D’Maeo turns around to face me. “Nice work. How did you do that?”
“I froze the bolts.”
“Good thinking.”
We approach the screaming demon, D’Maeo with his sword raised, me with two flickering hands.
As I hit it in the chest, D’Maeo cuts off the tail that tries to impale me.
Blood soaked sand sprays us and ignites on impact. I throw up my arm to protect my face. “Wow, watch out!”
The demon bends its head to look at the holes in its chest. Its howl is cut short when it goes up in black smoke.
“Sorry about that.” D’Maeo tosses a handful of sand over the smoking spots in my clothes. “There. How’s that?”
I pat my limbs and wipe the sand off. “Better. Although I’m not too crazy about the holes.”
D’Maeo smirks. “Don’t worry about that. You can tell people it’s a fashion statement.”
“Sure.” I turn in all directions. “If only there were people here.”
A chorus of cries sounds in the distance.
D’Maeo starts walking in the opposite direction. “Be careful what you wish for.”
I pick up my Morningstar and follow him. We walk in silence for a while, listening carefully for more demons or other creatures that could jump us. Our heads turn from left to right like security cameras and we take turns scanning the desert behind us.
My head and feet are starting to hurt from the heat.
“What if this desert never ends?” I finally ask. My voice is raw from the drought.
“Every world has a way out. We just have to find it.”
Suddenly my legs collapse and I fall onto my knees in the hot sand. I roll over to avoid getting burned.
D’Maeo stares down at me. “What are you doing?”
“I can’t go on, I need water.”
He sighs as if I’m a spoiled child. “In order to find water, we’ll have to keep moving.”
“Can’t you just apparate to a water source?”
“Only if I know where it is.”
That gives me an idea. I scramble upright. “Maybe you can apparate home and take me with you? Or if you can’t take me, you could go back to Darkwood Manor and open a portal to this world.”
He scratches his beard. “I don’t think that’s possible, but it’s worth a try. Let me see if I can get there alone first.”
“Wait!” I place my hand on his arm. “What if you can’t get back? I might be stuck here alone.”
He licks his lips and bobs his head. “Okay, you’re right. Hold on to me.”
I grab his arm with both hands and wait.
With his eyes on the sky, the old ghost stands very still. Then, without warning, it feels like something yanks me off my feet. Everything around me goes dark and there’s a buzz in my ear. An invisible force pulls me up by the waist.
Then, with a jolt I come to a halt. My hands slip from D’Maeo’s arm and gravity pulls me back down. I want to ask what’s going on, but within a second, I’m lying on my back in the sand, under the highly annoying red sun again.
When I blink against the bright light, D’Maeo comes into view, falling from the sky.
I gasp when his body splits into five versions of him, every new one vaguer than the last. While the first three follow the original, the fourth copy is pulled back up by a dark shape that appears out of nowhere. It blocks the sun for a second and the sight of it makes my skin itch. My mouth goes even drier when it vanishes into the light, taking the pale copy of D’Maeo with it.
As the old ghost drops down next to me, the other three versions of him are sucked back into his body one by one, making him clearer and clearer.
I turn onto my side and shake him. “Are you okay?”
When he doesn’t open his eyes, a ton of bricks lands in my stomach. Oh no, I killed him. I killed the leader of my Shield.
Wiping the sand off his face, I whisper softly. “Please don’t be dead, please don’t be dead.”
Just when I consider hauling him over my shoulder and walking until I find a way out, he stirs.
With gritted teeth, he pushes himself up into a sitting position. “I was dead to begin with, Dante.”
He coughs and touches his head. “I’m a bit dizzy. That’s not a good sign.” Slowly he turns his tired gaze on me. “What happened?”
Tears of panic still burn in my eyes. “Your body split. It was like parts of you were pulled out, or…” I search for words. “Or like your soul was separated by something.”
He looks down at his body and lets out a heavy sigh. “Did something dark and sinister take it?”
My mouth falls open. “Well… It was… I mean… Yes, there was a… a dark shape.” I shake my head to get my thoughts in order. “You know what it was?”
“Not really, but I’ve seen it before. It’s the thing that killed me. It’s been trying to rip my soul apart ever since. So far with limited success.”
“And now it got another piece because of me! Dammit!” I hit the sand as hard as I can. It doesn’t relieve me one bit, because it only creates a soft hole. What I need is something solid to punch. Like a demon.
Hauling myself back onto my feet, I scream as loud as I can. With clenched fists I wait for an answer, but everything stays quiet.
D’Maeo stands up with a groan and searches the endless mass of sand with me. “That dark thing probably scared every other monster away.”
A tear escapes my eye. “I’m so sorry, D’Maeo. If I’d known…”
“It’s fine, son. You couldn’t have known. I probably should’ve told you about that thing sooner, in case it ever attacked.” He shakes the sand out of his hair. “Not that I have any idea how to fight it.”
“We can search the pentaweb when we get back. Once we know what it is, we can find out how to defeat it and get the rest of your soul back.”
