Iron on his tongue, steel in his hand, and blood pounding in his ears, Mickie ducked beneath a sweeping chitinous claw. The long, jagged appendage swept just past his dark hair, sending a few strands drifting to the floor. Before he had even straightened, the mortal raised a hand holding a strange firearm.

  An oddly bulky thing, made from gleaming steel and carved bone, it had three barrels set in a triangular shape. Each barrel was shaped at the end, forming the head of a snarling predator. A lion, a leopard, and a wolf, each with gleaming gemstone eyes. Their open maws yawned with the darkness of the gun’s interior, that was until the wolf came alive with heat and a belch of flame.

  There came a hiss from behind as Mickie completed his dodge, but the branded man did not dare glance back to see the impact of his attack. Already another claw was sweeping in low, and the gun vanished from Mickie’s hand, only to be replaced by a blade of dark steel. Made with a wicked curve, it dug easily into the craggy earth, planting firm right before the long limb made contact.

  With a crack the claw hit the weapon and was deflected away. Before his enemy had a chance to recover, Mickie was running forward, right at the source of the sweeping strikes. Eight limbs emerged from a hole in the ground, spaced in an uneven circle. So many chances to strike, and not a single one would be able to make it in time.

  The blade was replaced by the gun, and power pulsed from Mickie’s soul. Steam vented and the wolf’s head was replaced by the leopard’s as the branded man leapt over the craggy recess. He caught a glimpse of something in shadowed depths. Glistening mandibles, and innumerable faceted eyes. Mickie pointed his weapon downwards and pulled the trigger. The limbs, which had all been closing in to seize him, abruptly stiffened.

  They began to flail, just as Mickie was coming in for a landing. He dismissed his weapon and attempted to dodge. Open air did not make for a great platform however, and all he managed before landing was a quarter turn. Mickie hit the ground, and he launched himself forward, but not before one of the claws caught him with a glancing blow.

  The wind was knocked from the branded man’s lungs as chitin slashed along his back. The jacket which covered his upper half blocked the sharp claw but did little to blunt the force of the blow. It sent him tumbling along the rocky floor, and Mickie shifted the motion into a roll. He popped to his feet and twisted about to face his flailing target, only to see the eight claws droop lifeless to the ground.

  There was no time to rest however, these beasts did not nest alone. Facing back the way he had come, Mickie found another set of long limbs protruding from the earth. Only three remained, striking at a tall, dark-skinned figure who danced backwards, staying out of range. Her hair did not shift with the movement, instead it floated about her, serpentine strands that were poised to strike.

  Mickie felt something in the air, like the silence before the thunderclap. Kalistra released her power, and the final three legs of the monster were turned to grey stone. A wretched hiss echoed out from the hole in the ground, and Mickie let out a breath.

  As Kalistra started forward to finish her foe, a shape emerged slowly from the stone behind her. Mickie shouted in alarm as yet another claw struck at the gorgon, one far larger than any they had seen so far. He need not have worried. As if she had eyes in the back of her head, Kalistra sidestepped the strike, letting it slam into the ground as she darted forward.

  Another limb struck out, this time coming from somewhere to the side. Mickie cursed and started running forward as Kalistra expertly dodged another blow. The second claw had not come from the same hole as the first, but an individual, smaller crack. From every direction more limbs emerged, forming a rough ring about his ally.

  Kalistra danced through them like a leaf on the wind. Just as she was reaching Mickie and stepping out of their reach, a spike of chitin dove for her. The gorgon began to shift aside, but the branded man got there first.

  Mickie raised his gun, cutting off the flow of power to it just as he pulled the trigger. The lion roared, and in a flash of gold the monster’s claw exploded. Chunks of slimy flesh and hard shell rained about the pair, and they backpedalled to avoid getting coated.

  ‘Big one.’

  Kalistra commented between heavy breaths.

  ‘Yep.’

  Was all Mickie managed in reply before there came a long, low growl. The seven remaining limbs speared into the stone with a chorus of cracks, each from its own hole in the ground. Then the earth bucked, and the duo retreated another few meters.

  Rocks fell in a wave, the floor of the cave shifting as something dragged itself out from beneath the stone. The seven spindly arms were revealed to be connected to a heavy, bulbous torso. Glistening jaws worked the air, sensing the flesh that was within reach. Insectile eyes coated the beast’s rounded head, far more than Mickie thought was practical.

