Life

Copyright © 2000 by Michael Seltzer

You can contact the author at: Michael Seltzer, 33 Gould St., West Roxbury, MA 02132. or seltzer@samizdat.com

Fiction by Michael Seltzer on CD includes The Eyes of a Child, Life, and Behind Locked Windows.

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Chapter 1 --  Just Another Day

I awoke to the ear-shattering sound of a banshee screaming.  It was rather annoying actually.  I still had some more lazy time due to me before my next shift, but who can immediately fall back to sleep after a sound like that?  On most days I’d have found it rather pleasant to hear a good round of wailing, but not then.  Not when I was too hung-over to even see straight.  Something had happened the night before which made me want to drink more than usual.  An utterly preposterous idea had been brought to my attention, "life."

On the night in question, my associate Enohp and myself were dining and drinking in our usual tavern, Hell’s Kitchen.  Enohp as well as myself belonged to the Erofeb clan.  But unlike myself, he looks like a giant brown slug about the size of a station wagon.  To go into detail would take too long, and would probably make you vomit all over these pages.  While such an endeavor would be amusing to one such as myself, I'll simply leave the details up to your own imagination so that these pages will remain dry.

We had just gotten off from work, and wished to unwind from the drudgery of our daily chores.  The need to relax is understandable of course.  After all, torturing souls can be a very arduous task.

So there we were, Enohp and myself, having a night fit for a demon.  The entertainment for the night was a singer by the name of Rosemary.  She had a decent voice, and a pair of legs that seemed to call to me to sink my teeth into them.  I resisted the urge though.  Demons don’t get much in the way of entertainment.  So when a good act comes along, the damned tend to get a bit miffed when a show gets cut short.  On that night the crowd enjoyed the proceedings immensely. They even chanted for a second encore.  That is why it pained me when I had to slip away for a moment to relieve myself.  But, when you've got to go...  well you know the rest.  So I made my way over to the inter-species restroom and found the nearest stall.

I have seen all manners of creations.  The sight of some of them would probably turn your hair completely white, and leave a wet spot in your undergarments.  One would assume then, that nothing could scare me.  Nothing could sway me from my given role as a Tormentor of Souls.  But, since the event on the night I am about to relate, I have learned never to assume anything.  There is just too much uncertainty to overlook.

After relieving myself I went and began washing my hands.  And as I did so, I could not help but stare at my reflection in the mirror above the sink.  I stood at a height of approximately ten feet tall, and weighed close to a ton.  There were five arms protruding from my torso with hands bearing finely kept talons where you would have nails.  My six legs possessed  hooves that kept me moving swiftly, and agile throughout my travels.  My skin was dark green, and my face was humanoid, except for the horns, of course. I can say my face is humanoid now, but I could not do so then.  I barely knew what a human was back then, and only through the fairy tales and rumors that were told in secret.

The lights were not all working, so the image was slightly distorted.  The sight reminded me of something that I had heard about on some weird talk show that I had seen on HTV(Hell Television.) The basis for the episode had been a weird cult thing called mirror gazing.  Apparently some time ago, there were demons that had actually taken the time, and effort, to figure out that if you stare at a mirror in the dark, without looking away, then after a while you started to see yourself as hideous, mythical beings.  In my drunken state, I whimsically decided to try it for myself.  So I focused my eyes on my image, and waited for whatever was going to happen.  At first, there was nothing, just my own reflection.  The fact that I was actually trying it had made me feel more than a bit ridiculous.  But then, something began to happen.  My features began to change.  What it changed into was an image that gave me nightmares for many an evening.  It was the image of a human.  I had heard descriptions, and on occasion seen pictures of what demons thought humans would look like.  None matched what I saw, but for whatever reason, I knew it had to be a human face.  More importantly, it was a face that was reacting in the same way as my own face was.  It was me, as a human.  Of course I immediately tore my eyes away from the monstrous sight before me.  The image had frightened me so much that I had backed into the stall behind me, and was yelled at by its inhabitant, a giant centipede.  We shouted at each other, and then I grabbed it by its antennae, and proceeded to throw it out of the restroom.  For a while all that my mind could process was the fear that had been engulfing me.  Then, the whole situation seemed so absurd that I had to laugh.

Everyone knew that there was no such thing as humans.  The concept was most likely conceived by some stoned out wackjob, who for whatever reason, needed an explanation for where the souls come from.  Personally, I never felt the need to know.  Ignorance was bliss.  Then came my second attempt to peer into the mirror.

I wanted to prove to myself that I was not really afraid.  I needed to redeem my demonhood.  So, I decided to try out another aspect of mirror gazing.  I slowly walked up to the mirror once more.  Then looked directly at my reflection.  Finally, I said a phrase that had long since been forbidden in Hell.  It was an odd phrase in that nobody knew where it had come from, or what it meant.  But, about two millennia ago, it had suddenly been forbidden to say it.  This of course meant it became a not often spoken swear phrase which demons uttered under hushed breath.  “Holy Mary…Holy Mary…Holy Mary.” I said.  And then waited for something to happen.

At first, nothing happened., and I began to laugh out loud.  Then, the mirror began to glow with a brilliant light.  It was unlike anything I had ever seen before.  The light possessed a radiance which is beyond description.  It was blinding at first, but then it became somewhat inviting.  I found myself feeling at home in its glow.  And as it shined more and more brightly, I could not help but be drawn towards its source, the mirror.  I watched in awe as the light engulfed my own reflection.  But something else happened.  A vision of what could only have been described as a human woman, dressed in white appeared where my face had once been.  A feeling of shock, and utter terror flowed through my body as the image before me formed.  I passed out almost immediately.  But not before she spoke.  Not before she said those fateful words which have never left my memory.  “Life is real.  Humans are real.  You can live too, if you believe.”

To you this may not seem very shocking, but to me and my kind, it was mind-shattering news.  You see I was never born.  At that time I had never known anything that had been born.  All of my kind had been spawned in the lower levels.  Since our spawning we had all been given our own assignments to carry out.  The better we carried them out, the more favorably we were looked upon by our master.  He was the one who made us.  He created us to do battle with his enemies in a place referred to as Heaven, and to run the routine operations at home.  My kind did not have the honor of taking part in that great battle that you’ve probably heard about though.  That war was before the time of the demons.  It was a time of angels.  But all that changed when The Great War took place.  Our master, whose true name was never allowed to be uttered, was defeated by the one called Michael, and his creator.  Then the master and his followers were banished to this place.

This place has gone by many names.  Some of your kind believe it to just be a mythical place, made up to keep the masses scared to do wrong.  Let me assure you, it is very real.  I have witnessed it in all of its glory, and born the shame of its unwillingness to strike out, and crush its enemies.  Some say that soon, it will strike out, and that another war with Heaven shall take place.  I have been hearing those kinds of rumors for longer than your time has been recorded.  When I see it, I will believe it.  This place has taught me that much.  After all, Hell can be a very cynical place.

Oh, by the way, please allow me to introduce myself.  My name is Rianoc, and I am a demon from Hell’s third level, sector nineteen, district eighty-four.  As I've said, I was a member of the Erofeb Clan, back then, which is one of the thirteen main clans that Hell's inhabitants are divided into.  At one time or another, each clan has battled the others for the right to lead.  It keeps the fighting instincts up for when the next war comes along.  It also sets the order of leadership.  The strongest lead the rest.

Of course the master has always been in charge.  Next in the line of command would be the fallen angels who fought alongside him in the first war.  These two positions have never been challenged.  The demon clans would never stand a chance against the fallen ones.  So the demon clans swear loyalty to the master, and his fallen angels.  Then the order of things falls into place through combat.  The Erofeb have been third for a very long time.  It is a respectable position, unlike those near the bottom, such as the Snorom.  They are too stupid, and weak to do anything but be laughed at.  They are nothing like the proud Erofeb.  But even the greatest of warriors have something to fear.

---

Chapter 2 -- The Overseer

An Overseer is only called in as an investigator for the most important of matters.  You cannot open your door to an Overseer without feeling something inside your stomach turn around and try to run out your back.  The Overseers know all the walls, and holes, and secrets of Hell.  They know what happens in the domain that they have helped to cultivate.  So believe you me, when that lady appeared to me in the mirror, someone else knew about it.
Seeing as how I did not believe it to have been real at first, the impact of the situation did not completely hit me.  And once I had become convinced that she had actually been there, I had become far too disorientated to even think about what trouble might be coming my way.  So while I was attempting to regain a sense of my own reality, an Overseer was already looking into the matter of the appearance, very closely.  The lady in white had caused quite uproar in the bowels of Hell that night.  Her presence had started a domino effect that involved all the higher ups in the hierarchy of Hell.  From the master, all the way down to the Overseer that was put directly in charge of the investigation, an ultimatum was laid out.  The breech of Hell’s walls was to be found and blocked.  Any and all witnesses were to be questioned about the incident, and then disposed of.  No Heavenly being had ever dared to enter the dark realm, and it was to be made clear that none would ever do so again.

The Overseer assigned to the case was one of the most highly respected, and feared angels in Hell.  His name was David.  The fallen angels were the only things to ever give any demon a nightmare that it did not enjoy.  David was the kind of angel that made even angels fear closing their eyes.

As I naïvely slept away the night in my bed, David began the process of eliminating any and all problems that arose from the visitation by the heavenly being.  His search began the moment the job was laid into his care at his office.  It was a large office placed near the top of one of the largest skyscrapers in the city.  It possessed a wide view of the smog-ridden hole called Hell.  The red sulfuric dust that was constantly being kicked up into the air had a tendency to create a haze even in the brightest part of the day.  This was the usual scene in Hell's third level.  Level two was covered in ice, level four was covered in water.  I have never been to the other levels, but from what I have heard, they were nothing special. Tourism was never my thing anyway.

Inside the room, in the far-left corner from the door, lay a trophy case, filled with decapitated heads of various beings.  David enjoyed staring at the heads of his victims.  And he had piled up quite a collection too.  The case was as long as the wall, and deep enough so that one could probably back a couple of cars up into it, one behind the other.  David's desk was in the center of the spacious room, and was made of solid gold, denoting his importance in the order of things.

At the time the news arrived that it was he who was to be put in charge of the case, David was in the process of attempting to wrap up another assignment he had been working.  It involved a demon by the name of Ebircs.  This particular demon had had the audacity to suggest, and then try to prove, that the battle lines between Heaven and Hell were not as evenly matched as everyone had been told.  He had written, and published an article that related the events that had led up to The Great War, as well as the war itself.  He then went on to suggest that Hell was not a home, or a fortress, but a prison.  Ebircs insisted that even if a demon wanted to leave Hell, he could not do so without passing through a kind of barrier.  The barrier involved a test of one’s soul.  Seeing as how a demon could not possibly have a soul, it would be impossible for any of Hell’s creatures to leave its barriers.  Later on I had come across the theory in question while doing research on the subject of life.  It had seemed farfetched, even to me.  Still, for whatever reason, Hell’s higher ups were convinced that that kind of reporting was nonproductive, and that a "retraction" of sorts should be made.  The problem was that Ebircs would not do it.  He felt compelled to stand up for his work.  That is where David came in.  He was to "convince" Ebircs of the errors involved in the research.

They sat in the office, discussing the article.  Ebircs was tied to a chair, and looked to have been awake for several days without rest.  The demon also possessed many scars upon his body, which had been obtained recently.

 “Give it up Ebircs.  What do you hope to accomplish by this show of defiance?” David asked

 “The truth should be known!” Ebircs stated defiantly.

