Syn’s POV

„So... How was it?” Vengeance appeared right by my side as soon as I stepped my foot in the mansion. I swear, sometimes he was clingier than a girlfriend hooked on meth. What was he referring to? Why the meeting between those high ranking fallen’s and their commanders of course. I bet he wanted to know if they had renewed their title as a fallen, but I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction by answering this question.

„Wonderfully dull,” I replied, stripping off my leather jacket and throwing it over the purple Victorian sofa where Shads was sitting and reading some book. A book? What happened to the recent addiction to that console? Playstation something?

„And that’s it?” Zack implied with a cocked eyebrow. I turned my head to look back at him over my shoulder with a slight frown on my face. „Sorry... I... Sorry.”

I continued towards the mini bar and after a slight moment I flunked down on the couch beside Shads with a glass of bourbon in my hand. „They want a war...” I whispered and rubbed my forehead with my free hand, tilting my head back right after.

„They want to start a war with the Heavens?” Zacky asked taking a seat in the armchair in front of me.

„That’s nothing surprising,” Shads told his eyes still permanently fixed on the book. What on Earth was that fascinating about those couple hundred pages of gibberish? He turned the page, before he continued, „I assumed you told them to go fuck themselves...”

I closed my eyes after I had shotgunned the whiskey. Yeah... These guys gave me too much credit. I was the devil, but I was a devil without an army. Technically Pandora was still the commander and my legions obeyed her and her only. Oh the fucking irony.

„Gates...” I heard Shads shut his book, „You did tell them to go fuck themselves, right?”

A desperate laughter erupted through the silence coming right from me. I sat up straight, placing the empty glass on the table in front of me. „I neither did accept nor refuse the proposition.”

„Are you fucking insane, man?” Shads’ eyebrows shot up and Zacky just gaped at me with his jaw hanging from it’s hinges. „You agreed to a war not even having your infernal legions? The angel must’ve shaken you up real fucking good.”

I shot him an unimpressed stare. It was nobody’s fucking business what’s my deal with Enepsigos was. I turned to look at Zack, who always was on my side. Basically the demon was there just to tell me that every decision I made was the right one, even if that wasn’t the case. „You’ll need a commander.” He nodded finally being able to close his mouth. A silver lining in someone’s existence, huh... „I’m here for you man, hundred percent...”

„Thanks...” A side smile appeared on my lips, „But I do already have a commander.”

„You’re not serious!” Zack protested.

„You mean Pandora?” Shads exploded in some tasty laughter. After a brief moment the laughter stopped and he looked at me like I was insane. „You really think that she’s gonna fight for you after she had been imprisoned in Hell for.. oh I don’t know... half a fucking millennium?!”

„Even I’m siding with Shads on this one,” Zacky shook his head as he looked at me with a confused frown. You’re siding with her only because you want to have the power over the legions. I would’ve shaken my head if it wouldn’t call for so much effort. „I’m surprised she hadn’t tried to kill you by now. Who knows what kinda screws did the torment in Hell undo.”

„Pandora is not the demon she once was,” Shads tried reasoning, but, frankly, their both arguments fell on deaf ears. I was an arrogant son of a bitch, most of the time thinking that the truth belonged to one side. My side. „If you force her to go against God again... I... Gates, you’ll be a deadman walking...”

„She is bound to me!” I roared hitting my palm against the arm rest. Or did they suddenly forget the little fact? She could not fucking disobey me!

„You imprisoned her...” Shads stated, carefully accentuating each and every word, „You abandoned her.”

„Easy, Shads... You know that’s not quite how that went. ” I tried my best to remain calm, but you have to understand one thing – I don’t lie. Ever. So what I’m about to say will probably raise a lot of eyebrows, but – I did not imprison Pandora.

„Okay, whatever. But you did in fact abandon her.” Shads shrugged, before returning to his book. „God’s orders or not.”

„You know – fuck you.” I declared rising to my feet. „Both of you.”

„Hey- what did I do?” Zacky cried out. Could he man up for once and act like he had a brain of his own? This is why he never became the commander – I would’ve lost Hell at least a dozen times by now just because he’d agree with every bullshit I said. And he wasn’t even bound to me!

