Celebratory double update because I published Asorazey!!!

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Seonghwa waited for Mingi in the foyer. He bid his goodbyes to the others and exchanged a shy smile with San in the corridor. The seraph no longer tried to evade Seonghwa. After their talk at the inn, they accepted each other's apologies and finally, Seonghwa got to look at San with marvel without driving him away.

Idling in the white crystal hall, Seonghwa listened to the haunting song echoing through the walls. So far, none of his husbands complained about it, but he suspected not all of them heard it. These days, it wallowed in melancholy more than ever. As the seasons changed and the ice-cold tingling of the cold affected the choir and filled Seonghwa with fortitude, the song also got more energetic.

Mingi's door opened with a soft click. With a leather bag slung over his shoulder, the demon felt his way outside. His eyes followed the invisible lines across the walls, guiding him so he wouldn't crash and get another nosebleed.

Seonghwa stood still and observed as the careful demon tugged the door shut. He handled his surroundings with so much caution, afraid to get hurt. Since this was the elven realm, however, his surroundings were alive and appreciated his attention. Thus, the song grew sweeter as it lured him in, wishing to run invisible hands through that messy head of curls.

"Seonghwa?" Mingi asked as he meandered in his direction, one hand on the wall and one stretching out for the silhouette ahead. Insecure fingertips brushed through the silk of Seonghwa's dress, black as the night to match Mingi. They found his chest, then trailed over his shoulder and arm to intertwine their fingers. A small smile touched Mingi's lips.

"Found you."

Seonghwa ran a fond hand through the demon's hair. He was careful not to touch his horns, tracing around their mighty shape that was marred with nicks and scars.

"So you have. Will you be fine to return to the Cavern of Nightfall? It will be dark; you won't see."

Mingi frowned at the ground. His pointed ears perked to the hum of the elven choir, sensitive to it since his hearing was so trained. The grey of his skin cradled Seonghwa's hand with reverence.

"My sight is my lesser concern. I have you with me. When I am distressed, I can come to you. That is much better than how it was before," he tried to cheer himself up. Seonghwa ran his thumb over the back of Mingi's hand.

"We won't dawdle if there is nothing for us to do. As soon as we are back, you won't have to visit that place for a long time. Both your sight and your peace are yours to claim here," he promised. Though he didn't know the details of Mingi's life in the depths, the talk with his people had given most of it away. Mingi had been born without sight, so he grew up being treated like dirt by his peers.

Upon Seonghwa's words, Mingi's smile brightened.

"Thank you."

"Then shall we? I will guide you." To ease their journey and take some difficulties from Mingi's shoulders, Seonghwa had convinced Hongjoong to summon a portal that would take them to the entrance leading to the caverns. After he argued he would spend fewer time travelling and more time at home, the wicked sorcerer conceded.

Seonghwa led Mingi by his hand to bring him up to his room. Hongjoong perched in Seonghwa's conversation pit in wait, and his eyes rose to rake down on Seonghwa's appearance as soon as he stepped in.

The black dress Seonghwa donned had a sweetheart neckline that displayed his collarbones and the net of his obsidian necklace spilling over his shoulders and bust. It was sleeveless, but two off-shoulder straps held it snug to his body. The silk of his cape mingled with the long skirts and dragged over the polished floor behind him.

After his lips had quirked appreciatively, Hongjoong got up to climb from the pit. He wore only high-waisted pants and a loose white shirt. The laces got neglected to show the deep V of his chest.

Mingi would never know that Seonghwa's eyes wandered as well.

"Do you have everything ready?" Hongjoong asked when he stepped to the spread of the wall where no nooks or shelves would disrupt his spell. Seonghwa guided Mingi closer, sticking to his side when Mingi shifted in discomfort.

"Yes for me," Seonghwa answered, waiting for Mingi to pat down his pockets and bag. When he nodded timidly, Seonghwa smiled. Hongjoong rolled his eyes.

"Then away with you. Don't stall, it's getting boring to think of new spells to bother Yunho every day and nothing else to do." Hongjoong traced a circle over the wall, creating a fiery line. Once the circle closed and he muttered his chant, the portal opened to the entrance of the Cavern of Nightfall. A dark cave lit by fire blurred on the other side.

Seonghwa leaned over to press a kiss on Hongjoong's cheek in thanks.

"Spend your time studying at the fountain if you get bored. I will hurry."

Satisfied with his reward, Hongjoong stepped back. He lifted his hand to beckon them to go and Seonghwa tugged Mingi along as he went first. With his skirts bundled in his hand, he lifted an elegant foot to cross into the heat of the demonic caverns.

Darkness engulfed them. It wasn't open and fresh like the night but stifled from the cave and its eternal flames that danced an evil reckon in their basins. As if the stone grew to impale all intruders, sharp tips poised from the uneven ceiling.

Seonghwa made eye contact with the demon guarding the entrance area. He was massive, as broad as the one the demons sought to exchange Mingi with. If his bulging muscles and bull's horns weren't enough to intimidate any visitor, he also bore a jagged halberd decorated with skulls of all races.

He recognised Seonghwa with a stiff nod.

"The Demon King awaits you," he grumbled, voice even deeper and gruffer than Mingi's. Shifting and rubbing his eyes that lost their little sight Seonghwa's realm offered, Mingi hovered behind him.

