She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Why is it cold? I thought hell was supposed to be hot.”
“There’s no sun. It’s kinda like being in a desert at night.”
“What’s that then?” Natalie pointed to the smoldering break in the color scheme.
“That’s where we’re headed—to Zalnic.”
Natalie eyed the abundance of open space dubiously and Jack followed her gaze. “Good thing Dan gave us the brimstones.” He stood and adjusted his backpack. “Ready?”
They tried to move quickly, yet quietly, though the rocky terrain made it impossible to avoid kicking up gravel and dust. The air had a slightly acrid smell that lingered bitterly in the back of their throats. Since the amulets they wore were untested, they crouched down or dodged for cover at every grunt, cry or disturbance from the undergrowth, leaving nothing to chance.
As Jack was contemplating what seemed to be a haze in the distance, Natalie abruptly stopped and grabbed his arm. “Do you hear that?”
He was about to say he didn’t hear anything, then closed his mouth and turned in a circle. She wasn’t referring to a scuffle or animalistic call. “It’s like a… buzz?” he asked. Natalie nodded. The drone intensified and Jack instinctively pulled her down to a squat.
A huge shadow rushed overhead close enough to make their hair flutter in the blast of air.
“What was that? A hell-bird?” Natalie whispered.
Jack shrugged. “I didn’t see it good enough, but it was at least the size of a hawk—maybe even eagle-sized.”
They were about to rise when the drone sounded again overhead. Searching the sky, they hunkered down in the scrub. Suddenly Jack threw his arms protectively over Natalie’s head and pushed her down to the ground. “It’s a bat.” He turned his head sideways and watched as the dark form dove.
“A bat the size of a hawk?” Natalie squeaked.
“Shhh. Don’t move,” Jack breathed. Seconds later he flinched at the scrape of claws grazing the back of his jacket.
“I guess the brimstone can’t protect us from echolocation,” he murmured, rising to his knees. “They know we’re here. We need to distract them.”
As Natalie reached out to gather some stones Jack grabbed her wrist. “Gloves,” he reminded her. “We should’ve had them on already. Were your hands on the ground?”
“I don’t think so.” She pulled gloves from her pockets and Jack did the same as the droning sound began to build again. He scanned the bleak sky as the noise grew louder. “Start throwing.”
Natalie sat back on her heels and hurled rocks into the gloom. Jack waited until her supply was almost depleted before he started pelting his rocks into the air. “Get your head down,” he instructed when she was out of ammunition.
Jack barely saw the black form swoop past them. As the buzz faded he said, “Let’s get to that next bunch of boulders.”
After duck-walking to the cluster of huge stones, Natalie took advantage of an outcropping and shrugged out of her backpack to scoot under the ledge. Jack hunched down in front of her. He fired a few more stones in the direction they’d come from, to draw the bats away. “Let’s just stay put for a few minutes.”
They watched as shadows coalesced out of the gloom to form huge wings spanning nearly six feet across. The bats cruised low over the area they’d just vacated. Sensing nothing, they eventually moved on.
Dashing from one form of cover to the next, Jack and Natalie worked their way forward. As the opportunities for concealment became fewer and farther between, Jack also noticed the ground became compressed and less dusty. In the distance he could still see some rock formations, but less boulders and more scrub. Soon they were picking their way through brambles protruding from muddy earth.
“Ugh,” Natalie groaned at the sucking sound as she pulled her foot from the muck. “We could lose our shoes in here.”
“No doubt,” Jack agreed. “Be careful—you do not want that to happen.”
“And it stinks like rotten garbage.”
She was right. The smell was noxious. Suddenly Jack froze—except for the hand that darted out to grasp Natalie’s arm. They stood immobile, listening to the crack and snap of brittle scrub. Moving only his eyes, Jack strained to detect movement. “There,” he breathed, barely indicating with his head to their right.
The creature seemed more an absence of light than a physical entity. At least ten feet in length and as thick as Jack’s thigh, it slithered through the brush, so black that it blotted out the dark sludge of the bog.
