“Do what I have asked,” Satan said. “Let me hear the screams of horror as people, one by one, give their souls to me for eternity.”
Once again, Eden was ripped from the Morsus spell and gasped. She realized Yuri now led her, still grasping her hand. They were drawing away from the river and something strange occurred all around them. Or rather, below them. Up ahead, the ground was no longer pure black. Instead she gazed upon Zemiothstai from high above.
“Purgatory!” Eden said, almost screaming in excitement. “I never thought I would be happy to be back there.”
“Me either,” Yuri admitted. “But let’s not count our chickens yet. Just because we see Zemiothstai doesn’t mean we are going to be able to reach it. This place appears to be built pretty sturdily… Oh… Ugh…”
Yuri moaned and grasped his head, and Eden led him forward though he stumbled dumbly behind her.
“Satan,” he said. “Oh… Stop… Don’t want to see…”
“Come on,” Eden said gently. When he didn’t follow, she had to increase the intensity of her words. “Yuri, come on.”
Eden walked forward, to where the ground gave way from pure darkness to the shadow-filled land of Zemiothstai, and bent down. No wonder the souls always came up through a vortex as they left purgatory. The place where souls wait to be reincarnated is literally up. As she stared down, she felt a flash of intense pain and melancholy. She felt as if she would never leave the other world, that even though the exit was just a fingers-length away, she could not hope to push through it.
It was so hard to force away those awful feelings, but she tried to. She bent down, ran her fingers over the surprisingly cool floor, and then began to pound at the ground with her fist. Anger built at the thought of her being trapped in here. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve to be filled with Morsus. The need and want to go home was so intense it nearly broke her.
She settled back on her haunches and assessed what was going on. The ground below them was definitely around where they had been thrust through. She continued to crawl, and seconds later, she heard the sound of an angry, demonic cry some distance away and knew Asag had not only found out his prisoners had managed to outsmart his trap, but that he was so angry he was going to rip Yuri to shreds.
Please, get me a way out. Please.
Just then, she slipped away again into a Morsus-induced stupor. She felt she was falling, falling, falling, and no amount of self-control could bring her back.
****
Second Beast and First Beast stood in front of a couple of people. Second Beast walked around First Beast, its paws padding on the ground and its massive nails scraping the floor. The couple that stood before them appeared confused, yet they swayed back and forth as if spellbound. The woman’s dry, cracked mouth hung open, and her eyes glistened and glowed as they followed Second Beast’s progress. At her side, her partner clutched his hands in front of him as if in prayer.
“Do you want to save your souls?” Second Beast asked. “This world is ending, but I can help you save yourselves.”
“You, you…” The woman’s bottom lip quivered. “You are a talking bear.”
At first, Second Beast scoffed and a deadly glint flashed through its eyes.
“I am no bear,” Second Beast said. “I have been sent here from a world unseen in order to save you. How can you question I am not from above? The other side exists clearly. My presence should not alarm you. The mists walk your streets and take your energy, and darkness and shadows hunt down humans. Yet you must notice the white, dangerous, mist leaves me untouched. You can also see that as long as you are near me, nothing comes close to harm you.”
The two people glanced around, and sure enough, the white mist formed a circle around them, not touching them. The woman stifled a small cry. Second Beast walked toward her and then gazed down at her with his fierce, piercing red eyes. There was something magical about them. Something hypnotic.
“Do not fear,” Second Beast said. “My lord will save you.”
“I, I am not afraid of you,” the woman said.
“Then you will do as I ask?” Second Beast said.
“Yes,” the woman said.
“Okay,” the man said.
“I want you to give yourself to me. Go to my master and he will show you what to do.,” Second Beast said. “Go to my master, and he will show you where to go to do the deed.”
Some of the brightness left their eyes now. The woman exchanged glances with the man, and the woman sobbed and buried her head in his shoulder. Second Beast’s eyes flashed with annoyance, but he continued to pace in front of the pair and growled at them. The way he moved back and forth was the same way a hypnotist might place a pendulum in front of someone’s eyes and move it slowly, back and forth, back and forth.
Second Beast continued to pace as the pair cried, and once again, the woman mellowed as if she had not heard Second Beast demand she kill herself. The man, though, had a tight jaw.
“Why would killing ourselves save us?” the man asked. “This does not make sense.”
“Your bodies will be used for the ceremony which shall aid my efforts,” Second Beast said. “When one does the will of the Lord, then the consequences will aid you as well.”
“Danielle, this isn’t right,” the man said, seizing Danielle’s arm, though she remained rooted to the spot. “Come along.”
He tried to pull the woman away, but she remained where she had been and gazed at Second Beast and First Beast with wide, awe-inspired eyes. Second Beast had still not stopped pacing; instead he continued to move in front of her, back and forth. Yet, even though Second Beast paced, his red eyes remained trained on the man.
“If you do not aid me, then you will die anyway,” Second Beast said.
After swearing, the man took a step back and once again attempted to drag Danielle with him. Danielle did not take her eyes off of Second Beast, though, and continued to gaze at him with an enthralled expression.
“Danielle,” he said.
