A courtyard unveils itself before me.

I pause, my breath caught in my lungs. I can’t help it. I know what I was expecting, either pearly gates or the pitfalls of Hell’s inner circles from Dante’s Inferno. But not this.

I’m outside, in a twisting meadow of wildflowers. Surrounded by both fields and cities. Halfway between the two is a castle, a proud stone citadel perched on the reddish horizon, with tall, perforated parapets and cavernous spires. Beside me is a pathway, one I follow with my eyes all the way down to the gatefall of Hell’s fortress.

It all looks eerily similar to the land of the living. The flowers, however strange, are beautifully blooming. There is laughter ringing through the warm winds, lights igniting the cities’ fingers on the horizon, beyond the fields. There is a pond gathered on the other side of me, the water all red. Not a blood red, more of a crystal color, like fine jewels. The darkly colored grass does not face upward, rather it curls into itself, as though feeding on its own darkness. The roots of thick trees break above the black soil, all avoiding the path of that red water. Self-sufficient in gathering what it needs to survive. Everything is placed and created with such meticulous detail. Touched by perfection.

Above my head are not blue skies, but red and orange, tinted by flames. And, above that, darkness. No stars, no moon. But there are different lights flashing every so often in that darkness, shifting like wafts of smoke, or northern lights, all the colors of fire.

Slowly, I make my way around the estate. More red pools spill out around me, all reflective like crystals, stretching far and wide across the hills like hives of honeycomb. Upon closer inspection, the buildings in the distance are made with materials I have never seen before, some resembling glass, and some resembling metal and stone, fire retardant material.

As if the kingdom itself grew suddenly aware of my presence, fire gathers along the path I’m standing on. It spreads toward the gatehouse, patiently awaiting the lowering drawbridge. I step closer, waving a hand over a lick of flames. They do not put off a sharp heat, but a slight and comfortable warmth. I even test this theory by shoving my fingers into the body of fire. It feels like I have stuck my hand out from the shadows into sunlight on a warm summer day.

It is not a long distance to the drawbridge, I am there in a matter of minutes. There is no moat of water around the castle. Instead it’s all fire, blue fire. I peer into the courtyard as the latticed gate lifts, a garth decorated with strange greenery and dark stone pathways. There are people here, talking and laughing. There are other creatures too, some human and some not.

Foolishly, I scan the crowd around me, half-expecting to see a familiar face. But the afterlife is big. And I find myself surrounded by strangers.

It strikes me odd that there are no guards around the kingdom, but I suppose there isn’t a need for any. I have to remind myself that this is death, or a part of it, at least. Most people here do not spare me a passing glance.

“Aiden Brooks. Your arrival is a bit earlier than scheduled.”

The disembodied voice calls from the cloister beyond the garden. 

A woman with stark white hair and unusually colored eyes rests against a column in the arcade.

“Don’t worry,” I say across the crowd. “I don’t plan on staying.”

She makes a beckoning motion with her fingers.

“Come. I may be able to help you find what you are looking for.”

The cloister merges into a separate colonnade before a set of ornate double doors.

The doors swing inward, revealing a great hall, an open room decorated with more torches, more stone and crystals. The tiles here are white, save for the decorative copper trim around the edges of the room. There is a large fountain in the center of the hall. A tall, naked woman with soft features and long, flowing hair pours out red jeweled water from an urn. Above her head is the halo of some kind of sun that ejects soft streams of water around her bare body. She has a smile on her face, warm and bright.

The tall white-haired woman walks quickly, and I’m practically jogging to keep up with her.

“Who are you?” I mutter. After scaling the great hall, I am led through another smaller hall, beneath large crested roman arches, around stone pillars, and then past another set of doors.

“My name is Mehr. And you are searching for Laverna. Are you not?”

I don’t answer that question, I’m too busy trying to map this place out in my head.

Beyond those doors is a labyrinth of hallways. Unlike Hayes’ palace, this feels like a landmark in time, perfectly preserved from millennia ago. Its age, like its grandness, hangs from every wall, every torch, every stone. It’s unlike anything I have ever seen.

There is a large black door opening before me, into a dark chamber. My eyes have trouble adjusting to the contrast of such darkness. I have to blink away specks in my eyes.

“You are taking me to her? To Laverna?” I ask when I have found my voice again.

“Formalities first.”

