"For you, Zac, lemonade, just the way your grandfather makes it. You like this, yes?"

"Ha!" laughed Herya. "Lemonade. You're such a child."

"And for you, Herya of the Valkyries, yak's milk, warmed to five degrees above room temperature."

It was Zac's turn to laugh. Herya blushed. "You've made a mistake," she told Argus. "I drink ale."

Argus frowned. "Oh. My apologies. I did not know this. I have watched you many, many times a" almost every moment of your life a" and I have not once seen you drink ale."

"Well, I do," she insisted. "Gallons of it."

Zac patted her on the arm. "You know, there are organisations who can help you with that. Admitting you have a problem a" that's the first step."

"Funny guy," she said, and she flicked milk in his face.

"What about me?" asked Angelo. "I'm thirsty too."

"Ah, yes," nodded the demon. "We have a real treat in store for you, I think."

Steropes set down the yak's milk beside Herya, who made a point of ignoring it completely. He scurried over to the bar again. They all watched as he pulled a welder's mask over his head and slipped thick gauntlets over each hand.

"We cannot be too careful, yes?" Argus said. The Cyclops stalked slowly back towards them. He was holding a pair of metal tongs and using them to carry a small silver flask.

Zac turned to Angelo. "What do you drink? Plutonium?"

The flask was set carefully on the table beside Angelo. Steropes quickly backed away, visibly relaxing as he did.

"Holy water," Argus explained. "Lethal to demons. Your favourite, I believe, yes?"

Angelo's eyes lit up with excitement. "You're not wrong there." He unscrewed the lid of the flask and sniffed the contents.

"From eighteen seventy-eight. A very good year, I am told," Argus said. "Blessed by Pope Pius the Ninth himself, mere days before his death."

Angelo took a sip. He licked his lips, then smacked them together. "Yummy scrummy in my tummy," he said. He grinned at Zac, who rolled his eyes in response.

"You said you knew what was in the tenth circle of Hell," said Zac, steering the conversation back to more important matters.

Argus gave Steropes a nod as the Cyclops set a glass of dark red liquid down in front of him. "I did not say this. You said this."

Zac frowned. "What?"

"I do not know what is in the tenth circle of Hell."

"I thought you saw everything?" said Herya.

"I do," nodded Argus. "Or I did. I knew many moons ago that they were starting work on the new circle. I saw them cut the turf and lay the very foundations, watched them build it brick by brick."

"So what happened?"

"They did not build a door," Argus explained. "Or windows. They have it locked down tight, sealed so the eyes of Argus cannot see in. Whatever they are doing down there, they do not want anyone knowing about it."

"Wow," said Zac quietly. "That must really kill you."

Argus's head twitched, as if he were shaking off a fly. "Yes," he admitted. "It does. When you're used to seeing everything, having a blind spot is very... troubling. Which is why I have a proposal for you."

"What sort of proposal?"

"A a" what is the word a" a collaboration of sorts," Argus said. "If I help you get to Hell and tell you what I know of the tenth circle, can you find a way inside?"

"Yes," said Zac without hesitation.

Argus nodded. "Then I propose just that. I arrange for you to be transported to Hell, and give you some tools that may be of use. The rest is up to you. Once inside, you may retrieve your book and do with it as you will. It is of no interest to me."

"And what's in it for you?" asked Zac.

"Knowledge," Argus shrugged. "This is all. I would ask that you leave an eye or two of mine behind when you make your escape. This is not too much to ask, I think?"

Zac looked to his companions. Angelo shrugged. Herya glanced away.

"OK. We can do that."

"I am very glad to hear it," Argus replied. He held his arms out to the side, dropped to one knee, then bounced back up again. "We celebrate with dance, yes?"

Angelo stood up. "Conga, conga, cong-a!"

Zac shot him a withering glare, and Angelo reluctantly sat back down again.

"We'll probably just shoot off," Zac said. "If it's all the same to you."

"Very well. But you should know, Zac," said Argus, "about Haures."

"The Duke of Hell guy? What about him?"

"He knows you are coming. He wants you to come."

Zac paused while this new information sank in. "Why?"

"That I do not know," Argus admitted. "But Haures is a monster."

"Says the man with the child-skin statue."

"Haha. There are different types of monster, Zac, some worse than others. Whatever Haures wants you for, I cannot imagine it is anything good."

