reverberated off the stone walls as Silas led the chant, his voice resonant with power and purpose. I repeated the foreign syllables, stumbling slightly, but Donnie and I followed his lead. The cavern seemed to pulse with an otherworldly energy, the inscriptions glowing faintly.
“It worked,” Silas declared. “You’re marked for entry.”
“Splendid,” Donnie quipped. “We’ve got our tickets to the devil’s magic kingdom. The most miserable place outside of earth.”
Silas approached the opposite wall, his movements deliberate and focused. He studied the inscriptions intently, his lips moving silently as he deciphered their arcane meaning. The air crackled with anticipation as he began another ritual, his voice rising and falling in an ancient cadence.
I watched, transfixed, as Silas traced a shape on the ground with his finger. Flames erupted from the stone, following the path he drew, forming a fiery outline that seared my retinas. The heat was intense, the air shimmering as the portal took shape.
My heart pounded against my ribs as I stared into the depths of the Hellgate. Beyond the flickering flames, an inky void beckoned, promising untold horrors and the answers I so desperately sought. Somewhere in that abyss was Angie.
“Who’s first?” Silas asked, his gaze sweeping over us.
I stepped forward, my jaw set with determination. “I’ll go.”
The flames licked at my skin as I approached the Hellgate, the heat searing my lungs with every breath. I hesitated for a moment, the primal fear of the unknown gripping my heart. But the thought of Angie, trapped in this nightmarish realm, hardened my resolve.
I stepped through, the flames engulfing me, and the world went black.
Cold. Empty. Silent. I found myself in a tomb, the air heavy with the stench of sulfur.
A flicker of movement caught my eye, and Donnie materialized beside me, his face pale. Silas emerged next, followed by Wheatley.
“Everyone good?” Silas asked.
We nodded. Wheatley reached into her satchel, producing a handful of crystals that glimmered faintly in the darkness. She distributed them among us, the cool weight of the crystal settling around my neck.
I felt a tingle wash through my body, and my form shimmered, shifting into a twisted, demonic visage. Donnie and Silas underwent a similar transformation, their features warping into grotesque masks.
Silas turned to us. “To get back to the tomb, just click your heels together and say ‘there’s no place like home.’”
I tilted my head. “You’re kidding.”
“I am,” Silas admitted, his demonic lips twitching with a hint of a smile. “The answer was on the inscription. Just say, ‘thiyáta.’ It means ‘home.’ Speak it, and the world around you will shift, bringing you back to this tomb. It’s an incantation, linked to the gate we just came through.”
I nodded, committing the word to memory. “Thiyáta. Got it.”
Silas led us out of the tomb, the air shimmering with heat. The landscape beyond was a twisted hellscape, the sky a roiling mass of sand, and the distant screams of the damned echoed in the wind.
“Join hands,” Silas commanded. “We need to stay together.”
I grasped Wheatley’s hand, her grip firm despite the illusion of demonic claws. Donnie took my other hand.
Silas closed his eyes, his brow furrowed in concentration. The world around us shifted. Sand swirled around us, a stinging vortex that obscured my vision.
Slowly, the sandstorm subsided, and the grains of sand solidified, turning into walls of glass that sharpened and became more defined with each passing second. The screams intensified, a cacophony of agony.
We found ourselves in a long hallway lined with iron doors, each one marked with a name and a death date. The door directly in front of us bore Marilyn’s name. The letters were seared into the metal.
“That was too easy,” Donnie muttered.
Silas shook his head. “Not done yet. We need the key. We need to find a whelp.”
We moved down the hallway, our footsteps echoing on the cold stone. The screams from behind the doors grew louder, punctuated by occasional sobs and pleas for mercy.
I kept my eyes peeled for any sign of a Prime demon, but the hallway remained mercifully empty. Finally, we spotted a whelp, a set of skeleton keys dangling from its belt.
Donnie grinned. “I’ve got this.”
I hesitated. “You sure?”
“Yup. You heard what Wheatley said before. You use your crystals in your gauntlet and it’ll break the illusion. Trust me, dawg.”
I rolled my eyes. “Alright. Do your thing, Donnie.”
With a flick of his wrist, Donnie sent one of his enchanted knives spinning through the air. It struck the whelp right between the eyes, and the creature let out a surprised squeal before crumpling to the ground.
“Nice shot,” Wheatley said, darting forward to snatch the keys from the whelp’s belt. The creature’s body disintegrated, turning to ash before our eyes.
Donnie frowned. “That thing will respawn soon, right?”
Silas nodded. “And when it does, it’ll probably tell something a lot nastier about what happened. We need to move.”
We hurried down the hallway, the keys clutched tightly in Wheatley’s hand.
At last, we reached Marilyn’s door. Wheatley’s hands shook slightly as she inserted the key into the lock and turned it. The door swung open with a rusty creak, revealing a small, dimly lit cell.
Huddled in the corner, her knees drawn up to her chest, was Marilyn. She looked up as we entered, her eyes wide with fear and desperation.
We quickly removed the illusion crystals from around our necks, allowing our true appearances to shimmer back into view.
