Fire Falls Into the Depths: Book Two of The Brimstone Archives Read online

  “Is that what you experienced in the jungle with Leirgab? He said they tortured you, but not physically.”

  “They can show you images in your mind. Talk to you without speaking from any mouth. Faceless and full of despair.”

  Zuna stepped around Aiesha and grasped her paw, pulling her down to the ground. Together they sat facing each other.

  Aiesha stared into Zuna’s red velvet eyes once again. They were mesmerizing, almost like they swallowed your spirit.

  Zuna’s face was worn, and her antennas were limp from what seemed like exhaustion. “I know you search for Cee. He is still alive in this dimension. He wanted me to find you and give you insight. Much like Houpor trained you, I can show you how to hone your intuitive powers.”

  A flash of Houpor’s initial training session came to mind as she reached for her ribcage, remembering the pain that lingered following the shock of the surprise attack. “I thought I only had these fire powers,” said Aiesha as she lit a flame in her paw.

  “Your other powers have long been present before the Great Abyss. You inherited them from your ancestors. Do you ever remember seeing visions or dreams of things? Or even having an instinctive feeling that something will happen?”

  Aiesha bowed her head and closed her eyes. “It seemed more noticeable following the Great Abyss, but yes, even as a youngling there were instances.” She looked back up as Zuna grasped her paws tighter.

  “This was something that was your birthright. It flows in your blood.”

  “I had a dream long ago when I was still living with my family. It was of a human, much like Cee, but with darker hair that fell below his chin. I keep seeing visions of him since I’ve entered the Cerebral Realm.”

  “That means you are closer to strengthening your powers.” Zuna squeezed Aiesha’s paws. “I have an exercise for you. Close your eyes.”

  She looked down at their interlocked paws, breathed in, and shut her eyes with ease.

  Zuna continued with another squeeze of the paws. “I want you to imagine the thing that you fear. Think about what this fear is and how it manifests in your own body. Does it sit like a rock, solid in your gut? Or does it weigh down atop your head, pulling at your hairs with the pressure of a forceful waterfall? As you imagine this fear, chant it aloud, and then give it a name.” She paused, waiting in the silence for Aiesha to speak.

  Aiesha’s face grimaced as she felt a burning sensation in her stomach. “Unknown. Unknown. Unknown.” She paused as the sensation quivered from within. “Gravitas.” She breathed outward, allowing the burning sensation to rise in her chest.

  “Now continue to breathe in, noticing that the unknown is now named Gravitas. Let Gravitas flow throughout your body with whatever sensation you feel. Now I want you to think of something that made you angry. Something or someone that got under your skin and the thought of it drives you mad. It is something more than dislike. You hate it.”

  Aiesha followed the flow of Gravitas throughout her body as it continued to rise through her neck. Sweat formed along her neck and trailed upward across her head. She followed the sensation as it lurched its way through all four limbs. A flash memory of Boca slashing his talon into Houpor’s chest crossed her mind. She groaned. I don’t hate Boca. I hate myself for not being able to stop him. She felt Gravitas pulsating throughout every fiber of fur on her body. “Me,” she said, breathing outward with a steamy breath of air.

  “Now imagine your hate growing stronger. It will overcome Gravitas with a distinct sensation. Where does me live within your body? How does it feel—this hated me?”

  A cold sensation slowly generated from within Aiesha’s chest. She felt a stabbing pain, as if her heart were being choked with the collision of me and Gravitas. A scream of anguish and pain escaped her breath. The cold sensation burst like sending sharp shards of ice throughout her body.

  “Yes, let the hate overcome your Gravitas. Let it transform you.” Zuna’s voice remained calm.

  Another scream of anguish echoed throughout the crystal forest. Aiesha no longer felt the burning sensation of Gravitas within her. Instead, her body was frigid, and her blood slowed, fueling the hate.

  “No longer will your fear of the unknown plague you. Gravitas is dead. Fueled by your hate, you will have greater power.” Zuna’s voice trailed off in the distance. The pressure from her paws released.

