Road of Worth (Purgatory Prep Academy #5)

13. Level One-Illusions

CHAPTER 13

Level One-Illusions

Rez

L anding hard face down, rocks and pebbles dig into my skin through my clothes, but the lack of solid ground under my shoulders and half my chest, combined with a stiff breeze, is what sets my heart racing at a breakneck pace. Opening my eyes, I’m met with the image of the sea below me, freezing me into place. Whimpering reaches my ears, and I slowly look to my right to find Reaper floating in my protective bubble above the cliff we’re on, hanging over open air. Below us, as if I’m staring down from the top of a skyscraper, is a twisting whirlpool of water that disappears into a black abyss—and don’t ask me how far away. I told you I’m horrible with measurements. It’s a black hole of death, simple!

Holy Shit!

“I got him,” Moni says, flying out and pushing my protective bubble with my baby back from the void.

“Rez, be careful. You’re over the edge of a cliff,” JP points out.

‘YOU THINK!?!’ I shout out from my mind, too scared to move. I don’t know how much of me is on the cliff’s edge, but I know if I panic or my brain goes into overdrive, my magic isn’t going to work properly, and it’s game over for me already.

“We got ya.” I can’t tell who said it, but I feel someone yank at my leathers and pull me back so that all I see is the red ground beneath my cheek.

Lynx pulls me up, and I squeeze him tight, my body shaking from all the release of pent-up adrenaline. “It’s okay, Kitten,” Knox says, rubbing my back. “You and everyone else are safe now.”

Shame consumes me as I didn’t even think of the rest of the group, but soon enough I pull away and check on them anyway.

“Was anyone else hurt?” I ask, seeing Chester and Ryker dusting themselves off.

“Nah, we’re good. Just landed hard. Nothing like you and Reaper,” Chester says, pushing up his glasses.

“You must have instinctually thrown out a bubble. It was the only thing holding you and Reaper up,” Levi agrees while unbuttoning his long black coat, and my stomach sinks.

“Well, I got to keep people on their toes, you know,” I say with a hint of laughter to play it off, but no one is biting. Taking in the area, I see the red demon door behind me, and by the edge of the ravine, there’s a suspended wooden bridge with planks missing.

Great, that’s just what someone with a fear of heights would ask for.

“Well, it looks like there’s only one way to go,” JP points out, taking a tentative step out onto the wooden death trap only to find the plank he thinks is there is really missing. “Shit!” He yelps, yanking his foot back abruptly.

Ryker looks over his shoulder and whistles. “Damn. That must be some illusion. Even I can't see through it. Can you, Rez?”

Taking a tentative step closer to JP, I peer around his shoulder to examine the bridge, only to see the first tile there. “Yeah, no. It looks like it’s there,” I agree, feeling like we’re already defeated when our test hasn’t even started…at least I don’t think so.

“Well, at least this will be easy for me,” Moni boasts as she flutters up and flies across the bridge. She gets as far as the first plank and bounces off an invisible force. Thankfully, JP catches her before she falls from the shock.

“Guess you’ll have to rough it with the rest of us,” he points out, helping steady her as she sizes up and allows him to take the lead. “How do we want to do this?” he asks the group.

“Probably one at a time,” I suggest, nodding my head and eyeing the rest of the bridge. “By the look of the damn thing, it doesn’t appear all that sturdy. I doubt it will hold any of our weight.”

“That’s my concern too,” Knox agrees as he grabs a contraption from his bag and calls for Reaper. “But if it isn’t sturdy to some degree, no one would be able to run the Road of Worth.”

Hmm. He does have a point. “What are you doing?” I ask, giving him a bewildered look.

“Making a harness. Mind letting him out of his bubble?” He gives me a pointed look, and a blush creeps up my neck as I look over and find my helpless pup staring at me, stuck in his translucent cell.

“Shit! Sorry, Reaper.” I quickly drop the bubble and follow Reaper's progress as he trips over his tail on his way to Knox, where he is efficiently attached to the harness. I wish I would have thought of that.

I glance back at the bridge and wipe my sweaty palms against my thighs.

“Look, I know you’re nervous, but we’ll go slow and test each step one at a time and give us some distance to make sure it holds our weight, okay?” JP reassures me with a smile. Knox sends warmth down our link, and I take in a deep breath, slowly exhaling as I look around the group. Everyone else seems ready to tackle this task, but I realize Moni is sporting dark gray bark, letting me know I’m not the only one feeling this way.

