Marcus sat at the table in the underworld with two of his fellow demons: Arda and Armand. After a long day of cleaning up messes, they were enjoying a few drinks before retiring to their respective caves. Behind them, the coldness of hell echoed through the sounds of tortured souls, metal clanking on metal, cracks of whips snapping, and lava rushing around like a river, somehow staying hot despite the chill that never left. The cave they were at was usually full of demons, but tonight it was quiet. That was until they all felt it. A call. A human far enough along in the process of a summoning that the call was reaching them, telling them to be ready.
Marcus was not in the mood to kill for a human. There'd been a lot of it recently, he almost did nothing else anymore and he was hoping for just a small break. At least the humans usually had a decent reason for wanting someone dead, if he did end up having to go. Though the last one he got in trouble for because he killed someone it turned out was innocent. That was another reason he didn't want to go.
Evil souls were his business, not good ones. He felt so terribly about misreading the situation, he didn't even need the scolding from the angels but he got it anyway. He stood there while they repeated the laws, humiliating him in front of the others and then enduring a lashing from Lilith afterward. The thing they didn't understand was he didn't mind the punishment. He deserved it after ending another innocent's life end. He'd done too much of it in his human life and his only recompense now was torturing souls just as evil, if not more so.
"Marcus, it's your turn," Arda said in response to the call they all felt, leaning over the table and snatching his drink.
"It's not my turn," Marcus scowled, crossing his arms. "I covered for you last summoning."
"And I covered the one before that," Arda countered, narrowing her eyes. "Why is this even a fucking problem anymore? I thought we got rid of all documents that had the right words."
"Something always slips through the cracks," Armand shrugged. "It doesn't matter. Someone still has to go."
"Arda's going," Marcus said, glaring at Arda.
"I'm not doing shit," Arda said, crossing her arms.
The call got louder. They could feel it. The human was seconds away from saying the words and someone would have to go. If none acted, one would be forcibly pushed through to the other realm, though they had no way of knowing who it would be. It was such a painful experience, not even demons specializing in torture would endure it.
"There's an easy way to solve this," Armand shrugged.
"Not again," Marcus groaned, dropping his head in his hands.
"Pick a straw," Armand said, a stack of straws appearing with a wave of his hand. He held them between Arda and Marcus, looking at them both expectantly.
"This is stupid," Arda pouted.
"Agreed, but it seems to be the only way to not make this argument go on forever," Armand said. "The human said the chant once, she's in the middle of her second time. Make it fast."
Arda went first, grabbing a straw and waiting. Marcus reached over and plucked one, cursing at how short it was. Arda waved her long one with a smug smile and Marcus growled, feeling the call. The human was almost done saying it for the third and final time.
"Fuck," Marcus groaned, standing and walking over to the rumbling Summoning Cavern. In hell, there were portals like it everywhere. Caverns that looked normal on the outside but the second you crossed their threshold, would show no form except a black void. He stepped inside and as he did, heard the human say the last words that sent him spiraling through the portal, taking him to the mortal realm.
He closed his eyes because the movement between realms was too much and would make just about anyone traveling through it sick. He'd learned that the hard way. He felt the shift, the change in air as he left the underworld and arrived in the mortal realm.
He opened his eyes just as he arrived in a home. A home that looked like it had been completely torn apart. Cupboards were open with some barely hanging off broken hinges, legs of chairs were broken and laying in sharp pieces, glass shattered on the floor, blinds torn off the window. His eyes zeroed on the human sitting on the floor in the middle of the room, surrounded by a circle of candles. Her brown eyes matched the brown hair piled up messily on her head, complimenting her dark, golden skin. A chain around her neck held a necklace that was so long, it disappeared beneath an oversized t-shirt that hung off her shoulder on one side, so oversized it covered her torn skinny jeans almost down to the knee. Her eyes widened when she saw Marcus.
"Holy fucking shit," she breathed. "It worked?"
Marcus rolled his eyes, not wanting to deal with another human asking questions. They always asked the same questions and he wanted to get back to his drink. "Yes, it worked. Yes, I know I look like a human but no, I'm not, I'm a demon. Let's move on. Give me the name of the person you want dead."
She raised an eyebrow and shrugged, picking up a bottle of alcohol and drinking directly from it before meeting his gaze and saying the last thing he expected.
"Me."
