Chapter Four
S he was covered in dust and dirt, and it would take forever to dig herself back out of her little hidey hole. But, Azy was alive, and so was the little root. More of it was exposed and the droplets of water were bigger now too.
The demon dragons had screeched and clawed and rumbled through the tunnel next to her but hadn’t found her. She wasn’t entirely sure they’d been after her. They were freaking out about something though.
Most demon dragons she’d encountered were dumber than the rocks they lived under, and only a few could even speak. She’d heard a few of them say the word “gold” over and over.
At their cores they were dragons, so maybe they were excited about a cache of gold they’d found or something. Azy had found all kinds of treasures hidden in caves, half abandoned tunnels, and alcoves. It was pretty much all worthless to her, except for the bits of leather armor she’d found. Gold coins and jeweled trinkets didn’t do much good when you’re fighting against demons.
I dug herself out a peek hole and made sure there were no prying eyes around before she crawled out into the tunnel. She'd hidden much longer than usual and she was freaking starving. She had no idea what demon dragons ate, but it smelled and awful lot like rotting flesh. Fallyn had real food and if and when Azy ever dragged her out of here she would be immediately teaching her about the wonders of late-night drive-through. In the past few years living with the Mami Wata eating fish and other sea life she had to catch herself she had wished for Long John Silvers. Ooh, or the church’s Friday fish fry during Lent. She'd had enough raw fish to last a lifetime, she wouldn't be searching out the sushi place anytime soon.
Azy crept along the tunnel, headed for one of the small caves Fallyn spent most of her time in. She might not have any desire to leave, but the woman truly did not belong down here. On more than one occasion she had sent or shared her food with Azy. She never appeared in anything but human form, but she wasn't entirely human. She did have a strong sense of what was right and wrong, and that included empathy, unlike any of the other creatures down here. Azy didn't have any idea where she could have learned to have concern for anyone beside herself. It certainly wasn't from the Black Dragon or Ereshkigal, the witch.
Fallyn wasn't in the first cave Azy searched, nor in the second. There was one more place she could try, but really didn't want to. There was tunnel she saw Fallyn go in and out of a lot, but so did the Black Dragon.
She had to try. If she didn't the rumble from her stomach would be loud enough to draw demon dragons from miles away. Thus, door number three it was.
Normally, Azy had to carefully pick her way through the tunnels waiting for groups of demon dragons to move away before she could continue. Today, the caves and tunnels were empty. Eerily empty. Where in the hell – ha ha – was everyone?
She crept up the forbidden tunnel and heard a thwack thwack thwack up ahead. A faint light shined into the dark. The lacking repeated, always in threes. Azy practically tiptoed trying her best not to be heard. Except, she stumbled on some loose pebbles and skidded on her hands and knees, causing more rocks to tumble around her.
“Shitting shit bricks,” she whispered and stilled, waiting to see if the thwacker had heard and was coming out to thwack her.
“What are you doing here, Azynsa?” Fallyn's voice floated from out of the cave.
“How did you know it was me?”
“Because, it was you.”
Right. Azy got up, pulled the pebbles out of her hands and brushed off her leather pants. She glanced into the cave and just stared. No wonder none of the other random treasure hoards she'd stumbled across had any weapons. They were all here. This wasn't a cave, it was an armory. Not one filled with guns and bombs, but with lots and lots of sharp pointy things.
She imagined a thousand years of knights in shining armor trying to rescue the fair princess, for the Black Dragon to have this many swords, scythes, and – seriously? Yep, that was a pile of maces.
In the middle of all of these ancient weapons, Fallyn stood with a bucket of daggers next to her. She didn't even glance back at Azy, simply picked up three daggers and threw them in rapid succession toward her target. A form that looked remarkably like the upper torso of a dragon. A red dragon.
The daggers flew through the air, sticking into the target with extreme precision. One in the heart, and two in the eyeballs. Thwack thwack thwack.
Jesus.
“You shouldn't be here. Don't touch any of my things.”
“By things do you mean all of these knives and swords?”
“Yes, they’re mine.”
Azy raised her hands to show she wasn't touching anything. “Why do you have all of this?”
Fallyn stopped throwing her daggers for a moment. She glanced at Azy and tilted her head a few degrees to the right. “Do your people not hoard things?”