She shuts the door between us, leaving me alone in the chamber room. The floors here are dark, shiny enough to see myself reflected fully. And, drawn in gold calligraphy, are ancient symbols, some I wear on my own body. I cannot see the exterior of the rooms, because I am surrounded suddenly by fire. It climbs along each wall, touches the ceiling of each corner. And the ceiling… It’s another reflective dark surface. But this one is covered in twinkling stars. These even look real.

I recognize this room, very vaguely.

“Heir.”

I jump, almost lose my balance, at the sound of someone’s voice. My ears instantly burn hot when I realize I’m not alone in this room. Against the furthest wall, at the top of the ascending stone steps, is a throne of obsidian and bone. And on that throne sits Ignis - tall, proud, and striking.

His black hair, ornamented with red crystals, is swept over his shoulder, along with his drapery. He looks just like he did last time I saw him. But now his green eyes are slanted upwards through the half mask, small crescent moons lifted in curiosity. His voice is like firewood, like burning embers on a cold night.

I clear my throat, take a deep breath, and deflate. Remember why I’m here. “Hello, sir.”

Ignis leans his chin on his palm, his elbow positioned against the armrest. “Why have you come, child?”

A silence falls between us, thick and penetrable, until I muster the courage to speak.

“I have come to find the Element Laverna,” I say.

“What business do you have with my sister?”

“She took Alex’s coin. She stole it.”

“So you’ve come to steal it back?” he muses. I swallow hard, knowing how childish that all sounds now that the words are out in the open, not just in my head.

“He’s trapped in that… place. And it’s my fault.”

“So you would risk throwing your entire life away? You would risk your future, everyone’s future, for one man?”

I cross my arms over my chest, more to hide my nakedness than an act of defiance. “Of course I would. I would do anything.”

“Why?”

“Because I love him,” I say. “I love him. And you should know better than anyone just what a person would do for love.”

His expression is unreadable. I search the silence for some kind of answer, but it provides me none.

“I know it's selfish and stupid. I know that. Even if it means I’ll never be able to go back there, I have to make this right.”

“And what if you came all this way for nothing? Then what?”

“Then at least I fucking tried, ok?” I shout, unable to stop myself. “At least I didn’t just lie down and give up!”

“Like I did?” Ignis asks after a beat of silence. I blink.

“What? No, that’s not… that’s not what I meant-”

“You wouldn’t be wrong.”

This time I pray the silence can talk in place of me, can answer enough for me. But no such luck, according to the twitch twisting at his lips.

“I don’t care what happens to me. I’m going to find Alex. He’s going to wake up. With or without me.”

“You really don’t care?” Ignis asks. “Even after all the sacrifices of the ones you’ve loved?”

His words send daggers through my chest, each one a stab into my lungs. But I shrug it off, stand taller. Pretend to be more confident, more selfish, than I am. Pretend. Always pretend.

“It’s not their fault that they put their faith in someone who couldn’t become selfless enough to succeed.”

“And what of the prophecy?”

“I said it already!” I say, my voice carrying loudly throughout the chamber room. “It’s my life and I make my own decisions. I know the consequences. I know where I’m headed. And I’m going to do this even if you don’t approve. So are you going to keep me here and waste more of our time, or are you going to tell me where the hell Laverna is?”

Ignis sits with the question for a moment. And then he rises to his feet. And, slowly, begins to descend the steps. His cloak drags behind him as he does, a billow of thick material dragging like smoke across the stone staircase. And I notice that he is not dressed in a suit this time, but in armor. He’s dressed like a warrior.

“You have the stubborn pride of your father. Be careful of that.”

“Lowell Hayes is nothing like-”

“Not your earthly father. Me.”

I pause.

“A mortal’s coin needs a vessel,” he says, stepping closer. Ignis is a tall man, and looms easily over me, even in his human form. I don't shrink away. Foolishly, I stand my ground. “It cannot survive without a fetish or a soul.” 

“You’re telling me I will fail.”

He is silent. Maybe he also wishes for the silence to speak in place of him. Maybe we are not so different after all. Ignis takes a deep breath and sighs. “Laverna is down the hall. Mehr can take you to her.”

Ignis reaches forward and slightly lifts the chain around my neck, running a thumb gingerly over the jewel. Maybe he could feel the love I’ve poured into it, the love Alex has poured into me.

“You will not find what you’re looking for,” he says quietly. Before I can argue, the doors open back up and Mehr steps through, motioning for me to rejoin her. I take one last look at Ignis, staring solemnly at his throne and the sigils around his feet, before following her out the door.

