See You in Hell [PIP X DAMIEN] [DISCONTINUED]

CHAPTER FIFTEEN: PIP'S POV

Pip keeps forgetting just how terrifying Damien could be.
One moment, Damien's just a normal boy, feeling ashamed about opening up about his father and his problems, and the next he's murdering the motel owner. One moment, the two of them are soaring through the sky, not a word said, and the next Damien was encased in flames with a murderous energy.
And now, with the news of the riot in the fifth circle, Pip was going to have to face Damien exercising his power and authority.
Not to mention how the fifth circle was fairly deep within Hell; and Pip would no doubt be facing horrors beyond his comprehension.
Damien frowned, staring at the messenger imp with formal seriousness.
"You said both demons and sinners? Together?"
"Yes, sir. They have seemed to have formed an alliance in order to demand change," The imp had small rounded eyeglasses tucked below their nose ridge, and they pushed it back up their hooked nose before continuing, "The sinners demand a place in the first circle, and the demons want to be upped in pay."
"Oh my, it's quite the debacle down there." Pip added. To his surprise, the imp nodded in acknowledgment. It was the first time a demon had regarded him instead of their prince.
"Indeed." The imp confirmed for him.
Damien scoffed at the information.
"Pay? What pay? They get paid in the suffering of the damned,"
"That seems to be exactly the problem they want fixed, my lord." The imp fidgeted with their small clawed fingers.
Damien growled, seeming to want to say more, but stopped himself and cleared his throat. Pip assumed that he thought there was no time to make any further outraged comments.
"Fine. Lead the way and we'll come with you to Wrath."
"Right away, my lord."
Moving fast on their feet, the three of them moved past the queue with no one to step in their way this time. The twin guards feigned ignorance as they passed through the golden sliding doors of the elevator, the guard to the right looking anywhere but at the prince. Pip saw Damien wear a small smirk of defiance before he turned into the elevator.
The inside of the elevator was just as gold as it was on the outside, with accented decorative panes of red. There was only one demon in the enclosure with them, a tall lanky thing that didn't seem like it had organs from how skinny it was. Tall, curved moon-shaped horns curled out elegantly from its forehead and paid the three of them no mind. The imp turned to the button board, where every single button from 1 to 8 was pressed. But instead of pressing the '5' button again, the imp pulled out a ring of what seemed like a thousand keys and pulled down a rectangular compartment that was just above the regular floor selection. The compartment opened to a keyhole, where the tiny demon fiddled with the keys for a bit, found what it was looking for, then inserted the fire-designed brass key into the slot then turned it. Then he pressed the '5' button, which turned red, unlike the other pressed buttons, which were a pale yellow that would never live up to the glory as the gold surrounding them.
It was an executive order for their destination.
The doors closed, and the elevator recoiled a little before descending. It ran smoothly, which Pip was surprised to notice, since the elevator had most likely been running for thousands of years on end. The elevator had no windows, which Pip was very thankful for, since he wouldn't be seeing the state of any other circle they passed.
The half-circle that still showed above the doors showed each floor passing by very slowly. It had been about 5 minutes when they finally passed the floor for the second circle. Pip peered over at the other demon in the elevator with them. It seemed to be waiting patiently, though it didn't acknowledge any of them. Thinking it was safe to stare, Pip studied its odd business attire while it continued to stare at the wall.
Suddenly, it hissed at him, its face contorting into a mass of slit pupils and fangs. Pip jumped and slammed into the opposite wall, causing the executive imp to stare at Pip in bewilderment. Pip expected Damien to make great fun out of this. Instead, Damien gave the demon a death glare, one so intense that if it was given to Pip, it would surely set him on fire. The demon ignored Damien as well. It was smiling softly to itself, amused.
Damien didn't let it slide the whole way to the fifth circle. When the door finally opened and Pip and the imp started to walk through the door, Damien stayed behind.
"You two can go on without me for a bit. I think my shoes are untied." He gave a sickly-sweet smile, but Pip didn't think any better of the intentions behind it.
"Oh. Alrighty then," Pip agreed.
The imp didn't seem to approve, but it was still a kind of order from its prince. The two of them walked ahead, and finally Pip could observe his surroundings.
It was a muggy marsh, one with the same red dirt as the gates of Hell, but most of it had turned into a slick mud. They walked along a path of fairly flattened dirt, though it wasn't necessarily dry. The sky had changed; it was no longer an expanse of pure darkness. Instead, crags of rock formed a roof hundreds of feet above their heads, smoke from small, pathetic clusters of fire rising to the top in a massive formation of grey-yellow clouds. Pip could imagine when the flames could've been higher; the smoke stifling and choking, while adding onto the torturous humidity of the swamp. Beside them, a river of churning mud flowed sluggishly. There were no sinners and demons in sight. Pip wondered where they were for a moment, when Damien appeared beside him again, slapping his hands together to wipe of flakes of soot from his hands. Damien noticed the same thing Pip did and narrowed his eyes in question.
"Where are they? Why are there no sinners in the river of Styx?" He asked the imp, not kindly and with a hint of impatience in his voice.
"They have grouped in the center, my lord," The imp said, floating in front of them, its wings working rapidly to keep it in the air. "They have started a strike to make the fifth circle as inactive as possible. The demons that work here have helped the sinners from Styx escape for their cause."
"Those fucking idiots," Damien mumbled under his breath.
Pip shivered. He wondered what the fates of the protesters were when Damien would release his wrath onto them.
A loud, booming note sounded from a spire of rock overhead, startling Pip. They all looked up to see a demon with the legs of a goat with a horn in its mouth, sounding a warning call. It raced off in the opposite direction from them, hooting words of alertness.
"THE PRINCE IS HERE! THE PRINCE IS HERE! Everyone to your stations, and KILL THE PRINCE!!"

END OF CHAPTER FIFTEEN