Hellfire | Isle of the Lost

NINETEEN: The Wondrous Fortress

The Forbidden Fortress lived up to its name. Once the five adventurers had found their way in through its massive oaken doors, it was almost impossible to tell the darkness of the shadow world outside the castle from the shadow world within. Either way, it was intimidatingly dark, and the farther Jay, Carlos, Helena, Evie, and Mal crept inside, the more their nervous whispers echoed through the ghostly, abandoned chambers.

Jay wished he'd worn something warmer than his leather vest. Mal's lips were turning blue, Helena had her arms wrapped tightly around herself, Carlos's breath appeared in white clouds as he spoke, and Evie's fingers felt like icicles when Jay grabbed them. (Once. Or twice. And strictly for warmth.) It was colder than Dragon Hall inside, and there was no chance of anything getting any warmer; there were no logs on the fireplace grates, no thermostats to switch on.

"That's modern castle living," Evie said with a sigh. "Trade in one big, cold prison for another." Mal nodded in agreement. Privately, Jay thought that Jafar's Junk Shop seemed downright cozy in comparison, but he kept that to himself.

"I can't take this anymore," Helena said. She always hated the cold. The Underworld was always warm, not only because it was her home world but also due to the fire everywhere. 

The Greek girl then stopped walking to the surprise of the other. Helena then began to focus her energy on something she's done multiple times by now. Mal opened her mouth to ask Helena what she was doing, but stopped as the dark fairy suddenly got her answer. Helena lit her hair on fire, her once brown locks now on fire with a blue flame.

The daughter of Hades let out a sigh of relief, already beginning to feel warmer. "It's not much, but hopefully it'll do." 

"Are you kidding? Something is better than nothing," said Jay.

He, Mal, Evie, and Carlos moved closer to Helena, trying to get some warmth from her fiery hair as they continued walking. Jay stood directly behind Helena, Mal and Evie on either side of him. Carlos was the only one at Helena's side as he was the only one that wasn't afraid of her. 

They all remembered the last time they saw her hair fire. It was the party that ended with Helena leaving them all petrified. Truth be told, Jay, Mal and Evie were still scared of Helena. And seeing the ease in which she lit her hair on fire had them fearful of past events possibly repeating themselves. But Carlos knew Helena, and he trusted her. He knew that she wouldn't do something like that unless she was provoked, much like she was that night. And hopefully Mal learned her lesson to not do something like that again, especially not now.

As Carlos was thinking, he felt a hand slip into his. He glanced down, recognizing the hand to be Helena's. He looked up, already finding Helena staring at him with a small yet reassuring smile. But as Carlos stared at the brunette princess, the earlier events on the bridge came to his mind.  

Carlos froze back there, too paralyzed by fear to act. He knew the answer to the third riddle, but kept quiet until the very end. He, Mal, Evie and Jay were close to meeting their ends. It wasn't as if the answer was some shocking revelation. It was something that they all knew, especially Carlos, but he still didn't say a word until he heard Helena pleading for him to act. 

Helena, on the other hand, acted quickly. She learned that there wasn't she could do despite being the Princess of the Underworld to save Mal, Evie, Jay or Carlos. Helena would be safe, but others had to pay the price for trying and failing to answer the riddles. But still, she continued to fight for them, doing whatever she could to try to help no matter how useless it seemed. It was all up to Carlos yet Helena was the one fighting.

Even after it was all said and done, she wasn't upset at him in the slightest. That's what she was trying to tell him by taking his hand in hers. She wasn't mad at him for what he did or what he failed to do. She would always be there for him, fighting for him and defending him like she always has. And while Carlos was grateful for it, what did he do for her in return? He got picked on, beat up, pushed around, and walked all over. Carlos was a small, weak and pitiful boy, an unsightly blemish on Helena's otherwise perfect life. He didn't deserve someone amazing like Helena.