D’Maeo starts walking again. “No need to rush. There are more important things to take care of first. The black void, as I call it, seems to have difficulties reaching me. It only attacks when something disturbs my usual state, so to speak.”
When I frown, he explains, “Like just now, when I tried to leave. Obviously there’s no way to apparate out of this world, this circle of Hell. Which makes sense, because otherwise all the dead here would go back to Earth. So when I hit the barrier, my state of being was disrupted for a second. That’s when the black void grabbed it’s opportunity.”
I take out my Morningstar and swing it as hard as I can. It lands in the sand with a thud and I press the button to reel it in. As soon as it clicks back in place, I swing it again.
While we walk on, D’Maeo watches silently as I launch my weapon with all my force again and again. Although there’s no one to attack, it makes me feel better.
CHAPTER 32
“So,” I say after a while. “What happened that day?”
He seems to understand what I mean, because he starts talking immediately.
“I was on a job, investigating a case.” He pauses for a second. “Did I tell you what I used to do?”
“I don’t think so.”
“I was a magiporter.”
“A what?”
“A magical transporter. I delivered magical goods.”
That was not the answer I was expecting. “Illegal goods?”
“No, but they were often dangerous and they needed an expert to make sure nothing happened on the way, and to ensure that no non-magics saw it.”
“So you were sort of undercover?” I gesture at his neat black suit. “Is that why you dressed like this?”
“Yes, and because a good look enforces respect. There was also a hat, but I lost it when the trains collided.”
“Did you see it coming? Were you close to them when it happened?”
“Very close. Hang on, I’ll show you.” He stands still and places a hand on my arm.
I take a quick look around to make sure we’re st
ill alone.
“Don’t worry,” the old ghost says. “I’ll keep watch and pull you out when something approaches. Just relax.”
It’s hard to let my guard down, but there’s already a flash and everything around me changes.
After swallowing the nausea hitting me, I blink until the world becomes clear again.
I’m standing next to D’Maeo, who looks almost exactly like he does in my time, only less pale and more solid. A black hat with a soft brim and indented crown, like the one Indiana Jones wears, is placed loosely on his head. His right hand rests on a large leather suitcase. Dark lines run along the light brown fabric, as if something scratched it. There’s also a blotch of red next to the lock.
The gray-haired man doesn’t see me, as nobody here does.
For a moment, all the colorful people around me draw my attention. There are psychedelic patterns and patchwork motifs everywhere, covering the travelers waiting for the train. The women are dressed in long, straight-cut pants and bright skirts and the men wear tunics and capes.
I feel like Marty McFly, arriving in another time and place. Too bad I’m about to witness a train accident.
As if on cue, there’s a loud screech behind me. Everyone turns at the same time and freezes.
Further along the railway four wagons are pushed off the tracks. From three of them shouts of fear rise up and people around me clasp their hands over their mouths in shock.
D’Maeo glances at the suitcase next to him. He hesitates for only a second. Then he picks up his baggage and runs towards the wreckage. A couple of people, including me, follow him.
Before we reach the scene, two carriages slide down the steep embankments on the side of the rail bed. Frightened faces smash against the windows and people reach out to us through broken glass.
I wish I could apparate, so I could get everyone out of there. Total chaos erupts around me as people climb down after the wagons, while passengers try to make their way out of another car that has come to a halt beside the railroad.
D’Maeo is the only one who runs straight past all of them, to the second train.
My mouth falls open when I see the shape the locomotive is in. The metal has been bent in impossible ways, making it look more like a giant accordion than a train. Smoke billows up and loose parts of metal screech as they sway from left to right. I’m guessing that whoever was in there, is no longer alive.
D’Maeo seems to be thinking the same thing. He’s still walking, his gaze fixed on the last car. His suitcase is moving in his hand and now and then he bends over to listen.
“Please don’t let me be too late,” he mumbles to himself.
The train next to us moans and creaks and the old man quickens his step. “No, no, no, no.”
I fall back a bit, reluctant to meet the black void he spoke about. If it’s as powerful as it seems, it might be able to hurt me, even though I’m not really here.
I might just be scaring myself, but I’m not willing to take a chance on this. I like being alive and I prefer my soul to be kept intact, thank you very much.
D’Maeo doesn’t seem scared at all, just worried. It makes me wonder how many dangerous situations he’s found himself in already. Probably a lot, considering what he does for a living.
Hesitation is a word he’s not familiar with. Not yet, at least.
Finally he slows down. He’s hardly panting from the run and there’s no sweat under the rim of his hat. He places the suitcase on the ground beside the last wagon and reaches for the lock.
Without warning, the crack in the roof of the car expands. A huge, black figure pushes itself out with a loud crash. It shoots towards D’Maeo with the speed of lightning, and hits him in the chest. The magiporter topples backwards, groaning. His hat flies off and tumbles down the slope. The black cloud soars into the sky. Within seconds, it is no more than a small speck high above us.
It’s like someone unmutes the world around me. Sirens wail in the distance and the screaming and crying of the passengers reach my ears again. The roof of the last car creaks loudly, before giving in.
