Page 81 of Hell-Bound

Jester, less concerned, immediately walked over, stepping over the two snoring Devils, his mouth hanging open.

“You’re certainly full of surprises, little Elfy!” he said, placing his hands on his hips and looking at her proudly.

She smiled warily. “Another thing I forgot I could do, I suppose.”

“Right! Your music has the power to bore people to sleep. Truly inspiring!”

“Shut it, Jester,” she said, pushing past him playfully. “I was only trying to create a distraction…it just happened.”

“Hmm,” he said, scratching behind a red pointed ear. “Might come in handy later, but for now, we’re alone.”

Jester motioned around the completely quiet cavern.

“The sleepers only work during the day,” Jester explained. “It isn’t kindness, though. The lordlings learned that if you work them too much, they just plop down and refuse to move. No matter how much you whip them.”

She gasped. “That’s…disgusting.”

“It’s The Hells. Nothing more, nothing less.”

They both kept a slow pace, stopping every few feet to listen for patrols or other approaching creatures.

After two or three curves in the tunnel, the cavern dipped down, makeshift stairs carved into the rocky walls. If they hadn’t already been going slow, their pace would have surely lessened on the precarious steps.

As they descended, the smell of sulfur grew.

“Ah! Why does Hell have to smell so bad?” Ren murmured.

Jester paused.

“That’s not my home’s normal smell,” he huffed. “That’s waste. We might be near where they keep prisoners.”

Jester tumbled a few steps, losing his bearings, and poofed away to land on his feet.

“Damnit, Jester,no! I can’t keep up with you!” she hissed, sliding.

When her feet finally hit the plateaued ground, she swiftly crept down the hallway and turned the corner.

Jester was standing in front of a stone door with a largebar lock. The only way to see what was on the other side of the door was a small opening at the bottom.

Ren scurried over as Jester bent down, his tail in the air.

“Gabriela! Is that you?” he whispered.

At first, there was no reply.

“Gabriela, we are here to help you!” Ren offered.

They then heard a small shuffling behind the door as Ren bent down. She saw two bare yellow feet walking towards them and then two yellow eyes on the round face.

“Who are you?” she asked, voice wavering.

Jester licked his lips nervously.

“We were sent by some friends. We’ve come to get you out.”

Ren eyed her companion, confused. She could have sworn he said that Gabriela knew him.

Gabriela’s cat-like eyes filled with tears.