The Solving

Sage and Wiley managed to finish the bottle within an hour (with a little help from random strangers), and so Samantha ended up having to babysit them until Luke showed up. The girls all met him outside, with Sage leaning against the beige wall to keep her balance.

"Holy shit, you're plastered!" Luke exclaimed when he saw her.

"We're not that drunk." she claimed, brushing her hair out of her face. Samantha disagreed.

"What's with that?" Luke asked, pointing at her head.

"Rude!" Wiley chimed in. "It's part of her costume."

Luke shrugged and smirked. "I was just asking," he defended. "I think it looks kind of hot."

Sage's stomach burned. She didn't know if it was from the vodka or the way he was looking at her. She was tingling all over.

"In that case," Wiley slurred, "We're gonna go inside and dance." Samantha began to protest, but before she could even convince Wiley to not, Wiley was dragging Samantha's hand and leading her inside to the dance floor.

"Seriously," Luke started, still finishing off his chuckle from the scene that he had just witnessed, "you look good."

Sage smiled shyly. This was going to be one of those days where she couldn't get enough of him, she supposed. She hated being the only drunk one, though. Usually it was the other way around. This time, Luke looked as sober as a brick. She wondered where he had been that was so boring that he managed to not get into any trouble.

"Wow, so you're not gonna compliment me?" he teased.

Sage eyed him up and down. He wasn't even wearing a costume. "You're wearing a bathrobe and baggy pants."

Luke scoffed and feigned offense. "You don't know who I'm supposed to be?"

Sage thought hard, but she couldn't think of anybody who was famous for wearing pajamas.

"I'm Hugh Hefner!"

Still no recognition from Sage.

"He created playboy."

Sage laughed. "You're crazy for being him."

"What're you even supposed to be?"

Sage doubled over laughing. "I don't even know!"

"Exactly," Luke retorted, nursing the giggles that were still escaping her, "you don't even know."

Sage stood up straight, attempting to subdue the laughter.

"Who's better for a demon of lust to be than a king of porn?"

Sage raised an eyebrow. "Is that what you are?"

Luke laughed. "You don't know what Playboy is?"

"I know what playboy is, but I didn't know you were a demon of lust." Sage said, making quotation marks with her hands for the last phrase.

"Oh," Luke replied. He was shifting uncomfortably now.

"What does that mean for you?"

"I'm supposed to make sure people are lustful."

That explained the feeling in the pit of her stomach every time she saw him. "Well, it's working."

Luke laughed, but what he said was finally starting to sink in for her. Part of her was angry at him for doing that without her permission, but a bigger part of her liked the feeling. "Creepy," she muttered.

Luke shrugged and looked away. "Usually it's not this strong, but you're drunk so it's easier."

Sage went stiff. This is exactly what she had been afraid of. Maybe her mother was right about substances opening you up to the influence of the unholy. Before Sage could fret about it for any longer, though, Luke grabbed her hand and pulled her inside.

"So what do you do in Hell exactly?" she asked as she wobbled behind him. She had so many questions still. She felt like she knew nothing about what she was about to do.

Luke looked around, but everyone was more invested in dancing. "You can't just say that, you know."

Sage giggled. "Oh, so you think people are watching you, Mr. Popular." She was twirling her hair as she said it, something she never did. She had the cheesiest smile on her face, but she didn't even care.

"Anyone here know Luke?" she yelled into the crowd. A few people looked, but most ignored her. Someone walked by with a bottle, and she asked for a drink.

Luke chuckled, hands in his pockets. "You're so drunk."

That was the last thing Sage remembered from that night, other than little bits and pieces. At some point she had thrown up all over an uber, and at another point she had ended up in Luke's apartment. She remembered laying on the floor of his kitchen and then laying on his couch with her head in his lap, but that was about it. The next thing she remembered was being in another uber with Samantha. Sage woke up with a raging headache the next day.

