. I held her firm, letting her know that I was there, that someone would always be there.
An hour passed and I whispered, “You’re going to be okay.”
“I know. I’m going to make that motherfucker pay,” she said in a raspy voice.
“Be careful with that,” I warned even though I wanted her to exact revenge. “I’m all for that move but keep in mind he’s a powerful individual. Don’t do anything foolish.”
