Page 34 of As Above, So Below

“We need more information on how this can work,ifthis can work,” she says, her voice confident and determined.

“I don’t know where to start,” I admit, defeated.

She grabs a couple crystals still intact from the floor, one in each hand. With a grin, she shoves one at my chest.

“What we need won’t be here. We have to barter for information.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

In my earlycenturies, I learned making clandestine deals with shadow hags is a terrible idea. If I had more time, I would have other options, but the truth of the matter is, I’m desperate.

I need answers, and I need them now.

When Ylara suggested we track down the one she knew to be lurking in the lower layers of the Tower, I nearly laughed in her face. There’s no way Netharis would allow a shadow hag residency within his walls. But when she stared at me, silent, it became clear she wasn’t joking.

Mercurial creatures at best, vindictive and greedy at worst, shadow hags are an ancient breed of demon, unbound, Unhoused, and treacherous. They’re too much of a wild card, following their own set of rules and skirting the choler of the gods.

Many tend to hide within the veil, a godless realm with an abundance of fresh souls for them to feed upon. Why one would hide in the hells, so close to Netharis, is beyond me. All it would take is for Netharis to catch her scent and he would trap her in obsidian.

Netharis prefers to have control over what information from and about the hells makes it to the living realm, and shadow hags are essentially information brokers. They’ll share anything they know for the right price.

Typically, that price is paid in souls.

Two elder souls should more than suffice for the information I need.

Shadow hags are one of the few creatures capable of travel between the hells, the veil, and the living realm. It makes sense to ask one how I can do the same. I’m not fond of the idea of barteringwith one, but I’ve little other choice.

Sucking in a sharp breath, the stench of decay and stagnant water stings my nose, and I grimace as Ylara and I trudge through ankle deep mud and rot.

I don’t make a habit of visiting these lower levels. They’re a breeding ground for lesser demons. Creatures like imps, nubeculai, and whisper demons—prompting the use of a mental ward—run rampant here. While they’re not much of a threat, the fewer eyes we have on us, the better.

The silver light cast by the magelight I’d summoned floats several feet ahead, illuminating the wide black marble hall as we press forward. Unlike the near sterile clean of the halls of the greater echelon floors of the library, dormitories, and throne room, these layers are a more accurate portrayal of the hells.

Obscene and filthy, slow decaying corpses litter the hall, some stacked in mounds I’m forced to move around. They’re the bodies of necromancers who have failed to return to the living realm during an excursion into this realm for souls.

Stepping over a strange collection of left arms, I peer into the darkness beyond the magelight. Aside from our slow, squelching steps, the hall lies silent and somber. The muck forces us to move at a slow pace, neither of us wanting to misstep and injure ourselves or find ourselves face to face with a demon who’s decided to skip this evening’s hunt.

My innate vibrates with anticipation, sending a shiver down my spine and along my arms. It likes being here even less than I do.

“You’re sure it’s this layer?” I ask in a whisper, but even that sounds loud against the stark silence.

Walking beside me, Ylara nods. “She’s always here. It’s just a matter of finding where she’s set up for the night. She never stays in the same place for more than a day.”

I purse my lips in annoyance.

Not only a dangerous target but a moving one as well.

Great.

“Sunshine has hidden in the hells for nearly twelve centuries,” Ylara says, and I glance at my sister through the corner of my eyes. She stares at the darkness before her, searching for any sign ofunwelcome visitors.

“The hag’s name is Sunshine?” I mutter the question.

Stifling a small laugh, Ylara smiles. “Yes. Sunshine. You’ll understand when you see her.”

“How do you know this hag?” I ask, knowing gods damned well Ylara isn’t going to give me a straight answer.

She hesitates. “I wouldn’t say Iknowher.”