"Really?" Wiley said when she complained about it. "I feel fine. You should've drank more water."

Sage quickly got up, got showered, and then headed out to the library, knowing that feeling on top of things would help her feel better. She had been so busy with work and friends that she had been falling behind in her studies. Still, she felt like she was going to throw up the whole time. All she wanted in that moment was for Luke to be there with his arm around her. What did he do to her? Eventually, after 45 minutes of torture Sage just stepped out. She facetimed Luke.

"Hello?" he answered, his face pale.

Sage laughed. "Were you sleeping? It's like 1 p.m."

Luke groaned. "Busy night."

"Come over."

Luke groaned again and Sage scoffed.

"I have to tell you how to prepare for my coronation, anyway."

"Right."

Luke was over in an hour, seemingly in good spirits despite how he had looked that morning. "Let me see your closet," he said as soon as he walked in. He went over to it and thumbed through the outfits. "You don't have any black dresses?"

"No," Sage replied. "My family gets super paranoid about all black outfits."

"Well, you're going to need to find one." Luke insisted. He went over and sat on the bed, his mind visibly working. "When you come over, bring holy water."

Sage laughed. "Where am I supposed to find holy water?"

Luke shrugged in response. "I don't know, you're the religious one. Maybe just bring a cross or something."

"And why would I need a cross in hell?" Sage questioned.

"You won't." Luke stated. "But you will need it to help you get out of it."

Luke said that Sage had to be over next Tuesday night, which was kind of inconvenient because she had to leave Wednesday morning to join a search party for Kale.

Sage showed up the next week anyways in her black sweatpants and one of Wiley's black tees. If she could find those records it would make her life a lot easier the next day. She was going to find Kale, she just knew it.

"You look good in black." Luke had complimented her.

"I brought my cross necklace." she said, lifting up her hand so that he could see it. It was the silver one that Kale had gifted to her to make up for that prank he had played on her in middle school. He was sweet when he wanted to be. It was just an ordinary necklace, but it made her feel like he was with her.

"Perfect." Luke walked to the bathtub and Sage followed. "You're gonna have to get in the bath in all of your clothes."

"Nothing you say surprises me anymore."

Luke smiled at her and started the water. "Good."

Sage sat on the edge of the tub. "So, are you gonna open up a portal in the water or something?"

Luke frowned. "No, this version of getting to Hell is more complicated."

Sage's expression mirrored his. "What does that mean?"

Luke didn't miss a beat. "Do you trust me?"

Sage nodded, although she wasn't so sure. She realized then that she really did not know him or how he was related to hell.

"Then tie this dumbell to your waist."

Sage's heart rate sped up. "What?"

Luke shut off the water and turned towards her. "Your soul won't go to hell if your body is living. It doesn't work for you."

Sage stood up. "You're going to kill me?"

"Sage, obviously I'm not gonna just leave you dead. I can bring you back to life. There'll be a guest there, who's identity you won't even be able to find out, by the way. I've done the same for him."

Sage didn't pay attention to his side comment. Kale would forgive her for not doing this, right? She gulped, thinking about Kale's no good friends. This was all their fault. They really hadn't kept an eye on him knowing he was acting weird? He was so good to everyone. He deserved better than that. She tapped her foot, thinking hard. This could be her chance to repay all that he had done for everyone. Closing her eyes, she lifted both of her legs into the bathtub and settled in. The water was burning hot, and her hands shook as she grabbed the rope tied to the dumbbell and knotted it around her waist. It pulled her down, and Luke grabbed her hands in the water and tied them together. At first she was just nervous, but then the panic set in. She wiggled and writhed with regret, and then started screaming. Her feet kicked and thrashed, but it seemed to do nothing but waste her energy. The slap of her feet against the water sounded dull from her sunken position, which her brain mostly blocked it out. Her lungs felt like they were on fire, and against her permission they took a deep breath, bringing unbearable pain to her chest. Before she knew it her consciousness began to fade, the corners of her vision darkening in a blotty manner. Her body seemed to increase in weight as she made a last attempt to fight off the blackness, and the next thing she heard was a voice.

