Page 48 of Wild Hunt
Fenrir stopped walking suddenly and raised his head to sniff the air. He took off running without warning, disappearing through a narrow passage in the cliffs up ahead.
“Hey!” Loki cried.
“Shit,” I muttered, taking off after him. If we were stuck here together, then getting out together was probably the only option.
Loki fell behind, but the next thing I knew, a shadow passed overhead and I looked up to see a black crow soaring over me. One of his favored forms.
He whined, but at least he was useful.
His caw pointed me in the right direction and I had to scale a rocky cliff to reach him. He landed on a sharply sculpted rock formation up ahead, and when I finally managed to pull myself up, I froze at the sight awaiting below.
Fenrir was standing on another rock ledge not too far down, staring at the river of roiling lava flowing from east to west. Beyond it was another gorge leading up to the first manmade structure I’d seen in the distance. The house--or maybe it was a castle--sat atop a high cliff, and while it was too far away to make out the details, the architecture seemed rudimentary.
Loki shifted back, perched on the ledge, his dark hair whipping in the hot wind rising up from the hellish river. “What the fuck is that?”
“I don’t know,” I muttered. “But something tells me that’s where we’re supposed to go.”
Chapter 27
Kore
After traveling for what felt like forever, I reached a massive gorge leading up to a stone structure. It looked ancient, and it rested atop a hill that seemed all but impossible to climb, but it was the first sign of civilization I’d seen and my heart ached with relief. As exhausted as I was, it gave me the strength to carry on.
I reached the base of what I now recognized as a mountain rather than a hill and started to plan my upward journey. I made two thick vines, one to hook around a sturdy looking rock above and the other to secure around my waist. I threw the second vine up alongside the first and manipulated them into a secure knot, testing it before I began to climb.
At least I’d woken up wearing halfway decent shoes. I continued the climb, refusing to give in to the urge to look down.
I couldn’t help but wonder what Daphne and Dionysus were experiencing on their own journeys. All I could do was hope that one of us would wake up first.
I made it to the first ledge and began the process all over again. I nearly slipped a few times but managed to catch myself. By the time I made it to the top, my arms and legs were so sore it felt like they’d fall off. I dragged myself onto the ledge and got to my feet, walking toward the stairs leading up to the stone building. They seemed insurmountable, but I took them one at a time, peering into the darkness within the great archways.
I’d never seen a building like this, large enough to be a castle but lacking any artistry in its construction. The darkness subsided only partially as I stepped in through the entryway.
“Hello?” I called. My voice echoed through the darkness.
I wasn’t sure what I’d been expecting. So far, I hadn’t come across any traces of life in this empty place. The isolation became a shadow looming over me at all times and I began to lose sight of the fact that there was any world beyond it.
I continued on with no other choice but to tread carefully in the darkness. As my eyes adjusted, I could make out the vague shapes of furniture and the musty smell of abandonment. If this place had ever served as a home, its occupants were long gone.
A sound coming from up ahead drew my attention and I proceeded with greater caution. There was no telling what lied in wait within the darkness, and as I stretched out my hands, my heart raced.
I could see now why this was the challenge they’d chosen. No physical threat in the real world could terrify me more than whatever was lurking in my own mind. Especially knowing that somewhere, the power I had yet to fully learn to control was waiting for me.
My fingers brushed a smooth, cool surface and I realized it was stone fashioned into a railing. Sure enough, there were stairs. The sounds of movement coming from above grew louder and I began to walk carefully up each step.
The stone below me felt less than solid, and I could hear rocks falling into some hollow cavern below. I stopped climbing, prepared to turn around when the stairs crumbled beneath my feet and I plummeted downward with a scream.
At the last moment, I managed to catch myself on the edge of the broken stairwell, but the rocky surface felt far from solid.
Shit. I was going to fall and there was no way I could pull myself out without crumbling the already tenuous structure.
The sound of footsteps coming toward me filled me with fresh terror. My subconscious really had to go and pull out all the stops.
I was expecting any manner of monstrous being, but when a familiar voice called my name, I decided I’d rather deal with a gorgon.
“Kore?”
“Hades?” I called in disbelief. “What the fuck are you doing in my head?”
