The entire chasm buzzed with mutters. Beneath the glow of crimson lanterns and dripping obsidian walls, young nephilim maidens stood in uneven rows, nervous, curious, beautiful, trembling. Their wings were small, half-formed things that shimmered faintly against the heat of the abyss.
I stood among them, quiet and calm, her silver hair catching faint embers of hellfire. I knew I had been chosen. The demoness recruiter Lady Serath had looked at me once, and that single glance had sealed my fate. I knew I was left with no choice and there was nothing my mother, Naretha could do about it. Time had flewn too quickly and my day had finally come.
"Pack your things," Serath had hissed. "The mortal realm has a place for you."
Now, in her dim cavern, I folded a thin black cloak and pursed her lips. Beside me, Naretha fumbled nervously with a small pouch of stones and charms.
"You shouldn't go," Naretha muttered, tying the pouch shut and pressing it into her friend's palm. "You've heard what happens to the chosen. Some never come back. Others… change.The rest are stories to tell, I'm worried about you, Shaoline" she said wrapping my chin in her warm grip, her eyes softening.
I smiled faintly. "Change is part of existence here, isn't it?"
Naretha didn't laugh. "You don't understand. The demons are watching. They crave beauty. You shouldn't draw attention to yourself."
Shaoline brushed her long hair over one shoulder. "They can't touch me. They know the natural laws. The abyss has rules, even for them."
Naretha stopped packing. Her dark eyes flicked up, full of worry. "Are you sure about that?"
The silence stretched. I paused, wanting to believe what she'd just said, but deep down, I remembered the stories, the screams that echoed through tunnels when a rule was bent, not broken. She lowered her gaze and said nothing more.
After a long pause, Naretha handed me a folded strip of fabric, a charm imbued with faint shimmering light. "It's for protection," she said softly. "It won't stop a demon, but maybe it'll remind you of me."
I smiled slowly and tucked it into my sleeve. "Then I'll keep it close."
*******************
When the bell tolled, a deep, guttural sound that made the ground vibrate, the chosen girls lined up at the gate of departure. The gate itself wasn't made of iron or stone; it was a maw. A particularly alive thing, with sharp edges that pulsed like veins. Beyond it shimmered the rift to the Serath'd world, swirling with shadows.
Serath stood at its front, towering, elegant, her horns polished like sliver daggers. "When you cross this gate, you are no longer children of the abyss," she announced. "You are instruments. Do not forget who owns your breath."
The girls murmured prayers. I said nothing. I could feel the eyes of countless demons crawling over them like insects.
At the side of the gate sat a heavy desk of molten stone. Behind it, the gatekeeper, a hulking demon named Zarkun, drooling, was tasked with inspecting every girl who passed. His claws scratched words into a thick, fleshy ledger that oozed with dark bloody ink.
When it was my turn, I stepped forward, imbibing all the boldness I could. My heartbeat was steady. I could feel Naretha's anxious gaze from behind, almost pricking my skin.
Zarkun's eyes flicked lazily from her face to the mark glowing faintly on her neck , the seal of selection. "Name, be quick" he growled.
"Shaoline."
He wrote something down, but his attention had already drifted. His eyes slid lower, slow, deliberate, lingering where my robe dipped slightly and slightly towards my hips. His nostrils flared, inhaling her scent like a wolf tasting prey.
I stiffened. "You're supposed to record, not stare."
Zarkun smirked, showing teeth too sharp for a smile. It made him uglier when he smiled that way, "It's rare to see beauty untainted down here. The abyss must favor you."
"The abyss doesn't favor anyone," I said coolly. "It only consumes."
My voice earned a few low chuckles from the shadows, where lesser demons lingered to watch. Zarkun leaned closer, his breath hot and rancid. "Be careful with that tongue, little halfbreed. It's the prettiest thing you own."
Before I could speak, Serath's whip cracked through the air. "Enough!" the demoness barked. "The gate doesn't feed on lust, Zarkun. It feeds on purpose. Let her through. You know the rules. Demon's and Nephilims are a supernatural abomination"
Zarkun grunted, scribbling something hastily before motioning toward the gate. "Go, then. Let the mortal realm have its next tragedy."
I took a deep breath and stepped forward. The gate pulsed open with a low hum, the heat licking my skin. I turned back once, just once and saw Naretha's face, pale with worry.
"I'll find you when I return," I said, trying to steady my voice even as my insides trembled.
Naretha nodded, lips pressed tight. "You better. I'll be waiting and praying for you, child"
Then I walked through. Trying hard to be focused, staring at the walls.
The gate's edges closed like jaws behind her, swallowing her whole. For a moment, everything was fire and wind the sensation of falling through space without direction. Whispers coiled in my ears. Chosen one. Beauty. Curse. Vessel.
I tried to hold her breath, but the air burned.
Then the world blinked.
She opened her eyes and found herself standing on cracked soil beneath a gray sky. The intermediate realm of humans and demons was nothing like I'd imagined, dull, colorless, trembling with decay. I could still hear the faint echo of Zarkun's laughter, crawling through my mind like a curse.
I wrapped Naretha's charm tighter around my wrist and took a deep breathe.
And somewhere in the distance, unseen eyes turned toward my arrival.