 “By who? The masses? Even if it were true…”

“You know it to be true! If you thought otherwise then Hell would not be demanding a retraction.” Ebircs watched as the angel smiled at his words.

“They wouldn’t know how to deal with that kind of knowledge.  It would only hamper their production.”

 “How do you know that? How do you know that it wouldn’t give them purpose? Maybe it would inspire them to try to break free from this place.”

 “The master is not prepared for that yet.  In time we may tell the masses, but for now, ignorance of the matter shall be their salvation.  That is why you will print a retraction.”

 “You’ve tortured me for three days straight, and I have not broken yet.  I will never break, so you might as well destroy me! I know that that is what you intend to do whether I do as you ask or not.”

“If Hell has proven anything about itself, it is that it has patience.  You will do as you have been told to do.  I will torment you for an eternity if need be, but you will relent.  For now though, I believe I shall put you in a place befitting someone with your knack for compassion.  I shall let a more experienced torturer deal with you.  Don’t worry though.  We’ll talk again, in a few days.” With those words, David waved his hand, and Ebircs disappeared, leaving David to contemplate his next move.  That is when the new assignment came.

 Upon reading the memo that had been sent down, David immediately burned it, as instructed in the letter, and then went about the buisness of carrying out the rest of his orders.  He abruptly left his office, telling his secretary to cancel all of his meetings for the day.  The fallen angel was going to require all of his time and energy to complete the assignment.  His first priority was to investigate the scene of the incident.

 Upon arriving at Hell’s Kitchen, David could not help but notice that all eyes in the establishment had become fixed on him.  It was to be expected.  After all, angels did not frequent the place, ever.  They were more inclined to meet at their own private club that went by the name of The Fifth Ring.  It was an exclusive club that catered only to those that had fought in The Great War.  The Fifth Ring was viewed as a place of power, and despised by demons for its exclusivity.  The angels knew this, and they reveled in it.  David was no exception.  That is why he had such a smug look on his face when he walked up to the manager of the club and informed the demon that there was an investigation being performed, and that cooperation was expected.  The manager knew what David was, and that is why he tried not to seem like the urge to puke in the fallen angel's face was the most prevailing thought in his mind.

The manager was a Nevar demon.  This meant that he possessed two heads which protruded from a small, but ample blue frame.  His heads possessed beaks, and beady black eyes that normally would have unnerved most patrons in Hell's Kitchen, but not David.  David couldn't have cared less about the talons which protruded from the demon's four hands.  And he had no qualms about disturbing buisness for the local establishment.  The manager knew this, and so he tried not to allow the fallen angel to have an excuse to do so.

 “Did you notice anything peculiar going on last night?”

 “Hey, look at the crowd I cater to buddy.  What ain’t weird here?”

 “Very well.” David decided that the manager was not being cooperative enough.  So, David grabbed the demon by his genitals with a grip that rivaled that of a car-crusher in a junkyard.  The he said, “I just want the facts.  Do you have any problem with that?”

“No…sir.” It took an extreme effort for the demon not to crawl into a corner and die from the pain.  David told the demon to retrieve the tapes from the security cameras from the night before.  The manager simply nodded both of his heads, and went about doing what he had been told.  The demon did not know what had happened that night, and he did not want to know.  All he knew was that he had just angered an angel.  Usually that type of mistake led to decapitation.  As the manager limped his way to the back of the establishment, he could not help but think that oblivion would have hurt a lot less.

While David waited for the tape he decided to enter into the restroom that had been the sight of the disturbance.  To the average onlooker, the lavatory seemed normal.  Not to an angel though.  David could sense the remnance of Heavenly energies that had been left behind by the event.  The angel could sense that whatever being had been there, it had been a powerful one.  He shuddered to think of what kind being could call upon such force, as to break into Hell.  The energy did not come directly from his former master, but His power was there.  David then shuddered again as he considered the possible reasons for such an event.  The prospect of having another war before Hell was ready to fight was not in the least bit funny.  In fact it was downright frightening.  And as David looked into the mirror, he could not help but glance upwards towards Heaven, and cringe.

---

Chapter 3 -- Denial

What kind of world would it be like? Who would run things? What kind of order could be maintained in a world that could only offer short term goals to those living in it? The thoughts that raced through my mind were almost too horrifying to ponder.  But it was too late.  The idea had been rammed directly into the center of my mind, and my imagination would not let go of it.

 I began to imagine beings like the woman in white.  I imagined them possessing what little technology they possibly could have amassed in their short lifetimes.  I imagined them fearing battle, because of the fragility of their frame.  I imagined them rushing around mindlessly, as they tried to get their jobs done in the limited life-span that they were said to have.  It all seemed so far gone from reality.  Their existence seemed...  futile.  What could they do with fifty, sixty, or seventy years? What could possibly have been accomplished? They couldn't even learn about their own world, much less try and make it better for themselves.  Their lives would be meaningless.  They'd be more useless than lawyers.  The ideas only grew, and begged for proof in the matter.  As I prepared myself for my daily routine, I desperately tried to forget the events from the night before.  To not deny those events would be to deny everything that I had ever been taught.  To do this, would be to challenge the will of the master.  That is an extremely hazardous thing to do.

 The master set down all the ground rules, and he used his fallen angels to enforce these rules to, and beyond, the extent that they were intended.  That is the way things are in Hell.  Always have been, always will be.  There aren’t many rules, but when you break one, you’re fucked.  So those that reside in Hell are very cautious about them.  Well, usually they are.  In my case there seemed to be something behind my abnormal thoughts.  It was something that I could not quite explain back then, and even now I still don’t fully understand.  For whatever reason, I couldn’t stop thinking about the thing called life.  More specifically, the mythical place called Earth.

Everyone had heard the fairy tales, and crazy stories about the little blue green orb that was inhabited by the grotesque beings known as humans.  But nobody with any sense of sanity had ever truly believed in the concept.

 A need to know the truth began to seep into my brain.  The need to either prove, or disprove the notion of life became an obsession.  I had to know.  I dared not tell anyone about my experience, for fear of betrayal, and reprisal.  Something that is easily learned is that in Hell, no one can be fully trusted with a secret, let alone something as big as this.  I had to keep it to myself, no matter how much I longed to share my thoughts and ideas with someone else.  So I headed off to work, and went about my usual duties as a tormentor of souls.

Upon arriving I was greeted by my secretary, Retlif.  She was at her desk, as usual, and already had my daily schedule typed out.  She wore a gray dress suit, which fit her nicely shaped harpy form.  Her wrinkled face had always seemed inviting to me before.  But that morning I noticed how much the features seemed like that of the woman in white, only the woman in white had had no wrinkles, and possessed a look of something which I am only now able to say.  It had been a look of innocence.

The similarities also begged me to examine my own features, and the features of those I knew.  That is how I came to know that my face was humanoid.  The angels were definitely humanoid, except for their wings, and they seemed taller.  But then came the realization that human features were probably based on those of angels.  That brought about a reminder that even the master had once sworn allegiance to another being, and that fact had never quite settled in my mind.
Retlif noticed the fact that I was staring at her, and she seemed to blush because of it.  I apologized, and then took notice of the way that her feathers always seemed to bring out the redness in her eyes.  I must say, the sight of her sitting at her desk, smoking a cigarette, and hard at work...  it always did something for me.

 “Hello, Tormentor Rianoc.”

 “Hello, Retlif.  What’s my day looking like?”

 “Same as usual.  A few new souls to break, but I’m sure that it’ll be no problem for one such as you.”

 “Why thank you, Retlif.  Say, how did your clan do in last night’s battle? I understand you went up against the Notsob clan.”

 “It…didn’t go too well, sir.”

 “Well, they’re a tough clan to beat.  I remember when the Erofeb clan had to contend with them.  It was tooth and claw all the way.  I’m sure you’ll rip them to pieces next time.”

 “Thank you for your words of confidence, Tormentor.”

 “Anytime, Retlif.”

With that all said I opened the door to my office, and shut it behind me.  It had been difficult not to appear nervous in front of her, but then, Hell is very good at teaching the art of deception.

My office was about two and a half times the size of the average cubicle.  It allowed me a red iron desk, with a comfortable chair, two bright lamps, and a window that allowed me the view of a picturesque junk yard.

 My desk was covered with backed up paperwork that called out to me, “You’d be better off joining the souls in their time of misery." I of course chastised the paper for speaking without being told to, then went about going through each one meticulously.  The master has a thing about paperwork.  He never gets enough, and he’s always looking for new kinds of forms to make his employees fill out.  But, the paperwork eventually got done.  Then came the fun part of my job, the torture.  I take great pride in my work.  To have found a position in such a field as Tormentor, well, you can only imagine the amount of gratification that I felt in having been allowed the opportunity to carry out the important duties that it held.  I always felt somewhat amiss about how the master felt the need to pay people to do the job.  I never uttered the words out loud of course.  The pay was way too good to do that.

 One must always be sufficiently cruel to those in his or her pen.  The degree of pain and suffering that the souls should endure is determined before they are sent to me.  That is how I know how much anguish to dish out.  Hence, it then falls to me to come up with new, and more elaborate ways to redefine suffering in Hell.  Believe me when I say that over the millennia, this chore has become more and more difficult.

The only way that anyone can ever truly come up with new ways is to enter the minds of the souls in order to find out their greatest fears.  It would help if we could get into their memories, but that is not allowed.  All we are allowed are glimpses into their unconscious fears, and a mental outline of their psyche.  The master won’t let us even try anything more extensive.  Nobody has ever been able to fully explain to me why this is, but all the arguments seemed to come down to one main point.  Whoever breaks this rule, joins the souls in their torments.  This threat had been enough to keep even the most curious of minds from prying, or so I’d thought.

As I punched up the screen on my computer that related to the various tortures that I had recently come up with, and believe me, they were good, my mind could not help but continue to ponder the existence of living beings.  The idea of something being mortal still boggled my mind.  How could anything, with problem solving intelligence, accomplish anything inside the supposed life span that was thought to be denoted to those things? In both Hell, and Heaven alike, death does not come until you have either been obliterated, or had your head severed from your body.  The idea of mortal death, of dying after a brief moment in time, has never settled in my mind.  It's too unnerving.  And coming from a demon, that’s saying something.

 That day I attempted to drown my uneasiness by pouring myself into my work.  It turned out to be the best day’s work I had ever had.  Even the supervisor for my department was highly pleased at my ingenuity, and my apparent newfound enthusiasm.  Still, my brain would not let go of the idea of life.  I tried to imagine what it would be like on Earth, if it actually existed.  I wondered if it could at all have been like Hell.  The idea seemed silly, for how could a being with a time-based mortality create the technically intricate society that Hell provided? My expectation at that point was that if a human came into contact with something as high-tech as a fax machine, it would probably run away the moment the apparatus made the slightest sound.

My predicament continued on into the week.  On the one hand, I wound up receiving a raise.  On the other hand, the desire to know the truth was driving me completely insane.  Enohp could tell something was bothering me, and all night at Hell’s Kitchen he would attempt to question me about the matter.
“So what gives Rianoc? You’ve been acting weird lately.  It’s like… it’s like you’re not yourself.  It’s like…you’ve changed somehow.”

“I don’t know what to tell you Enohp.  If you say I’m different then…”

“Then what gives? Come on demon, how long have we known each other? You know that you can trust me.”