  Aiesha sighed and opened her eyes. Zuna was not in her view. “Zuna?”

  Silence.

  Chapter 5

  Leirgab reached his paw into the flowing red river. “I can make it through.”

  Raiven’s light stream jolted his body back, nearly thrusting him to the ground. “No. You can’t. Not even my powers can part the Red Sea.” She whipped a stream of light into the redness, and it dissolved as if nothing had even touched its edge.

  Eyebrows furrowed as he slung the red liquid from his arm, grumbling to himself. “I’m going to find a way to get to her.”

  “You caused the chaos, now you have to live with it and wait it out, imbecile oaf,” she said with snarled lips. “Unfortunately for me, I got stuck with you on this side.”

  His fist clenched in response, but he ignored her comments and walked upstream.

  Raiven sent a light stream into the sky above them, and it grappled onto an invisible step. She slung her body up into the air, her robe flowing behind her.

  He turned and gripped a hold of her boot as it left the ground. The inertia pulled his body along with hers. “On second thought, I think you are on to something.”

  Their bodies lifted to the prism-colored step. The ferocious red river highlighted the darkness below. Raiven stared at him in disbelief, knocking the hedgehog hairs from her boot. “We cannot pass through or above the river while it is rampant. I have somewhere else in mind that can be of use while the river separates us from Aiesha.”

  “We can’t use the stair steps to walk above the river?” he asked.

  She shook her head, causing her black curls to bounce side to side.

  He jumped to the left of her as additional steps formed beneath him. He danced faster across the sky and leaped toward the river’s edge, continuing his movements.

  “No!” she yelled, raising her paws.

  His last leap forward over the river’s edge caused his body to freeze with an electric shock. His eyes fluttered as he fell backward to the ground. He felt the lasso of a light stream around his waist. He could see Raiven pulling the light stream back up toward her on the stairs as his body swung in the air.

  He couldn’t speak, and he only heard muffled sounds escape her moving mouth. His body lay there lifeless on the platform. He watched several light orbs flow past them as Raiven’s arms flailed in the air. His paws and snout slowly wiggled.

  The sounds became less muffled as she kicked the ground.

  “… electric shock. Fool! Lucky to be alive. Why does no one listen to me? I swear they send me on these missions for punishment. Babysitting the newbies.” She turned and continued up the ever-growing stairs, leaving Leirgab, who struggled to sit upright.

  He rolled his body over, noticing the smell of singed whiskers near his pointed nose. “Zut. It took so long to grow these out.” He picked himself up, rolling his eyes at the comment that echoed in his head from Raiven’s disapproval. “Guess she knows some things.”

  His body felt heavy, but he continued his momentum, letting the falling weight drive him forward. As he caught up to her, she was still muttering under her breath.

  “All right. You seem to know the layout of the land. But you got to warn me of these types of things. I don’t want to get electrocuted again.”

  “You’re lucky that’s all there was. There’s worse things here than that.”

  She led the way, this time leaping down from the platform, allowing the formation of steps below her as she stair-stepped to the ground.

  Up ahead, Leirgab noticed an effervescent glow in the sky. Bubbling light flowed from top to bottom along bundled vines that formed one tall overarching tree. Its branches stretched far and wide above a small encircling forest. A low murmuring hum was noticeable as they approached closer.

  “What is this place? Why are we here?” asked Leirgab.

  “Zos,” said Raiven.

  “What do you mean Zos?”

  She sighed. “Zos is the mainstream fiber network, the place of memories where the conscious and unconscious self come to life through the body and mind,” said Raiven. “It is part of my job to monitor the area.” They walked near the edge of the forest and passed by a pond. Movement up ahead caught their eyes. “Ugh, this is what I get for babysitting. More babysitting and rallying up the escapees.”

  The figure’s eyes glowed white as it turned and spotted them. A stream of light swept across the air from Raiven’s curly-haired paws. The light stream lassoed the beast that attempted to escape the woods. Her paws quivered as the light stream rippled backward. A rush of pain jolted her body, which transferred to Leirgab as he stood next to her. In his mind, he witnessed an insurgence of painful memories. Memories that were not his, nor did they appear to be Raiven’s. It encompassed a different world—one that included humans, much like Cee.

