The Tumultuous World of A Demi-Demon

Chapter Seven

This may sound odd, considering my strong personality, but I understood him. Having lived at home till I was twenty-one, I had been terrified of finally taking responsibility for myself. Yes, it was cheaper than living on campus or having off-campus housing in a dingy house in some sketchy neighborhood; however, deep down, I knew I was scared of letting the child in me go.

"No, it doesn't," I reassured him. "It doesn't sound pathetic at all."

"And yourself?"

"Huh?" I uttered still lost in my own thoughts.

He repeated himself, "How did you end up in here?"

I took a deep breath in and explained, "I was delivering this stupid package and then was kidnapped during the drop-off." I clicked my tongue, trying my best to not get mad.

"Oh, that sucks."

"Yeah, it does... but I shouldn't have delivered it, to begin with; it was this kid called Manny's job, but I took advantage of it and ended up in the Underworld," I confessed. It felt good letting that off my chest. I knew I should've turned back the moment I landed in the underworld, but my excitement overcame me and now I was in this mess.

His eyes disconnected from mine. "Can I ask you something if it's not too personal?"

"Yeah, it's not like I have anything better to do." I returned my gaze to the dull grey sky.

He waited a few seconds then went for it. "What are you exactly?"

Eyeing a camera by the nearby fake cottage, I started recalling all the encounters I had had with various people; I was a rare find, as Everett put it. I digested his words a bit more then answered Devlin truthfully, "Let's just say if these assholes that locked us up in here find out, I won't be your roommate for much longer."

"Oh, sorry I asked."

"Why?" I queried him before reverting my gaze on the ailing devil next to me. "Why do you ask? You want to eat me now?"

"No! It's not that," he assured me. "It's just you smell human; they tend to be sweet. However, there's this odd sourness to it like a demon or a troll," he explained himself with an intrigued tone. "It's unique, and kind of cool. Never smelt anything like it."

"Hmm..." I trailed off in curiosity. He asked me what it was, so I resumed, "This smelling thing, is it something only Devils do?"

He relaxed his legs a little. "Yes, we can smell every being except our own kind."

"Interesting. What else do you have under your sleeve?"

"We're not that different from angels and demons, to be honest with you. Our brute strength is just more, and our vis is darker..." He disclosed, stretching his legs out. "Much darker."

I had never heard of that. "What's that? This vis thing?"

"It's a kind of magical aura or energy. It's hard to explain, but at the moment mine is weak because I'm further away from the vis core of my kingdom."

A sudden sadness overwhelmed me. "Is that why you look like that right now?"

He nodded for a second time before coughing frenziedly. I attempted to aid him, but he lifted his hand and signaled me not to. With each violent cough, fatigue overtook more of his demeanor. There was no way he was in a position to help me fight these guys off, and I surely couldn't do this on my own. The entirety of the situation felt hopeless.

"Seriously dude, is there some way I could be of assistance?" I pled. "Don't die on me here. I don't do well with solitude. I am an extrovert."

"You. Selfish. Bitch," he retorted between each gasp of air.

"In the flesh," I added, and he couldn't help but let out a raspy laugh.

However, his laugh soon came to an end when a loud buzz erupted through the room. We both jumped up as instinct got us into defensive positions. A few seconds later rectangular slice of the sky began to descend until it revealed a glass box with two women inside. They both bore humanoid features; the fair-skinned one had long wavy auburn hair while the darker lady had neon green cornrows. It halted midair when another buzz came from behind us. We snapped our heads to two sliding doors parting. From it, two masked men in all black stepped out; one had a long butcher knife and the other a machete.

With a lift of her hand, the redhead gestured to the men to come towards us. Without warning, the guy with the knife lunged at me, but I managed to dodge his attack. He took another swing at my torso, but I jumped in time to just miss the weapon before slicing his face with a hard, sharp kick and knocking him out cold.

The other with the machete approached Devlin. Although Devil Boy had a sickly appearance, each step of the man's was slow and cautious. It was as if he was scared of him.

Devlin didn't even flinch as the man swiped at him with the blade; he merely sidestepped as I did, then twisted the guy's hand into his back before bending it like a pretzel. The poor man let out an ear-piercing scream before dropping his weapon and crumbling to the ground in immense pain.  

"You're going to have to do better than sending a bunch of demons my way!" Devlin roared at the ladies in the glass box. Without a single hint of fear, they just smiled at us as the sliding doors closed, then ascended into the hole in the sky, disappearing altogether.

Devlin strolled over to the man pleading for his life on the ground. The Devil Boy's eyes began to glow a bright, menacing red, and, with just a single look, the suppliant demon went quiet and dropped to the ground. I ran over to feel his pulse; it was nonexistent.

"Why did you kill him?" I asked, perplexed and furious. "He could have given us inside information."

"You think I haven't tried that," he snapped. "None of them talk. Because they are like us, they were kidnapped and forced to kill us to go home. Now, kill the other one before he wakes up."

I stood over the man's motionless body and just stared in shock; I had never killed anyone. All my life, I was told to never overpower someone, especially someone who could hardly defend themself. My body tensed as I pulled the knife into my grip. I glanced down at my hands and noticed they were trembling.

"The longer you wait; the harder it is." Devlin stepped to my side and held my hands until they ceased shaking then added, "If you want to survive in the Underworld, you'll have to kill someone. That's just how it works here, don't forget that."

"B-but h-he's ..." I stuttered, struggling to get any other word out and gesticulating to his still body. A tear escaped my cheek; this was against my morals. It just felt so wrong.

Do it. You heard him, my inner voice echoed in my mind like a parasite, Just do it.

Sucking it up and putting my humanity aside, I stabbed the man I knocked out in the neck. Then, with teary eyes, I turned to Devlin, and blurted, "Who the Hell are those women? And why did they send these demons to try to kill us?"

Fixed on the sky above us, his red eyes intensified with rage. For once since I arrived, his sudden change of demeanor made my skin crawl with goosebumps. His vibe was completely different from before, and it made me extremely uncomfortable.

"They're the bosses" – his voice grew stern and cold – "and this is our first test."