Chapter Twelve

Darkness in every sense of the word enveloped me from every angle, and Lucas's hand slipped from my grasp. Blackness blanketed my vision, and the dark magic of the sludge seemed to permeate through my skin, soaking into my body until it felt like the darkness had filled my lungs and settled deep into my stomach. I sank deeper into the pit, expecting to come out the other side, but I only kept sinking deeper and deeper…

Voices filled my ears.

You got Verla hurt.

You shouldn't have let Grammy leave the house.

You should've been quicker.

It's your fault she died.

You're going to get everyone else killed, too.

This had to be some sort of trick or curse. I knew I needed to protect myself from the voices saying these awful things, but I found no light within me to outshine them. Everything they said was true.

I had the thought that I didn't want to live with that truth. If I had to die down here, so be it. Maybe I deserved it.

It was a strange thought, because I'd never thought that way before. My survival instinct kicked in, and I tried to swim upward, but the sludge was so heavy I could hardly move my limbs, let alone swim through the viscous material.

My lungs compressed, and it became clear in that moment that the voices were correct. I was going to suffocate, and so were my friends. It was all my fault.

How naive was I to think getting to hell would be so easy? Of course we had to die to get there. And now because of me, my friends would suffer for eternity.

The thought made me want to give up entirely. My limbs stopped thrashing, and all I could do was sink…

Hands landed on me, and I felt myself being dragged through the thick slime. The weight of the darkness seemed unbearable.

Then warm air hit my face, and I gasped a breath. My eyes shot open to see Lucas above me, dragging me out of the pit and onto solid ground. Black sludge covered his body, and his features were illuminated by an ominous red glow. The corners of my vision blurred, and all I could see was him. My whole body trembled as he wrapped me in his arms. I was so grateful to feel him close to me.

"Are you all right?" Lucas asked breathlessly.

Tears streamed down my face as I curled into his chest. "I'm sorry, Lucas! I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt. I thought the pits would lead us to the Abyss."

"Nad," Lucas said gently. "Look around you."

Slowly, I drew myself away from his chest, and my vision cleared. We were no longer in the cavern. A dark, desolate landscape stretched as far as the eye could see. The ground was made of black stone, with cracks between it where glowing red lava flowed. Bubbling pits of black tar scattered the landscape, and steam hissed from geysers nearby. The sky was completely black, with no stars in sight. Against the light of glowing volcanoes erupting in the distance, I could see jagged black rocks rising toward the sky like swords poised to attack an enemy. The howling wind carried the sound of faint tortured screams. My guts clenched as the darkness of hell rocked my soul.

A trail of sludge mixed with droplets of blood led away from one of the pits. The questing beast was long gone, though judging by the blood trail, it was certainly still alive.

Grant and Chloe knelt at the pit next to ours and dragged Talia to the surface. She coughed and sputtered, but relief overtook me when I saw they were all alive.

"Is everyone okay?" I asked.

Talia glanced around at the desolate landscape. "As good as one can be in hell, I suppose."

I turned back to Lucas. "How did you get out of the pit? I couldn't move."

Lucas shrugged, like it'd been all too easy for him. "I gave into it."

Those words held a darker meaning than he would say out loud, and my heart sank for him. He'd been living with these thoughts for so long that he didn't even try fighting them anymore.

"I'm sorry," I told him.

"Don't be." Lucas helped me to my feet. "Let's get moving. The Wands have to be around here somewhere."

"Here, let me help," Chloe offered. She lifted her hand and used her telekinesis to drag the sludge from our bodies, leaving us dry again.

"Where do we start?" Grant asked.

I peered through a cloud of steam, where a shadowed figure took shape in the distance. I pointed. "Maybe we should ask him."

Chloe placed her hands on her hips. "You really want to get tortured on your first day here?"

"We need to start somewhere," I insisted. "Do you have a better idea?"

Chloe eyed me a moment, before she said, "Fine, but you're doing the talking. I'm not about to piss off an eternal being who gets off on torture."

As we started the trek across the landscape, I noticed the figure was moving—not walking, but floating across the landscape. When we got closer, I realized he was standing on a wooden boat, floating down a stream of lava. I wasn't sure how the boat didn't burst into flames; it had to be a magical boat. He wore a long cloak with a hood that covered his face, and he carried a long staff that he used to push the boat along.

"Excuse me, sir!" I called, flagging him down.

He kept his gaze ahead. I didn't think he'd heard me. "Sir, please! We need your help!"

Again, there was no response.

I quickened my pace, and the others followed until we were running to catch up with the man. We reached the edge of the lava river, and I paused to catch my breath.

Lucas waved his arms at the man. "Hey! Over here! We need your help!"

The man dipped his staff into the lava and continued pushing himself along. I thought he was going to float by us, until I realized he was pushing himself to the bank. He stopped alongside us and lifted his head for the first time.

He appeared old, with wrinkles across his face and hunched shoulders. Beneath his hood, I noticed his ears were pointed.

He was an Elf. The Elves had died out long ago on Earth, so he must've been here a while.

He frowned and spoke flatly. "I heard you the first time."

"We just got here, and we don't know where we are," I said. "Can you help us?"

He gestured around. "This place goes by many names. The Eternal Torment, the Underworld, hell—take your pick."

"Yes, but we don't know what part of hell we're in," I stated. "We're witches looking for the Abyss."

"Why didn't you say so?" the man asked. "I am the Ferryman. It's my job, honor, and pleasure to ferry you to where you need to go. The witches' village is downstream, the furthest region from here. It will be a long journey, but not one I'm unable to make. Climb aboard."

"What's the catch?" Chloe asked before any of us could move. "You're a creature of this place. You must have some ulterior motive."

"Not all who reside in this realm are evil," he stated. "I choose to be here, as it is my eternal purpose to escort people to their darkest fears, so that they may conquer them."

"So, you aren't condemned here?" Talia asked curiously.

"Blessed, no," the Ferryman said. "I am here to help souls gain clarity so they can ascend to the next level. Nobody living here is condemned, only visiting temporarily, in order to learn more about themselves. Anyone can move through the spiritual realms if they wish—some go up, some go down. Some who started up may go down, and some who started down may go up."

"So you can still make it to Alora if you start in the Abyss?" Grant asked.

"Yes, and it works the other way around, too," the Ferryman answered. "The spirit realm is always in movement, in a constant state of change."

I turned to Chloe. "I don't think we have a choice but to trust him. We need to get those Wands and bring them back to Octavia Falls, so we can reunite the coven."

The Ferryman laughed. "I'm afraid the Earthly realm doesn't work the same as the others. You cannot go back once you have died…"

He trailed off, eyeing us curiously. "Except… you have not died. How is this possible? You shouldn't be here."

"We came in through a portal, and we're not leaving until we find what we came for," Lucas stated firmly.

The Ferryman looked down at the remnants of sludge on Lucas's shoes. "It is not my job to ferry the living."

"But we need your help!" I begged. "You said the Abyss is the furthest region from here. How far will we have to walk?"

The Ferryman frowned. "You said your purpose here is to help your coven?"

"Yes," I said desperately.

He nodded kindly. "Then I will help you. But since you are living, you will have to pay a fee."

"I knew there was a catch," Chloe protested. "You want a piece of our souls, don't you?"

"A piece of your magic will suffice," the Ferryman stated. "Consider it insurance, to assure me of your intentions."

