Dropping onto my hands and knees, I crawl inside the darkened hole. Lincoln follows closely behind me. Sensing him nearby—feeling his movements in sync with mine—steadies my frayed nerves. Forever ekes by as we scramble inside the passageway, following a never-ending series of turns and straightaways. Finally, we reach a panel of sand at the tunnel’s end. Dim light reflects through the granules. My heart jumps into my throat. We’re close to the surface.

I set my fingertips inch-deep into the sand. It’s warm and fine. An odd calm flows through me as my mind captures every aspect of this moment, taking a kind of picture that I may treasure (or be haunted by) for the rest of my life. I’m outside myself, knowing that I pause at the tunnel’s end, about to test my new powers, and with so much at risk. After that, the moment’s gone, collapsing into one great crush of nerve-jangling panic. My fingers tremble in the sand. The best thing I can do is move on. Fast.

Gritting my teeth, I press my body through the sand and emerge onto the Gray Sea beyond. A fierce wind howls through my ears and whips my hair about. Low gray clouds hang overhead. The stench of sulfur hangs in the air. I belly-crawl to the top of the dune with Lincoln close beside me. We lay side-by-side on the warm sand and peep over the lip of ridge.

My breath catches. The scene before us can’t be real. About twenty yards below, hundreds of demons are arrayed in concentric circles on the desert floor. Armageddon stands off to one side, his tall body leaning against the black stone wall. At least he’s far enough away that I don’t feel his aura of terror. I swallow past the tightness in my throat.

I quickly catalog the body position of all our enemies. None see us in our hiding-spot. Instead, they’re all focused on the massive Manus demon at the center of the crowd. This gorilla-like monster is the largest creature I’ve ever seen. Hoisting its long arms high above its head, the Manus slams its fists onto the desert floor, scooping up piles of sand and throwing them off to one side. With each throw, I feel my heart sink a little lower. He’s almost uncovered the circular metal portal that marks the doorway to our bunker. Not good.

My eyes grow large with understanding. So that’s what’s been rattling over our heads. The Manus demon’s trying to break in, or scare us into coming out. I scan its boulder-sized body and trunk-like limbs. Dang, that thing looks tough to kill. Who knows how hard it will be to move to Hell?