After crossing their path, the snake-like anomaly disappeared. They remained still for a long moment, turning only their heads to stare at each other. Jack imagined the look on his face was that of amazement and alarm, but Natalie’s eyes were wide with horror. “Either our brimstone necklaces work, or it was blind.” He spoke in a low voice, hoping either observation might alleviate some of her fear.
She blinked a few times, and then inhaled slowly through her nose, blowing the breath out her mouth. “Okay. I’m okay.” He wasn’t sure if she was trying to convince him or herself. When he let go of her arm, she grabbed his hand and held on.
They worked their way forward, hand in hand, seeing only one more spectral bog-snake before they reached the smoke.
The terrain beneath their feet changed yet again, becoming parched and crusty. The going was easier for their feet, but once they were enveloped by the dark mist, decreased visibility slowed their progress considerably. The expectation of something creeping from the shadows into their path had the hair on the back of Jack’s neck on end. If not for the illumination glowing steadily in the distance, they would have surely been lost.
“What is it?” Natalie asked. “It smells burnt, like smoke.”
He shook his head. “I don’t know. No one I spoke to mentioned it. I feel like we shouldn’t breathe it in, but what else can we do?”
Natalie pulled off her glove, reached into a jacket pocket, and withdrew a small pack of tissue. She pulled one from the package and handed it to Jack. “It may not make a difference, but it certainly can’t hurt.”
Jack nodded and took the tissue. He opened it and pressed it over his nose and mouth while Natalie did the same. Then they rejoined hands and continued the trek.
All of Jack’s senses were assaulted by the smoke. It felt like fine sand clinging to his skin. Despite the tissue, the smell—which reminded Jack of singed hair—invaded his nose, evoking images of funeral pyres and mass graves. He swore he could taste ash on his tongue. Misty soot seemed to fill his ears, dampening sounds, making it impossible to discern if the echo of beastly calls was real or if his imagination was running wild from sensory overload.
That he missed falling into the crevasse, Jack attributed wholly to his spatial awareness and experience as a shifter. He’d been staring forward, working to overcome the natural trepidation of walking blindly when suddenly his instincts told him to stop. He jerked Natalie’s hand and she drew up next to him, clutching his arm. “What is it, Jack?” she whispered, searching the surrounding fog.
“A hunch.” Jack scanned the ground in front of him, some sixth sense informing him of a void ahead. He shuffled forward slowly, moving their joined hands behind his back, allowing him to proceed first. The cavity appeared quickly. One, possibly two more steps and they’d have tumbled to their deaths. His heart thudded unevenly in his chest. Invisibility was not a safety net here. He turned to Natalie and lowered the tissue from his face. “We should get out of here.”
Natalie nodded.
He took a step back in the direction they’d come from and she tugged on his arm. “What are you doing?”
“Getting out of here.” He let go of her hand to throw his arms into the air. “No one warned us about this crap—the bog, the smoke—any of it. Which means it’s here for us, to prevent us from ever getting to… Zalnic.” He was going to say Emma, but caught himself. He sighed, discouraged. “What’s it gonna be next?”
Nata
lie searched his face then looked beyond him. He could see her measuring the distance to their goal. “We’ve come this far,” she said quietly. She stared down at the large gap behind Jack. “Do you think there’re more?”
“Why wouldn’t there be? I’m sure the ground is full of them to make sure we plummet to our deaths.”
Natalie looked directly into his eyes. “I think he’s misjudged you, Jack. He expects you’re a cocky headstrong teenager with something to prove. But you’re not. You’re generous and sensitive and considerate.”
Jack snorted. “Those things aren’t going to keep us alive.”
She didn’t look away, struggling for an adequate response. Then she said, “You stopped. How did you know there was a hole there?”
“I… I sensed it, I guess.”
“Humph. Sensitive. Kept us alive.” She smiled triumphantly.
He laughed dismissively, but it still relieved some of his pent up tension. “You must really want to stay if you’re reaching that much.”
“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean,” Natalie claimed with mock-offense, grinning. Then her face became serious. “Don’t you think you’d sense another one? Because I think you would.”
