The air in the Abyss was thick with molten scent and whispering heat, swirling like liquid flame over the obsidian sands.
Red skies trembled above as the crimson moon bled its light across the plain where a hundred young maidens stood in a half-circle.
Serath was one of the leading demonesses of the abyss and once at every red moon which occurred once in every thousand years, she gathered female creatures of the under world to pick her take amongst the most beautiful of maidens in the abyss, set to accomplish seductive tasks on earth.
She was the demoness of seduction, working along side the demon of lust and fleshy desires.
10 minutes old I, was fortunate and unfortunate to be there that day. At the abyss, ten minutes were equals a 10,000 years on earth. But it had it's rules and the oldest nephilim of the abyss was only but 10 years old.
Each one shimmered faintly, nephilim born of celestial sins, their skin kissed by the glow of both light and darkness.
I stood among them, a little apart, my silvery hair catching every flicker of the torches around the ring. My eyes strangely soft for the underworld gleamed like stolen dawn. I could feel it, like I wasn't meant for a place so dark, but fate left me no choice.
At the center, a tall demoness in scarlet armor paced slowly before us, her claws clicking against the basalt floor.
"You have been gathered," she announced, her voice rippling through the heat, "for an opportunity rare and coveted. His Infernal Majesty seeks attendants fit to walk the mortal lands maids, messengers, vessels of his will."
A low murmur spread among the girls. To be chosen meant freedom from the endless drudgery of the Abyss freedom, or death, depending on the master. It was something any sane maiden would wish for to be free from the torture of an uncountable number of demons curled up in one black endless pit hole.
The demoness smiled, a razor-edged thing. "Each of you bears the blood of heaven and hell. But only one carries the balance perfect enough to withstand mortal air without burning. That one… will be selected tonight."
I lowered my eyes. Around me, the other girls trembled with both dread and longing. I wasn't sure which I felt more of.
"Lift your heads!" barked the demoness. "Show me your faces!"
A row of nervous movements followed, but when my gaze lifted, it was like the whole cavern inhaled. My beauty wasn't merely of flesh it was something ethereal, luminous, a defiance of the abyssal gloom and it was what I feared and most wishes she wouldn't notice.
The demoness's lips curved. "You," she said simply, raising a clawed hand to point. "Step forward."
My heart froze. Was she pointing at me, I looked closer, yes.
A gasp rose from the others. My heart stopped. I stepped out, barefoot, my pulse loud in her ears.
"Name," said the demoness.
"Shaoline," I replied,
"Shaoline Nephrim" I completed, my voice steady though her knees shook.
The demoness's eyes flared gold. "Half-breed of flame and grace. Your beauty is an echo of both bloodlines. You will serve the will of the Abyss on earth."
"No," came a trembling voice from the crowd's edge. I knew that voice.
I turned sharply. My mother, the only one she'd ever known in this realm, was pushing through the line, her eyes wide, her ash-colored robes dragging across the dust.
"No, Mistress Serath," she pleaded to the demoness, falling to one knee. I could see tears well up in her eyes.
"Not her. She's too too radiant. You know how the lesser demons are. They'll sniff her scent and tear her apart before she even crosses the veil!"
The other girls exchanged frightened looks. Serath tilted her head in faint amusement.
"Is that a plea or a prophecy, Naretha?"
"Both," whispered my mother. "Please, she's still young. Too young"
My hands clenched. "Mother," I said softly, "I can handle myself." I tried to be brave.
Naretha shot me a look filled with panic. Shivering slightly as she did.
"You don't understand. The Abyss obeys the Law, yes but laws can bend. Demons can twist them. You shine too brightly, Shaoline. Light attracts hunger."
Serath turned away, bored. "The decision stands. The Abyss chooses its servants. She leaves at dusk tomorrow. Prepare her."
When the crowd was dismissed, the air seemed to drain out of the cavern. I followed her mother in silence through the narrow obsidian corridors of our dwelling. Lava veins pulsed faintly under the walls like sluggish blood.
When they entered their chamber, Naretha rounded on her. "Why didn't you hide?"
I blinked, confused, we both knew how impossible it was. "Hide? Mother, how long shall I keep shrinking in shadows?"
"Until you learn what this place feeds on," Naretha hissed, voice shaking. "You think demons fear rules? No they fear boredom. They crave things that burn. And you, my child, are made of everything that burns."
I exhaled slowly. "You worry too much. They can't harm me. The laws of the Abyss... It prevents that"
Naretha's gaze snapped to mine, sharply. "The laws are written by those who know how to break them." She stepped closer, cupping my face with finges trembling so much I could feel them shake on my chin. "If they take you beyond the veil, you won't be under my reach anymore. Do you hear me? Whatever happens up there… you'll be alone."
I smiled faintly, though my heart ached at the fear in my mother's eyes. "I won't be alone, Mother. I'll be strong. That's what you always taught me."
Naretha's hand fell away. She stared at her daughter for a long moment before giving a small, bitter laugh. "Are you sure?" she whispered.
I hesitated, I'd said it just to allay her fears, but on the inside I was being brutally battered by fear. The shadows flickered over her mother's face like liquid smoke. I wanted to say yes. I wanted to sound brave. But something deep inside, something I couldn't name, shivered.
"I'm sure," I lied with a smile.
Outside, the screams of chained souls echoed faintly, rising and falling like waves against the edge of night. And far above them, through cracks in the molten ceiling, a faint shimmer of starlight slipped through, a promise, a memory, or perhaps a curse.