by Quinn Loftis
I’m not allowed to say … yet.
Thanks a lot. The mention of Shelly caused Ra to quicken his pace. He ran for what seemed like miles, though there was no way to mark the passage of time or distance. The path eventually turned from a rocky wasteland to a wooded forest, though all the trees appeared as if they’d died some time ago. He’d not seen hide nor hair of a demon since he’d left Xozalgan’s headless body behind.
Ra rounded a corner and a large … something flew straight at his head with a screeching cry. The elementalist brought his right arm up, swinging out with inhuman speed. His blade sliced the small demon in half, and black liquid splattered Ra’s chest and face. Thankfully, his eyes remained clear of the nasty stuff, so he was still able to see. He shook his head. Can’t let my guard down yet.
He quickly scanned the air and ground around him for anything lurking in the shadows and then began running again. He hit the bottom of the steep incline leading to the sixth level of the Underworld and didn’t lose his stride. Ra dug his feet into the ashlike ground, pushing himself to move faster. Once again, he felt the urgency to find Shelly, to get her to safety as quickly as possible. He wouldn’t allow himself to dwell on the fact that he had no damn clue where she was.
Ra couldn’t say how long he climbed and zig-zagged up a dirt path until, finally, he came to a cleft between two giant boulders. He passed through and immediately knew he’d reached the next level of the underworld. The barren landscape was dark, like a desert of ash unfolding before him as far as he could see.
Trust not your eyes, said the voice in his head.
Ra cursed under his breath. The level of illusion. This wasn’t a level he’d previously visited, but he knew plenty about it. Ra drew on the memories of his ancestors and heard a description of this level of the underworld being relayed to a scribe.
Nothing on this level is what it seems. It feeds on your fears, and the more you give it, the deeper the illusion will become, and the farther from reality your mind will go. The only way to fight the illusions is with the truth. If you can manage to hold onto your truth.
The memory faded, and Ra once again stared at the lifeless land. If this level could sense his fears, was feeding off them, then why the barrenness? What fear within Ra would cause this surrounding to appear?
He carefully examined the fears he kept quietly to himself … and felt his chest tighten as he realized what the underworld had grabbed onto. It was a simple fear, but one that had been with Ra as long as he could remember. Ra’s fear of being purposeless, of not mattering to anyone, or being impactful in any way. He wanted his life to matter. He wanted to be a positive influence in the world containing so much pain and ugliness. But here, in this empty place devoid of all life, how could he matter? What purpose could he have here wandering around aimlessly?
Ra would be destined to be alone with no one to share his triumphs or failures. There would be nothing but bleak darkness. He felt himself growing weary as if he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. His weapons felt heavy in his hands. He wanted to lay down and rest. If he had no purpose, then there was no reason to move forward anyway.
He stumbled, only catching himself from falling because his sword stabbed into the ground, acting as a crutch. When had he lowered his blades? He glanced behind and could see the edge of the path from which he’d just emerged, but it was much farther away than he’d expected. How long had he been walking? His thoughts seemed jumbled. He was hot, and the shield and bow on his back were cumbersome. How had he carried them all this way? His weapons were a part of him, an extension of himself. Weren’t they? If that were the case, why did they suddenly feel so bothersome. He should just leave them here. There wasn’t any reason to carry them any farther. Where was his foe? There was nothing and no one to fight.
Ra started to lay down his sword but froze when he heard the voice in his head again. Blood of our blood, you are stronger than this. Ra frowned. “I wish that were so.”
Now, the voice was a scream in his head. We are the ancient ones who ruled before you. You are not beholden to this world. You can fight back. You are the descendant of Pharaohs, kings long dead, and our strength lives on in you. Remember who you are!