Oh. That's what this was. Fallyn had been raised by a dragon, so it made sense that she would learn his ways. “I suppose we do. The Mami Wata like their fair share of shiny things.”
“But, not you?”
“Not really. What I like to hoard, doesn't do well underwater.” Books had always been her solace. It was strange to think she hadn't read in years. She wondered if there was a chance that Fallyn had any. The woman definitely liked her bling and some old romance novels had those gold raised letters on them. Everywhere she looked, she only saw shiny, spiky metal. Except, in one corner.
“Are those… Christmas ornaments?”
Fallyn dropped the dagger she had been about to throw into the bucket and moved swiftly in front of the display. “I don't know what Christmas is. Don't touch these.”
She tried to block Azy's view with her body. There was no way she could. Ornaments hung from the tips of hundreds of blades that had been reshaped to form a macabre sort of Christmas tree or bush, or crown of thorns. Some looked like they were a hundred years old. Many though, were practically brand-new. She was sure because, directly over Fallyn’s shoulder was a Pokémon ornament.
“Where did you get all of these?”
Fallyn glared at her but must have decided she wasn't after trying to steal anything. “I collect them.”
Azy had never seen Fallyn leave hell, although she had only been down here a few weeks and it was June. Maybe Fallyn only went outside for Christmas shopping and plundering ancient castles while she was at it.
She wanted to ask more because while she was determined to get Fallyn out of hell, she didn't actually have any idea the route out of here. She had been dragged in through an underground tunnel that opened up to a water cave. In all of her secretive explorations she had yet to find that way out.
The dragons had dug their way out, but she knew at least one of them controlled the earth element. If she could get Fallyn to open up about the Christmas ornaments, maybe she could get her to reveal how to get to the surface.
“How –” Azy stopped midsentence because Fallyn’s face had gone white, or actually yellow. The shard hanging from Azy's neck decided to turn on like an old-fashioned lightbulb. Its glow filled the room. She grabbed it to try to dampen its light, but the rays shined through her fingers like she was trying to block the sun.
“No, no, no, no, no.” Fallyn shook her head and wrapped her arms around herself. “Mate, mate, mate, mate.”
“What's happening, Fallyn?”
Fallyn grabbed up a sword and pointed it directly at Azy's chest. “He's coming. It's the end of you. Choose now. Are you with him or with me?”
“Him who? The Black Dragon? Then, I'm with you.” This might finally be it. Something about the light of the shard had put the fear of God into Fallyn. This was the opportunity Azy had been waiting for. “Let's run, run far away, where he can never hurt you again.”
“Not red. Gold.” Fallyn turned and shoved her way through the ornaments, looking for something. She snatched a particularly shiny one from a blade tip and shoved it at Azy. “Gold.”
The ornament was a polished piece of glass etched with the words - Baby's First Christmas 1976. It wasn't the words that she saw, it was the face.
The face of her mate.
He was somewhere here in hell. And not only surrounded by demon dragons, but that son of the black dragon was attacking too.
He had a golden sword raised and black dragon next to him bared its fangs. It lunged at her mate and Azy screamed out. “No, only God, no.
She’d never met this man, and certainly didn't want to have any feelings for him, but the fates had decided otherwise for her. She knew deep in her heart that if he were killed now, right before her eyes, she would not recover from the grief. It would be worse even than when her father had died.
The Black Dragon snapped at her mate's neck but did not draw blood. It snagged a white scarf from around his neck. The dragon must have communicated telepathically because her mate, who looked just as shocked as Azy felt, took the scarf and held it out, moving through the crowd of dragons.
They didn't attack. Why didn't they attack? “Why aren't they moving, is a trap?”
Azy didn't know how she push those words out, because there was no air in her lungs. It had all been sucked out and she couldn't seem to get herself to inhale.
“Annanuki. They mustn’t let them pass.” Fallyn watched just as rapt as Azy.
In another moment they saw two Annunaki standing like sphinxes guarding the path through the desert. Her mate handed the scarf to one of them. It’s face remained emotionless, but it stepped to the side and outstretched its arm to indicate that they could continue.
“Holy fuck, Jett. What the hell was that all about?” His words floated through the mirror, muffled like they were watching bad TV.
