by J. P. Rice
Once I shifted, the look normally held, but I had a few worries this time. My magic had been wonky since the lava bath so it wasn’t a forgone conclusion that I could maintain the same appearance for days on end. The abnormalities put me on edge, but also caused me to focus on the details.
I had to walk a tightrope. I couldn’t show all my talents. That meant I was being judged as a fraction of myself. And the fact that I was in male form didn’t help my chances.
A loud knock on the door claimed everyone’s attention. An ugly grin developed on Purrmecius’s face as he waddled quickly over to the door. Through the opening, I could see one of the Chieftains from the Red Cavern nod at Purrmecius and enter the room.
Aka Manah was an interesting demonic creature. He had the body of a tall, strong man, but his head resembled a bleached steer’s skull with twisted horns. Two yellow eyes with black slits for pupils were embedded into the orbits. A golden amulet shaped like a half moon clung to the middle of his forehead.
Dressed in a black pinstripe suit and a white tie, Aka Manah paced in front of the recruits, looking each person up and down. He stopped in front of Cheryl and pointed at her. “I’ll have this one,” he said, and Purrmecius scurried over.
Purrmecius hooked Cheryl’s arm and led her to the door. Another demon waiting at the doorway took my only friend in the house away. I assumed this was the selection process for the Red Cavern. Aka Manah picked another female and then held a whispering sidebar with Purrmecius.
Purrmecius pointed his clawed finger at a few of the recruits. Then I watched him point at me and whisper something to Aka Manah. The two demons finished their talk and Aka Manah turned his attention back to us.
My heart pumped in anticipation. I’d been here for five days and this was the first time someone from the Red Cavern had showed up. If I didn’t get selected, could I wait around here for another week or so? My dragons were already calling me. And I wanted to check on Alexis.
Aka Manah chose four more women, who were rushed out the door and up the steps. Perhaps my decision to shift into male form would hold me back. I’d wanted to avoid all the cruelty women had to put up with in the Red Cavern. Unfortunately, I’d overlooked this process and the fact that they favored women.
The demons wanted humans to join their cause, but they worried about them gaining too much magical power. They favored women because they viewed them as the weaker sex. Their fear of powerful humans had resulted in my lava bath the last time I was there.
Someone had ratted me out and told the demons about my true powers. I’d tried to downplay my magical ability and only confided in a few people. One of them had apparently betrayed me and tattled to the higher ups. One other possible scenario was that someone just didn’t like me and had lied to the devils and chieftains to take me out.
Either way, I’d love to find out who sold me out, but I needed to stay focused on the main task at hand. The people of Pittsburgh were suffering. The Dagda’s Harp stood as the only chance to stop the never-ending winter. I couldn’t fail. Unfortunately, I needed to gain access to the Red Cavern first.
Aka Manah stopped in front of me and put his bony finger in my face. He turned to Purrmecius and grunted. The latter nodded with his eyes closed, and Aka Manah grunted in return.
“No. How about you?” Aka Manah said and pointed to the guy next to me.
Fookin fook.
My heart sank into my shoe as Purrmecius followed Aka Manah out the door, signaling that the selection process had ended.
I turned to the person next to me. “How often do they do this?”
The shorter, lazy-eyed gentleman looked up at me. “Bout once a month.”
I couldn’t stay here another month. No way. Perhaps I could shift the plan? Call in my favor from Zeus, round up all my friends and take the Harp by force? Not a bad idea. It would take some time to set up, but I would be on the outside and able to visit my dragons.
My mind shifted to an escape plan. They didn’t guard the house well, so walking out in the middle of the night seemed logical. I was pissed that I’d wasted five days in this dump with nothing to show for it.
A few minutes passed, and Aka Manah and Purrmecius burst through the door.
Aka Manah stuck his finger an inch from Purrmecius’s wrinkled nose, and said condescendingly, “How could you not catch him?”
“How was I to know he would run?” Purrmecius defended himself. “You picked him.”
Aka Manah backed his finger away from Purrmecius’s face and pointed at me. “Is he a runner?”
Purrmecius answered, “I don’t know.” The demon walked up and stood right in front of me. “Well, boy. Will you run if selected?”
I was glad they couldn’t read my mind. Thirty seconds ago, running away was the only thought in my head. “Absolutely not.”
“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.