Chosen - Kiersten White Page 0,105
then. You know what Nietzsche said: God is dead. Let’s put his philosophy into action.”
“I can’t decide which surprises me more,” Rhys says, loading his crossbow. “That we’re about to go fight a god, or that you actually paid enough attention in our one philosophy course to remember that Nietzsche quote.”
“Come on.” Imogen rushes ahead of us, practically skipping. “It’s finally the end, and I can’t wait anymore!”
Doug leans toward me. “She smells really, really off.”
“We’ll look out for her.” But I’m sure none of us smell appetizing to him. Dread fills me as I contemplate the featureless tunnel leading into the dark. Will Artemis be there? Will Leo? And what will I do when I find them?
Before I can be left behind, I jog to the front. I won’t let Imogen bear the brunt of an attack. Rhys brings up the rear, with Cillian and Doug protected in the middle. If it were up to me, we’d leave Cillian and Doug behind. But this is their fight too. It’s personal for all of us.
The tunnel curves sharply. There are temporary lights strung too far apart, so all they do is create deeper, more disorienting shadows. Nothing jumps at us. No fangs or blades greet us. We walk unchallenged. At last the tunnel reaches what I assume is the center of the meadow above us. It opens into a huge, brightly-lit cavern.
The first thing my eyes settle on is the triangle puzzle thing like Cillian’s. It’s suspended from the roof of the cavern. Only instead of being small enough for a child’s hands, it’s big enough for an adult to climb into. And instead of being empty, it’s filled with glowing, pulsing, quivering light. Next to it, on a catwalk connected to the doom triangle but not leading to our own catwalk, is Leo. He’s chained in place with his hand duct-taped to the point of one of the triangles. He’s also glowing.
I glance down. At the bottom of the cavern, discarded like empty husks, are dozens of demon bodies.
Leo looks across the cavern and sees us. “I’m sorry.” His face is anguished. “They said they’d kill you if I didn’t come with them. And then … they would have taken you next, just like my mother did. I had to choose.”
“I thought you couldn’t drain energy on your own?” I shout across the echoing space, angry with him for trying to protect me yet again by leaving. And so devastated for him for what he’s been forced to do.
“ ‘Can’t’ is very different from not wanting to.” Sean appears on the other side of the cavern from some other tunnel. He’s wearing a slick suit, his hair pulled back into a ponytail. He smiles. “Leo was perfectly happy to let his mother do the dirty work and survive off her. But my girls figured out the right motivation.”
“They were bad demons,” Honora says from behind us. We turn as one, weapons raised, but she holds up her free hand. One arm is splinted. “The ones he drained. We only picked the ones you’d be obligated to kill as a Slayer. Or at least, if you were a real Slayer. And if Leo were a real Watcher. Some of us haven’t forgotten our jobs.”
“Does your job include serving a hellgod?” I ask.
Honora tries to give me a haughty, dismissive look, but there’s something shifty and—dare I say—uncomfortable behind her perfectly lined eyes. “I don’t have to defend myself.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” I swing my sword so she ducks. While she’s distracted, I kick her in the shoulder. She careens off the catwalk, unable to stop her momentum. She bounces against the side of the cavern, rolling a few times before managing to catch herself one-handed against a rocky outcrop.
“What the hell?” she shouts. “I was trying to have a conversation.”
“Are we ready?” a new voice asks. It’s Cillian’s dad. He’s on a catwalk across from us. Our catwalks aren’t connected. The one we’re on curves around and goes back into another tunnel. Leo’s isn’t connected to ours either, but it isn’t connected to Cillian’s dad’s catwalk. Sean is on the same catwalk as Cillian’s dad, and Leo is joined by—
Artemis walks out to stand next to him. She looks down at Honora, and her face shifts in concern. “You okay?”
“Grand.” Honora grunts, slowly pulling herself up the side of the cavern.
There’s a muffled boom above us. Dirt and debris rain down. The cage swings and sways but doesn’t fall. We all