The horse reared up in front of me on its hind legs. It neighed and steam shot out its nostrils. The stallion was frightening because the animal was nearly double the size of a normal horse. I stepped backwards in alarm as I wasn’t sure what the animal would do next, but the red rider calmed his steed and its front legs settled back to the ground.

Letum looked at me. Then got off the horse and jumped to the ground. He was still holding his red lantern, but had sheathed his sword. He dimmed the brightness of the lantern so it didn’t hurt my eyes.

The horseman seemed to be studying me, trying to judge me in some way. I was scared of him, but at the same time he seemed familiar to me. I didn’t know why exactly. I was also sizing him up, trying to gain an edge in some way.

He was a large man; I could only guess that he stood some seven and a half feet tall. He was almost two feet taller than I was. The plate mail armor he wore was tarnished from conflict, especially his helmet which dangled from the saddle. It wasn’t full plate mail armor that he wore; not like some of the medieval suits I’d seen in museums. It was only a plate vest that covered his torso. His arms and legs were instead dressed in dark red leather. On his feet he wore iron boots that flexed in an unnatural way.

Letum was also extremely handsome. He had classic sharp features and a clean shaven youthful face. His dark ginger hair flowed down to his shoulders. His eyes were red and he had a piercing gaze that would melt someone where they stood. At the same time he was frightening to look upon. He had a demeanor that belayed his apparent age. He commanded the world around him and seemed to expect everything to succumb to his gaze. He was like a confident military general that strode across the battlefield of victory.

Somehow I stood my ground.

Letum had seemed to recognize me, so I decided to play along. What else could I have done?

“Letum.” I said.

He strode up to me as I stood beside my car. Moments ago I had decided to exit my vehicle in a friendly gesture rather than stay inside. If he recognized me and seemed friendly I wanted to play the part of a friend rather than cower inside my vehicle and raise his suspicions.

“Potentate. I apologize for disturbing you.”

Letum kneeled before me and then bowed his head.

I stood before him not knowing what to do. He must have had me confused with something else in Limbo. After a few seconds of thought I decided to play along.

“Stand Letum. No need to kneel.”

He stood up.

Towering before me was a being of immense power and he was acting like he was my servant. I was at a loss for what to say. Any misspoken word might reveal the fact that I wasn’t this Potentate person he thought I was.

“My horse and I are at your command!” he said.

It didn’t dawn on me until that very moment that Letum had called himself the Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse.

What the hell was I getting into?

I knew of the four horsemen only from passing knowledge. I always thought it was a story from older biblical times. A myth or a legend from ages past, not something real.

I was scared out of my mind, but I was getting used to being afraid since arriving in Limbo. My stress level was through the roof and I did the best I could to stop from shaking.

I couldn’t think of anything to say, so I blurted out, “Where am I?”

Letum turned his head to look at the graves around us. I started wishing that I had said something else.

Did I say the wrong thing?

“These are the borders to my dominion. I was out waging war against enemies when I sensed an intrusion. Your vehicle masked your presence from my eyes or I would have welcomed you more appropriately.”

I had to somehow bullshit my way through this discussion.

“I was traveling. I’m searching for… something.” I said.

“Can I aid you in your search?” he responded.

I chanced upon a response.

“Perhaps, I’m not sure that I can trust you!”

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

He seemed confused by my answer and then seemed to remember something.

“My brother is not who I am, Potentate. He is foolish and I regret his past actions. I would never harm you or seek out your destruction!”

He seemed to be honest in his response, but I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about.

Who did he think I was exactly? What the hell was a Potentate?

“Which brother are you referring to?” I asked.

“Enoch, my brother who rides as death upon his pale horse. He was wrong to seek you out.”

It was obvious to me that I was in way over my head. I couldn’t backtrack at this point and needed to somehow work my way out of this situation.

“Yes, he was wrong.” I replied.

One of the hounds grumbled behind Letum.

Now that I could see them more closely their appearance was shocking. They didn’t appear to be hounds exactly. Besides having two sets of eyes there were other features that weren’t canine in nature. The hounds appeared to be much more muscular, like a lion or a bear. Their fur also seemed to shimmer as if it was made from the waves of the ocean.

