the lower terrace—presumably the next to be thrown into the core to be reborn as a demon. And, farther away, there was a larger pile of bodies—perhaps six or seven of them.
It’s shitting horrible.
There were a lot of Brigantines on the lower terraces. The ones not on duty seemed to be playing dice or sleeping. There were others on guard by the entrances to the various tunnels that opened onto the lower terrace. Tash had seen how these tunnels closed up when the demons who had made them died, and it looked like many more had closed since she was last here—most terraces, like the ones the off-duty soldiers were relaxing on, had no tunnels at all. Tash twisted round to check the terraces above her, but it was impossible to see from her position if the tunnels there had closed too.
And where are the demons?
Tash crawled back a little and got to her feet, keeping close to the wall and out of sight of the Brigantines below. She ran up a ramp to the terrace above and then up another, but there was still no sign of them. There were fewer tunnels here too.
Where are they?
She turned into the next tunnel she found, looking for the markings on the wall that would show where it led. She and Geratan had managed to decipher the signs that showed the way to the demon war room and to the human world. What would this tunnel’s sign be?
But there was no sign at all.
Strange . . .
Tash moved along the tunnel, wondering where it would lead, slowing as it turned sharply and descended. She moved down the slope, trying to creep forward and breathe without making a sound. And then she was in a small, open area— a room that was familiar but different.
This is the demon war room.
But it had shrunk. It still had a number of tunnels branching off it, but they were smaller too. There was a general air of abandonment.
Tash frowned. Had the demons left? Where could they have gone?
She checked each of the tunnels for signs but found only one—a sign Tash hadn’t seen before.
I’ve no idea what that means, but I’m betting this tunnel leads wherever the demons are.
Tash headed along this larger tunnel, which corkscrewed downward as if it was drilling into the center of the earth. Tash had a bad feeling about it, but also a strange urge to go on, her feet carrying her down the slope faster and faster until she finally forced herself to stop. She closed her eyes and realized she knew what was ahead. It was the core of smoke. The wisp she had inside her knew it. It wanted to go there. It needed to go there.
Was that what the new sign meant? That this was the way to the core?
Tash, slowly and silently, moved down the tunnel until it straightened, and she could see far ahead.
Shits.
At the end of the tunnel was a wide chamber filled with lots of demons. They all stood together in a line, holding hands, with their backs to her. The room sloped away from her and, at the very front, Tash could see a bright purple light.
It was the core—the base of it, the source of the smoke.
As Tash watched, the demon at the furthest end of the group let go of his neighbors’ hands, leaped into the core, and instantly vanished.
They’re returning to the core. Returning to the smoke.
And Tash could feel inside herself an urge to follow them.
No. Do not do that. Turn round and get out.
And yet a part of her wanted to join the demons.
I’m not a demon. I’m human.
Tash put her hands on the stone walls and forced her body to turn. She ran back up to the terraces, only able to think clearly when she was away from the core.
What were the demons doing? It made no sense. They should be fighting the Brigantines, not giving up.
As she reached her tunnel entrance, she spotted a de-mon’s face peering over a ledge far above. Then she saw another. Then a third. She scanned for more but that was all—three.
So not all of them are going back into the core—at least not yet.
Had they spotted her? And if so, what would they do? Tash moved back out of sight, but as she did, another familiar figure came out of a tunnel far below.
Frost.
The girl who had been helping the Brigantines was with the same soldier Tash had seen