Marcus's eyes widened. Not once in his centuries of being a demon did a human ask for this. Kills for revenge? Almost exclusively. Kills for power? Occasionally. Kills for infidelity? Infrequently. Kills for cowards that wanted someone dead but wouldn't do it themselves even though they were capable? Rarely. But suicide? He frowned in confusion and she looked at him expectantly.
"Well? Come on," she said, standing up and taking a moment to regain her balance. She was clearly drunk. "Let's do this. I ain't got all night. I don't care how you do it except I just don't want it to be slow, you know? Just like snap my neck or slit my throat or something," she shrugged. "Whatever's fast."
Marcus's frown deepened. He was stunned, not sure what to say. "What?" He asked, shaking his head. "Did you say to kill.... You?" He asked, thinking he must've heard wrong.
"Yeah," she nodded confidently. "Let's get this show on the road," she said, waving her hand in a circular motion. "I'm ready."
He regarded her for a moment, feeling slightly offended. It was one thing to want to have someone killed out of revenge but it was another to use him for suicidal purposes. "You've got to be fucking with me," he said, shaking his head. "You're doing a suicide by demon?"
"Yep," she said, looking at him curiously as she crossed her arms. "So? What does it matter? You're a demon here to kill, I'm giving you someone to kill and making myself an easy target," she said, opening up her arms. "So come on. Oh, wait, you said give you a name right? I'm Mila. Kill me," she said, gesturing to herself.
"I..." Marcus started, not sure what to say. He'd spent a lot more time around humans ever since one of his closest friends, Nex, had turned human. Thanks to Nex and the reason for his turning human, Katherine, Marcus spent more time in the mortal realm and didn't despise humans as much as he did before.
He didn't mind the killing when someone summoned him because often the people they wanted dead had done something very wrong to make them summon a demon to take care of it. Even if he didn't mind helping someone commit suicide, which he did very much, he already got in trouble once in the last few months for killing an innocent. Doing it again would not only make him feel like shit but also get him in more trouble, and he was still recovering from the trouble he got into when helping Nex protect Katherine. He couldn't afford more trouble.
"Uh," he cleared his throat, glancing around the apartment. "What exactly..." He trailed off, unsure what to say. "What is the problem?"
"What?" She asked, confused by his question. "What do you mean?"
"What do I mean?" Marcus repeated, frowning. "I mean why the fuck did you summon me to kill you?"
"Oh," she said, picking up the bottle of alcohol and making her way to the couch, plopping down as she took another swig, not seeming to care the couch had deep enough tears in it that stuffing was poking out of the red cushions. "Mostly because hiring an assassin to kill me costs way too much money. Do you always ask people their motives?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.
Her answer only confused him further. He opened his mouth and shut it because he couldn't think of what else to say or ask.
"You're hotter than I thought you'd be," she said, her eyes drifting up and down him, taking in the black, slightly curly hair that went down to his shoulders, the beard trimmed neatly against his skin, and his lean but strong physique. "I thought you'd, you know, have horns and shit. Like in the movies. But you just look normal except the red eye thing," she said, gesturing to her eyes. "You're not like an incubus are you?"
"What?" Marcus said. "No. I'm not a fucking incubus."
"Huh," she said, raising her eyebrows and shrugging. "All right. Whatever. Are we doing this or what?"
Her nonchalance about the fact she was asking him to kill her just made him more uneasy. He glanced around the torn up apartment before returning his gaze back to her, finding her looking at him expectantly.
"Did someone trash your place?" He asked. "Are you in trouble? Is that why you want to die?"
"What?" Mila frowned. "No. Dude, what the hell? You're a demon, just kill me already. You don't need an explanation."
"I do need an explanation," Marcus said, narrowing his eyes at her. "I'm not going to just kill you. Are you depressed or something? Can't you just go see a doctor?"
Mila stared at the demon in disbelief, trying to figure out why he seemed equally confused. If he was a demon that killed, then it didn't make sense to her he would be hesitating. She'd had a bit to drink but she was certain this couldn't be normal demon behavior, whatever that was.
"Okay," she said, drawing out the 'a'. "Look man, I just need you to kill me, all right? I'm not asking for much. Don't you do this on a regular basis anyway? Like what do you do as a demon? Obviously killing is part of it or you wouldn't have offered."
"No one takes the time to summon a demon to kill them even when they are suicidal," Marcus said, narrowing his eyes. "If you wanted to die that badly, why did you go through so much trouble?"
