The house was three stories tall, same as all the others. Each level had a single hall connecting to a stairwell, linking four identical rooms containing ten rigid and uncomfortable mattresses. Mickie hardly spent more than a moment glancing into each as he darted up and down the staircase. He and his companions had found that each building within the city was built to serve a function, a mould to which the interior was shaped. This one was a barracks, and as such was identical to every other barracks they had encountered so far.

  The branded man made his way outside, to a street filled with ragged mortals, all shuffling about silently, like ants in a nest. Nearby a tall woman with serpentine hair exited another building, and Mickie made his way over to her.

  ‘Anything?’ He asked.

  The woman’s hair shifted, a few small snakes swivelling to regard him as the others observed the street around them.

  ‘Nothing of note. Another storage building for spare equipment, and you?’

  ‘Barracks.’

  Mickie said with a sigh, glancing towards the distant city centre. It had been days since Ziz consumed the blue drug, a substance infused with the hidden runes they had discovered within the city. In doing so the primordial had uncovered a place of power, and now both it and Kalistra were bound to seek it out.

  To that end, they had started a thorough investigation of the city, with the hopes of finding some other way of fulfilling Kalistra’s obligations. So far however, they had uncovered nothing but block upon block of identical buildings.

  An elderly looking man with hollow cheeks and matted hair shuffled by the duo, a bucket of cleaning supplies held loosely in one hand. The branded man watched him go, feeling a familiar pang of pity for the lost soul.

  ‘Still no sign of the blue junk. I’m beginning to think this lot don’t need any additional hits.’

  He said, focusing upon the task at hand.

  ‘I believe you might be right.’ Kalistra said with a sigh. ‘There is likely some other factor at play here, something that makes the intent instilled upon the lost more than temporary.’

  Mickie nodded and threw a glance towards the city centre.

  ‘What’s the bet it has something to do with that place of power?’

  ‘Almost assured, seeing as the new place of power appears to be tied to whatever deeper function this city serves.’

  Kalistra said as the pair started down the street. They had inspected their final buildings for the day and were heading back to the garden within the ruined section of the city. The place had become something of a refuge for them, a spot they could rest, away from the endless stream of lost.

  Their conversation was abruptly interrupted by a distant, booming groan. It resonated through the steel beneath Mickie’s feet, sending minute vibrations up his body. Another side effect of Ziz’s consumption of the drug, and one they had long since grown accustomed to.

  ‘You know, I’ve been thinking about that.’ Mickie said after the city had settled.

  ‘Oh?’ The gorgon did not turn, but he felt her attention shift onto him.

  ‘Ever since you realised that our talkative lost mentioned the two drugs, I’ve been trying to recall some of the other things that he said.’

  ‘The soul forge.’ Kalistra murmured, knowing the directions of his thoughts.

  ‘Yep, I can’t help but think it’s more than a coincidence that we find two drugs which impact the soul, and have them mentioned alongside something called a soul forge.’ He said, stepping out of the street and into the city centre. Ragged mortals scurried about as they always did, with the ranks of mining lost standing in their idle rows.

  ‘I have also been thinking about this.’ The gorgon said. ‘If there is indeed something within this place capable of altering a soul, it would explain why the lost do not need additional doses of the blue substance.’

  Kalistra let out a slow breath. ‘I just wish there was some way we could find out without needing to enter the pipes.’

  Mickie nodded in response, and the pair fell into silence. In the wake of his companion’s last comment, the branded man’s thoughts turned inwards, to the dreams he had been having recently. When Mickie accidently consumed the silver liquid, he had thought that the vision it produced was the extent of its impact.

  Except, ever since then, his dreams had gained clarity. Mickie now woke with a distinct recollection of his time as the Soul Lord. From what he had gathered, he seemed to be seeing snippets of the demon’s life before its rise to power. Magareem appeared to administer some form of torment within hell, on what Mickie guessed was the fourth circle.

