The Angel King (boyxboy)

Chapter Ten

Jesse

The meeting was supposed to start in less than an hour, and Deimos was starting to get anxious. Luke was supposed to be here by this point. "We can't be late," he stressed. "Lucifer will not tolerate the disrespect."

He was probably off moping somewhere, and I couldn't blame him. We fought all the time now, and I figured it was exhausting him just as much as it was tiring me. I hoped he'd be back soon. I was ready to kiss and make up.

"What do we do if he doesn't show up?" Jane asked nervously.

Apate shrugged, rubbing her bruised shoulders. "We go without him, I suppose."

I bit my lower lip. "Can I go with you?" If Luke had been here, I would have just bullied him in saying yes. But I couldn't do that with his Specialists, who were practically programmed to protect me.

Deimos sighed. "Yes, you better go. You will undoubtedly come up in conversation anyway."

Another half hour passed. Hattie and Oliver joined us in the throne room. Everyone was anxious now. With twenty minutes left, Deimos kicked Luke's throne in frustration. "We better just meet him there," he decided. "Jesse, you stay with me."

He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and shot me a glance. "I'm assuming you remember the Tunnel to reach the Surface?"

I shuddered. The Tunnel was the passage humans had to take. It was crowded by lesser demons in their purest forms who were desperate to ensnare any human who might take it. I hated that Tunnel with a passion.

"Is there a Tunnel from Hades to Hell?" I predicted with a groan.

Deimos nodded. "There is. But don't worry, I'll guide you through it."

"Let's just go now," Apate suggested darkly. "I do not want to be late."

Deimos tightened his grip on my shoulders, a gesture that I was grateful for. My first experience in the Tunnel hadn't been fun, and the next couple of times were also rough. Thinking about the Tunnel made me think of the times before the War. I had hated Luke back then.

I took a deep breath, then woosh. Deimos and I turned into smoke and flew straight down through the marble floor.

Let me just tell you now, being smoke is weird. I had no eyes, no ears, no mouth, yet somehow I was aware of the fact that we were traveling down and through compacted rock. It was a very uncomfortable feeling.

Soon the solid material stopped existing, just as Deimos and I began to solidify. We stood on what felt like a hard surface, but when I looked down, I saw only pitch black.

Deimos pressed himself against me, bracing us for the attack. I waited for the demons to launch at me. Last time I had seen bear creatures and humanoid lizard things, clawing and hissing, trying to eat me or worse.

But the Tunnel was empty.

It was just pure nothingness, with dim light in the distance signifying our destination.

"What the Hell?" Deimos muttered.

Hattie, Oliver, Apate, and Jane appeared behind us, also staring at their surroundings in confusion.

"Where is everyone?" Hattie demanded. Her voice echoed in the empty Tunnel.

"They must all be at home," Jane said. "Clearly the angels have everyone hiding scared.

"That's good for us," I ventured. "Don't Fear demons feed on natural fear?"

Oliver frowned. "Yes, but our lesser demons aren't in the Tunnel either. It won't do us any good to have everyone afraid if our own Ring is paralyzed."