As I journeyed through the dark cavern, I sensed someone watching me. Stopping in my tracks, I listened for any noise.
A guttural growl echoed through the large cave as three snarling mouths came snapping at me from the dark. I evaded their attack and shouted, “You damn dog!”
Recognizing my voice, Cerberus instantly stopped his advance and lay before me.
“Good boy.” I patted each head, otherwise the beast was likely to get jealous.
At my caress, Cerberus closed all six of his eyes in a sign of affection. Though I usually scorched anyone I touched, the Hellfire did not affect Cerberus. I wasn’t entirely sure why, but perhaps it had to do with his thick hide and bristly fur.
Skirting around the large three-headed dog, I exited the cave and was thrown into the throngs of the city. Spirits of all types passed me by, frolicking in their partial freedom. My arrival in the metropolis was recognized, however, as some residents stopped their activities and others bowed low to the ground.
“As you were,” I said, though most continued to stare in awe.
Ignoring them, I traversed the city until I came upon the area known for magic and divination. It was surprising how many witches, wizards, and the like fell prey to jealousy. A large number landed in this city compared to others, but not all magical beings were condemned to Hell. Plenty of good ones were accepted into Heaven—they just occupied a different realm than the angels. Today, however, I wasn’t interested in finding any old seer and sorcerer. I needed help from special ones who were comfortable embracing the dark.
I stopped in front of a stall where a female spirit was polishing her crystal ball. “You.”
“What do you want?” she barked, not looking up.
“I am in need of your services.”
“Yeah? Well, who’s asking?” She remained focused on the task with her head down.
I sighed. If Leviathan had simply gathered the seer and sorcerer like I requested, I wouldn’t have to put up with this. He was usually reliable. Granted, I had given him other things to handle as well, but I absolutely hated interacting with spirits who didn’t respect me.
When I leaned my hands on the edge of her table, she briefly stopped polishing and raised her head. A curtain of pale hair hid her face. She must not have recognized me because she took my hands in her grasp. Once again, big mistake. The Hellfire latched onto her, scorching her skin.
I pulled back, releasing her hands before too much damage occurred. She seemed unfazed by the pain, however. The only change was that she finally stood to address me.
“Sir, I am terribly sorry, I didn’t know it was you. You typically don’t grace us with your presence in these parts.”
“Indeed.” I took in her figure. Her long, scraggly hair hid most of her features, but I could tell she was blind. Although I couldn’t see her face, I could sense she was much younger than I expected.
“How can I be of assistance?”
“You’ll find out in time,” I said. “Now, come with me.”
Obliging, she followed close behind as I continued on my journey through Envy.
“Do you know of any good sorcerers?” I asked over my shoulder.
“Tabitha’s pretty good.”
“Do you work well with her?”
“I suppose. We are sisters. I’m Astrid, by the way.”
The fact she felt compelled to tell me her name was amusing. I didn’t really care who she was, I only needed her skills.
“Can you take me to Tabitha?”
“Of course.” She led the way.
Following Astrid was a poor decision. Not only was she blind, and therefore kept drawing unnecessary attention as she bumped shoulders with strangers, she also took the most convoluted route through alleyways and backstreets. At one point, she even walked through a solid wall before realizing I didn’t possess the same skill. In the end, she led us back to exactly where we started.
“Astrid,” I demanded.
“What?”
“You were supposed to take me to Tabitha. Where is she?”
“I’m right here,” a figure said, popping up from under the table that held the crystal ball. She was much older than Astrid, her long, scraggly hair gray where her sister’s was blonde, but her voice was smooth and strong. “Been here the whole time. I just needed a moment to prepare myself for your services. You king types usually require the most mysterious ingredients, so I had to scour my entire cabinet to find the most unusual and peculiar things.”
Peering over the table, I realized there was a door that led to a cellar, presumably where Tabitha kept her magical objects.
“I’m not in the mood for games!” I barked.
“Neither are we, dearie,” she challenged.
“Yeah! What’s in it for us if we help you?” Astrid asked loudly, donning a fake bravado that didn’t match her character.
These spirits were smarter than they appeared. “I haven’t thought about it. What would you like?”
“Coin!” Astrid exclaimed.
“How much?”
“Two hundred thousand,” Tabitha demanded.
“Fine.”
“Really?” Astrid dropped the fake persona. She clearly thought I would be a much more challenging negotiator.
The truth was, I would have agreed to any amount. I desperately needed their services, and the currency system itself was something of a hoax, created as a way for residents of Hell to buy and exchange goods. In reality, it regulated the system and fooled many into thinking they needed money, which essentially forced them to work. Outside of Hell, spirit coin and demon cash didn’t exist. It was quite laughable, actually.
“What are you smiling about?” Tabitha asked.
My smirk was erased. “You dare speak to me in that way?”
Recoiling, Tabitha whispered, “I’m sorry, sir.”
“Good. Now, come with me.”
“Where are we going?”