  While that was interesting in and of itself, stranger still was the Soul Lord’s temperament. Rather than confident and powerful, the fiend seemed tired. The only thing that seemed to interest it at all was the lost. This fixation was the focal point of each vision, and Mickie was becoming increasingly certain it was because of this city.

  He had no evidence as to why, but the branded man felt in his gut that the originator of his mark was connected to this place. If he was right, then that would mean the key to unravelling the city’s secrets might lie not in the present, but the past.

  ‘I am sorry for dragging you and Miz-Mag into this.’ Kalistra said, pulling Mickie from his thoughts. ‘I know we should be searching for a way out of the Labyrinth instead of seeking its depths.’

  ‘No need to apologise, it's not as if we had a way out ready to go.’ The branded man gave a bitter laugh. ‘Besides, something tells me we were going to get dragged into the deep end with or without your bond making us do so. That just seems to be how things go down here.’

  Kalistra nodded. ‘It certainly does. After you exerted control over the tower, I had expected our ascent to be smooth. It seems foolish in retrospect.’

  ‘We can always hope.’ Mickie said with a shrug. ‘At least now you can get your eyes back.’

  The gorgon stiffened slightly. ‘Yes.’ She said. ‘If my bond returns them to me.’

  They stepped out of the city centre and onto the street leading to the ruined section. In the distance, there came a heavy screech, like the sound of some great monster’s death throes.

  ‘It would appear Ziz is still hard at work.’ Kalistra said, seeming eager to change the subject. ‘I wonder if it has uncovered anything new?’

  ‘I thought the pair of you already linked up to runes when you were drugged up?’ Mickie swerved around a shuffling cleaner.

  ‘We did, but connecting to the system like that…’ Kalistra thought on the right words for a moment. ‘It’s indistinct. I get the broad intent behind it all, but that’s like understanding that someone is happy or sad.’

  The pair stepped off the neat road and onto the jagged path of the ruins.

  ‘It’s possible to read the emotions on someone’s face.’ The gorgon continued. ‘But it is not so simple to discern the why and how of those emotions.’

  There came another screech and tear, followed by a long squawk. Mickie waited for the clammer to cease before speaking.

  ‘Right, so you’re getting Ziz to dig up the runes to find out what it’s all for.’

  ‘I hoped that we might be able to use our prior connection to decipher the meaning.’ Kalistra said as they rounded another corner. ‘So far though, we are not having much luck.’

  Ahead of the pair was the tangled garden they had been calling home, and it was in far worse shape than when they had arrived. Large swathes of earth and plant life had been shifted aside, revealing an expanse of glowing scrawl beneath. Near a large mound of dirt, the garden’s resident lost stood, staring silently at the ground in a way Mickie interpreted as mournful.

  The revealed runes twisted their way in confusing lines through the garden and onto the connecting street. It was there that Ziz had really gotten to work. The already cracked and warped steel of the road had been levered and torn aside to uncover more of the scrawl. A red glow formed a branching path along the shredded road, terminating at the body of a feathered primordial.

  Ziz seemed to have cleared the way right up to where the street ended, cut off abruptly by a toppled steel building. The big bird was hunched low before the structure, seemingly taken by something out of sight. Mickie and Kalistra approached slowly, picking their way through piles of sharp debris.

  Occasionally, the gorgon would pause a bit longer than was required, no doubt taking a moment to examine the twisted shapes of the runes. Mickie had been surprised when, after she had recovered from connecting to the runes, Kalistra had proclaimed there was more to see. Without delay she had begun to dig up the garden, and soon passed the task along to her eager partner.

  ‘Hey bud, what are you up to?’

  Mickie called out after Ziz failed to look up at their approach, uncharacteristic of the normally sociable bird.

  ‘Found something.’

  Was all the avian said in response, shifting on the ground but not looking in their direction. Kalistra found her footing was suddenly sure, and the duo closed quickly upon their feathered companion.

  Walking about the primordial’s bulk, Mickie discovered that Ziz had managed to clear the road right up until the fallen building. In doing so, it had uncovered something entirely new. The rune carved steel twisted along like normal, parallel to the broken road that once covered it. Then, without much warning, it fell away, right where the street met the warped mound of fallen steel.