  The monster dragged itself from a massive hole in the ground, trailing a long and bulging abdomen. While the rest of the creature was protected by thick chitin, this part of it was composed of a soft, pale shell. Long strands of hair emerged from its trailing rear, twitching with a life of their own.

  ‘Definitely a big one.’

  Mickie commented, as the monster released a low, sibilant hiss. He glanced at Kalistra.

  ‘Far enough you think?’

  The gorgon’s hair shifted, serpents tasting the air as they scanned the surroundings.

  ‘Perhaps. We should see if we cannot lure it a bit further to be safe.’

  Mickie nodded. From here he could see the stump of the limb he had removed, tucked away at the monster’s side.

  ‘I’ll take the left then, seeing as I’ve already gotten started there.’

  Kalistra chuckled.

  ‘How kind of you.’

  They split up, walking slowly to either side of the large, spider-like body. The beast did not need to turn its head to follow them, it already had more than enough eyes facing in both directions. Mickie and Kalistra paused just out of reach on either side of their enemy, waiting for it to make the first move. Instead, the giant seemed cautious, the hairs on its rear twitching rhythmically as it paused and waited.

  Mickie’s gun thunked as it completed its reload cycle. Perfect timing. He raised it at the creature’s head, and fired. With a gout of flame, a section of chitin tore free, taking a fair few compound eyes with it. The beast recoiled with a shriek, and they were on.

  Two of the remaining three legs on Mickie’s side rose into the air, spearing towards him. Instead of dodging to the side, the branded man danced backwards, keeping just out of their extensive reach. At full length, the large monster’s limbs could stretch almost ten meters, enough distance to give its heavily armoured body a chance against his gunshots.

  If Mickie wanted to whittle the beast down with his weapon, it would take quite some time, and likely result in the creature retreating back underground. So, instead, he used the gun like a pointy stick, prodding at the monster to keep it angry. He and Kalistra kept close, dancing just out of its strike zone, irritating it, goading it.

  The tactic worked. Slowly, with small, sliding movements, the monster dragged itself further from the earth. Its abdomen however, still partially remained within its hole, and would continue to do so. They had discovered that no matter how much you wound these beasts up, you never could get them to completely leave their burrows. That was fine though, they did not need it to leave, only to get far enough out that another member of their team could make its move.

  When the moment came, Mickie’s only warning was a glimmer of bronze, streaking down from the ceiling. The monster noticed it at the same moment he did, and as expected, reacted with speed that belied its size. Its abdomen, which had appeared fleshy and vulnerable up until this point, bunched up, and started dragging the beast back towards its hole. Fast, but not fast enough.

  Right before the monster entered the earth, something slammed into it. A birdlike creature, large, though not as large as the spider monster, its body was covered in bronze feathers. The avian’s taloned hind legs gripped its opponent’s abdomen, digging through the soft shell and into the meat beyond. Its wings folded in, and sharp claws, which emerged from an elbow joint, grasped a limb to either side of the monster’s body.

  Pinned in such a manner, the oversized spider could not strike back at Ziz. It could, however, still drag itself back underground. Even as more of the abdomen disappeared, the primordial atop the beast’s back raised its long, sinuous neck, and struck down. Once, twice, three times before the creature got dangerously close to its burrow.

  Ziz launched upwards as the monster retreated into the dark. As the avian did so, it reached out with a talon and grabbed its prey about the head. There was a moment of tension, in which Ziz wrestled with the beast. Wings pounding the air, tail whipping behind it. Seven spindly legs clawed at the earth, trying to dig in, desperate to get to safety.

  Then with a crunch and a wet tear, the spider's head, weakened from Ziz’s prior blows, was torn free. The primordial burst upwards, cawing out its victory. The sound echoed through the large cave alongside the death throes of the monster. As the beast stilled, Mickie let out a slow breath. The primordial’s strike had only taken a handful of seconds, but the risk involved still left him tense. Too slow and Ziz would be dragged beneath the ground, and squished against rough stone in their target’s liar.

  His worries had been proved unfounded yet again. So far, whenever they had used this strategy, Ziz had gotten the timing utterly perfect. Perhaps it was the young primordial’s prior lives shining through, eons of experience soaked deep into its bones. Whatever the case, the monster was dead, and the rocky floor of the cave had fallen silent.

  ‘That was quite the nest.’

  Kalistra muttered, her various strands of serpentine hair twisting to take in their battleground. It was littered with cracked limbs and dark holes, all now vacant of life.

