The more we talked the more confident I became that they hadn't just spent the entire time I'd been gone sitting around and waiting. They had been working on some semblance of a plan. Well, several plans in actual fact, all considering different potential outcomes and approaches. They'd even developed one they'd have gone with if the Requiem hadn't worked and I'd stayed dead – I'm honestly not sure whether I felt more concerned that they'd had such little faith our magic would work, or pleased that they'd thought to prepare for all outcomes.

One contingency, however, that they had not planned for nor been expecting was Jesse's defection, and figuring out how to put any of their well laid plans into action without him was proving to be impossible. Frank had said it himself we couldn't bring about any change in Hell without him on our team, our force of power needed his human aspect to blend with their demon and hybrid ones in order to project the truths that I could reveal – at least that was the way Frank had dumbed it down for easy understanding.

The prophecy had certainly set out a very neatly devised operation it was just a shame there was no sub-section titled 'What to do when one of your number sides with the enemy'. While I was trying to remain hopeful that the temptation of our uprising and the possible freedom and power that we could offer might tempt him back, the others were not so confident in Jesse, and I had to admit it was entirely possible that Malick had worked some magical mojo guaranteeing him Jesse's loyalty. Unfortunately there were some things we were going to have to play by ear, and if we had to resort to kidnapping to get Jesse back that that's exactly what we would do.

I'm not sure exactly how much time passed as we talked, looking over and over the files and rolls of parchment that littered the huge carved table. Most of the information were things they'd managed to pilfer from files, mostly out of Malick's office – it seemed Lucas had been making very good use of the power they'd never thought to take back from him – and strewn amongst them hastily scrawled notes and other more detailed plans. All of them were good and entirely possible, and yet likewise they all had their own potential set of problems. It became a case of choosing which was the best course of action to follow, or at least which one we tried first, but of course none of us could come to an agreement.

"Well there's hardly any point in us putting something in motion right now. I don't know about you two, but personally I'm exhausted," Lucas said, backing away from the table with his hands raised, tired of the argument going nowhere. "Now that you're finally back, Rayne, I might actually be able to sleep without my brain working overtime."

Frank scoffed and made some muttered comment about Lucas' brain working at less than half capacity at the best of times, but we both ignored him.

"Right, of course. Y'know I hadn't even thought about what time it must be by now," I replied, thinking then for the first time how I wasn't feeling even the tiniest glimmer of fatigue.

"I'm sure you want to do the same. Dragging yourself out of...well wherever the hell you were can't have been an easy task. C'mon, I'll show you where you can sleep. And I suppose you'll be off to do whatever the hell it is you do whenever I try and sleep." Lucas added, looking over my shoulder to where Frank lurked by the dark stairwell.

"Oh you know me, anything to prove my point. You two go and waste time with sleeping, you'll see, by tomorrow you'll both be agreeing that my plan is the best one to go for. I'll prove it to you." With those parting words he slipped into the shadows and was gone.

"You don't think he'll go and try anything on his own, do you?" I asked, hating to admit that I felt considerably more nervous with Frank gone.

Although our little ritual had given all four of us a boost in power, there was no doubt that Frank had reaped the most rewards of the three in the Triangle, being pure demon from the off gave him an edge, and despite the fact that I was now much more powerful that I'd ever been, I still felt far more comfortable with the Whisperer around.

"No, he wouldn't risk it, not now. Although I've no doubt he'll find some way to convince us that his chosen plan is the best one to go with." Lucas shrugged, unsurprised by Frank's departure, I guessed it had been pretty much the same routine since I'd been gone.

"Come on, I'll show you where you can crash, and personally I am looking forward to getting some decent shut eye, aren't you?"

"Actually, I don't feel tired in the slightest. I guess it's a perk of having been dead for a while, nice and rested. I would, however, really like to clean up. I woke my on a dirty, blood covered floor, next to a decaying corpse. That kind of smell tends to linger." I found that it felt easier not to think of the fact that dead body had been my own . "I don't suppose the Inquisitors had any kind of shower, or a bath or something down here, do they?"

Lucas chuckled slightly as I mentioned the smell, I know I could not have been the only one who'd noticed it. In fact I was surprised that Frank hadn't made some comment, it would be just like him.

"Yeah, as a matter of fact they do. Come on, I'll give you the rest of the tour."

