Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 123477 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 617(@200wpm)___ 494(@250wpm)___ 412(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 123477 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 617(@200wpm)___ 494(@250wpm)___ 412(@300wpm)
Though this bartender wasn’t human, but another underworld minion. This one was six feet tall and covered in long, sleek white hair. There were no eyes Chen could spot, and if it had a mouth, it was hidden under the hair. The creature possessed six massive, furry hands that were busy cleaning glasses, wiping the bar top, and motioning toward the driver, which was a similar minion but with pink hair.
A series of stools that hung off the ground surrounded the bar. Beneath each stool was a set of pedals, like on a bicycle. The passengers powered the strange cart while imbibing. It certainly looked like a party contraption, thanks to the strings of colorful lights, streamers, and strange music.
Greg sat on one stool, its stubby legs way too short to touch the pedals. The minion was waving its arms in the air and chattering. Sky asked a few questions and nodded. Please, let this be a good sign.
“So, Greg got these guys to agree to take us where we need to go,” Sky announced. He swung his backpack from his shoulders and set it on a stool. He opened it and dug inside. “If we all pedal, it won’t take more than a few minutes to arrive at our destination. I just need something to pay them with.”
Sky pulled out three carefully wrapped sandwiches and their bartender shook his head at each one, a grunt coming out from somewhere under all the hair. The witch also withdrew a flashlight, a bundle of rope, a bottle of water, and a couple of bundles of what appeared to be grave dirt. Still nothing.
He twisted to Moon. “You got anything on you?”
Moon emptied his pockets. “Two small knives, my cell phone, and a lighter.” All of which he offered to the minion, but no luck.
“Can I use my magic in the underworld?” Chen asked.
Sky wrinkled his nose. “The ice and snow thing? I guess. It’s not like the demons don’t know you’re here.”
“Do you think they’d appreciate snow like Greg?”
Chen released Moon’s hand and brought his palms together. With his eyes closed, he dialed his vampiric ability as much as he could, trying to focus on the image he had in his head of the creature serving as the bartender. He tipped his hands so that the left was on the bottom and the right was on the top. Slowly, he lifted his right hand into the air. Ice and snow swirled between his palms like a mini snowstorm.
When his hands were a few dozen centimeters apart, the snow cyclone cleared. A figure made of ice stood on his palm. He tilted his head and held it up to the flashing, colored lights, admiring his work. It was a pretty fair likeness to the bartender.
The hairy minion lost its mind. Noise erupted out from under the hair while extending all six of its hands toward the ice sculpture. The other minion driving the cart twisted around at the commotion, took one look at the figure, and started making noises as well.
Sky snickered and motioned to the stools. “It’s a trade. One sculpture for the bartender and one for the driver in exchange for passage to our destination.”
Chen placed the first creation in front of the bartender and began on the second one, making sure to include the three-wheeled bike he was sitting on.
With the payment handed over and safely stowed below the bar, they climbed onto the open seats and pedaled. A chill breeze swept past them as they moved swiftly through the underworld. The buildings and pedestrians on the sidewalks became little more than a blur of color as they traveled. Strings of lights hanging from the canopy over their heads twinkled. The music was strange but had a joyful feel to it. At least it seemed happier as Greg hopped around on the top of the bar, doing a bouncy dance while chattering away like a magpie.
“I can’t believe it,” Moon broke into Chen’s thoughts. “My sexy vampire is not only deadly in a fight, but he’s got a soft, artistic side. How did I get so lucky?”
Unfortunately, his voice needed to be loud to carry over the noise of the wheels on the road and the surrounding music.
“Ha! Is this seriously your flirting game?” Sky broke in from the other side of Moon. “I thought it would be more impressive. If this is what it was like when you first met, I’m surprised Chen kidnapped you at all.”
“I’m purposefully using my weak-ass lines,” Moon quipped. “I can’t risk you learning my good stuff. There’s no way you could handle it.”
Before their conversation could devolve into more bickering, the cart screeched to a sharp stop. They were all thrown forward. Chen’s hand shot out and caught Moon’s shoulder to keep him from tumbling to the ground. Even as they were trying to recover from the abrupt stop, the two hairy minions let out a sound like a yelp and bolted, leaving behind their cart. Chen wasn’t at all sure how the bartender had escaped the confines of his bar. It didn’t matter. He blinked and the two creatures were running in the opposite direction, their long hair bouncing in the wind. Only Greg remained behind, but he was now cowering at Sky’s side, trembling and clutching at the necromancer’s arm.