  ‘Yep.’

  Mickie replied, wandering to a nearby gap in the stone.

  ‘Seems they’ve been growing bigger the further we go.’

  He peered into the dark, looking at what remained of the monster within. Mickie had coined them hermit spiders, and the name had stuck. Large, ambush predators, they lay dormant in their burrows beneath the rock, coming alive when prey neared. Somehow, they were able to sense movement near perfectly above ground, even when their many eyes were hidden from view. Mickie suspected it had something to do with the hairs on their abdomen. He also suspected they were venomous, but no one in their group was willing to receive a bite and test that theory.

  Like the crabs after which they were named, these overly large spiders could use their extended rears to dart in and out of their homes. However, unlike the small and rather cute sea critters, these monsters tended to nest in a single spot. They camped out in points where large caves branched into smaller tunnels, waiting for prey to stumble across their feeding grounds. It meant that the name was a bit misleading, but it was too late to go back now.

  From above there came a long squawk, and Ziz landed in a cloud of dust. The bird began ripping into its prize with gusto, pulling out and swallowing the multifaceted eyes like seeds from a pomegranate.

  ‘Nice work bud.’

  Mickie called to the big bird.

  ‘Hermit spider is good.’

  Ziz replied, rippling the air to speak without so much as slowing in its meal. Kalistra sighed, a few strands of hair observing the scene.

  ‘Slow down, you’re getting slime in your feathers.’

  ‘Mmm, no need, Kali will clean for me.’

  The big bird said, as if it were the most obvious thing ever. It did pause momentarily though, swallowing an eye before turning to them.

  ‘Also, I saw it again.’

  Mickie, who had been examining the carnage of their fight, shifted his attention to Ziz in an instant.

  ‘Where?’

  ‘Hiding in rocks, near another tunnel. I tried to catch, but it ran away.’

  The branded man sucked his teeth and gazed out across the large cavern. His reward for stepping into the sixth circle had been a new power, one that felt different from those which had come before. Unlike his weapons, clothing, and amulet, the change to his eyes was not something Mickie felt more visceral. Their colour had permanently shifted from hazel to gold, and glowed somewhat in the dark.

  A concerning change, though not one without its own benefits. He could see things more keenly now, the darkness of the Labyrinth unable to veil things from him entirely. It was not quite at the level of the gemstone eyes; he still needed some light to function. Yet, the ability had helped them substantially during their time wandering the tunnels.

  Mickie put his new eyes to work at that very moment, scanning the large cavern for any signs of their stealthy follower. The space was filled with its own biodiverse ecosystem, a fungal forest with mushrooms as large as trees. Spots on these broad headed shrooms glowed with a soft green light. It was hardly more than a dull fluorescence, yet that was all Mickie needed.

  He saw no movement beyond the cave’s smaller inhabitants. Improved his eyes might be, they were still not capable of picking out a needle in a haystack. The branded man growled in frustration.

  ‘Damned machine.’

  ‘It would be good to know why it is so interesting to us.’

  Kalistra said, her attention split between Ziz’s messy meal and the larger cavern. Unlike the mortal and the avian, she did not need to turn her head to regard both directions. Having created links to her serpentine hair, Kalistra quite literally had eyes in the back of her head.

  ‘It’d be good to know anything about it at all.’

  Mickie responded bitterly. He was not a big fan of machines, especially the kind that were capable of creative thinking. Being strapped to a table for dissection tended to have that effect on someone. Kalistra turned fully in his direction. This close, Mickie could see clearly into her empty eye sockets.

  ‘We know what it looks like, and that it is wary of us.’

  ‘I suppose, but how did it manage to get a hold of those gemstone eyes?’

  ‘I imagine it took them from their previous owner.’

  The gorgon replied dryly, referring to the giant machine whose dead shell they had left on the seventh circle. Kalistra had told him how Belphegor ripped the construct’s core out, tossing it into the blood lake.

  Mickie’s own sister had created that hunk of steel death, commanding it to protect him from harm. Given how the machine had first chased them through a collapsing stone pillar, then tackled him down a staircase, the branded man held a healthy dose of scepticism for that claim.

  Whatever the truth was behind the robot, Mickie could not help but feel glad it was gone. Only now something new had come along, something which had the same gemstone eyes but was far smaller in size. Ziz had spotted it skulking about not long after their arrival in the sixth circle.