  Ziz had its long neck stuck into a hole, one which glowed with crimson light. Mickie and Kalistra stopped short beside the primordial, slack jawed. There came a sudden pressure upon the branded man’s shoulder, and a squeaky voice filled the silence.

  ‘Heyo, done for the day are we? What a shame.’ Miz-Mag, having just returned from its rest, soon noticed what they had. ‘Hey uh, kid, what’s bird brain up to?’

  ‘Found a hole.’ Ziz said, sounding rather proud of itself.

  ‘That you did bud.’ Mickie shook himself from his stupor and took a step forward. ‘Are those more runes that I see inside?’

  ‘Yes. The hole is filled with them.’ The primordial finally withdrew its head from the ground, turning to eye them. ‘But I can’t fit.’ It complained, nodding at the fallen building.

  ‘I thought you were getting a little chunky.’ Miz-Mag snickered, receiving a glare in return.

  Throughout the entire exchange, Kalistra had stared at the hole like it was an open chest of gleaming gold. She took a slow, halting step towards the opening, then another. Mickie reached out and caught the gorgon’s arm before she dove right in.

  ‘Hold on a moment. Should we really be heading down there?’

  ‘I, well… look.’ Kalistra sounded almost pleading. ‘The new runes and Transcriptions on this street alone. If the tunnel is filled with them…’

  ‘Uh oh, we’ve set the rune nut off.’ Miz-Mag commented as Mickie released their companion. The branded man eyed the hole with a touch more caution than Kalistra had, but could see why she wanted to get inside and investigate.

  ‘You didn’t see anything dangerous in there?’

  He asked Ziz. The big bird shook its head.

  ‘Nope. Only tunnel.’

  ‘Well then, I suppose we might as well take a peak.’

  He finished, and Kalistra all but dove headfirst into the crimson hole. Mickie followed more cautiously, Miz-Mag riding atop his shoulder. Taking up the rear was Ziz, the primordial giving them sad eyes as its bulk got lodged in the entrance.

  Glancing around, the branded man could not help but be glad their large friend was unable to follow. The tunnel was not large, perhaps a meter across at its base, though it did slope outwards to about two meters wide at the ceiling. Not quite to the specifications of a primordial.

  The one thing the tunnel did not lack, however, was light. Runes sprawled upon the floor and walls, almost humming with eerie intent. They gave off more than enough light to see by, even if Mickie was not a huge fan of the bloody cast it gave everything.

  Kalistra was nearby, already studying the new script. Mickie figured she was not going to be doing much else for the foreseeable future, and Ziz was still stuck partway into the tunnel. That meant it was going to be Miz-Mag and himself on scouting duty.

  ‘You guys going to be alright here?’

  He called out. Kalistra nodded vaguely, while Ziz gave a mournful caw. Taking that as assent, the branded man picked a direction and began to walk. He and Miz-Mag followed the curve of the passage, eyes tracing the lines of runes as they twisted up the walls and along the floor. The only section that went untouched was the ceiling. Mickie frowned upwards at it, a thought beginning to occur to him.

  If the roof of this tunnel were to be removed, just as Ziz had done with the street leading to it, then the sloped walls and narrow floor took on a new meaning. Not only that, but Mickie could feel the pull of gravity upon him, making each footfall slightly heavier. As if he were walking downhill.

  Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

  ‘Hey Mag, this tunnel, isn’t it more like a drain or channel or something?’

  The demon on his shoulder shifted.

  ‘I guess Kid. Except, you know, it ain’t open to the air.’

  We are the skin upon the bones and how we itch. The words came back to Mickie then, spoken by the lost they had left behind in his half-ruined garden.

  ‘But what if it was?’ The branded man said slowly, following a sharp bend in the tunnel. ‘I mean, what if the city itself was not here?’

  ‘What are you getting at?’

  The little demon seemed perplexed. Mickie sighed, gathering his thoughts.