When I turn my head, D’Maeo is lying on the ground, with both hands on his chest.
I kneel next to him, but when I want to lift his shirt, I realize I can’t. I’m not really here, I’m just an observer.
“It’ll be okay,” I say to the old man. “We’ll find a solution.”
“Incoming demons,” he answers without moving his lips.
I frown. “What?”
“I’m pulling you back.”
Something pulls at my waist and a second later I’m in the smoking dessert again. D’Maeo’s ghost form points at a shape bouncing our way.
I take a deep breath and swallow a couple of times to calm my stomach. “Can you apparate us a couple of miles away?”
“Bit by bit, sure. But we might run into more monsters.”
“That’s a risk we’ll have to take. I’m ready to get out of here.”
He grabs my arm tighter. “So am I.”
As soon as we land, D’Maeo takes off again. And again. It’s like jumping with the Hulk and it makes me nauseous and dizzy.
“Hang on for a second,” I breathe when we touch ground again.
I let go of him, but grab him firmly only half a second later when I see where we’re standing. “What on earth is this?”
The old ghost remains remarkably calm. “This looks like the place where the violent are punished for their sins.”
I gulp. “By boiling them in blood?”
His face is grim when he nods. “That’s what it looks like.”
Although I want nothing more than to get out of here as fast as possible, I can’t tear my gaze from the wriggling and moaning people in the red lake. Every few seconds they are pulled under by something invisible, to resurface with scorched faces, screaming soundless words. They constantly push each other under in their attempts to get out, but there’s no escaping their punishment. One by one, they reach the high shore, but none are able to get out. They can find no hold in the mud, no matter how hard they pull. Every time they reach the surface, their skin heals and they burn all over again. The smell of smoldering flesh and blood is sickening and I can almost feel their fear and pain.
“Watch out!” D’Maeo suddenly yells.
There’s no time to react. Something hits me in the back and I fall forward, arms flailing.
For a moment, I’m relieved to hit the ground instead of the water, but before I can even blink, hands grab me where they can. They pull themselves up, while I slowly slide closer to the lake of blood. I try to steady myself, but more and more people dig their nails into my skin.
D’Maeo pushes them back in, but there are too many. Exhilarated cries fill the air as one by one the sinners escape their fate. Meanwhile, D’Maeo is trying to pull me back by my feet.
“Hold on!” he calls out. “There’s only a few of them left.”
While the last of the punished haul themselves out of the lake, I slide further forward. My face is now above the boiling blood. The heat stings my eyes and makes it hard to breathe.
Beside me countless people lie in the mud, panting hard. Their smoldering wounds slowly heal and relieved smiles creep upon their faces.
D’Maeo pulls the woman next to me out of the way and holds out his hand. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
I yank my arm out of the mud and reach for his hand. What happens next seems to unfold in slow motion.
A giant fish jumps out of the lake. It has arms instead of fins protruding from its sides. With one swift motion, it grabs D’Maeo and vanishes into the boiling blood.
“Nooo!” I yell with all my might.
The sinners around me crawl backwards, out of reach, in case the fish comes back. I want to follow their example, but my body is frozen.
The fish comes back before I can pull myself together. It grabs me with its long fingers. I barely have time to take a dee
p breath before it pulls me under.
My whole body burns. Red spots flash before my eyes. I can hear my bones sizzle as the flesh around them melts. Pain shoots through every part of my body and my brain shuts down. When darkness falls over me, I embrace it with longing.
CHAPTER 33
I wake to a blur of colors and pain. I want to scream my lungs out in agony, but my tongue has melted away. A bright light blinds me, but I can’t close my eyes without eyelids.
So all I do is moan and try to stay still, which is hard when it feels like someone is moving a torch up and down your body.
“Do something!” a voice screams near me. It sounds broken, like a radio station that isn’t fully coming through. There’s static, even when no one is speaking.
Because of that, and the sharp stings that shoot through my veins continuously, it takes me at least a minute to recognize the voice.
It’s my beautiful girl, who is now just a dark shape looming over me.
How did you get here? I want to ask, but I don’t know how to form words. My brain is only half functional and my lungs resist every gasp for air.
“He’s already healing,” someone else says.
“Well, can’t you make it go faster? Or take away the pain?” Vicky sounds really desperate. It makes me feel a little better.
“This is beyond me.”
Mona, that’s the other person. Her name lights up in my head.
“We should call Quinn.”
Excellent idea. He can save me and D’Maeo. I draw in a deep breath, which causes me to cough uncontrollably. D’Maeo! Is he okay? What if the black void took another part of his soul?
Someone pushes me up a little and pours some water onto my lips.
“An ou,” I mumble between coughs.
“What?”
I feel something moving in my mouth and swallow carefully. My tongue! It’s back!
“Thank you,” I whisper.
“See, he’s already getting better,” Mona says. She gently strokes my bald head. “Don’t worry, you’re healing, but we called Quinn to see if he can help.”
Cards of Death Box Set Page 59