JP insists on taking point, bypassing the first step, and putting weight on the second plank. As a group, we collectively hold our breath as he puts his weight down and steps out with the next one, finding that it supports him as well. Approaching a gap, it isn’t until the fourth step that he misses and stumbles. We all gasp as he falls toward the opening, only for him to land where the missing plank suddenly appears.

“I’m okay,” JP calls out, bending over to catch his breath. I can see his chest heaving from here, though all he’s showing us is his back.

“I can’t watch. It’s going to cause me to have a lung attack! Save me,” Moni cries, turning to Chester to hide her face.

Chester pats her back and consoles her gently. “You mean heart attack, but I got you.”

“Here, I’ll go next. I don’t want you to get too far ahead to where we don’t remember where to go,” Levi offers, stepping out tentatively and waiting until JP takes a few more steps before following.

We slowly cross like that until it’s my turn. I’m fifth in line, and I’m thankful for the side railings as I step out because a gust of wind starts the bridge to sway, almost making me lose my breakfast.

“The secret is to not look down,” Zeke says behind me.

“Sure, but you forget, I’ve already seen the bottom,” I reply.

“Then keep your eyes on Reaper,” he suggests, and he does have a point since Reaper is now strapped to Knox’s back in front of me. Plus, I get to see Knox’s ass flex as he walks. Two for one, you can’t beat that.

Three-quarters of the way across the bridge, the wind gets so bad that I try to redo my hair and almost topple over while doing so.

“Here, I got ya.” Zeke reaches out and steadies me while I throw my mess of curls back into a messy bun. As I twist my hair, my tie snaps and throws itself over the bridge like I was holding it hostage. Ironically, at the same time, the wind dies down slightly as I make the mistake of following its descent from this impossible height towards the black whirlpool of death, only to be jerked back as it bursts into flames, reaching maybe ten feet below us.

“Are my eyes going bad, or did I just see flames shoot up high enough to warm my wings?” Moni asks with wide eyes and gray bark. She hasn’t changed back to her normal green yet, and with how this is starting out, I doubt it will anytime soon.

“I lost my hair tie,” I explain, or at least try to, knowing it doesn’t really explain where the fire came from.

JP raises his voice to be heard in the back, “Well, I definitely felt the heat, so it was close, even though it was triggered a ways away. So, let’s try not to drop anything accidentally or on purpose. Who knows how well this bridge is put together underneath and how many times a certain place has been burned before us.”

‘Wow. I wonder why I didn’t think of that. Let’s not get burnt to a crisp as we tiptoe across a bridge made out of floss and twigs suspended over a flaming toilet bowl. I see no problem with this plan, Boss. Let’s continue on.’

“I heard that,” JP yells back, amusement in his voice.

“Good,” I call back as I blow a wayward strand of hair out of my face. Ugh. I can’t see while my hair is trying to kill me.

“Here you go,” Zeke says, handing me another hair tie. I give him a questioning look as I glare at the plastic in his hand.

“Where did you get that?” I ask, taking it gratefully as he gently grabs my waist while I once again pull my hair up into a loose bun. I swiftly glance down his body, admiring the tight leather molded to him, and notice there’s no place for hair ties on his body.

“Knots,” I whisper in realization. I shift my gaze to the Door Knight for a brief moment and make eye contact before I quickly focus on my footing once again.

‘Thanks,’ I say quickly and close my connection before I can hear his reply. I’m not ready to talk to him, but I’m not a complete bitch to ignore my manners.

We finally make it across the bridge in one piece and look over the landscape. Unexpectedly, the reddish-brown ground before us starts to change, magically seeping into the earth and replaced by white snow along with a severe drop in the temperature.

Shit, we’re going to freeze to death…in Hell. How ironic is that?

“Welcome to Illusion,” a voice says out of the thin air. We all look around to try to figure out where the voice is coming from since it’s obviously not being heard in our minds. I can’t determine if it’s a male or female, but at least it doesn’t sound like a robot. “My, you are a big group indeed.” The voice chuckles, still not giving away their sex. “I’m going to have fun with all of you. That is, if you can survive your own mind. You have twelve hours to find my stage, and there, I will meet you with my main trial and test.”

Well, that little tidbit confirms who we’re talking to: Balam, the Prince of Illusions.

“That’s it?” Lynx calls out.