"Will this work?" I asked, conjuring a small crystal infused with my magic.

The Ferryman nodded. "This is enough to grant you passage, but I will need one from each of you."

Everyone conjured one of their crystals and handed them to the Ferryman. He pocketed each one into his cloak, then stepped aside to welcome us aboard. The boat wasn't very big, but it had two slabs of wood nailed across the top that served as benches. We took our seats, and the Ferryman used his staff to push us away from the bank. Whatever magic this boat was made from kept the heat of the lava from touching us. We began to float down the lava river, past the geysers and volcanoes.

The river flowed into a boiling lake of lava, and the screams around us intensified. I heard the harrowing cry of a baby wailing in the distance, as if crying out for its mother. The mere thought of a child being out here all alone shattered my heart into a million pieces. I looked around for the source of the voices, but I saw no one.

I turned to the Ferryman behind me. "Where are those screams coming from? We can hear people screaming, but we can't see them."

"That is something you wouldn't understand," he said ominously.

"How can a baby be trapped here?" Chloe wondered, shifting uncomfortably at the sound of the child's cries. "Children are innocent. They don't belong here."

"There are many ways to end up in this realm—and not all of them by individual choice," the Ferryman stated. "Some can be condemned here by the evil choices of others."

I shuddered to think of who would condemn a child here. The priestesses were able to make deals with demons for the souls of the coven, because the coven is their kin. I assumed the same could be true of others. It disgusted me that there were people in this supernatural world like the priestesses who would do such a thing.

My heart seemed to shrink, shielding me from the disturbing nature of the realm. I leaned into Lucas, and he pulled me tighter to his chest.

We passed by an island filled with all kinds of monsters. "This is the realm of monsters, where all demons and ghastly beasts are born," the Ferryman explained. "From here, they crawl out from the Pits and venture onto Earth."

From this distance, I could make out various humanoid demons with devilish features, along with animal-like monsters with twisted limbs and leathery skin hanging off their bones. The monsters fought one another, using sharp teeth and deadly claws to slice each other to bits, while other demons cheered for their slaughter.

A man on the back of a horse lifted a canine-like monster and threw it into the boiling lava. The pained screams of the monster echoed across the lake. The lava began to bubble upward, and large, heavy paws clawed at the surface. The canine emerged from the lava larger than before. It was at least a thousand pounds or more, roaring as it climbed back to the island and aimed its razor-sharp teeth at the horse rider.

I looked closer, until I realized the man and the horse were one and the same. The horse's head had only one eye. The entire creature's skin appeared to have been peeled off, revealing the raw flesh underneath and black blood coursing through its veins. The arms of the human half were spindly and long, with knuckles that dragged on the ground when he walked.

The Ferryman shuddered. "A nuckelavee. Vile creatures. Should one ever escape this place, they will bring drought with them and destroy crops with a single breath. Keep your cattle away, for the poison in their lungs can also kill living beings. Many epidemics have been attributed to these creatures. They are shapeshifters of the sea and terrified of fresh water, so if you ever cross one's path, it's best to find yourself to the nearest stream."

The canine leapt for the nuckelavee, slicing its claws across the face of the horse. Blood spurted across the blackened ground. The human half of the nuckelavee caught the canine around the neck. The nuckelavee opened its mouth to breathe into the canine's face, and the massive monster fell to the ground, gasping for breath as it was poisoned.

"Let's hope we never run across one," Grant said in a shaky tone.

The Ferryman gestured ahead of us. "We are now entering Aiya Nocshun."

"I heard about this place from the Elementai culture," Chloe said brightly, like we were on some field trip and not being ferried across hell.

Ahead, the sea of lava met a shore of sand. The Ferryman guided the boat to the shore. Just as I thought we were going to hit solid ground, the sand began shifting beneath us. It flowed like a river, guiding us from the lava lake and through a desert.

Here, the landscape was dry as far as the eye could see, and the dirt cracked at the surface. The blazing sun was too bright. People walked around aimlessly, calling out names with heartbreaking cries. The sound of beastly wails filled the air, and I spotted magical creatures searching the landscape, but whatever they sought seemed to be out of reach.

"What are they looking for?" Lucas asked.

"Each other," the Ferryman said. "In Elementai culture, the worst thing that can happen is to lose your loved ones. The elementals trapped here cannot see the ones they love. But if they only opened their eyes, they'd find each other again. Your soul is always right there, if you're willing to look."

"Can't we help them?" Talia asked.

"We could try, but it would do no good if they are not willing to listen. Observe. Hey!" The Ferryman shouted so loud it made me jump. "Your Familiar is right there! Look at him!"

He pointed, but the woman he spoke to didn't acknowledge him. She walked alongside a unicorn, but continued forward like she couldn't see it, stumbling across the landscape as she sobbed. My stomach twisted into knots listening to her tragic screams.

The Ferryman shrugged. "See? It's no use."

"But you said they could get out if they wanted to," Talia pointed out. "Have you ever actually seen someone who's left this place and went to a better realm?"

"Yes. Lots of people make it to the Blessed Haven," the Ferryman said matter-of-factly. "Most, I would say."

"What's that?" Grant asked.

"You would know it as Alora," the Ferryman said. "Alora is one place inside the Blessed Haven, but there are many others—the Great Hunting Grounds of fae lore, and the Ancestral Lands of Elementai culture. The Blessed Haven is a blissful realm, where all people go when they are ready."

"What about humans?" Chloe asked. "Is this place only for supernaturals, or do people without magic come here, too?"

"That would depend on what religion they follow," the Ferryman said. "There are multiple realms within this land, magical and not, and where you end up depends on what you believe. Should you follow no religion, you may pass through any one of these realms, depending on where your soul chooses it belongs. It is a great pleasure to see souls ascend from this realm to the Blessed Haven. People are constantly going up and down, in a cycle after they die. Nobody stays in one place for too long, because even after death, you're always learning, and this is a realm of teaching, not punishment."

He pointed ahead. "We're coming upon the Underworld."

Ahead of us, the desert came to an abrupt halt, where it met up with an oasis surrounding a shining city of gold. Even the river we floated upon changed to a shimmering gold stream. I stared up at the towering structures in awe. Waterfalls cascaded from beautiful towers, and precious gems were embedded into the streets. Lucious trees grew all throughout the city, with the most delicious-looking fruit growing from them. Everywhere we looked, there was abundance and wonder.

"This city looks out of place here," I remarked. "How can a city so beautiful be regarded as the Underworld?"

A fae with a beaming smile approached one of the trees and plucked the fruit from its branches. He took a bite, but immediately began sputtering. A cloud of ash sprayed from his mouth, and the fruit in his hand crumbled into nothing.

The city's central square came into view. In the middle stood a tall fountain, overflowing with gold coins. Men and women reached for piles of gold, but their hands went straight through the riches.

Nearby, a man fell to his knees at the foot of a woman. He wailed as he tried to touch her, but every time he did, it was as if his hand ran into an invisible brick wall.

"My mate!" he cried. "Please, notice me!"

She did not seem to see him there, only kept attempting to drink from the gold fountain, which immediately became sand once it touched her tongue.

We continued down the stream, until we passed a palace. At the top of the stairs sat a pedestal with a plush pillow atop it. A golden crown with precious gems embedded all around it shimmered against the sunlight.