Marilyn let out a strangled cry. “No! Not another Mimic! I can’t take it!”
Wheatley rushed forward, her voice cracking with emotion. “Mom! It’s me!”
Silas stepped forward, his voice uncharacteristically gentle. “And it’s really me, Silas. We’re getting you out of here.”
I watched as Marilyn’s face cycled through a kaleidoscope of emotions—fear, disbelief, hope. I could only imagine the horrors she had endured in this hellish place, the psychological torment inflicted by the Mimics and whatever other demons had taken their turn making her existence a literal living hell.
Wheatley helped Marilyn to her feet, supporting her frail frame. Marilyn’s knees buckled, her legs barely able to hold her weight. I could see the toll her imprisonment had taken on her, both physically and mentally.
Silas turned to me, his eyes filled with a mixture of urgency and resignation. “We’ll only slow you down. So we stick to the plan—you go get Angi. I’ll take Marilyn home.”
I nodded, my heart clenching at the thought of what lay ahead. Finding Angi in this hellscape seemed an impossible task, but I had to try.
Wheatley hugged Silas and Marilyn tightly, tears glistening in her eyes. As she stepped back, Marilyn’s gaze locked onto mine, a flicker of recognition sparking in her haunted eyes.
“Wait. You said, Angi?” she asked, her voice hoarse from disuse.
I nodded. “You know where she’s at?”
Marilyn hesitated, her brow furrowing. “That depends,” she said slowly. “There might be more than one Angi.”
“Angela Winter,” I clarified, my voice tight. “She’s my wife.”
Marilyn gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. “I don’t know if you can...” she trailed off, her eyes filled with a mixture of pity and dread.
I stepped closer, my heart pounding in my chest. “What do you know?”
Marilyn’s gaze dropped to the floor, her shoulders sagging. “She’s not in a cell like this. She’s one of his pets...”
“What do you mean, pets?” I demanded.
“She’s a part of Lucifer’s mortal harem,” Marilyn whispered, her voice tinged with shame. “I was among them for a time until he lost interest in me. I wasn’t...his type...”
“Too old?” Donnie blurted.
I backhanded him on the shoulder. “Dude, really?”
“No, it’s alright,” Marilyn said softly, raising a placating hand. “It’s true. I was too…old…for the dark lord. But Angela..she’s one of his favorites.”
The words hit me like a physical blow, the air rushing from my lungs. The thought of Angi as the plaything of the devil himself...it was too much to bear.
I forced down the wave of revulsion that threatened to overwhelm me, clenching my jaw tight. “How do we find her?”
Marilyn’s gaze met mine, her eyes haunted. “She’s in the dark lord’s castle,” she said. “It won’t be easy. But rest assured, unlike the rest of us, Lucifer treats his harem well, relatively speaking. Apart from how he...uses them...”
I shuddered, my stomach churning. “I’m not sure I want to know.”
“You really don’t,” Marilyn agreed, her voice hollow. “But those of his harem who remain loyal, who please him, do not suffer like the rest of us. It’s not pleasant, but it’s better than...this...” She gestured to the bleak cell around us.
I took a deep breath. “What else can you tell us?” I asked. “How can I break her out of there?”
Marilyn’s expression turned grave. “There are at least two Primes in the castle at all times,” she explained. “Avoid them at all costs. Your little costumes won’t trick them.”
“Figured they wouldn’t,” Wheatley chimed in. “But avoiding two of them shouldn’t be impossible.”
Marilyn shrugged, unconvinced. “That’s not the hardest part. When you’re a part of Lucifer’s harem, let’s just say there’s an allure to it all...Angi won’t be of her right mind. She’ll be loyal to her master. She may not come with you willingly.”
The words hit me like a punch to the gut. The thought of Angi, my Angi, brainwashed and loyal to that monster..it was almost too much to bear. But I couldn’t give up, not now, not when I was so close.
I met Marilyn’s gaze. “I have to try. I have to believe that when she sees me...she’ll remember who she is, who we are.”
Marilyn nodded. “I pray that you’re right. For both your sakes.”
“How do we find the castle?” I asked.
Marilyn’s expression was somber as she replied, “You can find the castle easily enough. Speak the devil’s name, and you’ll show up at the gates of his palace.”
Marilyn’s voice was grave as she continued, “From here, you’ll have to move on foot and hope you don’t get caught. Angi likely won’t be alone. The concubines live together, and they’re very close—like sisters. Somehow, you’ll need to get her alone and hope you’re right, that she’ll come with you.”
A chill ran down my spine at her next words. “But if any of the other concubines get wise to what’s happening, they’ll tell Lucifer. If he knows you’re here, it’ll be all over. This entire realm operates however he wants it to work. Whatever gate you used to get here, he’ll be able to close it with a single thought—if he realizes what’s happening.”
I swallowed hard, the weight of the task before us settling heavily on my shoulders. But I refused to let fear take hold. I met Marilyn’s gaze, my voice steady. “Thank you, Mrs. Sparks. We’ll find a way.”
Wheatley placed a hand on my shoulder, her grip firm and reassuring. “We’ve got this, Sebastian. We’ll get Angi back, no matter what it takes.”