“To my quarters,” I told them, retracing my steps back to Cerberus’s cave.
“In the Royal City,” Astrid said dreamily, using Elysium’s nickname, as she and her sister followed behind.
“Would you shut it? We need him to take us seriously,” Tabitha chastised.
Leave it to me to find the two chattiest spirits…
I stayed ahead of them, and we arrived at Cerberus’s cave before they could drag me back into conversation. As we entered the cavern, the two of them fell into silence.
When the growling started, Tabitha demanded, “Where are we?”
Cerberus’s three heads snarled in her face, eliciting screams of fright from both Tabitha and Astrid.
“Cerberus,” I said calmly.
The dog turned to look at me.
“They’re friends.”
He whined as if to tell me it was forbidden for spirits to leave the city.
“I need them upstairs,” I told him, “so their departure is sanctioned. They have a special job to complete, and Leviathan knows this.”
At the mention of his master’s name, Cerberus backed off, allowing the sisters through. Once we neared the precipice of the cave, their fear returned.
“Why are you taking us to The Pit?” Tabitha demanded, halting in her tracks. “Is this some kind of trick?”
“The Pit!” Astrid exclaimed in fright.
“Calm down,” I commanded. “The easiest way to get to my quarters is to fly up there.”
Tabitha stepped closer to the edge to determine how far we had to go. “I’m not sure we can travel that far. As spirits, we have the ability to fly but not long distances.”
They were beginning to infuriate me. “Do you want your coin, or not?” I snapped.
“Tabitha, stop asking questions,” Astrid pleaded. “We need that money.”
“Fine. Lead the way, Your Highness,” Tabitha said sarcastically.
Spreading my wings, I launched into the air, not having the patience to wait for them.
In a few seconds, I had trave
led the short distance back to the throne room entrance. As I stepped on the familiar stone floor, my wings automatically folded themselves behind my back. I turned to look down into The Pit, but Tabitha and Astrid were nowhere in sight. With a sigh, I hoped I would not have to go rescue them.
Then, two gray orbs appeared through the dark. Their ascent was slow, and I was forced to wait as they floated up over the edge.
“I told you it was too far,” Tabitha complained, breathless.
“Sister, shh. Look where we are!” Dreaminess entered Astrid’s voice again.
“Astrid, you can’t see.”
“Yes, but I can imagine its beauty,” she sang, twirling around.
With a skeptical look, Tabitha took in the entirety of the room and did not seem impressed. I couldn’t blame her. It was just an enormous rocky cave that held a large stone chair, the throne.
“Yeah, it’s absolutely breathtaking,” Tabitha snorted.
I couldn’t help but smile at her sarcasm. She was lucky I had a sense of humor.
“Come with me,” I said, leading them out of the throne room.
We entered the hallway that connected the throne room to my private quarters. Ahead of us stood the archway to my rooms.
“Ooh, what’s in here?” Astrid wondered, moving to walk through.
Tabitha must have sensed my sudden tension because she grabbed her sister by the arm and said, “Astrid, don’t go in there.”
Stepping in front of them, I turned to the right and strode down the hall. At the far end was another archway leading to another cave. Gesturing with my arm, I signaled that they could enter. Tabitha pulled Astrid into the small space, and I followed behind.
“This is where you wanted to take us?” Tabitha asked. “What for?”
“I know I can’t see, but it doesn’t seem very pretty in here,” Astrid said.
“This is my portal room, formerly the place where I fell.”
This got their attention.
Walking around the room, I admired the three invisible gateways made of divine light. They were archways like in all the other caves, but each had its own capability and resembled the barrier He had used to trap me in this very cavern. When I broke the original one with Hellfire, it left behind small bits of residue, which I had collected and analyzed in the hopes of reusing and modifying.
In the middle of the space, there was a large stone table where I conducted my studies. It had taken many attempts to recreate the barrier, but I finally succeeded after consulting the expertise of Haborym, one of my fallen angels who had worked on similar barriers in Heaven. After she helped me recreate the original gateway, I used the skills she had taught me to create new ones that were capable of imprisoning beings and granting me a passage to the human world. During my journeys back and forth between realms, I had amassed a collection of books, which I now stored on shelves carved into the stone wall opposite the three gateways.
I halted my admiration of the room and turned to face the sisters. “Through this gateway,” I said, indicating the one directly ahead, “is where I found the fallen forces when we first arrived. Now, it leads to Elysium.”
Tabitha peered at the invisible surface separating us from the metropolis.
“Through that gateway,” I said, pointing to my right, “is nothing of concern to you, and you must ignore it at all costs.”
Superstitiously, Tabitha and Astrid backed away.
“And through the final gateway,” I said, turning to the left, “is where I previously journeyed to Earth.”
The sisters gazed at me in disbelief.
I stepped up to the portal and placed a hand on my once greatest treasure. “It no longer works,” I said solemnly. Dropping my hand, I faced Tabitha. “I want you both to find out why, and then I want you to fix it.”
