A hundred more of the things came rolling in.
Fucking literally.
Some started munching on grass while others trotted straight for Kara.
What was her presence causing?
“They’re so cute.” She laughed.
And when she looked up and smiled, I knew the answer to my question was simple.
Change.
Everything had to change eventually.
???
The crossover was close.
I couldn’t see it beyond the miles of sudden grass, but I felt it—tugging, calling, guiding me closer.
“It doesn’t look like Hell anymore,” Kara murmured beside me.
She was right. When we first stepped into the grass, it had only brushed our ankles. Now, it reached my knees. Trees kept appearing while strange animals flew or sprinted between them. I couldn’t name a single creature, but I recognized the mimicry—they were replicas of Earth animals. And though I hated to admit it, Kara was right. Each of them bore the same broken pattern across their skin. Marked by Hell, like me.
I couldn’t fathom their existence. Only knew that it meant one thing:
Change.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about losing control over this part of Hell. For so long, the voided place, steeped in darkness, had been mine to shape at will.
“What is that?” Kara raised her hand, pointing.
Confusion rippled through me as I realized our hands were locked together, fingers intertwined.
I stared. If she noticed my expression, she ignored it—still tugging me forward, still pointing. When had she grabbed my hand? I couldn’t feel her—couldn’t feel anything—but the instinct must’ve been mine. Had I reached for her without knowing?
I studied it. My claws against her soft, mortal hand looked wrong. Dangerous. Intimate. And still…I didn’t let go.
Kara grumbled, frustration edging her voice. “Look, Luke.”
Shaking my head to clear it, I turned. The sky rippled to our right—wobbling like a mirage, something half-there, half-pretending.
Unease coiled up my spine.
I yanked her close. “Back up.”
A loud gushing cracked through the air.
A waterfall tore into existence—ripping open the sky, crashing downward in a wild, thunderous rush. Water spilled with force, slamming into the ground below.
I scooped Kara into my arms and ran left. That much water would’ve knocked us flat with nowhere to go.
“Wait.” Kara gripped my jaw, trying to turn my head.
The ground beneath the waterfall had opened up, forming a basin that gurgled as it rapidly filled. But the earth didn’t stop shifting. Cracks branched out in every direction, breaking apart to guide the water farther. A cliff rose beneath the falls, and a mountain stretched along the horizon.
In moments, a river flowed through the field, snaking between the grass and trees. Above us on the hill, I didn’t know what might wink into existence next.
