I can see him, Fury. He’s four tiers up and two tiers over. I can guide you there, if you want.
I paused. What should I do? I had to close the portal leading to Tartarus. Queet, hurry back to Hecate. Tell her about the Abom, and ask her what I should do. Hurry.
He swept away without a word as I stiffened, trying to focus. Keep to the mission at hand until ordered otherwise. Always obey your Elder God—the two main rules set forth for Theosians.
“What’s wrong?” Greta, who was behind me, leaned closer.
“You’re good at body language, aren’t you?”
“I saw you straighten. Also, the look on your face wasn’t pleasant.” The Valkyrie-to-be stared at me.
“There’s an Abom that’s just come through. Queet is talking to Hecate now about what I should do.” I abruptly grabbed hold of a limb coming off of the big bough we were climbing as the stairs narrowed. We were headed toward an area where we would leave the steps behind shortly, and then we’d be reliant on our balance and the hope that the branches weren’t too slippery from the snow.
“Freya preserve us.” Greta shook her head, and turned around to pass the news to Elan.
A moment later, Queet swept up through the tree to hover beside me. I talked to Hecate. The Abom seems perplexed by all the activity. He’s studying the area. She said leave him for now, but be prepared in case he spots you and makes a beeline for you.
Oh, that was a comforting thought, all right. I glanced over my shoulder. “Greta, tell Elan about the Abom. Also tell her that Hecate has ordered me to ignore him for now. But he’s watching the area, and if he comes this way, people need to be prepared. We don’t want to have him shove us off the World Tree into a pile of zombies below. Or worse.”
She nodded, pausing to pass along the news. Ahead of me, Montran stopped. We had come to a fork in the branch where the steps turned to the left, toward the trunk, leading to a portal about five yards above us. The other fork led out to the end of the branch, and about fifteen feet separated us from the large branch we were aiming for.
“Hell, it was hard to tell below but it looks like the gap between the two is a lot wider than I first thought.” Tymbur stroked his chin.
I shaded my eyes from the falling snow, staring at the distance between us and the other tree. “What do we do now? Turn around and go back?”
Tymbur scanned the tree. “There are a few branches further up that stretch closer. But they’re thin and I don’t know if they would hold our weight. What do you think? We can’t jump, that much is obvious. But if we go back around the other route, we’re going to meet the zombies as they come down from the portal.”
“I’ve got an idea,” Hans said. “I have rope. Have Jason fly across with it, then transform. He can tie it off there, and we’ll tie it off here and create a single rope bridge. Then we can use it to monkey crawl across.”
“Brilliant.” I looked around for Queet. “Queet?”
I’m here. What do you need?
Find Jason. Tell him to hurry down here. We need him to fly across to that branch over there with a rope, then shift back and tie it down.
Right. I’m on it.
While we waited, Hans tied the rope tightly to the main bough. Jason spiraled down, his hawk form sleek and beautiful with wings spreading wide, their feathers a deep rust color. His eyes were the same piercing green as they were in his human form. He cautiously perched on one of the nearby branches. Hans held out the rope and Jason took it in his beak, then launched himself off, flying to the other branch where he first draped the end of the rope over the limb so it wouldn’t fall, then transformed back into his two-legged form. He shifted position to balance himself, then picked up the rope and lashed it tightly around the thick bough. Straddling the branch and leaning forward to be ready to help, he motioned to us.
Montran adjusted his robes so that they didn’t interfere, then cautiously wrapped his ankles around the rope and, hand over hand, began to pull himself across the rope, glancing over his shoulder at the drop below. It was a good thirty feet to the ground, through a latticework of sharp branches, any one of which could easily impale someone falling through them. At one point, when he was almost across, his hands slipped and he flailed, grabbing for the rope as he began to fall backward, holding on only by his knees.
Jason shifted in a flash and he launched off the branch, flying beneath Montran to shore him up with his massive wingspan. Montran managed to catch hold of the rope as Jason strained to leverage him up, and a moment later, the priest managed to cross the rest of the way. Jason joined him, landing back on the branch as Montran reached the bough. Jason transformed again, in time to help him scramble off the rope and find a firm footing back further toward the trunk of the tree.
