that. If, of course, the monsters don’t eat you first.” I level them all with a serious, no-nonsense look, hoping they can see the urgency in my gaze. “But The Maze is immensely dangerous. There are traps around every corner. Monsters lying in wait. Spikes and poisonous gases and crumbling floorboards. It’s designed to be a fucking death trap.”
“Oh fuck,” Hadley murmurs, her gorgeous eyes wide.
Oh fuck, indeed.
“I’ll go first,” I continue. “The traps won’t affect me in this form, so I’ll be able to warn you. But be prepared for anything.” With one last lingering look at the love of my existence, I begin to follow the silver cord once more.
What we’re doing…
It’s fucking suicide.
But each and every one of us will gladly give up our lives to save Hadley’s. Well, their undead ones. I don’t even know what I am anymore. I’m not alive, per se—I technically have never been—but I’m not dead either. I’m something other, something that minuscule human brains can’t even begin to comprehend. I was put on this Earth before humans were even a thought with a knowledge that surpasses anyone or anything in all the realms combined.
Focusing once more on the task at hand, I take an abrupt right turn, stopping instantly when I see a slightly raised section of rock below me.
“Auston?” I murmur, pointing towards the protruding rock.
Without needing to be told—really, I’m surprised by his understanding since I have come to think of Auston as an antagonistic caveman with man-child tendencies—Auston grabs a loose piece of rock from the wall and tosses it at the misshapen floor. Immediately, the ground begins to cave in on itself like centuries old, yellowing paper. Thousands of tiny shards crumble downwards into a pitch-black abyss below. Just one of many traps we’ll run into.
“I think we can make the jump,” Braxton muses as he stares at where we need to go…now with a small canyon separating us from the pathway.
“What? No.” Preston shakes his head adamantly. “No. No. No. I can’t…I—”
Over his head, Braxton and Auston exchange a look before the two of them bend down, scoop up the Reaper, and toss him across the gaping hole. Preston releases a string of curses as he lands with an audible thump on the other side, rolling once before collapsing onto his back.
“I’m okay,” he moans, offering us a thumbs up.
“Karston?” Auston quirks an eyebrow at the Ghost, who sighs once before propelling himself forward, landing gracefully beside Preston.
“I ain’t no bitch that needs to be thrown,” he calls back, cupping his mouth so his voice amplifies. And then, “No offence, Preston.”
“None taken.” Preston’s still lying on his back, but he slowly makes his way to his feet, hurling daggers with his eyes at Auston and Braxton.
It doesn’t take too long for the others to cross. Hadley and Braxton both use their wings, though Braxton’s grimace of pain tells me that his are still tender to use. Auston leaps across with a fierce battle cry, landing in a crouch like some sort of Angel ninja or whatever.
I simply glide across the chasm, eliciting glares from the four quad members.
“Show off,” Braxton mumbles, and Auston levels me with a piercing glare. Hadley giggles slightly, and the gorgeous sound makes me want to kiss her senseless. She’s the reason we’re all here. She’s the reason that we’re fighting together instead of against one another. It’s always been her.
For her.
“Lead the way, smog monster.” Braxton gestures me forward with an elaborate flourish, and if I had corporeal arms, I would’ve slugged him across the head. Not to murder him, of course. I think a part of me has gotten over my murder phase when it comes to these brothers. They’re actually growing on me, like a disgusting mold no amount of scrubbing can completely diminish. I want them gone, but I’ve come to accept the fact they’re a fixture in Hadley’s life, thus a fixture in mine as well.
The others wait until I once more lead the charge, the tunnels of Hell constantly twisting and turning until I can’t tell left from right and up from down.
“Are you sure we’re not lost?” Karston quips. He remains near the back of the group, holding Hadley’s hand. She giggles at whatever he says to her, cheeks turning an enticing shade of crimson.
“I told you. I can…sense where we’re going,” I reply vaguely, far enough ahead that I have to raise my voice to be heard.
“Well, this is fucking ridiculous. We’ve been