We all hold our breath to see if the flames are going to incinerate the weapon, but it seems to be okay… Until the flames blink out on the Gate all together. One moment, it’s burning Hellishly, and the next, it’s out like a light, as if I just went at the thing with a Hell Flame extinguisher.
Well, double fuck!
“Shit, shit, shit,” I curse, panic widening my eyes and making my heart flip over and faceplant against my chest.
We all rush forward like the Gate’s an injured animal, and I’m surprised to see that under all the flames, there is an actual door. I’m not stoked to realize that it’s made of bones of some sort, but we all make decorating mistakes in life. Just look at what happened with wall paper borders.
My scythe sticks out of the front of the massive bone doors, wobbling a little, as if I put too much heat behind the throw and it’s still trying to recover from the force of impact.
Iceman runs his eyes over the massive doors like he doesn’t know what to do. “Maverick, you need to fix this now. It’s almost as if you somehow turned it off completely. Anyone can get through right now,” Iceman warns me, and the fact that it’s him sounding really concerned makes my panic spike up.
“I don’t know how!” I exclaim, searching the door for some kind of clue, as if a bony hand is going to reach out and slap me across the face and be like, it’s right there, lady!
“Why would you fucking spear it?” Jerif snaps.
“I don’t know!” I shout back, sinking my hands into my hair and pulling at the strands. “It just seemed like a good idea at the time!”
“The Gate is weakened, Delta. It’s sick. You don’t stab sick things,” he retorts.
My whole face feels hot and flushed with both panic and anger. “Well, you did the chucking the spear thing earlier and gave me the idea, so it’s partially your fault!”
He tosses his arms up in exasperation. “How the hell is this my fault?”
Echo’s hand presses against my mouth as I try to argue some more, my words instantly getting muffled by his palm. His chest presses up against my side, and he gives me a nip to my ear. “Ignore Jerif. He gets mean when he’s scared.”
The lava demon shoots him a withering glare. “I am not scared.”
I feel Echo’s mouth curve against my temple before he drops his hand. “Breathe, Delta. This is your legacy. We have full faith that you can fix this.”
Feeling only slightly bolstered, I nod and try to figure this the fuck out.
Come on, ancient demon Annulus bloodline, help a dumb newbie out!
As though my silent plea was actually heard, my eyes rest upon skulls scattered in several places throughout the doors. On each one, there appears to be some kind of writing along the foreheads. Stepping closer, I discover that the writing is more hieroglyphic looking than words, but something about it feels familiar.
I can feel tension from the guys at my back, but I also feel their support and faith that I can figure this out. When I’m right in front of one of the skulls, I reach out and brush my finger across its marking that resembles my scythe. The moment the pad of my finger comes in contact with it, a rush of images bombards me.
Instantly, it’s as though I’m watching a movie that only I can see. I watch as Abdicated fill the caverns of this realm and start to build. They establish Hell rock by rock, laying down everything it would be responsible for. I witness battles occurring over time, while winners rise and the losers get set upon by Annuli just like me to reset the balance.
I get a front row seat to the work that Nefta mentioned we were created to do, and then I get a front row seat at the Hellgate being built. An Annulus with stunning blood-red hair and wings to match stands before the completed bone gate and slashes her hand. She presses it to the skulls—the same marked skulls I saw in the doors. She goes to each one, and every time, she closes her eyes as though she’s praying or doing some sort of ritual. After she’s touched the last one with her bloodied palm, she steps back, and in a whoosh of heat and fire, flames suddenly crawl up the bones as the Gate comes alive.
As I watch, the red-haired Annulus turns around, and it’s like she’s looking right at me. She’s so close that if this were real and not just a vision, I’d be able to reach out and touch her. She offers a knowing smile at me that makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. And then, just like that, it’s all over, and I’m once again just staring at the gate, all the memories of the past gone, my palm still pressed to the skull.
A smile takes over my face, and a thank you comes from my soul, both directed at the bones for showing me the way.
I turn to the guys with a wide grin. “I know what to do.”
Their answering smiles anchor my soul and fill me with heat, and I turn back around to face the Gate with newfound confidence. This is my legacy. This is what I was created for. I got this.
I walk over to the curved blade of my scythe and run the palm of my hand against