Tymbur went next, managing to cross without incident.
As I secured Xan to make certain she wouldn’t drop out of her scabbard, I glanced up at the falling snow. Winter had come for certain. It might be only late October, but the drifts weren’t going to melt until spring. My breath forming white clouds in front of my face, I rubbed my hands together. It was a good thing I was Theosian and could handle temperature variations easier than humans or I’d be a frozen treat by now. Gritting my teeth against the chill, I wrapped my ankles around the rope and, grabbing hold of it with my hands, swung down below, scrunching across. I didn’t look down, trying not to think about all of those sharp branches waiting below, keeping my eyes toward the top of the World Tree. Time seemed to stand still while I crossed the rope, but then I was at the other side and Jason was helping me onto the bough. He motioned for me to join Montran and Tymbur. Another few minutes and we were all together again. Jason shifted once more, flew to the other side, untied the knot on the rope, and then carried it back over.
“Where to from here?” I tried to make sense of where we were, but all I could tell through the fall of snow was that we were high up in the World Tree.
“We climb up this lattice of branches. They aren’t technically part of the stair system, but they lead directly to the portal we want.”
He pointed up. As we followed his direction, we could see the wide branch overhead leading away from the crimson portal.
I caught my breath. The portal led to Tartarus, where the Titan oversaw the souls of the wicked. At least those who had followed the Greek gods. The energy pouring out of the portal was violent and filled with a hunger that hit me even standing well below it. I could feel the ache to devour, the hunger to feed roiling through the crimson gateway, and it nauseated me. Montran and Tymbur both looked just as pained as I felt.
“Are you okay?” I asked them.
Tymbur shook his head. “Tartarus and Hades do not dwell in the same worlds. Hades may be Lord of the Underworld, but his is a peaceful, quiet place where the dead go to rest. You know he rules over Elysium too.”
I jerked up. “Elysium? Where the Devani come from?”
“They are only one element that lives there. They are the guardians of order there, and keep the peace in a peaceful land. But in Elysium, the Devani belong in a way that they don’t over here.” Tymbur lowered his voice. “One of my tasks, as a Theosian bound to the Lord of Death, is to keep watch and report on what goes on here. While I’m not privy to what Hades thinks of the Devani who live in this world, trust me, the situation is being monitored.”
With that, Tymbur fell silent for a moment before continuing. “Tartarus is a dark and painful place, Fury. Hades does not rule there, nor does he delight in having to order the dead to venture there. I know you can feel the hunger leeching through that portal, but I feel it ten times more and it makes my very bones ache.”
As he spoke, the portal flared again and another zombie staggered through. We were close enough to see the creature, and the sight made my stomach turn. Whoever he had been was gone in a mash of decomposition. The zombie no longer resembled anything quite human, save for the fact that he was walking on two feet, and had arms
and a skull that showed through the rotting flesh. The light in the eye sockets burned with a vicious light, and again, a wave of hunger rolled off the creature as he began the journey down the steps toward the base of the World Tree. There were five others who were making the trek, and I wondered how Tam’s men were faring in hunting them down. Once again, I hit a wall of despair when I thought of having to track them down through the city before they engendered a plague.
“Let’s move.” I nodded toward the zombie. “We have to shut down that portal.”
Tymbur nodded and, without another word, began climbing the branches to the portal like he might climb a ladder. Montran scrambled to follow, and I waited till he was halfway up, then grabbed hold of the first limb. The climb wasn’t difficult. Most of the danger rested in possibly slipping on the snow that had iced over the tree. But my boots had a firm tread on them, and I managed without a problem.
As I lifted myself onto the branch near Tymbur and Montran, my stomach clenched. The crimson mist of the portal flared, and before we could move, it opened and we found ourselves facing a very large, very hungry corpse.
Chapter 20
Tymbur pushed me behind him. “Move. Give us room to work.”
