With a handful of Lydian coins, my bare feet moved swiftly over the dead grass. The spindly chalk coloured branches swayed with a non-existent wind. I passed the sculpture garden quickly, and did not look around. If I behaved as if I had a purpose, and was confident instead of suspicious, perhaps no one would report my location to Luc.
I reached the iron railings that divided the First Circle between Pride and Deception. The boundary prevented people from Lacing in and out.
The river shimmered gold and the water appeared glutinous and unnatural compared to the Thames.
I walked to the embankment and spared a glance across the water to the mirrored skyscrapers of the first circle. The journey was longer than I expected, and the silk shift dress clung to my back as my body dripped with sweat.
I stared out at the edge of the water and flung the ancient coins into the water without ceremony. I tapped my barefoot against the hardened mud as I waited for the Ferryman.
It was only a few minutes, but it felt like an age. My heart beat was like hummingbird wings against my ribcage as I waited for my transport to arrive.
I saw the dark sail appear first, like a shark's fin, in the centre of the stagnant golden water. Slowly and surely, his boat emerged.
Charon was sopping wet with a face like thunder.
His sailboat glided towards me and moored itself to the edge without an anchor. The hell magic that drove it parted the water at the front with rolling smoke.
“Why did you have to summon me using coins?” Charon crossed his arms over his chest. His ginger beard obscured his downturned lips, but his wayfarer specs were decorated with drops of water.
“I needed a ride,” I shrugged. It was a well-known fact that Charon could not Lace with someone, which was uncommon.
“The water tastes like arse,” to illustrate his point, he spat over the edge of the sailboat.
I stepped onto the deck with a light spring in my step.
“Jade Lake. Fourth Circle.” I settled into the wooden bench at the front of the ship.
“Hello Charon,” he mimicked the husky treble of my voice. “It’s simply amazing to see you after all this time. Thank you for your services.”
“I gave you the coins, didn’t I?” I replied, shifting uncomfortably against the wooden seat.
The ferryman sighed dramatically as the boat drifted away from the edge of the water.
I eyed the cuffs on my wrists with disdain. If I was connected to hell, then I could just lace to the fourth circle, lickedy-split. My bad mood was mostly due to the slower speed that I was forced to travel.
When we reached the barrier between Pride and Wrath, the humidity sucked against my skin like an octopus’s tentacle. I shivered against the foreign sensation.
In the past, the air had been filled with the sounds of swords colliding and the grunts of battle. Wrath, the home of the Valkyries, was a war zone.
As we drifted slowly around the edge of the red sand, and the tall jagged trees where the Valkyries built their nests, I noticed the absence of battle.
It was as quiet as a graveyard.
I looked to Charon and gave him a questioning look.
“Ba'el, King of Wrath, has been missing for many moons.” He answered as he surveyed the expansive desert from behind his spectacles.
The boat bobbed on the still river but continued moving. Its sail was full of wind but I could not feel it against my skin.
The trip through Sloth was boring, mainly because of the nature of the sin.
The entire Third Circle was made up of a pit of motionless bodies. I knew that every person held their mental capabilities but they could not control their limbs.
Piles and piles of floppy and naked human limbs greeted us as we sailed past.
When we reached the edge of the Fourth circle, a concrete arch with the Leviathan Cross decorated the entrance. As we passed under, the Sigil glowed red.
The sailboat jolted as if we had hit a rock under the surface of the stagnant water. Without warning, we were flung forward though fast moving rapids.
Our small vessel reached a fork in the river, and instead of seeking the golden path that would lead us to the fifth circle, Charon directed the boat into the still waters of the Jade Lake.
The boat was spat out of the small bottleneck at the edge of the swamp. We bobbed lazily until Charon’s boat reached the middle of the large body of water.
Every so often, ripples broke the surface of the water but I did not see what had made them.
“Why do you need to be here?” Charon eyed the dark green water with distaste. I did not answer him immediately; I put my hands on my hips to keep from rubbing my arms nervously.
“I need the Flower of Envy,” I replied simply.
