22. Unexpected Complications
Ifrinn
As self-loathing gnaws at me, a sudden mist rolls in from every direction, swallowing everything beyond a few feet.
Even my enhanced vision doesn’t help. A narrow outcropping rises from the black water, and Baz and Azael head for it.
We land, my arm numb from Azael’s grip; Silas flexes his own, grimacing.
The mist thickens as we form a tight circle.
“Soon we might not be able to find each other in this thick fog. It’s probably by design. The Underworld has several such ambushes waiting for stray souls.” Azael explains, handing us each a feather from his wings. “Take these. The feathers will let you mind-link me if you lose your way.”
Baz transforms in a blink. Fully clothed, thanks to the spell from Hag’s Delight. Silas and Archie had also followed his lead. They’d end up in a pair of pants and a vest every time they shift to their human form.
Accepting the feather, I follow Azael who moves forward cautiously. For all we know, we might be heading right into the water again. Visibility is reduced to practically nothing.
Soon enough, we come across a stone archway that undulates with a silvery-blue glow in the middle.
Exchanging glances with each other, we cross the threshold, knowing there’s no turning back.
We emerge on the other side within a field of red-tipped obsidian reeds, stretching in every direction.
There’s no sky above us, just a cavernous darkness that seems endless.
An unnatural breeze sifts through the reeds—they emit a red glow and faint whispers in forgotten tongues.
Just as I take a step in this creepy-as-fuck reed forest, a loud hiss followed by a muttered ‘fuck’ reaches me.
I turn to see Alistair gripping a long black snake, crushing its neck before it can strike.
When it goes limp, he flings it away. “Stay alert,” he warns, eyes sweeping the reeds.
“These plants feel wrong. I haven’t sensed wildlife beyond the snakes—and that one came out of nowhere.
” As our resident green-thumb, his fae instincts with flora make me trust him.
We’re deep in the whispering reed forest when a sharp trill splits the air and the ground trembles. Searching for the source, I spot them—a herd of obsidian Underworld rhinos charging straight at us. Prehistoric giants ten-foot tall, three scythe-like horns jutting from each massive skull.
No one hesitates. We start running—with Rhazien taking the lead at vampire speed.
The rhinos are nearly upon us when Baz shifts mid-run and takes flight, unleashing a torrent of dragonfire.
The herd skids to a halt as the reeds ignite, flames racing outward.
Baz is immune to his fire, and I can withstand some of it as a hell-demon—but the others aren’t.
The heat drives us faster as fire snaps at our heels.
Baz swoops down, snatching Alistair between his talons as Azael takes flight.
Archie shifts into his wolf and races ahead.
I sprint after them, keeping Baz and Azael in sight.
Silas is still running in his human form, falling behind.
I close the gap between us and shout, keeping pace, “What the fuck, Silas? Why aren’t you shifting? You’d catch Rhazien in panther form.”
He shakes his head stubbornly and keeps sprinting. “My panther won’t ever see the light of the day if I’ve any say in it.”
The fuck? Is he serious? You’re a shifter for hell’s sake!
I can feel the heat of the flames on my back and glance behind. The fire is closing in faster than we can run.
Deciding this isn’t the time to argue with Silas, I wrap a tentacle around his torso and another around Baz’s flank and launch us both into the air. Baz dips momentarily, flapping his wings harder, then rights his form. Smoke huffs out of his nostrils indicating his displeasure.
Below, Rhazien grabs hold of Archie’s enormous wolf’s scruff just as his fur catches fire. I’m about to extend my tentacles when he traces forward at lightning speed, hauling the wolf with him.
The entrance of a cave comes into view after flying for an indeterminate amount of time.
The cave’s yawning mouth is inky black, carved into a looming mountain face of gleaming cobalt.
Veins of some hidden mineral catch the light from the flames, casting eerie glints that offer no hint of what waits inside. But I can hear a faint rush of water.
Shit! Is that river-of-the-damned flowing within this cave too?
As the fire continues to spread behind us, we're left with no choice but to head inside. Baz drops us at the mouth of the cave and shifts back to his human form. “Would appreciate a little heads-up next time, Ifrinn.”
“The fire had reached us. There was no time!” I retort.
Baz tugs at his hair in obvious frustration, “I didn’t anticipate my dragon-fire would spread like this. The reeds looked wet!”