A tall fae man with dark hair and hooded eyes approached the pedestal with confidence. The way he threw his shoulders back and looked at the crown as if it was already his made me think this man must be a monarch. He picked up the crown and placed it on his head, but it merely turned to ash that rained down around him. His eyes darted in every direction, as if searching for the culprit of the trick. His gaze fell upon the pedestal again. The crown had reappeared, looking as solid as it did the first time. He picked up the crown again, and it crumbled into ashes.

"This crown is mine!" he roared, before fur exploded across his body. He fell onto all fours in his wolven form—a black wolf with feathery wings. He lunged at the pedestal, tearing the pillow apart with his teeth in rage.

That was all I saw before the palace disappeared behind us, leading to a more glorious mansions. Through the windows, we could see the fae reaching for velvet chairs that disappeared when they sat down. They stood before tables of feasts and tried to fill their plates, but the food vanished before their eyes. A woman reached for a violin to begin playing, but it made no sound. She opened her mouth to sing, but her voice died in her throat.

"I guess that answers your question," Lucas said. "The fae here have everything they want, but it's out of their reach."

"Precisely," the Ferryman said. "You can have all your heart's desires, but if you are spiritually bereft, it means nothing. These fae could have what they wish, if only they turned inside themselves, and looked within to see what truly matters."

Ahead, the gold river flowed into a building, but it was unlike the gold buildings surrounding us in the Underworld. This building was made of trees that intertwined, as if the plants themselves had made the building from their roots and branches. We floated inside the building, and the river transformed into a red carpet. The boat hovered above the carpet, floating along as if the river never changed.

We entered a dark room. The floor opened beneath us, plunging down into a massive auditorium filled with people. We floated along the top balcony, staring down into the room. It was some kind of theater, though I wasn't sure this was any theater I wanted to be in. Images played in front of each person on a personalized screen. Nobody seemed to notice the others around them.

"Welcome to the Eternal Torment, believed by the Elves to be the worst place imaginable," the Ferryman said.

I peered at the closest screens, and I could make out stories playing across them. The Elf below us seemed glued to his screen. In moments, I watched the same Elf abandon his family and make a new one, only to lose them both. Sad music played, and the scene ended with the Elf kneeling in the rain at the graves of the people he'd lost. The Elf who observed his life's mistakes playing out before him appeared hollow, as if he was unable to stop witnessing the biggest errors of his existence play out on repeat.

Beside him, an Elf woman sobbed as she watched herself enter a room over and over again, only to hear the words, "You're too late. He's already passed." Her greatest mistake in life was that she hadn't gotten there in time to say goodbye to the man she loved, and she was forced to never stop reliving it.

"Here in the Eternal Torment, the Elves must watch their own mistakes in life, and be reminded of every choice they made that turned out to be wrong in the end," the Ferryman said.

What an absolutely horrible fate. The scenes continued to play out in dark tones, accompanied by melancholy music. I observed an Elvish woman sob as she watched herself onscreen, begging her past self not to go to the beach.

The woman on the screen didn't listen. She took her child to the beach, and she turned away for a moment while her child climbed the rocks. The child slipped into the water, and by the time she realized what had happened, her son had already drowned.

Next to her, an Elvish healer clutched at his throat, observing as he administered the wrong medicine by mistake, and his patient died. Another Elf wept as he saw his past self onscreen say the wrong thing, only for his closest friend to take their own life soon after. On and on it went.

It was heart-wrenching to watch, and I had to turn away. To have no other choice but to relive all the most torturous parts of your life for all eternity… there was no worse punishment.

Talia leaned over the side of the boat, watching with interest. "Their greatest fear is to make mistakes?"

"No. Their greatest fear is that they cannot be forgiven once a mistake is made," the Ferryman said. "But these screens show only one perspective. It doesn't show exactly how things played out, but what these Elves believe happened. If they changed their internal beliefs, the screen would change, and they could leave this torment behind."

The music on one of the screens changed, and the scene became brighter. It was the woman who hadn't made it in time to say goodbye to the man she loved.

The Elvish woman stood and spoke to herself in a shaking tone. "No. I won't do this. I cannot continue to blame myself for not making it in time. I got there as fast as I could, and no amount of replaying the scenario will change what happened. We had three-hundred wonderful years together. I will not let our love be reduced to this moment, because we were so much more than this."

Images of their life together flashed across the scene, until the scene slowed. This time, it showed her kneeling at his bedside. Though her lover was already gone, she spoke the words she'd intended to say all along. "I loved you dearly, and I pray to the Goddesses that you find peace in the Blessed Haven. I will meet with you again soon, my love."

"I belong with my love," she said. "I forgive myself for the mistakes I made, and I will choose a better future."

A bright light appeared behind her, and I had to shield my eyes. The woman stepped into the light, and as it faded, she disappeared.

I gazed around at the other Elves, expecting them to notice and follow her lead, but nobody even stole a glance in her direction.

"Where did she go?" Grant asked.

"She has ascended to the Blessed Haven," the Ferryman answered. "All she needed to do was change her perspective and choose to leave her regret behind. Once she was able to forgive herself, she could enter heavenly bliss."

It was beautiful watching her ascend, but I felt bad for the other Elves. They didn't understand they could go with her, if they only forgave themselves for their mistakes.

We reached the end of the balcony, and a door opened. Ahead, skyscrapers loomed against a black sky, and sirens blared in the distance. We floated from the red carpet into a narrow murky brown river that smelled of sewage. Garbage floated alongside us. I pinched my nose shut as I glanced around the city streets and shadowed alleyways.

"Where are we?" Lucas asked.

"This is a place only known by name to the vampires who reside here," the Ferryman said.

We were in a modern city, but it was as if a warzone had broken out many years ago and we were peering into a dystopian future, at a time when all residents had given up hope. Most of the windows on the tall skyscrapers had been shattered, and the smaller buildings closest to the river were all boarded up. A car had been abandoned in the middle of the road, and it was on fire. Above us, a helicopter whirred loudly, and a spotlight swept through the city in pursuit of criminals. The streets were mostly deserted, but we could see people moving through the shadows. I heard explosions somewhere inside the city, and smoke rose through the air.

Glass shattered as someone threw a liquor bottle at a nearby building. Someone ran out of the building yelling obscenities. The vandal took off down the street, and the sound of tires squealed in the distance.

As we continued down the river, another street came into view. A female in a short, tight dress approached a man in a leather jacket. They barely exchanged words before he wrapped an arm around her waist. His fangs flashed against the light from a flickering streetlamp, and he sank his teeth into her neck. The woman threw her head back, appearing to enjoy the sensation as her own fangs elongated.

In the next alleyway, pained grunts rang out over the street. We witnessed a group of five men kicking and punching another vampire, until the victim stopped moving completely. The five vampires jumped on the man and began to feed.

I turned toward the Ferryman. "Is there no way to help him?"

"You will be slaughtered if you step foot off this boat," the Ferryman said. "These vampires cannot be saved."

One of the vampires feeding lifted his head and sniffed the air. His head jerked in our direction, and his eyes flashed red. I gave a start, but we were already past them a moment later.

Down the street, somebody whistled. Three vampires stood outside a grungy-looking bar, smoking cigarettes. One of them eyed me up and down, and I felt dirty just looking at him.

"Hey, sweet stuff," he sang. "Why don't you come join us and give Daddy some sugar!"