  The smooth-skinned beast screeched. Raiven gasped for breath but held her lassoed captive tight, placing her other paw around the light stream. She tugged, pulling the beast to the ground. “You’re coming back with me to the depths of the Cerebral Realm.”

  The beast, twice the size of Raiven with a full body of bulging muscles, roared in return as its claws etched a nearby tree. Another surge of unpleasant memories forced their way through Leirgab’s mind as he watched Raiven bend at the knees. Her grip almost released hold of the light stream from the internal pain that she must have been feeling. They were memories filled with hate and anger.

  Leirgab grabbed Raven’s waist to add his weight in pulling the beast. She straightened upright, staring at the beast, who floundered with the growing light stream. “MAR, I need your help. You need to find the light from inside. Don’t resist me.”

  The beast, known as MAR, paused his movements as he seemed to revel in the idea of something better.

  Leirgab released Raiven as she walked closer to MAR. Another tug on the lasso prompted the beast to stand. Leirgab stepped forward, readying to roundhouse kick the beast, but stopped as Raiven placed a paw on his shoulder. “We do not need brute force for this tame beast. MAR is now calm.”

  Leirgab dive-rolled, releasing his built-up momentum for the roundhouse. “Can a beast such as this be tame?”

  “Someone tamed you, didn’t they?” Her sharp teeth exposed themselves with a maniacal laugh.

  He felt his eyebrows furrow in response, resisting the urge to hit her. “Must be speaking of yourself. So, where does this beast live?”

  “There is more than one beast that comes out of the forest, attempting to escape and cause ruckus. MARs are part of the Memory and Retrieval system important for supporting human life.”

  “Human life?” he asked.

  She walked forward, holding on to the lasso and leading the beast to the glowing forest ahead. “MAR is important for survival. Much like Cee, we are actually inside the human mind.”

  “Whoa, what do you mean? The Cerebral Realm?” He scratched his head.

  “Exactly.”

  “If we are in a human mind, what is Cee doing here? Are we in his mind?”

  A ripple through the pond nearby paused Raiven to peer in that direction. “Wait here.” She tied the end of her light stream to a nearby tree. She swept her paw under the surface of the pond and lifted out a fish, tossing it back to the beast, who opened its mouth. A splash of water and slobber smacked Leirgab in the face as the beast crunched down on the mackerel.

  “You got any grub for us, by the way?”

  Raiven’s ears perked up, causing her hood to fall backward. “You’ll get yours shortly.” She gripped the lasso and tugged it forward as she walked the beast, who casually followed.

  “Great,” he said as his stomach rumbled at the thought of eating. “So, is this Cee? His mind?”

  “No. Cee lives here. He is a representation of the human, the orchestrator for how things are run. His role is to keep the human on task.”

  “Oh, okay. And your job is to maintain the MARs, like a security roundup?”

  She sighed. “I keep the fray from splitting.” They stepped in through the forest, as the light beamed ahead from the bundled vine.

  More screeches echoed nearby, followed by the rustling of cracking twigs and leaves. The sounds were running away instead of toward them.

  Leirgab lowered his raised fists. “What was that? More beasts?”

  “They fear me. I have a reputation around here to keep up.” She unleashed the beast, allowing him to roam free. He stared at her with white glowing eyes, then screeched and ran off toward the sound of the other screeches.

  “The MAR live here in the forest next to Zos for easy access when needed.” She walked forward and cleared out the lower branched leaves with a whip of her light stream. The bundled vines that glowed shined brighter up close. Its large roots dug deep below the land. “This is Zos, the fiber of human existence for the mind connecting to the body.”

  Leirgab’s mouth dropped as his eyes widened. “I’ve not seen anything like this in all the lands. It’s beautiful and electrifying.” He walked closer to it, reaching out his paws, feeling its heat pulsating as its energy transpired.

  “Don’t you dare touch it.”

