Invading hell the oculus.., p.27
Invading Hell (The Oculus Gate Book 2), page 27
She spun back to the mirror and whispered, “The deepest part of the abyss. The worst of all sins. The nearby souls could do nothing but wail in a fetal position.” Her thoughts raced. Vanity? Pride? But why was the mirror placed here, far from the souls in the main chamber?
Reaching out a hand, she touched the surface. A shimmer ran across it. The reflection faded, replaced by Alex, sitting on her throne, playing a black violin. “Ah. You have arrived. I can see you as an image hovering over my pool.” She set the violin on the floor beside her and smiled in a less-sinister-than-usual way. “Well done. You have proven that you are much more capable than I thought possible.”
“Whatever.” The odor of rotten eggs returned, prompting Iona to lift her scarf over her nose again. “What am I supposed to do?”
“I assume you noticed that an enormous influx of souls entered the abyss moments ago.”
Iona nodded. “Why is that important?”
“You will learn in a moment.” Alex waved a hand. The view widened, showing Ben sitting in a chair next to her, his wrists and ankles bound to it. With his eyes closed and his face pale as he gasped through short breaths, he looked close to death. “Now that you have proven yourself by braving the depths of the abyss, I will give your friend a dram of the antidote.” She rose from her seat, pressed the top of a vial against Ben’s lips, and forced blue liquid between them. He swallowed. After a few seconds, color returned to his face, and his breathing settled.
Alex reseated herself on her throne and addressed one of her creatures. “Guard, fly to the abyss and tell Bartholomew or the tall, hairy visitor that Iona will be delayed and her friend will survive because I gave him a measure of the antidote.”
The bat-winged creature squawked disagreeably.
“Have no worries. You needn’t stay long enough to harm your wings.”
After squawking again, the creature flew from the room. Alex picked the violin up, set it in her lap, and gazed at Iona. “Now it is time for you to learn the truth.”
“The truth? The truth about what?”
“About everything.”
Iona cocked her body in a skeptical pose. “Why should I believe a single word you say?”
“Because only truth can pass through this mirror.” Alex nodded toward her. “Go ahead. Say some things that are true and some things that are false, but choose statements that I wouldn’t know anything about so you can be sure that I’m not manipulating the mirror. Also, even if you think something is true when it is not, the mirror will react as if you are lying, so be certain of your statements.” The surface reverted to Iona’s reflection. “Go ahead. Test the mirror. Let me know when you’re finished.”
“Okay. Let’s see.” She looked at her frumpy form again. “I am eighteen years old.”
The reflection bent and twisted. Sparks flew out and drizzled to the ground. After a few seconds, the mirror reverted to normal.
“That must have been an untrue statement,” Alex said, her visage nowhere in sight.
“Right. I’m really sixteen.” The reflection stayed normal. She eyed herself closely and watched her image smile. Since this magical mirror knew things she didn’t, now would be a good chance to learn secrets. “Okay … um … when Ben Garrison put me in charge over Leo, it was because he respected me, not just to pacify me.”
Again, the mirror remained normal.
Iona whispered, “Cool.”
“Interesting. Now I’m starting to understand your admiration of this man.”
“As if you care.” Iona continued gazing at herself, the scarf still in place. Maybe she could gather a bit more secret information. “Leo the huntsman is part of my family.”
The reflection remained steady, not a hint of change.
Iona’s cheeks warmed. Okay. So it was true. But what was he? An uncle? Did Mother or Father have a brother she didn’t know about?
“Oh,” Alex said. “I didn’t know the stout-hearted lion is a relative. An older brother, perhaps?”
“I don’t have a brother. I’m an only child.”
The mirror warped and sizzled, proof that it knew about her little brother, the baby who had died while still an infant.
“It seems that you have a lot to learn about your own family,” Alex said as the reflection returned to normal.
“Um … Yeah. I’m convinced. The mirror is legit. You can come back now.” A few measures of violin music emanated. When Alex’s image returned, the black violin and bow in playing position, Iona took a deep breath. “What truth do you want to tell me?”
