The scales moved in tandem. One tray rose high into the sky, way over their heads, and the other dipped down toward the ground, rising and falling like a demented carnival ride. It made her feel so queasy, her head spun, her insides twisted, everything inside her dreading the scale.

  The souls seemed to be responding simirly too. Muffled wails spilled from their lips. Screams, all of them crying, pleading, and begging under their breaths. They were terrified, and whatever terror Jenny felt about the scale, they must feel it infinitely more. They were the one who would be judged.

  Souls climbed up the steps toward the scale one at a time. When the far scale came down, Jenny saw an enormous white feather resting on it. She squinted at the thing, watched the soul that had just been judged climb off the opposite tray, and then the next soul stepped on. The scale would bance out, till both trays hung equidistant in the air. Then, with a soft chime and the rattling of chains, the trays would move, and the scale would rebance, passing judgement on the cowering soul.

  Everything seemed automated. Shadows flew around, and Jenny wanted to squint at the sky and spot the harpies. But all the other souls kept their heads focused straight ahead, at the towering scale as it the trays went up and down, and Jenny did the same, despite the pressure building on the back of her neck.

  Sometimes a soul was heavier than the feather, raising it high into the sky. Sometimes a soul was lighter, and it would sink down toward the ground. And the closer Jenny got to the front of the line, the rger the scale seemed.

  And she saw that the souls would march away to the left or right depending on how they fared with the scale. If they were lighter than the feather, once the scale brought them back to the ground, they marched to the right. If they were heavier, they were sent off to the left. How they knew where to go, she couldn’t figure out. There was nobody there to usher them. Nobody there to pass judgement. There were no guards. No angels. No one. It was just the feather, and as she climbed the steps, she saw that the feather would turn, its tip pointing in the direction the soul would go. And the soul, without crying or screaming or anything, would do as they were told.

  Jenny bit her lip and surveyed her new surroundings as she climbed the steps. The judgement took a few minutes or so, so every once in a while, she’d move up another step along with the line of waiting souls. Beyond the scale were more steps, too many steps, that seemed to lead up into the sky. In the vast distance, she thought she could spot what looked like another archway.

  There were walls made of the same enormous stone blocks that covered both sides of the scale. From where Jenny and the other souls had emerged, there were only three paths they could take. Up the steps to the scale, then the steps that led beyond the scale, and the two paths that followed the walls to the right and left.

  Which way do I go?

  Things were moving quickly. A toddler went next. Then a young boy with a limp. Then the old woman with long silvery hair. She had to set down the baby she was carrying. After the baby, it was a balding man with a great big beard. Then another child.

  Every step took her closer to the giant scales. To the giant feather. To her judgement.

  She felt like a kid again. Waiting in a long line at a department store cause her mom couldn't handle the waiting. Her mom would venture into the expensive perfume section like she might buy something, leaving Jenny to hold onto the cart and keep the position in line. And her mom would say that she'd be back before Jenny got to the front. But Jenny would count each person ahead, her heart pounding, terrified of what would happen if she went through to the checkout and then said she didn't have any money. She was waiting for her mom.

  The scale loomed, the soul side coming down like a giant saucer. The golden chains were taut as the soul standing for judgement, a little boy with brown hair, shook, tears glistening on his cheeks. When he was sent toward the right, Jenny realized that all the children, the kids and the toddlers, were sent in the same direction. The older teens and the adults had all been sent to the left.

  Her heart pounded as she took the next step; the line had slowed down so much, she found herself waiting in between steps, her legs stretched, feeling even more naked. But nobody on the steps cared; everyone was sniffling or praying or pleading. Who or what they were praying to at this point, she didn't understand. She didn't care. A part of her wanted to snap at them. It was too te for prayer. They were dead. But she knew that was just her own unease.

  The pattern never changed. The young were sent to the right path. For the adults, the feather pointed toward the left. That was the way Jenny had to go.

  Shivering, she moved close to the man in front of her. Coldness emanated from his broad back. She tried to get as close as possible without touching him, holding her breath, hoping it would work. She’d gnced up to scan the skies and saw that there were no harpies around here. No angels. No one standing guard. It was only her and the souls behind her. What was to stop them from getting rowdy? From running away? From refusing to get on the scale?

  But she knew the answer to that. It was the scale itself. The weight of their lives. The judgement waiting for them. She wasn't dead, but she could feel this pull toward it - it wasn't too different from the pull she'd feel in the valescent light when searching for worlds. It was a heavy feeling, like something had weighed down her heart.

  The souls probably couldn't even think of anything else, and she wondered if Susan had to climb these steps too, alone and frightened, with only the memory of Jenny's teeth in her throat and-

  When the man in front of her moved forward to step onto the waiting pte, the opposite side with the feather was raised high, the shadow cast right over Jenny’s head. That was Jenny's chance.