“If you want to go, then go,” Danielle said. “This is my choice.”
“But you…” The man frowned. “You are my friend.”
“Just go, Will,” Danielle said.
Eyes widening in hurt, Will took a step back, turned, and then began to run toward the alleyway. First Beast took two steps backward, growled, and then ran at a shadow on the wall. He lunged into the darkness and disappeared. Danielle did not appear to notice this because her eyes remained trained on Second Beast.
“Are there more of you?” Second Beast asked as he continued to pace.
“Yes,” Danielle said.
“Good,” Second Beast said. “Bring everyone you can find. Tell them their savior is here.”
Nodding, Danielle turned and began to walk back in the opposite direction. In the distance, somebody yelled and the sound of growling ensued.
Eden came out of the vision and felt herself being dragged again. This time, Yuri was in front of her. He held her hand and continued to pull her forward. She heard the sound of snarling and movement behind her and knew she was being followed by Asag. She threw a look over her shoulder and could see nothing but darkness, but that was not promising news. Asag and the other demons lived in the darkness. They dwelled in it, loved it, and embraced it. Surely, they could see well in the dark.
Pain and panic filled her at the thought.
“Yuri,” Eden said.
Yuri let out a pained grunt. She realized he was mid-vision but was trying so hard to get away he could move.
With a cry, Eden gained speed and began to run faster than Yuri, and he allowed her to lead. She heard the sound of loud, shuffling steps behind her and felt despair at the thought of Asag following her. Would he come in his human form or would he come in his hideous, long-tongued form? She did not know, nor did she want to know.
Is there no way out? Will I be trapped here and then lose Yuri and my mom? She knew Satan would do exactly as he said he would if she go
t captured, and Yuri… No, she didn’t want to lose him. There was no way she could stand that.
“There has got to be a way out of here,” Eden said.
Yuri grunted again, his feet tripping over one another. Pain and anger at the situation filled her again.
They came upon a Demon city with small hovels and burning flames in the middle of it. The city was surrounded by the anti-Raider lanterns which appeared like tiny fireflies in the distance. She could see few glowing souls down below her, which meant even the Demon cities had been struck by pain and horror.
Just as Eden moved to keep going, the ground three feet to her right opened and a small cylinder opened up in the ground. She saw a glowing white soul get closer and closer and then the person, a small, mousy-haired girl, entered the discus of light and hurtled through it. That was her way out, Eden realized. They had to get through the hole somehow.
As Eden saw the disk closing, she screamed and hurled herself at the opening. Her fist collided hard with the ground, but for just a second, she felt the invisible floor between her and purgatory become soft and gel-like. Soft enough for her and Yuri to pass through. With a groan, Eden straightened up and gazed down, wondering how long she would have to wait.
Unfortunately, she heard movement behind her. Loud, shuffling movements. She stood up and gazed around, seeing no one. Wouldn’t Asag have tried to capture them by now? Eden reached down and grabbed Yuri’s hand again; his fingers intertwined with her own.
She saw him focus on her and shudder. “Why did we stop?” Yuri asked.
“The way out,” Eden said. “When one soul loses his energy down in purgatory, he comes up here and a portal is formed in the sky. We can get down there. We can — urgh.”
“Eden,” Yuri said, grabbing her by her waist.
Eden fought the darkness, which overwhelmed her eyes, and held fast to him. Already, she saw an evil, cold world beyond her vision; she would have done nearly anything to not go there. Not that she had much choice. I have to warn him. I have to tell him I heard something.
“Listen,” she said. “There’s something behind us.”
“Eden,” Yuri said, “not Asag? He hasn’t found us yet, has he?”
“We would know if Asag had found us,” she said. “I think it’s something else…”
But she could hold on no longer. The Morsus was too powerful, even for her. She lost her abilities to focus altogether.
Chapter Fourteen
Dark. Sheer dark. Danielle was now not alone. Many people surrounded Second Beast, who paced in front of the crowd, back and forth. His eyes appeared a bright and violent red and he had a smirk which appeared strange on a bear’s face. He continued to pace in front of the people for several minutes, silent and unspeaking.
“My lord will be pleased with this,” Second Beast said. “Very pleased.”
Some people murmured but most were silent and followed Second Beast with their eyes.
“Let us go and greet him,” Second Beast said. “Let us meet my lord.”
There was yet more murmuring of agreement. Second Beast growled and began to pad back through the city. The crowd, like a bunch of still-living zombies, began to follow Second Beast down the path. First Beast appeared out of an alley, his flesh and fangs coated in rust from his latest prey. When Second Beast made it to the edge of the city, he stopped. The crowd stopped too. First Beast stared at the crowd with all fourteen eyes gazing at them unblinkingly.
“There are forty-seven,” First Beast said, though he made no apparent effort to count the people. “We need more.”
“Sixty-six people to spill their own blood to awaken the two million horsemen locked away by God,” Second Beast drawled. “I am aware of this, brother. Lead them to the meeting place and I will go in search of the rest. We shall have our ceremony by sundown today. The minds of humans melt beneath my words. They will be no match for me.”
“And the people who speak ill?” First Beast asked, licking his chops. “Who shall devour them for you?”