Jack closed his eyes and shook his head. “I would hope so,” he finally said with a sigh.
“Then we keep going.”
“Fine. Tissues up.” Jack covered his nose and mouth, holding his free hand out to Natalie.
Fortunately, he was able to sense the huge fissures dotting the smoky landscape, although the presence of the deadly gaps forced them to zigzag their way toward their destination. It had been quite some time since they skirted around the last crevice. Jack was concentrating so hard on avoiding the next one, he didn’t notice the transformation of the smoke until Natalie spoke up. “Am I used to it, or is the burnt smell gone?”
Jack lowered his tissue and breathed in. “No, I think you’re right.” He stopped and studied the horizon. Silhouettes stood out clearly against the crimson luminosity in the distance. Zalnic’s lair. He suppressed an involuntary shiver.
“Is that his… palace?” Natalie stared over his shoulder.
“I think so. Except I was thinking more ‘lair.’ ”
“Yeah.” She uttered a strangled laugh. “It sounds more evil. Unfortunately it also sounds scarier.”
The smoke thinned and dissipated as they moved forward, leaving them in the dark of a moonless night that was as much a blessing as it was unnerving. Three times they nearly walked right into the path of a roving beastie. Yet they made better time since the dark allowed them cover to advance quicker. Jack was convinced he’d been right about the bog and the smoke since, from what he could tell, the landscape here closely resembled the area where they’d crossed over. He wasn’t sure how it could be darker now than when they’d arrived, without the sun to rise and set. Perhaps this deeper darkness was just another obstacle.
As they drew nearer to their destination, movement became discernible in the weak light emanating from Zalnic’s fortress. Sentries, whose forms were unidentifiable at this distance, patrolled a wall which encircled the compound. A structure within the walls protruded at least four stories into the air. If not for the lighted oblong openings, the bulky uneven shape could have been mistaken for another huge rock formation.
“There’s no more cover,” Natalie murmured as they peered from behind a large boulder. “And it’ll get lighter the closer we get to the wall.”
“We should be okay with these.” Jack fingered the rawhide around his neck. “I’ve been watching the pattern of the guard. Just to play it safe, we can make a break for the wall while he’s on the far side.” He traced the path of the sentry for a few more minutes. “Now,” he said, and they raced for the wall.
The guard marched upright, on two legs, with an odd loping gait. Though its back was to them as they approached the fortress, the shape of its head was clearly inhuman. Just as they reached the wall, the creature turned toward them and Jack confirmed what he’d suspected, the guard was an Enuuki. He pressed his back into the stone bulwark, pulling Natalie with him. She squeezed his hand painfully and he knew she recognized the creature.
The way the Enuuki seemed to stare at them, tongue lolling from the side of its distinctively canine mouth, sent a chill down Jack’s spine. The creature’s pointed ears stood straight up, twitching, while its eyes shone red over a long muzzle and maw of sharp teeth. The sentry froze, pulling in its tongue.
Jack’s heart thudded in stunned dismay, realizing what those actions indicated—they’d been spotted.
“It’s looking at us.” Natalie’s voice was barely audible.
“Mhm.” He released her and inched his hand toward the side pocket of his backpack, fumbling for the opening before locating and extracting his hunting knife.
The hybrid coyote-like guard lowered its head and crept forward, nostrils flared.
Jack removed the sheath from his knife and passed the cover to Natalie without taking his eyes off the creature. She uttered a stifled moan.
The Enuuki bolted forward, teeth bared.
Jack crouched and Natalie let out a panicked squeal.
The creature skidded in its tracks, wary, and lifted its muzzle to sniff the air.
Perplexed at first, comprehension came over Jack like a ray of sunshine. “It doesn’t see you,” he breathed, and edged away from her.
With a snarl, the beast lunged.
Jack dove and somersaulted between the animal’s legs, springing back to his feet and spinning to face the next attack.