In reality, he was right.  With most things I could trust him to keep his big mouth shut.  But this was different.  This was bigger than anything I had ever known, or experienced.  Still, I could no longer pretend that nothing was wrong.  I had to tell someone, if for no other reason than to save my own sanity.  So one night I made up my mind to tell him the truth, or at least most of it.  Confiding in anyone was a foolish thing to do, but I had no choice.  I needed answers.  I needed to know what should be done to quench the curiosity.  Leaving out the part about the woman in white, I related the story of what happened to me in the restroom.  His response was not very helpful.

 “Hahahahahaha…excuse me.  You were being serious, and that was extremely rude of me to do." He paused for a moment, and attempted to correct the overwhelming urge to laugh that had possessed him.  "Hahahahahaha.” His efforts did not work.

 “Thank you Enohp.”

 “Oh, come on Rianoc.  What would you do if I came to you with some cockamamie story about mirror gazing, and humans? So you’re telling me that this is the reason why you’ve been freaking out for the past couple of days? Hahahahaha…”

 “Enough Already!!!” The surrounding tables stared at us after my little eruption, and then went about their own buisness.  Still, Enohp could tell that I was dead serious about the matter, and that fact disturbed him.

 “Listen bud.  Don’t let this get into your head too much.”

 “But why?”

 “Why? Well, let’s just say that the last demon who couldn’t let go of this kind of thing wound up in a very uncomfortable place.”

 “What do you mean?”

 “I mean you shouldn’t be talking about this kind of thing, to anyone.  Now let’s have a drink, on me.  Let’s just try to forget all about it.  Okay?”

 “Okay.  Sure thing Enohp.”

That is where I left it with him.  He was not going to be any help in my search.  In fact, in the long run he could wind up causing me trouble, if only to further his own career.  That is when I decided to do some research on my own.  So I headed off to the local library.  It would have been impossible to check out any of the books that I needed, for fear of being put on the list of troublemakers that is compiled in the HLD (Hell’s Library Database.) Instead it became necessary to do the research in the building itself.  It was a painstaking effort which bore no hard facts, only vague references, and even more questions.

One book in particular did catch my interest though.  It was entitled, Life: Fact, or Fiction? Inside its pages held a series of studies that seemed to set out to debunk the idea of there being actual life anywhere.  It put out several theories that could have been true, and then attempted to prove them all false.  It was quite successful, except on one.  It was not quite proven adequately for my liking.

The basis for the idea was what intrigued me the most.  It involved the souls.  It was intriguing to see some kind of explanation as to where they came from.  To think that they could have been human at one time was a bit farfetched.  I mean after all, how could something made out of pure energy ever be placed inside of a vessel as frail as the human body was supposed to be? In my work as a Tormentor, I had seen many souls.  They were simply liquid-like entities that changed their color, and form to match their disposition.  Of course I had only witnessed the more negative forms, but their negative energy holds far too much energy to contemplate.  Luckily the souls had no control over the energy that made them up.  But flesh could not contain something like that.  Not even demon flesh could contain something like that.  Still, the arguments against the idea were weak.  They left too much out.  They never mention where the souls actually came from.  And they never sought to explain why souls have memories, or why it is forbidden for demons to have access to the memories.  It did not debunk the theory, and it gave no real answers.  I had to have answers, but they were not available.  I did have a plan though.  It was a very risky, and extremely foolish.  But, it was my only option.  The only way for me to find out the truth was to talk to one of the souls.  This act had never been attempted before.  The repercussions would leave no living, or unborn being unscathed.

Chapter 4 -- Closing In

Upon entering his office he immediately placed the severed head upon his trophy case.  David then sat in his chair, and stared at the case with a smile that beamed with pride.  He loved to marvel at his own handiwork, but the tapes were his first priority.  So he went about the buisness of scrutinizing them for any indication as to exactly what had happened, and more importantly, who had witnessed it.

 The exact time of the incident was not known.  David had a rough idea, but that would not be enough.  Many demons had entered the restroom on that night.  It was part of the curse of intoxication.  Inside the timeframe that had been given to him in the report there were six demons who had entered the selected area.  It was easy enough to identify them with the help of computer enhancement, and the Database of Demons, and Other Beings Residing in Hell.  (also know as DDOBRH.) Every creature had been given a photo I.D upon their spawning.  Those photos had also been placed on record for identification.  David realized that he would have to meet with all six of them personally.

 “The incident at Hell’s Kitchen is not something to be spread around like so much gossip." David said to himself.  "It is something that requires censorship from the masses.  I will obey the word of my master.  Whatever disease that heaven attempted to spread in my home will not flourish.  It must be crushed by my hand.  Then, then my master will know my true worth.  Then I shall be placed at his right hand, and all will fear my wrath.”

 The angel quickly rose from his chair and grabbed the list of names that he had printed up.  He then rushed out of his office and headed towards home of the first demon on the list.  The demon’s name was Ekaw, and he was in for an extremely rude awakening.  Ekaw worked the night shifts as a construction worker.  The master had been having demons build a statue in his honor since Hell opened for buisness.  For some reason he was never satisfied with the quality of the statue.  It always had to be bigger, and grander.  So every once in a while he would review the work, not like it, and then obliterate the supervisor for failing to capture what he called, his true essence.  Then he’d order someone else to improve it, and the cycle would continue.  Fortunately for Ekaw, he was not in that position.  Unfortunately for him, he was going to have to contend with David.

 The fallen angel made his way over to apartment complex 95742399925A.  From there he went to room number 36D, and proceeded to knock on the thin wooden door that was basically standard issue for demons in that part of Hell.  As David waited for an answer he mentally prepared himself to seem unhostile.  He knew that it would be an obvious façade, but that was part of the game.  Both parties involved would know what was really going on, but David liked to toy with his victims before dismembering them.  In his mind, it added a sense of artistic formality to his work.  So as the door opened, and the demon’s jaw hit the ground at the sight before him, David kept a straight face.  That expression would not last for long though.  David enjoyed his work, immensely.

 “Hello, citizen Ekaw.  I am here on official buisness.” Said David, as he walked through the shocked demon’s front door, and glanced at the shambles it was in.  Ekaw was a Noogal demon.  This meant that he had blue scales instead of skin, webbed feet, and fins on his back.  It was unusual for a Noogal demon to reside anywhere but on the fourth level of Hell.  Their physical for allowed them more movement than most in all the water.  But Ekaw had decided to try something new.  David was about to help him in that endeavor.

After a moment, Ekaw managed to find his composure.  “What is this all about? Have I done something wrong?” After saying those last few words Ekaw immediately regretted them.  He knew that if he had done something wrong, he would probably no longer be.

 “I am here to find out about an incident which you may have witnessed at Hell’s Kitchen.  It took place in one of the restrooms several nights ago.” David watched Ekaw very closely for any signs of nervousness as related to his line of questioning.  Nervousness was to be expected of course, but the question asked should have set off some kind of alarm in the demon’s mind.  To David’s disappointment, it did not.  The demon honestly knew nothing.  That didn’t stop the few remaining questions that followed, or the twelve hours of torture.  The questions and the torture were part of his orders.  He was to make damn sure that the suspects were not lying.  Also, David liked to do it.  It was one of the things that he considered to be a perk of his job.  Afterwards the demon was obliterated, and a note was passed on to the Department of Residential Services that there was an opening.  Over the course of the next three days, three more openings were to be made, bringing the count to four evicerations, followed by decapitations.  The fifth opening was not to come until the fifth evening.  David had put in a full day’s work on each day, and his union wouldn’t allow him to work too much overtime.

Chapter 5 -- Risky Buisness

My actions were no longer entirely under my control.  But that's the thing with an obsession.  It drives beings to extremes that would normally be out of the question.  It pushes us to our limits, and beyond, all the while sucking us in deeper and deeper into it.  Unless someone points out the situation, it remains unchanged, and I was not about to let anybody know about this particular obsession.  It would have made my task far too dangerous, and it was already far too dangerous.  But that didn’t matter anymore.  Not to me.  Not to an obsessed demon.  I was in it until the end.

 Upon entering my office the first thing to be done was to get the usual dribble out of the way.  By that I mean the mountain of paperwork that was stacked on my desk, yet again.  Once that was done, I quickly switched on my computer, and pulled up the list of souls that were under my care.  The trick was to find one that did not seem high profile enough to call attention to a break in its torment, yet in enough pain that it would do anything for even a momentary pause.

The first one that came across my eye was that of a male.  He was being shown visions of entities that he had apparently offended.  They were chanting things like; "how could you help him go free", "you took everything I owned", and "I was innocent." The entity was desperately trying to plead his case, but the tormentors would not stop.  I considered him for a moment, and then changed my mind.  He seemed to lack the ability to tell the truth, and would only say what he thought would get what he wanted out of me.

 The next candidate was also a male.  He was being bombarded with chants from a crowd that seemed very hostile.  They too questioned his honesty, saying that he had made promises to get things done, and not followed through.  There were also a few comments about someone connected to him.  The shouts were about an entity by the name of Monica.  Again, this one seemed unfit for my purposes.  He seemed as though he’d say only what I wanted to hear, and not what was needed.  Not that that kind of thing is abnormal in Hell, it’s just that some are more inclined to the act of treachery than others.

 The third candidate was a female.  She was locked inside of a room.  The room was empty, except for a telephone which resided on top of a small table.  The phone was constantly ringing, and whenever she answered it was always someone trying to sell her something.  It seemed odd, but ironically fitting for her profile.
 There were many others, hundreds of thousands of them to choose from.  After a while I wondered if I’d ever find the kind of soul that I was looking for.  Then, I found her.  She was perfect for my needs.  Her soul seemed to emanate an energy that would indicate that she might one day be free of her torment.  That meant that she wasn’t too deserving of punishment, but it would be a while before that day would come.  Giving a sigh of relief, and a moment of undisturbed bliss, I went about chanting the proper incantations that would allow me to enter inside the Sea of Souls.

The Sea of Souls is a holding pen for those souls that are in Hell.  Heaven too had access to the Sea, but could only to intervene with those souls that had done their time.  The Sea is like its name, a sea.  Only the consistency of the liquid is more like that of lava, and its a lot harder for the untrained eye to see through it.  A trained Tormentor can maneuver around easily inside of it as well.  Most times the job would call for us to go to a specific soul, which can be done with a simple physical displacement spell.  But every century each Tormentor has to perform a sort of on-sight inspection, which means we have to go into the Sea, and take a general impression from outside the souls' cells to make sure that they are in pain.  The pain is important.

 The Sea is where a lot of Hell's power comes from.  Hell feeds off the energy of the souls.  That is why Hell torments souls.  If the souls are dormant, or inactive, then they aren't using any energy, and aren't providing Hell with as much energy as they could.  The more anguish the souls feel, the more they thrash around, attempting to get away from the torments that they are exposed to.  This use of energy feeds Hell, and those that seek to tap its power.  It was always my understanding that eventually Heaven would take pity on a soul after its allotted time had been served.  Then a Heavenly angel would take it away from the pain.  That was considered heaven’s weakness, the fact that it took pity on souls after Hell had used them.  It was for that reason that we were told to torment the souls as much as possible.  That way, when they finally did reach Heaven, not only would we have sucked out all the energy we possibly could in the allotted time, but the souls would be too destroyed to be any use.  That is why my job as Tormentor of Souls was so important.  But my job was not on my mind at the time.  There wasn't a whole lot on my mind, save my questions.  But at least I had remembered to leave my computer on.  That way, when an Overseer felt that I was using magic, he might not take the time to check what obscure spell I was using.  He would probably just check my records, see my job, and see that I was in my office working.  In hindsight, I was definitely not thinking with all my faculties, but it worked.

