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“Well, at least I have you for company, boy. Huh, what’s that you’ve got there?” Shadow grimaced as the dog lay a slobbery bone by his feet. “For the last time, I told you not to go digging in the graveyard. I swear you have one brain cell between those three heads of yours.”
With a sigh, he returned his gaze to the landscape, where faint golden lights shimmered in the center of the darkness. He looked at the rundown motel he called home, and the bramble-covered gardens, where barbed-wire like thorns grew as far as the eye could see.
“I’m not sure how long we can last like this, Cerberus. If we don’t save a lost soul soon, the Underworld will fall.” A plume of fog flared from Shadow’s nostrils in frustration. “But how can we save anyone, when no one has visited us in years?”
Cerberus lifted his heads as a low rumble shook the ground, and barked at his master.
“Don’t play that game with me. I fed you an hour ago.”
But Shadow looked in surprise as another rumble disrupted the silence of the Underworld, followed by the crunch of gravel. If this wasn’t a case of Cerberus’ insatiable appetite, then what was it?
His eyes widened as a pair of golden lights emerged on the horizon. Not just any lights, but car lights. He watched in disbelief as a vehicle sped along the roads, venturing closer to the Underworld’s boundaries.
“What’s a mortal doing all the way out here? The Underworld is certainly no place for the living.”
Shadow watched the car distrustfully as it approached. He glanced at Cerberus as the pooch let out a low whine, and shook his head dismissively.
“I wouldn’t get your hopes up, boy.” Shadow’s eyes narrowed coldly at the vehicle. “I’m sure they’ll be gone soon enough.”
But Shadow drew a startled breath as a piece of parchment fluttered through the sky. It soared along the breeze like a paper plane, before it landed snugly into his hands. His eyes widened in shock as he read its contents, while Cerberus cocked his head and pawed impatiently at his side.
“Impossible. This can’t be…” Shadow looked from the parchment, and back to the car. “All this time, we’ve been waiting to save a lost soul. I just didn’t expect it would be… a mortal.”
Cerberus barked in excitement, while Shadow’s face paled. For so long, he’d protected the secret of his kingdom from mortal kind. But now he was supposed to welcome one into the land of the dead?
A bark from Cerberus snapped him to attention. He groaned as the dog gave him a knowing look, and shook his head in protest.
“I’m not being stubborn. There’s just something here that doesn’t add up.” Shadow watched the unusual winds as they danced along the Underworld, and noticed a shimmer of a rainbow sparkling in the distance. With his suspicions confirmed, his grip tightened on the parchment, until he crushed it into a paper ball. “The gods should know better than to meddle where they’re not wanted.”
Despite Shadow’s fearsome demeanor, Cerberus pawed at his master’s side once more, and let out a low whine. Shadow groaned in defeat, knowing that even he was no match to counter the combined will of the gods and the headstrong pooch.
“You really think she could be the one, huh?” Shadow sighed as he scratched Cerberus’ ears, before he returned his gaze to the car. “Fine. Let’s see how long the mortal can last here. Just don’t get attached. Sooner or later, she’ll move on, just like everyone else.”
With a merry bark, Cerberus scampered down the hill, towards the motel in the distance. Shadow returned his gaze to the approaching car, knowing that its arrival meant one thing. Change was coming to the Underworld. But right now, he couldn’t tell if the mortal would be the savior of his kingdom, or would be the source of its destruction.
2
If there was one thing worse than driving seven-hundred miles across winding country roads, it was doing so with a malfunctioning radio for company. Zoe groaned as the car filled with a lively chorus of a mariachi brand, followed by the warbling tones of a soprano that serenaded her as she took another winding corner. She fiddled with the dials to no avail, until the shrill blasts of her phone interrupted the caterwauling singer. Her stomach churned as she glanced at the caller ID. It was her boss, as usual.
“Mr. Gravesend?”
“Zoe! Would you care to explain why I haven’t been able to get hold of you for the last hour?” Zoe gulped as she glanced at the volume of missed calls on her screen. “And why does it sound as though you have a wailing cat beside you?”
“Sorry, Mr. Gravesend. Something’s interfering with my signal around here…” Zoe twiddled the dials of her dashboard once more, until the opera singer’s warbling was replaced with a chorus of over-excited castanets. “So, err, is there a reason you need me at eleven thirty at night?”
“Of course there’s a reason!” Mr. Gravesend spluttered with indignation. “Think of everything Chthonic Power Solutions has provided for you. Enough business trips to make you feel as though you’re living in every time zone. Your very own office cubicle. The chance to work your way up the corporate career ladder. And all we ask in return is for you to be accessible morning, noon and night, seven days a week, three-hundred and sixty-five days a year. Is that really too much to ask?”
Zoe sighed. “I suppose not, Mr. Gravesend.”
“So you’ll be at Spring Valley by tomorrow? I sincerely hope I don’t need to remind you of the importance of this deal…”
“I should make it if I drive all night.” Zoe glanced at the map on her dashboard, the road names reduced to squiggles in the darkness. “At least, I think I’m headed in the right direction. These roads all look the same to me…”
“I don’t care if you have to grow wings and fly there. The city needs power, and Spring Valley has more energy deposits than a Duracell bunny after eight espressos. All you need to do is convince the current land owners to sell up, so that we can move in.”
Zoe’s stomach churned uneasily at the prospect. Not everyone welcomed the arrival of Chthonic Power Solutions, and with good reason, too. The corporation moved like a vampire, sucking the life from the land, until only a deadened husk remained.
“And you’re sure the residents won’t put up a fight?”