“Hopefully, you can find your way,” the mysterious voice says as it fades out.

“Well, that was as helpful as a nail in the ass,” Lynx huffs out in annoyance.

“I doubt it will be that easy, Lynx, since that was Balam, and this is the level of Illusions. The freaking toilet bowl bridge proved that.” I point back to the bridge that…I can no longer see behind us.

“Well, that’s convenient. We can’t leave even if we wanted to,” Chester points out as he pushes up his glasses, and Moni scoots into his side.

“What’s this white stuff?” Moni asks, reaching down and picking up a clump of wet snow.

“It’s snow,” I say, taking in the flat expansion of land before us. “At least, I think it is. This is the land of illusion, so can we really trust what we see?” Plus, I can’t help but wonder which way we are supposed to go and how long we can survive out here without snow gear?

The land appears to be divided into three different sections. To the left it looks like an island paradise, with palm trees sticking high in the sky. And where there are big old palm trees, there should be water and hopefully shelter from the elements that this place will surely throw down on us. In front of us is land that looks inhospitable and dry. Of course, we can’t forget the snow we’re standing in that slopes off to our right. I can make out what looks like a few buildings from here, so that would at least provide us some shelter. We definitely aren’t wearing clothes built to handle this kind of weather.

“Have any idea which way to go?” I ask, hoping someone has thought this through more than I have.

“I’ve never seen snow,” Moni admits, and with glee, she lays down and starts to roll around in it. Laughing, Chester joins her, and I can’t help but giggle at their reaction.

“Do you not have it in Purgatory?” Lynx gives her a pitying look. “I thought you had all the seasons.”

“It’s in the mountains of Nova and some of the other parts, but you have to travel to see it,” Levi helpfully supplies as Moni continues to roll in it.

“Balam said that we have to survive our own minds,” Knots states, trying to change the subject and get us back on track. Despite the shared hair tie, it’s a punch in the gut to hear his voice. He looks like he’s doing okay and holding up, but I can’t help but be annoyed at how he’s speaking up and trying to lead the group. “What does everyone see? Are we seeing the same things?”

“Well, besides the snow, I see big white balls over there.” Moni pauses long enough to pop up from the ground and point off into the winter distance.

“You mean the taller buildings that tower into the skyline?” I clarify.

“Nope. The round bumholes,” she says, rolling up a snowball and poking her finger through one side before turning it to show me. “Like this, but big enough for all of us to go inside.”

“Did you really call an igloo a bumhole?” Lynx chuckles.

“Well, isn’t that what everyone’s bumhole looks like?” Moni asks innocently. My jaw drops as I look around at the others to see if they will answer her or leave her hanging.

Wait, why are all of them looking at me? Oh. Oh, hell no.

‘You’re the best friend. Besides, Rezzi. Maybe a bumhole isn’t what we’re all really thinking. Just ask!’ Lynx encourages before shutting the link. The coward.

“Moni, I think I’m just a little lost here. What kind of bumhole are you talking about, um, like where you…um…”

“Where you poop.” She thankfully saves me from having to say it. “You know, the firm bubble butt like Chestie’s, and then his tight hole that you have to sq?—”

I slap my hand over her mouth and pull her closer to whisper. “I swear to all the deities that if you care about our friendship and, more importantly, your mate, you will not finish that thought at all…not out loud or as an inner thought to torture JP. That’s just not a thought that should ever be visualized outside of ANYTHING. I love you, but I really don’t want to kill my bestie while trying to save Hell and your father right now. Got it?” She nods, and feeling that she understands the severity of things, I back up and see her wide-eyed expression and glitterbomb bark. “Good. Love ya, bestie!”

“Got it…no talking about Chestie butt.” She nods as her bark slowly returns to her greenish brown. It takes everything within me not to look at Chester, but I know he’s blushing like crazy.

JP clears his throat, pulling attention away from our awkward moment. “So Winter Wonderland is out. How about the desert oasis?”

“That’s simple if you’re calling it an oasis,” Ryker speaks up in a bored tone. “It’s a dried-up desert, nothing out there but fucking sand. No water, no trees, or shelter.”

We all turn and look at the only section that’s left.

“So, does everyone agree that this area looks dead to everyone?” Knots asks, sounding as defeated as we all feel already.

“Yep,” we all agree.

Honestly, this will either be the fastest death in the history of the Road of Worth, or we’re just lucky.

