Page 69 of Queen of the Wicked
“As you wish,” Eryx relented. Izara and Alessia waited for them on the other side as they crossed the remaining planks, but not before Eryx added, “For the record, being Lord of Hell isn’t a bad thing, Erebos. Fromwhat I have noticed, Alessia might be more open to becoming your mate than you realize, and I hope that, in time, you will see that as well. ”
“The map didn’t indicateits precise location, but rumors claimed the Seeker resides behind the waterfall.” Eryx tucked the map into the pocket of his backpack as the group stared at the flowing lava before them. The bridge had led to a set of stone stairs carved into the cave, and now they were faced with what felt like the heat of a thousand suns blazing against their skin at the sheer height of the lava crashing down around them.
“We’re supposed to go behind that?” Alessia squinted at the high ceilings of the cave, to the bridge they had crossed only minutes ago. “How, if we’re in the Dead Zone? We don’t have access to our power.”
“The Seeker isn’t supposed to be easy to track down,” Izara said pointedly. She gestured to the stone path that led behind the wall of lava. “I say we just go ahead and walk it. Take our chances.”
“And risk the lava singeing our skin?” Alessia stared at her open-mouthed. “Are you insane?” She slid her backpack off her shoulders before unzipping it and pulling out a familiar book that had Erebos’s eyes bulging out of his head.
“You brought theBook of Deathto the pits?”
She shrugged and flipped through the pages like it was one of those Bridgerton novels she never stopped raving about and not a precious artifact he’d been tryingto find for decades. “I needed something to read in case I got bored, but maybe it says something about the Seeker in here. It’s worth a try, right?”
“Alessia,” Izara protested. “We don’t have time to?—”
As if her uttering her name were the key, the rushing lava suddenly stood still. Everything paused as an eerily quiet filled the cavern, causing the rest of their group to fall silent.
Alessia slowly closed the book and then stuffed it back into her backpack. “Maybe it sensed that we’re here?”
Eryx glanced around the cave, utterly perplexed. “Whatever the case, let’s not waste any more time.”
The group shuffled along the path behind the lava, and despite Erebos’s facade of bravery, he eyed the wall of scorching magma frozen in mid-air with uncertainty. If it decided to start up again for whatever reason, there was a good chance his skin would melt right onto the stone beneath him.
“Do you see anything?” Alessia whispered behind Izara. The path led to another darkened corridor, a gentledrip, drip, dripechoing from somewhere within. Erebos loosened a breath when they were past the immediate threat, but he geared himself up for a new one as they approached an entrance to a cave within a cave.
“It’s too dark to tell without my magic,” Izara muttered. She glanced over her shoulder at the rest of the group. “Am I expected to go first?”
“I mean, if you insist…” Eryx’s smile grew at the annoyance on the soul seeker’s face. “What? You are the one who asked.”
“Andyouare the general,” she retorted. “You are used to fighting without magic. Shouldn’t you be the one to go first?”
“You two are insufferable,” Alessia said with a sigh. She pushed them out of the way and strode into the cave without fear, leaving Erebos to stare after his mate in awe. He wondered why the Makers selected such a strong, badass woman as his other half when he didn’t carry a fraction of her bravery. Sure, he would throw his life on the line for her, but he didn’t handle dark, enclosed spaces well. As Alessia had experienced yesterday, it stemmed from his years spent in a cell without light, left to conjure up the darkest nightmares while Bastian kept him on the brink of insanity.
Eryx snorted, pulling him back from his memories as they threatened to drag him under. “She seems to be warming up to us well, doesn’t she?”
Izara, who rarely let her emotions show, smiled with pride. “It’s about time she gave us a taste of our own medicine. Let’s go.”
But suddenly, Alessia reappeared and grabbed Erebos’s hand with hers, interlacing their fingers together. It provided him a semblance of reality to grapple onto while he followed behind her and she navigated the darkforhim.
It shouldn’t have made his chest ache, but it did. For years, he’d battled this fear alone. He wasn’t accustomed to someone being there to help him willingly. To care enough to do so.
Following the group into the darkness, Erebos felt his chest squeeze to an excruciating pressure. His lungsbegan to constrict as the light at the cave’s opening faded, and sweat slicked his palms. It was the third panic attack he’d had since their journey into the pits with all the narrow, darkened tunnels, but it had happened plenty of times since he escaped Bastian’s grasp, so he knew how to handle it internally.
Dragging in a deep breath, he counted to ten before exhaling out his mouth, allowing his free hand to trace the stone walls as they ventured into nothingness.Alessia’s thumb stroked the back of his hand, fueling him with the courage he needed.
“Does anyone else feel like it’s difficult to breathe?” Alessia asked.She had no idea she was currently sensing his unease. It was embarrassing enough to accept help, let alone tell her he was close to passing out.
Thankfully, Eryx cleared his throat, responding for Erebos since he couldn’t produce words. “It’s probably the air quality since we’re so far underground.”
The lord had never been more thankful for the Dead Zone than right now. Otherwise, he was certain his general would have lit up like a Christmas tree for Alessia.
A blue light flickered in the distance, signaling an exit, and Erebos’s legs pushed him as fast as possible to reach it. He was the first to exit the mouth of the cave, practically dragging Alessia behind him, but what awaited them was truly astounding.
Cavern ceilings draped with jagged stalagmites surrounded a pool as bright as the moon. Erebos couldn’t tell where the light source came from, but it gleamed like shimmering turquoise in the sun's heat. Itcast the walls with specs of glitter, coating the entire cave in diamonds. It was breathtaking to see something so serene placed in the middle of the pits.
Erebos couldn’t help but think it was a mirage of something far more sinister.
For water to exist this deep in Hell didn’t make sense. It wasn’t even a hot spring, which would be more plausible to believe than this facade of cool, mouth-quenching liquid.
