Angela Chronicles

A Twisted Heart part 1: Broken

I think I’m going mad. Over the last few days I’ve been killing so many lowly demons and critters—too many to count—for no particular reason, but my bloodlust is not sated yet. I still want to kill, but now I am too tired I can’t move a muscle. Funny, I thought I would have unlimited energy. I would never imagine myself in this state: lying helpless on a pile of carcasses, covered in blood and dirt. I smell terrible but I can hardly notice it--my senses start to go numb. My eyes are fixed on the dark sky, but I cannot spot any flying creature that comes across this plain. How long I have been here I wonder... perhaps I begin to crumble into dust.

After what it seems like a long time (though time is not something we demons care about), I see something in the sky. I close my eyes and open them again slowly--surprised at how heavy my eyelids are--to make sure my mind is not playing tricks on me. But no, there really is something flying towards me. It's getting closer very fast, until I can see that it is actually Zion, my fellow demon. I watch as he descends and lands next to me, his boots stand on a severed ogre's arm. He scrutinizes me, then he fixes his gaze on my chest.

"W..." I try to say something, but my throat is very dry and no sound comes out. I struggle to swallow my saliva. "W...what?" I ask him, suddenly feeling angry for no reason.

"Looks like the wound in your chest is rotting." He answers matter-of-factly.

I groan. "didn't think... it'd be such... a big deal."

"Hmm... I thought you would know better" says Zion flatly. If he is disappointed in my action, he doesn't show it. "Can you get up?"

I try to move my limbs, but my movement is very weak. I can barely lift my sword that I'm curiously still gripping in my right hand. "Pathetic!" I curse myself spitefully.

"Here." Zion bends down and touches my sword. It turns back into a charm in an instant and he attaches it to my bracelet. He then pulls my arms so I can sit up, places my left arm around his shoulder and helps me to stand up. "How about your wings?" he asks.

"Broken. Don't recall I heal them."

"Then I have to carry you." Zion lifts me up in one swift movement, secures his hold on my body, then jumps into the air and flies. The wind hitting my face feels refreshing and for a moment I forget about the anger and madness clawing inside me.

"Did Our Lord send you?" I ask, suddenly feeling a tiny bit curious.

"No." answers Zion. And after a few moments of silence he adds, "But I know he wouldn't want you to disappear just yet."

"Of course." I sneer. "He invested too much in me. He must have a plan..."

"I believe so as well."

We don't talk to each other again as we are flying past the fifth realm of Hell and descending into the sixth. Zion brings me into his underground lab, hidden in a cave deep in the black rock mountain. I distinctly remember I have been here once before... it was after I obliterated Paul's spirit. I was in terrible pain and loss for completely destroying someone I loved. Back then, it was also Zion who picked me up from the pitch black and threw me in a cage until I could pull myself together and Lord Lucifer could deal with me. If it wasn't for Zion, maybe I had already fallen prey to the lost spirits.

I frown when I see the row of cages Zion use to store various creatures for experiment. Most of the cages are empty, but I can't tell what are inside the occupied ones. My eyes cannot focus. "Don't put me back there." I remark, not wanting to have myself lowered into the same class as his guinea pigs.

"No? Hmm... then I shall put you on the couch." Zion enters his library, which is separated from the lab by a heavy steel door. He prizes his book and manuscript collection, so he makes sure no hellfire can enter his library. Though he claims that some of his books are fire-proof, he won't take any chances.

Zion's library is filled with a dozen of huge bookshelves connecting the stalactites and stalagmites. In the center there's a raised platform covered by a rug made of black bear's fur. The couch, a black dark red velvet couch, is placed in the middle of the platform, along with a table half-filled with stacks of books. Zion puts me down on the couch. He then goes to his lab and comes back in a second with a silver goblet. He lifts my head with his left hand and brings the goblet to my lips with his right hand. I can see that it's filled to the brim with odorless dark liquid. I take a sip and cough. "What the heck is this?" the taste is awful, like some goblin blood (is it really a goblin blood I wonder).

"Drink it all." Zion urges.

Frowning, I gulp down the rest of the foul drink. I feel like there's a lump in my throat. I give the empty goblet back to Zion, not bothering to wipe the dripping liquid from the corner of my mouth.

"Now rest here for a while. I need to go and get you a new heart." He says, putting my head back down. My tiredness is already at the edge, so I don't question him. As soon as he's gone, I close my eyes and lose my consciousness.

We demons don't dream; we can't anymore. What we have when we're unconscious are fragments of memories from a long time ago. And now the memory that comes back to haunt me is a memory about a particular evening...