Ra sucked in a deep breath as his mind cleared, and a rush of energy filled his body. His heart pounded in his chest, pushing blood and oxygen to his muscles and lungs. He wanted to kick himself for allowing the illusions to work on his mind. Ra called on his fire and let it cover his body, placing a shield between himself and the unseen demons that fed the illusions. His power of fire was not from the depths of hell. It was a pure elemental energy gifted from the king of the fire elementals, and demons could not pass through it. As soon as his magic enveloped him, Ra saw the truth of his surroundings. The pathway to the next level was mere feet away.
He once again took off at a run, keeping the flames wrapped around him like a fireman’s protective coat. This path didn’t zig-zag like the last. Instead, it led straight upward in a nearly vertical climb. Ra leaned forward, giving himself a lower center of gravity and keeping his weight from pulling him backward, and felt his muscles burn as he pushed forward.
Ra pumped his arms, still clenching the sharp weapons in his hands. He considered returning the sword to its scabbard but decided against it, as that would only add weight to his back when he needed more weight pushing him forward.
About five feet from the top of the path, the stench of death hit Ra’s nostrils, and he had to clamp his mouth closed to keep from tasting it. He reached the edge of a low precipice and pulled himself up onto the flat ground. Breathing hard, he once again surveyed his surroundings. Level five. The land of the lost. Even though he knew what awaited him, Ra still recoiled from the scene.
This is the real zombie apocalypse. Wandering, half-fleshed skeletons, moaning in torment, dotted the landscape. Occasionally, they made other noises as they bumped into one another and sometimes even attacked each other. Some were more decayed than others. A few were completely bare-boned, nothing but moving skeletons. Ra shuddered. These were the living who’d made a deal with Death. They’d bargained themselves in exchange for something from the Lord of the Underworld—the Devil, as some might call him. They had no idea what the payment would really be when he came to collect. These people were bitter, angry shadows of themselves, and they took it out on one another. It was an especially dangerous place for a mortal to be because Ra was the embodiment of the only things they desired to be: alive and whole.
As if the dead had heard his thoughts, every head turned as one to look at him. If Liam had been with him, he’d have made some smart-ass joke about how he had a snowball’s chance in hell of surviving this level. But Ra wasn’t like Liam. He wouldn’t even joke about the possibility of defeat. It simply wasn’t an option. Not when failure meant Shelly would be trapped here forever.
Ra called back his fire and surrounded his body with it. He had no idea what effect it would have on the lost ones, but he was about to find out. In the far distance, Ra could see the path leading up to the next level of the underworld. He only had to cross a field of shambling zombies to get there, and they no longer fought amongst themselves. They were moving toward him, drawing together in a mob of bones and rotting flesh. Ironically, it appeared the ones with the least amount of flesh were the fastest and would reach him first.
Ra wracked his brain. He couldn’t simply fight his way through. There were just too many. His fire shield would only protect him for so long. He would have to remain focused to keep it up. Ra doubted he’d be able to do that and simultaneously fight off a horde of flesh-eating monsters.
He thought briefly about drawing his bow. He could at least take out a couple of the creatures before they got to him. Ultimately, though, there were many more of the zombies than he had arrows, and they would reach him quickly enough.
Have you ever seen an elephant charge through a pack of hyenas? came the voice in his head. It was fainter now but still detectable.
I don’t think now is the time to discuss nature documentaries, Ra replied.
In his mind, Ra could almost feel his ancestor shaking his head. Sometimes, I wonder if you really are one of our line.
All of a sudden, a trumpeting sound exploded across the plain. The zombies froze. Seconds ticked by. Nothing happened. As one, the horde resumed their march toward Ra.
Okay, I get the point. Ra closed his eyes, held out his hands, and began chanting. This was going to have to be the biggest creature he’d ever conjured. And he wasn’t great at the spell. Shelly’s face appeared in his mind. Ra chanted harder and faster, drawing on every bit of elemental magic he possessed. He screamed the last line of the spell and clenched his fists. A huge elephant made of fire erupted from his body and formed itself in front of him. It wasn’t perfect. One tusk was broken. An ear was missing. It appeared to have one gimpy leg. But that’s okay because the creature was huge, and that was what mattered.
