The Voodoo Queen’s dying screams finally subsided, and as they did, Ryan felt his mind clear, as if freed from the oppressive presence of a foreign consciousness. That was strange, he thought, because if the Queen had been controlling his thoughts, and he had just killed her…
“That was some pretty good aim, dog,” Devonte said admiringly, turning on a flashlight to replace the light lost from the snuffed wall-torches.
“Yeah, it was, but she was the only one who knew how to get to the King,” replied Quincy, unstrapping his AK-47 and sitting heavily on the aged wooden floor. “Now we ain’t never gonna find him.”
“She was bluffing,” Ryan said with confidence that surprised even himself. “Their destinies are inextricably linked. Of course she would try to convince us that the Smoothie King was unreachable and invincible.”
“So, what do we do?” asked Quincy. “Just keep walkin’ and walkin’ around the arena’s basement until we find a sign that says “Residence of the Smoothie King”?
“We gotta be close,” said Devonte. “The queen ain’t strayin’ far from her king, if what Ryan says is true. Everybody spread out and loo-”
“Hey, take a look at this!” exclaimed Maurice, who had returned with the voodoo doll when he had heard the Queen die. “I stepped on this floorboard and it just popped right out of the floor. There’s some kinda tunnel down here.” He squatted down and peered into the blackness. “It’s pretty tight, though. Us three fatties ain’t gonna fit down it, no way.”
Ryan walked over to inspect the hole. “You’re right. It’s gotta be me and only me.” He paused and sighed. “I wish I could see the bottom.”
Hearing the hesitation in Ryan’s voice, Devonte walked over. “If you die, you die. But the King, he already killed all yo’ teammates. You can’t let him get away that, man!”
“You’re right. I’m going in.” He lifted the guns up and away from where they were slung around his chest and shoulders. “I don’t think I’ll need these.”
Devonte took back his weaponry. “No. You ain’t gonna need anything but the power of your soul.”
“Let’s hope it’s enough. You guys gonna wait up here for me?”
Devonte nodded. “For sure.”
Ryan sat next to the hole and dangled his legs in. The air down there was much colder than the stuffy air where he sat. “Okay. Here it goes.” Taking a deep breath, Ryan slid the rest of his body over the lip of the abyss, and then he was gone.