The wind was blowing and the sand was getting into my eyes. The temperature was soaring up and I was sweating, losing too much water. I tossed my jacket away and ditched it somewhere behind me. I didn’t need it for now. Sooner rather than later I would reach the second circle. I wasn’t going to get far without food or water.
I looked back, seeing the castle that stretched behind me. Several pointy towers disappeared in thick clouds that began filling up the navy sky. That image sent chills down my spine. Someone must have known that I was in Purgatory. Maybe Morpheus was planning to send a rescue mission after me.
My feet kept moving through this gloomy wasteland. Now and again I had to stop and rest my swollen feet in the random ponds filled with water, just to cool down. The air was too dry and I soon became thirsty, but I was too afraid to drink from the pond. It was a risk. My senses hadn’t registered any demons around. I left them all behind in the Circle of Greed.
After I walked for what seemed like hours, I started noticing that the landscape began shifting. The air wasn’t as dry anymore, and the soil was much thicker and wetter. I spotted some plants and began seeing more tropical-looking bushes on the way. Minutes later I reached the edge of a dark forest. I glanced to my right and left, knowing that I didn’t want to be seen on the road all alone. I began cutting through the thick branches, circling around the wide trees, slowly moving deeper into the forest until I reached a clearer path. Every part of my body ached, so eventually I sat down on the edge of an old cut tree, trying to gather my energy. I must have walked for miles and miles.
Moments later, something soft began falling down on my arms and face. The grey flakes turned into a dust as soon as I touched them. I figured that I was now in Ash Forest, the one that Watcher had been talking about behind the wall. The flakes were falling down, covering the forest in thick layers of ash. I smelled burning coal and sulphur, but continued walking, hoping that I had the next circle right in front of me.
I tapped into my source, hoping that I wouldn’t have to use my magic at all. The soaring energy riddled down my spine. I massaged my neck, feeling stiff all over the place.
“Watch out, they’re coming!”
I heard a scream and a split second later someone crashed straight into me and we both went down.
“Get away from me,” I hissed, trying to push a female demon off my back.
“Quick, we have to hide; otherwise they’ll arrest us.” She scrambled back on her feet and then began dragging me with her. “Lie down here. Quickly.”
I figured out that it was better if I simply obeyed, rather than stand there and argue. In the end it was a good choice, because I suddenly sensed Watchers approaching.
Moments later two of them flew through the same path where I stood just a second ago, their enormous wings spread wide wafting the air, and strong satanic energy followed them. Three of them were in their true forms. They were nudging two demons in front with sharp wooden sticks, flying only several meters above the ground.
The female demon was literally squishing my face to the ground and I could barely see what was going on in the road. I smacked her hand and lifted my head, taking some oxygen in just after the Watchers had vanished.
The female was a full-blooded demon, part of Asmodeus faction. I must have crossed over to his circle earlier on.
“Scums,” the female demon muttered to herself rising back on her feet.
“Who were those demons?” I asked, skipping the introductions. She obviously had just saved my butt.
I thought about Julian and my stomach jolted uncomfortably. He helped me and now he was dead because of that. This time around I was going to try to get out of here on my own.
“They were spreading word about other candidates by the entrance to Leviathan’s circle. Asmodeus is repressing anyone that is campaigning against him. The Watchers caught them, but I managed to run away,” she explained, eyeing me up and down with a wary look on her face. “And who are you? And why are you hanging around the restricted section?”
I figured that I had to be honest with this demon. She looked tough and reminded me a little of Emma. My life on earth wasn’t over as long as I was still in hell.
“I’m Maxine, and you don’t want to hear my story. It’s very long and complicated. I don’t want to trouble you. I’m crossing over to the Envy Circle,” I told her, lifting my hand to shake hers. Maybe this was odd, but I wanted to be clear from the start that I didn’t expect anything from her.
She smiled at me and we shook hands. She had enormous wide-set hazel eyes and long dark hair. She wore a tank top with combat trousers and had a hunter’s knife tucked into her belt at her side.
“I’m Dominica. I have lost my demon lover. He was taken to the pits,” she told me, and tears started falling down her cheeks. “Sorry, I don’t mean to be so miserable, but whenever I think about him my heart starts bleeding.”
I patted her on the shoulder awkwardly. Still, after everything that I had been through I wasn’t very good with affection. In moments like this I wished that I had a bottle of liquid magic. Yeah, I was done with that shit for good, but that craving still burned my throat from time to time.
“No, don’t apologise. Only a few hours ago I lost someone I loved,” I said, thinking about Arthur. I didn’t even have a chance to grieve over him, to remember everything that happened between us. “I need to get to Lucifer’s circle. Do you know where Lucifer punishes sinister humans?”
“Don’t know. Asmodeus controls this circle and I have never seen any humans here.” She pointed at me. “You’re a mongrel from the outside.”
“How do you know that?” I asked her.
“You don’t have a partner. Everyone has partners around here.”
I didn’t understand what she meant, but there was no time for explanations.
“I need to get to the next circle. Would you be able to show me the way out?” I asked, hoping that she would at least steer me in the right direction.