"I'm not suicidal," she laughed, waving her hand dismissively. "I just need to die. So come on. Do you need a drink first or something?" She asked, holding up the bottle. "I'm kinda on a time crunch here."
"You..." Marcus trailed off, shaking his head. "No. I'm not doing this. This is fucking ridiculous. Come on, I'll..." He started, shrugging. "Take you to a doctor or something."
"What the fuck?" She whispered. She couldn't help but wonder if she heard that right, there's no way a demon actually offered to take her to the doctor. "You're a demon, just kill me already. I'm not going anywhere except probably hell."
"I'm not going to kill you," Marcus said firmly, crossing his arms.
"Dude, what?" Mila asked, shaking her head. "Okay, I know I'm a little tipsy here. But are you seriously telling me I summoned a fucking demon of death and not only will he not kill me but he wants to take me to a therapist?"
"I mean..." Marcus shrugged. He was aware how it sounded but he didn't like killing people for no reason and she clearly had a lot to drink. Humans often made terrible decisions when drunk but he would be the one getting in trouble for it.
"You're the worst demon ever," Mila said, throwing up her arms. "What the hell, dude? Isn't this like your job? Don't you enjoy killing?"
"You've watched too many movies," Marcus said flatly. "Who did this to your apartment?"
"Bitch, are you for real?" Mila asked, tilting her head to the side. "Or is this just like some weird mind game thing for you? Mess with me to frustrate me, then kill me? I mean, I guess that does sound like something a demon would do," she said, tapping her chin. "Look, I don't know how this normally works. This is my first time. You're gonna have to prep me like a virgin."
"I..." Marcus trailed off, shaking his head. "I'm seriously concerned about your mental state right now."
"You're concerned? You're a demon!" Mila said, standing up. "Just kill me and get it over with!"
"No," he clipped. "How about instead, you send me after whoever did this?" He suggested, gesturing to the apartment.
"How about instead you be a good little demon and do your fucking job and kill me?" She said, setting her hands on her hips.
"Why should I? Are you evil?" He asked, tilting his head to the side.
"Does that matter??" She said in exasperation.
"Yes," Marcus frowned. "In case you've forgotten or have been mislead in some way, hell is the resting place of evil souls. Not good ones. I don't kill and torture good souls, only evil ones."
"Oh for fuck's sake," she groaned, rubbing her hands over her face. "Yes, I'm evil. I... I slaughter children and eat them, okay? Can you kill me now?"
"You're lying," Marcus said, narrowing his eyes and holding out his hand. "Give me your hand."
"Why?" Mila said, narrowing his eyes.
"Just, fuck," Marcus growled, stalking towards her and grabbing her hand, tugging it up close to his face and examining her palm.
"Are you... Palm reading me right now?" Mila asked, frowning. "Are you serious? Are you like a prank demon or something? Did I get the goddamn words wrong?"
"You're not evil," Marcus said, dropping her hand. "I won't do it. If you want to die, you're going to have to do it yourself because I refuse to take part."
"You're a demon, dude," she said, shaking her head. "What do you mean you refuse to take part? I swear," she groaned, shaking her head. "You're more misleading than a Craigslist ad."
"Give me a different name," he insisted.
"No," Mila snapped. "I gave you a name. Take it or leave it."
"Fine," Marcus shrugged turning to leave. "I'll leave it."
"Wait!" Mila said, grabbing his arm. "Hold on. This is bullshit. I want a refund."
"What?" Marcus asked, glancing back at her. "You didn't pay for anything."
"Um, I bought the candles and I paid with my own blood," she said, waving her hand around. "You owe me."
"Have you escaped from a mental institution or something?" Marcus asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No, I just want you to do what I summoned you to do," she said, throwing her arms up. "Do you have like a demon manager I can bitch at? I'm normally not even sort of a Karen but you're turning me into one with this attitude," she said, crossing her arms and glaring at him.
"Mila, you need help," Marcus said seriously.
"You're right, I need help. With dying," she said. "So do it already."
"Why do you want to die?" Marcus asked, crossing his arms.
"None of your business," she said, narrowing her eyes.
"Fine. Then figure it out on your own," Marcus said before vanishing, leaving Mila frustrated and confused.
A/N:
Heyy fallen angels 😈 let me know what you thought of this first chapter
This book just started on Patreon, so we're only three chapters in, but it'll get another 3 chapters on Saturday and after that, two chapters every Saturday. Link is in my bio
First impressions of Mila?
What about our boy Marcus?
Take care, loves ❤️