As I chanted, I could not help but think back to the night that I asked Enohp about life.  He had mentioned that I would not be the first to look into the subject.  This gave me a sense of how paranoid I would have to become in order to get away with my scheme.  If others had tried and failed, that meant that there were those that watched out for this kind of thing.

 The chanting in of itself could be a hazardous task.  It was allowed that a tormentor should be able to enter into torments, that the soul be properly pained, but I would have to be extremely careful.  Since the chances that my entry would be monitored were high, I had to set up the proper safeguards so that I would know if any Overseers were about to barge in and send me to a place of my own torment.  Believe you me, I did not intend to spend the rest of eternity listening to some high pitched voice singing a happy jack tune for the rest of eternity.  That would have been a fate that would make any being beg for oblivion.

 With a little help from my old textbooks the old words came right back to me.  It had been a while since I’d last used a spell that involved direct contact with a soul.  The last time I had been told by an Overseer to perform the spell.  Upon inquiring as to why he couldn't do it himself, the Overseer became angry, stated that I was to utilize any and all spells to enter into the consciousness of a certain being.  Strangely, I could find no record of the being's entrance into the system.  It was as though he didn’t belong there.  That would of course explain why I could not gain entrance to his inner-self.  It was too well hidden, even from the powers of Hell.  The only vision that I received was that of a large wooden cross.  I was about to attempt to probe deeper when the entity suddenly vanished without a trace.  Upon inquiring to the Overseer as to the nature of the being, vacation time was suddenly forced upon me.

Given the recent happenings in my existence, I could not help but think back to that instance, and wonder if there was a connection.  Could the entity have been from the mythical place called Earth? That would have explained why I could not gain entrance to his psyche.  The only other entity that could block me out would have been a heavenly being, and this entity was in a spirit state, at least, for a brief moment.  Strange, I cannot even say that for sure.  He was a mysterious entity, one that I cannot define in any real way.  Oh well, it was probably for the best that I not know.  Still, there was a word that popped into my mind when I attempted to scan the entity.  It was a strange word, one that I had never heard before.  The word was redemption.  I didn’t know what it meant, but it probably wasn't that important anyway.

Chapter 6 -- Contact

 “Hell? Yes, you are.  What is your name?” The soul did not answer immediately.  I had to ask her name several times before she spoke again.

 “My…my name?”

 “Yes.  What are you called?”

 “My name is…my name is Jennifer.  My friends call me…well...I guess they...  called me Jenny.  Who...who are you? How is it that we are talking?”

“We are not talking.  We are projecting thoughts at each other.  Before entering the sea of souls, I took the liberty of transmuting myself into spirit form.  This way there would be less chance of you becoming startled by my true self."

"Oh." Her response indicated a feeling of surprise, and confusion at my answer.  It made me curious as to why, but that was not important enough to bring up with her then.

"My name is Rianoc.  I am the one who has been tormenting you for the past three years.” As those last few words became etched in her mind, the soul became noticeably afraid.  I could tell that she would be unwilling to talk if she were in such a state, so I attempted to calm her as best as I could.  “Do not take my former actions against you personally.  I was merely doing my job.  Do you understand?” Although I thought my choice of words, and tone were aptly made, her response was not as docile as I would have liked.

 “No….  No, I don’t! H...  how can you even think that I’d understand something like that? You’ve been making me live out a nightmare for the past three years! Who are you to make anyone go through that? What kind of monster are you to put me through that?”

 “I am not a monster.  I am a demon.  There is a subtle difference.”

 “Huh?” The soul seemed to be unable to distinguish between the real world and the fake.  I figured that it was due to her longstanding imprisonment, and attempted to re-associate her with reality.

 “Monsters are beings that supposedly roam the fictitious world of Earth.  Demons are real.”

 “What are you talking about? Earth isn’t fictitious.” This statement caused many reactions inside of me.  Was she crazy, or did she have the answers that I had been searching for? I had to know, but she seemed too hostile towards me to trust.  So I played it dumb.

 “Oh, and I suppose next you’ll be telling me that you used to be human, and that you know all about what life is.”

 “I am...  was human." She paused for a moment.  "That’s how I know that Earth is real.  Don’t you know where souls come from?”

 “No, I don’t.  Questions like that are not asked in this place.”

 “Wh…what do you mean? Are you telling me that you just torture people for fun?”

 “No.  Well, it can be entertaining, but I’m really only in it for the money.”

 “You're sick! How can you be so callous?”

 “I don’t see why you are being so irrational.  It’s a job.  I do what I'm told.  Besides, you're in Hell, what did you expect?”

 “I don’t know! B…but…”

 I could see that the soul was in a state of extreme shock.  It should have been expected though.  She had spent three years of time in the Sea of Souls.  It is a place of torment beyond anything that you can imagine.  Physically, and mentally you are ripped to shreds, put back together, only to be destroyed once again.  It is a place of madness, and despair.  It is not something that any being could forget instantly.  I decided that the best thing to do for the both of us would be to take a tour of her memories, so that she might, at least temporarily, forget Hell.  I would then get a chance to see what ‘life’ was like, and how humans interacted.  I have to admit the whole idea fascinated me.  But first I had to calm her down.  She had to get over the pain, and relearn what it was like to know bliss.  So with a few incantations spoken, I gave her a chance to escape the reality of her situation.  After a while we would talk again, but in the meantime I simply watched as her spirit bathed in the bliss which had surrounded it like a warm blanket.

It was an odd sight, for the spell was only intended to be used on demons, and only for a short while.  It was only known to demons holding a title of my rank or better.  It was meant to be a way to receive a secondary source of income.  Demons would pay money for a brief feeling of bliss.  Some demons thought it to be unproductive, seeing as how there were many individuals who spent all of their money on it, and never wanted to stop.  However, since only the less important sought the effects, it was ruled that they did not need to be able to think.  They only needed to follow orders.  Hence, it remains legal to this day.

 I had always wondered what the feeling was like.  The thought of actually performing the spell on myself seemed ridiculous.  I never had the time to waste, however, seeing the soul in the state that it was in, I found myself reconsidering.  Of course there was no time then, but the thought was still tempting.  But the time had come time to talk again.

 “Feeling better?” I asked.

 "What did you do to me?” She said, as her voice quivered with pleasure, and her essence spread itself out in complete relaxation.

 “I gave you what you needed.  Now you must give me what I need.”

 “What are you talking about? I…I don’t understand.”

 “I need to know where you come from.  I need to know what life is, if it really exists.”

 “Life?”

 “Yes”

 “I told you before, I come from Earth, you know, the land of the living.”

 “Are you sure? How do I know what you say is true.”

“Why would I lie about something like this?”

“I don’t know.” I had become more than slightly unraveled.  Her statement inferred that I had been lied to my entire existence.  But why? What purpose did it serve? I needed to more information.

 “Are you….okay?" She asked.  "You seem…”

 “What?”

 “I don’t know.  You seem surprised, like this is all news to you.”

 “It is!”

 “But…but I thought you were a demon.  I thought you knew about stuff.”

 “So did I.” I had to take a moment to collect my thoughts.  I was still slightly leery of the information, no matter how much I needed it to be true.  There had to be proof.  I had to see it to believe it.  That is why we would enter into her memories, and life would be shown to me through her eyes.  But for me to see it, she would have to submit.  That would take convincing.  “Would you like to see your life?”

 “What do you mean?”

 “I mean, would you like to travel through your memories, consciously?”

 “I…I don’t know.  This could just be another one of your tricks.  You’ve already made me relive all the things that I regretted, or hated, or feared.  Why should I trust you now? Huh?”

 “Would you be willing to do this if I allowed you to feel bliss again? All it would take is a few words on my part, and you could feel the way you did just a few moments ago.  All you have to do is to agree to let me into your memories, and be my guide.  I need to know what this thing you call life is.  If you help me, then I shall give you that which gave you so much pleasure.”

 “How do I know you're not lying? How do I know that you aren’t just trying to make me agree so that you’ll get what you want?”

 “You don’t.  I'm a demon from Hell, and I do lie on occasion.  So here, have your bliss first, then you can consider my offer.  Then, you’ll see that you should do as I ask.  Trust me.”

 Chapter 7 -- The Search For Rianoc

 “…I was just about done when this big ugly fuck started freaking out.  He grabbed me and started throwing me around.  I assumed he was just drunk and pissed off, but he was strong.  I didn’t feel like getting my antennae ripped off, so I stayed away from him afterwards.”

 “Did this demon tell you his name?”

 “No, but I’d seen him before.  He’s a regular at Hell’s Kitchen.”

 In actuality David already knew my name, and occupation.  The statement made by the demon was just the final piece of evidence that was needed to know it was me that had been the witness.  The demon’s guilt had already been disproved in the matter.  David knew what kind of reaction to expect from an Overseer's presence.  The demon was tortured, and destroyed anyway.

It all came down to finding me.  This would prove to be a task which was not as easy as the fallen angel would have liked.

 The first thing he did was to check my background and work schedule.  David wanted to know what kind of demon he was dealing with.  Upon learning that my shift was over he immediately went to my apartment, and found that I was not there.  A cursory search was performed on my less-than-tidy abode.  He searched every room, and found it to be unusually messy considering the meticulous aspects found in my last psychological evaluation.  The only other indication of abnormal behavior was something that I had forgotten all about.  And it was the last, and probably only piece of evidence that David needed.

On the night of the incident I had made a drawing on a napkin while drinking the night away.  While the sketch was extremely bad, due to the drinking.  It was still clear as to what I was attempting to create.  David took one look at the image, and in that instant, his heart faltered.  The fallen angel felt something which he had not in several millennia.  He felt terror.  Undeniable, and unbelievable terror engulfed his entire being.  It was a picture of the woman in white.  That image had never reached the eyes of demons, until then.

 Only the master and his fallen angels knew who the woman was, and what she represented.  Only they knew where she came from, and what she was.  That is why the moment he saw that image, David immediately picked up my phone and called the master.

An APB was immediately issued for my capture, and a hefty reward was offered for any information leading to my apprehension.  That meant there was no place that I could ever hide in hell.  Of course, I was not in Hell, not exactly anyway.

David never thought to look in the Sea of Souls though.  He never considered that aspect.  That is why when he went to my office, he did not find me.  What he did find was my lovely secretary, Retlif.  She too was "questioned".

 “When was the last time you saw Tormentor Rianoc?”

 “Yesterday morning, sir.  He came in when his shift started, as usual.”

 “When did he leave?”

 “I don’t know.  He was still in his office when I left.”

 “Isn't that unusual?”

 “Well, yes.  He usually leaves before me.  I stay a bit later in order to make up his schedule for the next day, which is what I did.  Only, I didn’t see him come in today, and he's not in his office.”

 “Why not?”

 “I don’t know.”

 “Are you sure that you don’t know where he is? I mean, because if you know, it would be in both of your best interests for me to know.”

 “No, Overseer.  I honestly don’t know where he is.”

 “What if I told you that I don’t believe you? What if I told you that I think your protecting him?”

 “I would say that you are very mistak….” Retlif’s denial was answered by a backhand to her right cheek, which sent her soaring out of her chair, into the back wall, and onto the hard floor.  While she attempted to get back up, David struck her again, this time with his right foot, which connected very hard with her stomach, and sent the harpy sprawling to the other side of the room.  Retlif attempted to hide her pain, but it was too much to.  David continued his assault, and as he did, Retlif began to scream in pain.  As she attempted to protect herself from further injury by putting up her talons, David simply stood over her, and laughed.  He knew she had told the truth, but he did not care.

