A bitter laugh escaped me, more growl than humor. If escaping Hell were as simple as wanting it badly enough, we’d have clawed our way back to the surface the moment we landed.
But the Dark Lord’s realm wasn’t designed to release its prizes. Every path we took led to new horrors. Every trial we overcame was replaced by something worse. And all the while, Isabeau’s strength ebbed like water through cupped fingers.
We keep moving,I decided, because what other choice did we have?The lost souls spoke of a boundary to the north where the fires dim. If there’s a way out, it might be there.
I started forward again, testing each step before committing my weight to it. The obsidian beneath my paws looked solid enough, but appearances meant nothing here. Yesterday, what seemed like solid ground had dissolved into a pit of screaming faces the moment Bastien set foot on it. Only his quick reflexeshad saved him from being dragged down by the grasping hands that emerged from the void.
Behind me, Laurent stumbled, a pained yelp escaping him as his injured leg gave way. He collapsed against the sharp rock, fresh blood staining his already filthy fur.
Brother!Bastien was at his side in an instant, nudging Laurent with his snout, trying to help him rise.
Laurent’s pain lanced through our shared connection, sharp and immediate.I’m fine,he insisted, though the strain in his thought-voice betrayed the lie.Just... need a moment.
I backtracked to my brothers, anger burning in my chest at the sight of Laurent’s suffering. Not anger at him—never at him—but at the Dark Lord, at Gaspard, at the witch who had cursed us in the first place. At everyone who had conspired to bring us to this point.
We’ll make camp here,I decided, nudging Laurent toward a small outcropping that offered minimal shelter from the ash that rained continuously from the skyless ceiling of our prison.Rest your leg.
We can’t afford to stop,Laurent protested, even as he limped heavily to the spot I’d indicated.Every moment we delay, Isabeau...
He didn’t need to finish the thought. We all felt it, the weakening pulse of her life force, stretched thin across the barrier between worlds. Our mate, our salvation, slowly being drained to fuel our eternal punishment. She wasn’t eating, but we didn’t know why.
I settled beside Laurent, my larger body providing some protection from the harsh elements. Bastien took position on his other side, the three of us huddled together as we had done since childhood, though back then we’d had human forms and the comfort of beds rather than this hellish landscape.
Remember when we were children?Bastien’s thought was soft, almost wistful.How we used to sneak into each other’s chambers during storms?
Mother would find us all piled together like puppies,Laurent added, his mental voice strained but warming at the memory.She’d pretend to be cross, but she never separated us.
The mention of our mother sent a pang through me. Queen Charlotte, with her gentle hands and fierce protection of her sons. What had happened to her after the curse struck? Had she succumbed to the corruption that had claimed most of the castle’s inhabitants? Or had she escaped, only to live out her days mourning three sons transformed into monsters?
Do you think they’re here?I couldn’t stop the thought from forming.Mother and Father. Do you think the Dark Lord took them too?
A heavy silence fell between us, broken only by the distant screams of tormented souls and the occasional rumble of the unstable ground beneath us.
If they are,Laurent finally responded,we’ll find them. And we’ll all escape together.
I wanted to believe him. Wanted to believe there was a way out of this nightmare, a path back to Isabeau and the life we’d been building together in our cursed castle. But hope felt like a luxury I couldn’t afford. Not when every step forward led us deeper into the Dark Lord’s domain. Not when every passing hour drained more of Isabeau’s precious life force.
I should have killed Gaspard when I had the chance,I growled, the memory of the hunter’s smug face as the ground opened beneath us still fresh in my mind.Should have torn his throat out the moment I caught his scent in our territory the first time.
We all should have,Bastien agreed, his mental voice tight with rage.Instead, we let him live long enough to bargain with a power beyond his understanding.
Laurent’s thought-voice, always the most measured of the three of us, cut through our shared anger.What’s done is done. Wasting energy on what we should have done won’t get us back to Isabeau.
He was right, of course. Laurent was often right about such things. As the diplomatic brother, I usually agreed with his peacekeeping ways. But diplomacy felt worthless in Hell.
Rest,I ordered, more harshly than I intended.We move again once your leg can bear weight.
I closed my eyes, not to sleep. None of us truly slept here, where nightmares walked freely, but to close our eyes and focus more intently on the fragile thread connecting me to Isabeau. I sent what little strength I could spare along that gossamer link, hoping it might reach her, might ease her suffering even slightly.
Can you feel me?I whispered into the void, knowing she couldn’t hear my thoughts as my brothers could, but unable to stop myself from trying.We’re coming, Isabeau. Hold on. Please, just hold on.
The only response was the steady, too-slow pulse of her life force, so weak it nearly disappeared between beats. My Isabeau, fierce and beautiful, reduced to this half-existence because of me. Because I’d claimed her, marked her, bound her fate to mine without understanding the consequences.
A sob built in my chest, emerging as a low whine that I couldn’t suppress. My brothers pressed closer, offering what comfort they could through our physical proximity and mental connection. Their presence helped, but it wasn’t enough. Nothing would be enough until we had Isabeau back.
We should move,Laurent said after what might have been minutes or hours. Time had no meaning here.My leg will hold.
I opened my eyes to find him already struggling to his feet, determination radiating through our bond despite the pain that made his thoughts sharper, more fragmented than usual. Bastien rose as well, positioning himself at Laurent’s side to offer support if needed.
