CHAPTER SEVEN

DEATH. 

Lucas felt himself floating in the void. "Emptiness," was the only word he could muster. He was dead—but where was he? There was no light, only darkness. He heard a voice speak to him, "Wake up," over and over.

He wondered if it was the voice of a higher being—an existence beyond human comprehension. Then he finally saw it: the light. It was warm, embracing him like a mother hen, and it crept closer, whisking him out of his reverie.

He felt something pulling him back. It was the darkness. It tugged at his body as if trying to convince him to stay—as if he belonged there. He resisted, but it wasn't enough. It dragged him through. He felt himself moving through the emptiness, a sensation so indescribable that words failed him.

As he moved, he wondered what had happened to Austin and Eve. "Could they be experiencing something similar, or were they still alive?" he hoped it was the latter—he did not wish for anyone else to experience what he had. Then he remembered: he had reason to wish it was the former.

Lost in thought, he hadn't noticed that he had stopped moving. Up or down, left or right—he had no sense of direction in the void. The lack of light and sound was slowly eating away at his sanity, and he managed to persevere only through his racing thoughts. Then the darkness divided.

On one side, he saw Eve and Austin looking down at someone with worried expressions on their faces. "They are alive," he told himself, feeling little relief. On the other side, he saw men with horns sitting at a long table, deep in discussion.

The place resembled the interior of a castle—colored mostly in red, yet still exuding regal appeal. The horned men sat on massive chairs at a long table, resembling a gathering of good-looking fanatics. Something caught his eye at the corner of the massive meeting room: it was lava.

"Could that place be hell?" he asked himself, coming to the conclusion that the men were demons. As he pondered this new discovery, he looked at the man sitting at the far end of the table—the one currently speaking. He resembled a prince giving instructions to his council, and among the twelve that sat there, he had the most appeal.

His gunmetal gray hair complemented his sharp features. His horn was the longest among them, curving upwards as if trying to reach the stars but settling in the sky. He was dressed in formal attire, and Lucas felt a spark of ecstasy at their choice of clothing—so similar to that of human beings. That feeling vanished when something shocking happened.

The man looked in his direction.

Lucas was alarmed as the man proceeded to smile wryly. "Anatares," he said. Lucas felt the darkness pull him again. It was as if the darkness had saved him from what he did not want to imagine. He moved until he saw the light once more. He felt its warmth and embraced it—it was as if he were cold and warm at the same time. The clashing attributes found harmony within him, and he felt his body leave the void.

He opened his eyes and saw Eve and Austin looking at him with worried expressions. "You're finally awake," Austin said, fatigue lacing his voice. "How long was I out?" he asked, looking at Austin, believing him to be the more reliable source of information.

Austin turned around, while Eve stifled a retch at his question. "When you tried to press the button, I felt something take over me—something I had only experienced once in my life…" he paused, finding it difficult to continue. "Insurmountable fear," Eve interjected with emptiness in her eyes. "As your hand inched closer to the button, the feeling worsened. It felt like… like…" "Death," Lucas completed.

"Yes, like death. Before you could touch the button, you collapsed and the feeling vanished. Then Eve vomited while I struggled to remain upright. A cleaner carried you to this chair, and after ten minutes you woke up," Austin said in a businesslike tone. "Was there a shadowy hand?" Lucas asked, perturbed. "No," Austin replied point-blank.

Lucas wondered if what he saw was an illusion. Even if it was, what about the void? He saw Austin and Eve looking at someone—him—from afar. What about the demons? Was it all fake? "I'm not going back there," Eve said gloomily. It made sense not to return. He imagined how powerful the creature on the 15th floor was and recalled how Lily had managed to escape. He stood up, his body aching horribly, yet he resisted the pain as he moved toward the exit, with Eve at his side. When they reached the door, they realized Austin was no longer with them.

"Let's go," Lucas shouted, trying to bridge the distance between them. Austin didn't move; he stood like a wall, staring at the elevator and then at the ceiling. "I'm going there," he said out of nowhere. "I know—the bakery smells really nice," Lucas responded. He continued moving outside, but Austin did not follow. "I'm going to the 15th floor," Austin declared as Lucas stopped in his tracks.

It didn't make sense. Why would he want to go to that place when they couldn't even press the elevator button? Eve walked up to him and pushed him back in anger, but it was to no avail—he was too big. "Don't you value your life? Is it because of what happened five years ago that you want to kill yourself now?" she screamed, her hair disheveled. She looked like a mad woman ranting.

"It's not that," he responded, his back turned to her. "You are coming with us," she said firmly. As Lucas watched the exchange, he wondered what happened five years ago and how long the two had known each other. Austin moved toward the elevator. As he motioned to press the button, another hand grabbed his. It was Lucas. "I thought I was supposed to be the main character," he said jovially.

"What are you doing?" Eve asked, concern evident on her face. His face paled as he said, "We can't let Austin go alone." "You," she corrected, turning away. "It was the sane thing to do," Lucas assured. He looked at Austin, who still eyed the button. "Are you sure about this?" he asked, in case Austin wanted to change his mind. "Sure as hell," Austin responded. "Been there," Lucas said, earning a suspicious glance from Austin. Lucas moved his hand to press the button again, but this time there was no repulsing force. He felt invited.

He pushed the button and the door opened. They headed inside, and the door closed behind them. As it moved upward, Lucas knew this could be his last day on Earth. He also wondered why he had decided to follow Austin. "What happened five years ago?" he asked, trying to steer his thoughts in a different direction. Austin didn't respond; he simply looked at his reflection in the elevator door.

"That's a story for another time," he said placidly. Lucas was about to ask another question when he heard a ding—the elevator had reached the 15th floor. "I hope you don't regret this," Lucas said. "Ditto," Austin responded. The door opened, and Lucas almost vomited. The place smelled like rotten corpses marinated in raw sewage and rotten eggs. Fog filled the space. He felt prickling cold air move up his body, which was a small comfort compared to the putrid smell.

Austin stepped out, and Lucas followed. They looked around, and the place was massive—a large, empty room with the fog obstructing most of it, yet its vastness was obvious. He saw skeletons scattered about and tapped Austin. "It's time to go," he said. Austin resisted but eventually complied. They turned around and started heading back in the direction of the elevator to descend.

It wasn't there.