  ‘You know how Ziz has been digging up these runes right?’

  ‘Sure, that’s the whole reason we’re down here.’

  ‘Right, and we’ve seen how those same runes seem to be covered by parts of the city, even the streets and whatnot.’

  ‘I follow.’ The demon said, then cursed as they took another sharp turn. ‘By the blood this is a twisty tunnel. Couldn’t they have made the damned thing a little straighter on.’

  Mickie ignored the demon’s complaining.

  ‘So, if part of the metal beneath the city is covered in runes, would it not be a stretch to say that more of it is?’ He was on a roll now. ‘And think about the streets. Why would you bother putting a layer of steel over the runes in the first place? The surface they’re carved into would work just as well for getting around.’

  ‘So you’re saying the city is built to cover up the runes?’ Miz-Mag sounded sceptical, but Mickie felt pretty sure of his theory.

  ‘To cover up the runes, or to cover up something else.’

  ‘Right, and what would that be?’

  ‘I’m not sure.’ He admitted with a shrug. ‘Whatever it is though, it’s probably tied to how this whole place operates.’

  The pair rounded yet another corner and stopped short. Just ahead, their tunnel met another couple in an intersection of paths. Not entirely surprising, though it did create the problem of deciding which passage to take.

  Mickie had been noticing for some time now that the tunnel was on a slight slope. After some basic testing he discovered that only one of the paths was further downhill than the others. Deciding that was as good of a reason as any, Mickie continued onwards.

  ‘Hey kid, you ever noticed that we always seem to stumble across mysterious tunnels?’ Miz-Mag commented once they were underway. ‘I mean, there was the Mechanist’s passages, the Urchins in the city, then that whole thing with the invisible tower on the seventh.’

  ‘I suppose.’ Mickie said. ‘Way I figure it, is that Hell is like a secret sandwich. Things don’t seem to weather away here like they do up top, so when something new comes along, it just gets layered atop the old.’

  His eyes traced the runic patterns as they curved up the side of a wall.

  ‘We’ve come across a few of the secrets, but how many more have we missed?’

  And just how many did the Soul Lord know about? He thought.

  ‘Yeah, what did the Conductor call ‘em again?’ Miz-Mag did not seem to notice his sudden introspection. ‘Old ways or something?’

  ‘The Old Paths.’ Mickie corrected. ‘The Kindle Kin used a few to sneak out of the Palace and past the black city.’

  ‘Oh I remember that.’ The demon grumped. ‘Damned Singers had us help them along pro bono in that dead city.’

  ‘You sure can hold a grudge huh?’

  Mickie eyed the demon as they came upon another intersection. The pair chose the downward sloping path again.

  ‘Well, I am a demon, and no demon worth their salt ever lets an insult slide.’

  ‘The Kin didn’t even know you existed until recently.’

  ‘All the more reason not to let it go! I never forgave the Palace Lord for holding me on the ninth, and look what happened to it. Hell ought to learn my name, and remember my reputation.’

  Mickie chuckled at the little demon’s fervour. He wondered where his partner found that bottomless confidence, even if he was sure a fair chunk of it was just bravado.

  ‘What was it like?’ He found himself asking. ‘Coming to life in the Palace? From what I’ve gathered demons aren’t born the same way humans are.’

  Miz-Mag sighed at the question, slumping back against Mickie’s shoulder.

  ‘That we are not. Sometimes I forget about those gaps in your knowledge.’ The little demon went quiet, and Mickie let the silence hang, waiting for his partner to continue.

  ‘If you must know.’ Miz-Mag eventually said. ‘I just sorta woke up one day. One moment there was nothing, then the next, bingo! Hello and good morning!’

  ‘I mean, that’s kind of similar to what happens with mortals.’ Mickie said. ‘Sure, I might not remember the day I was born, but I still came into this world thinking about stuff.’

  ‘Nothing of substance I’ll bet. You thinking I don’t know about the screaming little worms you humans start out as?’ Miz-Mag chuckled. ‘I was never so undignified. I came into this realm as Miz-Mag, and as Miz-Mag I have stayed, for a century give or take.’