Charon rubbed his face, skewing his glasses at the same time. “Don’t tell me this is about that damn prophecy again?” the ferryman groaned.
I shrugged and eyed the water, wondering what lived under the surface. “Are you going to wait? Or do I need to find my own way back?” I asked the ferryman.
He gave me a chastising grin and laughed. “I’m not staying here. I'll give you a lift back. Just call me when you break the surface.”
“Do you know how far down I have to go?”
Charon shrugged. “To the caverns at the bottom, I'd expect.”
I laughed bitterly, and before I could talk myself out of it, I jumped over the edge and into the swamp. The murky water rushed into my lungs, but because I did not need oxygen, it did not choke me. Instead it made my body heavier, and enabled me to sink deeper into the gloom. A flash of gold teased the edge of my vision as my eyes adjusted to the darkness.
I ducked my head, swiping my long hair out of my face. Its colour was a bright firefly against the muggy water. Using my hands, I pulled myself forward and then down to the bottom of the lake. I kicked my legs until they began to burn. Gulping water until my lungs screamed at capacity, all to make my frail body heavier.
I did not need to breathe, so I was in no rush other than the lingering feeling at Luc would not be pleased with my little mission. When I got closer to the sludge at the bottom of the lake, my vision was blurry. My fingers tangled with black reeds and I fought to get free. Looking around, as I kicked my feet to stay buoyant; I surveyed my surroundings.
The hairs on the back of my neck prickled and I knew that I was being watched.
With a renewed sense of urgency, I reached into the darkness until my hands found a rocky surface. Feeling the grooves between my fingertips, I searched for the opening of a cavern. All I found was never ending rock formations sitting at the bottom of the lake. I hissed in frustration but all that came from my lips was a rush of dirty water. It tasted of iron and salt.
My eyes had begun to burn but I kicked out until the flats of my palms touched the thick sludge at the bottom of the water. Another hint of colour zipped past my vision, and I would have said that it was a fish but it was far too big. Even at a considerable distance, I knew that whatever swam at the edges was waiting for me to venture out of the reeds and into open water.
I crawled along the lakebed, searching with touch instead of relying on my vision. The water changed, tiny facets of light hovered and I knew that I had found it. I pushed forward, using my hands to guide me and to avoid knocking my head against the entrance to the cave.
Expelling water from my mouth, I followed the path that the natural rock formation had made for me. It wasn’t long before I saw the water end. Breaking the surface, and pushing the water out of my mouth with a gasp, I paddled to the edge of the underwater cave. The air was thick with damp and cold, but I immediately saw what I was looking for.
Peeking out of the rock surface was a beautiful white dahlia, streaked with black as if it had been corrupted from the inside. When I reached the edge of the water, I searched for a place to put my foot. I reached up until I felt like my body had been stretched on a medieval rack. I cursed the heavy cuffs on my wrists, because I could have easily made myself taller if not for Luc.
My fingers wrapped around the thick wet stem of the flower, and it slipped from the fissure and into my waiting grasp. I had done it. I applauded my efforts before deciding to stall the celebration until I was back in the boat. I folded the flower over and stuffed it into the cup of my bra.
With a gasp, I ducked under the water and followed the floating tiny strings of light. When it got darker, I knew that I had reached the lake once more.
Dread filled me when I reached the edge of the black reeds. There was a long stretch of open water until I would reach the bottom of Charon’s boat. I turned and looked over my shoulder I still felt the unwanted presence of watching eyes. The water vibrated with a sound that I could not hear. I swallowed another gulp of water, but instead of feeling the cool rush inside of my airways - my lungs constricted and began to burn.
The edge of my vision tinged black and I began to panic.
I was drowning.
I had only a few seconds to weigh the pros and cons of exposing myself to whatever was waiting for me in the water. My body made the decision for me; my desire to breathe outweighed anything else. I clawed at the water, pushing myself into the gloom with frantic kicking movements. Desperation tinged my every move.