“A way out?” she asked, sounding baffled. “It’s election time. All the circles are on lockdown. It was hard to move around before, and now it’s almost impossible.”
Julian had mentioned that the election had complicated the movement between the circles. My daughter needed me. I wasn’t planning to give up of leaving hell just because Lucifer couldn’t keep his people in line.
“All right, can you at least show me where the exit used to be? Does the forest cover the entire circle?”
“Mostly, but there is a town too. I’m going there now, so I suppose you can tag along,” she said and I agreed. At least for a change she was making sense and I didn’t want to be stuck alone. I brushed the leaves away from my clothes and started following her.
“When do you think Lucifer will open the polls?” I asked, thinking that maybe that information could indicate how long all the circles would be on lockdown.
“Not sure. The Asmodeus demons haven’t had the go ahead from the dark lord yet. The polling stations were supposed to be opened seven nights ago,” she explained.
“So what happened? Does anyone know?”
“I have no idea,” she explained shrugging her shoulders. “The Watchers had promised that I could visit my lover. They took him to the pits and told me that I had to wait three nights, but it’s been fourteen and I still haven’t seen him.”
Then she started sobbing again and I felt even more awkward. I didn’t want to ask her about nighttime or how she knew when the day started or ended.
I figured that several hours must have gone by since I left Mammon’s territory.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked,” I said.
“It’s all right. I’ll find him. We love each other very much, you know.”
Soon we reached the end of the woodlands and the path led over to a small demon populated town. I noticed that all the houses were the same, built from grey brick. Flaming torches lit the concrete road. Demons were walking around, and everything seemed perfect
ly ordinary apart from the fact that every single person here was paired. Female and male demons were walking around and holding hands. So far, Dominica and I were the only ones without partners.
I felt oddly left out and thought about Zachary for a moment. He told me he loved me, not caring for the world that I was a mongrel girl. He, Paul, Ricky, Emma and even Nameless were probably trying to figure how to get me out of hell.
There was no way that I could keep a low profile around here. Demons were staring back at me, whispering among themselves.
We had entered the Circle of Lust, which was interesting and intimidating at the same time. I just figured that every male demon in this circle was linked to a female one. Dominica was already sensitive about being alone and I needed to keep her calm for at least five minutes.
“Should we be worried? Everyone is staring at us,” I hissed to Dominica as we were walking through the busy street. My energy danced at my back, reminding me that my abilities could be useful around here.
“Because we don’t have lovers. Don’t worry, soon enough they will get used to it. I’ll die from a broken heart anyway,” she told me, wiping more tears away. I didn’t say anything to that, knowing that she was exaggerating. It was just a figure of speech. No one had ever died from a broken heart, but then I remembered that I almost did, after I lost Arthur.
We reached the town square and right in the middle of it someone had set up a stage. I heard a female demon shouting towards others that were passing by.
“Gold, anyone with gold. These mongrels are fresh from earth, ready for sale!”
Chapter 4
“My leader, who had seen how hard I gazed, informed me now: ‘In all these fires are souls. Each one is swaddled in its inward blaze.’” ― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
It was a female demon that shouted those cruel words at the passing crowd. She created a magical light in the centre of her palm and then started bouncing it up and down. A few demons stopped to watch her and a few more were already standing in front of the stage, probably waiting to start the bidding war. On the platform there was another female and male demon dragging some scared-looking mongrels onto the stage.
“What’s going on up there?” I asked Dominica, grabbing her elbow. The stage was lit by torches. Most of the mongrels looked very human, and there was a mix of men and women.
Anger blinded me for a second and I clenched my fists so hard that I cut blood circulation to my fingers. I needed to remember that this was none of my business. I had to keep moving, but at the same time I couldn’t pretend that this kind of injustice was acceptable.
“Some demons can live longer only if they take a mongrel’s magic away. That woman is selling them,” Dominica explained. Those words made my blood boil.
“Please tell me that there are mongrels in hell that are free? That this isn’t common?” I asked, unable to hide my bitterness. She shrugged her shoulders, looking at me like she didn’t understand my question.
“Demons own them. Besides, there is no freedom in hell. We all have to do what we have to do,” she stated.
“What does this mean?”
“I plot dreams in my home. That’s my job,” Dominica said. “Maggie captures mongrels. She has to follow her life guidelines. We can’t rebel against the faction. Some try, but then they are taken to the pits. The others are lucky to escape on earth. Life is so much easier there.”
I guess she was right. Lucifer owned every demon in hell, but still I couldn’t accept that mongrels were being sold like livestock. This was worse than anything I’d ever seen.
“Let’s get closer,” I said to her.
My voices told me that I needed to stay sane for now. I couldn’t afford to bring any more attention to myself. As I approached, the female demon was walking around the platform with a skinny female mongrel that was wearing white Converse sneakers and jeans. She looked pale and petrified.
The demons in front were throwing high bids while the others tried to get in line too. Every part of my body shook with rage. I glanced up at the female demon that was running this disgusting show. A few heartbeats later I realised that I had met her before. Years ago in London she called herself Catherine, not Maggie, and she used to be married to Ricky, my best friend.