His buddies laughed. "Yeah! You can give us all a ride!"

"Fuck off!" Lucas sneered, flipping the men off. If the Ferryman hadn't warned us to stay inside the boat, Lucas might've gone over there and shoved a stake through their hearts. Just the look the man gave me made my skin crawl. There was no question about the things that vampire was fantasizing about doing to me.

We passed the men—thank the Goddess—and continued through the city.

Talia gave a shudder. "This place is horrible. How can they go on living like this?"

"This is the way of their city," the Ferryman said. "There's a demon god who runs this place. A vampire's worst nightmare is having to follow orders, never moving from their position for the rest of eternity. They're stuck here with no improvement—just monotony and the same thing, day in and day out, for the rest of their lives."

"How can they settle for that?" Chloe wondered. "Don't they understand things could change if they worked to build a better city?"

"They don't believe there's anything better out there for them," the Ferryman answered. "They've resolved themselves to their fate. They're stuck in the same spot, not doing what they want to do, but doing what other people ask of them. Worse, they attempt to drag other souls into it."

"How do they get out?" Grant asked.

The Ferryman dipped his staff into the polluted river. "That is for the vampires to decide. So many vampires live like this on Earth that they don't see the difference between the life they lived when they were alive and the life they live as the dead, and that's why they can't get out. They're here because they don't know any better. They don't know they can choose differently."

I was grateful to see the streets come to an end up ahead. I didn't want to stay in this place a second longer than we had to. The river spilled out into the ocean, and the skyscrapers disappeared behind us as we floated onto the surface of the sea.

Our boat rocked from side to side, and we had to grab on to the edge so we weren't thrown into the water. Cold saltwater splashed into my face, and I feared the boat might capsize and sink. The sky above us swirled with dark clouds, and choppy waves stretched far to the horizon. The ocean water was gray and murky, with shining pools of oil floating along its surface. Something splashed in the distance, and I swore I saw giant tentacles rising from the ocean's surface.

"We are now at the Deepest Trench of Atlantean lore," the Ferryman announced. "Merfolk reside deep in these polluted waters, hiding from the monsters that lurk within. Their gills cannot breathe or see in the water here, as the oil is too thick, but neither can they die, so they continue to suffer in sickness and pain."

The surface of the water beside us broke. A gigantic sea creature emerged. I could make out jagged scales, barbed, poisoned fins, and razor-sharp teeth, but the majority of the creature was so massive, I couldn't see it all. It looked like it was going to gobble us up!

The Ferryman smacked it with the end of his staff—hard, I might add. "Be gone, beast!" he sneered, and the monster ducked back beneath the surface.

The boat rocked violently, making my heart lurch. I tried to hold on to the edge of the boat, but my fingers slipped. My friends and I were thrown into the water. An icy chill enveloped me, and thick liquid surrounded me at all angles. When I moved my arms, I found that the water was so oily and thick that it was difficult to swim through. My head broke the surface, and I glanced around frantically to see my friends gasping for air, too. The boat remained upright several feet away. The Ferryman stood upon it, appearing unbothered.

"Hurry back into the boat," the Ferryman said flatly. "We don't have all day."

We started swimming back, but just as Lucas and I reached out for the boat, Lucas disappeared from my side. He let out a scream before his voice was silenced by something yanking him under water.

"Lucas!" I cried. I ducked my head under water to go after him, but the water burned my eyes. I couldn't see anything.

My hands found his, and I grabbed him tightly and yanked him to the surface. As Lucas broke the surface, another pair of hands came out of the water, clawing up his body to try dragging him under.

A mermaid appeared, but she didn't look like how I envisioned a mermaid would be. She looked like a skeleton, with hollow eye sockets and flesh rotting from her bones. Her long black hair was patchy and covered in oil. She lifted her tail from the water and smacked the surface, and I saw that her scales were rotting off.

"Help me!" the mermaid begged. "Take me out of his dreadful place!"

"I wish we could, but we can't," I told her.

"You must!" she screamed. Her voice had changed, taking on a deep, eerie tone. "Don't leave me here!"

She lunged for Lucas and me, but the Ferryman's staff came between us as he smacked her away. She hissed and ducked back into the water.

Lucas curled his arm around me, and he grabbed the Ferryman's staff. The Ferryman dragged us out of the water and back onto the boat. Lucas and I lay on the bottom of the boat as we caught our breath. I quickly looked around to see our friends had made it back on while we'd been distracted by the mermaid.

"What the hell was that?" Lucas rasped. "Why is that poor mermaid trapped here?"

"There are many of her kind beneath these waters. The merfolk's flaw is that they are always looking for someone else to save them," the Ferryman said. "They want someone else to be their hero. What they don't realize is that they can save themselves. They could swim out of here and to paradise, if only they believed they could."

We situated ourselves back in our seats, and Grant immediately started to panic. "What's that ahead!?"

At first, I saw nothing. I thought he was simply pointing to the end of the horizon. Then I realized the clouds were missing. He really was pointing at nothing. My breath caught, and my heart began to race.

"There's a huge cliff ahead of us!" Lucas yelled at the Ferryman. "We're going to fall off. You're steering us the wrong way!"

The Ferryman said nothing as he continued to dip his staff into the water, steering us toward the edge.

"Hey!" Chloe cried. "Are you going to listen to us, or keep paddling us to the edge of the world!? You said you'd take us to the Abyss."

"That is exactly what I intend to do," the Ferryman said.

"That drop will kill us," I protested.

The Ferryman shrugged. "You never said I had to keep you alive."

Talia gripped tightly to her seat and began to scream as we came closer and closer to the edge of the waterfall. "I want to get off!"

Lucas curled me tight in his arms, and I squeezed my eyes shut. We reached the edge of the ocean, and the boat tumbled off the cliff.

My friends and I screamed as we fell through the air. My stomach leapt into my throat, and I thought we'd never stop falling.

Abruptly, the free-fall ended. My eyes shot open, but I saw nothing. Wherever we were, it was pitch black and eerily silent. I could feel the boat beneath me and Lucas's arms around me, but that was it.

I cast a witch light, and my heart rate began to slow. My friends and I were safe in the boat, and we were dry again. We appeared to be floating—on what, I wasn't sure. We could have been floating on the water or in the deepest parts of space. I couldn't tell, because there was no light and no sound. Beyond this boat, it was as if the light from my spell was entirely consumed by a black hole. It was the kind of place that would make you go mad if you spent any amount of time here. There was nothing, save but your own thoughts to preoccupy you.

The Ferryman began to laugh. "I've been doing this for thousands of years. I know where I'm going."

Chloe gazed around in wonder. "Where are we?"

"The Astromancers call this place the Endless Void," the Ferryman said.

"They get their magic from the stars, don't they?" Grant asked. "But there are no stars here."

"Which is precisely why it is the worst place for them to be," the Ferryman replied.

"But where is everyone?" I wondered.

"They're silent," the Ferryman said. "The Astromancers here don't feel like they can speak up, only that they must endure the darkness alone. But if they just turned on their light, they could get out of here."

Chloe squinted into the distance. "I see something ahead. Is it the angels' hell region?"

The Ferryman shook his head. "The angel hellscape is back where you started. What you see ahead is the Abyss."

The tiny pinprick of light Chloe had seen grew bigger, until I could make out the shadows of twisted, barren trees amongst a dense fog. The river turned black, and a broken sign read Now Entering the Abyss.

