Chapter 62
Sixty-Two
After walking through a long stretch of jungle for hours on end, Armienti reached a clearing. He arrived at the front steps of the Palace of Despair, or at least he hoped they were the front steps. The structure was hideous and confusing, composed of a series of brown cubes with tinted rectangular windows. They were stacked haphazardly, every which way, in a horizontal direction along the ground.
He raised his navy-gloved fist and knocked on the steel front door. Dead heat from the suns rained down on his body, scorching him to the core. He fanned his face with his hand; it was impossible to cool down no matter how hard he tried.
And he’d been trying harder than anything.
The thick jungle weeds surrounding the palace seemed to close in on him. They made the hair on the back of his neck stand at perfect attention. The smell became more and more offensive, although he had the oxygen in his helmet turned up on high.
Disgusting cannibals , he’d stepped over more dead bodies than he could count on his way here. More than he’d seen in a while.
Where the heck was everybody? There wasn’t a single guard patrolling the grounds. The palace appeared almost abandoned. Beneath his helmet all he could hear was the sound of his own heartbeat, followed by the heat of his breath, fogging against the visor.
As he turned away to leave and explore a different option of entering the facility, the massive door slid open a crack. Cold air poured over his body in puffs, drifting along the gray crumbled steps.
Finally, he sighed.
A black-scaled creature half his height ambled out. His eyes were brown, appearing gold in the sunlight, and his long, pointed tail swept along the ground in gentle strokes. He wore armor of obsidian. His talons were black as midnight. Twisted horns danced in a circle around his head.
He stared down at the creature. His lips trembled, but he willed his spine to straighten. He had to put on a fearless front. He owed Autumn this for the way he made her suffer.
“I’m here for?—”
“I know why you’re here, Armienti. We’ve been expecting you,” he gestured with his long taloned fingers, coated with inky scales. “Please, do come in.”
At his request, Armienti stepped inside the palace. He could scarcely breathe as the blood in his veins froze over. He had to be strong for Autumn and her father. If he couldn’t help them, nobody could. Especially not Dante.
The door slid closed behind him. Cold darkness followed. He removed his helmet, still able to make out the creature’s dark silhouette.
“How do you know my name?” he asked.
The being’s tongue flickered through his lips before he offered a cracked smile. “We met a long time ago. You wouldn’t remember me, but I remember you.”
A chill rippled down the length of his spine. “I’m pleased to make your acquaintance again,” he said in the politest voice he could muster under the circumstances. He tried his hardest to conceal his uneasiness.
His iridescent eyes never left him.
“I’d like to request an audience with the Grand Supreme. I know he’s very busy.” Conquering planets and enslaving civilizations, it tempted him to say— exterminating lower life forms for pleasure. Destroying worlds. “But I really need to speak with him.”
“The waiting list to see him in the flesh extends into the following year,” he lisped, chuckling. His black forked tongue flickered against his lips.
Armienti’s mouth fell wide open. “Wait, are you serious?”
“Deathly.”
He glanced at the ground. “Oh, okay.”
He turned around to leave. What a wasted trip. But then he realized the door was still closed. He turned back around, hands shaking. His mouth opened as if to speak.
“Can you?—”
“Double check with him,” the little beast offered. “Sure, why not.” He shrugged.
It wasn’t what he planned to ask, but he was pleased, nonetheless.
“I’ll be but a moment, Elattion prince.”
In the blink of an eye, the creature had disappeared. Armienti’s fingers sweated inside of the confines of his gloves. What if he agreed? He hadn’t practiced what he would ask him if that was the case. He should’ve written down his speech. What was he thinking?
What an idiot he was.
He was so nervous his teeth chattered in his mouth. Focus, Armienti, focus , he scolded himself.
The monster returned, popping up behind him. He gasped, and the little beast chortled, flashing a mouth of jagged yellow teeth. “You’re so easily frightened. Why don’t you relax and stay a while? Have a drink—unwind.”
He walked over to a side table and picked up a vase filled with blood-red liquid and poured it into two titanium goblets littered with onyx crystals.
He hoped it was wine. Please let it be wine and not —he couldn’t stand to think about it. His insides toppled. Vomit threatened to rise.
He swirled the beverage in his hand before taking a lingering sip. Armienti stared into the liquid void.
“What’s the matter?”
He glanced up and remained silent. Every instinct in his body told him to leave the palace at once, yet he remained.
“Don’t be rude—it’s wine. Do you think I’m some kind of barbarian?” His lips flickered into a smile before flattening.
From the looks of the palace and surrounding jungle, yes, he did.
He closed his eyes, lowering his mouth to the goblet. He couldn’t believe he was going through with this.
When he inhaled, the liquid smelled rich and salty. He took a sip, and to his surprise the beverage tasted fruity like sugar cane. Armienti consumed his drink in a few gulps, wiping his glove over his mouth.
The beast took his empty cup and placed it onto the table.
“The Grand Supreme will see you now.”
Armienti gulped. Sometimes he had to be careful what he wished for because his wishes occasionally came true.
He followed the creature through the long winding hall, trying his best not to be phased by the body count and putrid stench.
He could see the white puffs of his breath as they traveled deeper into the heart of the palace. How much longer would they have to go?
Armienti’s head grew heavy, and he yawned, willing himself to stay awake. His limbs slackened. Although it was scorching outside, the icy weather made him drowsy.
Or—no, it couldn’t be.
They arrived at a set of vermillion doors, extending in points toward the ceiling. Here goes nothing. He was determined to straighten up this mess. Perhaps he could offer his service in exchange for Autumn’s father’s freedom.
After all, the Grand Supreme probably needed help leading his missions.
The doors opened, and when he glanced, the creature had gone. His hands ran down his stomach, resting at his hips. His vision tilted as he stepped inside the room.
The chamber was dark. The doors closed behind them. He stood there in the Great Hall. Nobody was present. A chill rattled through his body.
Armienti jumped as his eyes fell upon elongated shadows. They swept across the ceiling whispering in languages he didn’t understand. Cool darkness swirled around him. In an instant, he could see the faces of everyone he’d hurt throughout the years.
Maeve, Autumn, countless inhabitants of conquered worlds. Ronan. But for whatever reason, looking back at Dante hurt him most of all. It was like looking at everything he could never have, even if he deserved it more than he did. He saw red.
He was reminded of every painful memory he’d ever experienced. His knees knocked together, and his body weakened as he fell onto the floor. When he opened his eyes, the lifeless shadows stared down at him, pulling him into the black void.
He screamed as everything went dark.