Sleep with the Lights On ✔️

3. Dreaming in The Underworld

Peros returned to the apartment with an arms load of books. He set them on the table and threw himself on the couch. "The library is a far walk," He said flatly. He rested his head on the couch and closed his eyes.

Cassie had been cleaning Peros' room but when she heard him come through the door and she had ran to the living room to meet him. Cassie had never been the type to enjoy cleaning, in fact she dreaded it. But with the stress of being stuck in the underworld she found it calming, a welcome distraction.

She knelt beside the coffee table and read the book titles aloud.

"The Underworld and Its Known Realms" Cassie read.

"My father used to read the book, he said when my mother first brought him here he studied it and it helped him understand life here," Peros mumbled.

"Basic Magic?" Cassie asked, she couldn't believe this was a real book. "I can't do magic," She said turning to look at Peros. His head rested on the backrest of the couch, with eyes closed and face turned to the ceiling, he looked exhausted.

"You have done magic, so you can do magic again," He said. His tone left no room for discussion but Cassie doubted she could do it again. Considering the spell that had brought her here was crafted by a nymph, she didn't consider herself to be an active participant in that magic, just tricked and brought along.

"The Many Beings of The Netherworld... is this for us to know what kind of being to ask for to send me back?" Cassie asked. Peros mumbled his confirmation. "Humans, Angels and the Upperworld; Bane City: A History; Nymphs: The Noble Race" The books were all thick, except for 'Bane City: A History'. Cassie arranged the books in a line on the coffee table. "Where do I start?" She asked.

Peros leaned forward his arms crossed and elbows resting on his knees, he looked at the line of books. "The one about the Nymphs. You need to know what you're up against," He replied, his voice sounded so sure. Cassie sighed and grabbed the book. She shot a sideways glance at Peros, she had imagined that he was going to help her through this but she was starting to think that she'd overestimated the help. Peros stood up and headed towards the hallway "And then "The Underworld and its Known Realms" I have a feeling you aren't going to grasp things here without it," He muttered.

Cassie made herself comfortable on the couch and began reading, she read through the chapters that seemed relevant and skipped the ones she thought to be useless, making mental notes in her head.

After skimming through the book she had a list of important things about Nymph's in her head: Nymphs had stronger magic than Sprites, but only a limited amount per day. The book said a Nymph had enough magic for six to ten spells a day depending on the Nymph and depending on the spell. They could grow stronger by devouring the soul of any willing Nymph. That was what made Nymphs so terrifying. Not much was known about the ritual of devouring souls. Nymphs had a complicated social class within themselves and all other beings of the Underworld were placed well below the lowest Nymph.

Cassie sat back and stared at the ceiling, recounting what she had learned. The information she had gained didn't make her feel prepared, or even more afraid. She couldn't see what a Nymph could possibly want with her. She wasn't a nymph so she couldn't make them any stronger by offering her soul. Cassie shivered and turned over a couple of the other books. Peros had suggested she read the one about the underworld but it felt like the silver embossed title of "Basic Magic" was calling to her. Her curiosity was piqued. She grabbed the thick volume and set it in her lap. She tried to fight off any doubts as she flipped to the first chapter. There was a brief prologue that explained different kinds of magic for different beings and that the spells were in organized order of difficulty. Basic Magic was set up more like a dictionary than a textbook. The first spell was simply, open. There were three columns: Romanian, Greek and Latin. There were no other instructions. Cassie took a deep breath and started with the Romanian column. She set her eyes on a closed book on the coffee table and held both of her palms out in front of her, after double-checking the word she took a deep breath.