“You have feasted on twenty,” Second Beast said. “You wish for more?”
“I always wish for more.”
Second Beast’s evil smirk widened. “Then more you shall have.”
Eden blinked the Morsus away from her eyes and realized she was once again lying on her stomach beside Yuri, trembling from fear. Yuri had his hand on her back and he kept rubbing it as if she was a small child he was trying to burp but he wasn’t sure how to go about it. When their eyes met, he frowned at her sadly.
“You okay?” Yuri asked.
“The demons are getting stronger,” Eden said. “I do not think Morsus is to blame for what I’m seeing. I think Satan is making sure I know exactly what I’m up against. He’s trying to scare me.”
“He’s evil,” Yuri said. “That’s his job.”
Both of them were silent for a moment. Yuri hesitated and then pushed a lock of hair out of her face, tucking the strand behind her ear. If she could have, then she would have blushed.
“Why is it I always want to protect you?” Yuri asked. “I am supposed to want to get rid of you. It’s because of that I am now in trouble.”
“Yuri, about the kiss…” Eden wasn’t sure what she wanted to say, but she felt she had to bring it up.
There was the sound of roaring; both of them looked up and then glanced at each other. Now was not the time to discuss their first kiss. Yuri’s touch had befuddled her brain almost as much as the Morsus did. She shook her head, wondering why being dead did not clear up all of these confusing emotions, and began to glance down hopefully at the city below her.
“Do you think we should move on or stay here and wait?” Eden asked. “A soul is more likely to be destroyed in a populated area.”
She paused. No response.
“Yuri?” Eden turned and saw Yuri’s eyes were glazed again. He could give her no answer. “Stay here it is, then…”
She began to wait. Sometimes doing nothing was the hardest thing a person could do.
****
Eden laid her hands on her head, trying to fight down the despair so she could focus. It was like attempting to get rid of a wild tiger climbing into her brain and gnawing at it. Once again, Yuri had his hand on her back, though this time his fingers were in her hair, running through the golden strands.
“It’s okay,” Yuri soothed.
But it wasn’t. Eden felt the effect of the Morsus more in her mind this time. She could see distantly crimson stained ground, but she was not thrown into the image headfirst. Instead she felt unbearable guilt and anger and had hopeless thoughts. If she was faster, if she had found her five people right away, then maybe there would be less death on Earth. And even if she did manage to clear up the problems here by some sort of miracle, how many years would it take purgatory to straighten itself up again? There were so many souls waiting to reincarnate, so many that needed to find their place in the world again. And how many people on Earth had lost their lives? She did not know.
“Yuri,” Eden whimpered.
“You’re still here?” he asked weakly, sounding surprised. “Usually, when your eyes get distant, I know Satan is projecting something in your mind.”
“Just the Morsus right now,” Eden said. “Can you… Can you say something comforting? All of these feelings are crashing down on me, and I hate the fact I feel so hopeless.”
“Don’t feel that way,” Yuri said, and then he grabbed her hand. “I don’t know half of what’s going on, but if anyone can save the world, it’s you.”
“Yuri…” Eden gazed at him.
“After this…” He stared at their intertwined hands and his jaw tightened. “You know how I said you made me want to protect you, which made me want to kick something because I never get that way?”
She nodded.
“I don’t know if this is comforting or not, but I’ve decided if we find our way out of here, I’ll come with you,” Yuri said. “I want to. I guess maybe my change of heart is
a sign you are the person I am supposed to follow.”
In her sick mind, the tingle of happiness she felt was buried underneath a crashing ocean of despair and melancholy.
“I guess we’ll see what following brings,” Eden said.
“Yeah, I guess we will,” Yuri said.
****
When Eden finally came out of her Morsus state, she heard the sound of movement behind her as well as frustrated growling. She knew then Asag was getting nearer to them. She stared downward at the city. She couldn’t believe she was thinking it, but she thought, Please, please let somebody get into trouble and be forced to come up here. It was awful and made her feel real guilt, not diseased soul guilt, but those were her thoughts all the same.
Just as she heard the sound of shuffling feet behind her again, her vision became blurry and she found herself fading out into a bad vision. She tried to fight it. After all, Yuri was not aware anymore either and she could not afford to have him get hurt, especially after he had promised her he would follow her.
When Eden’s vision flickered, she saw a crowd of people standing before First Beast and Second Beast. Satan stood beside them in his human form, a crooked and evil smile on his face. He appeared pleased. Evil happened when he appeared pleased. Second Beast continued to pad back and forth in front of the sixty-six people and the people swayed with him, back and forth. At Second Beast’s side, First Beast stood, drooling in hunger. None of the human sacrifices appeared to notice, or if they did, they didn’t care about this spectacle. Eden’s eyes, however, bulged, and she grasped her chest. Oh no, no, no. Whose arm is that? Whose? She glanced at the people, knowing they could be next and should be afraid. They just focused on First Beast with wide eyes.
Second Beast bent down and picked up a sharp dagger between his two teeth. He padded over to the woman in front. It was Danielle, the woman from earlier. Her eyes appeared even duller than they had before.
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