  It was shaped like a lizard, though one the size of a small dog and with six legs. Every attempt they had made to get close to it had ended in failure. The machine was small, fast, and extraordinarily good at hiding within the rocky tunnels. As their little follower had done nothing more than watch from a distance, the others seemed happy to leave it be. Mickie though, he would love to get his hands on the slippery bugger.

  ‘Should we rest here or move on?’

  Kalistra had seemingly gotten tired of watching him glare into the dark, and turned her attention to the nearby exit. A small tunnel that disappeared deeper into the sixth circle, same as so many others they had travelled through since arriving.

  ‘Hmm.’

  Mickie ripped his eyes away from the fungal forest. He glanced about at the remains of their fight.

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  ‘I can’t say I’m all that eager to take a nap surrounded by hermit spiders, even if they’re dead.’

  The gorgon nodded in agreement.

  ‘Then let’s move a little deeper. Perhaps there will be a good spot down this passage.’

  She turned and called to Ziz. The big bird tore one final eye from its prize, swallowing before it stomped reluctantly over to them.

  ‘Ah, look at the mess you have made, naughty child!’

  The primordial puffed up, looking offended at the scolding.

  ‘I won the fight. I deserve a snack.’

  ‘Hmm, maybe next time then, Mickie and I will handle all the spiders. You can go hungry.’

  Ziz squawked in alarm.

  ‘No! I like to swoop.’

  ‘Then perhaps you should listen when I ask you to eat properly.’

  Kalistra finished, seeming satisfied that she had gotten one over on her young partner. Mickie was unsure how there was any proper way to tear the eyes from the dead hermit spider, but he kept silent. At least he did until a sulky Ziz bumped into him, getting insect goop all over his arm.

  ‘Mik… you will not leave me out?’

  ‘Ugh, yeah, sure.’’

  Mickie pushed the big bird’s head away with a hand and received a heaving coating of slime for his efforts.

  ‘Mickie says I can. Mag will say so too.’

  The branded man had to agree, if Miz-Mag had not been resting at that moment, the little fiend would definitely be egging Ziz on. Their resident primordial was getting better at speaking, vibrating the air to produce longer and more complex sentences. For all that the past few weeks had matured Ziz however, the avian was still young, and acted as such.

  ‘I am unsure whether Miz-Mag’s opinion is worth consideration in this matter.’

  Kalistra grumbled but gave up the point. She was often uncertain when it came to dealing with her rebellious partner. Mickie supposed that was unsurprising, seeing how reverent she had initially been towards the primordial’s last incarnation. Having to discipline a being out of legend like they were a naughty child was likely disconcerting.

  ‘I agree, but Miz-Mag tends to give its opinion whether you want it or not.’

  Mickie flicked the viscera from his hand with a grimace, wiping what remained on his jeans. He started towards the tunnel that the hermit spiders had been guarding. Ziz and Kalistra trailed behind, the gorgon still attempting to scold the primordial.

  The dim light of the fungal cavern dimmed as the group stepped into the connecting passage. Although there was still enough for Mickie to see by, he pulled out his trusty orb lamp. First obtained from the eternally youthful urchins in the eighth circle, the ball-like lighting device had come in handy within this circle.

  As white light filled the more cramped passage, something glinted in the darkness. A length of black, partially reflective steel protruded from the stone. The very object that caused the group to pick the one tunnel guarded by oversized arachnids.

  Mickie wandered over to the material, so very similar to the stuff from which the desert tower was built. It had a slight outward facing curvature to it, like part of a massive pipe. He knocked against the steel with a knuckle and listened to the resulting sound.

  ‘See. I told you I saw the old path.’

  Ziz commented as it stomped up behind him. From beside the avian there came a long-suffering sigh.

  ‘We do not know if this actually has anything to do with the old paths, remember?’

  Kalistra said, and her partner grumbled.

  ‘Notice something?’

  She asked Mickie, having noted the mortal’s experiment.

  ‘Just had a thought that it might be a pipe. That there’d be a hollow echo from tapping it.’

  He rapped his knuckles against the metal again. There came a clang, but no reverberation.

  ‘No luck though.’

  When their little group had first arrived in the sixth circle, they had found out it was not called the Labyrinth for nothing. A seemingly endless network of interconnecting tunnels and caverns, diverse as they were numerous. They had found a new way into the circle, and had hoped that the tower would connect to some long-forgotten path.

