body are tucked away where they’re supposed to be, and then I shove my nerves and worry away as I crack open one side of the double doors and slip inside the giant ballroom that looks like it’s dripping in diamonds.
The entire room is various shades of creams and whites, with house-sized sparkling chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and patterns in the stone walls and floor that seem to catch the light and glisten somehow. It’s all breathtaking and beautiful in a way that doesn’t even seem real.
The crowd inside is boisterous, glammed out, and completely immersed in conversations, drinking, or eating. Some are even dancing gracefully at the center of the room, as if Hell has a ballroom dancing requirement. Medley said Delta’s first party had an orgy section, and honestly, I was expecting something similar here too, but it all looks very refined and civilized. Maybe the orgies happen later?
If it weren’t for the mass of wings everywhere or the other indicators like horns, tails, tentacles, and hooves, I wouldn’t even think I’m in a room full of demons right now. And not just any demons, but the upper crust of Hell, or maybe down here the lower crust is better...I’m not quite sure. Either way, this party looks like any other regular run of the mill, hoity-toity event. Not that I’ve ever been to one, but this is definitely what I would picture in my head at being told I’m going to go rub elbows with the Hellish one percent.
As I move further into the room, I discreetly scan the crowd for Delta and Medley, but I don’t see them anywhere. I do a quick check-in and feel that they’re fine through our bonds, and that serves to further steady me as I start searching for Tazreel or any of the other Sins.
Find Pride and keep my eyes peeled for Morax and his Abdicated pricks. That’s my mission, and I repeat it over and over in my head to stay focused.
Though my task is easier said than done. Because as I walk around the crowd, doing my best to stick to the edge of the room, I realize that there are too many demons in here to count, and it’s completely overwhelming. I don’t know how I’m going to pick out the demons I’m looking for.
It doesn’t help that nearly everyone in here has feathered wings like the disguised ones on my own back—an Abdicated trait. There are some servants around like Delta with no wings, or some imps cleaning up various messes throughout the room, but other than that, Abdicated are everywhere.
The further into the festivities I wander, the more I discover that this party lives up to the expectations of the sin of Gluttony. At the far end of the ballroom, there’s a pop-out section with huge glass windows that overlook a Hellish sky. It’s pitch black aside from the blazing dots of blood-red stars that look way bigger than the stars we have back in the Mortal Realm. The sky would be eye-catching, if it weren’t for the setup in front of the windows that demands attention.
There’s a massive trio of fountains located there, each one spouting up in graceful arcs before splashing into the basin below. Demons have flocked around them, because based on the color alone, it’s not water those fountains are flowing with. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s white wine, champagne, and probably the demon spirits that Medley told me about.
Abdicated are dipping their glasses in each one and tossing their drinks back, gulping it down like it’s the nectar of the gods. On either side of the fountains, there are banquet tables that look like they’re as long as a damn bowling lane. They’re completely overflowing with plates and platters and bowls. It’s more food than I’ve ever seen in my entire life. My mouth waters just looking at it, and the smell. Holy smokes, the smell.
I shouldn’t be able to smell it when it’s so far away, but it’s like there’s some crazy gluttonous power in the air drawing me in, making my stomach cramp with hunger and my mouth go dry with thirst. It’s clear the Abdicated are equally as affected and giving in to the indulgence of it all, because everyone in here is imbibing.
I force my eyes away from the table, just in case there really is some Hellish lure at play here. I can’t afford for the Sin of Gluttony to blur