I cough and wipe the water from my face, glaring up at the cocky ass that’s perched up against the doorframe.
“You trying to drown me?” I spit out before whispering a spell to dry me off.
“If it’s the only way to get those thoughts out of your head, then consider me Poseidon’s Grim Reaper.” He smirks, but drops his smile as he pushes off the wall and walks over to me.
“Look, Levi. I could hear you screaming at me, as in, you weren’t shielding any of your thoughts just now. I know this is hard on you.” He places his hand on my shoulder, and I go blank. I’m not sure how I feel about all of this.
Should I feel angry that I was caught? Ashamed that I’m struggling? Relieved that someone knows?
“Believe it or not, but if anyone can make it through this curse—because make no mistake, that’s what this is—it’s you. You’re the strongest out of all of us to push through this and still get the girl in the end. And it will be therightgirl, Levi.” He squeezes my shoulder. “But if you find yourself struggling at any point, let us know. We’re family, and that’s what we’re here for. You’re not doing this alone.” He pauses and looks around before he drops his hand. “Well, you were doing it alone.” He chuckles. “But not anymore. Let me help.”
I chuckle and nod.
“Okay, just make sure you take off the claws before you incinerate their bodies,” I tell him, dragging the closest arachnid body I have to one of the fireplaces.
“Simple enough,” he says as he walks over to a spider and cuts off a claw, laying it down in the line I’ve made.
I’m over on the other side of the cave when JP calls out to me.
“Hey Levi?”
“Yeah?”
“Have you noticed this?” he asks, still standing by the claws.
I run my hands through my hair and walk over to see what he’s talking about. At a glance, all I see are the claws I’ve lined up in no particular order. They all differ in size and color, with smooth outer shells and sharp pincers that could easily cut through skin or crush bone or stone.
“What do you see?”
“This.” JP kneels and points to a shape at the base of the claw on the one he’s closest to.
I conjure a light and bring it down to inspect the area, and I feel the blood drain from my head.
“Holy Fates,” I murmur.
“I take it this is bad,” JP guesses.
I really wish I hadn’t seen this, but now that I have, I need to check the other claws. I quickly shuffle to the others and check. The exact same swirls of intricate designs are on all of them, causing my stomach to roll with nausea.
“Levi?” JP probes. “You’re scaring me, and the fact that your shields are a fucking iron vault when just a second ago, they were thrown open, is definitely a red flag,” he points out, and he’s completely right.
This is bad news, and I’m not sure I want to be the one to break it.
I turn to look at JP as I swallow down the bile rising in my throat.
“Let’s finish the last few and see if the others have the same mark before I come to a conclusion,” I tell him.
He pauses as if ready to argue, but purses his lips and gives me a curt nod before turning and grabbing another spider. I double-check my shields, making sure they are solid, and add another layer just in case, as I work out what all this means in case I could be wrong. I don’t want to be wrong and send anyone into a panic if I’m overreacting. This is why I keep emotions out of things and focus on logic and facts.
We work in silence for a few hours, burning the bodies, piling the pincers against the wall, and with every symbol I see etched into their base, it’s a stab at what I know. As JP pulls the last pincer over and lays it down so I can see the marking along with all the others, my heart sinks. That’s not just a simple stampor brand that would be found on a normal pet or livestock that humans would have on Earth. One could call it a simple spell, but most would call it slavery.
I walk around the cave and cleanse the room since the Darkstars are poisonous to the gargoyles, and this is their nursery.We can’t have any lingering, exposing them, and letting our efforts go to waste.
“We’re all done,” Moni says, zipping into the room. “Let’s go, slow pokes!” she yells, turning and leaving a green streak as she flies out.
“You’ve got until we land in Hell to get it straight in your head before I spill,” JP tells me simply as he passes, and I feel a weight land on my chest.
He doesn’t mean he knows what I know, but he will bring up what he saw here, and then how I want to handle it will be out of my control. I take in a deep breath before slowly letting it out and follow him down the hallway.
