Chapter 10

10

XAVIER

T here was no time to consider Roman being the master of dead puppets with this new development.

A huge chunk of sky collapsed into the sand, shaking the desert. Roman slipped from my grasp, landing on his hands and knees. I managed to stay vertical, moving to help him up with Darcy clinging to my back.

"The sky is what?" Roman said, taking a firm grip of my hand.

"Falling," Butterfly responded.

The bright light cleared, revealing a hole full of Earth's stars—another part of the walls between our realms gone.

A second piece broke away, resembling the shape of a puzzle piece. It reminded me of a glacier calving—one moment the ice was there, the next it was gone. It happened in the cold places of Earth and Level 871. Ismael and I used to sneak there to watch it happen.

The chunk of sky hit the ground, sand exploding around it. I held onto Roman and Darcy as the ground shook, trying to find an alternative route other than this straight line. But I saw nothing. The gate out of here lay on the other side of the sand. In my day, there were desert carriages to transport visitors back and forth. I had no idea what happened to them and had expected to see at least one when we arrived here.

With trepidation, I said, "We have to keep going."

What choice did we have?

A third and fourth chunk of sky came down together, much bigger than the previous ones. They hit the sand too hard, sending ripples across the desert that grew in size.

"Tsunami?" Butterfly wondered.

"What?" Darcy said.

The wave grew, gaining speed. We were at the top of a dune, our only option was to go back down to the rising water to use the mound as a buffer.

I dragged Roman down the slope. A tremor shook me off course. I lost my grip on him, falling off to the side. Darcy flew off me. I landed on my back, sliding down the wet sand at great speed.

"Roman!" Darcy screamed, rolling down the slope.

I hit the water, the impact throwing me into a forward roll. I landed face-first, only down for a moment.

As I got back on my feet, the sand tsunami hit, smothering everything. Terrific force lifted me off my feet, the storm of abrasive grains obliterating my vision as I flipped and spun, sand filling my mouth.

I hit another sand dune on my left side, the impact breaking my arm. Pain shrieked through me, the sand tsunami crushing me into the dune, my other bones protesting under the pressure. I tried breaking free, but the sand rendered me helpless.

Roman! I screamed on the inside.

What if I lost him? What if I found him contorted and broken by the force of the wave? What would I do? What would we all do?

Those terrible images attacked me again, showing me the death of my human, a hopeless future riddled with despair.

Roman!

The wave diminished, the pressure on my body easing. When it finally gave way completely, I slid down the slope, coughing violently. My broken arm dragged behind me, my eyes on fire from the sand. I came to a stop on wet sand, most of the rainwater smothered by the grains.

Roman…

Suppressing the pain, I angled my face to the relentless rain and the endless dust. Let the water wash me clean, opened my mouth to flush out the sand as best I could.

"Roman…" I pushed my hair from my eyes, blinking through the downpour.

Butterfly staggered across the sand, collapsing to his knees. "My goodness…" He was caked in sand. "Where… Where are the humans?"

I searched the changed landscape, running around newly formed dunes. No sign of Roman, Darcy, Margarite, or Roman's demon servant.

"If he is dead, we have no hope," Butterfly said unhelpfully.

I grunted, distress poking at me. "He's not dead."

"It is a possibility. Death comes to us all."

I snarled at the wanker. "Except for you."

He lowered his gaze, saying nothing.

"Start looking," I ordered, holding my broken arm to my chest.

A maelstrom of fear and dread raged inside me. The worst outcome was too close to a real possibility.

No. Roman and Darcy had to be alive. There was no alternative.

I walked the drenched sand again, unsteady on my feet, checking the sky for any signs of another falling piece.

"We have to leave this place." Butterfly offered another unhelpful suggestion.

Yes, I'd already come to that conclusion. I didn't need the pompous demon to reiterate it.

I climbed a dune, scurrying down the slope into a quickly flooding basin. Butterfly followed, grunting with effort. The scents of the human realm tainted the air. Pollution and different air to this realm flooding the desert as much as the rain.

Turning the next corner, my breath caught in my throat. A glittering bubble sat on the sand.

"What is it?" Butterfly asked.

As if in response, the bubble popped, revealing Roman, Darcy, and the lizard demon.

Safe.

Alive.

Where was Margarite?

Roman spotted me. He jumped up and ran across the sand. I launched into my own run, hearts on fire, relief projecting me closer to him.

He's alive. He's alive. He's alive.

"Oh my God!" he cried, taking a stumble. He corrected himself, picking up speed.

We collided in a hug, crushing each other in a powerful embrace. Roman, being shorter than me, sobbed into my chest. I stroked the back of his head with my good hand, kissing his crown.

My bad arm dangled painfully to my side, but each sharp stab of agony was worth it if I got to hold my human.

