Prologue - Purge With My Demons

HELL

“No! Please, this isn’t what I asked for!”

“Shut your mouth.”

I had been gathering firewood, fresh spring air warming my face, when my screaming match with this demon took place. An argument I clearly didn’t win. We appeared in a cave-like hallway in a cloud of ash. The demon dragged my thrashing body as I did my best to pull from his bruising grip. The air was stifling, hot, and humid, making it difficult to breathe. The last thing I remembered him saying to me before we ended up here was something about taking me to ‘Him’, whoever that was. Based on the demon’s demeanor, our surroundings, and the thick heat of the place, I knew he must have brought me to Hell. Which immediately made me assume that the ‘Him’ he mentioned was the Devil or some other higher power.

“Listen whore,” he snarled, gripping my arm even tighter. His sickening, gravelly voice took hold of the last bit of fight I had in me. “If you don’t stop fighting me, I will make this your worst nightmare.”

As if this wasn’t already my worst nightmare.

He tossed me into an open room, the humidity had finally lifted, and I could take a deep breath. My lungs finally began to fill to capacity as I tried to catch my breath, when my head was shoved down onto a polished black marble floor by a heavy foot on the side of my face.

Another male began speaking, and it sounded as though he was above us, his voice annoyed and exasperated. “What have you done, Amon?”

The weight on my neck lifted, and I mustered the courage to look up, seeing a larger, much more intimidating demon than the one who dragged me down there. He looked as though he had empathy in his eyes at least. As if he actually cared. Looking away from him was a chore. He was captivating.

“Sir, you said if I were to ever find a willing sacrifice…”

“A WHAT?!” I interrupted Amon with my screech.

Slowly, he turned his head down to me and quietly said through bared, sharp teeth, “Do not interrupt me again, you whore.”

I was stunned into silence.

The larger demon let out a booming roar. “Amon! You will not speak to her in such a way. Leave my chambers this instant.”

As Amon backed away, his eyes landed directly on mine. “You will pay for this, Beatrice. Somehow, you will pay for this.”

I continued to stare in his direction through wide eyes as he backed out of the room. His threat was empty. But the looming dread that sat heavy in my gut after he left didn’t go unnoticed.

“Beatrice.” The other demon considered my name for a moment before speaking again. “Blessed one. What did you ask for that brought Amon to you?”

Looking up at him, words didn’t come easily. Even squatting, he was still quite tall, the height of an average man in our village. And now that I was really looking at him, he was quite handsome. His features were mostly human in nature, and he wore a long black cloak. But a few things that made him stand out as not human were very clear features that belonged to a demon: his abnormally large stature, long silky, dark hair, and two large black horns that come out of the top of his head and swirled around by his ears. The most striking and obvious thing, though, was his beautiful, deep red skin.

“I’m sorry, blessed one, I haven’t properly introduced myself. I’m Lucifer.” He extended his hand to help me stand, and I noticed intricate black rings on a few of his fingers. “The reason I ask is that Amon, while I rarely agree with his methods, cannot be summoned to the Earthly Realm unless something is asked for. Unless a bargain is requested. That is his duty.”

“Oh, I did not ask to be sacrificed.” I was very sure of myself when replying, but my voice is shaky. I couldn’t help how timid I felt at that moment.

“I don’t think that you did, otherwise you wouldn’t have had to be dragged down to my chambers kicking and screaming, my dear,” Lucifer replied with a half smile and a soft chuckle.

“The last thing I remember before I ended up down here” —I gestured around with both arms— “I was saying something to my husband, Hugo, about doing anything to be able to have a baby. We have not had luck conceiving a child.”

Lucifer nodded his head in understanding. “Ah, okay, I see.” He turned and walked over to sit in an ornately carved black throne which sat atop a dais. A gorgeous female demon I hadn’t noticed before stood beside the throne, whispering something to him, to which he nodded in agreement. “Amon took advantage of what you wished for, my child. I, however, can help with this matter. I will require something in return, though. A bit of give and take. You understand?”

Of course, my skepticism was immediate, but Hugo and I want nothing more than a child of our own. The witch in our village told me Hell was our only choice. I just didn’t think she meant literally. I assumed she was just trying to scare me. “What will you require?”

“A woman in your familial line will be required to take my place.”

My face must have conveyed the words I couldn’t manage to verbalize. Lucifer chuckled lightly. “You see, Beatrice, my power is depleting, quite slowly, but it won’t last forever.” The beautiful female by his side offered him a reassuring glance along with a light squeeze to his hand. “I need someone who will be able to step into my role and take over. There will be some requirements and necessary steps that must take place, but if all goes well, which I know it will, she will be a perfect queen.”

Growing up, we heard stories about demons. Tales of how, if you made deals with a demon, your soul would be cursed to damnation for eternity. I was beginning not to care about any of it anymore. I wanted to be selfish for once and do what needed to be done for Hugo and I. For my family now. Lucifer didn’t seem to have ill intention with this deal, and I didn’t see how anything could go wrong.

Without another thought, I squared my shoulders and proudly said, “I accept!”