As I stumbled back, catching a nearby branch to keep from falling over the side, Montran shifted to allow Tymbur the chance to move to the front. He pulled a short sword from the folds of his robes, startling me. I hadn’t realized he was armed with anything beyond his magical implements. The blade gleamed, glowing with a soft light that flickered as Tymbur raised it.
“The light—”
“It glows when the undead are near, regardless of type.” He zeroed his focus in on the zombie, who was grunting.
I watched with a morbid fascination as the creature lurched toward Tymbur, arms out as if to embrace him. The teeth and jaw bones showed through the ragged flesh, and they gnashed, as if trying to clamp down on Tymbur from a distance.
I edged over to the branch-ladder. “Greta, Hans, get up here. Zombie.”
Greta, who was almost to the top, hauled herself up faster, swinging over the edge as Tymbur shouted from behind me. I whirled, scanning for him. Crap. The zombie had suddenly turned and was bearing down on Montran, who had been standing to the side. Montran was trying to scrunch as far back as he could away from the wild flailing of the creature.
Tymbur let out a shout as he plunged the sword toward the zombie, piercing its back, but it didn’t turn. Instead, it just tried to keep moving steadily toward the warrior priest. Montran had backed up as far as he could. He was muttering something under his breath. Tymbur twisted the blade, but the zombie pulled off of it and stumbled forward, slashing at Montran.
Montran shouted, trying to sidestep the attack, but his foot slipped on the snowy branch and before anybody could get past the zombie to him, he went over the edge. He managed to catch hold of the branch and hung there, swaying above the dizzying drop.
The zombie seemed fixated on him, unsteadily kneeling to reach for his hands. Montran screamed as Tymbur lunged forward again, swinging the short sword sideways through the air to connect with the creature’s neck. As it cleaved into the rotting flesh, tearing muscle and sinew away to expose bone, the zombie fought to pull itself away. It neither screamed nor showed pain, which was almost more frightening than the creature itself.
But as we watched, Montran gave a sudden shout as his grip began to slip. I glanced down at the branch below us. It was about eight feet down and not very wide, but it was directly below Montran. Without a word, I aimed and jumped. I landed, teetering, and crouched, grabbing for the nearest limb to steady myself. As I balanced, I realized I wasn’t alone. Jason had shifted and flown down. Now, he was back into his human form. Without a word, he grabbed me and lifted me up. I reached out. I was facing Montran’s knees. He struggled, swinging back and forth as he desperately attempted to regain his handhold.
I couldn’t hold him if he slipped, but I could steady him to give him time. I grabbed hold of his knees, bracing them against me. Jason held me up, trying to keep his own footing.
Montran relaxed into my arms, adjusting. He brought one hand down, wiping it on his robe, then switched hands, bringing the other down to dry it off. I gave him a shove, taking hold of his foot to place it on my now-burning shoulder. My body was protesting the weight and the stretching but I couldn’t let him down. If I let go now, he’d fall.
Another moment and he had regained his hold. As I pushed, he scrambled up. I couldn’t tell what was going on with the zombie, but apparently it wasn’t preventing him from getting back on the branch. Once Montran was safe, Jason lowered me to the branch we were on. I suddenly realized I’d have to figure out how to get back up to them. But then the rope dropped down. I looked up. Hans was straddling the branch, motioning for me to wrap it around my waist. Grimacing, I did, even though the rope was cutting into the bruises in my side. The chill numbed me up but I’d be sore later. As he began to lift me up, Jason flew by me.
Once I was near the branch, I reached up and grabbed hold. Hans helped me scramble up. I looked around for the zombie, but all I could see was the crimson portal.
“Did you kill it?” I asked Tymbur.
He nodded, looking solemn. “But you need to hurry before the next comes through. Whatever you have to do, do it now, please.”
