I do not own Chaotic nor anything related to it. It belongs to TCDigital.

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The City Like Hell

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I'd forgotten how hard it is to keep track of time in the Underworld from my last life there. There's no sun, no stars, no difference between day and night. Now our company simply travels until the kozorr need a break.

There's also a mild problem. Turns out Mipedians have some degree of claustrophobia. The soldiers keep glancing at the ceiling of the Underworld, hands hovering near their weapons. The servants are constantly invisible now, even with their permission to relax. Most worryingly, the stress has caused Sett's old condition to flared up again.

"Just take a deep breath and hold it," Ashley suggests, her hands clasped around Sett's.

Sett clenched his jaws together and tries to breathe in deep, but another fit of coughs stops him.

Malvadine lets out his anxiety by constantly checking the contents of the wagons. Maliph is repeatedly checking the condition of everyone's weapons. Isis, well...

"Ow," I mutter, shaking my hand from Isis's grip.

"Sorry!" Isis puts her hands in her lap. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize how hard I was holding your hand."

I massage my knuckles. "It's all right, I know how much this place puts you on edge."

"I can't believe people actually live down here," Isis exclaims as she looks around for the fiftieth time this break. "No sky, walls everywhere, all these caverns..."

I turn around to see the progress that's been made with readying the kozorr. "Don't worry, we'll get moving again soon."

Isis glances at where the sky should be. "The sooner the better."

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I never saw the outside of Underworld City before, and the cartoon doesn't count. The real thing is actually quite breathtaking. Giant walls made of tan stone surround the city, and the gates appear to be made out of red metal. There are spikes everywhere, on the walls and doors, around windows, and along the road leading up to the entrance.

My company is waiting outside the gate. Nobody has come out to greet us. On the plus side, nobody's attacking us either.

My heart is racing. My palms are sweaty. My teeth are clenched tightly together, and my jaw is starting to hurt. I burned to death here once. I got blasted by mugic, too. I even spent a week as Chaor's pet. There are some unpleasant memories here, and they keep cycling through my head.

There's the sound of a gong being struck, and the large red doors begin to creak open. A gap appears between them, and a large creature walks out. Oh, joy. We just got here, and who greets us but Chaor himself.

Chaor's eyes are narrow slits as he approaches. His hands are clenched into fists, and his footfalls are heavy. He stops a distance away, opens his mouth, and bellows, "What the hell are you doing here, Mipedians?"

Okay, Michael. You're the prince, it's your job to answer. Just stay calm.

I raise my right hand and firmly say, "Greetings, Chaor, King and Conqueror of the World Below."

Chaor looks a bit taken by surprise. His eyes flick towards me, and he's quiet for a while. Then he raises his own right arm, hand still clenched into a fist, and replies, "Greetings, Osiris, Human Prince of the Desert Oasis."

"I received word from Queen Lilth that a creature has been found," I say in answer to Chaor's previous question. "I assume the creature was frozen when he was found?"

Chaor looks torn between answering my and ordering my company to leave. Finally what manners he has seem to win. "A creature was indeed found inside Ice Pillar some days ago. At Lilth's insistence, as well as many other Humans, I have kept him frozen."

"That's excellent news," I say, my pulse slowing a little. "Where is he being kept?"

"You want to have a crack at killing him?" Chaor asks with a raised eye ridge.

I blink. "I take it there have been some problems with your attempts?"

Chaor chews on the inside of his cheek for a few seconds. "I would prefer showing you what I mean to telling you."

...Chaor's spooked. I can tell. Something about Phelphor has seriously scared him. If Lilth and other Humans have been explaining the capabilities of the M'arrillians to him, then I don't blame him.

"Is this an invitation to enter the city?" I ask. Best to make sure we're actually allowed in.

Chaor bares his teeth, but says, "Yes. A place for you and your company to stay will be prepared."

I gusture for the wagon containing Chaor's gift to be brought forward. "As thanks for your hospitality-"

"Never mind that," Chaor snaps, "just come in."

I feel Isis's hands tighten on my shoulder. "...Did he just ignore a gift? Michael, just how dangerous are the M'arrillians?"

"Yah," I say aloud to start my kozorr moving. Then I whisper, "When we're safely inside and everyone's settled in, I can explain everything."

"Maliph says they're capable of destroying the world," Isis mutters.

Maliph said that? Oh right, I did mention something to that effect before we left Al Mipedim. "He isn't terribly far off the mark."

I feel Isis shudder, but she doesn't say anything. I turn my attention back to the road in front of me.

We travel down the roads. Large stone buildings, narrow crowded streets, dry hot air.

Welcome back to Hell, Michael. Hopefully it's still Hell by the time you leave.

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Up next: The Creature in Ice

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Like I said before, Chaotic belongs to TCDigital.

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