  He turned around. “I got it this time. I think I had enough jolts of pain for the day.” He lowered his paw, stepping back.

  “Come on, I’ll show you where we will crash for the night.” Raiven walked along the passage between the forest and towering Zos. Leirgab waltzed after her with a big smile.

  As they approached a corner, there was a small, wooded cabin ahead at the edge of the forest. The hairs on Leirgab’s arms raised from the chilled air as he stepped inside, escaping the radiating heat of Zos. It was simple but neatly kept, with a bed in the corner, seating space, bath, and kitchen. A little more than what one would get at Puunlo’s Paradise, but definitely not as exquisite, given the plainness. Raiven opened the fridge, pulling out a smorgasbord of cheese, crackers, and meats. “Here, eat these, then you can crash on the couch over there. We’ll look for Aiesha tomorrow at daybreak. The Celestial Road should flow slower by then.”

  He took a paw full of morsels and shoved them in his mouth, which was coated with drool. His eyes grew heavy as he filled his belly. He lay down on the couch and drifted to sleep.

  Only a dim light flickered from a candle flame in the small cabin as Leirgab tossed and turned. A scrambling noise outside the cabin echoed through his dreams. The noise turned into a banging sound. He sat upright on the couch with squinted eyes, peering into the dim light. The noise came again, this time with a scratching sound at the door. He leaped up, rolling over his feet toward the door with closed fists. He waited for another scathing before flinging the door wide open.

  Raiven’s light stream whipped the door closed and pulled his body back, hurling him to the floor. “Imbecile. What did I tell you about touching things?”

  Leirgab cracked his neck side to side and stood up, staring her in the face. He could see the gleam of candlelight flicker across her teeth. “I can’t stay here. If there is something out there trying to get in, then I can’t leave Aiesha to face it alone.”

  She shoved both paws into his chest, forcing him back down on the couch. She lassoed a light stream around his body and tied it off near a metal loop at the bottom of the cabin wall. “You aren’t going anywhere without me.”

  Another long scratch etched its way down the door. Raiven walked over to a nightstand and grabbed a vial. She looked back at Leirgab with a scowl, then proceeded to the doorway, sprinkling powder along its edges. A screech from the other side sounded, followed by scampering paws.

  Leirgab pulled at the binding light stream, but very little gave way. “You can let me go.”

  “Not yet. I am waiting for Cee.”

  Leirgab closed his eyes as he leaned back into the couch.

  “Good. Now we can get some rest. I’m sure we will need it tomorrow when we search for Aiesha.”

  The bed in the opposite side creaked, followed by ruffling covers. Leirgab peeked through one eye, noting that Raiven’s back was turned. He leaned forward with his elbows propped on his knees. The light stream shifted with his weight. A grin stretched across his face as a faint snore echoed across the room.

  “Think you can keep me under control with force?” he said under his breath. He ducked his head between his legs and quickly flipped his body backward, causing the light stream to spark under the friction of his quills. He shifted side to side, edging the stream as it emitted short crackles and pops.

  His movements froze as Raiven snorted, and her arm flopped over her ears. He exhaled, continuing to etch his way through the makeshift rope until the final fizz separated his binding. The ribbon’s light faded as the stream fluttered to the floor.

  Leirgab adjusted his belt as he stood and tiptoed to the door. The floor let out a groan under the shifting weight. He glanced over his shoulder at the sleeping wolf who lay undisturbed. Stretching his arms out, he managed to distribute his weight, limiting the sounds that showed the cabin’s age. He twisted the doorknob, opening his exit, and leapt over the powder spread along the threshold. The night sky glimmered through blowing leaves in the cool breeze.

  What is that smell? His snout twitched at a pungent decay that wafted in the air. He walked along the edge of the forest behind the cabin, catching sight of a glistening, hairy beast face down in a pile of leaves. Slimy, wet beast. Took a dip in the pond and passed out? Leirgab stopped a foot away from the beast and smelled the stench along with metallic. Blood? He crouched next to the body, noticing a large-toothed bite mark encasing its ribs and a pool of blood underneath its belly. What happened to you, bud?