I cleared my throat, so numb that even my bruises weren’t fazing me by now. “Give me room.” I moved toward the portal, fumbling to untie the pouch that Hecate had given me. As I opened it, letting the orb roll out onto my hand, the sphere felt like the most delicate of glasses—sparkling as the colors swirled within. I raised it up, staring in at the juxtaposition of fire and ice, of logic and chaos, of reason and war.
“What do you have to do?” Tymbur asked.
I stared at the orb. “I must use the scroll to step through into Tartarus and cast the sphere down to break it. Then I have to return before the portal shuts. I won’t lie, this is dangerous.”
Hecate had warned me when she instructed me how to use it. She had warned me that there was a chance I might be trapped if I didn’t move fast enough, but I hadn’t told anybody else that. I didn’t want them trying to dissuade me. The threat we were facing was too great. Disaster loomed if we couldn’t stop them from coming through. As it was, we were already facing a growing plague until we tracked down all of the zombies.
“Fury, are you going to do what I think you are?” Jason started to move forward, but Hans stopped him.
“She was given a task by Hecate. Let her do her job.” Hans flashed me a grim look. He knew what it meant to be Theosian. To be the blade of the goddess. Or, in his case, the hammer of the gods. He understood that we didn’t belong to ourselves, but to the Elder Gods, and it was up to them to do as they would with us.
Jason stared at him for a moment, then backed away. But he gave me a pleading look that said everything, and yet nothing.
“I have to do this. Trust me. Hecate wouldn’t ask me if it wasn’t absolutely necessary.” And with that, I motioned everybody back. “Give me room.” I pulled out the scroll and unrolled it. Athena had written a simple charm on it, but the paper itself almost leapt out of my hand, it was so charged.
I stood in front of the portal, raising the sphere as I read from the paper. The winds picked up, howling as if they could sense what I was doing, and I felt an ache so deep in my heart that I wanted to weep, as if the World Tree itself was grieving over what was befalling it.
“Between the realms, between the worlds, This spell invoke, this spell unfurl,
Let no paths cross, let no paths meet, Life from this vortex, now much flee.
In the name of Pallas Athena, I strike thy power from thee!”
The scroll burst into flames, the words vanishing into the fire. As the vortex flared from the spell, I jumped through.
For a moment, I thought I had entered the wrong portal. Everything was black. Pitch black, like the black
of nightmares. It felt like I was falling, and then—I wasn’t. As I reached out to steady myself, I felt flesh. Squirming hands, tentatively reaching toward me. I screamed and the world flared to light. The flames were everywhere, burning off ponds as though a wick had turned the pools of briny water into oil.
The blinding flash faded into a sooty, stricken landscape. I could see what had been touching me. Figures, both men and women, skulked around. Some looked like lumps of puddling flesh and still others were skeletal. Then the zombies came into view. They were shambling around, filling the air with their hungry groans. Everywhere, I sensed despair and anguish, and the screams were no longer human, but animal in nature.
I blinked, too terrified to move. Then, remembering what I had come to do, I cast the sphere down on the ground, falling to my knees as everything lurched when the glass shattered. New shrieks filled the air, the rumbling echoed by an earthquake that rippled in waves through the fire-torn land.
I staggered to my feet as the ground continued to shake. I had to get back through the portal. As I raced toward the vortex, trying to keep my balance, I became aware of a change in color in the portal. I skidded to a halt in front of it, but as I began to step through, some force tried to push me back. Damn it, someone was trying to shove their way through, and they were blocking my exit.
I shoved back at them, frantic, but whoever—whatever—it was, was strong.
“Get the hell out of the way!”
The portal was beginning to close. I only had seconds to escape. I backed up a couple steps and, running as hard as I could, I dove for the vortex, body slamming whatever it was out of my way. The crimson iris of the interdimensional door was swirling closed as my weight and speed drove through, bowling over whatever was in my way. I emerged back onto the World Tree just as the crimson faded and the portal vanished from sight.
I landed so hard on the branch that it knocked the wind out of me. But the next moment, something latched onto my throat. I tried to breathe, but it was cutting off my air. Scrambling against the unseen force, I realized that the Abomination had hold of me.