“Go!” Ra pointed across the plain. The elephant bellowed and charged, lumbering directly into the oncoming horde. Ra ran as fast as he could after it. The elephant hit the horde full on. There was a terrible sound and the stench of burning flesh. Bodies flew in all directions. Ra tried to keep as close as he could to the elemental creature’s backside. He felt the zombies as they crashed into the elephant. Each one that hit was like a drain on Ra’s power. He gritted his teeth and focused on keeping the thing upright and moving. It wasn’t easy. The elemental beast was in the midst of the horde now. The zombies moaned and swayed but kept throwing themselves into the elephant as it charged. Ra felt a clammy hand on his arm. He cursed and snatched his arm away, redoubling his speed as he realized he’d strayed too far behind his protector. The elephant was shrinking now. It was as if each grasp of the zombies pulled away a piece of its fiery flesh. Ra couldn’t see the path to the next level beyond the elephant and the mass of zombies. He only hoped he would make it across before the elephant faded away.
Ra let out a primal scream of rage, surging forward and urging the beast on. Surely, they were getting close to the other side now. Another hand grasped at him, this one completely devoid of flesh. Ra pulled his sword and hacked at the zombies on each side of him. The elephant popped and sizzled. The undead were closing in. The elephant let out one last bellow, swinging its great head from left to right, knocking zombies away as it did so. Then, with a great hiss, it dissipated into a giant cloud of steam.
Trailing, Ra leaped into the cloud of steam and rolled, pumping his legs for all they were worth. The moaning and scraping of the zombies was almost deafening. There was a tug at his tunic. “Stay with us,” came a hollow voice. Ra screamed and sprinted forward. He broke free of the steam. The path upward loomed directly in front of him. Without looking left or right, Ra raced up the path. He heard many hollow, thudding sounds. When he’d climbed several feet, he chanced a look behind him. Undead were piling up at the base of the path, scrambling over one another to get to him. But they could not enter the road upward. It was as if an invisible glass barrier was blocking their progress.
Ra watched them for a moment while he sucked in huge gasps of air. He wanted to collapse and not move again for at least a day, maybe two. But he knew he couldn’t. Ra didn’t know why, but it felt like Shelly’s time was running out. And he still had three more floors to cross.
2
Morning had come much too quickly, especially as Tara’s mind began piecing back all the things that had led up to her current situation. She was in a mountain that housed a school for humans who had been given the elemental power over earth. Elias, her soul mate, had professed his love for her and promised he would never leave her. Her best friend, Shelly, had been tossed into hell, and Tara was powerless to do anything to help. And today she would be meeting the headmasters and headmistresses of the other elemental academies to discuss the fact that dark elementals were trying to take over the world. Going back to bed and letting the oblivion of sleep take her was seriously sounding like a fantastic idea. But she knew that wasn’t an option. Tara wasn’t one to shrink away when things got hard, so she would face this head-on.
“You ready?” Elias asked from the doorway of the room they’d slept in. He’d gotten up sometime before her and left a note that he was going to take a shower and would be back. While he’d been gone, Tara had found a pair of jeans, a shirt, undergarments with the tags still on them, and socks and shoes in her size in the bathroom. She’d moved in a zombie-like state, going through the motions of getting ready for the day even though she had no idea what she was going to face.
“Yes,” she said and swallowed down the remnant of trepidation she’d felt over the secrets Elias had kept from her.
Tara hadn’t wanted to trust Zuri, Jax, or even Elias, for that matter, after hearing they’d all known what had happened to her parents and hadn’t told her. It didn't matter that they weren’t involved. For so long she had wondered about her parent’s deaths … when all these strangers had known. But there was no point in holding a grudge. It wouldn’t solve anything, and she understood that Elias couldn’t have just blurted everything out when they’d met. She’d have thought he was crazy.