Roman lifted his head, water sluicing down his face. "I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"I didn't get you inside the bubble." He took a step back, those incredible amber eyes widening on my broken arm. "You're hurt."

I supported my arm again. "Don't worry."

"I always worry. I'm so sorry. When I heard Darcy scream, I reacted like that ." He clicked his fingers for emphasis. "I asked Lizard Guy to protect us. Realized my mistake instantly." He dipped his head. "Shame on me for forgetting you. What sort of boyfriend am I?" His head snapped up, those eyes wide with horror again. "Erm… Oh, shit."

That word acted like the best painkiller. "I'd love to discuss what you just said, but we really have to leave."

His cheeks flushed scarlet. "Good… Good idea."

Boyfriend. He called me his boyfriend. "And you did what was best for you and your friend. Remember that we're built differently."

"Yeah. Guess so."

Darcy arrived, his wet robe stuck to his skinny body. "Can someone pinch me?"

Roman faced him, scratching the back of his neck. "You wish you were dreaming."

Darcy shrugged, shivering. "Where's Margarite?"

"I cannot help you for the next twenty-four hours," the lizard said. "I will count down now."

Margarite appeared by Roman's side in a puff of glittery dust, her hair full of sand. "Counting down."

It appeared his minions would always be by his side, no matter what.

"Let's keep going," I said. "Darcy? Climb on."

"You're hurt," he countered. "I'll walk."

"I'm fine to carry you."

"Unless you would like to ride upon me," Butterfly suggested.

Darcy was on my back in seconds. "I'm good here."

Butterfly chuckled. "Such attractive shyness."

"Such a creepy arsehole," Darcy muttered in my ear.

We continued our journey across the desert, reaching the other side without any further incident. I put Darcy down for a moment, opening the gate set into an enormous cactus. Warmer air rushed down the slope beyond it—a short incline leading to the next level. Possibly the shortest level-to-level journey in the demon realm. From the next level, I could ascertain where the best crossover point into Earth would be, considering there were now many new access areas.

"There's a seeing tree up there," I said. "Essentially, it works as CCTV for certain areas of the demon realm. We can use it to check for any potential exits."

"Sounds good," Roman answered.

I stretched, drawing a series of deep breaths to battle the pain.

"I'll walk now," Darcy said. "I'm over being a burden."

"You're not, but thank you."

He responded with a warm smile.

My how our relationship had evolved from sniping rat to this. I liked Darcy, admired his loyalty to Roman.

We took the slope, leaving the desert behind us.

Roman kept pace with me. "How are you feeling, broken arm aside?"

"Stressed."

"Yeah. Same. But we can make it out. I know we can."

Another wooden doorway waited up ahead, a tangled arch of vines around it.

"Earth will give us some breathing room," I answered. "We'll find a remote place, gather the things Butterfly needs." A faint tremor passed through the slope.

Roman stopped, spinning to check on the others. "Shit."

"Must have come from the desert," Darcy said. "Why would the sky fall in like that?"

"This world may be dying," Butterfly answered. "Or possibly integrating further with your lands. The possibilities are endless."

His suggestions made sense, even if I didn't want to believe it. Although I'd left my homelands behind, they were still a part of me. This wasn't the fate I wanted for my kind. If the demon realm did die, what would it do to Earth?

"Come on," I ordered, this spacious area of concrete feeling too suffocating.

The sooner we were out of here, the better.

"What if we reach out to Queen Piper?" Roman wondered. "She'll help if she can."

"My darling daughter," Margarite said a little too brightly.

Roman pulled an uncomfortable face.

"It's an option," I answered him.

We were almost at the door.

"I'm gagging for a cup of tea," he added. "More than ever."

Darcy groaned. "Please don't mention tea. My cravings are wrecking my soul."

"Because of the lack of tea?" Butterfly questioned, sounding concerned and missing the point.

"You wouldn't understand," Darcy countered. "Tea is life. Tea makes everything better. Well, the kind of tea I drink does. What I call proper tea. Not that hideous chamomile he enjoys." He pointed at his best friend.

Roman laughed. "Such a bitch."

"Such a truth teller."

"Says the guy who kills the flavor of tea with four sugars and too much milk."

I winced for different reasons this time. "Four?"

"Yeah. Explains a lot, right?"

Darcy huffed. "What does that mean?"

Roman turned, walking backwards. "That you're the sweetest bestie in the world."

"Christ on a bike." Darcy snorted a laugh. "What is he after, Xavier?"

Listening to these two friends brought me a lot of joy. "I have no idea."

Roman laughed. "Well?—"

The door to the next level crashed open, flying over our heads. It just missed the lizard demon in the rear.

Instinctively, I put myself before Roman as a line of bodies filed into the space, led by Ismael, a cruel smile on his handsome face.

"Oh, shit," Roman whispered.

Agreed.