Labyrinth: Acropolis Series Book II (12 page)

"As you grow, many of you will also obtain
enough power to open portals between this world and Hell. This
portal will take you to the labyrinth. I have no idea what
Enepsigos has planned for you. The journey will not be an easy one.
Stay alert. Take your time."

"And don't die, right," Lyre says crossly
from behind me.

Marcas's expression remains even, although
his eyes redden. "That too," he says simply. "The portal will open
at the labyrinth's entrance. It is made of stone, carved entirely
out of an underground cavern. Having the gargoyle will be an
advantage there. There are no dead ends. There is only one
direction, a straight, twisting circuit to the Spear of Destiny.
There may be two tasks. There may be twenty. But no matter the
number of obstacles you face, it will be laden with horror."

Fiona sighs, "I feel like Frodo being advised
by Gandalf. Only we're supposed to seize a spear rather than
destroy a ring."

I look at her over my shoulder. "You've
read
Lord of the
Rings
?"

Fiona laughs, her hand on her chest. "Um, no,
but the movie was amazing. Orlando Bloom as an elf . . . yeah,
enough said."

Gwenyth and Hesther are quick to agree as
Gray mumbles something about Hollywood manufactured men. Marcas
clears his throat, stepping aside so we can enter the portal. No
one moves. Conor is standing next to Marcas now, and they exchange
a look but don't interfere.

Marcas' words inside the dining room of the
S.O.S. come back to me, and I look at the portal, my eyes narrowed.
A labyrinth is not a maze, it is a path to enlightenment. In our
case, it is a journey that could end in death, but even with the
consequences, it is still a journey that could change our lives. My
gaze moves back to Marcas and Conor, and what I see in their eyes
reveals what I already know. How we enter will not be how we
exit.

Next to me, Bruno straightens, and I
place a hand gently on his elbow. I am not a leader. I have never
wanted to be a leader, but what I lack in charisma, I make up for
in understanding. Bruno
is
a
leader, and all it takes is a simple nudge to make him move
forward. He advances, one hand outstretched, and steps into the
portal. For a moment, he becomes a blurred part of the strange air
in front of us, and then he is suddenly an image beyond the wall, a
hazy image that reminds me of a water color painting.

I take a deep breath as Conor ducks away from
Marcas, a grin on his lips as he glances a final time at the Demon
before following Bruno's lead. If he is afraid, he hides it well.
And it's enough to make the other hybrids move forward. Bruno's
entrance into the portal has emboldened the hybrids, and Conor's
grin has calmed them.

Deidra, Ace, and I are the last to enter, and
I pat Ace's head gently.

"Just stay with me, Boy," I whisper to the
drex before peering down at Deidra who has moved to take my hand.
"Don't leave me, Deidra. If anything happens, you stay behind
me."

The imp frowns, her hand tightening in
mine.

"The hell I will," she mutters.

I smile. Deidra is a tough girl, bullied her
entire life. She doesn't have a famous Demon parent like the rest
of us, but she won't leave us. She won't leave me.

"Last chance, Imp. You don't have to go," I
say.

Deidra looks up at me, her dark face
determined. She lets go of my hand then and steps into the portal.
She is alone, her head held high. My grin widens, my hand
tightening on Ace's head as I look up at Marcas.

"She's not been forgotten," Marcas says
evenly, and my eyes widen in surprise, my grin widening. "Heroes
come in all shapes and sizes," Marcas adds.

I nod to show I agree, the grin still on my
face, as I lead Ace into the portal.

Chapter 16

Conor

The other side of the portal appears similar
to the Italian countryside we've just exited. The only difference
is a gaping cavern with stone stairs leading into a dark hole. The
labyrinth's entrance. Bruno gazes at our surroundings, his eyes
skirting the opening.

"The Outer Levels of Hell are definitely
nicer than the Inner Levels," he mumbles.

I grunt. "I wouldn't know, and I prefer to
keep it that way."

Bruno ignores me, glancing briefly over
his shoulder to check on the other hybrids before looking once more
at the labyrinth's entry. The darkness is foreboding, but the stone
calms me. Even with the dangers beyond, the stone is enough to keep
me grounded. And I need grounding because the longer I stand on the
Hell side of the portal, the more I realize Marcas' words are true.
My powers haven't changed, but I feel weaker. The air seems thick,
warmer, suffocating, as if Hell's oxygen levels differ from Earth
but not dramatically enough to harm me. It
is
enough to make my breaths deeper. I call to
the stone, and it evens out my breathing.