He was fast, but the preternatural creature was faster. It pummeled him to the ground, jarring his knife from his grasp. Jack sank his fingers into the Enuuki’s neck before it could rip his own throat out. The beast’s rough fur pierced his gloves and bit into his skin like rusty metal wire.
“No,” Natalie screamed.
The Enuuki looked over its shoulder while keeping Jack pinned. Its head swiveled back and forth searching for the source of the high pitched scream. Finding nothing, its red eyes returned to Jack. The creature’s lips were drawn up into a gruesome grin, exposing large canines. A drool of saliva dropped on Jack’s cheek.
Natalie came into view, running toward them.
“No,” Jack croaked. His arms shook with the strain of holding the creature at bay, but he wouldn’t let go now. To his greater alarm, he saw Natalie rip off her necklace and start throwing stones at the Enuuki. What was she thinking? The guard whipped its head around and Jack heaved with all his might, throwing the beast off balance. It yelped and quickly gained its feet.
Sizing up the two targets, the creature bounded after Natalie. She produced a hatchet, took aim and flung it before she turned and ran. The blade actually met its mark, slightly grazing the beast’s shoulder. Unfortunately this only fueled its fury. With a low snarl, the Enuuki dropped to all fours and closed the distance.
Jack scrambled to his feet. He retrieved his knife and took off after Natalie. He saw her dump her backpack, causing the creature to dodge and nearly trip.
Taking advantage of the stumble, Jack took two more steps and chucked his knife. The blade sailed through the air and Jack felt a moment of elation as it embedded itself into the guard’s back. The brief burst of triumph disappeared when the beast howled in agony.
Jack cringed in alarm. The noise would surely draw reinforcements. “Put your necklace back on,” he yelled, passing the fallen beast and heading for Natalie.
“I dropped it,” she panted. “With my backpack, I think.”
Jack tore his necklace over his head and put it on Natalie.
The Enuuki writhed on the ground and yowled even louder. Jack yanked his knife from its back and slit its throat, careful to wipe the black blood on the beast’s wiry coat. Already he could hear a ruckus rising from behind the wall. He collected Natalie’s backpack and found her necklace a few feet away. He decided they’d have to sacrifice the hatchet in order to escape.
“R
un.” Jack pointed to the compound. He followed Natalie. “We’ve got to get inside. They’ll search out here first.”
Though the fortress wall was high, not much care had been taken to smooth the outside surface. Jack guessed the attempts to break into hell were few. He stopped where a protrusion formed a sort of ledge partway up. “Ever been rock climbing?”
Natalie shook her head. She looked stunned and clutched her stomach. “I think I’m going to be sick.”
“You don’t have time.” Jack dropped his pack and squatted, bracing his back against the wall. “Climb up me.” He forced her to focus on what they were doing so she’d stop thinking about what just happened. “Start here.” He patted his thigh. “Then my shoulders. Hurry!”
Natalie blinked. Her expression hardened and she stepped on Jack’s thigh. The sound of trampling feet spurred her on. Jack kept one eye on the corner of the wall. When she had both feet on his shoulders, Jack said, “Brace yourself,” and he slowly stood up.
Natalie reached for the bulge in the wall and hoisted herself onto it.
“Tell me what’s on the other side.” Jack shouldered his backpack and began to climb the wall.
“Nothing here, but there’s a building or something a little ways down.”
“Climb up and head in that direction.”
By the time Jack hoisted himself onto the ledge, Natalie straddled the wall. She leaned forward on her arms to scooch along on her butt. Jack scrambled up behind her and followed in a crouch.
Natalie paused when she reached the structure, waiting for Jack to catch up. A moment later he squatted next to her. Although the flat roof was in their favor, the jump entailed more than a simple drop. The considerable space between the building and the wall necessitated a leap outward. “I’ll go first.” He stood, bent his knees slightly, and launched himself into the air. He landed lightly on his feet just inches from the roof’s edge.
Natalie had turned so she was sitting with both legs dangling on the inside of the wall.
“Throw me your pack.”
She grimaced, but did as he said, gripping the top of the wall tightly with one hand as she eased the backpack from her shoulders.
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