The door I am guided to is similar to the others around it. It’s insignificant. I am not sure what to expect, but I force all of my anger back to the surface when I turn the knob and push inward, praying that anger can make me righteous enough.

“This is where I part ways,” says Mehr. She’s gone before I can even think of a response. But it’s no matter, because my attention is stolen by the woman sitting on the edge of a simple bed, long black hair like an oil spill, dripping down to the mattress. She looks up at me, her haunting features lift in a predatory smile. It’s all I can take before the entire room ignites.

“Where is it?” I growl, lunging for her. The Element cackles, but does nothing to avoid me. I grab a fistful of her collar, yanking her closer. She only laughs harder.

“What are you going to do, kill me?” she shrieks in laughter.

“I can send you straight to the Creator if you really want,” I seethe, fishing the dagger out of my pocket to press it against her throat. Laverna’s eyes widen, but her smile does not fall.

“Well I’ll be,” she mutters. “You certainly could.”

"Where is it?” I ask again.

"You’re going to have to be more specific than that, darling. There are plenty of humans who want me dead.”

“You don’t even know why I’m here,” I say vacantly. She blinks, shrugs, and smiles even wider. It makes me feel sick.

I shove Laverna away.

“Where is Alex’s coin?”

“The Dark Prince? That’s what this is about? Well, honey, you aren’t the brightest, are you?”

“What?”

“How do you think I got here? Elements aren’t given coins. And, in order to cross the Acheron, you need a coin. It’s a pretty simple rule, to be fair.”

“You’re saying… you don’t have it anymore,” I hear myself say.

“Of course not. And I can’t get it back for you, even if you kill me.”

“Then how? Where… where do coins come from?”

“Mortals,” she says, like it’s obvious.

“How do I get another one?”

“You can’t,” she laughs. “That’s crazy.”

“What about Votum? What about all the coins he has collected?”

“What about them?”

“What if I take one?”

Her laughter turns wicked and grating. My ears grow red hot.

“Go ahead, try to take a soul from my darling brother.”

Laverna falls on her back on the mattress. Her laughter fades into a slight chuckle.

“It’s a deathwish,” she says, almost softly.

And, all at once, my eyes burn, my whole body burns. I have to lean against the door to keep from collapsing. The tears come, all at once. And there’s nothing I can do to stop them.

I’m angry, of course I am. But the fire in the room dissipates, replaced by something far colder, far emptier.

“Fuck you,” I choke out, despite the tears. Laverna does not laugh this time. She does not even smile. She just stares up at the ceiling.

“A deal is a deal. I did nothing wrong.”

“He’s trapped there, because of you.”

"In his own kingdom? Am I supposed to feel bad? Human emotions are so unusual.”

“He’s human!” I scream. “He’s not a monster like your brother. He is human.”

“Humans are the worst monsters of them all. I’ll never understand why Mother chose them over us.”

There’s no use arguing with her. There’s nothing I can win by staying here.

I swing the door back open so hard it shakes the frame.

“Go,” she says. The laugh returns to her words, churning a sickness inside my stomach. “Run away! Just like Ignis did. Just like all Her precious mortals do.”

I slam the door between us and break into a run, eager to put as much distance between us as possible.

The sob that comes next is a pressure finally breaking through. I run through the first door I find and shut it behind me, falling to the ground as I crumble.

I finally mourn. I cry so hard I’m convinced I actually might die for real. But even if I do, what’s the point? I’m stuck here, just like the rest of the dead. I can’t save Alex. I can’t save anyone.

The tiles are cold against my face. It is the only relief I feel as pain stabs through me over and over. At least if I were dead, I wouldn’t feel like this.

“Aiden.”

And now I’m going crazy, on top of everything. Because I swear someone is calling my name.

“Aiden.”

I wipe my tears away with a frown. The voice sounds louder this time.

“I have what you’re searching for.”

I freeze. Because I am now sure that I am not going crazy. Someone is talking to me.

When I get to my feet, the torches around me roar to life. This room is made entirely of black tiles, like one big scrying pool. Something about it feels off. The enchantment in this place is wrong, much different from the rest of Hell.

“Hello?” I ask the empty room.

There is a raised platform in the center of the room, housing a large stone baptismal font.

The pool of water is undisturbed. It is not red, not like the crystal ponds outside. It’s black.

Like the spirit pool outside the church, like the portal by Alex’s childhood house. On the other side of this water is the shadow world. And, beyond that, Votum’s kingdom.