Bruno glances over at me. "Doing okay there,
Gargoyle?" he asks wryly.

I refuse to look at him.

"Is everyone through the portal?" I ask
instead.

Emma is suddenly beside me, her cheeks
flushed.

"We're all through."

Her eyes are bright, and she breathes in,
pulling on the air as if testing it. Her hair seems darker, her
lips pinker. I glance around the group and realize Emma isn't the
only one affected. Hell may not be benefiting me any, but the
hybrids seem to revel in it.

Lyre saunters forward, her hands outstretched
and her eyes closed. She turns slowly.

"It's been too long," she says
reverently.

Fiona moves next to her.

"It isn't home yet, Lyre. Don't forget
that."

Lyre opens her eyes, her exhaled breath
long.

"It was once."

"And the full bloods kicked us out of it,"
Fiona reminded her, placing a hand gently on Lyre's shoulder.
Lyre's eyes dull, and she pushes Fiona's hand away before looking
to Bruno. His gaze is still on the labyrinth.

One of the twins hugs herself and shivers
dramatically. "Is it wrong to admit I'm afraid?" she asks.

Lyre scowls. "Wrong to admit you're a coward,
you mean?"

Bruno looks pointedly at Lyre, his expression
enough to quiet her.

"If you are so fearless, Lyre, you enter
first," Bruno orders, his words harsh.

I watch carefully from the side of the group.
Bruno is attempting to prove his worth as a leader. By mocking the
twin, Lyre is causing dissention and doubt among the group. By
calling Lyre out, Bruno is making Lyre prove she's courageous
enough to sling insults about cowardice.

Lyre's lips thin, and her gaze reddens as she
looks at the steps leading down into oblivion.

"Fine," she huffs, moving toward the
entrance. Her foot touches the top step, and she pauses. She looks
over her shoulder, her eyes skirting the group before meeting my
gaze. Her jaw tightens, and she lowers her foot to the next
step.

"Lyre," Emma says softly, the sound so low
I'm pretty sure Lyre doesn't hear her.

Lyre moves down another step. Nothing
happens and the hybrids exhale. If everyone is this uptight, it
makes me wonder what the actual labyrinth will be like. We need to
regroup, figure out what role each hybrid will play. My eyes move
to Bruno, and I wait for him to order Lyre to stop, but he doesn't.
Alessandro's words come back to me.
Demons
don't work the same way we do. The hybrids must prove their
strength. Until they do, they will always be in danger.

Lyre is on the fourth step now. Only two
stairs away from the entrance. Emma steps forward.

"Lyre," she says, her voice louder. "No.
Remember what Marcas said. Unity is the hybrid advantage."

Lyre pauses and glances at Emma, her eyes
cold.

"I'm no coward," she says harshly.

Emma shakes her head. "No, but fear isn't
about being a coward. You've proven you're brave enough to go on
alone. Stop."

Lyre's gaze moves to Bruno, and her eyes
narrow. His face is stoic, hard as granite, uncompromising. Emma's
gaze moves to Bruno as well, but when he does nothing more than
motion at the entrance, her face falls. Lyre turns back to the
stairs, her foot lowering. Step five.

"I'll go first," Emma volunteers suddenly,
and everyone freezes. Lyre's head snaps up, her incredulous gaze
moving to find Emma's.

"What?" she says, her words no more than a
whisper.

"I'll go first," Emma repeats.

I start to move forward, my heart beating
rapidly, but Bruno beats me to it.

"No," he says, his eyes moving to Lyre's.
"We'll go forward two at a time. No one will enter alone."

Lyre's eyes are still on Emma, and I look
between the two before glancing at Bruno. His lip is quirked, the
small smile one of satisfaction. As a gargoyle, I may know a lot
about self-sacrifice, but Bruno knows these hybrids. Emma has
offered to take Lyre's place. If nothing else, the effect on Lyre
is profound. Lyre takes two steps back.

"I'll still enter first," Lyre says
firmly.

Bruno nods. "I'm with you then."