  Instead, they had only found these strange sections of steel, occasionally protruding from the rock like the bones of some old giant. So, with no other options available, they had started to follow the metal breadcrumbs. That had to have been a few weeks ago, by Mickie’s estimation.

  ‘An interesting idea.’

  Kalistra said, interrupting Mickie’s train of thought. She stepped up beside the branded man and placed her fingers upon the shiny black surface.

  ‘If it were a pipe however, it’s diameter would have to be quite large.’

  The gorgon tapped the metal rhythmically.

  ‘Not only that, but the metal would need to be rather thick. Thick enough that it would likely take more than a soft tap to echo back.’

  Mickie nodded slowly.

  ‘That’s fine, I suppose. It doesn’t really…’

  Something blurred by his face, kicking up a breeze that ruffled his hair. Mickie jumped, stumbling back as Ziz’s tail made contact with the metal. It had used the appendage like a whip, slamming it into the steel with an almighty crash. Following the initial clamour, there came a long, echoing thrum. Like the ringing of a distant bell it reverberated for a time, before fading away.

  ‘I have made the noise for you.’

  Ziz declared smugly. Kalistra took a slow breath, her hair a mess of startled serpents.

  ‘That you did. A little warning would have been nice though.’

  ‘Did you hear that? I think it echoed.’

  Mickie said.

  ‘Yes, I believe it did. So, we know now, at the very least, that there is a hollow space beyond the metal.’

  The gorgon replied. It was an interesting bit of information, but the branded man was unsure how it would serve any practicable use. In the end, these sections of steel were more a guide, a path they could follow to something hopefully more substantial. It did not matter what they truly were. At least, that was what Mickie told himself as he turned to keep walking.

  As if to prove him wrong however, a low thrum shuddered through the stone. He felt it on the bare soles of his feet, a vibration like the prelude to an earthquake. Then came the sound, a deep base boom that rolled from somewhere distant. There was a pause, a moment in which it echoed through the hollow length of steel.

  Boom.

  It came again. Boom. Again. Boom. Boom. Boom. Like the footfalls of a giant, regular and rhythmic. Mickie realised, perhaps a little belatedly, that something must have heard Ziz strike the metal. Something large, that was apparently on its way to investigate.

  ‘Hey! we need to move.’

  He called his companions. Kalistra shook herself, and nodded, calling to Ziz. The primordial came reluctantly. They ran through the tunnel, pursued by the rhythmic sound. Was it getting louder? Mickie thought it might be, but it was difficult to tell.

  When the sounds abruptly ceased, they had covered quite a distance. Mickie came to a panting halt, as did Kalistra, the pair catching their breath as the thunderous echoes oscillated into silence.

  They had reached an intersection, the tunnel in which they walked branching off to the left and down on the right. Normally at such a point, the group would investigate both paths, and stick with the one in which they could find a section of revealed metal. Only, the fading sound was not omnipresent. Before the echo was gone, Mickie made his way over to the left passage. There he pressed his hand against the tunnel wall, and felt the rock quivering beneath his fingers.

  ‘That.’

  Kalistra said, straightened as her breathing slowed.

  ‘Was rather ominous.’

  ‘What was it?’

  Ziz asked, head extended and alert.

  ‘I am unsure. Whatever it was though, it was large.’

  The gorgon muttered, placing a hand on her partner’s long neck.

  ‘Sure was.’ Mickie said. ‘And at a guess, it’s probably behind the metal, in the pipe itself.’

  ‘It is strange we have not heard it before.’

  Kalistra commented, and Ziz made a disgruntled chirp.

  ‘Maybe it was sleeping? I am angry when I get woken up early.’

  ‘Don’t we know it.’

  Mickie grunted, and let his hand drop from the stone wall.

  ‘Well, at least we got something out of it.’

  Kalistra nodded, having noticed the same thing he had. Ziz, on the other hand, seemed confused.

  ‘We did?’

  ‘Yep, if that sound was coming from the pipe, then we can follow it.’ Mickie nodded up the tunnel to the left. ‘Save ourselves a bit of time.’

  The trio continued up this new passage, and before too long stumbled upon another section of uncovered metal. Mickie was glad he had been correct in picking this path, but fatigue swiftly drowned out any satisfaction. He needed a rest, as did the others. They could camp out in the tunnel itself, except creatures tended to wander these twisted passages. Monsters just as bad as any hermit spider.

