by G. Bailey
“What do you think the keepers know about her?” I ask him, because I didn’t know they knew anything. No one knows anything of her. She is just a rumour, an outcast who kills anyone that goes near her. But that’s a lie. The witch she protects shows she doesn’t kill everyone. She held a dagger to my throat today, and if she didn’t care about killing, she would have killed me.
“Something she is willing to fight to find out,” Trex says, just as Evie’s car disappears through the barrier.
“We should go and get your brother,” I state, wishing Trex hadn’t suggested bringing him on this mission. He is the last person you want to take to hell with you.
“Yeah, he might need sobering up before tonight,” Trex replies, turning and walking down the street. We get to the first building across, and rather than going into it, we walk around it to the back entrance. It’s hidden, but nearly every Protector knows it’s here. The smell of smoke and alcohol hits me when we walk through the door, and I pull it shut behind us both.
“Let’s split up to look for him,” Trex suggests, knowing this place is underground and about five layers. It takes a lot to get us drunk or stoned, and this is the only place for Protectors to safely come and lose some steam.
“Sure,” I comment, walking to the left, and he goes right. I walk down the glass-walled hall ways, looking at the sofas and bars, not seeing Nix anywhere. I get to the end of the corridor when I spot him. He is sitting on a sofa, two girls at his side in dresses that leave little to the imagination. He has a bottle of vodka in his hand as he looks up at the ceiling and blows out smoke. Nix doesn’t have a shirt on, showing off his chest and arms that are completely covered in tattoos. His black curly hair falls all over the place as he hasn’t bothered having it cut in a while and by the looks of him, I bet he has been in here for a few days doing fuck knows what. Great, he is fucked. I open the glass door, walking straight over and standing in front of him. He doesn’t even notice as the girl on his right starts climbing on his lap, kissing his neck.
“Nix,” I shout, kicking his leg, making him nearly drop his bottle as he jumps and shoots his head forward. I look at the girls, vaguely recognising them.
“You two disappear, or I’ll tell your family you’re in here,” I say, watching Nix’s annoyed face as the two girls jump up off the sofa and practically run out of the room.
“Buzz kill, Con. We could have shared,” he grins.
“Maybe another time. We have shit to do, and you need to be sober,” I tell him, and he groans, lifting his bottle and downing it. I reach over, pulling it off him and smashing it on the floor.
“I’m not fucking around, Nix, get your shit together,” I tell him, just as Trex gets to my side.
“Do I have to knock you out and carry your ass out of here like last week?” he says, crossing his arms.
“No, I can fucking walk,” he mutters, glaring at his brother and stands up, swaying a little before passing out, his body smacking onto the floor.
“I’ll get him,” I pat Trex’s shoulder, and he glares at his brother, putting his hand on my chest to stop me.
“She wouldn’t want this. We both lost her, and this is not how she would want anyone to react,” he points at his brother. “Our sister didn’t die saving his ass, so he could drink his life away, I will deal with him,” he says, leaning down and picking up his brother over his shoulder. I feel sorry for Trex and Nix. They lost both of their parents, and more recently, their sister. Nix drinks the memories away and Trex, well he pretends nothing happened.
“Meet you outside at seven tonight,” Trex says, and carries his brother out of the room. I walk over to the bar, paying Nix’s bill before leaving and praying Trex can get Nix in any state to help us tonight.
Nix
“I’m not going to hell to save anyone, you’re fucking kidding right?” I say, sitting up on my bed, and seeing my brother’s disappointed glare in my direction. The door bangs open, and Connor walks in, handing me a glass of water. I glance around at my apartment; the bed, the sofa, and the small kitchen are all that are in it other than one other door that leads to a bathroom. It’s empty other than the empty take away boxes and empty bottles littered around. I don’t even remember how I got back here last night.
“I’d prefer vodka,” I say, taking the drink, and holding a hand to my head as the room spins.
“Yeah well, tough shit. We need you,” Connor replies dryly, leaning against the wall.