“Us?” Tabitha was incredulous. “How do you expect us to do that?”
“Well, I expect Astrid to find out what needs to be done.”
“And how do you expect her to do that?”
“She is a seer, is she not?”
“Yes, but—”
“And you are a sorcerer, are you not?”
“Yes, but—”
“Then fix it!” I said within inches of her face.
“You don’t understand,” she protested. “Astrid’s power is a gift. She cannot summon it on command.”
A screeching gasp brought our attention to Astrid, who stood with one hand on the invisible portal. She was frozen in a trance, her body rigid and her hair blown away from her face, revealing two white, iridescent eyeballs clouded by blindness.
“I need paper and something to write with,” Tabitha said. At my lack of movement, she ordered, “Now!”
The sight of Astrid was so striking, it took me a moment to process her words. I searched the room for parchment and a writing utensil, locating a quill and ink bottle on the workbench, and grabbed desperately at paper shoved between the pages of books. I delivered the objects to Tabitha, who anxiously awaited her sister’s next move.
Another screeching gasp alerted us she was about to speak.
Trapped in a fiery Hell
Lord Satan suffers in where he fell
The bloodline causes this to be
Since blood ties are the key
You to her are bound forever
Until ties are dissevered
* * *
The descendant that walks the Earth
Is a force stronger than any other birth
The one that makes your imprisonment be
Must be vanquished for you to be truly free
* * *
A temporary fix I can see
As long as you listen to me
* * *
An amulet must be made
To grace the place where the cross once laid
Three things are needed for you to be freed
As stated in this creed
* * *
A feather black as night
A matching one that is white
Your blood shall seal the deed
When the dark moon bleeds
Vigorously, Tabitha recorded her sister’s words on the parchment, committing the divination to memory, though the pronouncement was unforgettable.
Astrid’s screeching gasp struck the air once more as she rushed toward me and placed her hands on my face. Before Tabitha or I could react, the Hellfire started burning her hands—but the seer did not take notice, her screeching voice filling the cave with another divination.
The one you think of is alive
Trapped for years by an angel’s drive
Inside an orb is where she rests
Awaiting a fall from the blessed
* * *
The Triune imprisons her
Because they do not want her to stir
She is needed so you see
In order to fulfill the prophecy
Astrid released yet another screeching gasp as her hands fell away from my face. She stood still, bent at the waist, her hands smoking from the contact with my skin.
Unforgettable.
That was what I thought when Astrid placed her focus on me. Earlier, I associated the sentiment with something else. Or, rather, someone else.
Lilith.
I had to find her.
Tabitha finished writing down Astrid’s divinations and then came to her sister’s side. At her touch, Astrid stood straight once more, her hair covering her face again. The seer and the sorcerer knew they could do nothing for her burned hands but leave them to heal as well as they could on their own.
“What did I miss?” Astrid asked.
Tabitha read the words scribbled across the paper, and I quickly realized why they needed to record them. Astrid was never consciously aware of what she was saying when under a trance.
I, however, would be incessantly haunted by her words.
16
Jordan
Australia, Present Day
During our stay at Zadkiel�
��s place, the three of us realized just how difficult it would be to get to the Gibson Desert. I located it on Zadkiel’s laptop, but the map showed it was nearly impossible to find a direct route. On the bright side, I learned it was a nature reserve, which verified Gabriel and Zadkiel’s suspicions it was Uriel living there.
The remoteness of the area still remained a problem.
After much discussion, Gabriel and Zadkiel decided we would fly into Perth and make our way to the reserve by car. It was roughly an eighteen-hour drive. Considering I had just survived a seventeen-hour plane ride, I didn’t look forward to sitting in a car for even longer. I was beginning to understand why Gabriel was so frustrated when none of his brothers answered the call. If only Uriel had flown to New York, this whole situation could be avoided.
Then again, where was the adventure in that?
As we took off from the airport, I was really sad to leave England, wondering if I would ever be back. But now we were in Perth, and my mind was preoccupied with a new emotion: worry. I still didn’t know exactly how we were going to find Uriel. I trusted the angels, but their plan seemed a little unreasonable. Maybe I felt this way because I was restless after being confined to a plane for hours on end.
After navigating the airport and going through the luggage retrieval process again—with two chests this time—we hailed a taxi that took us to our hotel.
“A bed never looked so welcoming before,” I said, relishing in the luxury as we entered the two-bedroom suite.
While Gabriel and Zadkiel settled in, I dropped my bags and headed for the shower. Clean if not refreshed, I came out of the bathroom and collapsed on the bed.
A moment later, I felt someone nudging my arm.
“What?” I asked groggily.
“Jordan, you need to wake up. We have to leave soon.”
It was Gabriel. Slowly opening my eyes, I peered at the bedside clock. It was seven a.m. already. We had landed in Perth around twelve p.m. yesterday and arrived at the hotel just before two.
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