"Everything's okay," it cooed.

Her heart squeezed. Was that Kale? Were they in heaven?

Sage opened her eyes and was disappointed to find out that the blurry figure she saw was Luke. When he stepped in, the water began to boil, and Sage could feel the heat against her skin, but no pain followed. As he bent over and put out his hand, Sage began to notice the strong scent of pine coming from him. "Pull yourself up."

Sage's brows furrowed with confusion. He had tied her up. She pulled with all of her force to break loose, but found that her arms lifted effortlessly out of the water. She wildly grabbed around until she found the sides of the tub and put her hands down to help hoist her up.

She got up and stood by him, taking in how it felt to do so. She felt just like normal. In fact, she felt better than normal. She felt like she could do anything. Until she followed the direction of Luke's hand with her eyes as he pulled the plug from the bathtub. There her body was, still flushed from the struggle. It almost looked calm though. She shivered and looked away, excited for all of this to be over.

"I'm going to go back to hell and then get you as close as possible before sending you through the portal." He didn't wait for an answer before disappearing, leaving Sage alone in the bathroom with her body. Sage glanced at it nervously, the water seemingly flushing out abnormally fast . She wrapped her arms around her stomach, and when she finished blinking she saw that she had changed settings. She was now in an empty room. The walls were so white they almost looked like they weren't there. In the middle was a hole and Luke stood directly under it.

"Come here." he shouted, the sound of the flames competing against his voice.

Sage gulped and came up to the hole, her stomach twisting and turning. "Let me find you, Kale." she muttered. She went up to it, and it was so black that it looked like there was a hole in the fabric of space. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to work herself up to going in. She felt like she was going to pass out. She wished that her brother were there to guide her. Still not opening her eyes, she started taking slow steps, holding her breath everytime she put her foot down. Finally, her foot landed on nothing and she went tumbling forward.

It was silent in the tunnel, and after a few seconds she opened her eyes. The hole looked like it was only ten feet long max from above , but now that she was in it she couldn't see the bottom. She realized that she had been breathing heavily, but she couldn't even hear that now. Everywhere she turned her head was black. She felt like she was on one of those roller coasters that take you to the top and drop you straight down, your stomach seemingly pushing up into your lungs. Her chest was tight as she looked around, and she realized that she could not see any evidence of movement in her surroundings. The only thing that affirmed that she wasn't sitting still was her hair blowing around her.

Now she began to scream, but the sound never reached her ears. Her throat strained and burned, but it was as if she hadn't opened her mouth at all. She closed it, tears beginning to fall down her face. Was this hell? Would she ever leave? She curled into a ball and rested her head in between her knees, praying. "Our father in heaven…"

What was the next line? She hit a really cold pocket, and out of habit, her body began to shiver violently. Her teeth chattered as she continued to yell. "...hallowed by your name…" She still heard nothing.

Finally, she fell on something hard with her back. The air was sucked out of her body for a second and she couldn't breathe. Her vision was blackening, but as soon as she saw Luke's face in it she immediately scrambled to her feet, her head feeling like it was filled with pressure.

"Where am I?" She put the back of her hand to her head. It was incredibly hot wherever she was, and yet the skin on her forehead felt cool. She felt something trickle down her neck, and when she dabbed her finger in it she saw that it was blood. What had gotten into her for her to agree to this?

"Hell." Luke's smile started to fade. "What's wrong?"

How could he say that? She felt sick even thinking about what had happened. How long had she been in that tunnel? Her hand flew to her stomach, which was now beginning to convulse. A bucket of red bile poured from her mouth and she doubled over from the force. A hand laid gently on her back, and yet the heat of it brought the void back to her mind.