 After he was done, the fallen angel took his time in searching the office.  He checked all of my records, and notes for any clue as to where I was, and what I might have been doing.  He searched every inch of my office, even going so far as to rip up the floorboards in an effort to uncover my whereabouts.  Still, he failed to look in the one place he would have found me.

All he had to do was to look in the Sea of Souls.  But why would anyone have gone inside of there for the amount of time I’d been gone? What could have been there that was so important? Why would anything take such a risk, especially in Hell?

Chapter 8 -- Brief Flashes

 “What do you mean when you ask me that?"

 “What is life? Is there anything to it other than things like eating, drinking, and breathing?”

 “You’re asking the wrong question.  You want to know what it is live.”

 “What’s the difference?”

 “Well…there are many things that possess life.  I think something that’s alive doesn’t necessarily have to do anything beyond the basic stuff.  People are different though.”

 “How? Didn’t you used to do those things?”

 “Yes, but I did a lot more too.  I learned, I played, I had fun.  I interacted with other people, and even fell in love.  There are so many things that I did.  And… and so many things that I… wanted to do.  You’ll just have to see it for yourself.”

 “Very well then.  Let us begin.” And with that, I recited the spell which would change my existence forever.  I did not have to worry about having my spells detected in the Sea.  There is always so much power flowing through it at once that any attempt to distinguish energy signatures would have been futile.  All the souls are constantly being acted upon by Tormentors.

It took only a moment to complete the spell, and then we were there, in her memories.

“What is that bright light up there?" shouted.  I had not realized that I had shouted my question at the time.  The shock of what was before me was far too great to notice my own actions.  "It looks like a kind of light that I've seen before! But this one's not quite as bright, and less inviting to the eyes.” It was at that moment that I realized that my senses had somehow been amplified.  Amplified not by the spell, and not by the soul, but by the shear onslaught of sights, sensations, and smells that encompassed my being as I began to see Jennifer's old world.

“ Isn’t it beautiful? It’s called the sun! The way it floods everything with its energy...  I never thought I’d be so happy to see it again!” The intensity in her voice seemed to emulate the way my heart rate was shifting into overdrive.  We were both in a state of awe.  But the sun quickly became an object in the background when we reluctantly looked away from it, and saw the rest world through her eyes.

Nothing could have prepared me for the sights before me.  They were unlike anything I had ever seen.  It was as if I had been blind my entire existence, and then, I could see.  I think the thing that I remember the most about my first glimpse of Jennifer’s world was the wide open space covered in soft, thin blade-like decorations.

"I remember this! It's the field behind the house I grew up in! I remember the grass always seemed so lush that when the wind blew, the grass would turn into a wave.  Just like the waves on an ocean.  Don't you just love this place?" She asked.

I did not understand the word, "love," but I did find myself fascinated by he scenery.  There were giant oak trees, which at the time I thought were very large sticks that seemed to have been placed in the ground.  The branches seemed like splintered off pieces, only they seemed whole, and were covered in paper thin objects that looked sort of like green webbed feet.  On the ground, there were objects that seemed like tiny green versions of the trees.  Only the tiny ones had many different colors, in shades that I had never seen before.

You see, in Hell, the colors tend to be fairly bland.  In Hell, things have no shades, only absolutes.  The only thing with any substance to it would be the lava that boils up from its depths, but that gets boring to the eye after a while.  What I saw in Jennifer's mind was...  it was...  different...  It was...  amazing.  It was… it was… beyond anything that I had ever known.  I had almost become completely swept away with the what was being displayed before me, and then I noticed how the experience was affecting Jennifer.

Her soul form was beaming with a light that could only be described as excitement.  It was not a common thing for me to see in a soul.  In fact, I had never seen it in a soul, before then.  It was as though even the simplest things around her filled her with a sense of joy that she had probably taken for granted as a human.  She was becoming entranced by the energy of activity, and the whole of the environment that had been presented by her mind.  She was remembering what it had been like before she was a soul, and the experience seemed to be healing her.

What caught my attention almost instantly after the shock of the sights had worn off was the smells.  There was not a thing in her memory that did not smell sweeter than anything that had ever been brought in my world.  There were sensations caused by the smells that I could not have described if not for the aid of Jennifer, and the enthusiastic way she began rifling off the names of what I was smelling.  From the pollen on the flowers, to the sap on the trees, to freshly cut grass that seemed like an ocean on dry ground, the smells fixated me with sensations unlike what I had always been used to.  There was no smell of sulfur in the air.  There was no cheep perfume, or after-shave wafting about a dusty, smelly city.  Instead, there was the undeniably brilliant feeling of being in a wide open country with all the things and sensations that had been denied me in my existence until then.  And as I took in the smells, I could not help but lift my head up to the sky once more, and I beheld the seemingly endless roof of the world.  It was a glorious bright blue, with scattered puffy white designs scattered about.  At first I did not realize that the figures hovering over me were just clouds.  I yearned to fly up to them, and to see what made their misty species able to soar in the heavens.  But Jennifer pointed out my mistake, and she could not help but smile for first time in years, and laugh.

And as my vision gazed upon the sky, my ears took in the sound of her laughter, which I chose to ignore.  But it also took in the sound of the small feathered creatures chirping, and the children around me as they played their games.

That is what struck me the most, the children.  If anything could have given me a definition of life, or the act of living, it would have been useless without the sights, and sounds before me as I watched the children do as they willed.  In all the years, and in all the experiences in my existence, nothing has ever been more inspirational than the sight of children playing.

In Hell, beings are born as adults, and are forced to learn quickly to be serious and responsible.  They are taught the rules of Hell, and the consequences for breaking those rules.  They are forced into a lowly job, and made to work unbearably hard in order to escape the harsh labor which was created to break the spirit, and prepare the body for the brutality of war.  All these things are brought to bear on a newly made demon.  But that is not what I bore witness to in the memories of the soul.  The children were enjoying themselves.  They were given no labor, and were not punished for the idleness of their minds.  They were allowed to have fun.  And they did so just by being there, and doing what they were doing.  Nothing mattered outside of their games.  Nothing mattered outside of the fact that they were having fun.

The children had in them a seemingly unlimited amount of energy, mixed in with an enormous need to experiment, and learn about the world around them.  I watched as they played their games, laughing and smiling as they did so.  And as I watched, something happened.  Something seemed to change as the scene before me played itself out.  There were several of the children playing a game that involved singing a song, and moving around as they did so.  It was quite strange, but as they laughed at their own antics, so too did I begin to laugh.  As they talked about what they wanted to be when they grew up, the notion of dreams slowly made it’s way into my mind.  And as all of this played out in before me, the need to live became something that seemed like the most important thing.  It became my dream.

I wanted to be young, and void of any real responsibility.  I wanted to learn everything about the world that they lived in, and experience all of the things that are said to make a person who they are.  For some strange reason, I wanted to be among them, if only for a few days.  I wanted...no, I needed to be...  "alive." And then the memory of what I was seeing fully returned to Jennifer’s conscious mind.

“This is where I used to live when I was a kid! I always loved this place! Look at all this wide-open space! Isn’t it beautiful? It was my seventh birthday.  My parents threw me a party at our house.  I loved that house.  When I think about it, I had a fairly normal childhood.  I lived in a two story house, with the white picket fence and everything.  We're seeing the backyard where I used to play all the time.  It wasn't all ours.  It was just that we lived in the country, and there was plenty of room that nobody used.  Nobody really marked off where our land ended, and the government land began.  That's how we lost the house.  The government forced us to sell the land because of some kind of natural habitat that it made up for some animals.  Later on I heard that the government had turned around and sold the property to some developer for practically nothing.  It's all gone now."

I too was amazed at how much open and unused space there was to notice the change in Jennifer's mood.  At first, all I could do was look around in wonder.  Then, we took a step outside of Jennifer’s self so that we might witness the whole of the scene.  If there were any doubts left in my mind as it came to the origin of the souls, this sight proved to me that she had been telling the truth.  We watched as her human self ran through the tall lush grass.  Her long blond hair bounced up and down as though it were on a spring.  She wore a white T-shirt with blue jeans, topped off by a blue baseball cap that had a red letter B on the front.  We watched as she joined in on the games, and as she laughed with the joy that only children can know.  The joy is born from their innocence.  It is born in their lack of knowledge of any world, and the hardships that they will have to face.  It was amazing to me to think that anything that harmless could wind up in Hell.
 We soon left that memory, and sifted through others.  We were looking in on how her life developed.  Each time we went ahead, we’d start out looking through her eyes, and then taking a step back.  She seemed so proud when she got an A in fifth grade math.  Jennifer seemed so nervous at the age of thirteen when a boy gave her her first kiss.  (I must note that later on, I kind of wanted to break the boy’s neck when he eventually broke her heart.) But, these were just memories, and I never got to see all of them.  There wasn’t enough time for that.  But Jennifer had seen them all before, and the memories made her happy.  More happy than any spell that I could have performed.

I don't think that I'd ever been that content in my own existence.  And considering the amount of time I had possessed to feel anything remotely like the way she was, I was a somewhat amiss about the whole situation.  Memories were only recollections of days, and hours, and minutes.  Miniscule events over a course of time that outlasted her entire species.  And still, she seemed so happy, and I did not quite know the feeling.  Watching that little girl grow up made me happy.  It still wasn't close to what she was experiencing, but there's something about watching someone come into their own.  It brings a strange sense of...  warmth.
You wouldn’t expect this kind of reaction from a demon, but it happened.  At first, it was the youthful energy that drew me to keep watching.  Then, it was a sense of pride in her achievements, and sadness in her pain.  By the time she had become a young woman of twenty, I was hooked.  I had to hide it from the soul though.  I couldn’t show any sign of weakness, to anything.

Happiness in hell is something that even demons find almost to be impossible.  We take pride in our work.  We occasionally go out and party until our bodies can’t take it anymore.  These things don’t make one truly happy though.  There will always be more work to be done, and very rarely do our jobs require us to do something that we actually enjoy.  The parties are fun, but the aftereffects can be harsh.  I believe the only other time I was ever truly happy was the day that I took up painting.  But, this hobby was eventually discovered by my superiors, and they did not appreciate my need to do something creative.  It killed me when they told me to hand over all of my works, and to give up my art.  It was like a part of me had been cut off, and strangely, for whatever reason, I began to feel that if this soul were to remain in Hell, another part of me would be lost with her as well.

 I did not want or need to know what deed she had done to gain entrance into this cruel place, and she didn’t want to go quite that far either.  It seemed to pain her to do so.  Looking into the past can be a very exhausting undertaking.  I was tired, and she seemed quite spent as well.

 “We will talk more about what has just transpired later.” I said, as we I prepared to leave.

 “Wait.  Please…!”

 “What? What’s wrong? Why are you getting upset again?”

 “If you leave…I mean, do I have to go back to that place…back to the pain?”

 “No.  You have assisted me, and will continue to assist me in my studies.  In return, I shall grant you a release from the pain.  You will be put in a setting matching that of your home as a child.  There you will wait for my return.  Understood?”

 “Yes! Yes, I understand! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you so….”

 I did not wait to hear the rest of it.  I had other things to attend to.  It had been some time since I’d entered the Sea of Souls, and who knew what everyone would think of my disappearance.  I had intended to tell them all that I had been involved in a brawl, and that my attacker and myself had wound up in falling into a deeper level of hell.  This has been known to happen to demons from time to time, and it takes a little bit of climbing to get back up again.  It had never happened to me, but there was always a first time for everything.  Little did I know what awaited me in the outside world.