"Right," said Zac. "I'll keep my eyes open."

"As will I," said the demon. Argus slapped himself on the belly. It made a sound like the cracking of a whip, and every part of him from his neck to his waistband rippled. "Are you ready, Zac Corgan?" he asked. "Are you ready to mount your assault on the domain of Satan himself?"

Zac stood and looked the demon squarely in the nipples. "Yeah," he said with a shrug. "Why the Hell not?"

"ABRIEL, THERE YOU are. Have you brought news?"

"Not much, sir, I'm afraid."

"Has he got the book yet?"

"Alas, no, sir. Not yet. The operation is ongoing."

"Hang it all. What's taking them so long?"

"The methods they are employing are... unexpected, sir."

"Oh? How so?"

"They went to Asgard, for starters. Entered the Hall of Valhalla and had something of a falling-out with Odin. Young Angelo got... upset."

"How upset?"

"Very upset, sir. If you know what I mean?"

"Of course I do! I wasn't created yesterday. Has he calmed down yet?"

"Mercifully, yes."

"Well, that's something, although I don't see why you had to send the boy in the first place."

"He volunteered, sir."

"Yes. So I'm led to believe. Where are they now?"

"Hades, sir."

"Hades?"

"Yes, sir. Hades."

"Why are they in blasted Hades? What's in Hades?"

"Argus, sir. We believe they've asked for his assistance."

"Hrmph."

"We thought that was rather resourceful, sir."

"Hrmph."

"Rest assured, everything is continuing as planned, despite their unorthodox strategy."

"Really? You're not just saying that to make me feel better?"

"Oh, no, sir. Everything is unfolding as we anticipated. They'll be inside Hell within the hour. Whether they'll make it back out, of course... Well, that remains to be seen."

AC AND ARGUS stood by a wide window, looking down through gaps in the cloud. The ground was a dizzyingly long way away, and it was impossible to make out many details. Even the River Styx was little more than a squiggly black pencil line on a vast black page.

"And that's it?" said Zac, when Argus had finished telling him how to get to Hell. "That's all there is to it?"

"This is all there is," Argus said. "This is all you need to do. It is only a few miles downriver."

"It seems too easy."

The hollows of Argus's eye sockets widened in surprise. "You would prefer difficult?"

Zac scratched his chin. "No, of course not." He shook his head. "It's just... nothing's ever that easy."

Argus clapped Zac on the back. "You worry too much, Zac Corgan," he laughed. "What you must remember is that no one has tried breaking into Hell before. No one has ever been so a" what is the word?"

"Insane?" suggested Herya, who was standing by the child-skin statue, looking up at it.

"Foolish," said Argus. "Only a fool would try to break into Hell, so they do not worry too much about building defences, I think."

"Oh, well, thanks for that," Zac said. He had to admit, though, it did make sense. Only a fool would try to break into Hell.

"Steropes will take you to the Styx. I have a boat there you can borrow. Borrow, yes? I would like it back. It is not too big, but it can float very good. All you must do is follow the Styx and soon you will find the Hell you are looking for."

"That's all, eh?" Zac mumbled. He turned from the window to look for Angelo and found the boy standing right behind him. Angelo smiled eagerly. "You sure you still want to come?" Zac asked.

"I Scooby-dooby-do!" Angelo yelled. He caught Zac's expression. "That was a yes, by the way."

Zac nodded. "Fine." He looked over to Herya. "You ready?" he called to her. "We're leaving."

"You're leaving," said the Valkyrie.

"What?"

"I never said I was coming with you. I said I'd take you to Argus." She pointed to the bare-chested demon. "There's Argus. Job done. You're on your own from here on in."

"But I thoughta""

"Well, you thought wrong."

Zac glanced at the others, then back to Herya. He strode over to her. "Can I talk to you in private for a minute?" he asked, ushering her towards the far corner of the room.

"There's nothing to talk about," she said. "I'm not coming. I never said I was."

"Maybe not," Zac admitted, "but you never said you weren't, either. I thought you were into this stuff a" adventure and excitement and all that."

Herya folded her arms. "Yeah, well I thought you didn't want me coming along. You work better alone, you said."

"I did. I do," said Zac. "But, well, you've got experience of these places. You're our expert. You know your way around. You said so yourself."