"I'm trying to think, don't confuse me with facts."

― Plato

Heat. Unshakable and deep, straight to his bones. No light surrounded him, just the unnatural warmth.

"My aura's in overdrive..."

The flow of power to his cores increased steadily, a welcome change. If he could see, it would be even better. A gentle push extended his aura beyond his body, a kind of hyper-precise sonar.

"That's a lot of fire for a place without light," Ven frowned. "I wonder how it wor..."

A vast pillar of silver pierced the heavens, not far from where he stood. A beam that connected a huge stone altar to the sky. The black platform stood higher than a mountain. It spanned further than any range, a place to sacrifice gods.

"I liked it better when I couldn't see..."

The landscape was filled with black flame, spread like grass over the world. Lumpen creatures squirmed through the inferno, torched near death before their bodies healed. Trapped in this cycle, they inched their way north, toward the altar.

"Gross..."

"We all have to start somewhere!"

Ven lept back, aura shaped into several spikes. Whoever it was had stood next to him, inside his aura, without his knowledge. Impossible, unless they stood far above him in power, or held some stupid trick like the halfling.

"Jumpy, aren't you!"

A tall, hollow-cheeked man grinned with yellowed teeth. He wore a long dress coat with pants to match, his frilled shirt stained with age. The cane in his hand gleamed silver on top, a small bust of a man in prayer.

"I didn't mean to startle you, good sir!"

"Right..." Ven recoiled from the unnaturally wide smile. "Then maybe you should approach people from the front."

"A valid point," The man spun his bloodwood cane. "But then, you might have run away!"

"A regular problem for you?" Ven edged back. "Maybe it's time for some self-reflection..."

"Hahahaha!" The Man's head tipped back, jaw opened like a hinge. "You're a funny one! The name's Dante, young demon, how about you?"

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Dante leaned in, eyes wide, as if the information held great value. Hair raised at the back of Ven's neck, an instinct to run.

"You've made a mistake, I'm afraid," Ven groped backward for the gate. "I'm just a visitor, not a demon..."

"Looking for this?" Held in Dante's grasp was the gateway, shrunken down to fit in his hand. "This thing is usually quiet, but today you damn near lept out of my pocket!"

"That's my bad..."

Ven scanned around. Besides the collum of light, nothing stood out as favorable.

"We'll, I've gotta go!"

Cultivation in full swing, Ven deformed the ground as he lept to the sky. This 'Dante' had a very bad vibe, no way he would tell the guy his name.

"Where are you going?"

Dante stood in the air ahead, upside down with a cheshire grin. His cane spun easily in hand, a blur in the dim light.

"I just remembered, I've got an appointment!"

Ven switched from his cultivation to his aura, a frictionless glide that carried him away from the strange man. Dante didn't return, but that wasn't a comfort.

He's probably watching from the shadows...

The alter loomed before him, the lip still high above. His angle shifted, a steep climb that crested the artificial peak. Atop the platform, a thicket of chains extended. The wall of black-iron brambles reached up, a mountain of its own.

"Here, I'm here..."

Ven almost fell from the sky as a soft voice found his ears. The faint call somehow pulled at his heart. A compulsion that brought him pause.

"Going to visit the dragon?"

"GOOD GOD!" Ven flipped around. "Is it a law in this universe that people have to come up unannounced?"

"It's possible..." Dante placed a hand on his chin. "But I haven't seen deep enough to know for sure."

"I knew you were still here," Ven shook his head. "What was that about a dragon?"

"That light," Dante shrugged. "The last gasp of a desperate fool."

"A real dragon..." Ven sized up the mass of chain, Dante left ignored. "I bet I could get in there, the gaps are big enough."

"Good luck," Dante snorted. "Those chains seek out all life and draw it into the altar, the second you land, you're done."

"We'll see..." Ven glanced at the man. "Why do you care, anyways?"

"I don't," Dante shrugged. "But this place is awfully boring, you're a distraction that lasts as long as you stay alive."

"Then, what do you suggest to keep your distraction alive?"

"I'd say, stay off the alter," Dante nodded sagely. "Best for all, I think."

Ven rolled his eyes and peered closely at the chains. Thick and thin, they twisted and wound into a forest of metal.

"I don't need to touch anything..."

Aura extended, Ven drifted among the metal branches. Careful and slow, he inched forward, Dante a half-step behind.

"Smart lad! But be careful, the chains count as a part of the altar!"

"Shut up," Ven ground his teeth. "I need to focus..."

A long, tangled path led him closer and closer to the light. The chains rested scant inches from him on all sides, even Dante was careful as he picked his way forward.

"This is a terrible idea, you know," The devilish man ducked below a dangled set of links. "The dragon is well known for extreme violence, she'll eat you up, even if the alter doesn't get you."

"Can you go find something else to do..." Ven twisted in a bow to slip through a tight spot. "You're the opposite of helpful."

"I'm a gem of useful information," Dante place a hand over his heart, mock hurt displayed on his face. "You'd be a victim of the alter if I hadn't said something!"

"Uh huh," Ven stopped. "Now what..."

The chain before them meshed into a tight wall. The silver backlight showed him he was close, the light collum was just beyond these links.

"I'd turn back," Dante insisted. "One misstep and you're a goner!"

"HEY, can you hear me?" Ven shouted toward the glow beyond his reach. "How can I get past these chains?"

A groan trembled through the links, the voice of a massive beast that shifted the structure of the maze.

"You're screwed now," Dante chirped. "The way out is gone, you're stuck in here!"