Page 132 of Demonic Cage
Lavian pushes me aside. “I said, go!” he commands, flashing me a brave smile. “I’ve lived my whole life to find this dagger. I don’t care if I die.”
But I do,I want to say, but don’t. I swallow hard and start running. I hear the angel dragging his spear along the ground.
“Lavian!” I shout back, stopping for just a moment. “He can control vines and loves pain!”
Nárs’s eyes darken. I see the unspoken words in his offended look. I betrayed him.
I cannot care about this. I can’t care about them. So, I do what I do best, and I run away from my decision. I can’t watch either of them die.
“Then I’ll aim straight for his heart,” Lavian says, his voice already distant. Tears well up in my eyes, but I wipe them away. As the fucking selfish person I am, I refocus on myself, on surviving. I can’t feel sorry for them. They are fucking demons. I have to go with the angels. I have to choose the good guys, not the ones that took part in the destruction of my family.
So I take a deep breath, push down the pain in my chest of seeing Nárs there, and run for my life. Adrenaline drives me, my heart pounding so hard I fear it might burst from my chest. Even if Lavian dies in that fight, someone will come for me. I just need to get that motherfucking dagger.
I stop abruptly, panting heavily. I can hear dripping water, like in the cave of Léthé, but not as deep. I press my ear to the wall. I’m close. I head towards the loudest dripping sound.
Azure light mixes with crimson – the door to the cave is open. I take a deep breath, first pressing myself against the wall, then stepping in. There’s no time for fear.
The colors almost match those of the spring room of Léthé, but here, light blue and white crystals illuminate the walls. The stalactites form shapes, and I shudder as I realize what they are. Frozen demons and humans with distorted faces scream in pain, their agony solidified in statue form. All of them have their arms and bodies fused with the vast crystal system. It’s as if thin, icy fingers are running down my neck, making the hair on my back stand up.
Every part of me screams to flee, or I’ll end up like this, but I can’t.
I try not to touch the petrified souls, but as I progress deeper on the slippery stones, it’s impossible not to brush against them. I’m afraid a basilisk might suddenly appear from nowhere. That’s the only creature I can think of that could turn someone to stone.
I move slowly towards the center of the room, having to climb over so many of the obstacles. Then suddenly, I see what I’m looking for.
In a sanctuary-like setting, and at the deepest point of the cave room, wrapped in sky-blue mist, there is a well. A twisted column supports a bowl, in which the liquid forms circles in dark and light blue hues. I don’t know how I got here, but I’ve been here before. I dreamed of this place on my second night, where Sylla and Darya watched the bowl, and the Demon King asked about me. A lifetime ago.
I cautiously step closer to the bowl. The silence is too great.
I think I hear hissing. I look around quickly but see no one. I gaze at the smooth water. At first, I see nothing but the surface. I place my hand on the bowl. It must be here.
“Show me my room!” I command the mirror, and my jaw drops when it obeys. Broken yellow eyes flicker in my destroyed cell, dust covering my red bedding. What’s left of it, anyway.
“So, this is how you watched me for months,” I hiss through my teeth angrily.
The key to Heaven or Hell is where you can see your sins and hopes.My hope to escape when in my room every day. My sin with Darya.
“Show me the dagger! The key to the Gates of Heaven!” I command the still water, and my heart skips a beat. The water ripples, then muddies, forming a knife in its sky-blue color. It’s here. I found it.
I can’t believe I’m so close to my goal. The knife looks just as I remember. The hilt ends with a red film reflecting the room’s crystal lights, a purple gem gleaming in the center.
A drop falls from the ceiling, directly into the water, forming lazy circles on the surface. My hand reaches for the knife, entranced by its exquisite appearance, but before I can touch the water, I freeze.
Someone shuffles behind me. My heart skips a beat. Something hisses below me, making my muscles tense.
A drop of water falls on my hand, making me jump. I press my back against the well, staying alert. Someone, or something, is here. Slowly, I draw the dagger I used to stab the demon’s heart. My breathing is labored, adrenaline pulsing through me. I gradually bend my knees. Blood starts to trickle from my head again. It drips slowly onto the floor.
I wait.
The blood runs down my neck. I grip the knife tighter. It feels like an icicle touches my left shoulder. I spin around.
Nothing.
A soft hissing comes from the right. Desperately, I point my knife in that direction. I’m already trembling. Shadows crawl across the ground. I look up.
Slowly.
Hundreds of snakes are slithering on the ceiling.
