in the universe.”
We walked into a long, unlit passage, and the Chainling ducked his head as he spoke. “The disagreement between them created an insurmountable breach. The Fates believed that the strings were meant to be manipulated, that they were the masters of outcomes and possibilities. But our founders… they believed that twisting and weaving the strings was to defy the power of the Chain, and upset the delicate balance the universe had created.”
The Chainling pulled out a small candle and lit it, holding it aloft. I squinted down the empty hall, one I was quite sure I’d never seen before.
He looked at me, eyes glowing eerily under his hood. “When the Fates use their strings, they change outcomes. It could be a small thing, just the influencing of a decision from one course to another… but when that tiny change is made, the revision ripples outwards, starting in the strings and affecting the wider universe until the Chain itself shakes. That is why they chose to leave the Grigori; we believe it is our destiny to serve the desires of the Chain, not to force the Chain to serve our desires.”
He strode down the hall, motioning for me to follow him. There was a strange density to the air in the corridor, along with the faintest scent of smoke.
I kept close to the Chainling’s side, even though we were still in my own arena, surrounded by my own people. It was like the threshold had been a liminal doorway to another world, and I’d unknowingly stepped into it.
Either that, or it was the pull of the Chain I was feeling. I shivered a little at the thought of a sentient, universal force tugging at me, reeling me in like a fish.
“Our temple was destroyed by the emergence of the Great Red Dragon, but we do not worry or fear. The Chain had already chosen a new location for our temple, a sacred site,” the Chainling said without glancing back.
“It’s right under us,” I said, my lips feeling numb. “You’ve been building your new temple here the entire time.”
He nodded, casting strange shadows on the wall. “From the moment we stepped foot on this ground, we knew. The Chain rang out with the sound of joy that we had found our new home.”
If my stomach had been churning a little from nerves before, it was now a full-blown hurricane in there.
I should’ve known… even from the days of being called No Saint, of little girl demons dressing in paper and wire wings, the Chainlings had been there, silently watching and waiting.
Following the links in the Chain straight to me.
We reached a spiral staircase descending into a black pit. The Chainling started downwards without looking back this time. He already knew I would follow, and now it was a call that couldn’t be resisted, a thrumming energy building in my bones.
“We once had a queen,” the Chainling said mournfully. His voice echoed up and down the stairs, bouncing back in eerie echoes. “The Chain loved her deeply, but even it can’t change its own links. She was murdered, leaving us bereft of her light, and her followers were scattered when the original temple was burned.”
I realized after several more steps that we’d descended below the ground-level of the arena. This was uncharted territory for me, oddly terrifying in a way. Slight wisps of smoke filled the air, rising from the depths below.
“We’ve moved from place to place since, faithfully following the links. Centuries of wandering, finding a home nowhere… and nearly three decades ago, the Chain spoke again, louder and clearer than ever before.”
I looked at him in surprise, hardly noticing that the stairs had ended. “Three decades? But what does that have to do with… with me…” My words trailed off.
Three decades. My sense of time had become a little warped since my mortal death, but I’d only belonged to Heaven for three years. I’d been somewhere in my twenties when I’d died.
“Yes.” The Chainling looked up at me again, full in the face. “It was before the Apocalypse, before the razing of the earth. A mortal was born. The Chain already knew where her links led.”
I swallowed hard, my heart pounding in my throat. “How could you have known about me if you were in Hell and I wasn’t?”
The Chainling motioned towards an arched obsidian doorway. “We only had the vaguest knowledge that there was someone on earth who would become very important to the Chain, and that one