  It was a large relief then, when not long after their discovery of the steel, the trio stumbled into a larger cave. It was not the stadium sized expanse that the fungal cavern had been, but a smaller space. The air smelled strange within, like a mixture of cinnamon and ozone. Strong, but not entirely unpleasant. The source of scent was clear, an expanse of flowers, glowing blue and ethereal.

  They were stout things, with thick stems and broad petals. At their centre, where the pollen might be on a normal flower, was a bubble of strange blue and silver liquid. It was the source of the light, the colours within shifting and swirling like oil and water, never overtly mixing. The result was a shifting pattern on the cavern roof, ripples like a pond in the rain.

  ‘By all the nine circles.’

  Kalistra breathed, standing beside Mickie at the field’s edge.

  ‘What is this?’

  She squatted down, mesmerised, and slowly reached towards one of the flowers. Mickie caught her hand before she could make contact.

  ‘This is something new. Remember the rules?’

  Mickie said. Kalistra started, a wave moving through her serpentine hair.

  ‘I… yeah.’

  The scales coating her forearm and hand pressed against his palm, and the feeling of them lingered for a time after he let her go.

  ‘Sorry, I got distracted.’

  She straightened.

  ‘They are beautiful.’ Mickie noted. ‘Which is what worries me.’

  The branded man had quickly learnt upon arriving in Hell, that almost everything either wanted you dead or in an unhealthy amount of pain. Nothing quite epitomized that like the sixth circle. The expanse of interconnected caverns was bursting with things that could kill you.

  To counter this, their group had developed a system. A series of tests which they conducted whenever they encounter something new, no matter how innocent it might seem. For all they knew, the glowing flowers could be toxic or work to cover traces of something more sinister.

  So, they got to work. Mickie called forth his black sword, ignoring the way it seemed to whisper in the back of his mind. He used it to very slowly, and very carefully, poke at one of the flowers. He tapped the petals and stem, receiving no reaction. Next came the bubble of liquid light at the plant’s centre. Surprisingly, the weak looking bead survived the sharp edge of his blade, dimpling but not bursting under contact.

  Next up they cut one of the flowers free, and had Kalistra turn it to stone. Then the group prodded, stabbed, blasted, and cajoled the room full of flowers. Anything they could think of to elicit some form of reaction, they did. Yet the cave remained placid.

  In the end, Mickie was forced to conclude that nothing was outwardly dangerous. They had damaged a decent number, and the only thing of note was what happened to the bead of liquid. The light within would fade over time, slowly, but enough that it was noticeable. If the bubble itself was burst however, the liquid would go dark within seconds, spilling inert onto the stones.

  ‘Alright. I think we’re in the clear.’

  Mickie said.

  ‘Yes, I suppose we are.’

  Kalistra replied, mourning the mound of dead flowers they had created. Ziz perked up at the news, however.

  ‘About time.’

  The primordial leapt into the field of flowers and began jumping about enthusiastically.

  ‘Ziz, be careful! You are damaging the flowers!’

  Kalistra hurried into the cave, hands outstretched to calm her partner. Mickie trailed behind, looking about for a suitable space where they could rest. There was only one exit beyond their own, another tunnel, almost on the opposite side to theirs. Strangely, the flowers at that end did not stretch to the tunnel mouth, as they did at the other. Instead, they stopped in a broad semicircle about the exit, as if wary of getting too close.

  The sight made Mickie uneasy. It was a seemingly harmless bit of behaviour, yet who knew if it meant something deeper. Although beyond pointing it out to Kalistra and Ziz, there was little he could do. The group decided to make camp upon a broad, flat stone that rose just above the layer of blue petals. Tired as he was, Mickie still volunteered to take the first watch. Unless Miz-Mag made a return soon, it would just be him and Kalistra taking shifts. They had tried to get Ziz involved, but the big bird did not take well to being woken before it was ready. Instead, they had relegated it to a glorified pillow, soft feathers proving far more comfortable than hard stone.

  As they settled into rest, Mickie gradually let his tension ease. A slow thirty minutes or so passed, with little happening. Then, out of nowhere, there came a distant boom. Like thunder in the distance, vibrating the stone upon which Mickie sat. The branded man started, glancing about the cavern as the flowers rustled.

  What remained of the noise seemed to echo somewhere up above, no doubt travelling through the metal hidden nearby. It put his teeth on edge, but did not sound as if it had come from nearby. Whatever set the sound’s source off had not been them, even if Ziz was right, and they had been the ones to initially awaken it.

