Odin chuckled.
Kirill, Trevor, and Toby had returned to Pride Palace and sent Azrael and Ira back without them. So, our group was now the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Odin, and me. Oh, and Sakuya, of course. She couldn't fly, but one of the angels would carry her; we needed her to guide us.
“The cats can't fly,” Sam said. “And we won't be landing until we see Enma or Amy. Okay?”
“And what if we have to go into Jigoku?” Ira asked. “Did Sakuya tell you about all of the Hells?”
“She mentioned a couple,” Odin said warily. “Why?”
“Let me enlighten you,” Ira ground out. “Their names are previews of what transpires in each one. There is The Black Sand Cloud, Excrement, The Five Prongs—you don't want to know about that one, Starvation, Searing Thirst, Pus and Blood—I can't even.” Ira shook his head and looked as if he were going to puke. He took a moment to recover before he went on. “Then there is Single Bronze Cauldron, The Many Bronze Cauldrons, The Iron Mortar, Measures, the Flaming Cock, The River of Ashes, The Grinder, Sword Leaves—that one is beyond fucked up, Foxes and Wolves, and Freezing Ice. And those are just the minor hells. The major ones are—”
“Okay.” I held up a hand. “We get it; you had us at Excrement. The point is that we're going, and you don't have to come along if you don't want to.”
Ira deflated. “Well, fuck, Vervain. I can't let all of you go without me.”
“Then what are you squawking on about?” Sam asked.
“I was trying to talk some sense into you,” Ira grumbled.
“So, you're coming?” I asked.
Ira grimaced and nodded.
“Yes! The Horsemen ride again!” Ted shouted.
“We're not taking our horses, are we?” Ira asked in shock.
“Oh; I guess not,” Ted simmered down. “We have to enter through Japan; so it's probably best not to bring them.”
“Especially since the entrance is underwater,” I added. “Speaking of which; we'll need wetsuits and Scuba gear.”
“I'll have them delivered to the lake,” Sakuya said. “We can trace directly to the temple and go from there. Just give me a few minutes to make the preparations.”
Sakuya pulled out a cell phone and dialed as she walked a few feet away.
“Are you sure you want to do this, Carus?” Azrael asked. “This is a lot to go through for a woman who has never done anything for us.”
“Amy will get our backs when we need it,” I said confidently. “And frankly, I think we may need it soon.”
Azrael grimaced. “You may be right.”
“They need an hour to get our gear to the temple,” Sakuya said as she came back over to our group. “Shall we look over the scrolls while we wait?”
“Not necessary,” Sam said. “If we're just flying above Meido, all we need to know is how to recognize Enma.”
“I can do that,” Sakuya said. “But I think we should take a look at the terrain just in case we have to land.”
“She's right,” Ira huffed. “Not all of the dangers of Meido are earthbound. There's a portion where fireballs rain down from the sky.”
“How do you know so much about the Japanese Underworld?” Odin asked.
“I study Underworlds.” Ira shrugged. “I thought it might give me some insight into the human mind.”
“Did it?” Odin asked.
“Oh yeah; they're all fucked in the head,” Ira growled.
Chapter Forty-Four
We looked over the scrolls.
Ira was right; there was indeed a section where “balls of red-hot iron” fell constantly from the sky. We made a plan for Odin and I to shift into dragons so that the others could fly beneath us through that section of Meido. Being fireproof and strong sure did come in handy.
After we prepared as best as we could, Sakuya traced to the Bodai-ji Temple on Mount Osore and then texted a picture of a bare patch of rocky land to me. We all used the image to trace to her and came out of the Aether directly in front of Sakuya. All around us was the bleak, pitted landscape of a volcano crater that was tempered by the lush, green mountainsides around it. Patches of grass trailed into the pale, rocky soil determinedly, and even a few trees managed to make their way into the basin. At the center of the bowl laid a serene lake. From a distance it seemed lovely, but when I focused on it I noticed the wavy yellow lines of sulfur striping the waves that slunk up to shore and the sparse patches of reeds that grew in the shallows like the hair of a teenager's beard. Then there were the bubbling pits of dark liquids, and vents which emitted noxious gases spotting the area. The whole place smelled like a pack of wet, farting dogs.
“Is this the Bog of Eternal Stench?” I asked as I wrinkled my tortured nose.
“Smell bad,” Sam intoned right on cue.
“And we have to dive into that?” Ira asked as he eyed the odoriferous lake.
“My people have just arrived.” Sakuya pointed to a little parking lot.
The parking area was set near an arching, red bridge which led to a traditional Japanese temple. The main entrance was a sort of gatehouse. There was an open passage beneath a two-story building with tiered, upward sloping roofs. To either side of this path were glass enclosures holding intimidating statues of menacing, red-skinned men. Just beyond this lay the temple; against the emerald backdrop of the crater's mountains. Beyond that was the Bog of Eternal Stench—I mean, Lake Usori.
Lake Usori; it's pronunciation sounded like “you sorry,” as in “You will be sorry if you swim in it.” I thought it very appropriate.
We followed Sakuya to a white van;