The Ferryman paddled us to shore, stopping along a muddy path within the dark forest. "Take this trail to the witch village. When you are finished here, follow the river downstream to return to the pits you came here through."

"Downstream?" Grant asked as he stepped out of the boat. "So it's all just an endless loop? If we were so close to the Abyss before, why didn't you just take us here to begin with?"

"The river only flows in one direction," the Ferryman stated. "I wasn't going to paddle you upstream."

Lucas held my hand as we stepped off the boat, and my shoes sank into the mud several inches.

"How far is it?" Talia wondered once we were all on shore. "Perhaps you can stay and wait for us."

"That was not part of the agreement," the Ferryman said, sounding annoyed. "I have souls of the dead to ferry."

"But what if we—" Grant started.

The Ferryman cut him off by dropping his hood once more. An illusion of some sort replaced his Elvish features, displaying a ghostly face of twisted bone and sunken eyes. My heart lurched, and we all jumped back as a hiss echoed throughout the forest.

"I have brought you here like you asked," the Ferryman sneered in an ethereal voice. "Now you are on your own."

He threw his hood back up and calmly placed his staff in the water, pushing away from the bank. His laughter faded as he floated downstream, like he thought scaring us was the funniest thing in the world.

Talia placed her hand over her racing heart. "I don't think I like that guy."

Lucas turned to face the path. "He got us to where we need to be. That has to count for something."

I shivered, glancing around the damp forest. I couldn't see much past the thick fog. "I don't like this place."

Chloe started forward, her shoes making a squishing sound in the mud. "The sooner we get moving, the sooner we can get out of here."

Lucas took my hand, and he kept me close as we followed behind Chloe. An eerie chill traveled down my back as we made our way through the forest, past swampy puddles and gnarly trees with no leaves on their branches. The sound of screams came from up ahead. Talia hesitated and curled closer to Grant.

"Remember what the Ferryman said," Grant assured her. "These people are torturing themselves. We should be safe."

He sounded uncertain, and I felt that deep within my gut. We didn't actually know what we were getting ourselves into here. This was the witches' hell, and that meant it was made for those of our kind. We needed to be more careful here than anywhere else.

The screams became louder the further we walked. Ahead, figures took shape behind the fog. Just off the path, a man with dark hair lay on a wooden table, strapped down by shackles. A small metal cage with no bottom and rats inside had been placed on his abdomen. Another man with a crooked nose shoveled coals from a nearby fire pit and hovered the coals above the top of the cage.

"No, please!" the man on the table begged.

"You did this to me, so now I get to do this to you," the man with the crooked nose sneered.

He placed the coals atop the cage. In a desperate attempt to escape the heat, the rats began burrowing downward, into the captive man's stomach. He screamed, his tortured cries filling the forest.

"Stop!" Lucas and I cried at the same time.

Lucas moved before I could. He sprinted through the trees, tossing the rat cage to the ground. The rats scattered, scampering away. The man's abdomen was torn and bloody, and it made me want to hurl.

"Leave him alone!" Lucas raged.

"Who made you king of the Abyss?" the man on the table snapped. "This is what I deserve!"

Lucas stumbled back a step. "You… want this?"

"Yes," the man with the coals sneered. "He deserves it. You want to be next?"

"Get out of here," the dark-haired man growled at Lucas, before turning back to his torturer. "Let's get this over with."

The torturer grabbed a piece of wood off a nearby table and began shoving splinters under the other man's fingernails. My stomach twisted, and I willed myself to look away, but I couldn't stop watching the horrible scene. When the man finished with the splinters, he took an ancient pair of pliers and began pulling off the man's fingernails.

Lucas returned to my side, shaking his head hopelessly. "I can't stop it."

"We're not here to change these people's minds," Chloe reminded him. "We're here to get the Oaken Wands, and that's it. We can't stop this torture if they want it to happen."

The sound of shackles clanging together met my ears, and I dared to turn my gaze back to the tortured man. His torturer had let him go. He was in so much pain that he stumbled to the ground, before pulling himself upright and grabbing his torturer by the hair.

"Let's see how you like the pyre!" he roared.

The torturer whimpered, and it became clear in that moment that the two had swapped roles. The dark-haired man dragged the other man through the trees.

"Where's he taking him?" Talia wondered.

We kept to the path, but we eyed the men through the trees. The dark-haired man pulled the man with the crooked nose onto a platform with a stake in the center. Dry branches surrounded him at every angle. The dark-haired man tied him up, then stepped back and watched with a smile as the brush lit aflame on its own. The man with the crooked nose screamed as flesh melted from his skin. Each time the skin fell off, another patch of fresh skin would replace it. He could burn for all eternity like this.

I turned away. I couldn't watch any longer.

Lucas shuddered. "It's just like the reaper Edgar described. I just never thought we'd be the ones torturing each other."

"I don't get it," Talia said. "The Ferryman made it sound like all these places came with lessons. What does torturing one another do for us?"

"It's obvious, isn't it?" I asked. "Here in the Abyss, witches are persecuting one another. It's a literal witch hunt. If they stopped accusing each other, and the community worked together, no one would be tortured. All they have to do is come together and agree on something. But here, people can't do that. That's why they're stuck."

Chloe scoffed. "They can't do that back home, either. We've created our own Abyss in Octavia Falls. Come on, let's keep moving."

More screams came from up ahead, and I turned my face away as we passed by others in the forest torturing each other. I couldn't look away fast enough, and I saw a man drop a spoked wooden wheel on top of a woman tied to a stage. I heard the snap of her bones and shuddered, while the crowd forming around her cheered.

The closer we got to town, the more and more torture devices we witnessed. A man sat on a chair while a woman tightened some sort of spiked device over his knee, effectively shattering his knee cap. His cries echoed throughout the whole forest. A similar—but smaller—device was used on another woman to crush the bones in her fingers.

I saw a pair of pincers with teeth on the sides. It glowed red from the heat of sitting upon coals. I didn't want to think about what those were used for.

Chloe sucked a breath between her teeth. "Crocodile shears. Ouch."

Grant shuddered. "Don't tell me that's used to rip off a guy's penis."

"I'd rather not know," Talia insisted.

The trees cleared up ahead, giving way to a small village with cabins reminiscent of the 1600s.

Grant spun around to take it all in. "This looks like Octavia Falls when it was first settled."

Lucas's voice came out hollow. "That's because it is."

Screams filled the town, though they sounded more like screams of protest rather than those of torture. I saw the cages first. High above our heads and hanging from the trees were what looked like large bird cages. Witches with sunken eyes and skin that seemed to suction to their bones sat in the cages, begging for food. The townspeople ignored them.

A crowd had gathered in a central square, shouting obscenities over one another. As we got closer, I got a better look at what was going on.

A woman stood hunched over, locked between wooden boards with holes cut out for her head and wrists. A putrid scent filled the air, and I realized people were throwing feces and rotten eggs at her.

Not far from the pillory, another crowd had formed. They sat on benches facing a long podium. It looked like a courtroom that had been set up outside. A woman in a red hooded cloak read a list of crimes off a long sheet of paper, and another in a black cloak stood at a pulpit, judging the trial.

A man on the witness stand shouted over the woman in the red cloak. "I didn't do it! I swear it!"

The crowd yelled back. "He's guilty! Take him to the pyre!"