"Don't touch me," she muttered, and then she heaved again. Nothing came up. She wiped her sweat covered forehead, considering putting a finger down her throat. Anything to make her feel better, although she knew that either way she'd feel disgusting. "I don't suppose you have any water, do you?" She stood up and a faint smile played on her cracked lips. Luke began to smile, too.

"Not here." He gestured for her to follow him and she did.

"So, what now?" She prompted, mentally preparing herself just in case she collapsed at any moment. They stepped on to a pale, slimy path that made a squelching noise with every step. Sage held back a comment.

"I'll drop you off at the venue while I get ready."

Sage perked up at this. She'd have plenty of time to look around.

As they made their way further into hell, Sage's stomach churned with anxiety. She prayed she wouldn't throw up again, but she could taste the vomit sneaking up her throat. She kept her head down, fighting the urge to double over for two hours. After about ten minutes, they began to enter a section surrounded by flames. The heat was beginning to feel unbearable. Trying to distract herself from the reality of the situation, she looked at the view off of the path for the first time. Trees lined the walking area about a few yards away from it, and on them were bodies. When Sage looked closer she saw that they were alive, swinging violently in the wind of the flames.

"Luke!" Sage shouted, gripping his arm. "There's people tied up. I don't think they can get out.

Luke just shrugged. "They sinned."

Sage shivered in response. She was considering telling him that she no longer felt well enough to go anymore when they reached a black door. It was too late now. Luke turned the knob and held it open for her, and Sage walked inside. The room was gigantic, like the size of two football fields. There was a platform as tall as a half dozen stacked cars in the center. Luke brought Sage close to the front, and up there Luke found and greeted a boy.

"Sage, this is Danny," he said. Sage waved and Danny rolled his eyes. He had floppy, jet black hair and green eyes that peeked out from behind his swooping bangs.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll watch her for you."

"Thanks, man." Luke said. He kissed Sage. "I'll see you in a bit." And with that he hurried off to who knows where. Sage turned to Danny.

"Nice to meet you." She figured she should make a good impression before she started bombarding him with questions.

Danny smiled, and Sage noticed that his teeth were really white. Maybe he would end up liking her.

"Of course Luke would drag along a mortal."

"You're not a mortal?"

Danny sat on the floor, and Sage followed, expecting an answer. He just ignored her.

"Listen, I'm looking for these records," she continued.

Danny laughed. I know exactly what you're talking about, and you'd have to be someone really special to get into the doors of that library."

Sage could feel her patience wearing thin. "What's so funny?"

"You'll see."

Sage tensed. "See what?" When Danny ignored her again Sage debated whether or not she had the energy to try to coax it out of him. She took in the room for the first time, and saw that it had a burning blue upside down pentacle. Sage looked back at Danny. "Really, see what?" she asked as she laid down.

Danny looked at her with disgust. "You'll never survive hell."

Sage wondered what he meant, but didn't say anything. He reminded her of how people talked to her in high school. This whole conversation was draining her rapidly. She could feel a headache coming on. "Look, I've been through hell, no pun intended. Will you please tell me what I need to do?"

Danny chuckled. "Look, you better be one of the wards to get into that room."

Sage blinked slowly. "I'll bite. What's a ward?"

Danny rolled his eyes. He looked kind of pretty when he did so, Sage thought to herself, but that was besides the point. He pinched his nose bridge.

"Why would he bring her here?" he said as if speaking to a third party. "There are 7 wards. The Super Christ is one of these 7. Infernal legend goes that he's going to visit us any day now, and whatever he sees is going to spur him to either destroy us or help us take over Earth."

"Is it real?"

Danny paused, seemingly enjoying the conversation. "Doubt it, although Luke says today he's going to present one of the wards he found. They're all similar in age, and so to catch one of the godly wards is to prevent them from steering the Super Christ from wanting to overthrow Hell is what the legend says."

"What's so wrong with the Christ overthrowing Hell? Won't things stay exactly the same anyways?"