He moves down to Lyre, and I move behind
them. My goal is to allow Bruno his leadership, but it is still my
duty to keep them as safe as I possibly can beyond that. Emma moves
in beside me, Deidra somewhat behind her. Ace snarls, but Emma
waves him to the back of the group. He is too large to enter with
one of the hybrids. I make room for Deidra. Gray and Fiona settle
in behind us with Gwenyth and Hesther following and Ace bringing up
the rear.

Bruno takes a deep breath.

"Ready?" he asks.

He doesn't give anyone a chance to answer
before he steps forward, grabbing Lyre's hand to bring her with
him. Together, they step into darkness.

Chapter 17

Emma

"Oh, God," I mumble, my nerves rattled, the
other hybrids' anxiety a heavy weight, as Lyre and Bruno disappear
into the labyrinth. Conor's hand finds mine, and he grasps it hard.
Deidra's hand is at my waist. There is no going back. No holding
back. No rain checks.

We move forward, one step at a time. The
darkness begins to close in around me, and I have to fight to
remember how to see in the gloom. Demon eyes are, oddly, like car
headlights. When in darkness, there is an internal switch that,
when activated, allows us to see through the dimness. Even colors
aren't muted.

I concentrate, and the black begins to lift.
There are craggy walls, and a jagged, high stone roof above. There
are no adornments. Only hollowed out stone. Bruno and Lyre are just
inside the entrance. Before us is more darkness.

The cavern opens up as we step away from the
stairs, and I realize we can travel as a group now with the drex at
our back. We stop and the rest of the hybrids file in. I can feel
eyes on us in the darkness, and I wonder if Enepsigos is watching,
waiting for us to mess up.

Deidra laughs quietly, the sound hysterical.
"Oh, my God!"

I laugh with her because the tension is
almost too much, too palpable. The twins soon follow. When Gray
sniggers, I know the relief we're feeling is contagious. All of the
hybrids, and even Conor, are laughing now, quietly but frantically.
I think part of us expected the stairway to explode or something
equally dramatic. It's either laugh or cry. And yet, laughter does
little to relieve the tension. There's still a labyrinth to
navigate, dangers we know nothing about.

"This is crazy!" Fiona hisses. "How are we
supposed to protect ourselves from things we can't see."

Conor shifts next to me, and it's then I
realize my hand is still trapped within his. I don't pull away, and
he doesn't loosen his grip. I think, in a way, we are both pulling
strength from the other.

"Are you sure you can't see the dangers?"
Conor asks.

The hybrids look at him.

"Do
you
see anything?" Lyre asks sourly.

Conor's eyes meet hers, and I feel a familiar
pang in my chest. Jealousy.

"Sometimes it isn't about what you
can
see
," Conor
answers.

He reaches out and places his free hand
against the stone wall, closing his eyes briefly.

"Demons," he says. "There are Demons ahead .
. . and traps. Maybe."

Hesther Garner looks at him, her eyes wide.
"Maybe?" she asks shrilly. "You don't know for sure?"

Conor shakes his head. "I can only touch the
stone and tell you what the rock tells me. It isn't like a person.
It doesn't talk to me in words. I only get shudders, feelings, and
ideas. Sometimes images. There is something bad ahead. And . . .
there is something that has destroyed part of the stone. Maybe a
part of the path was dug into or a portion of the labyrinth
expanded to hold a trap. All I know is, the stone feels like it's
in pain."

Bruno sighs. "It's more than we knew before.
Anyone else care to try? Emma?"

Bruno's gaze finds mine, and I feel Conor's
grip tighten even more on my hand, the pressure encouraging. I
close my eyes.

At first, I feel nothing more than the
anxious, fearful emotions surrounding me from the group, but as I
push forward, past the hybrids, I feel . . . .

"Anger," I say carefully. "Hatred."

Lyre snorts. "Well, that's a given."

I don't open my eyes, my mind is trapped by
the swirling emotions in the cavern beyond. They don't appear
sentient. Anger, hatred . . . I gasp.

"Pain," I say, pulling back from the cavern
quickly, my hand against the pit of my stomach.

"Emma?" Conor asks.

I lean over and dry heave. The nausea is bad,
but not bad enough to cause me to throw up, no matter how badly I
wish I could. Conor's hand goes to my back, and he leans over me
carefully.