The man didn't have a chance to plead his case before a crowd of people swarmed him and dragged him off into the woods. We heard the crackle of flames, then the sound of his screams growing louder as the fire burned him.

My stomach clenched. "It's the witch trials all over again."

Eyes began to turn in our direction as people noticed our arrival. "You there!" a man called, pointing at us. "It seems like you're new here. Do you want a turn?"

Lucas stepped aside as the crowd began closing in on us. "No, we're just here for a visit."

"That's too bad," a voice cackled from behind me. "You're here just like the rest of us, and that means you deserve to be punished!"

Hands landed on my friends and me all at once, and my heart leapt into my throat. All around us, townspeople laughed mockingly as they dragged us toward the witness stand.

"Get off us!" Lucas shouted.

"Don't touch me!" I screamed. I formed a battle orb in my hands, but it barely flickered before someone slapped shackles onto my wrists. They had to be magical, because I suddenly couldn't access my powers.

"You can't do this!" Talia cried. "We're not even dead—we don't belong here."

Grant struggled against the townspeople, while Chloe whispered beneath her breath, "Just go with it. We get to choose our fate, right?"

The townspeople shoved us into chairs behind the podium. They plopped me down between Lucas and Chloe.

A stack of papers magically appeared in front of the woman in the red cloak. When she turned, her long red hair beneath her hood became apparent, and I realized I recognized her.

"Priestess Charlotte?" I gasped.

She dropped her hood and wore a sad expression on her face. "Yes, it is me. It's nice to see you all again."

The woman behind the pulpit lowered her hood as well, and I saw her dark curls. It was Priestess Stella. I hadn't expected to see her here. The last time we'd seen her had been in the courtroom the day of our trial. She'd appeared as a ghost and spoken out against Lilian and Margaret, but Professor Leto had cast some sort of spell on her that made her disappear. We'd never known what happened to her after that. I didn't realize she'd moved on from Earth.

"Priestesses, what are you doing here?" I asked. "You already acknowledged your mistakes and apologized for them. You helped protect the coven. You should both be in Alora."

"They're not the ones on trial!" someone in the crowd shouted. "Get on with it!"

The crowd cheered in agreement.

"Priestesses, please let us go," Lucas begged. "You were on our side in Octavia Falls. We are only here to find the Oaken Wands. You must find it in yourself to show us mercy."

"We are truly sorry you have to go through this, but this is the way things work here," Charlotte said regrettably. "It's something everyone must do, though we will be as fair as we can be. To avoid the torture the others will put you through, you must prove your innocence."

I didn't want to go through with this, but I trusted Priestess Charlotte. When Professor Leto was in town, Charlotte realized the mistake she'd made in striking a deal with a demon. She came to us to seek a solution. She helped us fight Professor Leto, and she gave herself up so we could defeat him. She had fallen into the demon's pit and died. If she believed this was the way to walk out of here unharmed, then we had to go through with it.

"This court is now in session," Stella said, smacking a gavel on the pulpit.

Charlotte began reading off the papers in front of her. "Lucas Taylor, Nadine Taylor, Grant Bryant, Talia Murphy, and Chloe Olson, you are hereby called upon by Mother Miriam to state your sins and be judged by a jury of your peers."

It was disgusting by how they used Mother Miriam's name as if she approved of this torture. I didn't think Priestess Charlotte liked it either, because she shifted uncomfortably.

"There's nothing you can say to hurt us," Grant insisted. "We're innocent."

"You cannot deny your feelings in front of us," Charlotte said. "There are Seers among us. We know all of your deepest regrets."

Lucas spoke calmly. "We've already been through this on Earth. We aren't afraid. What are our charges?"

The crowd appeared puzzled, and a man in the front row spoke up. "Why aren't you angry? If you're innocent as you say, don't you wish to put us on trial for false imprisonment?"

"Why should we be the ones to determine your fate?" I asked rhetorically.

"Because somebody has to," the man sneered. Others spoke up in agreement.

Stella pounded the gavel, and the crowd quieted. "Order in the court! We will be the ones leading this trial. You will all remain quiet until a verdict has been reached."

Charlotte turned on her heel and walked to the end of the podium, where Grant sat. "Grant Bryant, you are hereby accused of breaking the Bro Code."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Grant demanded.

She looked down at her papers. "The Bro Code—it is a series of unspoken rules for male friendship?—"

"I know what the Bro Code is," Grant started, but Charlotte continued like she hadn't heard him.

"—Including but not limited to sleeping with your best friend's ex."

"I never slept with Nadine!" Grant cried. "We only went out on one date!"

"And yet you are guilty of breaking the Bro Code, are you not?" She cocked an eyebrow.

"I… may have some regrets," Grant admitted.

Grant and I had been out on one date my sophomore year, while Lucas and I were broken up. Grant and I were both single at the time, and we figured there was no harm in hanging out for the evening. It'd been a complete disaster, though. We'd gone to a restaurant on the lake, and Grant's enchanted crab pinched his ear and then ran off into the trees. Then we'd gone to a lake party, where Grant and I shared a kiss, and he and Lucas had gotten into a fist fight. We all had regrets over that night, but I thought we'd moved on from it. Apparently, we hadn't.

Charlotte strolled up to Lucas. "Isn't it true, Lucas, that you want to get back at Grant for what he did to you?"

Lucas hesitated. "Nadine and I were broken up. That's in the past."

"Nonsense!" she insisted. "Grant doesn't care about you. The moment he had a chance at Nadine, he took it, and he never paid for that crime."

"Look," Grant said. "If Lucas was mad about that, we'd talk it out. We don't need the whole coven's opinion. Lucas and I are tight. He's not mad."

Charlotte raised her eyebrows. "That's not what the Seers have revealed. Lucas, how do you feel about it?"

Lucas kept his jaw tightly shut, but his nostrils flared. "Like Grant said, we're tight."

"See? We're fine," Grant insisted.

"Lucas, aren't you angry that Grant asked out your ex-girlfriend without consulting you first?" Charlotte pressed. "Aren't you upset that he kissed Nadine, and he would've continued to date her if she wasn't still hung up on you? Aren't you mad he went behind your back?"

I wanted to stick up for Grant, and say it never would've turned into anything, because neither of us were into each other like that. But Lucas spoke up before I could.

"You know what?" Lucas sat straighter in his chair, facing Grant. "I am pissed about that. Nadine and I were broken up—I couldn't tell her who to date, but you? You didn't even ask me!"

"The invite wasn't even meant to be a date," Grant defended. "We were just supposed to be two friends hanging out. Nadine's the one who suggested the date."

"No," I defended. "I asked if you were asking me on a date."

Grant sighed. "It just happened, and it's not something that will ever happen again."

"Why are you so insistent on defending yourself?" Lucas demanded. "The fact is you went out with Nadine without asking me!"

"I didn't know I had to ask you," Grant replied. "You two were broken up."

"That's not what matters," Lucas pressed. "How can you be so insightful about everything, but this is what goes over your head? Of course I wanted to see Nadine happy—no matter who she was with—but if you two had ended up together, I couldn't have hung around to watch that happen. It would've ruined our friendship. Hell, you didn't just hurt me. Imagine what this did to Talia."

"I really wanted to be with Talia, but I figured she'd turn me down, so I lost my courage to ask. She didn't even like me back then," Grant said, turning to her for confirmation.