With the sound of her mate’s voice, Azy found the ability to breathe again.
The black dragon shifted back into its human form and patted her mate on the back. “The first gate of hell, Cage. Hope you brought some more trinkets to give to them, because we have six more to go.”
“The seven gates of hell? You couldn’t have warned me?”
“Nope.”
They watched the two men go through five more of the passageways guarded by the Annunaki. At each, Cage, such a strange name, removed another piece of clothing and handed it over, until he was bare footed and bare chested. All he had left for the last gate was his sword and his pants.
She wouldn’t mind seeing his butt, however, she’d been naked in hell. It wasn’t fun. When they reached the Annunaki, Jett indicated that Cage should hand over the sword.
“Can’t do it. Someone told me not to give it up. So, pants it is.”
The Annunaki went from its usual stoic face and stance to a monster in a moment.
“I don’t think it wants your undies.” That was the last thing Azy heard before Jett shifted back into his dragon again and Cage raised his sword. Why didn’t he shift too?
A river of demon dragons ascended on them. Cage slashed and chopped as fast as he could, turning the enemy to instant black stains. He wouldn’t be able to hold out long in his human form.
“Oh no. Why are they attacking now?”
Azy turned, but Fallyn was no longer watching along with her. She was at her bucket o’death, shoving daggers into pockets, up her sleeve, and one down her shirt.
“The seventh gate is death. One can not pass into the underworld if they are alive.”
Shit. “I don’t understand. We’re not dead.”
“You didn’t pass through the gates to get here.” Damn it, hell was a confusing ass place and nobody seemed to know all the rules.
Cage yelled, his voice coming through loud and clear through the mirror now. “What do you mean you can’t kill an Annunaki? And where the fuck am I supposed to go, you bastard?”
Azy grabbed up one of the swords and dropped it like it’s hot. Because it was. She reached for another, and it fell over. She tried one more time, finding a sword with a dragon inlaid into the handle. It fit into her hand perfectly. Not that she knew how to use it. But, it couldn’t be that hard to at least maim a few demon dragons. “Where is this? I have to go to him.”
Fallyn shook her head. “Why would you choose someone who will end you?”
“I’m not choosing him, I’m saving his ass. I don’t have time for this. He’s not going to hurt me, he’s my mate.”
“Mates are evil, but you are not. But you are a mate, but you are not.” Fallyn frowned and shoved more daggers into her pockets.
“I don’t have time for your riddles. Where are they?”
“At the seventh gate.”
Argh. “How do I get there?”
“Run.”
“Fallyn, I’m going to break every single one of your Christmas ornaments into teeny tiny pieces unless you tell me exactly how to find Cage, right now.”
Fallyn didn’t like that one bit. She was in Azy’s face in an instant. Literal fire burned in her eyes and she smelled of smoke and brimstone.
Azy didn’t back down, not an inch. She’d learned real young not to.
Even when Fallyn withdrew one of her daggers, Azy didn’t flinch. “How do I find Cage?”
Fallyn glared, the fires inside of her burning hard. Then she lifted the dagger and tapped the shard around Azy’s neck with the tip, making the crystal ting. “It will lead you to him.”
At first Azy thought it was another of the damn cryptic messages, but then she remembered how the shard glowed earlier. That had to have been when Cage had first entered the caldera.
Yes. She bolted for the entryway to this cave of wonders, grabbing the mirrored ornament on her way.
“Hey, don’t touch my stuff.”
Azy ran, and she ran, and she ran. The shard got brighter, she’d take a wrong turn and the shard would go dark. Damn it. At this rate Cage would be dead by the time she found him.
The only luck she was having was that the Black Dragon, the Black Witch and the demon dragons all seemed to be nowhere around.
Her lungs and muscles were burning. She was not used to using her legs this way anymore. A slow jog was all she was managing at the moment. The shard was glowing again, so at least she was going in the right direction.
She held the ornament up, trying to see what was going on. It was dark. Her heart, that had just been pounding hard, skipped a beat. Did that mean Cage was dead?
“Cage, where are you?” she whispered at the mirror.
“Azynsa?” That was his voice, he was alive.
