Our time in hell

The News

She gasps loudly. “You yelled at me….”

Alex looks at her for a minute and sighs. “Ok, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. This all is just too much and it got the best of me. I’m sorry.”

Man!! Alex is just too nice. I would have kicked that bitch to the curb months ago.

“Don’t you ever do that again. But I forgive you, babe.” She says sweetly. Alex forces a tight smile on his face.

“If you guys are done talkin’, I want you to see this.” Says Matt. I didn’t hear him walk to the window. That sneaky cat.

We reluctantly walk to where he’s indicating and look out. In the black-stoned hallway, were people of all colors, shapes, and sizes. Wait, these are not people. They’re…demons? I look closely and see a demon whose skin is red, but instead of skin, its got scales. Blood is caked in between them. It sees us watching and faces us. I realize its eyes are completely white and its mouth is stitched together, too. The thing is wearing a battered robe. My eyes bulge in disbelief. Eerily, it waves at us and carries on.

“Ok, I believe we’re in Hell now.” Says Leya.

I think we’ve seen enough so we sit back down. Gosh, demons are real! It’s hard to believe that me, a girl from a small town in Vermont, is witnessing what Hell is.

“Dang.” Says Alex, looking at the window in awe. “Did you see that thing?”

We nod soberly.

“What do we do now?” asks Sally.

I answer. “I guess we just-

Right then, the same demon barges into our cell. I scream and we back up to the far wall. What does it want with us? Is it gonna kill us? Or eat us alive? I tell my mind to shut up because these thoughts are just making me more afraid.

The demon rolls its eyes. “You fools! I have not come to kill you! I have come to deliver a message!”

How can it talk if its mouth is stitched together, I think.

It sighs and continues. “The Lord is very enraged. You humans should not be in this realm. It is forbidden. The Lord wishes to see you before you are eliminated.” Eliminated means killed, right?

Of course, Matt had the courage to speak up. “Okay, I have three questions. How can we hear you if your mouth is stitched up, who is ‘The Lord’, and how are we gonna see ‘The Lord’?”

 “You can hear me because I am speaking in your mind, boy. And the Lord is what you people might call ‘The Devil’. He pauses. “You will be released tomorrow. Two other demons will escort you to the Lord’s palace.” Creepily, it grins. “Sweet dreams.” It then walked out of the cell and locks the door leaving us flabbergasted.

No one makes a move or talks.

Startling us, Leya hollered, “Devil?! Eliminated?! This is just too much….”

“I know, it is.” Agrees Alex. “But I believe that thing. I mean, why would a demon just come in here just to tell us a lie?”

“Yeah” added Matt. “The dude looked serious, man.”

The rest of us nod.

“But meeting the devil seems a little far-fetched, don’cha think?” Said Leya.

“Maybe, but being in Hell is a little far-fetched, too." She glares at me. "Anyway, I guess we’ll find out a tomorrow. There’s no reason to argue about it now.” I say.

“Mhmmm, let’s stop talking, I’m beat.” Says Sally, yawning.

I am too. I honestly don’t care if the floor is nasty. My head stills hurts. I need just a little nap. I take one last look around the room and shudder. Regretting that I looked, I slowly lay down far from the source of the stench. So does everyone else. I cover my mouth and nose with my shirt and drift into deep sleep.