  There came a rustle from nearby, and a head poked out from a mound of feathers. Kalistra appeared as startled as he was, the serpents atop her head swaying as they observed her surroundings. Carefully, the gorgon extricated herself from Ziz, the snoring primordial not having so much as twitched at the sound.

  ‘Did that wake you up?’

  Mickie asked softly as she came to sit beside him on the rock.

  ‘No, I was struggling to sleep anyway. That noise did ruin any chance I might have had though.’

  The gorgon sighed, rubbing her face with two scaly hands.

  ‘Do you think it’s the same thing as before?’ She asked.

  ‘I do.’ Mickie answered, turning back to the field of flowers. ‘I heard the sound echo through the pipes.’

  ‘Ah, the very pipes that we are following.’

  Kalistra sighed, and Mickie gave her a tired smile.

  ‘If it’s any comfort, that was definitely further away than when we last heard it.’

  ‘I suppose that is good news, though I would have preferred not to have heard anything at all.’

  They fell quiet for a time, breathing in the subtly metallic scent and watching light play across the rocky ceiling.

  ‘I saw you take a blow while we were fighting the hermit spiders.’ Kalistra eventually said. ‘How are you recovering?’

  Mickie winced. ‘Yeah, I did get clipped at one stage. It was nothing serious though.’

  Ever since he had overworked his healing power whilst fighting Belphegor, it had not been performing as it once had. Originally, the branded man had hoped the power would repair itself upon ascending to the sixth circle, and it had, though only partially.

  When he examined the ethereal channels of his power, they were still damaged. Not only that, but they appeared to not be healing in quite the same way as before. Like a bone that was incorrectly set, the recovery was wrong, pathways warped and misaligned, broader at points where they had once been lean. The result was that Mickie healed, but far slower than before.

  ‘You’re worried about your eyes?’

  He asked Kalistra. The gorgon sighed, putting a hand to her face, covering her empty sockets.

  ‘Am I really so transparent?’

  ‘I get it.’ Mickie said. ‘You’re worried that what happened to me is going to happen to you.’

  Kalistra nodded.

  ‘I know that I can still see, that I am not truly blind. I should not be so fixated upon their return. And yet…’

  She gestured at the glowing field of flowers.

  ‘Then I see a place like this, something worth seeing.’

  Kalistra chuckled.

  ‘I always thought my eyes were a burden, that I would be better off without them. Now look at me.’

  ‘There’s nothing wrong with wanting them back.’ Mickie said. ‘I mean, you just got control over the whole petrifying sight thing.’

  ‘Yes, the control. What a feeling it was.’

  She sounded almost wistful.

  ‘Don’t give up hope.’ Mickie said ‘Your injury and mine, they aren’t the same. I think there’s a decent chance you'll heal.’

  ‘How so?’

  ‘Well, I didn’t physically injure myself. Instead, I broke something that comes from the bond itself. One of my powers. Figures that it might heal a little different than a normal injury.’

  Mickie ran his fingers across his brand, feeling the shape of the animals circling, and the now four symbols within their perimeter. Beside him Kalistra nodded hesitantly.

  ‘In a way, I think that makes sense.’ She sighed. ‘I do wish we knew for sure though. These soul bonds we have, there are just so many things we do not know about them. It worries me at times.’

  Mickie nodded in agreement, but Kalistra was not done.

  ‘Miz-Mag, for example, do you ever wonder where it goes?’

  ‘How do you mean?’ He asked, frowning.

  ‘When it disappears. I have been thinking on it for some time, and I cannot come up with a suitable answer.’

  Mickie had long ago come to accept his partner’s disappearances, though when he had first arrived in Hell, he had questioned the tiny fiend on it.

  ‘I suppose I don’t think about it much anymore. To be honest, I’m pretty certain not even Mag knows. All I ever got from it were vague claims about needing to rest.’

  He hummed, thinking on it.

  ‘Couldn’t it just be that? I mean, doesn’t everyone’s sense of themselves fade away when they go to sleep? It’s not so surprising that Mag doesn’t remember anything.’

  ‘Perhaps. Though that fails to explain why the disappearance is enforced. If it were truly a means of rest, then it should only happen when Miz-Mag intends for it to.’

  Kalistra said, and Mickie thought her reasoning was sound.

  ‘What do you think it is then? If Mag is actually going somewhere, then surely it would remember something?’