"It's a Christ," Danny pointed out. "Of course it won't."

"Could I do whatever this Super Christ does."

Danny sneered. "He has to turn water into wine. Think you can do that?"

"I can learn, can't I?" Shouldn't the laws of physics work differently down here? Sage could totally see herself turning water into wine.

"Swear on the river styx. See what happens," Danny replied. This ruined her confidence. Getting the dirt out from under his nails seemed to really be occupying him at that moment, but Sage caught him peering up at her through his hair, a look of mischief on his face.

"Is that like swearing on your mother or something?"

Danny rolled his eyes. "It's against Inferno law to say something untrue when you swear on the river styx."

Sage squinted at him. He didn't seem to be lying.

"I don't get your mortals."

Sage ignored him, the wheels in her head turning. She wasn't getting very far. She realized that she should've made a plan first. Kale would've. He had a plan for everything.

One time when they were in their freshman year of highschool someone had picked up on embarrassing Sage in front of her English class. She was in advanced English, and so there were lots of presentations or times when she would be randomly called on. She put a lot of effort into thinking about what she wanted to say about the books they read, but this girl would always have some kind of snarky comment for her that made everybody laugh. When it came time to write a prose piece for a Washington state schools contest, she opted out, picturing the girl having something to say that would've made everyone vote against her.

"You can totally win," Kale had told her. "And I know what you should write about."

A boy came up behind Danny and patted him on the shoulder, breaking her out of her thoughts.

"Tyler!" Danny shouted, his teeth gleaming through his smile. Sage rolled her eyes. She didn't even know why at that point. Just his mere existence was starting to get on her nerves.

"This is the long awaited Sage." he continued. Tyler smiled at her politely, and Sage lifted her and gave a small wave in response.

"Damn, what did you do to her?" Tyler laughed. "She looks like she's going to be sick.

Danny laughed too. "She's just all christian and stuff." Sage scoffed at that one. Lucky for her, the platform began to lower, and she saw that the crowd on the opposite end of the room began to part. Everyone's eyes were drawn to the woman entering. She had hair the color of petals on the daisy you spend your whole childhood picking to find out if they love you or not. In the end the daisy is as much of an obsession as they are. Her eyes were the color of the sky above you as you find out that the love interest wants you. Everywhere she stepped, Sage's eyes wanted to follow. The woman stepped on to the platform, and then Luke emerged from the crowd, his skin covered in a silky black robe. He briefly scanned the people in the front, and then stepped on to the platform as well. Following him were four dwarfs. They carried a black chair covered in red jewels. After they stepped on, the platform began to rise, and the crowd began to bow.

Feeling awkward, Sage followed. She never saw herself bowing to him, or to anyone for that matter. As everyone began to rise, a boy was brought in from the left. His hands were tied behind his back, and his face was facing the floor as he walked on to the stage, a dwarf behind him. He was thin, and she could see his ribs through his baggy shirt. Sage squinted. They were probably a thousand feet from the actual stage.

"Who's that?" she whispered to Danny.

He shrugged. "Probably the supposed ward."

The crowd was silent as the boy stood before Luke. Luke turned him towards them, and Sage saw that he had a paper bag over his head.

Two more men came in from the left, and they were carrying a clear bathtub. It had gold handles and was filled to the brim, causing some water to slosh over as they set it down. Luke spoke again.

"What if I told you that he can walk on water?"

A murmur passed through the crowd like a wave, and then it was silent once more. All that could be heard was the liquid swishing back and forth in the tub. Luke pushed the boy and said something, but Sage couldn't hear what.

Stumbling as the guards guided him, he walked forward until his leg hit the side. They hoisted him up a bit, and with a swing he put the heel of his foot over the side and on the water. It stayed on the surface as he swung the other leg on. He stood up, and he was standing on top of the surface. Luke reached his hand in and then splashed some water out to demonstrate that it wasn't some kind of hologram.

"He floats."