We slowly make our way across the snow-covered tundra and into an even harsher weather of dry air and almost complete darkness. There is no vegetation, water, or animals that we can see. Either that, or we’re scaring them off. The land is dead, except for a few scattered jewels that are embedded into the ground here and there. Thoughtfully, Levi throws up some light orbs, and Reaper does his impression of the Human Torch just to give us light as to where to walk.

“Let’s take a break and get our bearings,” Knox calls out, and I sag against him.

“Thank you. I’m dying of thirst and need to dig in my bag,” I mumble.

“I know, Kitten. Remember, I can feel you. But you don’t have to dig. Here’s a bottle,” he says, holding out a water bottle, and I almost cry in relief—that is, I would if I had any moisture in my body to produce tears.

I plop down on the hard ground and gently sip at the water, making sure not to upset my stomach. Reaper crawls into my lap and gives me a few kisses as I dig out a bowl and pour him the rest of the water. Grabbing a new bottle for myself, everyone else gathers around and takes a break. Reaper soon jumps up and runs over to the rest of the group, his tail whipping back, knocking over my drink and spilling the precious water onto the ground.

“Shit!” I scramble for the bottle as it rolls away from me and stops a few feet away, out of Levi’s perimeter of light. Grabbing my phone, I turn on my flashlight, and my mouth drops. “Hey guys! You might want to see this.”

I hear my friends join me, but I haven’t removed my eyes from the jewels before me.

“Am I really seeing this?” I ask, hopeful that it’s a clue, and see a light shine above me.

“I know I am,” Chester concurs, and everyone agrees.

The jewels I can’t seem to tear my eyes from aren’t the same ones we’ve been passing. At least, I hope they haven’t been there this whole time and we’ve been missing them. It would be our luck. These are slightly bigger than the random stones that have been planted into the ground as we’ve been walking, but these are in the shape of an arrow. Some are embedded into the ground, while others are lying on top. The ones on top aren’t pointing in the same direction as the ones that are rooted in the ground though. So, it seems this is another illusion as to which one to follow.

“I think we should follow it; I’ll take point,” Knots says, taking off with the orb above us.

That ass is going to be the death of us.

‘Will you wait so the ones of us that sat down our bags can grab theirs?’ I ask, not at all waiting for an answer while I run back to pack my bag. As I hurry, I can hear JP.

“But which path do we follow though?” JP speaks up, and I’m grateful to him for asking the question I was thinking, if only to delay while I grab my bag. “See, the embedded ones are pointing to the right while the ones laying on top are pointing to the left. Which path?”

By the time I come back with my bag I find Knots, Ryker and JP in a heated debate. When did this happen? I didn’t even hear them while I was packing.

“Like I said, you’re both wrong,” Ryker insists.

“What’s going on?” I ask, worrying that we’ll never pass the first trial if we can’t even get there.

“Neither of these is correct. These are fake, and the path that’s true is there.” Ryker points down an empty path of jewels through a very spiky road that looks more dangerous than when we faced off in the ravine with Pteroraptors.

Looking up at Ryker, I take in his set jaw and tense green eyes, and I immediately know he means business. He’s not joking or teasing. He’s convicted in his stance. Hell, he’s a fae and one of the Horseman, and illusion is his forte. We should listen to him if he says this is the path, but convincing the others will be the hard part.

“Ry.” I place my palm over his heart, leaning into him and urging him to look at me. “I believe you and trust your instincts completely,” I whisper, nibbling along his jaw. “This is your specialty, after all, and even though I can’t see it, can you just explain it to the others?” I ask, pulling back when he shifts his gaze to me. “It might help ease their anxiety before taking that leap.” He nods and reaches down to hold my hand. As I turn, I find the rest of the group surrounding us.

“Well, I’m sure I’m not the only one who felt it, but since we’ve all connected with Rez and received our tattoos, I’ve gained more power. It wasn’t as strong until we came down here, at least for me, but I can feel closer to the former Horseman down here. Therefore, I can see the other path right there.” He points again to the horrid path. “Just because you see the jewels pointing in the other directions, it doesn’t mean the path of emptiness isn’t a path of its own. Don’t rule out the blank path. To you, you see an empty path. To me, I see a clear, white path surrounded by darkness on either side, and I know that’s my powers working for me.”