Angry tears beaded in Talia's eyes. "I've been in love with you for a long time, Grant. To be honest, it really stung to see you ask out my best friend."

My heart sank. I never wanted to hurt her. "Tal, you told me you were fine with it."

"Well, I lied," she admitted harshly. "You knew I had a thing for Grant, too. It was kind of bullshit you did that, Nadine."

"We were all in the wrong," Grant said. "Even Nadine only dated me to make Lucas jealous."

My jaw dropped. "Grant, come on. That is not true."

"Sure it is, Nadine. You weren't even into me. It's not a bad thing. I mean, you and Lucas ended up together in the end." Grant gestured between us. "And Lucas, you didn't advocate for yourself—you just let her go."

"I didn't know the date was happening until I saw you two locking lips!" Lucas raged.

Grant sighed. "You know that's not what I meant."

"Why can't you just admit you did something wrong?" Lucas demanded. "You're so busy pointing fingers. Why don't you look in a mirror?"

"You want me to say it?" Grant asked, sounding annoyed. "All right. I did something wrong. What more do you want from me?"

"I want you to be genuine," Lucas insisted. "You can't just say what people want to hear and get over it. That doesn't actually solve any problems."

"You want the truth?" Grant yelled, shooting to his feet. "I wanted you to be there that summer. Hell, it'd been years since we lost you. I wanted my best friend back. I watched you torture yourself—just like the people in these woods—all because you thought you deserved it, but you didn't!"

Grant's voice cracked, and tears began streaming down his face. "You were suffering needlessly, and nothing I said or did could help you. So if I had to hurt you to snap you out of it, Goddess damn it, I was going to do it. I just wanted to wake you up, Lucas."

We all went quiet for a moment, before Lucas spoke. "That's a really fucked up way to wake someone up."

"I didn't know what I was doing at the time," Grant admitted. "Now that I've grown up and can reflect on it, I can see why I really did it."

"You really hurt Lucas," I said bitterly. "But you know what? That wasn't fair to me, either. It makes me feel used, Grant. I've been carrying Lucas for a long time, and that's fine, because I choose to do that. But it isn't fair of you to choose that for me, and to pull me into your shit. I'm Lucas's wife, and his partner, and I'm happy to shoulder his burdens and help him through life. I will always be a safe place for him, and I will give him the love, kindness, and grace he deserves, but I'm not his therapist. I don't have the training, knowledge, or understanding to be that for him. Other people shouldn't be forcing me into that role, even if it's unintentional. Lucas and I were broken up back then, and even at that point, when I was on a date with you, you were having me take on his feelings when I needed space to heal myself."

"I hurt everyone, and for that, I truly apologize," Grant said in a broken tone. "I went too far, and it never should've happened. I'm sorry you were caught in the middle of this, Nadine. Lucas, I'm sorry I ever asked Nadine out in the first place."

He turned to Talia. "If I'd have known you had any interest in me, I never would've hung out with Nadine. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt anyone. I just hope you can all find it in your heart to forgive me."

A silent beat passed before Lucas nodded. "There's no reason to let this hurt any of us anymore. I believe that you're truly sorry, and that's all I need. I'm sorry for scaring you and making you feel as if you had to go through these lengths to save me from myself."

"Apology accepted," Grant said.

"This is unacceptable!" someone in the crowd shouted as they leapt from their seat and shook a fist. The townspeople followed suit, shouting protests so loud I couldn't understand what anyone said.

"It matters not!" Stella shouted over the others. "Their sins are far greater than broken friendships. You five have killed members of your own coven. You've lied to your own people. You sat and watched as others were burned, hanged, and poisoned. You all will do anything to get your way. What have you say?"

"It doesn't matter what we say, because you won't believe us, anyway," Talia growled.

Charlotte turned to her. "It's interesting that you would be the one to speak up. Your sin, Talia Murphy, is silence. You let people walk all over you, and you've never done anything about it. People needed you, and you were too timid to help them."

"How do you know all that?" Talia demanded through gritted teeth. She lunged across the podium, reaching for Charlotte's papers, but the priestess yanked them away.

"Things got bad in the coven, and instead of speaking up, you stayed quiet," Charlotte accused. "You didn't say anything until people started coming for you and your friends."

"And I've learned from my mistakes!" Talia insisted.

Lucas quickly cut in. "She hasn't done anything wrong."

Charlotte turned on him. "Lucas, you should've been there for your brother. You were too self-absorbed to see his cries for help."

"That's not true!" Grant shouted. "She's making things up."

I whirled toward my husband. "Lucas, she's preying on our insecurities."

"I know," Lucas said calmly. "She's saying stuff I believed for a long time, but I understand Eric better now. It's nobody's fault that he's gone—not his, and not mine."

Charlotte continued. "You've used your depression as an excuse not to deal with your shit and make decisions. You hide away in your room, so you don't have to face real-world problems."

"I've learned to take my time to process, and then I find solutions," Lucas stated.

"Leave him alone," I snarled. She couldn't get to him anymore, because she was trying to guilt-trip him, and he had nothing to feel sorry for.

Charlotte didn't even lift her gaze as she continued reading. "Nadine, you let your grandmother die. Worse, you sacrificed the coven for your own benefit. You gave up an Oaken Wand to the priestesses in order to get a kidney. You're selfish."

"She didn't want to," Talia argued. "We told her to do it."

Chloe scoffed. "You can list off our sins all day, but you can't make us feel bad for what we had to do to save each other."

"Why are you defending her?" Charlotte asked Chloe curiously. "Not long ago, you wanted Nadine dead. You would have considered her death a necessity, the same way you have justified the deaths of other people you have killed. Who are you to decide who lives and who dies?"

"We're nobody," Chloe said. "Nobody gets to justify those deaths, because they can't be justified. Octavia Falls isn't much different from this place. Up there, it's kill or be killed, but we shouldn't have to make that choice in the first place. There is a third path—just as Nadine and I came together to end our curse, the coven must come together to end their conflict. Here in the Abyss, you could stop the torture, if you all just agreed to get along."

The crowd around us laughed, like the suggestion was impossible.

Charlotte paced in front of the podium. "You don't believe any of that. Isn't that correct, Chloe? Our Seers do not lie. You have slipped potions into people's drinks without their knowledge, called them the worst of slurs, gossiped behind their backs and made up lies, broke into their rooms to destroy their belongings, cast hexes and threw punches, humiliated them?—"

"I know what I've done!" Chloe shouted, cutting her off. "I did what I thought I had to do at the time to protect myself, and I went too far. I thought when Nadine came to town, she was going to get me killed, so I had to stand up for myself. I may have started it, but Nadine kept it going. Every time I did something bad, Nadine came back with something worse."

I gaped. "How can you say that? You literally tried to hang me."

"You put me in the hospital!" Chloe shot back as tears rose to her eyes.

I shuddered at the reminder, because I hated what I'd done. Our second semester, Chloe and I had gotten into a fight so bad that she'd been sent to the infirmary.

"Don't act like such a saint—you tried to kill me, too," Chloe continued. "Maybe I deserve to be on this stand, or tied to the pyre, but you deserve to be right there with me, Nadine. I wasn't the only mean girl at Miriam College. You were a closet bully hiding behind a mask, trying to play the part of the good girl who was sweet and kind, but really, you wanted to be in control and act like you knew it all. You had to make me pay, and you damn well made sure I did. You didn't have to take things that far, but you wanted to. You hurt me, too."

