by G. Bailey
"Don't die," Seth offers before turning on his heel and walking back into the shadows of the cage. I guess that is something coming from him… even if it’s not much.
"You got this, my crazy tornado," Killian mutters, and I look back to see him smirking and shaking his head, crossing his arms.
“Come on,” Storm says, drawing my attention back to the front of the cage. He nods his head for me to follow him through the crowd, and I begin to move after him, amazed by the poise and grace with which he carries himself. The crowd parts like they are either scared or in awe of him, and I find myself wondering which one it is. There is a certain presence about him, a power in the way he moves. I imagine it must be what commoners feel like when they stand in front of royalty. I've never felt like this around anyone before, and I know it's not just the fact that I’m in prison that is freaking me out.
We come to a cavernous room with a precarious-looking wooden bridge that leads from the prison hallway to the front room. We passed through here to get to our cells, although at that point I was too panicked about being thrown in prison to really register just how high up we were. Now, though… I make the mistake of looking down as we approach the end of the bridge, and see an enormous gaping pit expanding below me in all directions. What the hell was this even for, originally? I wonder, but then the answer comes to me: it was probably designed as another way of keeping the prisoners from escaping. I have to give them points for creativity, even if I’m damn near pissing myself at the idea of walking across it again. For a moment I think back to the incident with Peyton and the motorcycle, which feels like it happened years ago, even though it was really only the other day. I had thought hanging off that cliff was bad. I had no idea what was coming.
Storm walks wordlessly onto the wooden planks, not seeming to be bothered in the slightest by the fact that he’s on a rickety bridge over a giant hole. Maybe it’s more stable than it looks… or maybe he’s just out of his mind. Actually, that second option seems like more of a possibility. I take a shaky breath to steady myself before I step onto the bridge, watching as Storm stops directly in the middle of it and turns back around to face me. The bridge creaks and moves slightly, even though there is no wind in here, and I feel a cold trickle of sweat run down the back of my neck as I inch forward. God, I hate heights. Whatever task he has planned for me, it’s not going to be fun - that much I know for sure. Storm waves a hand for me to come closer, and I balk, even though it's not like I have much choice. Moving carefully, the bridge swaying precariously underfoot, I come to a stop at his side, following his gaze into the darkness below.
"The test is down there,” he explains, looking almost smug at the fact that he’s getting to explain this to me. If he weren’t so damn good-looking, I’d be half-tempted to shove him off and into the pit. “You need to jump, survive and find a purple glowing gemstone. It will be about the size of your hand," he tells me as he rubs his chin. "Consider this a favour from your new friend.”
“A favour?” I ask incredulously, staring at him like he has two heads.
“Damn right,” Storm replies without missing a beat. “Usually, I just throw the new ones off the bridge."
"You have to be kidding me," I say, knowing my eyes are wide and my voice is unsteady. My fear of heights is on full display, and I’m suddenly desperate to put off this test as long as I can, if only for a few seconds.
"Don't go letting me down now, Karma. I'm just starting to like you," Storm says, smirking as he steps closer, hooking his finger in the strap of my bag. "You might want to leave this here with me.”
“Like hell I will,” I snap, pulling the bag away from him. It’s bad enough that the brothers took my necklace away. If anyone puts their hands on my peanut butter, there’s going to be hell to pay.
“Trust me, Karma,” Storm says, meeting my eyes with an expression that catches me off-guard. There’s that cocky playfulness, yes, but also a sense of earnestness, like he actually does want to see me succeed. I don’t know what to make of it.
"Whatever," I say before clearing my throat and pulling my bag off. I shove the bag at him, which only makes him laugh. I am not letting this asshole prove me to be too afraid to keep going. I am Karma fucking Kismet, and I may be many things, but a coward is not one of them. I might be in prison, and I might have the higher gods out for my blood, but I’m not going to let some punk lesser god who thinks he’s king of the hill make me too afraid to move forward. Hesitating for only a moment initially, I climb over the rope of the bridge, keeping my feet on the wooden boards as I hold the rope tightly, my body swaying slightly as I see nothing but darkness below.
