Graves: A Tale of the Little Mermaid (HighTower Little Mermaid Book 2) by Jacque Stevens

Author:Jacque Stevens [Stevens, Jacque]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: sjacquebooks
Published: 2020-10-21T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

As we continued to walk through the dark passages of the underworld, the stones around us made a familiar pattern. Carved windows and doorways appeared like the hollow outline of Solian buildings. Walking souls moved in the passages with us—pressing closer and closer together as we went along. Some even called from the doorways in unintelligible groans, mimicking street venders.

They were acting out their former lives—whatever they remembered.

Most didn’t seem to notice us, and I tried to encourage this. It made passing through them go a bit quicker. And the ones who reached for us seemed so hostile, I used my blade or summoned storms to fend them off without discussion. I didn’t enjoy the act, but it had to be done, and I was content to be the one to do it. I didn’t trust the ferryman, and Serena had suffered enough.

It was hard to mark any sort of time in this place, but eventually we needed rest. We called that one day—one day in the underworld.

We made camp in an empty alcove that branched out from the main tunnel and streets of wandering souls like an alleyway. It even had some of the same painted graffiti. I dropped my pack to rest against the stone, right next to: “Blue to win,” and “Marcellus was here,” along with an illegible scrawl that was probably obscene.

I frowned. In Solis, “Blue” was a chariot team. “They still care about chariot races down here?” I hadn’t seen any animals among the wandering souls.

The ferryman shrugged. My sister was already resting in a nest she had made of spare linen, but I wondered if the spirit guide actually needed to sleep. He sat without reaching for anything but his oar. “I was never quite sure why they cared about chariot racing up there. The horses just run in a circle, right?”

I didn’t answer him. As I looked up at the chasm of rock, I wondered if we had somehow stumbled into Tartarus. It was all so . . . dark and depressing. The constant drip of murky water. The absence of the sun. The souls just wandering around, lost. The traces of society that reminded me of the poorer parts of the city where everyone was stacked on top of each other with their filth.

Like the part of the city where my sisters worked, but worse.

But no, the ferryman said this was still Asphodel—the middle place. “It’s a city. This is how most cities would be remembered by its citizens. But perhaps you are simply more used to hearing tales about the heavens created by the One God.”

I squinted at him through the dark. “You know of Him too?”

The ferryman laughed. “Hard to avoid it when He chips away at everything that once was.”

“So . . . this place used to be nicer?” It had to be, before Valadern took over.

That just made the ferryman laugh harder. “Not really, no. The waters of forgetfulness were known to ease some pain, and there

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.