Pangaia: Agendas (Year One: Fall)

Chapter Eighteen - Denver

"So close. I was so close!" Lucien's voice shook the room which was not a small feat in the castle of the underworld.

The walls were made of a dark stone that was sturdier than cinder blocks. His rage made the whole castle rumble. The souls of the damned would be in for a long night if he continued the need for expressing his anger.

Denver leaned against a wall and watched the spectacle. While he had a lot of comments he could make, he kept them to himself. As much as he loved to rock the boat and make some waves, he also knew when doing so would prove dangerous.

The other demons in Lucien's posse all grunted and grumbled in agreement, sharing in the misery of their master. Denver was most likely the only creature in the room who was actually happy Lucien had failed to kidnap Cheyenne and drag her to the underworld.

She's mine. He'll figure that out soon enough. He snorted. Back to the creepy thoughts again. Eh. I'll embrace it. Creepy can be fun. I haven't been that guy for a while.

Besides, he also found a great deal of joy trying to thwart Lucien while pretending to help him. Playing both sides. When he had to do whatever it took to survive, Denver made sure to have as many future favors in his pocket as possible.

Eventually, he would be leaving the school. Eventually, he'd have to cash in.

For now, he'd kept his spot at Pangaia secure until he figured out what he was going to do. The headmaster made it clear that he was on his way out sooner rather than later. One way would let him get a diploma so he could attempt to have a successful life amongst the humans. The other way involved a swift kick in the butt.

Despite not having the best of grades, Denver was far from dumb. He knew he'd be getting the boot before he finished his credits to graduate. Not because he was a pain in the staffs' behinds. Not because they'd had enough of him barely squeaking by on the minimum amount of work to keep him there.

No, it was all because of politics with the Divine. He didn't quite understand what was going on with them. They most likely hated he'd attacked one of their own, but something else about Cheyenne's presence upset them.

"You need to awaken her," Lucien said to him. Finally, he acknowledged Denver's existence.

Denver laughed. "Awaken her? Like, stir her from her slumber and bring her over here? That's not going to happen."

"No, I mean awaken the spirit inside her."

Okay, that's really creepy. Not the fun kind, either. Denver raised an eyebrow. "How do I do that?"

"There's a cave," Lucien said. "It's below the gazebo."

"The one with all the cool murals on the walls?" Denver asked. He'd been there a couple of times during his explorations. The place always made him feel...at home.

"Good, you know it." Lucien moved to leave the room.

Apparently, I'm being dismissed.

"You got it, Sir," Denver grumbled.

He didn't give me a time frame, so I'll do it whenever I feel good and ready.

First, he wanted to know why he was waking Cheyenne up. More importantly, what spirit lurked inside of her? What more mysteries did this one girl have for him to solve?