Honestly, as long as we weren’t in some kind of alien embryo, I could deal with it.
My wolf barked and I darted to the left, following a thin pathway between a few heaps. We had run no farther than fifty yards when I heard shuffling and angry growls behind me. The beasts had finished their meal and were coming after us. I picked up the pace, dodging the errant trays as best I could. It’s like a slippery hamster Habitrail in here, I groused as I darted around another pile. Is that a door up ahead?
As we gained on it, I saw it was indeed a door. It was located in what seemed to be some kind of an elevator shaft, or something like it, because it was located right in the middle of the room. I raced toward it with preternatural speed. The chupacabras were quite a few yards behind me. They were slower than I was, which was a benefit. Their long, creepy hand-paws must get in the way of securing a good grip on the slippery floor. Ick.
I slid to a stop in front of the door. It was like something out of an old army barracks. It was iron—or seemed like iron—and covered in rusted bolts. I placed a tentative finger on the handle to see if it was spelled. Nothing tingled back at me, so I grasped ahold and yanked the door open. It swung toward me freely with no resistance.
To expose a gaping void.
It was total darkness inside. No walls, no floor. Nothing.
Where are the walls? We clearly weren’t in our world any longer. This was the best wake-up call I could possibly have had so early in the journey. Thinking the Underworld was like our plane was going to get me into trouble. I had to get my head in the game and take it as the warning it was.
Something nipped at my leg.
I’d taken too long and inadvertently let a chupacabra get too close. I kicked it away, and without thinking jumped onto the back of the open door and swung it closed with my body, my sharp claws digging in to keep us attached. I hope the door doesn’t disappear once it’s closed. Falling into another vortex to gods knew where wasn’t my first choice.
Nothing happened. I clung to the inside wondering what to do next as the beasts growled and scratched on the other side of the door. They knew I hadn’t gone anywhere. If we can get the beasts to jump in here they would disappear into the vortex. How do we do that? We needed bait. Too bad we don’t have any rancid meat handy. The chupacabras aren’t very tall. Maybe we can climb up to the top of the door and swing it open, and then jump over them and look for some meat? Once we find it we can run back here and throw it in and hope they go in after it? Before I could implement my master plan to rid ourselves of the chupacabras, a human-ish voice shouted on the other side of the door, surprising me.
“What are you doing, you filthy beasts?” it shouted. “Move away from that portal door at once.” The voice was guttural and unrefined. The only demons who would choose to speak English in the Underworld, as far as I knew, were imps. Imps were born on our plane, usually the offspring of human mothers, but many of them came here once they were old enough.
I could take an imp if I had to. I’d done it twice before. My wolf snapped her jaws in agreement. But showing ourselves would put us at a disadvantage. Did that imp just say “portal door”? I asked my wolf. I glanced behind me at the gaping void. Portal usually meant an easy way to get from one place to another, likely still on this plane, and from what I understood, was different from a vortex.
It would be risky to jump in and see where we landed. It might send us to a populated area, but it might not. My wolf cocked her head at me. Don’t give me that look. Just because I don’t want to plunge through a portal if we don’t have to, doesn’t mean I’m a wimp. For the moment I think it’s wiser to wait and see what’s going to happen here. This building is probably out of town and we can use that to our advantage. We need secrecy, not public portals that could potentially spit us out in someone’s living room. The imp may leave on its own, let’s give it a second.
She snapped her muzzle at me, impatient with my humanness.
On the other side of the door there was a crack of what sounded like a whip and a whine from one of the beasts. “I said get back, you filthy mutts,” snap, “away from that door,” the voice ordered. “We won’t have a repeat of last time. I was flayed for that little stunt. Portals are not for you mongrels.”
The imp had stationed itself right on the other side of the door.
My wolf stood at attention. Not a muscle on our body moved.
“What is that horrid smell?” The imp sniffed at the door like a dog. “Have you been naughty again?” Another crack sounded, followed by a wounded snarl-hiss. It was hard to feel sorry for chups, but they hadn’t seemed overly ferocious. They were just trying to survive in this wretched place, and weren’t we all? “Did one of you get in here and take something with you? It’s the middle of the day out there,” the imp muttered. “If you rouse the conclave by baying in the streets, it will be my head this time, not just my back.”
Middle of the day was good. Was there a sun here? Demons hated sun. “Baying in the streets” also meant outside, not inside. Outside was good. Outside was not another enclosed space.
The door handle moved.
I slid one hand to the lever and tightened my grip to keep it in place.
“What’s going on? Why won’t this open?” The imp rattled the lever. “Portal doors are never restricted!” More barks and growls erupted.
Time to make a decision. I think we have to take our chances in the portal. You win, I told my wolf. Even if we fight this imp successfully, once we’re done we have to fight that entire pack of chupacabras to find another way out.
My wolf snarled in agreement and adrenaline shot through our system, fortifying us for what was going to come next. Reluctantly, I let go of the handle and my grip on the door.
I heard the imp yell, “You little bastards will pay for whatever you did to this door” as we tumbled backward into the void.
4
Falling through the portal felt nothing like spinning through the vortex. It was empty space. Nothing touched me. There was no wind and no pressure—until I hit the ground.
Flat on my ass.
“Ooof,” I gasped, my teeth snapping together. Good grief, I thought it would be a longer ride than that. We were in there for less than thirty seconds. My wolf ignored me in favor of scenting for danger.
I glanced around. We were sprawled in the middle of a doorway, half inside and half outside what appeared to be a low concrete building. The portal exit led into some kind of alleyway. Another building, which looked the same as the one I was currently hanging out of, sat directly across from me.