Chapter 9 -- Information

 “No.”

 “Oh….okay.  Well, you see, I’ll agree to help you bring him in.  I can do that, if I get that promotion.  I mean, I really can do it.  I know him better than he knows the back of his hoof.  I know I can get him.  So what do you say? Do I get the promotion.  Do we have a deal?”

 “Possibly.  I’d want to know what you know about his recent behavior before I agree, just to make sure that you can actually help me.”

 “He’s gone nuts.  What else can I tell you? He’s been acting weird.”

 “Did he tell you why?”

 “He had some lame-ass story about mirror gazing, and humans, and ...I don't know.  I don’t think he really knows.  I think he's gone nuts.”

 “Really?”

 “Yeah.”

 “Do continue.  Any information regarding your friend as it relates to the situation at hand, can only add to your standing in the eyes of my superiors.”

 “Sure thing.  Anyway, I don’t know what he saw, but whatever it was, it freaked him out.  I mean he went into a mode where all he did was work.”

 “Yes, I’ve heard about his odd behavior at work.  Is there anything else that might be of any use?”

 “I guess not.  But, I mean this demon has been acting really weird.”

 “Very good.  You have been most helpful.”

 “So, does this mean that I get that promotion?”

 “Relax.  If we catch him, you’ll get it.  Which brings me to the last thing that I require of you.  If he should turn up, we might have to do more than have you stall him somewhere.  We might have to put you in a dangerous situation.  He is, as you say, weird.  And in that kind of situation, your influence on him might prove useful.  Can I count on your assistance?”

 “Anything you say Mr.  David.”

 “Excellent.” And with that, the two of them rose from their seats.  David quickly had his secretary escort the demon from his office, and then went about the buisness of pondering the information before him.  But before he could settle in with his thoughts, his secretary informed him of a phone call.

 “Yes, master.  No master, but we’ll have him soon.  It’s just a matter of ti… Yes, master.  No, master.  I’m doing everything that I can, mas… No, master.  I…I understand.  Enjoy the rest of your eveni…”

It was one of those phone calls that etched in stone the precarious nature of one’s employment.  And in Hell, employment coincides with survival.  The situation had given rise to a sense of dread inside of David.  He was worried.  Extremely worried.  In the long run, Hell benefited from its "succeed or die policy." It gave the workers a drive that they would not have possessed otherwise.  But, it did put a lot of pressure on those with tough assignments, like David’s.  He was not enjoying it.

“Where are you, Rianoc?” David thought.  “I have all of Hell trying to find you.  Even your friends are begging for the chance to turn you in.  Where could you be? It matters not though.  I shall find you, and then my place in the ranks of Hell’s army shall be secured.  You will tell me all that transpired that night, and then you shall know more pain and suffering than any being that ever was.  I will take great pleasure in turning your own work against you.  To think that a Tormentor will eventually become the tormented.  The raper of souls shall know all the pain that he has caused to others, and more.  All because Heaven chose to meddle in the affairs of Hell."

"Through you, Rianoc, they shall learn the error of their ways.  Through you, they shall learn the futility in trying to enlighten Hell’s creatures.  Then they shall see that Hell’s power is absolute.  Then, maybe they’ll realize that since attacking Hell is an impossibility, that their own demise is something unavoidable.  They will realize that eventually, we shall rise up, and take back what was once ours.  Neither Heaven, nor Earth shall be spared the wrath of our master.  It will be glorious.  And we who have been cast down shall live like gods.”

Chapter 10 -- Exiting The Shadows

My office was no longer safe.  I was glad that I had erased my computer files on Jennifer.  Just in case they hadn't been thorough in their first search though, I destroyed everything else in the hard-drive.  I knew where Jennifer was, and could find her again easily.  I just didn't want anything else to know about her as well.

Upon opening the door to the reception area the sight of Retlif’s broken body slammed into my eyes with a pain that nearly knocked me on the ground.  She was everywhere, literally.  I had made sure not to involve anyone, and still, Hell went after the ones who knew me.  It made sense for them to do it.  I would have if I were in charge of finding me.  Still, the shock of seeing her body scattered around the room was enough to force the vomit up from my stomach, and onto the floor.

Her wings had been removed from her back, violently.  Her body had been beaten to a bloody pulp.  And she had obviously suffered greatly before finally being dismembered.  I was sickened to the core.  The sight of the harpy in such a state sent a cold chill through my body, and then created a boiling fire of rage.  She may not have been the best of Hell's beings, but she was my secretary, and she had been useful.

 It might seem strange for a demon to care about anything, but demons do get attached to things.  I had worked with Retlif for over twelve centuries.  In that time, she had been the one individual that I could always rely on.  She was a capable worker, and I was angered by her demise.  But the loss could not deter me from what needed to be done.  Namely, I had to find a way to get Jennifer and myself to Earth.

Seeing as how I had no clue as how to do that, it was not going to be very easy.  The only being that had seemed to know anything about what I was trying to do was the rebellious demon, Ebircs.  I would have to find him, and convince him to help me.  I quickly logged onto Retlif's computer and punched in Ebircs' name to find out his possible whereabouts.  What I learned was that the demon had been arrested.  My situation was not enviable.  I had been given the problem of breaking into a maximum security facility in order to talk to someone who would probably already be dead.  Still, it was my only chance, and chances don't come along that often in Hell.

 I quickly logged off of the computer and erased any evidence of what I had been looking for.  I then left my office, trying to seem calm, and unrushed.  I thought that it would have been easy to blend in with the other demons that were frequenting the streets.  Demons tend to mind their own buisness.  They don't bother to pay attention to who's walking by them unless the being is familiar.  Their mind and senses are kept on whatever they're doing, and any attempt to dislodge this train of thought would be met by harsh words, and, or violence.

 A plan for the jailbreak was beginning to form in my head.  I would need to gain the blueprints to the facility that Ebircs was being held in, but that would not be a problem.  The designs for all the buildings in Hell were in the HTML.(Hell's Troubled Main Library.) It was one of the few things that were kept on public record.  The problem was that the library was somewhat far away.

I began searching for a taxi to flag down.  But, my face was recognized by a police officer who had been dining at a nearby donut shop.  The officer was a demon possessing two legs, and was more than slightly out of shape.  He had the stereotypical red skin, horns on the side of the head, long tail, and devilish go-t.  His enormous mass made it hard for him to maneuver around demons without making a scene.  That is how I noticed his presence, and that is how I noticed the walkie-talkie in his hand.  My only hope was to lose the cop before his back-up arrived.

I quickly headed towards the end of the block, pushing my way past the pedestrians that crowded the streets.  “Halt!” I heard the officer say.  Why he thought I’d actually stop is beyond my comprehension.  I was getting the heck out of there, whether or not it was with his permission.

As I rounded the corner a squad car pulled up along side of me.  I wasn't going to stop for them either.  They did however manage to slow me down.  A pair of demons like the one who was chasing me began to get out of the car.  I looked at the officer opening the door nearest me, and as he began to get out, I quickly, and violently kicked the door into his right leg.  I could hear the bones brake under the force of the impact.

The other officer had gotten out on the other side, and had his flame-thrower drawn.  But, I had already taken his partners weapon, a flame-thrower, and incinerated the both of them.  That’s when the fat one came around the corner.  I greeted him with a blast from the flame-thrower as well, and then continued running.  My extra legs were extremely effective when it came to this kind of activity.  They allowed me to zigzag through the maze of side streets, until I happened upon a dark alley.  There I rested.

 I needed a plan to get to the library without being noticed.  I needed time, and a safe place to hide.  As my surroundings became more familiar to me, a realization hit me.  Enohp’s place was close by.  I thought that if I could get there, then he’d help me out.  He was my friend.  He lived but a few blocks away.  And when I knocked on his door, he was more than happy to let me inside, and tell me about the APB.  He even told me about the angel who was in charge of finding me.  Apparently all of my coworkers had been asked questions about my whereabouts.  None of them had known where I was, or what I had been doing.  My secret was safe.  The only one who might have been able to incriminate me was the demon who was allowing me to hide out in his apartment, and he wasn't the type to turn a fellow Erofeb in.

Chapter 11 -- Friendship

 “I can do this, Enohp.  I know it.  I just have to figure out a way to get to the HTML.”

 “What? What’s in the HTML?”

 “Some things that I need.” I couldn’t afford to trust Enohp any more than I already had.  Anyone could have been gotten to.

 “So what can I do?”

 “You’ve done more than I should ever ask of you.  Thanks, old friend.”

 “That’s what I’m here for.  Come on, what aren’t you telling me?”

 “Nothing.  So how can I get to the HTML without being recognized again?”

 “Well, you can’t change form.  The cops would detect that spell being used and find you right away.  So how about I drive you there in my car? You could hide in the back.”

 “I don’t want you to risk…”

 “Don’t worry about it.  What? You think I’m just gonna’ leave you without a chance in Hell?”

 “No I…”

 “So let’s get a move on.  The library ain’t open all day.  I’ll drive you there, and back.  That way you can plan your next move undisturbed.”

 “Okay, Enohp.  Thanks.” And with that, we set off on our mission.  Enohp drove us to the library, and then was to wait in the car until I returned.  All that I allowed myself to carry was a small plastic bag containing two computer disks.  One for the information, and one as a backup in case the first one did not work.  I tried as best as I could to be inconspicuous upon entering.  The architecture section of the library was on the opposite side of the building.  Undoubtedly the security guards had been made aware of my identity.  Still, they were not the most studious of employees.  It was easy enough to get by them without being noticed.  Then, it was just a matter of copying the files on the prison to disk.  But as I began copying, that is when two guards that looked like decomposed versions of the cops I had encountered earlier began to walk towards me.  My heart began to beat an extremely fast.  It was as if a jackhammer was pounding on my chest in a desperate attempt to get out.  I could see them out of the corner of my eye.  With each step that they took, my mind and body began preparing themselves for a fight.  It was at the moment when my nerves were at their limit, and my body begged me to attack, that was when one of the guards spoke.
 “You dropped this on your way in.” He said.  In his hand was a disk.  I quickly looked at the small bag and found that there was a hole in the bottom.  I had probably been so nervous that I was unaware that my razor sharp talons had cut the bag open.

“Thanks.” I said.  As they walked away, a feeling of relief swept over me.  As I turned to the computer screen, it read, “file complete.” I quickly took out the disk, and then began making my way towards the door.  It was at this point that the guards began looking at me again.  This time I knew it was because they had recognized me.  That’s when I began to sprint for the door as fast as I could.  Strangely, upon exiting the library, Enohp was not in the car waiting for me.  He was just getting off of a payphone.  He looked up to see me running towards the car, and he began towards the car as well.

 “What the fuck were you doing!” I yelled at him as he slammed his door shut.

 “I was just checking my messages.  Why? What happened?”

 “Nothing.  Just drive.” I knew when Enohp was lying.  His pores always began to ooze whenever he was lying.  And they were oozing as he drove.  “Turn here.” I barked, while pointing towards a small alley.

 “What for?”

 “Just do it!” I said, lifting my flame-thrower up from under my seat.

 “Sure.  Sure thing.  Anything you say buddy.”

 “So where were they going to meet us, or should I say, ambush us?”

 “Who? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

 “Come off it Enohp! You hardly ever check your messages.  Why would you do it now?”

 “I don’t know? I got bored.”

 “I was in there for five minutes! You’re telling me that you couldn’t contain yourself for that long? Fess up! Who got to you?”

