Chapter 10
"What the hell?" Blynn's eyes widened as she looked around her, fascinated by what she was seeing.
"Literally," Thalia whispered in amazement.
"I... Are we sure this is the underworld?" Roi didn't care about the fact that his jaw was on the ground as he walked in circles, trying to take everything in.
"This is not like I had imagined it at all," Cedric turned his head back to where the waves crashed into the river, disturbing its waters.
"I thought it'd be a giant cave, protected by a three-headed monster," Roi mumbled absentmindedly.
"I thought there'd be fire," Thalia told him.
"I thought it'd be covered in ice," Cedric spoke lowly.
"Instead, it is-," Blynn's voice died down on her lips.
"Both," Rafail exhaled in disbelief as he stared at the molten lava running through the ice blocks and mounds of snow ahead of them.
"How?" Roi asked through furrowed brows.
"I... I don't know," Blynn answered. "This defies all the laws of physics."
"Yeah," Cedric muttered in wonder.
All of them stood on crusty soil where nothing grew but for a very unique tree that stuck out like a sore thumb in that barren landscape. That lone, giant tree had been planted next to the river since the beginning of time. Its vibrant green leaves together with the bright red pomegranate fruits attracted the attention of anyone who dared to step on that desert. The tree invited the wanderers to satiate their hunger by eating one of those perfect pomes. Far away from it, shadows lurking in the dark could be made out through squinted eyes. Those shadows never moved, never appeared closer. They simply wavered on their spots, making one wonder whether they were nothing more than a mere figment of imagination.
The other side of the river offered an even more interesting scenery. It was the one side that caused people to gape in amazement. No one could help but stare at the dark red flowers that had sprung into life along the lines formed by the interface between lava and snow. The sprouting of those flowers was a perfect metaphor that illustrated what a strange place the underworld indeed was - a place where good and evil lived together. A place where every soul, be it a treacherous or a virtuous one, could find a home. A place where an old man and a baby took the same boat ride. A place like no other, where flowers grew on lava and fed on snow.
Behind the flowers, a huge iron gate was surrounded on both sides by sky-high walls of ice and molten magma. The gate presented the real entrance of the underworld. To reach it, one had to cross Styx, the river that divided the two contrasting landscapes and was said to circle the underworld seven times. Its dirty white waters hid frightening mysteries as the high waves that came from the beach noisily crashed into it, disturbing its secrets.
Even the sky above them was its own kind of unique. The permanent hue of light red combined with dark blue was the only source of illumination. There was no sun, moon, or stars. Only eternal dusk.
"Who are you?" Came a sudden, gruff voice that scared all of them out of their enchantment. "You're not dead," Rafail's side was repeatedly poked with a stick.
"Cut it off," Rafail growled as he turned to face his disturber.
The strange man in front of him wore a worn-out, black cloak with two huge pockets on both sides that looked filled to the brim. The weight he carried explained why his tall and thin body was visibly curved forward. His medium-long hair, dark and slicked back, was pulled into a low ponytail with few strands escaping it, rendering him the distinct look of madness. It seemed like he had two onyx stones instead of eyes. The blackness of his irises could scare a human away any time of the day. However, his worst feature yet was his teeth. Pointy and yellow, they gave away the impression that he fed on the souls that he came across. The weird oar he used as a walking stick probably helped with that.
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Crowned King (Throne of Thorns #2)
Fantasy'Heavy is the head who wears the crown.' Rafail knew the words to be true as he weighed the gold piece in his hands. He had finally managed to avenge his father and take back a kingdom that was rightfully his. But at what cost? As a new threat cam...
