What happens when a college dropout accidentally opens up the portal to HELL in his soup? Shenanigans of course! Now, James must team up with a flamboyant scarecrow, a jaded witch, an overzealous knight, and a virgin succubus to lock away what he's...
Elijah's mind rattled. He was in a place of unadulterated evil. Lurking in the depths of Inferos was a cesspit of great and ancient horror. The angels were surrounded by a horizon of unbroken darkness, with only their lanterns to guide their way. Their progress was hindered by a sea of bones, no earth beneath their feet. The stench in the air was putrid and thick, reeking of death. Elijah had to fight back the bile forming in his throat. Death was ubiquitous in the depths. Elijah gawked at the unmitigated darkness above. The constant humming in his ears was driving him mad. Like something inside his brain was about to pop, but it only teetered at the breaking point.
Elijah considered himself a brave angel, but he felt the presence of fear deep inside him, wrapping its insidious fingers around his heart. What really pushed Elijah to the edge was the fate of their companions. Five angels were lost to madness. Gabriel put them down, the angel who was now tinkering away at some foreign contraption, trying to open an archaic portcullis. Adjacent to the portcullis on both sides sat a massive stone wall so tall that it disappeared into the darkness above.
"Any progress, brother? The shadows grow closer with every passing moment." Elijah held out his lantern in some feeble attempt to hold back the invading darkness. His knuckles turned white as he gripped the hilt of his sword. There are things down here far viler than shadows.
"Your armor should be gold after all the times you've pissed yourself." Gabriel laughed heartily.
There was a sudden clink, like the sound of a key unlocking. The bones underneath them shook violently, and with a deep rumble, the portcullis opened itself to them. After a satisfied grunt, Gabriel took his lance from the pillar he rested it upon and motioned for Elijah to follow. They took their first steps through the portcullis. Strange, Elijah no longer felt bones beneath his feet. He lowered his lantern, and a smooth ivory floor revealed itself. Something didn't feel right about it. Not at all. Upon closer inspection, he made the realization that it wasn't ivory. It was smooth and flattened bone forged into the ground with unknown magics.
There was no escaping death down here. They followed the path of smooth bone. Elijah could feel the air grow colder, more bitter. They walked for what felt like hours. Elijah was put off by his brother's silence. He wasn't the talkative type, but he should have said something by now. Gabriel stopped dead in his tracks. Something must have been wrong, Gabriel's shoulders slumped, and deep crimson poured from his neck.
He reached out for his brother, but Gabriel snatched his wrist, keeping his back to Elijah. Dread filled Elijah's core, made his body stiffen. It became one with him. His brother's head twisted all the way around without moving his body and tore Elijah's arm clean off.
"Elijah," Gabriel shook him. Elijah blinked, and his brother was back to normal and his arm intact. "Are you deaf?" Gabriel asked.
Elijah could feel cold sweat damping his face. "This place must be getting to me."
"See that it doesn't. We're almost there."
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