PROLOGUE
Avery
Abyssal summoning was a dangerous pastime for three highschool boys skipping school. But then again, so was breaking into a dingy occult shop while the workers were away. Which meant Avery was running out of time. It was already quarter till noon, leaving fifteen minutes until the solar eclipse. Who knew how long they had until the employees returned?
Avery scrunched his face, holding back the bile stinging his throat as he sliced open the rotting rat. “You guys couldn’t find a fresher one?” he asked, gagging.
Lex laughed and pocketed the money from the register. “You said rat. You didn’t say fresh. Quit complaining and do it, nerd.”
Avery held his breath and cut through its flesh, removing the rat’s heart. He tossed it into the mortar with a plop and added four ounces of salt. Leaning in with his shoulder for extra weight, he ground the mixture with the pestle. It squelched and popped, splattering the counter with a drop of blood.
“Watch it!” Lex said, jerking back his arm. “You’re making a mess.”
James, who had been fastening the curtains shut with safety pins, looked up and scratched his scruffy face. “Wait, I thought we were going to trash this place, anyway?”
“Trash… this place?” Avery whispered to himself.
At one point, this shop may have been a favorite for those dabbling in magic, selling alchemical components, enchanted crystals, and other useful tools. But like everything else in the world, time hadn’t been kind. The bags of what used to be herbs had their own tiny ecosystems, swollen plastic humidity sacks filled with patches of mold floating on rancid mush. The rest of the shop was equally rundown—dirty counters, stained carpets, cigarette burns on the discolored table cloths.
“He almost got my jacket.” Lex said, smoothing out the leather. “And unless one of you assholes has five hundred bucks to buy me a new one, you better be careful.”
He hopped the counter and grabbed his baseball bat. Then, with a grin, he slammed it into a display, shattering glass everywhere and sending a bowl of tacky wooden pendants skittering across the floor.
The two of them laughed and took turns smashing and breaking every shelf, table, and display they could. Once sufficiently surrounded by glass shards and splintered wood, they turned it into a game of baseball, tossing and shattering crystals and other knickknacks, until they hit the wrong bag and splattered mold and rotting herb juices all over themselves.
“Fuck!” Lex shouted, wiping black goo off his cheek.
Avery glanced up from his work and chuckled, immediately clapping his hands over his mouth. “I’m sorry Lex, I didn’t mean to—”
Whack! His head bounced off the counter with a crack. James held Avery down against the cold glass, with a wicked grin stretched across his face.
“You think that’s funny, nerd?” Lex said, opening another noxious bag. “Open your mouth.”
“Wait, wait, no!” Avery struggled fruitlessly. He was tall, but lanky, and James was three hundred pounds of linebacker for their high school team.
Lex laughed and drizzled the clumpy liquid onto Avery’s face. “Hold still or this could get in your eye. Who knows what it could do? You don’t want to go blind, do you?”
“The time!” Avery shouted in desperation. “You’ll miss the window, to open the portal.”
Lex relaxed and nodded at James. “Let him go. Consider yourself lucky, asshole.”
Avery pulled himself up and smeared the sludge off his face. With shaking hands, he added the rest of the ingredients to the mixture, blending until the concoction crystallized into fine crimson dust. “It’s done.”
The three made their way into the backroom, an old storage area used for psychic readings and seances. It had long violet tapestries, hundreds of drooping sandalwood scented candles, a round table set with a murky crystal ball. “Alright nerd, prove your skills. And you better hope this works.”
Avery gulped and did as he was told. He dipped his quill into the mixture. Glancing at the image in the book, he drew a wide outer ring with a single fluid stroke.
“Light those,” Lex said, tossing a box of matches to James. “We need to set the ambience.”
James plodded around the room, lighting candles with the grace of an elephant, grumbling in that barely understandable way he did. “So what’s next?”
“We summon the son of a bitch and make him grant our wishes,” Lex smirked. He plopped into a chair, kicking over the table. The crystal ball hit the floor with a thud and rolled to the corner of the room.
Lex had the confidence of someone that always got their way and had rich parents to bail them out if things got out of hand. Everyone at school knew it.
Which is why Lex smugly waited for a Verivoxin, a low rank creature from the Abyss, to appear and grant him his wishes as if everything would simply fall into place. Lex didn’t seem concerned, said ‘it’s just a lower rank,’ but Avery was skeptical. He had a feeling this wouldn’t end the way they expected.
“I’m done,” Avery said, stepping back. The ring was three concentric circles with symmetrical runes in between each—one ring to summon, one to bind, and one to contain.