Each dog seemed to have their own personality.

The one that had chased me down sat more upright than the others, like it was in charge of the other three. It had a bright red stripe on its nose that ran up between its eyes. Its gaze never strayed from me and its ears were also pointed straight up.

The hound closest to the lead dog was continually sniffing the air as it looked into the graveyard around us. This one seemed more curious than the others. I got the impression that it was more interested in hunting prey.

The third dog was a bit skinnier than the others and grumbled constantly. It had longer canine fangs that stuck out from under its cheek. It looked much more vicious and wild than the other three.

The last animal was the most muscular and had a more pleasant appearance. Its mouth gaped open as it panted. I could tell that it was anxiously awaiting for Letum’s next command.

“This machine you ride in… is it new?” he asked.

“Yes,” I lied.

He moved to touch my car and rubbed his hand over the hood. Staring at it he seemed to try and uncover its secrets.

“I cannot make it out, but I have seen this machine somewhere before. It is something very ancient!”

“It is a good vehicle and helps me,” I said.

He glanced back at me. His stare was unnerving.

“You must come with me to my inner domain.” Letum said.

“Um, what?”

“If I can sense your presence then Enoch and the others will also be able to find you. You must come with me and I will shield you from them.”

I just looked at him. I was desperately trying to figure out what to do.

Who did these horsemen think I was exactly?

I was Hannah Jones - a recently dead nobody stuck in Limbo!

I was new to this place. I had no idea where I was or what I was doing. Adathan had warned me against demons, which seemed obvious, but he never mentioned infernals. The book of Uriel, which was sitting on the front seat of the car, didn’t provide me with any warnings.

I had thought about grabbing the book to quickly search inside, but I didn’t know what good that would do me. I was also worried that Letum might recognize it.

If I refused to go with Letum I needed a good reason. At least that was my thinking at the time. I also didn’t want to encounter any of the other horsemen. This brother of his named Enoch, I had no idea what his beef with me was exactly. Then there were the other monsters that had been after me. Were they still coming for me?

Sensing my concern Letum said, ”Come with me Potentate and you will be safe in my domain. No others can enter without causing great strife within Limbo. Not even the other horsemen.”

“I need to fulfill my quest.” I responded.

“What is your quest? I can aid you?”

“I’m questing for an object of great value.”

“What object do you seek?”

I didn’t want to divulge the details of my quest as I wasn’t sure what his response would be. What would he think if he knew that I was searching for my token? Would he suddenly realize that I wasn’t who he thought I was.

“I must keep this information a secret… It’s a secret.” I replied.

My response didn’t seem to bother him. It was like he was used to me providing him with little knowledge.

“As always, your goals are your own Potentate.”

He turned and rubbed the head of his horse. The beast let out a waft of smoke from its nostrils. Letum stood quietly with his back to me. He was paused in thought for a long time then he turned to face me.

“I’m sure that the Oraculum could aid you in finding your object.” He suggested.

An Oraculum… was that similar to an oracle? I had no idea.

“Do you think so?” I replied.

“Yes. I captured it upon the battlefield. It resides in my inner domain. I will make it serve you in your quest.”

I had no idea what an Oraculum was, but I knew I needed to find my token. If this thing could help me find it then it was better than driving around aimlessly in Limbo. I’m sure that my car’s seeker ability would help me track down my token. But I had a feeling that I needed to find it sooner rather than later. It might take me a long time to figure out how to use the Plymouth’s seeker ability - perhaps I'd never figure it out.

Although Letum was scary, I figured that I was safe enough… at least until he realized I wasn’t this Potentate person. Maybe, by that time, I would be long gone from his domain.

I realized that I had two choices. Either I follow the red horseman of the apocalypse into his inner domain or stray out into Limbo on my own. Both possibilities seemed dangerous to me. I didn’t much like the idea of going it alone with the added knowledge that Letum’s brother Enoch was after me. Was Enoch the one who had sent the monsters to attack me at the Mega Mart? Or was that something else entirely?

I wished that I was back at the Mega Mart with Adathan protecting me again. I felt like everything in Limbo was trying to get me.

Being alone and powerless really sucked!

What was I going to do?