Alex kept the violin at her chin. “A tale that I will show you in the mirror. It’s lengthy, perhaps even tedious, but it’s essential. Without this knowledge, you will not be able to complete your task.” Alex stroked the strings with the bow. Music again emanated. The throne room vanished, replaced by a man standing on one of the Arctic Circle tower platforms. “Once upon a time …”
Kat crouched close to the ground and fingered the newest trail hole, near a drawbridge leading to a castle and only a few feet from a pile of corpses that looked like a cross between horned trolls and two-legged pigs. Wounds in their bodies appeared to be from bullets, maybe Leo’s work. “The trail is different now. The depressions are more jagged and wider.”
Jack pushed his barrel into one without touching the sides. “Yep. Definitely not from a rifle. Something wider.”
“Ran out of ammo?” Trudy asked. “Then ditched his rifle to run?”
Kat rose. “He wasn’t running. The holes are close to each other. And I don’t see a rifle anywhere.”
“Right,” Jack said. “No reason to give it up. A rifle without ammo is still a good baseball bat, if you know what I mean.” He nodded toward the castle. “Maybe someone in there took his rifle by force.”
“No sense speculating.” Kat pointed into the forest. “He went that way. If we lose the trail, we can double back and check the castle.”
Trudy gripped her rifle with both hands. “Let’s haul.” She leaped into a fast jog. “Come on, slowpokes.”
Kat and Jack raced after her and caught up. The trio ran abreast, leaping over roots, dodging trees, and ducking under low branches and vines. After nearly a mile, they broke out of the forest and came upon an enormous hole where Leo stood holding a rope tied to a tree, the other end in the hole.
Kat skidded to a halt, nearly colliding with Leo. Jack and Trudy joined them. As they took deep breaths, Kat set a hand on Leo’s arm. “What’s going on here?”
He looked at her, his lips tight and his skin ashen. “Nothing good, I’m afraid. Alex, the queen of hell, as she calls herself, poisoned Ben back at her castle and sent Iona and me—”
Kat gasped. “Poisoned Ben?”
Leo nodded grimly. “I received word that she administered some of the antidote, slowing the poison’s effects, and she will give him the rest if Iona accomplishes a mission in this literal hellhole.”
Kat stepped to the edge and peered into the depths. Far below the surface, shadowy figures climbed the dark walls, many falling back as if pulled by an invisible force. “Are those souls I see down there?”
“Yes, and a lot more recently went in. They fell out of the sky like the ugliest hailstones in history, swirling like a tornado of torment—moans, screeches, sobbing. It was terrible.”
“Sounds like it.” Kat pivoted back toward Leo. “What’s Iona’s mission?”
“That’s another mystery. Alex said Iona would understand when she arrived at the bottom of this foul hole. Supposedly, the passage is too small for me. Only Iona can fit. But, even so, I can’t believe I let my—I mean, our—scarlet squirt go into the abyss by herself, even though someone had to man the rope.” His eyes misting, he looked into the forest. “Did you enter the castle?”
“Not yet.” Kat chambered a round in her rifle. “But I will now.”
Trudy did the same. “That’s makes two of us. Jack can man the rope for Leo.”
“You bet.” Jack patted Leo’s back and grasped the rope. “Go. Find Iona.”
Leo gave the rope a pull. “Three tugs mean we’re ready to come up. Watch for a man named Bart. He’s a condemned soul who works for Alex. He helped us get here, then left a few moments ago. You can trust him if he’s serving himself. Otherwise, he’s a snake.” Leo backed to the edge of the hole and began rappelling like a seasoned climber. In seconds, he was gone.
“Whew!” Jack turned toward Kat and Trudy. “Okay. You two should get going. But take this Alex chick seriously. If she’s legitimately the queen of hell, you never know what traps you might run into in that huge castle, or even if your rifles will do any damage.”