“Holy shit!” Lex jumped to his feet. “That looks badass, man!” He shoved Avery aside. “Way to go nerd.”
“Um, so next…” Avery flipped the page. “It says we offer it magical blood and speak the incantation.”
Lex snatched the book and made a face, pointing to a picture of two figures holding out their hands. “What the hell is this?”
“If my translation’s right,” Avery said, wiping away sweat dripping down his forehead. “It says two bloodlines and two wishes.”
Lex grinned and shoved Avery back, thrusting the book at him. “Where’s that knife or whatever?”
Avery reached into his backpack and retrieved a braided double-edged dagger, with a swirling symbol etched into the blade. “It’s called the Athame of the Akasha and it was really hard to find, so be careful. My dad will kill me if he finds out I took it.”
Lex snatched the athame and stared at it. “Here, you first.” Without waiting for a response, he slid the blade across James’ palm.
James yelped as blood pooled in his hand, dripping onto the ring.
“Don’t be a baby,” Lex said, lightly cutting himself. “Fuck!”
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Avery asked with a shaky voice, taking back the athame.
“Get to it!” Lex spat, flinging blood at the ring.
Avery swallowed hard and spoke the incantation. “Shath’kka abemaeo. Victmontis taerin. Ascedakt Verivoxin.”
The candles flared, and the ring sparked with streaks of violet and yellow.
“Oh shit, it’s working!” Lex’s eyes were aflame with excitement.
Avery repeated the incantation, louder. The ground trembled, knocking over a handful of candles, and a crackling crimson vortex formed in the center of the ring, drawing loose papers into the whirlwind.
“Don’t stop!” Lex roared, shielding his face from the gale.
Holding out both hands, Avery repeated the incantation one last time. With a whoosh and a thunderous boom, the air tore open and a clawed hand reached out, gripping the edge of the rift. Two glowing slits peered through the portal, flitting from side to side. The broad-shouldered Abyssal stepped through the vortex, towering at nearly double their height. It was a horned creature with serrated slate scales twisted in spiraling patterns, and smoldering flames flickering up its spine. The vortex shimmered and dissipated.
“Fuck!” James shouted, jumping back.
“It worked, it fucking worked!” Lex said, sliding his hand through his hair. “Fuck, Avery. You actually did it!”
The creature opened its mouth, spilling ash as it spoke. “Who summons me?”
“We did, asshole!” Lex said, pacing back and forth. “And now you have to grant us our wishes.”
“Two wishes for two offerings.” The creature tilted its head slowly from side to side, inspecting them. “Come to me and everything shall be yours.”
The boys eyed each other for a moment.
“Guys, I don’t think you should go in there.” Avery said stepping back.
“And give up the wishes?” Lex shot him a look. “No fucking chance.” He nudged James. “You go first.”
James breathed heavier, his voice cracking. “I don’t know. Maybe Avery is right.”
“Chicken shit!” Lex spat. “Get in there or I’ll take all the wishes and you can stay with that drunk dad of yours!”
James balled his fists and stepped inside the ring.
“See, no big deal,” Lex said, joining him. “Now, give us our wishes!”
“Yes,” the creature hissed, displaying a taut, wicked mouth full of pointed black teeth. “But first… my payment.”
“What—”
It inhaled, sucking the air from their lungs. Thin wisps of black energy flowed from their bodies into its open maw.
James dropped to his knees, gasping and gripping his throat. “What is this? I can’t move.”
Lex stumbled and reached for the edge of the ring. The air in front of him flickered as his hand smacked into a translucent barrier. “Get us out of here!”
“Help us!” James wheezed as his skin shriveled against his muscles.
Avery righted the table and sat down, closing his book. “Nothing to be done. I told you not to go inside.”
They collapsed to the ground, gasping and whimpering. The Abyssal leaned down, siphoning their energy. Their flesh cracked like porcelain, and their skin turned to charcoal. With a gentle hum, what remained of the core of their magic, an orb the size of a marble, fading with power, slipped from their mouths. The creature plucked it from the air and devoured it whole.
“Well, that didn’t take long,” Avery said, as the boys shattered into piles of ash.
“You did this?” the creature asked, stepping closer to the edge of the ring. “Why? For the wishes?”.
“Oh, right.” Avery snapped his fingers and shed his messy haired, pimple faced appearance like a mirage. His hair lengthened and formed into thick black dreads, clad in tiny silver bells. His skin darkened like an autumn leaf changing with the seasons. “Better?” he asked, flicking his red tongue.
“The dragon-tongued mage… you’re Mataki,” the Abyssal growled, unfurling his gnarled bat-like wings. “My Queen will reward me greatly for bringing back your head.”