 “Nobody got to me!”

 “You’re lying Enohp.  You’re oozing all over the place.” Enohp looked down at himself, and then looked back up at me.

 “What...  what are you going to do?” He said, in a shivering voice.

 “Get out of the car! Now!”

 “You’re going to incinerate me…aren’t you!”

 “I wouldn’t do that to you.  We’ve been friends for too long  for me to do that.” Enohp looked at me, and then backed his way out of the car.

 “Now what?” He asked timidly.  That’s when I incinerated him.  His carcass melted before my eyes.  Enohp should have realized that I couldn’t let him live.  Not after what he had done.  I needed his car though.  Couldn’t let that go up in flames.  It was still useful to me.  I did miss him though.  He had been a useful friend for a long time.  Oh well.

Chapter 12 -- Pressure

The caller was the chief at a police precinct near the HTML, and he was not enjoying the less than encouraging words that he was receiving.

“Of course he resisted! He knows why we’re after him.”

“But sir…”

“But what?!”

“A witness spotted him in an alley near Washington Street.”

“Have your demons scour the streets in that area.”

“Yes sir.  We’re already doing that.  But sir, he incinerated a civilian.  DNA tests show that his name was Enohp.  We’re not certain why this particular...”
“I don’t care about who he… Enohp! Did you say his name was Enohp?”

“Yes sir.”

“Very well.  Find Rianoc.  Do whatever you have to.”

“Yes s…” That’s when David hung up the phone.  He then went straight to the library in hopes of learning what I had been looking for.  I had erased any evidence of my being there.  This fact left the fallen angel in a highly frustrated state.

The security cameras revealed nothing, save the fact that the guards had failed to recognize me before I had already gotten away.  They were punished for their incompetence.  The whole of the next millenium would see them break all records relating to most time spent encased in a  small wooden box, covered in a thing called poison ivy.  Their bodies would be unable to move, but the need to itch would never go away. It would simply calm itself for brief seconds, and then rise again, creating a situation bound to madden the punished after a few hours.  And there are many hours in a millennium.

 David went to the sight of Enohp’s demise so as to see how the investigation was shaping.  He was not in the habit of waiting, but that was all he could do, for he knew not what else to do to find me.  There were still officer’s on the scene.  They were looking for any trace of where I might have gone to.

“Who’s in charge here?” David barked.

“I am, sir.” The source of the reply was given a backhand.

“Who’s in charge here?”

“You are, sir.” The officers said in unison.

“There are skid-marks on the pavement over there.” David declared.

“Yes, sir.” Replied the officer who had been struck.  “The witness couldn’t make out the license plate number in time.”

“It was probably the victim’s car.  Run a check on its make and color.  See if it matches the description you were given.”

“Yes, sir.  Would you like to speak to the witness, sir?”

“No.  I have all the information that I need.  Keep me informed of anything new.  This fugitive is dangerous, but he must be captured intact.  Is that fully understood?”

“Yes, sir.”

David left the scene with a measure of assurance.  He was certain that it would only take time to find me.  He was also certain that in Hell, time is abundant.  But as his cell phone rang, and as he lifted it from his pocket, punched the answer button, and pressed the receiver to his ear, this self assurance was to be far from being correct.

“David,” The voice on the other end of the line was one that did not invite happy thoughts, especially not in David’s situation at the time.

“Ye…Yes, master?”

“Have you solved our little problem?”

“Not yet, master.  I’m going to need a little more…”

“Time? Is that what you were going to say?”

“Ye…”

“We don’t have the luxury of time, David.  What we do have is a situation that could become extremely volatile.  Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, master.  But, master…”

“You have twenty-four hours to complete your mission.  If you succeed, then you shall be given a promotion, and a hefty raise.  We’d both like that scenario.  However, if you fail, then your little trophy case will be given one last ornament to be displayed.  Any questions?”

“No…no questions, sir.”

“Very well then.” And with that, the line went dead, with the sickening click of the phone at the other end.

Chapter 13 -- Breaking Into Prison

Ebircs was the key to my dilemma.  He was one of the few beings who could have known the information that I strived to attain.  Without him, I would surely fail to escape Hell intact.

According to the Punic records, he was being held in a maximum security prison near the center of Hell.  It took a while to get there, and while enroute I had to ditch Enohp’s car.  The police spotted it as I had been getting the gas tank filled.  The attendant wasted no time in indicating my location, but fortunately for me, I was not there when the police went looking.  Yet again, my legs came in handy.  They sped me away from that place, and into a public parking lot.  There I took it upon myself to, for lack of a better word, steal another vehicle.  From there, I made my way to the vicinity of the prison.

It was an extremely large building, and at night, it presented an ominous, but do-able task.  The building encompassed the space of four city blocks, and was in the shape of a cylinder.  Its walls were made from concrete blocks, and they stretched up beyond the ability of the eye to see.  The windows were few, and scattered around.  Their use was only intended for the demons that worked in the building.  Prisoners were not allowed comforts such as light.  There were four watch points at the top which housed a pair of guards each.  The guards kept a constant vigil over the massive prison.  The walls were high, the bars were sturdy, and the guards were watchful.  However, the guards were watching the inside.

I managed to scale the wall by driving my razor sharp claws into the concrete so as to create grips to pull myself up.  My hooves also pounded their way into the concrete until I was close to the top.  Then I could only use my claws, for fear of being heard.  The two guards posted at my first stop of the evening had their backs turned to me.  They wore gray uniforms to cover their green, and slimy Nilbog skin.  They did look ferocious though.  I’ll give them that much credit.  Their eyes were yellow, their ears were pointy, and their teeth possessed a massive under bite which left one wondering how in Hell they could eat.  But they were incredibly overweight.  Probably from the fact that nobody had ever even successfully escaped from prison.  But even if the guards had been in shape, Nilbogs have never been thought of as anything resembling intelligent creatures.  It was simple enough for me to decapitate them quickly and quietly with a slash from two pairs of hands.  The Nilbogs had no time to react.  As I looked down upon their carcasses, which were still spouting blood like a fountain, a smile born from achievement crept over my face.

Their gray uniforms became my attire.  Tucking my extra limbs in was a tad uncomfortable, and almost impossible, but it worked.  It was then a matter of going from tower to tower, tilting my hat down to cover my face enough until it was too late for the other guards on duty.  You would think that the guards would have been able to at least call for help.  But, not meaning to seem arrogant, I was greatly skilled in the art of dismemberment.  My clan had fought against all comers, and the Erofeb were feared by all.  No Nilbog could ever have outfought a member of the Erofeb.

After eliminating the spotters in the towers, it was then time to make my way inside, and find a computer terminal with which to locate Ebircs.  I found one such terminal in an office on the top floor.  There was a female Nilbog there.  If I had had the time, she would have learned just how much of a demon I really was.  Instead I decapitated her, and sat down at her terminal.

Ebircs was recorded as being two floors below where I was.  The problem was that his cell was right in the middle of the aisle.  If I were detected by the guards, my options would have been extremely limited.  I needed a distraction.  The guards had to be kept busy.  The only thing that could distract them would have been a riot, but the prisoners were all locked up.  So, I would have to release a large number of them, and incite them in such a way that they’d try and take over the place for themselves.  The rioting part of the plan would be easy.  Prison guards were almost always despised for their cruelty.  However, getting the prisoners out would not be a walk in a sludge factory.

There were only two panels in the whole system that had the access necessary to let out prisoners.  The first was on the bottom floor of the complex.  This would not have been advantageous, for the prisoners would have overtaken me as well as the guards.  However, there was a panel in the warden’s office, which lay fifteen floors below where I was.  The office was also the warden’s living quarters, and was kept out of the way of the everyday prison life.  All I had to do was to get by about forty, to fifty guards, without being noticed.

The disguise would work for part of the trip, but I couldn’t count on it as being my only plan.  I needed another option.  I needed a decoy.  The inner design of the prison’s architecture was that of a cylinder as well.  The floors were rings, leaving a larger space in the center empty.  The guards were able to see higher floors, and lower floors, thereby decreasing the chance of any unauthorized traveling through the building.  All I had to do was to find one lone guard, and send him flying straight down the center of the cylinder.  The panic of the others would leave me undetected.  The problem was that all the guards had partners, except for the ones who I had already dispatched.  So I grabbed a corpse from the roof, brought it inside, and threw it over the railing.  My aim was perfect, and his body made a loud smack on the concrete pavement that made up the base of the huge complex.

Every prisoner in facility awoke to the sound of bones being crushed, and flesh being squashed upon the concrete.  As the guards attempted to calm down the prisoners, I made my way down to the warden’s office.  As the guards attempted to figure out what had happened, I incinerated the warden with a flame-thrower that I had relieved from one of the tower watchers.  And as the guards telephoned the office of their recently departed warden, I opened the cell doors on the bottom half of the prison.

The anarchy that ensued from that point forth was amazing.  I only wish that I could have partaken in the carnage, but there were other things on my mind.  As quickly as my three pairs of legs could carry me, I made my way up to Ebircs’ cell.  The file had said that he had only one cellmate, and that the area the cell was in was slated for political prisoners only.  I knew not what kind of weird hippie freaks that I would find, but I was prepared for anything.  Well, almost anything.  I wasn’t prepared for what awaited me.  I wasn’t prepared to find that he was not there.

Ebircs’ cellmate knew nothing of his whereabouts, so I incinerated him.  As panic and frustration hit my mind like a sledgehammer, so too did the realization that he had been moved without any change in public record.  As the battle cries from below began to get closer, and closer, I began to move faster and faster towards the first office that had apparently been so useless to me.  From there, I accessed the police records.  After using a few magic tricks, mixed in with my time spent surfing the Hellnet, I managed to break into the more secure files which related to prisoners.  The location given to me was that of a place that I knew quite well.  He was in the Sea of Souls.  I could not believe it.  The record gave his exact location inside the sea as well.  My trip had not quite yielded what I had wished, but it was enough.  There was still hope. 

Chapter 14  -- Getting A Clue

 “What is it!” David barked.  He did not want the chief to feel too secure.  There always had to be fear in the hearts of his underlings.

 “We’ve had a sighting of the suspect you've been looking for.  He was seen leaving the site of a prison riot up at the Etile Maximum Security Facility.  Apparently the subject broke into the prison, if you can believe that, and then he freed half the prisoners.  The riot squads were called in and…”

 “I don’t care about the riot! Where is Rianoc?!”

 “We don’t know his exact location, sir.  But…”

 “But what?!”

 “He can’t have gotten far, sir.  That entire area is being canvassed as this conversation is taking place.”

 “Why was he there?”

 “We aren’t sure.  The entire facility was taken over by the prisoners before any help could arrive.  We think he may have been trying to incite panic among the populace by releasing the political prisoners.”

 “Why would he...?.  Wait! Which facility was it?”

 “The Etile facility, sir.” There was a moment of pause, and in that time the chief lost the rest of his confidence in the whole matter.

  “Ebircs!!!”

 “Excuse me, sir, but who is Ebircs?”

 “Never mind.  Were any of the computers accessed during his little raid?”

 “We can’t tell.  They were all destroyed in the rioting, sir.”

 “Still, he must know.”

 “Sir?”

 “Never mind.  Keep searching.”

 “Yes, si…” And then came the click of the phone, and the sound of the dial tone.  The chief immediately left his office and headed straight for the area of the search.  He did not want to fail.