“None of us knew that a crazy herd of rhinos would give us chase either, Baz.” Archie adds sympathetically, his hair singed and his skin blistered in places. He turns toward Rhazien and clasps his arm, “Thank you, Zien. I'd probably have not made it if it weren’t for you.”
“Don’t mention it, Archie. We must stick together in this fucking hellhole.” Rhazien shrugs.
Silas bumps my shoulder in a silent thanks and I tip my chin in acknowledgment. We need to discuss his aversion to shifting into his panther, later.
As we head into the cave, the ground below appears uneven.
Alistair forms a small orb of light in his hand, dispersing the darkness around us.
There’s nothing aside from the shimmering mineral along the walls of the cave, glinting in the light cast by the orb.
After walking for a while, we end up on a ledge that drops away sharply into a deep chasm.
A quick peek reveals that it's teeming with centaur-sized scorpions.
“Fuck my life! This just keeps getting better and better.” I scan my surroundings for another exit.
A narrow stone bridge connects the ledge to the other side where there’s a water fall. The water appears luminous as if fireflies are trapped within. This must be what I heard from outside the cave.
“I don’t trust that waterfall. It’s emanating a strange energy.” Alistair gripes.
“Everything's fucking strange here! We’ll check if there's a way around.” Rhazien turns back toward the tunnel we came from, and the ground begins to quake.
The pathway made of stone starts crumbling away before our eyes.
Suddenly, huge chunks of rocks fall from above and block our only exit behind.
With no choice left, we dash forward at full speed before we become scorpion food.
Aleiraah
“Your harem destroyed Duat's carefully curated reed population single-handedly in a few hours. And traumatized my pet rhinos!” Anubis complains, casually strolling into the lounging area where Ammit is again resting her head on my lap, her snout nudging my stomach.
I instinctively clutch at her abundant yellow mane, my heart stuttering.
Ammit makes a grunting noise. “Alright, alright, Anput’s pet rhinos. You’re my one true pet, Ammit. There’s no other. You know that. No need to be jealous.” Anubis’s voice is a mix of exasperation laced with adoration.
I sit up straight, eyes wide, as a barrage of questions pops free. “What do you mean my harem is destroying the local plants and scaring pets? They’re here? Since when? And what are you going to do? Shit! What am I going to do?”
“Relax, darling. Take a deep breath.” Anubis sits beside me. He takes my hand in his and I realize I’ve been clasping them tightly in my lap, wringing my fingers.
“Ammit, give Aleiraah some space, will you? Little one isn’t going anywhere soon. You need to be patient. You'll get to play with them once they are born.”
“What?!” I gasp out loud and Ammit huffs, shooting a dark look at Anubis. It probably translates to—’Look, what you have done now!’
“Oh shit!” Anubis mutters anxiously. “I thought you’d realized by now. Umm...Aleiraah, darling, you’re expecting. That’s why Ammit has been all over you. She's fond of the new soul growing within you. She loves babies and feels happy around them.”
All my thoughts come to a screeching halt as my mind turns blank. I sit frozen, barely able to draw in a breath.
I'm having a baby? Fuck! How the hell am I having a baby? No! No! No!
"Oh dear!" Anubis nervously pats my back, snapping me out of my trance, making me wheeze.
My gaze connects with Ammit's who's staring at me unblinkingly. “So you don’t actually like me for me, but because I'm having a freaking baby?” I blurt out, feeling hurt.
Ammit in response snaps her jaws at Anubis who startles and lets out a tiny squeak.
Then she puts her leonine paws on my thighs, and looks deep into my eyes.
A moment later, a melodic voice speaks directly into my mind.
‘I love you for who you are, Aleiraah. You are a wonderful soul. I am honored to have been around new life growing within you. I rarely get this chance.’
Shock renders me speechless as Ammit continues to watch me.
Ammit is actually talking to me!
I know she isn’t just any run-of-the-mill pet. She is the devourer of souls. But still!
Ammit breaks me out of my stupefied state adding in a dry tone, ‘And ignore that idiot sitting beside you. He has no sense of timing.’
I huff out a laugh and hug Ammit around her neck, whispering, “I love you too, Ammit. Thank you for staying by my side.”
Anubis, who has been silent until now, suddenly pipes up, “Oh, look at Ammit spreading her love around! Isn’t she just adorable? You've to tell me you love me too, Ammit!”