Another dark passageway lay hidden in the shadows at the rear of the main chamber, unless you were looking for it specifically you would barely be able to tell it was there. We slipped into the inky blackness, Lucas grasping hold of my hand as he guided me down the tunnel. He had to feel his way along to some extent, whilst I could see everything clearly aglow in shades of blue. I wondered about suggesting I take the lead, but realised quickly it would be a pointless offer. He might not be able to see as well as I could, but he did know where he was going. Whereas to me the rest of the inquisitor's lair was still a mystery.

There were a few dark archways leading off of the main tunnel, but Lucas strolled right past them, though I did note him keeping a count of how many went by.

"All the rooms are pretty much the same," Lucas said as we passed the fifth dark archway without so much as a glimpse inside. "They're all dormitory like bedrooms. A few big ones, some would've just had two demons living in them. A few of the rooms are just empty holes in the rock walls, fuck knows what those were used for.

"We set ourselves up in the very last one. Frank doesn't really stay here much, but we did manage to agree that sticking right to the back of these tunnels was the best plan."

"Why? I thought you said no one would ever come looking down here."

"Well, it's unlikely, but better safe than sorry, right. Especially when it comes to sleeping, then we're at our most vulnerable, it seemed a better idea to have them spend time searching us out than stumble on us straight away. Give ourselves at least a chance of being awake and ready for them."

I nodded, not that he could see me, I could understand the idea. Of course it also meant that we were even more trapped down this long passageway. But down in the hollow we were all pretty trapped if anyone did come looking, it was definitely better to stand and fight than be caught sleeping.

As we passed arches seven and eight I took a chance, dropped Lucas' hand and stuck my head inside for a brief moment, allowing the blue of my vision to filter around the walls until the small square room flowed in front of me. It was plain, bare even, nothing but an empty sandstone box with four large rectangular hollows cut out of the rock like four stone coffins that must have acted as beds. It was a grim place and must have been a damn uncomfortable existence.

"Yeah, they're all pretty much the same," Lucas said, suddenly looming over my shoulder.

"It's depressing," I said, thinking back to my old room and its home comforts. It may have been a hollow cut in the rock just like this place, but the difference some soft furnishings and decorative touches could make was incredible.

"A little, but hopefully now we won't be here for much longer. Come on, let me show you the baths. It might just change your mind about this place."

"So you mean they couldn't give a shit about comfort, but good hygiene was important?" I asked, wearing a frown as I followed Lucas back into the passageway.

"Well, I'm not sure it was particularly intentional on their part, but certainly a stroke of luck for us."

He couldn't see it, I was pretty sure he couldn't, but somehow he must have sensed the puzzled expression I cast him because he shook his head and slipped an arm around my shoulders.

"Come on, you'll see."

The dark stretch of the hallway drew to an end and opened up into a wide, circular space. It was light in there, so light compared to the passageway that it took several moments for the blue tinges to fade from my vision and detail of what I was really seeing crept in.

The light was coming from the walls themselves. They glowed, flowing with veins of molten rock beneath the thin surface, and the heat was almost unbearable. The floor was black and charred, crunching beneath our feet, and in the centre of the room a vast deep pool full of steaming water. It bubbled up from beneath the rock at the bottom of the pool and I finally realised what Lucas meant.

"Natural hot springs?"

"Mmmhmm." Lucas nodded, "I figure this is where the rest of the water in this place is drawn from.

It made sense, all those showers had to come from somewhere - although they were more waterfalls than your typical fully plumbed shower, and always hot – some fancy magic must have it flow from its source beneath through the rock walls to every corner of Hell. The Inquisitors had certainly lucked out in getting the actual pool formed by the springs in the hollow.

"But isn't it too hot to actually bath in?" It certainly looked it, but Lucas shook his head.

"No, I mean it's hot, yeah, but it won't burn you. If we were still just ordinary Hybrids then I might not risk it, but now...well it was fine for me, and I'm still a lot more human than you are now. So go on, soak to your heats content. Just don't touch the walls, they are too hot. I'm going to go and crash out for a while, hopefully Frank will take his sweet time finding whatever the hell he thinks will convince us his way is right. I'll be in the first room off the passage if you need me."

With that he left me to my own devices. It seemed strange that something so very mundane and simple could make me feel so wonderful. But as I stripped off the ratty piece of clothing and sank tentatively into the warm, inviting pool I felt much more like myself than I had in far too long. It felt restorative and invigorating, and I knew then that as soon as Frank came back I would feel ready to face anything that Hell still had to throw at me and face it head on; confident with all guns blazing. I just hoped that the feeling would last.