 Meanwhile, David was franticly attempting to mentally bring forth Ebircs from the Sea of Souls.  His efforts were thwarted though.  For a moment the fallen angel had not a clue as to why that could be.  Then reality hit him.  The only way for his spell to be interfered with was for another entity to be causing it.  And since David was the only one who possessed any legal reason to approach Ebircs, it was obvious that someone else had taken an interest to the political prisoner.  This idea paralyzed David, at first.  Then came the instinctual need for action.  Something had to be done about me, and without delay.  So David entered the Sea of Souls himself, and began to look for my newfound associate and myself.  We were not where we were supposed to be though, and this fact infuriated David.  It meant that he needed to call in reinforcements in order to conduct a thorough search.  David did not like to ask for help.  His pride, his job, and his existence were on the chopping block.  All it took was one false move, and the axe would plummet towards his neck with the swiftness of lightning, and the displaced anger which is Hell. 

Chapter 15 -- Swimming to Shore

They knew not where I was going, and could not predict my moves.  All attempts to appear ahead of my movement were thwarted by my ability to dive, and rise at the speed of light.  My assailants looked like fools chasing their own wings.

 "You seem to be enjoying yourself." Ebircs thought to me.

 "Shouldn't I be? Look at how they're flailing around.

 "Eventually they'll get better! You have to get us out of here!"

 "I will."

 "You seem too confident for my liking."

 "Trust me."

 "Words of trust coming from a demon.  Ha."

 Time was not my friend.  I would eventually tire before my chasers.  Angels have more stamina than demons, and tend to be more patient as well.  They would track me until I dropped, no matter how long that took.  That is, unless I was able to lose them first.  So I came up with a plan.

I entered spaces occupied by souls, waited until one or more of the angels decided to follow me inside, and then incited the cell’s inhabitant to attack the angels by temporarily releasing the magical bonds of the soul.  This allowed the souls free movement.  Their vent up pain and hostility did the rest.  This would not stop the angels for long, but it sure did surprise them.

After a while, the remaining angels became suspicious about why their comrades were not rejoining the chase.  They decided to all join in the next time I entered a space.  I decided to expel the soul from the Sea, and with the soul went the angels.  They all popped out into Hell, surprised as heck to see themselves no longer in the Sea.  The angels were disorientated by this fact that they had been transported to street corner in Hell.  This was made apparent by the fact that they began tearing into the various demons that were walking the street that I had sent them to.  The soul that had gone along for the ride was also disorientated.  But not as disorientated as the beings that had never seen a soul.  The soul seemed like a monster to them, and panic began to fill the streets as rumors of an invasion began to spread among the populace.

 With my chasers temporarily out of the way, and they wouldn't be forever, I quickly went to Jennifer's space.  The three of us held up inside the dream-world that I had left her in, and waited for the right time to make our getaway.  Meanwhile, there were things to discuss.

"Why did you rescue me from my imprisonment?” Ebircs asked, once we’d settled ourselves.

“I need your help.  I need you to tell me how to get to Earth.”

“Earth? You mean, you believe as well?”

“Yes, very much so.” I recounted my tale to the demon in full.  His reaction was nothing less than that of someone who’s dreams had come true.  In short, he freaked out.  After a short time in which the demon exuberantly repeating the words, “I knew it!" I finally got him to calm down, and get to my question.
“I’m sorry Rianoc.  I do appreciate all that you’ve done, but there is no way for you to get to Earth.”

“That cannot be true.  The lady in white told me that I could get there, and that I could learn what life is.”

“I believe you.  But for you to get to Earth, you would require a soul.  Demons do not possess souls.  We were never given one.”

This revelation sent me into a state of complete rage.  My two companions felt it best to leave me be for a while, so they walked to another part of the dream-world.

My anger was strong, and it was not the kind that could easily be quelled.  Frustration fed the rage that sought to destroy everything around me in the hopes that the feeling would end.  I wanted to forget all that I had learned.  I wanted my world to go back to the way it had been, before my new reality had been given to me.  At that moment I learned just how blissful ignorance could be, and the whole of my self begged for its return.

“Mr.  Ebircs,” Jennifer said.  “Is there no way for him to leave this place? He’s done so much for me, and I don’t want to lose what I have here.  This place that he’s created for me seems too much like Heaven for me to let it go back to being Hell.”

“I’m sorry, my dear.  There is no way.  All of my research has led me to the conclusion that a being without a soul cannot leave this place.  There is a barrier that one must cross.  It is like a gate that swings only one way.  The only way to slip through that gate is by passing through the eyes of its gatekeeper, Judas.”

“Judas?!”

“You know of him?”

“Yes.  But I thought that he was supposed to remain in Hell for all time.”

“He is, but as part of his punishment he must be the judge of the souls as they exit their torment.  He must watch as souls do what he can never do, escape Hell.  That does not matter though.  What matters is that our efforts have been in vain.  The only thing that we can hope to do is to remain here, in your memories, as long as possible.”

“What do you mean.”

“Rianoc and myself cannot be located inside of the spaces inhabited by souls.  However, they will eventually assign your case to another Tormentor.  Then we shall be discovered, and have no place to run.”

Jennifer thought for a moment, and then began to lose hope.  The problem at hand seemed to be dire.  Then, suddenly, a glow began to form around her soul form.  It glowed brightly, and indicated a sense of excitement.  “Mr.  Ebircs, couldn’t I act as Rianoc's soul? We’re both going to pass through the gate at the same time, so wouldn’t the gatekeeper allow us through, even if Rianoc, and yourself are piggy-backing along?”

“Well, I don’t know.  It’s conceivable that it could work.  But if it doesn’t…”

“Then we’re all in for Hell.  So what have we got to lose?”

"She's right!" I shouted enthusiastically.  I had heard their conversation, and felt a sense of hope return to me as Jennifer’s words sank in.  “We have nothing to lose.  If we make it, then we’ve won.  If we don’t, then the consequences can’t be worse than what would be done to us if we get caught.”

“But how will we get out of here, and through all of the police who will most likely be on the hunt for us?” Ebircs asked.

“I can bring us directly out of the Sea of Souls.  From there, you can guide us to…”

“Hold on there.  There is no easy way to get to the gate.  It requires a connection to Heaven in order to do that.  And if Jennifer is still in Hell, then it is for a reason.  Her time is not up yet.”

I paused for a moment, and felt the despair begin to return.  But my mind returned to the beginning.  “What about the mirror?” I asked, and hoped that I my own dream was not about to be smashed to pieces.

“The mirror?" Ebircs asked, and looked at me in confusion.  But then he realized what I was suggesting, and his heart began to race as well.  "The mirror! Of course! It was obviously used by Heaven to get to you.  So all we have to do is get to it!”

“Leave that end of the plan up to me.  I know that area well enough to sneak us into Hell’s Kitchen.  How they receive us in that place depends on how drunk the crowd is.  So we’ll aim to get there an hour before it closes.  Agreed?”

“Agreed.” They both replied in unison.  And with that one word, we set ourselves on a course that would change existence.

Chapter 16 -- Going to The Bathroom

The idea of trying to sneak in seemed to be a daunting task.  Our party consisted of two known felons, and a soul who was uncomfortably hiding in an old cardboard box that we'd found in the alley.  Ebircs and myself were planning to mask our faces as much as possible.  Jennifer had to stay concealed in the box, next to the flame-thrower my flame-thrower.  The soul could not travel in view of the public for fear of her being seen.  She would have been a bit too obvious if she’d floated around.  There are many types of beings that travel Hell’s streets; souls are not one of them.  In Hell, souls are always prisoners.  I was planning to change that rule though.  At least for her.

She was my only chance for an exit, and I liked her.  Ebircs was useful, so his presence was acceptable.  We had one chance at completing our objective.  After that, they’d know what we intended to do.  They’d know that there was still power in the mirror.  Then we’d be fucked.

We needed that mirror.  Just as importantly, we needed the spell that would take us to the "Gates of Hell".  Ebircs had explained to me the incantations that would have to be recited.  We’d need at least a couple of minutes to complete the spell, so one of us would have to fend off anything that might attempt to stop us.  The whole scenario would have to play itself out very quickly.  We’d soon be over-run by the hundreds of demons trying to capture us.  That’s not including the police who were alerted to our presence the minute I used the spell that took us out of the Sea of Souls.  The plan was risky, but it was our only chance.  And chances don’t come along that often in Hell.

We began making our way towards the establishment at a hurried pace.  Running would have attracted too much attention, so we walked, quickly.
Nobody noticed us when we entered the place.  Nobody was really looking for us there.  Who would think that after all the cunning things that I did to stay free, that I would allow myself to be in such a crowded place, full of demons who had probably been told to report any sighting of me? Yet there we were, walking right through the center of Hell’s Kitchen, on a direct route to the john.  It was all working out just as we had hoped, and then something happened which always seems to be the case in the best laid plans, something went wrong.

Ebircs was bumped into by a stumbling drunk who seemed to be as jovial as any individual under the influence.  The stranger was a gargoyle, possessing a stone body, with large wings.  I have always thought that gargoyles looked a lot like gremlins with wings, only not as slimy.  This gargoyle was no different.  He seemed barely conscious, but still had the energy to talk, which is exactly what we did not need.  There was no time for it.

"Sorry about that, mate." The gargoyle said to Ebircs.  "Here have a drink.  It's on me."

"Thank you, but I really must be..."

"Now hold on.  Are you refusing my generosity? I said I was sorry for bumping into you." I was not liking the tone in the gargoyles speech.  He was getting agitated, and he was already drunk.  The police would arrive any minute, and the gargoyles loud voice was attracting too much attention.

"My friend and I are in a rush." I interjected.  "We have to meet someone."

"I don't believe I was talking to you, mate.  So mind your own fucking buisness!" It was at that moment that the crowd by the front door began to move around in such a way that it was obvious that they were being pushed aside.  The police had arrived, which meant the proverbial shit was about to ruin our tan.

There was no time for anything but drastic steps.  I quickly grabbed the gargoyle's throat with one hand, and then hacked his head off with another.  His body temporarily ran around the room, flailing its limbs wildly.  Meanwhile Ebircs had taken my hint and violently pushed his way to the restroom.  His efforts became less impeded when he began pretending to be on the verge of vomiting.

The plan was in motion.  Ebircs began his spell, and I began making my way towards the restroom as well.  As I backed up, I was unloading on the charging police with the flame-thrower that I had been forced to reveal.  They did not seem to be trying to kill me, so I assumed that their orders were for me to be taken intact.  This made my job easier in that they couldn't simply incinerate me on the spot.  It looked as though the plan would work.  I was standing in the doorway of the restroom, and the police did not seem too pressured to attack me.  They probably thought that I had cornered myself, and were planning to wait until I'd run out of ammunition.  Things were going well.  That’s when he showed up.  David had arrived to take control of the situation, and he was not as uninformed as the police who seemed too confident in their handling of the situation.

“Why have you not charged his position?” David barked at the chief, who had decided to take charge of the situation personally.

“We have him cornered sir.  We thought it best to let him run out of ammunition, and maybe talk him out.  That way casualties could be…”

“I don’t give a damn about casualties! How is it that he came to be in that restroom? Did your men drive him there, or is he there by choice?”

“It appeared as though he meant to be trapped there.  We haven’t figured out why…”

“You idiot!!!” David had finally figured out why I had returned to Hell’s Kitchen.  He did not know my full intentions, but he knew about the mirror.  All at once a sense of urgency swept the fallen angel into a furious state of panic.  “Take your men and charge his position!”

“But sir…”

“Do it now, or by the master I will destroy you and your men myself!”

“Yes, sir.” With a single com