Her words sliced into me like a knife. Back then, I only thought I was defending myself, when really, I was just hurting her.

"I'm sorry, Chloe," I said honestly. "You're right. I was a mean girl, even if I didn't intend to be. I take full accountability for what I did, and I wish I could take it back."

Chloe placed a hand over her mouth as her shoulders began to shake. Tears streamed down her face. If it had been any other moment. I'd have thought Chloe was crying to manipulate the court. But it was clear that these were honest-to-Goddess uncontrollable tears that she couldn't hold back.

"It doesn't matter what you did, because Charlotte's right," Chloe sobbed. "I've done so many bad things—terrible things that are unforgivable. Maybe I should just stay here in the Abyss. This is where I belong, being tortured like all these other people. It's what I deserve."

"No, Chloe," I insisted. "If you think that way, then your sentence is already determined. But we don't have to sit here defending ourselves. We need to be working together, just like you and I did when we broke our curse."

"Let's face it," Chloe said. "The night you broke our curse, you won. You're the one who's going to stay in the coven, because you actually have a place there. My friends hate me. I've cut off my family, and I have nothing left to go back to."

"That's not true," I told her gently. "Chloe, you have us. We may not have gotten along in the past, but you and I know how to work together to get shit done. You belong with us, searching for the Oaken Wands so we can restore the coven's magic. And when that's all over, we want you to stay, because you're our friend."

Chloe sniffled. "You don't want to be my friend. You've kept me close and used me to get the Oaken Wands, because you need a Mentalist on your side and I'm your only option. Once we get the Wands and save the coven, you're going to toss me aside and abandon me, because you won't need me anymore."

"That's not true," I insisted. "I want to be your friend, and you know why? Because I admire you, and I look up to you. You're strong and confident in a way that I want to be. I'm sorry I was mean to you. There's no excuse. Neither of us needed to do that to each other, but you showed me that we can choose to change, and I want to be there to see who you become."

I turned to Charlotte. "You said your Seers know all our regrets?"

She nodded, like she wasn't sure where I was going with this.

I looked back at Chloe. "That's how I know you've changed. They wouldn't know all these things about you if you didn't regret it. It doesn't matter who's in the right and who's in the wrong if the behavior on both sides is hurting everyone. We need to take action to benefit the community and not just defend ourselves. So please, Chloe. Stay with us and help us make that change."

Chloe wiped her eyes. "Do you really think people can change, Nadine?"

"I know they can," I told her gently.

Chloe shook her head. "But I haven't paid for what I've done."

I stood and reached for Chloe's hand. "I think you've suffered enough."

Chloe hesitated, then took my outstretched hand and stood.

The crowd erupted into protests. "They can't do this! Lock ‘em up!"

Chloe turned to the crowd. "Nobody here needs to be locked up, or burned, or tortured. You can all return to Alora?—"

A rotten cabbage smacked Chloe in the face, cutting her off. "Nobody who comes here is getting out!" a villager yelled.

Lucas stood, and Grant and Talia followed suit. Lucas lifted his chin. "We are. Because we might not be innocent, and we did make mistakes, but we are willing to forgive each other."

The shackles around our wrists rattled as they sprang open and clanged to the ground. The townspeople gasped, like they'd never seen such a thing happen.

A smile crept across Stella's face. "I believe this case is closed. You are free to go."

She smacked her gavel, marking the end of the trial.

"Pft," one of the townspeople scoffed, waving his hand. "They aren't worth it. This trial was boring, anyway."

The townspeople quickly lost interest in us and dispersed. Stella and Charlotte approached us as soon as the townspeople were gone.

"I'm deeply sorry we had to treat you that way," Stella apologized.

Charlotte shared a look of regret. "I had to push you in order for you to proclaim your innocence."

"It worked out, as we are free to go," I said.

"How are things in Octavia Falls?" Charlotte asked.

I shook my head. "Not well. Margaret and Lilian have only made things worse. They're taking away people's resources so they'll obey the priestesses."

"They're splitting up families, and they're forcing people to work for them," Chloe added. "People are going hungry."

"You have not yet died," Charlotte remarked. "How have you come here?"

"We came through a portal in Malovia," Chloe explained. "We've come to find the missing Oaken Wands. Do you know what happened to the Mentalist Wand after it fell into the demon's pit?"

Charlotte nodded and reached into her cloak. "I retrieved it when I fell into the demon's pit. I landed here in the Abyss. The Mentalist Wand was lying in the forest beside me, as it too fell into the pit. I have been holding on to it until it could be passed into the proper hands. You have proven that you are worthy of wielding it by forgiving each other. The Wand trusts you and is willing to come back to Earth with you."

Charlotte withdrew the Mentalist Wand and placed it in Chloe's hands. The end of the Wand began to glow, and it sang a beautiful note.

"You've earned this," Charlotte said. "What you did on that witness stand proves that when the time comes, you will all come together to do right by the coven. I know you will use this Wand for good."

"Come with us," Talia offered. "You fell into the demon's pit and were portaled here. You don't belong here, either."

Charlotte frowned. "I'm afraid I do."

"You died on the way down," Lucas stated matter-of-factly. He wasn't guessing. It was clear there was a part of his Death magic that knew.

Charlotte nodded.

Lucas shook his head, like he refused to accept this answer. "That doesn't mean you belong here."

Charlotte didn't appear convinced. "You know what I've done. I started the Miriamic Conflict with the other priestesses."

"And you chose better," Lucas pressed. "It's not what we've done in the past that defines us, but what we choose to do now—in the present. You saved us from the demon, Charlotte. You sacrificed yourself to break the contract and kill him."

"One good deed does not outweigh my sins," Charlotte said.

"No, but you can choose not to let it weigh you down anymore," Lucas replied. "I know what it's like to punish yourself—to feel like you deserve it, yet feel out of control at the same time. But we can make a new decision at any moment. We might slip up, but what matters is that we keep trying to do better. The only question is… do you want to do better?"

Charlotte nodded. "I do."

"Then this isn't where you belong," Lucas told her. "Lessons can't be learned by torturing yourself. It's a symptom, not a solution. If you're ready to break that cycle, then you belong in Alora, where you can shed light on your wrongdoings and heal from them."

Tears rose to Charlotte's eyes. "I'd very much like to heal."

A bright light appeared behind Charlotte, outlining her form. It was so blinding I had to shield my eyes.

"Thank you all," Charlotte said. "I will move onward toward Alora. I pray that whatever happens, the rest of you will be able to lead the coven into the light."

Charlotte began walking toward the portal, until it engulfed her entirely, before she was gone for good. The light dimmed, and we were left standing in the mud without her.

It was a profound moment, seeing one of our own coven members ascend. Charlotte had been on the Imperium Council when the Miriamic Conflict began. She'd ordered witches and warlocks to hang, and she'd burned our friends on the pyre the night of the Burning. She'd been among the priestesses who summoned the demon that killed over a dozen coven members. By all accounts, it appeared that she belonged here in the Abyss.

But she'd owned up to her mistakes and stood accountable for them. She'd chosen a different path, one that led her home to Mother Miriam. If she of all people could do that, then each one of us could follow her lead. Because of people like her, the coven could change for the better.

If we accomplished nothing else in the Abyss, coming down to help Charlotte was worth it.