"We shan't linger," Seonghwa replied. With graceful steps, he followed the large demon. He brought them to a row of carts lined up on iron tracks that led away through the cave. The wooden basin on four wheels was tall enough to sit in comfortably, but not closed like most carriages Seonghwa possessed. No animal pulled it.

"Sit in here and hold on tight. I will give you a good push."

The last time Seonghwa visited the hellish lands, he met in a neutral territory with the royal family. There had been no need to enter the depths of the mountains.

Now, he was curious about what they would find and if it would be anything like the books he read. The demons were said to live in agitatingly hot temperatures and forge their weapons from the lava pooling in the abyss. Every mount of theirs was a horned beast.

Seonghwa climbed over the edge and sunk into the cart. Mingi felt around to find his spot, but the other demon didn't mind his fumbling. Once he warned them another time to hold on to the cart, he tugged it from its corner. A few steps, he accompanied the squeaking iron tires over the flat ground. Then, with a grunt, he strained his muscles.

"Good luck."

With those words, he launched them forward, and the cart took them down the tracks. The incline led into the black void of the caverns. Seonghwa's fingers clutched to the rattling basin and his stomach lurched when their speed picked up. He couldn't see up front, his own glow just strong enough to illuminate the tracks right in front of them. Narrow walls encased them.

"This doesn't seem very safe," Seonghwa commented when sharp curves shook them left and right. He glanced over his shoulder to check on Mingi and his stomach dropped when he saw the stone walls encasing them end. Beneath them, an abyssal depth harboured whichever monstrous creature that watched them roll past on the ever-declining tracks.

Seonghwa held on to the cart for dear life, terrified to fall out and get swallowed by the darkness.

Mingi scooted closer. His legs parted, so Seonghwa sat between them. The demon's heat engulfed him and assured him he wasn't alone.

"It's the fastest way down. Accidents happen rarely, and as long as you hold on, we will be through in a flash," Mingi assured him. He leaned his forehead against the back of Seonghwa's head, listened to the dissonant melody of his soul that yelled at him to avoid danger. The elf couldn't help but feel like Mingi wasn't afraid only because he couldn't see what was in front of them. He only felt the wind in his hair and the rush of excitement of their ride.

To block out the glaring risk, Seonghwa closed his eyes. The hot wind messed up his hair and tickled at his lids.

At another sudden drop, Seonghwa tore his eyes open with a yell. He had to see, had to prepare himself.

They got faster and faster. As the tracks curved and bounded through the rocky walls once more, the threatening creaking of their cart echoed in the darkness. Seonghwa could only fathom how massive of a cave system they crossed.

This part, Seonghwa wouldn't document to Mingi, even if he had the breath. For once, Mingi's blindness assured him and he could soothe Seonghwa's cramped body as they flew through the darkness. As if their speed wasn't bad enough, Seonghwa expected the maw of a gigantic monster to open ahead of them and swallow them whole.

Nauseous from his fear, Seonghwa prayed it would be over soon.

But the worst was yet to come.

From one moment to the next, his glow saw no rails ahead. Only darkness greeted them in yet another open space.

Every muscle in Seonghwa's body locked up as they raced for a certain end.

"M-Mingi," he got out in a terrified squeak when they were too fast and yet so slow.

A warm head nuzzled into Seonghwa's shoulder.

"Almost there," he promised. His arm around Seonghwa's waist tightened.

Then they dropped.

Another yell tore out of Seonghwa's throat when they rushed straight down. The wheels screamed on the trails, so the cart was still locked to them and didn't fall freely, but the incline felt murderous. Seonghwa's insides got shaken up and his fingers cramped into the wood as they went so fast he couldn't breathe. They dipped into a swell of hot air, choking him further, and in a panic, he prayed it would be over soon.

With small, choked gasps for air, Seonghwa let the cart rattle him left and right, barely holding out.

The light in the depths meant salvation. Orange and warm like fire, it crept up the walls to shoo away the abyss. With it came the heat, but Seonghwa preferred it over the terror.

He gasped for breath when the rails tugged upward. Their speed took them over a smaller surge, then they shot out through a hole in the wall.

Below them stretched the Caverns of Nightfall. They were so deep, Seonghwa couldn't see the top of the cave spanning above. On the ground, orange lights illuminated the demons' burrows and buildings, creating streets of black rock and rivers of lava. The castle throned at the edge of the walls across from them, so far in the distance that it looked small and would take hours to get to.

Seonghwa clung to the rim of the cart, all fear forgotten as he gazed upon the realm of demons for the first time. Though terrifying, they awed him with their elaborate obelisks and the massive territory that gathered all the demons in multiple layers through the mountain.

They passed a docking station, but the guard waved them through. On a gentler path, they rolled along the walls engulfing the cavern, and Seonghwa watched the town pass as they made their way to the other side to reach the palace.

Mingi looked cosy here, away from his people, but in the habitat that felt most like home to him.

"How does it look?" He asked, greedy to find out.

Seonghwa found his trembling voice. Already, his throat was parched from the hot air.

"It's beautiful," he confessed, entranced by the many fires that looked like a blanket of fireflies across the entire town. Though their people and buildings were jagged and scary, Seonghwa spotted power and might.

As he quietly shared his observations with Mingi, they rounded the massive grotto and soon would arrive after their hellish ride.