Kat strapped her rifle over her shoulder. “They worked fine on that pile of monsters. Their wounds weren’t from poking each other with sticks.”
“Fair point.” His brow wrinkled. “But still, be careful.”
“You know us.” Trudy kissed his cheek. “Never throw a stone when you have a hand grenade.”
Kat ran with Trudy into the forest, following the trail again, this time at a faster pace. As the forest darkened the path, images of Ben’s pale face flashed to mind as he struggled to breathe, choking, gasping. Dread tried to crawl in and break her focus, but she shook it off. This was no time to peel off her mental armor. Ben needed her and Trudy. So did the entire world … again. Hell or no hell, queen or no queen, they had to get the job done.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
The man on the tower platform looked through a telescope, a woman at his side. Alex’s voice returned, the violin fading into the background. “A scientist duo, Carson and Quinn Harrid, created an outpost in northern Alaska to try to communicate with extraterrestrial beings. This effort led to the construction of towers around the Arctic Circle that established the first conduit between Earth and the rift in space. Unfortunately, the path proved to be unstable, and it sucked Quinn through.”
The mirror showed the woman flying into the air, flailing as she shot skyward. With each phrase Alex spoke, the reflection displayed the scenes and characters as if controlled by her words.
“In his desperate efforts to bring her back, Carson combined signals from all the towers and widened the rift to the size of the current Oculus Gate. Now confident of success, he tried again to travel through the portal to find his wife.
“When he activated the towers, he flew through the Oculus Gate and landed safely in a new world, a world of giants. Most were barbaric, but four were civilized—an adult male named Caligar and his close relations.
“Caligar told Carson that Quinn had arrived there at a time when all of the giants were peaceful. Yet, an otherworldly voice told one of them that Quinn was the most succulent food possible. Her meat would provide power and wisdom beyond their imaginations.
“A prophet among the giants warned that eating humans was forbidden by their creator. All but Caligar and his family ignored the warning. The other giants killed the prophet, then Quinn, and divided her into tiny portions and distributed them throughout the tribe of several hundred.”
At the sight of a giant gnawing on a human leg bone, nausea churned in Iona’s stomach. She swallowed down burning bile. This story couldn’t end soon enough.
The image altered to a line of half-naked giants walking through a forest with primitive clubs in hand. “In an unexpected turn of events, the giants who ate Quinn turned violent, and instead of gaining wisdom, they lost intelligence, including the most basic common sense. Caligar and his family had to flee. He created a fortress within a mountain and set deadly traps for the barbaric giants who might try to enter.
“Of course, Carson was devastated again. His dear wife had been killed and eaten. He swore to get revenge, but he lacked the needed weapons to battle such huge beasts. His only hope was to return to earth to gather armaments.
“He and Caligar fashioned a circular mirror that reflected the Oculus Gate, enabling a powerful communications channel.
“New voices came through, including those of the beings that became the angels on Earth. Carson and company also heard my voice, for I have long been able to access signals passing through certain portals.”
The mirror showed Carson standing next to a shimmering disc embedded in the ground. Dim light emanated upward from the disc as he looked on, frowning, his fists tight. “Unfortunately for Carson, he lacked the power necessary to sufficiently energize the conduit. Yet, I had a solution and guided him to engineer the mirror to open a portal to hell and tap the energy resources there. You see, I am able to collect energy from souls and deposit it in the pool you saw. The power is tremendous, such as in the healing you already witnessed.”
More nausea boiled in Iona’s gut. Alex had healed them with energy from condemned souls?
“In order to test the newfound power supply, Carson talked Caligar and his wife, Winella, into going to Earth, telling them that they might find a more suitable home there away from the barbaric giants. Once they were able to determine if Earth would be a good home, their children, Lacinda and Bazrah, could join them.
“The moment they energized the mirror and the two giants were on their way, an army of barbaric giants attacked. Carson was able to angle the energy to collect them into the flow. They, too, transported to Earth, though some avoided the energy and retreated, too frightened to ever attack again.