I squeeze his hand before wrapping my arms around his waist as we wait for the group to respond. There’s a brief moment where Knots’ expression wavers between frustration and hurt before quickly settling on acceptance until someone speaks up. Levi is the first.

“Who am I to question my brother, Pestilence,” he says, stepping towards us and the road of spiky death we’ll have to weave through.

“Aww hell, Ryker, we’ve been through worse,” Zeke agrees, and once he starts moving, everyone else moves with him. “But you’re freaking leading this, and if anything happens, you’re at fault, and I get your collections.”

Ryker laughs and agrees. “Deal.”

This seems like another trial, but leading to what is the question. Traveling down the path isn’t as bad as I thought. It was just another illusion, of course. It’s still dark, but once we pass the first few feet of thorny bushes, as long as we stay right behind each other, the vegetation isn’t thorny. The flowers are small, barely coming up to my ankle, and still no animals to be seen. It isn’t until we have another break that we find out the answer; a platform.

“Is this what we came here for?” Lynx wonders, slapping his hand against the big black slab of rock.

“No clue, but I’m ready for a nap,” I admit, and lean my head against JP’s shoulder.

Lights burst above the platform, and music starts playing as if we’re on a game show. Startled, we back up to see the stage better and, finally, our host. Lumbering onto the stage on the back of a massive bear is a creature with three heads. No wonder I couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman. The first head is a bull, the second a man, and the third is a ram.

“Ah. Welcome to my game show. I am Balam, your host. I see that you have made the correct choices and didn’t meet the yeti in the Winterland or eaten by the sandworm in the desert. Too bad, they really are hungry. And congratulations for making the correct choice and following the true path with the jewels. That would have added quite a few hours onto your time wandering around the land out there. So you have an impressive record-beating time on top of making outstanding picks. Let’s see how the children of Lilith, and L.A.M.B.’s protégé fair in my trial.” The human head smiles while the Bull snorts, and the Ram bleats and shows its teeth.

“You know who we are?” Ryker’s jaw is slack, and his green eyes widen.

“Of course we do, but even if it’s for a good cause, we can’t let you go without testing you,” the Ram head says. “But, we’ll go easy on you and only give you two tests. Most demons that get the honor of coming this far get three tests.”

“Oh, that’s not too bad,” Lynx chimes in.

“From each head,” the Bull says with a snort.

“Thank you for your generosity, and we would be honored to take your trial,” Levi says, ever the diplomat.

“Goodie. Come on up,” Balam says, and stairs appear out of the rock. Quickly climbing, we find eleven human-sized jewels embedded in the rock. “Please go ahead and step on a jewel, and I’ll explain the trial and answer any questions that I can.”

I place Reaper on a jewel and pick the one next to him, hoping he understands the word “stay” when I tell him to. I really do need to get on the ball and train him properly.

“In a moment, we will test your bonds and how well you know your fellow companions. There will be restrictions that you will soon find, but those I will not tell you. After all, this is a game for me to enjoy. After some time to sort things out, I will bring you up individually, and you will have to tell me who they are. You must guess correctly to move on to the next level, and there are two rounds. Any questions?”

“Yeah, what happens if we guess wrong and fail?” Moni asks.

His mouth widens more than a normal grin like the joker. “You forfeit your soul to me.”

Plop…I glance over my shoulder and find Moni passed out on the floor. I forgot to count, so I have no idea what number we’re up to. But I don’t feel comfortable about this game any longer. Before I can raise my hand for a question or ask to pause, a flash of light hits me.

Opening my eyes, I immediately notice I’m in a different spot on the stage, and Balam is laughing.

“What the fuck!” I shout before I gasp. “Shit, that’s not my voice,” Lynx’s voice says, and I grab my throat, realizing it feels thicker than normal. Looking to my—uh, his… the left, I notice my body and do a double take. Someone is feeling me up with my own hands.

“Wow, so this is what it feels like to have breasts this big,” my voice says, and my mind immediately goes to Moni. I internally chuckle at her antics at finding herself in my body. But I’m also secretly relieved that it’s her and not one of the guys. I can’t even imagine right now what they would do in my body, but at least Moni gets to see what it’s like to be tall and human on top of blessed in the chest.

‘How in the hell do you walk with this thing between your legs? It’s mass—’ I attempt to reach out to Lynx, but I find our link closed tight. Huh, so this is what Balam meant by some restrictions will be in place.

