Page 19 of Shadow & Stars
Goosebumps rolled across my skin. This place gave off way too many bad vibes. I felt like we were being watched. That some fucked up demons were about to scale those walls and play with our insides.
But there was too much silence for that. And let them come. Getting into a fight was a good thing.
Right?
“Fascinating,” Butterfly said, his voice making me jump. “This looks like Level 1 yet with many differences.” He bent to touch the grass.
“Welcome to Level 88,” Xavier responded. He went to a wooden door set in a dead tree. Opened it, vanished for a few seconds, then returned.
Was he making it seem like we ran that way? Smart move if he was. But if we weren’t going into the tree, where were we going?
Xavier directed us to the park, stepping over the low fence.
The blue stars of the demon realm were dim in the dark sky above, a crescent moon flickering like a dying lightbulb. Butterfly’s dust continued to fall, twinkling on the dead grass.
“Xavier?” I said.
He put Darcy down, crouching beside the slide. “Yes?”
“Where are we going?” I picked at my fingernails, the ball of unease still heavy in my guts.
“Just follow me.” He glanced left and right before reaching under the slide.
Darcy looked at me, shrugging.
“Still counting, Shadow,” Margarite said beside me.
Why did Butterfly respond with a gentle chuckle? Prick.
Xavier plunged a hand into the dead earth, rummaging around for a few seconds before a click sounded. The ground beneath the slide opened up, revealing a set of stone stairs leading into darkness.
Xavier clapped dirt off his hands. “Follow me. Roman? Come up front with me. The light down here is usually powered by magic. Your sparkling will help light the way. Margarite, too.”
“I must stay out of any helping,” she responded.
“Fine.”
I did as he asked, shivering as I brushed against his body.
Think nothing. Think nothing. Think nothing.
I crouched, shuffling onto the stairs, dead grass crunching beneath me. My sparkles cast enough light to illuminate the dark, cramped space. Walls of packed earth surrounded me, dead roots sticking out of it. The air was warmer in here, on the stifling side of comfortable. I moved down the stairs a bit to allow the others inside, each step cautious.
Once everyone was in place, Xavier did something to the edge of the opening and the ground closed up, killing the last traces of the weak moonlight.
“After you,” he said, hidden in shadow.
I obeyed, leading the way down the straight staircase until we reached a long corridor.
Xavier joined me in point. “There are four gates at the end.”
“What is this place?” I kept up with him, the corridor wide enough for three people.
“I used to come here as a child with my best friend,” he answered, his heat licking at my face.
Hold me. Please just hold me.
“Our secret place,” Xavier continued. “We never did find out who it belonged to. No demon ever came to reclaim it.”
