Running Through the Darkness

Click here to return to Chapter 1, An Adorable Dog Enters a Post-Apocalyptic World.

My iron collar fell to the ground and I looked up at the hellhound in amazement.

Draco asked me, in an oddly calm voice, “What’s your real name?”

His question surprised me so much that I just stared. His eyes were a beautiful amber. With a shuddering breath, I replied, “Lithium…”

Draco snorted. “If you don’t want to give me your real name, fine.” He gestured with his head towards the depths of this passageway. I had been too petrified — and strangled — to pay attention to it before, but it was pitch black ahead.

His glint of a smile looked dangerous, yet appealing. “Do you trust me?”

“I don’t think I have a choice,” I muttered.

Nevertheless, we crept into the dark place together. The smell of sulphur intensified. It couldn’t be safe here. Yet, I felt safer with Draco in this pitch-black unknown, than I felt anywhere up above.

It seemed like we were moving through some inky dungeon, and the area around me started heating up.

I couldn’t help but ask, “Are we in hell?”

Draco’s amused laugh sent shivers down my spine. “Do you want to go to hell with me?”

To this, I answered, “Up there is hell. Down here is hell too, but at least I’ve got you.”

Draco chortled and I realized that we must have reached some echoing chamber, since his voice was vibrating off our surroundings. “Well, Lithium, it’s true that both are hells, but down here, at least you have some freedom.”

I smiled, until I realized what he was implying. “Um, I know you’re a hellhound, and I’m grateful that you saved me, even though I still don’t know why. But I don’t want to live in hell, no offense.”

Draco’s laughter reverberated through the air. “My saving you wasn’t wholly selfless. Contrary to what you may believe, I do not wish to be Tobin’s servant. He’s an amateur sorcerer. Some of the denizens of hell — gifted my siblings and me to Tobin, in exchange for his soul.”

My heart pounded even faster as we continued to scurry through the dark. The smell of sulphur miraculously subsided.

But I did my best to keep myself steady. As captivated as I was by the hellhound, I couldn’t trust him yet. I may still have to make it out alone. In a faux-timid voice, I asked, “But you’re not bound by a blood ritual to him or something? You could just leave?”

The hellhound chuckled. “That’s what Tobin believes. My siblings are — blindly loyal to our master. But I’ve been looking for a chance to escape. On a rare occasion where I got to be alone, I managed to find a spell-breaking code in Tobin’s books. But I can’t break the spell by myself.”

My heart sank. “So you sought me out? You needed some innocent dog to help you break it?”

But Draco’s laugh just grew merrier, and the sound was strange in this enveloping darkness. “It’s not as straightforward as you think. In this spell-breaking ritual, we need to find a companion we like. Trouble was, I liked neither of my siblings, let alone Tobin.”

I sucked in a breath, not daring to break the suspense.

But Draco didn’t break it. The silence stretched between us; the only sound was the padding of our paws as we walked.

***

Instead of getting into the River Styx or a similar place, we reached a small gateway brimming with light. I had to squint after being in the darkness for a while.

But I could see Draco more clearly now. If he was handsome before, he was radiant now. He smiled and said, “After you.”

I frowned, not because I didn’t like to take the lead, but because I was suspicious. I growled. “Why don’t you go first?”

Draco gave me a nonplussed look. “Fine.” He bounded through the gateway.

With caution, I poked my nose, then the rest of my face and my floofy body out through this opening.

I was stunned by the sight of the garden we were in, with the glowing colors and flourishing plants. It was like I had entered a fairytale.

We Pomeranians are commonly believed to be stupid. But I was not. I barked, “Is this some sort of trick?”

Draco was frustratingly calm. “It isn’t. This garden is real. But just because it’s real doesn’t mean it’s safe.” His face turned somber. “Just stay by my side.”

This time, I couldn’t stand the suspense. I nudged his side. “Draco, if you truly want me to stick by your side, you need to satisfy my curiosity first. You said that the spell-breaking requires you to find — a companion you like.”

If I wasn’t paying attention, I would have missed the slight tensing of his shoulders. He asked, “Does it bother you that I like you?”

I frowned, because that wasn’t what I expected to hear from him. “No, I mean yes.” I paused. “I want to know what I’m signing up for. And why would you like me? We’re strangers.”

He smiled a little. “Yes, we hardly know each other. But I still prefer you to my siblings. Isn’t that odd?”

“Not so odd if you hate your siblings,” I muttered, hurrying with my short legs to catch up with the bigger dog.

Draco snorted. “Believe what you like.”

His answer was dissatisfying, and I was about to grumble a reply. Then I realized we weren’t alone.

A few lithe-limbed creatures approached us. They were bipedal and humanoid. They were gorgeous, with blue hair, purple eyes, and turquoise skin. But they were frosty in their expressions.

The smallest of them yelled out, “Helldog, who have you brought within our midst? It is not welcome here.”

“He,” I corrected them.

The creature cast me a scornful look and then gazed back at Draco. “Well?”

Draco’s look back at them was equally scornful, if not even more so. It was then I realized that, as haughty as he was, Draco had never been contemptuous towards me. And that realization warmed my heart.

Click here for Chap 3: Growing Trust

Originally published in The Kraken Lore on Dec 1, 2022