"Do you need me to push you?" The sarcastic asshole chuckles behind me, and I look back, locking my eyes with his for a second before smiling.
"Never." As soon as the word leaves my lips, I push off the bridge, screaming as I fall into the darkness below.
17
I don’t have time to try to use my magic, and even if I did, I don’t have my charms, so there isn’t much I can do as I tumble downward but pray that this wasn’t just some ploy to get me to kill myself. If he told me to survive, that means there must be a way to… right?
Either way, it doesn't feel like I'm falling for long until my body slams into freezing cold water. The surface tension hits me hard enough to knock the wind out of me, and I feel like knives are plunging into my muscles as my body fully submerges and I drift down under the still water. For a moment I’m struck with sheer panic, unable to do anything but writhe in the water, a few stray bubbles bursting out of my mouth. Then I manage to pull my eyes open in the water as I struggle to swim up. It’s like trying to look around in a swimming pool, and the water burns my eyes for a second as I try to look around. I see nothing but darkness all around me, and fear threatens to take hold of me. I decide that I need to have a look above the surface, if not to get my bearings, then to at least be able to see.
I begin to pump my legs and arms, swimming up to the surface as fast as I can. Strange, how all my falls lately have led me to a pool of dark, stinking water. I break through the surface, gasping for breath, completely disoriented for the first few moments. I blink the water out of my eyes, scrubbing at my face with my hands, and can’t help but feel a smidge of gratitude towards Storm for offering to take my bag… although come to think of it, he was the one who made me jump in the first place, so I’m not going to let this warm me up to him too much. High above me, in the dim light of the everlasting lanterns, I can make out the silhouette of the bridge, as well as the shapes of Storm and his cronies watching me. Wiping the hair out of my face, I politely flash them my middle finger before spinning around in the water and trying to get a sense of where I am. I still see nothing but darkness, and there’s no sound whatsoever other than my splashing and heavy breathing. It’s bloody concerning, given the circumstances. It’s clear that there’s not going to be any help from above - if the others can even see me, that is. It’s almost like somewhere in the pit, the light has been banished, and I’ve been plunged into a layer of impenetrable darkness.
Knowing I need to make a choice and swim in one direction, I just start to move forward. I notice as I continue to swim that the water doesn't move once on its own - there are no waves, so it must be a pool or lake, something still, which gives me hope that there is an end to it somewhere. It’s possible that this is some sort of underground cavern, that has existed since before the prison was built. But I don’t have time to speculate - I need to find the crystal and get it back to Storm so that I can have this damn test over with once and for all.
I don't swim for more than a minute before I begin to detect light. It almost makes me blink in surprise, and vaguely I wonder if it’s just leftover from high above me on the bridge. But the more closely I look, the more clear it becomes: yes, there’s a light source around here somewhere, and in the midst of the gloom I can see a shore. All along it are trees that seem almost bioluminescent; they give off enough light for me to
see the way, and each of them has glowing rocks dangling from its branches.
"Welcome," a warm, distant voice echoes in my mind, strong enough to make me stumble and fall to the rocks below. It’s not coming from an outside source - it’s somehow coming from within my head, like a hallucination. Except this feels all too real. My heart pounding, I slowly look down at the rocks under my hands and knees… only to realize that the shore isn’t made of rocks at all. It’s made of bones. I let out a scream that echoes off the stone walls, pulling myself up and staring around at all the bones. They litter the shore in piles, spread all around and under the trees. What the hell killed this many?
"Who are you?" I ask out loud, my voice sounding strange and fearful as I edge closer to the tree. I remember what Storm said about the rocks - I just need to get one, and then get out of here.