  He said, thinking of the strange visions he often had while resting. Visions that had been increasing in frequency ever since he arrived on the sixth circle.

  ‘That is what confuses me.’

  Kalistra muttered, folding her knees upwards before wrapping them in her arms.

  ‘Even dreams leave a vague impression upon awakening. Yet Miz-Mag recalls nothing. I thought perhaps it was sinking into your bond itself, but you should be able to sense that.

  A few reptilian strands of hair peered Mickie’s way.

  ‘I’ve never really noticed anything, but I’m not exactly the best at feeling out all this soul bond stuff. Mag’s the one who does that kind of thing.’

  The branded man responded with a shrug. Kalistra sighed, clearly not satisfied, but knowing they were not going to land on a satisfactory answer. Even without having her eyes on him, Mickie felt the moment her attention shifted. A subtle change in the way her hair shifted about.

  ‘And what of your eyes, the changes that your bond has made to them?’

  She asked softly. Mickie had, for the most part, avoided talking about his newest ability. It was not something he enjoyed dwelling upon.

  ‘I can’t complain about the benefits, not with how much it’s helped in the Labyrinth.’

  ‘And what it signifies?’

  Kalistra asked, and in doing so cut to the quick of what worried him. That if the bond could change his eyes, then what might be next? Mickie was only in the sixth circle, there were another five through which he had to ascend.

  ‘I… there is nothing I can do about it.’

  He said, intending to sound firm, but finding the words caught in his throat.

  ‘And that does not worry you?’

  Kalistra asked, turning her head to face him. Mickie could see every detail of the damage wrought upon her, painted in the shifting blue hues of the flowers. He intended to say it did not worry him, that he would be able to do what was required.

  ‘Of course it does.’

  The branded man muttered instead, surprised by the words even as he spoke them.

  ‘You worry about what else it might change.’

  ‘I do.’

  Again, he intended to stop there, and again, he found himself speaking.

  ‘If my eyes can change, then what else might? Am I going to grow a pointed tail, or bat wings?’

  They were thoughts that had been circulating ever since he stepped into this maze of tunnels and caverns.

  ‘What if it goes further, what if…’

  He recalled the fight against Belphegor, and the hollow thing he had become during it.

  ‘What if it is my mind that the bond changes?’

  He finished, the fear crystallizing as he gave it voice. Mickie might be a broken human, but he was human still. What if that changed? There was silence for a time, Kalistra taking a moment to process what he had said.

  Mickie did not look at the gorgon, strangely embarrassed and afraid what her reaction might be. He almost jumped when something pressed against his shoulder. Kalistra had shifted sideways, leaning gently against him.

  ‘I do not believe the bond can change how you think, at least, not in a manner that is wholesale. Even if it changes your body, it cannot change your past, the memories and events that made you who you are.’

  She spoke softly.

  ‘And if I change anyway. If the bond shifts me enough that I forget who I am?’

  Mickie asked, staring out across the field of blue flowers. Kalistra pondered for a time before answering.

  ‘I lost myself. After years in the arena, with nothing but violence and darkness. It wore me down, changed me. I stopped feeling things as I used to. Stopped thinking about the reason I agreed to go with Illiath in the first place.’

  The gorgon shifted, raising a hand to her forehead, where there had once been a mark imprinted in dark ink.

  ‘You helped me free of that. Gave me a chance to remember who I was.’

  Mickie smiled slightly.

  ‘Hardly, all I did was break you lose.’

  ‘You saw more in me. When we were fighting. I know you did.’

  Kalistra said, firm. The branded man felt her attention shifted entirely onto him.

  ‘That moment, when I was about to die, I thought of my tribe. I realised how desperately I wanted to see them again. And you noticed it. I think it’s why you looked me in the eyes.’

  She stumbled over her words at the end, and Mickie was unsure how to respond. He was distinctly aware of the feeling of her arm against his. There was a brief pause before Kalistra continued.

  ‘What I am trying to say is, that when I was lost, you helped me find myself. So, if what you fear comes to pass, and you lose yourself as I once did, then I shall help you as you helped me.’

  Silence fell between them. Kalistra had spoken with such sincerity, that it left Mickie taken aback. They had agreed to travel together some time ago, but that had been a deal. This was something different, something new that left him with feelings which he could not articulate.

  ‘Thank you.’

  Was all he said instead, packing everything he could into those two words.