  ‘Wait, you're saying you came to life fully developed, like able to speak and communicate?’

  ‘Sure did. Already knew all the best curse words from day one.’

  ‘Weird.’ Mickie muttered. ‘What about parents? Did someone give you your name, or did that come along with the gift of existence too?’

  There was a long pause at the question. Mickie threw his companion a glance, and found Miz-Mag looking a little melancholic. The fiend shook the expression of the moment it noticed him watching.

  ‘Eyes on the road kid, and no, I never had a parent. As for my name, well, I’d say Hell itself granted me one.’

  ‘How do you figure that?’

  ‘Well, it was presented to me on the moment of my awakening.’ Miz-Mag said, its voice taking on a wistful air. ‘I came to in a scenic spot above the abyss, not too far from where I met you, actually. I remember my first thought was; oh boy, that’s a scary drop. Then my next thought was; what’s that carved into the stone over there?’

  Mickie continued deeper into the crimson passage as his partner spoke.

  ‘So, over I went, and what do I find?’ The demon held for a dramatic moment. ‘Miz-Mag! Carved into the very rock above the abyss. Not only that, but it was encased in a strange circle, kind of like an arrow pointing down to the stone on which I stood. What else could it have been but fate?’

  Miz-Mag proclaimed dramatically.

  ‘Really?’ Mickie said after a short pause. ‘You decided your name off of a bit of graffiti you found scribbled on a wall?’

  The demon on his shoulder huffed.

  ‘I’m tellin’ ya it was fate, kid. You’re just too narrow minded to see it.’

  ‘Whatever you say Mag.’ The branded man hid a smile. ‘So, were you born with the urge to climb out of Hell, or was that something you picked up along the way?’

  ‘Came with the starter package of existence.’

  ‘Right, and you never thought of why?’

  Miz-Mag sighed wearily at the question.

  ‘Come on kid, we’ve been over this. Why would I ever feel the need to think hard about it? Who wouldn’t want to slip out of a palace in an icy wasteland?’

  ‘I know, I know, sorry.’ Mickie placated. ‘Just wanted to double check.’

  Miz-Mag glared at him for a long moment.

  ‘Why, has something been happening with you?’

  The memory of a body encased in molten gold flashed through Mickie’s mind, dredged up from a life that was not his. If he intended to tell his companions about his visions, it was probably a good idea to start with Miz-Mag.

  ‘Yeah.’ He began slowly. ‘Something has.’

  The duo descended further along the crimson passage as Mickie described what he had been seeing. Miz-Mag was uncharacteristically silent throughout the entire telling, only interrupting with the occasional clarifying question. Once he was done, a silence stretched between them.

  ‘I… I. Kid, I don’t understand.’

  Miz-Mag finally said, voice little more than a murmur. Mickie let out a long breath.

  ‘What part don’t you understand?’

  ‘All of it. It just makes no sense.’ His partner wrung its tiny hands. ‘The mark, your mark. It should be based off of me. Sure, it might look like it came from the Soul Lord, but we’ve had it confirmed that it’s just a derivative.’

  ‘We have.’ Mickie agreed, and waited for Miz-Mag to continue.

  ‘Then why? Why would the Soul Lord be involved in any of this? I never even met the guy, for all that we seem to be related somehow.’

  ‘I have no clue. Honestly, I was hoping you might know something.’

  ‘No luck there.’ Miz-Mag laughed bitterly. ‘To tell you the truth, I’ve got a few questions of my own that I’d like to ask the dead bastard. For starters, why in all the nine circles can next to nobody see me? Sure it’s probably kept me alive, but if I’d gotten some insane power wouldn’t I have been better off?’

  Mickie had been holding a small kernel of doubt, that perhaps Miz-Mag really had been holding back all this time. When he heard the frustration in his partner’s voice however, any remaining suspicion was dispelled. Miz-Mag could lie, but a display of true emotion like this was rare enough to be convincing.