Ricky had told me she fought hard to escape from here. Then when she got to earth a few years later she took all their money and disappeared. Ricky hired me to go after her.
Now she looked so much different and I still couldn’t quite believe that she was back. She had short red hair and wore thick black glasses with a long black cloak. Demons were throwing golden coins on the stage. She grabbed the mongrel’s elbow and pushed her closer to the crowd.
“The demon in a blue shirt is bidding the highest so far. Will anyone go higher? This mongrel will burn well. She is very skinny.” Catherine—or Maggie— laughed cruelly. My blood pressure was skyrocketing. Watchers had been dragging mongrels to hell for as long as I remembered, sometimes for reasons beyond our control. Cyril had warned me a few times that I was on their radar too. Oppression of mongrels was real and it looked like nothing was going to change, unless Lucifer shifted a few laws around here.
“Buy her,” I said to Dominica. “Have you got any gold? I want you to buy her.”
“Since my lover was taken I don’t care for those mongrels and what their magic can do to my abilities. Besides, I don't have any gold coins with me. I’m miserable and nothing makes me happy these days,” she said and then started crying again.
I exhaled sharply and glanced back at Catherine, ready to lose control and barge onto the stage. When Ricky hired me, I had to chase after her all around the country. The bitch was strong, and she set off her Chimera on me.
“Mongrel on the loose! Mongrel. Grab her before she escapes!” Catherine shouted all of a sudden, pointing at me.
A few demons stepped away from me and I panicked, knowing that I had to get the fuck out of here. I didn’t understand how she even managed to recognise me. It had been years since we’d seen each other last, but obviously she hadn’t forgotten me.
“Oh no… She’s free. She’s from the outside,” Dominica started saying, but I already caught the attention of a few Watchers that were glaring at the crowd from the other side of the road.
“I need to leave now,” I snapped and started pushing demons away, heading back towards the forest. I didn’t have time to wait for Dominica. She was only going to slow me down. I shouldn’t have come here in the first place. It was a huge error on my part. Some demons were shouting after me; others were throwing spells, but my boots pounded against the hard concrete pavement. It was too late for me to save any mongrels. Now I had to save myself.
Multiple spells shot inches away from my face, so I dodged towards the empty alley on my left. I sensed Watchers and other demons chasing after me. They must have heard about me from those in Mammon’s circle. The streets of this mysterious hell town started splitting into different directions, and the buildings were shrinking, or my imagination was playing tricks on me. Magic was messing with my head. I needed to get back to the forest to hide. It was dark and I had an advantage over anyone that was after me. My abilities worked much better in hell than on earth.
I stopped for a second just so I could catch my breath, ready to slide into some random building. Then something really heavy hit me on the back of my head and I went down. I must have lost consciousness for several moments, because when I woke up, I was being carried in the air.
My head hurt like hell, and there were bits of dried blood in my hair. I glanced up, seeing the Watcher. He was holding my legs and I was hanging upside down. His enormous black wings beat against the air.
“Let me go, you fucker, now let me go!” I shouted, trying to use my energy to burn him, but blood was rushing to my head. I felt dizzy, unable to tap into my source.
I didn’t have enough body strength to lift myself up or even twist my legs. He carried me back to the square and then circled
around for a bit. Demons were shouting, but it was difficult to make out if I was the reason. Moments later the Watcher dropped me and I slammed on the ground painfully hard. This time I was certain that I had broken my leg. Every bone in my body hurt and my lungs compressed painfully.
“She belongs to me. She escaped from the Ash Forest earlier on,” shouted someone. I glanced back seeing Catherine or Maggie pushing through the crowd. She was holding a piece of paper in her hand, shaking it in front of my face. The crowd stepped aside when two Watchers landed on the ground a few meters away from me.
I was ready to launch myself at Ricky’s ex-wife and strangle her with my bare hands. However, I quickly realised that I could barely move.
“She talks shit. I don’t belong to anyone. I’m Maxine Brodeur and I’m free!” I shouted, ready to die on this square rather than go with that bitch. I tapped into my source and managed to create a faint ball of light on my hands.
There were some snippets and whispers around me. Some demons moved away from me.
“Take her, Adrian, and let us do our job. This mongrel is out of control, her magic hasn’t been retained.”
“Hold on a second, Maggie, and stop lying through your teeth. We have direct orders from the dark lord to stop any free-walking mongrel in the circle,” the Watcher stated, coming forward. I swallowed hard, knowing that I had no chance to fight him in the state that I was in. Maybe in the past I had opened the gates to hell and tossed the great Berith down, but right now hell owned me.
“But, master, look at her. She’s mine and only mine—”
The Watcher went a few inches above the ground and threw a fire ball towards Catherine. He intentionally missed, but the ends of her hair caught fire and that instantly shut her up.
She glared at me, whispering something to the demon that stood next to her.
Years ago I left her with nothing and walked away. I didn’t know how she managed to pull herself together. Either way, that was irrelevant, because now she was finally getting her revenge.