The jade green serpent’s tail was a shade lighter than the lake, but glinted gold as it whipped towards me like a snake. I watched the familiar form of The Leviathan skulk through the water towards me. Its neck expanded until the skin around its head resembled a spiky king cobra. I was prey. The feeling was unfamiliar and I hated it.
With a renewed sense of purpose, I pushed for the surface only to come face to face with the sharp canines of the King of Envy. His gaze showed that he was lost to the serpent inside of him. His mouth opened, and I found myself curling into a ball as I floated in the open water of the lake. I felt the rumble of the beast’s growl in water around me.
My lungs were succumbing. I could not hold on any longer.
Drowning VS being eaten by the Leviathan? I was weightless as the monster darted forward.
Someone grabbed the top of my arms and thrust me out of the water with a splash. I coughed up salted lake water. My nose was streaming and I was certain that I had never felt so weak. Hair stuck to my face as my body heaved up the contents of my stomach. Which was, surprise surprise, more water.
I could smell the damp earth and felt the heavy humidity of the swamp against my skin. I blinked my eyes open but they burnt. Using the back of my hand, I rubbed them to try and ease the irritation but found that I was unsuccessful.
I groaned and rolled onto my side, when I felt an arm on my back. The stranger helped me up until I was in a sitting position. Still groggy from my near-death experience, my eyes flickered open only to find Lucifer staring back at me. His silver eyes were cold with disdain.
I swallowed the lump in my throat but found that my tongue was too large for my mouth.
“Do you have any inclination of how incredibly foolish you were to come here?” Luc asked in a measured tone. He narrowed his eyes at me, and I felt his rage come from his body in waves. His shoulders were taut as he crouched in front of me. It was only then that I noticed that his hair was stringy and wet. His boots were soaked and on the ground, next to us.
Luc had saved me.
I instinctively put my hand to my chest, to see if the dahlia was still lodged in my bra. When I felt that it was, I relaxed.
Charon’s sail boat was nowhere to be seen, but for that I was glad. I knew that I would incur Lucifer’s wrath by journeying to the Fourth Circle, but as I looked at the glittering anger on my Master’s face, I clearly hadn’t expected what that truly meant.
I had made Luc mad many times before, but I had never seen him half crazed before.
He stood up and began to pace, his hands tangled in his hair as he turned to me and opened his mouth to release a tirade at me. Instead, he chewed on the words like broken glass. Without a word, but a snarl on his lips, Luc darted forward and took us back to the Ice Castle in the blink of an eye.
“What in the name of the Seven Hells possessed you to retrieve the Flower of Envy?” Luc deposited me onto the edge of my bed. He began to pull the straps of my dress over my shoulders as my teeth chattered with the cold.
If Luc had noticed my glaring humanity, he did not say anything. I stared at him as he pulled off my underwear and wrapped me in a fur throw. I shook my head and refused to make eye contact. The Devil knelt in front of me, he gripped my hands and brought them to his chest. I did not understand the gentle actions of the man in front of me.
“You want to imprison me in ice.” My teeth clattered so harshly that it was difficult to spit the words out.
Luc rubbed his hands against my bare calves to warm them up. He shook his head and laughed to himself. I crossed my arms over my chest and watched my master with the air of a petulant child.
“I heard you talking to Abaddon.” I pointed out harshly, letting him fuss because I was too tired to move.
Luc sat back and surveyed my expression with amusement. “You heard that, did you?”
I nodded and narrowed my eyes but said nothing. It was a common trick, silence often encouraged others to divulge information that they would not normally talk about in a bid to fill the gaps in conversation. Unfortunately, Luc was also the person who had trained me so he was just as adept at conversational artistry.
“Do you have the flower?” Luc asked, taking my ankle in his hand as he began to kneed the soles of my foot. I groaned in pleasure, against my will, and laid back on the bed.
“I’m mad at you.” I pointed out, despite the very nice foot massage I was receiving.
“Of course you are, Pet.” He said placating me.
“You have so many secrets.” I whispered, as tiredness made my eyes drift shut.
“One day, I’ll tell you them all.” He promised.
I drifted off to sleep, laughing to myself because I knew that he was lying.