time to end this. It is time to prove that you can see him and feel nothing.
Damon knew it had to be done. He had been surprised when he had heard about Garland Ainsley passing through the Hall of Wandering Souls, but he had not felt anything. Seeing Silas brought only confusion to his mind.
He watched Silas walk toward the circle of fire. The boy reached his hand through the gateway and finally walked through it. Silas was in Marenon.
Something happened then that none of them expected. When Silas passed through the gate, the fire extinguished and the glass turned back into a stone wall. The passage for the dead no longer existed.
This is all the proof we need, the voice told him.
Damon swung the door wide and walked into the hallway.
All eyes fell on Damon as he made his way to Judoc.
“What would you have me do now?” Judoc asked as several of his man-dog minions gathered near his podium.
Damon stared at the confused people in line. There would be no more Humans going into Marenon today. The solution was simple.
“Kill them.”
Without waiting to see if his orders would be carried out, Damon turned and walked back to the room. He could hear the cries of people who had just died on Earth as they met another death. He walked to the other side of the room through the door that Marcus and Theron had used to get to the tunnel.
Damon was sure Judoc and his minions would be traveling the same path in a few minutes, but Damon wanted a head start. Something about them gave Damon an unpleasant feeling. They were the last of another race from Anithistor’s old world. He had made them his personal servants to do as he wished in exchange for life in a world that wasn’t dying. For the past seventeen years, it had been Judoc’s job to keep watch over the Hall of Wandering Souls. Per Anithistor’s instruction, they were to take it over and keep track of everyone that came through. Damon knew the Stühoc king was only waiting for Garland or Silas. The Hall had not always been a terrible experience for those who were passing into Marenon. Damon could faintly remember his first time seeing the place. A friendly apparition, probably from Silandrin, The Gatekeeper, had greeted all of them. The apparition had provided them with some sort of magical covering to shield them from the harsh cold of the mountaintop. They would then make their way into Canor where people would greet them and help them get acclimated to their new life. But Anithistor had found a way in. The apparition was destroyed, and the magic was gone. Spencer had convinced the new king to build a gauntlet. Slowly they had begun to weaken the Humans. Slowly, the Stühocs were gaining more and more power.
So much has changed, Damon thought as he walked down the pitch-black tunnel to the base of the mountain.
For the better, the voice said to him.
Yes, for the better.
It took a couple of hours to make it all the way down the inside of the mountain. From the base it took another half an hour to walk to Canor. As he neared the city gates it took only slight concentration to make himself appear as one of the merchants in the city. No use taking a chance on being noticed.
The gauntlet was busy as citizens of the city began placing bets on who would survive. From the high wall of the enormous structure, Damon spotted Silas as he was being chained to a red-bearded man. There were twenty people in all, chained together in pairs.
Damon felt someone tap him on the shoulder.
“Care to make a bet on who will survive?” The man asked.
At first, Damon almost snapped at him, but he held his tongue. The man worked on the gauntlet, collecting money, dishing out money, it didn’t matter. Workers like him kept the business alive. He kept the Stühoc’s cause alive. Damon couldn’t help but think that this man would be out of a job tomorrow. No more Humans.
“What’s the maximum bet?” Damon asked.
“Five thousand coins.”
Damon didn’t have money. He had no need to carry money.
“Put me down for five thousand on the young one,” he said.
The man raised an eyebrow at this, but shook his head quickly. “May I have your name?”
“William,” Damon said.
The man wrote down the information in his records, giving Damon a long look to memorize his face. Those