The view in the mirror fumbled around and then she was looking at his face again. His skin was marred by a giant burn mark that started at his hairline and went all the way down his face, slicing through his eyebrow and cheek.
She recognized that kind of wound. Fire whip.
“Can you hear me? How does this thing work?” The view tilted and it looked like he was banging on the side of the ornament.
He must have a mirror on his end too. “Cage. Where are you?”
“We're pinned down behind an outcropping of rocks, but that's all I can tell you.”
“I'm coming. I'm getting close.” The glow from the shard was brighter than ever before.
Azy also thought she heard the screeches of demon dragons and the clang of a metal sword on rocks up ahead. Yes, she did.
“This is not the way I imagined first hearing those words from your mouth.”
Seriously? He was bringing up sex now?
She grinned despite herself. No, no. There would be no liking this man just because he could keep a sense of humor in a rough situation. She would not let his good looks go to her head. She needed her head if she was going to make it through the rest of this day alive.
“Keep it in your pants there, buddy. I wouldn't want you to lose any important bits before we get a chance to use them.”
That was not what she meant to say. Not out loud.
Stupid head. Hadn't she just decided there would be no flirting? Besides, only a crazy person would get their flirt on in the middle of a battle with demon dragons. She needed to stay sane here.
“Oh, I plan to use it, not lose it.” Cage said that at the same time as swinging his sword and running through a demon dragon who had dropped into his hiding place.
Jesus, that was close.
Azy saw where the tunnel she'd been following opened up. It was a steep climb to that cavern. Some pseudo-stairs had been carved into the incline. There was barely enough room for her toes to get a grip as she climbed. There were fresh scratch marks all along the floor, and it seemed that this was the same path the demon dragons had used.
This was a new area to her. She thought she had explored almost all of the bottom level of the caldera, but the route the shard had taken her on she never would have found on her own.
Her instincts told her they were much closer to the surface than the level she normally spent her time on.
At the top of the steep staircase, she peeked over the ledge and into the ensuing battle. Two Annunaki demons had their great feathered wings out and were divebombing a black dragon, tearing at his scales with their beaks, beating it with their fists, like some kind of dark demonic angels. Demon dragons were surrounding it. But, each time one would try to join in the attack Cage, with his golden sword, would pop up from behind the rocks and chop off its head, or slice it open, turning dozens of them to ash.
Azy recognized the black dragon. He had brought her food and water when she had first been kidnapped. She had thought he was just a more intelligent or more developed demon. She'd never gotten a good look at him like this before and hadn't realize that he was significantly more than those pawns.
“They've got to be coming from somewhere. Find it, get out. I can't hold them back much longer.”
Cage’s head popped up again and quickly surveyed the small cavern. The place had many dark alcoves where demon dragons were manifesting. No wonder she hadn't seen any in the tunnels, they were all here, or on their way here. That had to mean Kur-Jara wasn't far behind.
“The bastards are coming from everywhere.”
“I know there is a side tunnel in here somewhere. Fucking find it.”
That was Azy's cue. She climbed out of the tunnel and raise the sword over her head, She-Ra Princess of power style. Her shard lit up the room as if the sun was suddenly shining underground, and a warmth and power seeped into her, giving her strength. Demon dragons shrank back and whined at the power of the light.
Okay, now what?
Cage had sunk to one knee, both he and the black dragon looked over at her. In fact, every eye in the room was on her. Out of the side of her mouth she stage-whispered to the two of them. “Come on.”
One of the demon dragons shook off the effects of the bright light and screeched out at her. “Mate. Get mate. AllFather want.”
The room erupted into answering screeches, and en masse they moved toward her.
“Shit.” She extended the sword out in front of her, because that was going to do anything. “Bring it on, mother fuckers.”
The black dragon jumped in front of her and spread his wings wide, blowing a swath of fire, eviscerating the front row of demons. “Go, go, go.”
Cage barreled out from behind the outcropping of rocks and crashed into Azy, taking them both tumbling down the steps and into the tunnel.
They landed with an oomph at the bottom, him on top of her, but cradled in his arms so she’d barely felt a thing. He’d taken the brunt of the fall, but didn’t seem hurt by it.
He rolled so he wasn’t crushing her, but she ended up straddling him.
“That’s more like it. Hello, mate. Nice to meet you.”