“I’m sure she would, but if I may.” He stepped closer, inches from the ring. “Offer an alternative?”
“Release me, you coward!” the creature hissed, slashing at the barrier.
Ah yes… violence. The true language of the Abyss.
Mataki smiled and offered a slight bow. “Verivoxin truly are formidable. You could end my life in an instant, if not for this pesky little barrier.”
“Yes!” it growled. “But if you let me out now, I will make your death quick. And relatively painless.”
“A generous offer indeed.” Mataki held back his grin. “However, should you decide to spare my measly life, you could have so much more.”
Its slit eyes widened. “I don’t know what you’re playing at, Mage, but I know better than to make a deal with the likes of you!”
Of course…
Mataki feigned a frown and turned around. “I suppose there is nothing more to discuss.”
“What about your wishes?” it asked in a sweet, tempting voice. “You gave me two souls.”
“You’re right. But anything I wish for, you’ll twist against me.” He grinned and headed for the door. “So I suppose I have no use for you.”
“Wait, Mage!” the Abyssal growled. “Set me free!”
“Oh no, I can’t do that.” Mataki clicked his tongue and slid his hands through his dreads. “You’ll try to kill me. Besides, you’ve already served your purpose. The last fissure in the veil. Now to enjoy the show.”
Mataki left the shop, leaving the screeching Abyssal, flailing and clawing at the barrier. It would, of course, break through eventually, not that it mattered. Mataki would be long gone before then. “That went better than expected. I love human greed.”
Now to find the perfect spot to watch…
The occult shop was in a rundown part of the city, across from a grungy, graffiti scratched apartment complex and a series of broken down vehicles, held up by cinder blocks. People loitered in the sun-bleached dry grass, talking about the eclipse.
“What the fuck is that?” asked an obese, bald man with a tattoo of the number 69 on his neck.
Crash—a truck slammed into a stopped car, as the driver stared wide eyed. People got out of their vehicles, pointing at the sky, filling the street with murmurs of confusion.
It’s begun.
Mataki smiled and stepped onto the sidewalk. He slid his hands into his pockets and walked towards the uproar. “Let’s see how long their wonder will last.”
The horizon was afire with crackling streaks of red as twisting black clouds encircled the city. Violent winds rushed against his face, swinging the streetlights back and forth.
The first crack in the veil tore through the air like a bolt of black lightning, a horrifying sound shredding the sky.
The second struck a building, igniting the concrete with a sulfuric blue inferno. Flames billowed, and long cracks spread through the skyscraper, shattering the windows and splintering the stone. Rocks and glass rained down on the staggering people below.
Finally came the searing tear as the world split open. It was brilliant, crimson flames licking the edge of the mile long break in the veil, curving slightly at the edges like a wicked grin. With a roar, hundreds of Abyssals spilled through, heaving onto the earth.
The first wave… probably Glaenraks. Damn cats.
Mataki shivered and cut through an alley. “I should get off the street and find a nice vantage point.” He swiped his hand through the air, cleaving the space in front of him, and stepped through, reappearing on top of a roof. “This will do for now,” he said, sitting on the ledge.
From here, the air was steeped in blood and smoke. Burning buildings crumbled. The earth rumbled with a violent force, cracking the concrete. Cars crashed into each other, exploding in gasoline-fueled flames, as ravenous creatures peeled open their roofs like sardine cans, tearing into the mewling humans. People scattered like insects, pushing and trampling each other in their desperation to escape. It was a symphony of bedlam, playing his favorite song.
War at last.
He closed his eyes and savored the moment, soaking in the chaos in the air. “This is much bigger than I expected.”
Crack—a Glaenrak slammed into the alley wall below him, yanking him from his leisure. The large three-tailed cat, covered in thick jagged barbs, shook its head. It hissed and flared its yellow eyes.
Mataki leaned over the edge and looked down. A girl, no more than five, stood, bleeding from one leg and guarding a younger boy. Tendrils of black and green magic twisted around her hands like a serpent. “Stay back!” She screamed.
Magic at such a young age… Interesting.
The Abyssal rose on all fours and pounced.
Mataki sliced his hand through the air again, drawing his athame. A second later, he appeared between the creature and the children. With a swift strike, he lunged, plunging the blade into its head. It exploded in black ash, vanishing from sight.
“Are you alright?” he smiled, turning to the girl.
“You saved us,” she said, lowering her trembling hands.
Mataki knelt and brushed dirt from her face. “Would you like to come with me? And get away from these creatures?”
She nodded and wiped away tears pooling in her eyes. “Only if brother can come too.”
Mataki grinned. “Of course.”