  ‘Maybe the point was to trap you.’ He said. ‘Make you invisible to all but the Palace Lord, then make you fragile, easy to kill. It would give you free reign of the castle, but also make it your prison.’

  The demon thought about that for a moment.

  ‘That… that makes sense. Seems elaborate, but hey, I can testify to the fact that it worked.’

  ‘It’s elaborate because it needs to be.’ The branded man continued. ‘It was a prison built to have a key.’

  These were thoughts that had been churning in the back of Mickie’s mind. Now he led Miz-Mag along the train of logic he had followed, letting the demon come to its own conclusions.

  ‘The bond. I always wanted out, and the bond was the best way for me to get it.’ His partner whispered. ‘By the blood, how did I not see it before?’

  Mickie shrugged. ‘Sometimes it’s hard to see the game when you’re a piece.’

  ‘I guess. I mean, I always knew that a bond would be the best way for me to get out, I just never figured it was, you know, intentional.’ Miz-Mag sighed. ‘So, someone wanted me to make the deal, probably the Soul Lord if what you just told me is any indication. I just wish I knew why…’

  ‘So do I.’ The branded man said. ‘And I’ve seen and heard enough of the Soul Lord to know there’s definitely something else at play. Something that I imagine won’t be good news for us.’

  ‘These visions! If you’re seeing the Soul Lord’s past, maybe you can see why it decided to set up the deal.’

  Miz-Mag perked up, excited. Mickie was quick to dismiss the idea, however.

  ‘Won’t work. Not unless it somehow happens by random chance. I have no control over the visions.’

  ‘No control? Didn’t you say you think the ones you’re having now are related to this place?’ The demon waved an arm vaguely about in the air.

  ‘I did, but it wasn’t done intentionally on my part.’ The branded man frowned, thinking it over. ‘For the most part, it seems that the visions seem to be tied to what I’m experiencing, if they have any direction at all.’

  ‘Ah, I see. Not quite as promising as I had hoped.’

  ‘Yeah, unless we get lucky, I’m not sure I’ll stumble across the right memories.’

  ‘Shame that.’ Miz-Mag went silent for a moment. ‘What about this place? You think you’ll see something that will help?’

  ‘Maybe, honestly I’m not one hundred percent what I’m seeing is related, it's more of a hunch. The main factor tying the two is the presence of the lost. The Soul Lord has a weird kind of fixation with them.’

  ‘Huh, righto. I suppose now you’ve actually spilt the beans, we might be able to do something with what you see.’

  ‘That’s the idea.’ Mickie said and released a long sigh. ‘I’ll need to let Kalistra know about the visions too. She might be able to make something of them that we haven’t.’

  He had been expecting Miz-Mag to object. Instead, the little fiend gave a thoughtful hum.

  ‘Probably for the best, as long as I’m outside strike range when you do. Last thing I need is to become a statue because you pissed off a gorgon.’

  ‘Noted.’ He replied dryly. ‘I’m a little surprised you’re so open to telling her.’

  Miz-Mag chuckled.

  ‘Kid, just because I’m a wary sort doesn’t mean I’m completely paranoid. The snake and the bird have been with us long enough that I trust ‘em. Plus, you aren’t wrong, she does have the brains for these sorts of things.’

  Apparently, even the paranoid could be convinced given enough time. The pair discussed his visions as they delved into the city’s depths, though Mickie was careful to avoid mention of seeing Sestus. The late golden fiend had been something of a friend to Miz-Mag. There was no need to taint his partner’s memory with mention of a link between the demon and the Soul Lord.

  Over time Mickie noticed that the channel upon which they walked was getting both deeper and broader. It had almost doubled in diameter when, finally, they reached the tunnel’s end. The open passage terminated in an abrupt drop, twisting at a ninety-degree angle and falling away. Mickie stopped at the edge and glanced over. He was greeted by a vertical shaft, cylindrical and completely coated in runes. The crimson glow they gave off was such that he could see clearly, right to the point where the shaft twisted out of sight.