“Why again?” I ask, and Trex groans as he narrows his eyes at me.
“Didn’t you tell him?” Connor asks.
“I just barely woke him up, and I think he only heard the bit about going into hell,” Trex says, and I lean back on my pillows and look at them both.
“The princesses have been stolen, and we need to go to hell to get them back,” Connor says, like it’s a normal thing to wake someone up and inform them of.
“I’m sorry they are gone, but who took them? How do we know they are in hell?” I ask the important questions.
“The keepers won’t tell us how they know, and they don’t have a clue who took them, apparently,” Connor replies.
“Right, so we can go and die for them, but they won’t tell us shit?” I ask, a hollow laugh following my words as Connor and Trex don’t reply. There’s a knock on the door, which breaks up the awkward silence, and Connor opens the door. A keeper is standing still outside the door, his hood covering his face, so I can’t see who it is.
“May I enter?” the keeper asks, and Connor holds the door open for him, letting him in. The unfamiliar keeper lowers his hood, looking around at my apartment with clear disgust before speaking.
“What I tell you now is a secret, and many of the keepers would have me killed for telling you,” he says, and I look him over. The keeper is old, one of the oldest I bet, with white roots and brown hair, but I don’t care. I don’t have anything to do with keepers or any of their crap since they let my sister die. Connor shuts the door before walking over, and sitting on my sofa as I get out of the bed and go to my kitchen. I open the doors, seeing the cabinet I usually store my alcohol in is empty, and I spot the empty bottles next to the sink. I turn and glare at my brother, who just grins. Asshole.
“Who are you?” I turn and ask the keeper, wanting his name before I kick him and my brother, and Connor out of my apartment.
“Keeper Grey,” he says simply.
“Well, Keeper Grey, nice to meet you, but you need to leave, and take these assholes with you while you’re at it,” I say, and he shakes his head.
“I cannot do that, you need my advice and my help.”
“I don’t need fuck from you,” I say. Connor narrows his eyes at me, sharply shaking his head.
“And don’t start with the lecture I can see you’re about to do, Trex,” I warn, not even needing to look at him to know he is about to start off on one.
“Fine. I will speak to Trex and Connor, you may listen if you wish,” Keeper Grey says, moving to sit on the sofa next to Connor.
“The princesses were not kidnapped, they just went missing. We assumed a kidnap, instead of the likelihood they walked out of here,” he says, and there’s a tense silence. I know the princesses well enough to know that that wouldn’t have happened. They are pampered here; they can do whatever they like, and one of them was about to be crowned queen. Who in their right mind would just walk away from that?
“The princesses wouldn’t have just deserted the throne, not all of them,” Trex points out.
“They did. Or they left. There was no forced entry. I am certain,” Keeper Grey informs us.
“Then why do the keepers think the princesses are in hell?” Trex asks.
“We had no choice but to search the princesses’ rooms, and in one, we found something that only an overlord demon could have. A token of an overlord’s sin. They always keep their sin close to them, and never show or tell anyone unless they are family or very close,” he explains, and I watch Trex tighten hi
s fists in anger and sharply look away.
“The princesses are close to a demon overlord? How is that possible?” Connor exclaims in clear shock. Demon overlords are not friends, and we hunt them–not let them anywhere near our royals. Our most protected.
“I am as clueless as you. I just cannot let you go into hell without knowing all of the truth and the simple fact that they might not be there,” he says, standing up. “I wouldn’t tell the assassin about this. If she knew, she wouldn’t take you to hell and while we are powerless, we need her.”
“What do you know about the assassin? Who she is? Who her parents are?” I ask, and he looks towards me. I watch his expression carefully, seeing many emotions flash in his eyes as he decides what to say to me. I’m not the best at judging people’s reactions, but I have a feeling this assassin means something to him.
“I know everything there is know about her, but I am bound never to speak a word. I promised her father I would keep her secret and protect her. That is why I am telling you all I know, because you will be protecting her in a way on your travels,” he says.