“Aww yeah, baby, look at this! I get a tail. It’s stubbier than normal but I can still think of a few things I can do with it plus I can grow big and small. Do you know all the freaky shit you can do in this body?” Moni’s body flies around like a damn hummingbird before crashing and skidding across the floor.

Damnit, Lynx. We’re not supposed to ruin the body we’re in. I know it’s him. Lynx would be the only person to say something about getting freaky with a body during a trial.

We walk around mostly in shock as we look at our bodies from different perspectives and talk to each other. Some of us chuckle in discomfort or straight up feel ourselves up, like our arms, hair, and back—get your mind out of the gutter—or look on, indifferent as if dissecting a bug in biology class. I chuckle when I reach Zeke’s body because he straight-up licks my cheek, and I giggle. It didn’t even occur to me that Reaper would also be switching bodies. Yes, I put him on the jewel as Balam instructed in the beginning, but it’s not like I knew we were switching bodies as a trial when I placed him on it, so forgive me if I have goldfish memory for a moment.

“Times up,” Balam says, bringing Reaper’s body to the front. “Who wants to go first?” I raise my hand because even though we can’t say our name or use our special talents, I know my man.

Balam chuckles as I approach. “Your soul will be a delight to collect, Nerezza,” he says, leaning in and whispering into my ear.

“Don’t hold your breath. Actually…go ahead and do.” I smile.

“Leviathan is in Reaper’s body,” I say confidently, and Balam’s smile slides off his face as a green light flashes my correct answer.

“How did you know?” he squints at me. “He didn’t do anything but clean himself the entire time.”

I cock an eyebrow and smirk. “Exactly. That’s what Levi would do if he was an animal. Constantly clean. Next time, make it harder,” I say before moving back, but Balam doesn’t seem all that upset, and I wonder why.

Chester’s body is the second one on the platform, and Ryker’s body raises his hand to identify him. “I’ll go next.” Balam nods his consent.

“No one can mistake JP’s flirty ways when he speaks, no matter what skin he’s in. I would be able to pick out my man in a heartbeat. JP’s in Chester’s body.” The green light flashes once again, indicating the win. Well, I guess that means Zeke is in Ryker’s body.

Next, Moni zips up on stage and flies around in a circle super fast until she passes out and pops up within a heartbeat.

“We really need to get her better headgear; this is doing her some damage, I swear.”

“I’ll go,” raising my hand again and giving Balam a bored look. “Do you really need us to raise our hand, or can we just walk out here and say it?”

“Since you are sweeping this game so far, you can at least do me the decency by playing along with my rules, don’t you think?” he replies with a small smile with his human head, but his animal heads glower at me.

“As you wish.” I give him a tight smile. “That’s my best friend in my bestie’s body. Lynx has a certain way of talking, and you can’t mistake that in this group, so no matter what body you put him in, that will never change. His eccentric tendencies show through Moni’s shell,” I explain, giving Balam a small mocking bow when the green light goes off.

Next up is my body, and I smile as Moni complains about my clumsy body and how I should have wings to help balance. Before I can offer to identify her again, Knots’ hand raises up, shocking me. Why is he offering? Balam nods, and his body clumsily crosses the stage as well, standing before my body. But instead of turning to look at Balam, he turns to look at my body and slams his mouth against my own.

My jaw drops as I watch Knots’ body make out with mine. “WHAT THE HELL?” I’m more frustrated that whoever is in my ex’s body is using it to assault my body than anything else. Wait…do I have a right to be mad? God, this is confusing as hell. I shake my head as I watch them pull apart and hold hands, both of them with soft smiles on their faces.

“Nothing can distract me from my mate’s soul. Moni is in Rez’s body,” Knots’ body states…which explains who’s actually in that body—Chester. Well, I guess I’m not that pissed off. A little annoyed, yes, but I’ll get over it.

I’m pulled up next, and I turn to face the group, but no one raises their hands. Really? No one knows who I am? How could that be? Am I that hard to figure out?

“Are you kidding me? I’ll make sure you all pay for this.” I narrow my eyes and put my hands on my waist.

Moni’s laughter rings out as her hand shoots up. “Relax. I’m playing. I got ya,” Moni’s body flies up to me. “There’s only one person that can make that body look as good as I can,” Lynx teases in Moni’s body. “My Rezzi-bear is the only one that could pull off the proper Lynx!” The green light goes off, and Balam calls for Zeke’s body.