  ‘Surely you aren’t thinking of taking a look down there?’ Miz-Mag said nervously, glancing between Mickie and the hole.

  ‘No, I don’t know how far down it goes.’ The branded man replied after a moment. ‘It’s a shame though. Would have been nice to find out what all of this is for.’

  Miz-Mag was about to reply when the rune on the floors and walls flared bright. As they did, the floor vibrated as something groaned beneath their feet. Mickie leant against a sloped wall, squinting against the suddenly bright light.

  ‘By the blood, this one’s fierce.’ His companion complained. The branded man nodded in agreement.

  ‘Not just that, but the last one can’t have been more than an hour ago. Happened while Kalistra and I were walking back.’

  ‘That recently?’ Miz-Mag’s voice was tight with concern. ‘We should never have let bird brain near the blue stuff.’

  After a short interval, the light on the walls began to fade. It dimmed in fits and bursts, sections of twisting scrawl still clawing onto their momentary radiance. When the distant rumble finally faded, Mickie pushed himself from the wall.

  ‘I think we ought to get back.’

  ‘No complaints from me, kid. Those shakes give me the creeps.’ Miz-Mag blinked away bright spots in its eyes. ‘Going to be a pain to hoof it back up the tunnel though.’

  Mickie gave his companion a sly smile, before holding out his hand and calling forth his gun.

  ‘Yeah, that’ll take too long. I got a better idea.’ He began channeling power into the weapon as Miz-Mag gave him a nervous look.

  ‘What you uh, what you planning to do with that?’

  ‘Well.’ Mickie said, concentrating on the weapon and causing the barrel to spin. It landed on the dark eyed leopard. ‘Looking at that drop, I have a decent idea about where we are in the city. Seeing as Ziz managed to dig its way into the tunnels from above, I figure, why can’t we go the opposite way.’

  He pointed his gun upwards, and fired. The sound it made was tremendous, leaving their ears ringing as steam and dark smoke wafted through the confined space.

  ‘By the blood kid, couldn’t you have just used your sword?’ Miz-Mag coughed and waved the smoke away. Mickie smirked sidelong at the demon.

  ‘Tunnel’s too high, I don’t want to have to jump for it. Besides, it seems to be working.’

  For all that it had been loud, Mickie’s weapon had also been effective. The steel of the ceiling was heavily bowed, almost broken from that single shot. Over the next few minutes, the branded man fired round after round into the roof. Mickie split it to reveal a shaft of bright lamplight, then widened the gap enough that he could slip through.

  It took a fair amount of effort, and an inordinate amount of complaining from Miz-Mag, to jump up and slip through. The pair were rewarded however, with a familiar sight. They stood upon the flat plain of metal at the city centre, right beside the expansive pipe opening. Mickie gave a satisfied huff as he dusted himself off.

  ‘I knew it. The tunnel led to the side of the pipe, the drop off we saw must run perpendicular to its side.’

  Strangely enough, there was no response from the demon atop his shoulder. Mickie glanced at Miz-Mag, finding the demon turned away, fixated by something behind him. Frowning, the branded man cast a look over his shoulder, and his blood ran cold. Lined up behind them in neat, orderly ranks, were the lost. Not the occasional ragtag bundle of miners like was usual, but every single worker in the city. They were flowing out of the side streets and into the open space, filling gaps in the crowd even as he watched on.

  ‘No.’ Mickie muttered. ‘No. It can’t be this soon, it’s hardly been more than a week.’

  ‘Tell that to them, kid.’ Miz-Mag nodded at the massing lost.

  The branded man grit his teeth and swore, orienting himself by the nearby platform that was still in complete disrepair. Without another word he started running, feet pounding the steel ground back towards their home base. They were out of time and stuck without a solution, and neither Kalistra or Ziz knew what was about to happen.

  Mickie sprinted off to find them, just in time for a reverberating bell to sound. It echoed through the cavern city, heralding the darkness, and the wrath of the beast that would soon follow.