Ammit shoots him a sidelong glance. “Later, of course,” he clears his throat.
“Not the time to be jealous, Anubis!” I quip, feeling queasy. I shelve the baby thing to process later. I just can't right now.
“Tell me what you meant by my harem being here. How the fuck did they even know I’m here?” Feeling confused and vexed, I’m ready to rip something apart with my bare hands.
“Well,” Anubis admits sheepishly, scratching his snout with claws tipped in gold, “you see, they might have discovered that it was me who got you out of Mytherra.”
“How? I thought we were being stealthy.” I thought I had more time. I thought they’d keep looking for me for at least a couple of months. Provided they looked at all.
And it’s been only a few days in Mytherra. Here, in Duat, it’s been almost two months since I sought refuge and started licking my wounds. Emotional ones, since those bastards healed the physical ones as if nothing had happened!
Anubis looks resigned as he says, “I was taking a smoke-break from the never ending confessions when you summoned me. The deceased don’t just plead for a pardon, they treat me like I’m their personal therapist!” He grinds his teeth.
“As it happened, I’d been smoking a potent variety of hemp-flower, and before I realized what happened, I was standing in your room.”
“I remember the cloud of smoke around you.”
“Yes. And I was in full gold regalia, my work uniform, when I landed inside your mansion.
I'm guessing they figured out my identity based on the scent of smoke and gold?
Of course, I didn't have any issues with the wards around the place either. And those were pretty strong wards, I could tell. So they must have deduced who took you based on these unintended crumbs I left behind. I’m sorry, Aleiraah.
I should've been more careful.” He sighs with regret.
“FUCK!" I scream, frustrated with fate and my too-clever-for-their-own-good husbands.
Anubis gulps, making me regret my outburst. "I'm sorry. No need to apologize, Anubis. It’s not your fault.
You in fact did me a favor and have been nothing but kind and welcoming when I needed refuge.
And both Anput and Bastet have been like sisters to me.
Sisters I never had. I just…never thought they'd start tracking me down so soon.
I hate that I brought such trouble to your doorstep.
Already you got me out of an impossible situation.
And here I'm adding more drama to your life!” I wail, pressing my palms to my eyes.
“Hey..hey, Aleiraah.” Anubis says in a soothing voice, gently pulling down my hands.
“What are friends for if they can’t get you out of a tight spot, hmm?
Besides”—he flips his dreadlocks, crossing one leg over the other, giving me that steady jackal stare—“I live for this kind of drama! Let them come, we’ll set Ammit loose on them! ”
We both turn toward Ammit who graces us with a bored look. We look at each other, then cackle, imagining the scenario.
Ammit tearing into my harem is something I'll pay in dragon gold to watch!
“But how did they even get into Duat? Do you know what they’re up to?”
“Oh darling, they're positively feral!” He takes out a nail filer and starts grooming his claws.
He recounts how they convinced the sun god, Ra to let them into the gates of Duat.
Then proceeds to tell me how Ra tricked them, and they almost drowned in the 'Waters of the Damned', followed by the rhino disaster.
I’m a little stunned that my husbands would go to such lengths to reach me.
After how they treated me, I don’t have any hope left in my marriage.
In fact, I've been planning to file for a separation to the Supernatural Council once I return to Mytherra.
Marriages, births, separations and deaths always need to be reported to the Council.
"Hold on, so Ra was trying to feed them to Apep? The evil god of chaos who's basically a giant serpent and lives in the ‘Waters of the Damned’?"
"Yes! Ra keeps having these skirmishes with Apep and probably did this for shits and giggles! It's a regular thing. But don't worry, Apep was taking a nap so it was just the damned they had to deal with." Anubis waves his hand nonchalantly while my heartbeat speeds up.
"I––I don't know whether to feel avenged or worried." I whisper, rubbing my forehead.
What if Apep had eaten them? They wouldn't have really died, right? But immortals can be killed too, going against a god.
"Oh chill, darling!" Anubis cackles gleefully, interrupting my thoughts. "This is just the beginning. Now, the real penance begins!”
“What do you mean?”
“They’re headed to the ‘Waterfall of Disenchantment’.” He says with an unholy sparkle in his eyes, his jackal traits more pronounced.
“That, my dear Aleiraah, will turn them into mortals!”
I suck in a shocked breath.