Before I can even move, Zeke’s body lumbers up and rolls over the floor before he barks. I stop and turn to give Balam a pointed look.

“Can I go ahead and answer? It’s kinda obvious.” I smile sweetly, and the Bull’s head lets steam simmer out of his nose with a low growl, but I hold my stance. I’m not breaking the rules; I’m just asking a question. The Ram's head nods.

“That’s my pup Reaper in Zeke’s body, and I know because he licked me, barks, and he’s acting like a dog.” The light flashes green, and Zeke scrambles off the floor and follows me off to the side as Levi’s body saunters to the middle.

Before looking at Balam, he stands up straight, and his shoulders pull back with a slight shudder. I have to admit, I didn’t get around to talking to Levi’s body, but I know that action…somewhere. As if something is missing? It’s a faint thought, but it seems to be slightly out of reach.

“Any takers,” Balam mocks with a knowing smile. His heads swivel in our direction with undeniable cockiness.

I raise my hand and walk back up there with confidence that I don’t have whatsoever. Trying to make a quick assessment of who has gone so far; it should only leave three others who haven’t been called out. We haven’t identified Ryker, Knots, or Knox. Ryker wouldn’t be standing here silently or this stiffly, so this is either Knox or Knots. As I approach Levi’s body, I look into his eyes, and I’m pretty sure I know who it is I’m looking at. But I’m positive when his hazel gaze drops away quickly as if he’s ashamed to meet my gaze. A small yet sad smile briefly reaches my lips before I turn and face Balam.

“Knots is in Levi’s body. I know this because of his mannerisms,” I say, not at all proud of the fact that my ex is the only one who would be ashamed to meet my eyes. I turn before the green light goes off.

Knox’s body is pulled up next, and while he walks up, I chuckle to myself because just by his walk, I can tell who it is. The swagger is an obvious giveaway that it’s Ryker. Hell, the smirk says it all. I raise my arm before he fully gets in place.

“Yes, Nerezza,” the Ram head calls on me.

“That’s Ryker in Knox’s body. You can tell by his walk and his smirk. Enough said.” The Bull’s head lets out a snort as the green light flashes, and Knox’s body winks at me as he moves to the side.

“Do I need to pull up the last one for you to tell me who it is?” Balam asks.

“It’s Knox,” Moni calls out from my body.

“Congratulations. It seems you have passed this one with flying colors. The next test will be the same but with different barriers. Good luck!”

There’s another flash of light, and I find myself in another body, but this time, I’m immediately bombarded with voices and lying flat on my back.

‘Mate!’ Fluffers yells, and I have the urge to run. What the hell is going on?

‘Fluffers? How am I hearing you? Am I Knox?’

‘Sure are, Baby Girl,’ Slayer says, curling around my mind like I’m prey.

‘Move over, you ill-mannered furred octopus. She wants a real gentleman,’ Barren hisses, flaring his feathers out with his pride on full display.

Something inside me stirs, and I try to quiet the sounds to see if it’s Dusky or something else with us in here. But once I try to find it, it quiets again. ‘Everyone hush. I need to try and play this game for a moment,’ I tell them, getting up to see the closest person to me, which is Moni’s body. I go to talk, only to find out I’m mute. What the fuck? Great. Balam has muted us, and we can’t speak to anyone. Biting my lower lip, I try to reach out to Lynx through my link but find I’m cut off like I was in the first test.

Movement catches my attention, and I burst out laughing at Knots’ angelic form, running around trying to chase his wings. He’s acting just like… Reaper. I immediately stop laughing and rush over to Knots’ body, stopping Reaper by grabbing Knots’ neck and squeezing his head against me like I would my normal puppy. I pet his head, saying “Good boy” even though he can’t hear me, and kissing his nose.

My puppy is the smartest puppers in the world.

‘What about me?’ Fluffers whines. ‘I thought you loved me too.’

‘Oh my word. I’m talking about my puppy, not my mate. You know you guys mean the world to me also, but Reaper just figured out a way to play this game so we can win,’ I explain, pointedly looking up to find the others watching Knots’ body with me.

I guess it’s time to play Charades. I stand up, chocking my hip, and give them all my signature smirk. And just to make sure they understand, I act out gathering my mess of hair and throwing it up in a ponytail. Levi’s body claps his hands excitedly, giving me a thumbs up, and then runs around before suddenly fainting out of nowhere. Bingo! Moni!