“When Caligar and Winella landed on Earth at the Alaska tower, they signaled their safe arrival. Finding the region suitable for building a home, they asked Carson to come with Bazrah and Lacinda. Yet, I counseled Carson to leave them behind on Viridi and use them as leverage to get Caligar to help him bring the so-called angels to Earth.
“Carson was unaware that I had made a deal with the angels. For their part, they would create a toxic vaccine to purge the souls of humans. For mine, I would provide the ingredients for the vaccine and encourage Carson to bring the angels to Earth. In order to ensure their obedience afterward, I made the angels believe that I was a great power on Earth and would enforce my wishes by sending them into oblivion if they disobeyed.
“When the angels arrived and Carson worked out a way for them to occupy human bodies, they turned on him, knowing that if he had the power and intelligence to bring them to Earth, he could also expel them.
“The angels captured Carson and used the tower network to send him back to Viridi, and I shut off the mirror’s energy source to keep him there. To slam the door for good, the angels took control of the towers and would not allow Caligar and Winella to access them.
“With the towers under the angels’ control, I suspected that they would try to cross me. I gave them a way to do so, while benefiting myself. I located the Refectors and enticed the two groups to communicate with each other. The angels used the vaccine to provide soulless human hosts and brought the Refectors to Earth, which is exactly what I wanted—vehicles to transport souls to the Arctic Circle.
“In the meantime, Carson wandered on the giants’ planet, searching for materials to create a power source of his own. Finally, he turned to me for help, though he knew that I was the one who had closed his access to hell’s power.
“I offered him the advice he sought, a way to gain the necessary power, but I needed someone to enter the abyss to tap the source. He suggested Lacinda, lured her close to the mirror, and pushed her into it. When she arrived, I captured her. From that day onward, I communicated with Caligar through Melinda, who transmitted my voice to Earth through the channel on Viridi.
“Knowing that the Refectors would soon be on their way to the Arctic Circle to deposit souls, I sent Lacinda into the abyss, telling her it was the only way to escape hell, but unfortunately, she failed.
“Another misfortune also occurred. The stupid, beastly giants attacked the Refectors and the humans who came with them. I needed a huge influx of souls but received only a minor burst.
“Then Carson said if only he could go to Earth, he would deliver the souls. I asked him how I could know that he would keep his word. When he told me, I agreed and temporarily provided the power he needed to go. And he has delivered. The souls arrived moments ago, many more than I need.”
The violin quieted. The scene in the mirror faded and returned to Alex sitting on her throne, the violin in her lap. “Now you know the truth. Do you have any questions?”
Iona’s heart thumped. The story was too incredible to believe. Yet, the mirror never flinched. It had to be true. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. For some reason, the sulfur odor had faded. Maybe she had grown accustomed to it. “What was your agreement with Carson?”
“That is not for you to know. It was personal. Your questions must relate to you and your situation.”
“Okay, then what happened to Lacinda when she tried to do what I’m trying to do?”
“She failed and later perished.”
Iona swallowed. “Perished? How?”
“Lacinda had a long, thick braid. A condemned soul wrapped it around her neck and strangled her.”
Iona stared at the mirror. The reflection stayed perfectly steady. “How do you know what happened?”
“I was close enough to see her die, but I did nothing to stop the murderer because Lacinda had failed and could no longer help me. I will never forget the sheer terror in her eyes as she drew her final breath.” Alex sighed in an overly dramatic fashion. “Tragic. Really tragic.”
Iona resisted the urge to scowl at the fake display of sympathy. “Then how do I stand a chance?”
“Because you are human, and Lacinda was not. That idea came to mind after her failure, and now I am certain of it. Only a human—a living, breathing human—can complete this task. Since you are human, I am confident that you will.”
Once more Iona watched the mirror for any sign of a lie, but the reflection held firm. “Okay. Let’s get straight to the point. What do I have to do? And what will happen if I get it done that’ll keep the souls from attacking me?”