“Who is her father?” I ask.
“I cannot say,” he replies, almost sadly, and lifts his hood, walking to the door and opening it up. “Good luck, Protectors.”
“That was . . . weird,” Connor says as Keeper Grey shuts the door after him.
“I’m coming with you,” I tell them firmly.
“Why have you changed your mind?” Trex asks, genuinely surprised, if his voice is anything to go by.
“To keep you fuckers alive, that’s why. You will need me,” I say, and both Connor and Trex laugh.
“If that’s what you need to tell yourself, fine,” Trex says walking away, opening the door and looking back over his shoulder. “But take a damn shower, you stink brother.”
I laugh, walking into my bathroom, as Connor leaves, to do just that.
Evie
“Do you have food?” I ask the man, who pushes me away, and I fall to the ground. The demon doesn’t even look back as he walks away, and I look down, bursting into tears as rain pours down on me, and I sink further into the mud. My fifth birthday was two days ago, and the last time that I had eaten. My parents screamed as I accidentally set their rug on fire. They said I wasn’t human, that I was unnatural, and I had to leave. I screamed and screamed at them to not leave me, but they did.
“Hey, are you okay?” a woman asks, running over and picking me up off the floor. She holds me close, folding her cloak around me as I cry, and she rubs my back. The woman waves her hand, a blue light covering her hand, and I hear a door open. The woman carries me into the warm room, putting me down on something soft but I’m too scared to open my eyes.
“Hunny, you are safe now,” she says soothingly.
“I’m alone now,” I whimper.
“No, not anymore,” the woman says. I open my eyes, seeing a dark-skinned woman kneeling in front of me. She has long black hair, a weird mark on her right cheek, and a big smile. She has on a long dress; big grey eyes, and I don’t think she is a demon. I don’t know what she is, but she seems nice.
“I’m scared.”
“I know, but if you will trust me, I won’t leave you alone. The world isn’t good all the time, but I think if you can do one good thing, it’s a step in the right direction,” she says and stands up. “Do you like hot chocolate? I have some I can make you and then get you a meal.”
“Yes, please,” I whisper, and she smiles before walking away. I was never alone from that day on, even when I thought I always would be.
“Here, stop here,” I say to the taxi driver when a street light flashes in my eyes, and snaps me out the horrible memory. My human adoptive parents left me here on my fifth birthday, and never looked back. I guess I was lucky they thought I was a demon, even though the blue hair should have tipped them off, and they left me here where the Protectors couldn’t find me. The taxi driver instantly puts the breaks on and stops the taxi. He gives me a questioning look at where we’ve stopped. It looks like an empty field, but only supes would be able to see what it really is. I pay him, getting out of the taxi and watching as he turns around and drives off. I smooth down my tight, red dress, hoping that the dagger on my thighs can’t be seen. I hate dresses. The wind pushes my hair in my face and reminds me that I left my hair down, so it covers up the knife attached to my back. One bonus for having waist-length hair. Weapons aren’t really allowed here, but everyone brings them. It’s too dangerous not to. I have to wait ten more minutes for the Protectors’ car to turn up. Connor gets out first, shocking me a little to see him looking normal. And hot. Very fucking hot. His blonde hair is styled to the left, he has on black trousers and a loose blue shirt with a few buttons undone. I can’t see any weapons on him, but I’m not stupid enough to think he hasn’t hidden weapons somewhere.
“Wow,” Connor whistles, looking me up and down but my attention goes to the stranger that gets out of the back seat. He has messy black hair, a white shirt that is undone except for two buttons at the bottom, so I can see all the black ink covering his chest. It stops just before his neck. I lift my eyes to his green ones, that remind me of Trex. This must be the brother who I can’t remember the name of.
“You didn’t say she was fucking gorgeous, Con,” the brother muses, eyeing me up like a snack. The door smacks shut, just as Trex walks over.
“That’s because she is working with us, Nix, not here to fuck us,” Trex says, making me laugh, and his eyes narrow on mine.
