He and Eilee armed themselves with their swords.
A fallen with dark eyes and black-as-night hair settled before the front of their boat, his wings flapping to hold him in place. Three more fallens positioned themselves around him, their swords before them.
“Higherlings,” the dark-eyed higherling said, “you are warned now to return to the outerlands or we have the authority to exterminate you.”
“I have business here,” Treycore said.
“No higherling has business in Hell.”
“Wait,” a voice said from the mist.
The silhouette of another fallen moved from behind the cover of the haze. She wore a white dress with a golden sheer scarf. Black hair fell in waves to her hips, which were wide, wider than the usual higherling’s.
She settled beside the male higherling who led the team before the boat.
Treycore knew the fallen. She was Shaywren, the twin of Neeva, a higherling who hadn’t fallen during the War. At one time, Treycore and Neeva had been good friends, but Neeva’s determination to keep the Almighty in power had disturbed him and ruined their friendship, as well as her relationship with her rebellious sister who now hovered before him.
“Treycore and Eilee,” Shaywren said, her gray eyes serious and cold. “What brings such prominent figures of the dark days to the gates of Hell?”
“I’m here to speak with Vera,” Treycore replied.
“A house call I imagine you could make on legitimate grounds.”
By that, Treycore knew she was referring to Vera’s ability to meet him in the mortal realm or Heaven.
“This territory,” she continued, “is forbidden to you and your kind.”
“Shaywren, I need to get through these gates. I promise you, if you let me pass, I won’t trouble you or the Leader.”
He wished he could have used his allegiance with the Leader and his work for him to get Shaywren to understand that he was on their side, but he knew there was no way to prove his alliance… not in that moment.
“You don’t trouble me as it is, Treycore. In fact, it delights me that you’ve crossed through the dark world of the creatures of old to reach our kingdom. Remember the days when higherlings never would have dreamt of setting foot in the disgusting realm where the Almighty cast down His rebellious creations? So funny to see you now begging to enter it. You should return to your realm… the realm of the beautiful… the realm of vanity, and suck on the nipple the Almighty so eagerly offers you, because you will only be met with dismemberment and excruciating pain if you continue your quest.”
Treycore couldn’t abide by her wishes. He’d come too far, and he didn’t have any other way to enter the gates of Hell. And while he didn’t want to put Eilee in danger, he knew confronting these gatekeepers was his only option.
He glanced at Eilee. He could tell by the gleam in her eyes she knew he was about to pursue this, and he hoped she was ready.
Treycore leapt across the boat, at the dark-eyed higherling beside Shaywren.
Eilee expanded her wings and jumped off the boat, flapping violently as she soared into the air.
Where is she going?
She went for the ship.
Shaywren eyed two of the guards, and they followed her after Eilee, leaving the two remaining fallen to tend to Treycore.
They came at him fast, slashing their swords violently, and he did a good job keeping up with their swordplay, but he knew that wouldn’t be enough to compensate for his disadvantage.
He checked his periphery, trying to devise a new plan.
A few yards away, he spotted purple scales beneath the water’s surface. They looked like those of the Periondore Eilee had pointed out to him earlier.
It was a foolish tool to use at this moment, but he didn’t have any other options. He leapt into the water and swam toward the creature.
The fallens tailed behind him, the one who had initially confronted them laughing, for he surely thought this was Treycore’s surrender.
As Treycore neared the purple scales, he stabbed his sword into its back, hoping to stir its notorious temper.