JP’s body knocks it out of the park when he gets on his hands and knees and lifts a leg like he’s pissing. There’s my Lynx. Zeke’s body makes one simple gesture, and we get it. I don’t think he even means to since we aren’t even focusing on him, but he instinctively pushed up his non-existent glasses. Hello Chester.

Moni’s body makes a bowl with one arm and acts out like she’s stirring the bowl. I stifle a laugh, knowing JP is hating the idea that he’s stuck in Moni’s body. I can’t wait to tease him about it after this. Now he really can’t pick on her since he’s been in her shoes.

‘He does tease her a lot. Do you think she will finally get tired of it one day and put him in his place?’ Barron asks curiously.

‘I know I wouldn’t stand for it. She should go ahead and show her dominance and teach him a lesson. Only the strong prevail,’ Slayer interjects.

‘And that’s where I disagree. Violence doesn’t always need to be used. Just because it’s been your way in the past doesn’t mean it’s the way of the present or future,’ I argue.

‘Ahh, Baby Girl. This is something you’ll just have to learn the hard way, I see.”’

That feeling of something else stirring inside of me comes once again, and I try to quiet everyone, but instead, I lose my concentration when laughter rings out.

Balam’s heads laugh, echoing around the platform as they discuss our “silly gestures.” It’s apparent he has no idea we are communicating in our own way else he would probably change up this game too.

Glancing over at Lynx’s body, anyone could tell who’s in his body. Levi is too busy straightening out his clothes and brushing off the dirt. I’m so grateful my man hasn’t changed his core. If anything, this game is making me appreciate my family and what makes them unique.

A frown takes over as I get a look at myself. My body is feeling myself up and groping my tits. My gray eyes look up and meet my gaze before I blow myself a kiss, and a wicked smirk appears. Fucking Ryker. I take it all back, I don’t appreciate shit. My body starts bouncing up and down and I roll my eyes before focusing on Chester’s body.

Standing with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face, there’s no question who’s in his body. My Alpha, Knox. He can look grumpy all he wants, but I know he’s relieved that he doesn’t have the guys yapping in his thoughts. The last two people are standing next to each other. Ryker’s body next to a stoic Reaper. Ryker opens his mouth and points to his teeth. Got it, that’s Zeke. Which means my stone-cold Reaper that’s normally running around is our Door Knight, Knots.

‘I thought Balam was supposed to make this more difficult,’ Barron sighs.

‘Well, technically, he did,’ I tell him as Balam starts calling up bodies. Since everyone is playing along, I sit back and talk to the guys in my head, watching as the others take point in revealing who is who. ‘But I wonder if he’s doing it on purpose. Like he really doesn’t want to make it that hard on us. Because really, he could have made it so much worse, you know?’

‘Definitely, he could have made you slow and stinky,’ Fluffers agrees.

‘God, you’re cute,’ I tease him. ‘Hey, I was wondering, when Ryker was in here with you, was he able to talk to you all?’

‘Able?’ Barrons answers. ‘Possibly, but did we try nor want to? No, we did not.’

The finality in his answer tells me there’s no point in pushing for more.

I feel as though something is moving around, so I finally ask the right question. ‘ How many of you are in here?’

‘In here with us? Or with you?’ Dusky finally makes his appearance right as they say my name as the last person.

‘What do you mean?’

‘It means that it seems like more things will change than I was expecting,’ Dusky says to me before I’m switched back to my own body.

What the fuck does that mean? Is it in the rule book that all old wise men are cryptic as fuck? It’s hypocritical for old people to call younger ones dumb and na?ve when all they do is set us up for failure from the start. He might as well have handed me an open flame, set me in front of a lit gas stove with the pilot light on, and told me good luck.

All he told me was that he expected something to happen, but now…whoa. I don’t know what’s going to happen. Well, thanks for nothing. For once, I completely understand why my Alpha is a sourpuss at times. Having that many voices in your head can drive an insane person mad.

“Congratulations!” Balam says as his body morphs into a naked man with one head. He still sits atop his bear, but he gives us a small nod. “Not many have passed my trial or within the time constraints that I give them. Continue following the embedded gems to reach Level Two. But I will warn you, with pleasure comes unknown sacrifices.” And with that, he vanishes, but not before giving us a wink.

“What the hell does that mean?” Chester asks, pushing up his glasses before pulling Moni into his side.

“It means Lust is next,” Ryker comments, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Aww fuck!