"Your reckoning. If you pass it, you may live and have a gemstone as a gift," the voice responds to me, this time sending a shooting pain through my skull. It’s enough to make me bend over from the discomfort, and I put my hands to my temples, trying not to lose my cool. I try to ignore the fact that, every time I move, I’m cracking bones under my feet. Real, honest-to-gods bones. And whatever killed these people might be lurking in the shadows at this very instant.
"And if I fail?" I ask, spinning around when I swear I feel something touch my back.
"Then you are my meal," the voice simply tells me, this time out loud and sounding so very close to my ear. My breaths come out in smoky puffs as I turn around very slowly, holding in the whimper that threatens to leave my lips when I see the creature in front of me. It’s a dog, but not like any dog I’ve ever seen; for one thing, it’s enormous, easily the size of a grizzly bear, with a hulking back and long, terrifying claws on its paws. Its body is covered in white hair, and it has three long necks, each one ending in a very human-looking head. The faces are conniving-looking, with grinning mouths full of razor sharp teeth. Their lips are smeared with blood, some of it fresh, and it’s all I can do not to scream when I see it. It’s like something out of a waking nightmare.
"What the hell are you?" I manage to ask through my fear, not knowing which of the heads to look at first as the creature bounces over to me. It knocks me to the ground, its body hulking and monstrous as it hovers over me. Each of the three heads scrutinizes me with its dark, shiny eyes, and the weight of its body is enough to leave me gasping for breath. There would be no fighting my way out of this, even if I was able to do anything other than gape wordlessly up at this hideous creature. It feels like the heads’ eyes are boring a hole in my head, the power of the creature’s gaze enough to make me flinch. I freeze in fear as the head in the middle slowly leans down, and I feel its breath against my face - it’s not hot, the way it should be, but ice cold. As if this thing isn’t alive at all, but rather a corpse. I can make out every pore on its inhuman skin, every speck of blood that spatters its face, and my heart is pounding out of my chest. The head leans down and presses its cold lips to my forehead in the blink of an eye, and that’s when it all starts.
Darkness instantly takes over, making the world disappear into nothing more than a haze. Images flash across my mind like a play, only I have to watch, and I can’t look away. I nearly jolt from the shock when I realize that the images are of me: the sequence starts off with me as a toddler, walking to my mum and falling face flat on the floor, crying my eyes out. I don't get a second to really admire my curly hair and cute chubby face before the image changes to me as a seven-year-old. I'm standing in the playground, crying my eyes out because Jimmy Franklin just pulled my favourite hair bobble out and wouldn't give me it back. The image changes again, and again, and again. Each time, the images flash across my mind’s eye faster and faster, racing past in a whirlwind of memories that even I’ve forgotten. Everything from my high school prom night to finding out my first boyfriend cheated on me flashes by until we get to the moment where I pressed that lightning charm into my hand, setting off the spell that killed the higher god… and the chain of events that led me here.
"You have a good soul,” the voice whispers as I watch the movie play out in my mind. “You pass my test.” For a moment I’m startled - really? That’s it? But I don’t have time to think about it, as the images in my mind are already fading into the darkness, and I find myself back in the present moment. “Take a gemstone back to your leaders up above,” the voice whispers, once again in my mind, and all of a sudden, the weight is lifted from my chest. I gasp as I open my eyes, seeing that I am alone on the shore. The pain, happiness, fear and love from the memories feel burnt into my memory so much that it freezes me in place as it overwhelms me. It's too much to feel, to have forced into your mind in such a short amount of time. This test is cruel.
I eventually sit up, pushing myself to my feet and walking to the tree. I only have to reach a hand out and the vines grow, spreading until a gemstone is hovering above my hand. I wrap my hand around it, and the vine snaps, letting the stone go. The gem glows brightly, the light spreading up my arm, all over my body until it reaches my feet, and then I start to float up in the air. I laugh, feeling nothing but wonder as I float all the way up until I'm in front of a stone ledge, where Storm is stood waiting, holding a hand out. I reach for his hand as I let the stone fall into the water below and Storm pulls me further onto the ledge, smiling down at me.