“C’mon Tara.” Elias took her hand and tugged her through the door and out into the hall. Her awe of the fact that she was in a mountain that was an … academy hadn’t diminished in any way. Tara had never given any thought to what a magical academy for elementalists would look like. Because she’d never thought such a thing existed. But if she had, she probably wouldn’t have pictured it built into a gigantic snowcapped mountain. They walked down the corridor and turned left when they reached its end, instead of right, which would have led to the massive room with the waterfall.
The corridor ended at another set of double doors, which appeared to be made of solid stone. As Elias and Tara approached them, the giant stone doors slowly opened. Eventually, they revealed a cavernous room. Iterra and her mate, Terrick, stood amongst Zuri, Jax, and Professor Fernis, along with several other people Tara didn’t recognize … and they, even the headmaster and headmistress, all dropped to one knee.
“It’s okay,” Elias murmured next to her.
“What’s oka—” Tara’s words abruptly caught in her throat when she saw what could only be described as a miniature tornado appear directly in the stone wall across from her and then blow itself into the room. The cyclone came through the wall and rotated in one spot, thunder and lightning booming within. Despite the rotation of the raging winds, Tara couldn’t detect the slightest breeze in the room. Eventually, the whirlwind dissipated, leaving a woman standing in the spot where it had been.
The woman’s gown appeared to have been pieced together in long, flowing strips, and they still blew gently as if she were standing out in a gentle breeze. Her hair was as white as snow and moved as if it had a life of its own. Her porcelain skin was flawless, and her eyes were the palest blue Tara ever seen.
But Tara didn't have time to study the woman further. No sooner had the cyclone disappeared then the wall to Tara’s left began to shimmer like asphalt in the desert. Soon, the stones appeared to glow red hot. They continued to glow until they appeared as a wall of red hot lava. Then a burning man stepped through the wall.
As soon as the man’s feet touched the ground, the wall behind him began to return to its previous state of cool, polished stone. Slowly, the flames enveloping the man receded, and gradually they absorbed into his body, leaving a devilishly handsome man with a smile that would cause a nun to renounce her vows. His hair was black as pitch, his eyes red with a spark of flame that danced within them. His lips were thin and created to tempt.
Elias growled and shifted his body so Tara couldn’t see the darkly handsome male. He needn’t have bothered because Tara’s gaze was drawn to the wall on her right, which had just transformed into a cascading waterfall. Stepping through the spray came a being made entirely of water. Like the first being, it had the appearance of a woman. It paused and looked
around. Much like the flames engulfing the man had receded, the water within the newcomer appeared to evaporate, leaving a woman with the appearance of flesh and blood. She had striking blue hair that rippled like a gentle stream flowing over pebbles. Her skin was pale and showed a distinct aquamarine tint.
Tara jumped as the room began to rumble. She spun in place and saw vines rapidly growing through the wall behind her. They started as small shoots emerging through the cracks in the stone and sprouted vivid green leaves as they grew. But soon they were as large as a man’s arm, and the entire wall was covered in dense foliage. The vines parted like a curtain, and a woman strode confidently into the room.
The woman was tall with skin the color of rich chocolate. Her long dark hair hung in dreads that had vines and leaves woven into them. Her eyes were the color of green moss and held a warmth Tara could feel in her chest. The woman wore a dress made of shiny leaves that constantly changed color from green, to gold, to red, to orange, and back again. As the woman shifted, Tara noticed that her skin wasn’t just smooth brown but was actually composed of very light brown swirls that Tara realized were actually living vines themselves.
“Are these people who I think they are?” Tara whispered to Elias.
It was Liam who answered as he dropped to a knee. “These are the Royal Elementals. Well, half of them.”
Aston was next to kneel and then Elias took her hand and gently pulled her down as he lowered to the ground.
Tara couldn’t take her eyes from the four elementals. She was probably supposed to bow her head or lower her eyes or something, but all she could do was stare.
“You must be new,” said the man who had been made of fire. He looked directly at Tara.
Tara’s mouth dropped open, but she had no idea what to say so she snapped it closed again.