“What is funny?” he asks as I roll my eyes over his tight, dark-green shirt–the way every button is done up–and his black trousers. He still looks too formal, but it will have to do.
“Your denial that you want me. I can see it,” I grin, and he scowls at me. “Anyway, boys, try to keep your mouths shut in here. Demons aren’t fans of Protectors.”
“It is our job to keep them in line, so I expect not,” Trex replies dryly.
“Keep in line, yes. But you guys send them to hell so much for just living, they hate you,” I tell them honestly. Most of the time, the demons are unfairly accused, and there is no trial to find out what happened, they are just sent back to hell without questioning. I turn around, walking to the small gate and pushing the wooden revolving gate which lets us through the barrier.
“Fucking hell,” I hear Nix curse behind me as the field disappears, and the demon underground appears. There are metal containers piled everywhere, the ones at the bottom are open with shops inside and the market in front of them. Other containers lead into diners, clubs, and other rooms. Music blasts from a nearby speaker, and people walk past us like we aren’t even here, dressed in similar clothes or cloaks. All sorts of people live here, but the demons run it. Mainly overlord demons who are meant to be banned from earth. Let’s hope the Protectors don’t see any of those around. There are five demon undergrounds as far as I know, and I should know because I grew up in them. When you are hunted by Protectors like demons are, demons became your friends and allies.
“Not a word about this place,” I warn them, knowing it’s likely they are going to die in hell, anyway, and never get a chance to tell anyone, so I’m not too worried. I only want to get my ass back out of hell with the princesses, not them. “This way.” I nod my head to the left and walk down the stone pathway. I keep my eyes down as I pass many people, not wanting anyone to know I’m here with these Protectors. I know too many people here, and so many wouldn’t take it well to see me walking Protectors into their homes. Hopefully, no one will notice they are something more than humans. We finally get to the building we want. It’s the only one around here that is made from bricks and concrete. It used to be a school, I think, but it’s been changed and now houses a nightclub for the most dangerous demons.
“Don’t drink or eat anything in here that I don’t give you, trust me,” I stop to warn them before walking up to the entrance. Two demon bouncers are outside, and one holds his arm in front of me to stop me. I can�
�t see their faces, only their cloaks and their red skin, letting me know they are likely very powerful demons.
“Password,” the one who stopped me asks.
“Sempiternum daemonum futurum oriri,” I say quietly, and he lowers his hand, letting me in with a glance. Connor walks closer to my side as we walk in the house, and down the long corridor that leads to the club.
“What did that mean? And how do you speak Latin?” Connor asks curiously.
“All demons speak Latin, some more than English, and I grew up with demons. Do you not bother speaking to them before you kill them?” I ask him, and he doesn’t reply. “I said ‘demons will rise’ in Latin, because the people here believe it.”
“You think of demons as people,” he says as he figures out my feelings on demons. They are people, they have feelings, they fall in love, and protect their families. Demons are better than humans in my experience. The only demons that aren’t people are overlords, and we are about to see one. Overlords are said to be thousands of years old, but I don’t know if that’s true. I doubt it, it’s likely a rumour.
“That’s one of the biggest mistakes of your kind, that you don’t see them as people,” I sneer at him and walk faster so that I’m ahead of him. I push the wooden doors open at the end of the corridor and walk into the night club as the loud music blasts against my ears. I look around, seeing demon women dancing with human men on the dance floor. They are succubus demons by the looks of their blue skin, black hair, and seductive bodies as they seduce the human men in suits out of their money. A female waitress, a lower-class demon with red skin and black eyes stops in front of us, offering us a drink from the tray she is holding.
“No. Do you speak English?” I ask her, and she pauses, giving me a worried nod.
“Good. I’m looking for Seth,” I ask, and her eyes widen. She goes to run away, and I grab her arm, stopping her.
“Tell Seth that Evie is here, he will want to see me,” I explain to her and let her go, watching as she runs away.