"Everyone, welcome Karma Kismet to her new home!" Storm shouts, still holding my hand as the crowd behind him cheers. Maybe he isn't such an asshole after all.
18
"You can let go of my hand now,” Storm tells me, and then glances down at me, a smirk appearing on his frustratingly-handsome face. “Or do you need me to hold it, little one?”
Little one? Nope, I take back what I said earlier. He is a total asshole. I pull my hand from his, crossing my arms and glaring up at him as I try to push all the strong emotions from the test out of my mind. I feel completely mentally drained, like I’ve just run a marathon in my own mind. And in a sense, I sort of have. I have no doubt that I’m going to need time to process what happened - not just the terror I felt, but the memories I was made to relive. Having your life summed up and forced down your throat like that isn’t a pleasant experience - it’s overwhelming, and it’s making me regret ever having taken that job in the first place. I’m sure as hell not the introspective type, and I hate having to look through some of my weakest memories like that.
I didn’t sign up for any of this.
I become aware that Storm’s eyes are very slowly beginning to drift over my body, the look on his face curious and inquisitive, but not lecherous, like I might have expected. I have no doubt my wet clothes are see-through in some places, and I shiver as I feel his gaze sweeping over me. I feel like a drowned rat, but he isn't looking at me like one. Gods, I wish he weren’t so distracting.
"You're a complete and utter asshole," I point out, moving my hands to my hips to emphasise my point and try to get his attention off my body. It’s strange - I don’t feel violated to have him looking at me; on the contrary, some part of me enjoys having his eyes on my figure. I think that’s what’s making me uncomfortable. Now’s not the time for schoolyard crushes.
Storm meets my eyes, and there is nothing but amusement on his face. “Did you just call me an asshole?” he asks in that posh, old-fashioned accent of his, cocking his head to the side. “No one has had the guts to insult me in hundreds of years.”
“Trust me, they are all thinking it,” I assure him. “They just haven’t said it to your face. Honestly, I’m surprised you’re still in charge around here, considering what a pompous prick you are.” He blinks, looking a little taken aback, and for a brief moment I wonder if I overdid it on the insults, but then he just starts grinning even more broadly. It’s almost like he knows his smile is dangerously charming, and his eyes glimmer in the dim lights of the prison as he crosses his arms over his chest. This god is distractingly handsome, and the last thing I need right now is to be distr
acted. What I need to be focusing on is finding out everything I can about this place. The more information I have, the easier it will be to keep myself safe… and keep the others safe, if it comes to that. It’s not that I think I can protect them any better than they can protect themselves, per se; it’s just that… I don’t know. Maybe I feel a little connected to them, since we’re all stuck in here together. Even though Seth and Killian put me in here, I don’t want to see them get ripped limb from limb by a bunch of angry prisoners.
Damn, Karma, I think to myself, are you getting soft, or what?
Either way, I’ll have to wait until the twins and Jade have passed their test, and then stick close to them. I have no doubt they will pass; the creature, whatever it was, seemed to be looking through my memories to decide if I was an ethical person. Jade won’t have any troubles; she was framed, and the creature will see that. And as for the twins… Well, they believe they’ve done nothing wrong. They might be locking up innocent people, but they don’t know that, and I suspect that creature will see that when it looks through their memories. I hope.
“I think I’m going to keep you around, Karma,” Storm decides, nodding decisively in my direction. Seriously? After I’ve just called him an asshole and wondered why the prisoners haven’t rebelled already? Clearly this guy’s lacking in the brain department, even if he’s got the body of an Adonis.
“You can try,” I tell him, “but I tend to kill assholes like you. At least, that’s what they keep telling me.” I force a grin, wondering if by now he’s heard what I did to end up in here. Considering his position here, I would be surprised if he hasn’t. “Just a warning.” I mean, to be fair, I did kill a god, but it was an accident. I don’t think I could pull it off twice… but he doesn’t know that.