“There’s no way for us to search every part of Hellveilious nor will we be doing that. Do you know the level we need to go to?”
Creed’s voice snatches me out of my mind, and my mouth gapes open when I focus forward. Never in my life—well, since I found out about Hellveilious—would I have guessed the entrance is a massive-ass dark crater.
Torches decorate the ginormous circular space, but their light doesn’t stretch into the black abyss in the center. The narrow walkway that flows around the edge is jagged, and pieces are crumbling off the side as we speak.
I’m confident the ground will give out when we walk around this pit of definite death.
“I believe I’ll be able to get a more accurate idea once we’re actually in the beast’s belly, so to speak.” Doren nods as he glances down into the pitch-black hole. His hum is abruptly cut off when he glances back at Creed. “Oh, no offence.”
Creed scoffs, pulling me forward with him. “None taken.”
“So which way do we go?”
Everyone stops moving.
I grow incredibly uncomfortable and nervous as their gazes land on me. Mine roams over each of them as I try to decipher why they’re staring at me.
Finally, Creed rubs his hand down his face and sighs.
“We go down. Then wherever from there.”
“I’m sorry, down? Down where?”
The second his eyes flash to that center, I yank out of his grip and backpedal.
“Nope. Fuck no. Good luck, everyone. I’ll be outside waiting for you.”
My back collides with a chest, and a grunt slips through my lips. My hand holds on to the arm Riven snakes around me.
“Don’t be scared, angel. We won’t let you fall. You’ll fly right down and land on your feet.”
“Let me go, Riven. I’m not jumping into a dark pit that I can’t see the bottom of. No freaking way.”
Creed stands before me, blocking my sight of that damn hole and smushing me more firmly between him and his brother.
“It’s an illusion meant to scare any who are dumb enough to come here on their own. Once you leave this ring, there’s no getting out without certain gods’ permission. It’s going to feel like a three-foot drop. You’ll land on solid ground, and we’ll be right there with you.”
My breathing labors as Kyzen and Amick step up to my sides, but my eyes continue to peer around Creed to glance at that abyss.
Whose fucking idea was this?
They couldn’t have thought of something other than a black hole?
How about be normal and put up a second barrier?
Or just let people learn their lesson the first time.
“What do we jump into? Like what’s there waiting on the other side?”
“The Processing Ring. It’s where all gods brought in are accounted for and sectioned off by where they’re supposed to go. At least that’s the proper process. We’ll land, Doren will get a feel for where we need to go, then we walk through the Division, which is the structure that divides you based on your crime. Then you’re escorted there.”
Damn. There’s like a whole-ass system to this.
I kind of thought criminals were just dropped in here like Yemi and I were.
Did we go through a process?
Fuck, don’t worry about it. Deep breath. You’re doing this for her.