The crowd cheered wildly as Luke smiled boldly. "The Super Christ is among us!" he yelled when the clapping died down. He gestured for the boy to get off, and he did.

"I found out that boy's name by the way," Tyler whispered as Luke spoke. "Bribery will get you a long way."

"Yeah?" Danny replied. "Is this whole thing real or is it another one of his tricks?"

Tyler laughed. "He was so foul for that. I really thought he ravaged one of the daughters of God." He paused to shake his head. "This one is real. Luke thinks he's not the Super Christ himself, but it's pretty obvious he is."

Danny laughed. "We'll see about that."

Tyler's eyebrows were furrowed. "I think his name is Spinach?"

Sage froze.

"That's somehow worse than Sage," Danny laughed, glancing at her in the process. He saw Sage's expression and lingered on it.

"Wait, I think it was Kale." Tyler cocked his head. "Yeah, it was. He was a college student."

"What?" Sage asked, her voice at full volume. The people near turned around to glare at her. She turned to Danny and grabbed his arm. "Danny, that's my brother." Tears were streaming down her face now. "You have to do something.

Danny looked at Tyler, who had averted his gaze to the front. Danny looked back at Sage, his face pale. "I didn't know that."

"Do something!" she urged, glancing from the stage to Danny and then the stage again.

"I'll get you out of here," he offered.

Sage studied his face. Was he serious? "What about my brother?"

"Listen, he'll be okay, alright? The best I can do is get you out of here. You can't help him if you die trying to get over the barriers right now."

She looked to the front. He had a point. There was a wire fence around the stage, and two guards stood at every corner, their muscles stretching the fabric of their uniforms. Who knew what they could do to her. She took a deep breath in an attempt to collect herself. "You'll help me?"

"Hell no!" he whispered through gritted teeth.

Sage ran a hand through her hair, her breathing picking up again.

"I mean, I'll tell you how to help him. That's all I can do." Danny grabbed her hand and then led her through the crowd, apologizing as he pushed past the people. His hand was really hot, but she didn't want to let go in fear of losing him among the people. It took them a while to get to the entrance, but when they did Danny picked up the pace.

They sped walked along the path, the slime just as gooey as before. The hallway was mostly empty now, and it was somehow eerier than it had been before. The wind whistled lowly through the leaves as if it was carrying gossip about her. Suddenly Danny stopped. His face was flushed, and his sea green eyes wide. He stared off in the distance as he chewed his lip.

"Luke used me," Sage mumbled to a face that wasn't listening.

"Open the portal," he urged her as he turned his eyes back to hers.

Sage blinked. If she could open the portal by herself she wouldn't have needed Luke in the first place. "You mean you can't even open it?"

"Just open it."

She scoffed. "I literally can't." She could feel the panic filling her body again.

"Yes, you can." he said, putting his hands on her shoulder. He smelled like oatmeal and cologne. "Just try it."

She didn't know what opening a portal was supposed to look like, so she held out her arm to the ceiling and moved her fingers as if she was attempting telekinesis.

"Not like that." Danny interrupted.

"Like what then?" Sage's arm shook as she put it down. She glanced around to make sure that no one was near. How much time left until Luke's speech was over? Could he trap her the same way he had trapped Kale?

"You know how."

Sage closed her eyes and visualized the ceiling turning into a black hole. It was hard, and in her imagination it kept trying to go back to the dark red ceiling it was before. She struggled against it, and the hole kept stretching and receding. Eventually she began to sweat from the effort. Right when she was about to give up, the hole widened in her mind and she felt a gust of cool air hit her head. She looked up and screamed.

Danny flinched. "What? What's the matter?"

"I did it!" she exclaimed. "I get to go home!"

Danny smiled, and for once it wasn't a sign that he was mocking her. "And don't worry about your grounding tool. You won't need it."

"Thankyou, thankyou!" she rushed up to him and hugged him, and he awkwardly hugged her back in return.