and somebody or something wants us to get through. Or,” she paused, “something else entirely.” She glanced at Lilith.
Ken saw it. “How did you get through safely?” he asked her.
“I don’t know ,” she said quickly. “But I have lived here for . . . a long time.” She shrugged. “Maybe I just smell like they do now.”
Felicia wrinkled her nose. “Believe me, you don’t.”
“Well, maybe it’s something else then. A kind of radiation. They sense that I am one of them and they leave me alone. I can’t explain it any better than that.”
Eliza looked thoughtful, as if she was about to say , “I could,” but then thought better of it and strode ahead. Ken guessed she was happy that they’d made it this far unmolested and didn’t want to upset the status quo. Even after the commotion in the grand bazaar, all the creatures that had collected to watch had just drifted away.
Uncanny.
Now they paused at the threshold of the fourth and third hells. Lilith stepped up to lead the way. As before she’d brought them to a rarely traveled path. A crevice between closely set stepped hillsides fell away steeply and vanished into blackness. An uneven, irregular stairway had been hewn into the hillside, vanishing into the pit.
Lilith started down. “Watch your footing.”
Ken knew to heed her warning. So far he ’d almost fallen headlong on every one of these godforsaken staircases, much to Felicia’s amusement. The sure-footed wolf never lost her stride, let alone her balance on any surface. Ken couldn’t match her poise, which surprised him no end since he was the one who’d practically been raised on a surfboard. But never mind; he picked his way carefully down the jagged steps, sometimes having to leap between them as they seemed to have been cut for someone about ten feet tall.
“Need help?” Felicia offered her middle finger.
Ken pulled a face at her. Milo laughed, a great burbling grunt, and bounded ahead. As they descended, the darkness intensified, leaving them with a world of pitch black in front of their faces. Again, the vampires and the lycan could see fairly well in the dark and Lilith appeared to have no problem. Which left Ken.
“You humans ,” Milo grumbled. “Have you no uses at all? No skills? I’m amazed you can even breathe without help.”
Ken placed his hand on Felicia’s shoulder, trusting the wolf to lead him. Down they went, surrounded by absolute silence. The absence of everything that could tweak Ken’s senses scared him. It felt like being in limbo, a forever land of non-existence. Even his footfalls made no apparent sound.
At last they made the third hell. A cool breeze wafted around their bodies and a faint starshine illuminated the land. Lilith reminded them that the second grand bazaar sat a few hours journey away and that they should replenish their stocks of food and water. Ken worried about who they might encounter there.
A howl split the silence. A pattering of great paws moved toward them. Ken clutched at his sword and moved so that the entire group had a person at their backs. In another moment a pair of silvery eyes pierced the blackness ahead, surveying them with cold detachment. The real unnerving thing for Ken was that the eyes hung at a level above his own head.
That meant the beast they belonged to was . . .
Don’t even go there.
They waited. Presently, other sounds were heard and more eyes split the dark. The snuffling of huge nostrils made Ken’s hair stand on end. After a few more minutes the eyes gradually melted away as the beasts retreated.
Lilith sighed. “The way is clear.”
Eliza gazed at her, then moved off. The group clearly had some kind of free pass, though why hadn’t yet become apparent. Lilith pointed out a path and the drudgery continued for another few hours. It was only when Ken found himself able to admire Felicia’s rear view in profile that he realized they were climbing a long-drawn-out hill toward a summit where
Ken saw it. “How did you get through safely?” he asked her.
“I don’t know ,” she said quickly. “But I have lived here for . . . a long time.” She shrugged. “Maybe I just smell like they do now.”
Felicia wrinkled her nose. “Believe me, you don’t.”
“Well, maybe it’s something else then. A kind of radiation. They sense that I am one of them and they leave me alone. I can’t explain it any better than that.”
Eliza looked thoughtful, as if she was about to say , “I could,” but then thought better of it and strode ahead. Ken guessed she was happy that they’d made it this far unmolested and didn’t want to upset the status quo. Even after the commotion in the grand bazaar, all the creatures that had collected to watch had just drifted away.
Uncanny.
Now they paused at the threshold of the fourth and third hells. Lilith stepped up to lead the way. As before she’d brought them to a rarely traveled path. A crevice between closely set stepped hillsides fell away steeply and vanished into blackness. An uneven, irregular stairway had been hewn into the hillside, vanishing into the pit.
Lilith started down. “Watch your footing.”
Ken knew to heed her warning. So far he ’d almost fallen headlong on every one of these godforsaken staircases, much to Felicia’s amusement. The sure-footed wolf never lost her stride, let alone her balance on any surface. Ken couldn’t match her poise, which surprised him no end since he was the one who’d practically been raised on a surfboard. But never mind; he picked his way carefully down the jagged steps, sometimes having to leap between them as they seemed to have been cut for someone about ten feet tall.
“Need help?” Felicia offered her middle finger.
Ken pulled a face at her. Milo laughed, a great burbling grunt, and bounded ahead. As they descended, the darkness intensified, leaving them with a world of pitch black in front of their faces. Again, the vampires and the lycan could see fairly well in the dark and Lilith appeared to have no problem. Which left Ken.
“You humans ,” Milo grumbled. “Have you no uses at all? No skills? I’m amazed you can even breathe without help.”
Ken placed his hand on Felicia’s shoulder, trusting the wolf to lead him. Down they went, surrounded by absolute silence. The absence of everything that could tweak Ken’s senses scared him. It felt like being in limbo, a forever land of non-existence. Even his footfalls made no apparent sound.
At last they made the third hell. A cool breeze wafted around their bodies and a faint starshine illuminated the land. Lilith reminded them that the second grand bazaar sat a few hours journey away and that they should replenish their stocks of food and water. Ken worried about who they might encounter there.
A howl split the silence. A pattering of great paws moved toward them. Ken clutched at his sword and moved so that the entire group had a person at their backs. In another moment a pair of silvery eyes pierced the blackness ahead, surveying them with cold detachment. The real unnerving thing for Ken was that the eyes hung at a level above his own head.
That meant the beast they belonged to was . . .
Don’t even go there.
They waited. Presently, other sounds were heard and more eyes split the dark. The snuffling of huge nostrils made Ken’s hair stand on end. After a few more minutes the eyes gradually melted away as the beasts retreated.
Lilith sighed. “The way is clear.”
Eliza gazed at her, then moved off. The group clearly had some kind of free pass, though why hadn’t yet become apparent. Lilith pointed out a path and the drudgery continued for another few hours. It was only when Ken found himself able to admire Felicia’s rear view in profile that he realized they were climbing a long-drawn-out hill toward a summit where
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