  She pushed the man slightly with her shoulder, wincing from the cold, and then, with instant acceleration, she threw herself across the underside of the scale. She was nothing more than a breeze, crossing the shadow, and she threw herself down the steps leading down the left side of the scale.

  She nearly crashed into a soul, an old woman who flinched, recoiling as though Jenny was the devil. But she didn't pay the woman any mind. Jenny hurried along, skipping ahead of the line, pushing past the narrow stream of souls, muttering apologies, whispering "Excuse me". The souls didn't seem to care. If they were forlorn before, they were terrified now, and the further along the corridor they went, the darker it got, as though the sun was setting.

  Figuring she'd gone far enough from the enormous scales and nothing had come after her, no harpy or angel or anything else, Jenny slowed down, wiping the sweat from her brow.

  She was trying not to breathe too hard, trying to calm down. The souls made it cold, and within minutes, she was shivering again. Her teeth chattering. But she'd gotten past the scales. With every step she took, the weight of that fell away, and she focused on the reddening sky ahead.

  They were moving downhill. The stone floor was at a slight decline, and the souls started muttering. No. No, no, no. Please. No. I don't want to go. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I don't want this. Please. I want to go home. My children need me. I just wanted someone to hold me. I'm so scared. I can't breathe. My mother's sick. Take me back. I left my wife. I'm so cold. It's so cold. I didn't want to die -

  Ice cold water spshed beneath Jenny's feet, and she flinched, looking down. From ahead, faint wails and screams echoed along the walls, and she fshed back to the high school, hiding in a cssroom as the echoes of her screaming cssmates ricocheted down the halls. She fttened herself against a wall, trying to steady herself as souls wandered past her without sparing her a gnce.

  The water was only up to her ankle. It was only water this time, not blood, but it was freezing. A soul elbowed her and moved past, a man who didn't look at her twice. He was muttering just like the other souls - it's so cold it's so cold - I’m dead. Why did I sleep with her? Why did I eat pork?

  Jenny rubbed her arms, inhaling as deeply as she could, then exhaled slowly as more souls streamed past her into the water. They spshed effortlessly, hardly making a sound, and Jenny leaned against the wall, too aware of the edges of the blocks against her bare skin.

  Where does this path go? she wondered. What was the point of the scales?

  Iblis didn’t offer her any answers. He was just as lost as she was. But she got the sense that he wanted to know more. They had to know more. That would be key to stopping the angels, knowing what was happening to the souls. Shadows flicked by overhead. In the gloomy, red light, they seemed even more sinister, and Jenny gnced up to see winged figures fpping away beneath the bruise-colored sky.

  Another blood curdling scream echoed down the corridor, and Jenny swallowed hard. She was in way over her head. Maybe I could open a passageway here and get back. I could try again ter.

  Jenny could feel it, on the tip of her fingers. She could open another one and slip away from this horrible pce.

  But then what?

  Susan.

  "Susan," she repeated. She was so close now. Why would she give up and hide?

  How many souls would there be? How would she find Susan? She didn't know, but thinking of Susan renewed her resolve. She put another bare foot forward, spshing into the cold water. A soul bumped past her. She didn't care. Her breathing came shallow and sharp. A horrible cold radiated up her legs, and the further she walked, the higher the water came, till it was spshing against her thighs, the spray drenching her all over.

  She did her best to keep from crying out. Her increased durability didn't help against the cold. Not her strength. Not her agility. None of it. But she had Ignite. She could create armor.

  But she was terrified. It would be a light show, illuminating this entire space. It would be a beacon drawing all attention to her in the gloomy darkness. And she didn’t want the harpies to find her just yet. She didn't want to ask Iblis for any of his fire either. That would just be a waste of resources.

  She carried on, clenching her teeth to keep them from chattering, trying to ignore the horrible moans and screams of the Souls. The red sky seemed to hang lower and lower, as though it was ready to press down on her, crushing her into the frigid water.

  There weren't any clouds, just the redness that reminded her of a setting sun turning purple. She couldn't see past all the souls at what was ahead, but another scream blew down the line like a breeze, and Jenny clenched her teeth. She buried her fingers into her palms and kept going, quietly praying alongside the souls. Their muttering slipping between her thoughts as her teeth chattered, as her body shook, and she found herself imitating them, whispering out loud: please, let me just find her. Please. Please. Don't let her be suffering too much. Please just let her be okay.

  Who was she praying to? She didn't know. She didn't care. Maybe she was trying to will it into being, but a short while ter, as she was lost in her thoughts, the corridor split into two different directions. A wall was straight ahead, and the souls seemed to decide on a whim which they wanted to go. Left or right.

  With a sinking feeling, Jenny realized she was inside a maze. This was an enormous maze, and all the walls looked the same. Made of the same rge stones, and above was the sky and... something was perched on the wall. Something was watching her.

  Harpy (Level 77)