„You didn’t do anything which is exactly the problem here.” I said as I took the leather jacket from the back of the couch where I had laid it just minutes before. A devilish smirk grew on my face, „I have an angel I have to attend to so you guys can just stick all your objections where the sun doesn’t fucking shine.”

„Yeah... about that...” Zack’s voice and the anxious scratching of his nape stopped me midtrack.

„Where is she?” I took a deep breath. Okay. This is me trying my best not to kill a certain bastard or two. Zack’s answer to the question was a simple shrug, so, obviously, I had no option, but to turn to Shadows.

„Pandora came by.” Matt replied with the absolute minimum of interest in his voice.

„and...?”

„and as far as I could make out, she took her to Hell.” He jerked his shoulders as if it was nothing. If my heart would be beating this would be the moment when I’d have a heart-attack.

„WHAT?!” Right then and there I knew my face had contorted to my uglier side. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing! I was angry, frustrated... furious! Call it what you will. What kinda morons were working for me? How could they let a fucking demon... DEMON... take an angel down to Hell?! „And you tell me this just now?!”

„It’s not like you can do anything about it.” Shads finally graced me with a glance. He was the single motherfucker who wasn’t afraid of me. Like – at all. Nor did he see me as an authoritative figure, which infuriated me even more.

„I can,” My eyes narrowed on him as I slowly calmed down, „And I will. And you motherfucker,” I pointed my finger at him, „will come with me.”

„And what about me?” Zack jumped to his feet. „You can’t honestly believe I’ll stay behind and guard the fort.”

„That’s exactly what you’ll do.” I went straight towards the stairs and as I was to place my foot on the first step, I heard Shads let out a heavy sigh.

„What’s the big deal anyway? She’s just a fallen in which Pandora had taken quite the surprising interest.”

I looked back at him with an are-you-fucking-serious look. „I swear, you’re the smartest yet dumbest asshole to walk any universe.” He frowned, apparently not following the subject. At all. „Let me break it down to you – she’s not a fallen.”

„Anyhow,” He shook his head, trying to shake away the apparent fact I just pointed out. He just chose to ignore it? „So what are you going to do? Roam the Hell in search of finding those two? It’s like searching for a needle in a haystack.”

„She’s an angel...” I could not this stretch enough. Honestly? I didn’t know in what kinda words I had to wrap this statement in for it to crack through his thick skull. „I figure it won’t be that hard to smell something celestial in the air in between all the rotting and decaying.”

Just as we walked up the stairs and took the corner to walk to my office, a certain brunette with very long legs appeared right in front of us. A great frown appeared on my face – the frown grew even greater when she threw herself around my neck. „Gates, baby... Where have you been?”

„For fuck sake...” Shads muttered, before obviously fed up with everything he simply marched in my office.

My confused stare remained glued to Lilith as I politely shoved her away, „What are you doing here, Lilith?”

„I’m looking for you, silly,” She tapped my nose, before her index fingers hooked behind the pockets of my denim’s and she pulled me closer. „I’ve missed you so much...”

„As much as I’d like to act like you didn’t rat me out to a certain someone – I honestly don’t have time for this right now,” I stated as I pulled her hands out of my pockets and simply went around her and walked inside my office, closing the door after me. „That crazy bitch...” I shook my head.

„Trouble in paradise? Pun absolutely intended.” Shads laughed while resting against the wall next to the elevator.

„She’s really fucked in the head if she thinks I’ll take her back after she sided with Belial,” I was actually in awe. In awe of how much bullshit floated in that chick’s head. „So... ready for Hell?” I smirked as I pressed the button right next to the letter ‘H’.

„What happened to ‘fuck God, fuck Heaven and fuck Hell’?” Shads questioned as the heavily ornamented doors opened, revealing an elevator with a blood red carpet in the very middle and some wonderful silver walls.

„We’re gonna be in and out. Simple. Find the angel – get out.” I walked in the elevator and after a second the doors closed on us. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit scared to see how my former home looked like knowing it had been left unattended. I was actually petrified to figure who exactly had escaped. If what Pandora had said to me was true and Ripper had in fact somehow gotten in Heaven, man... someone’s actually working behind my fucking back.

The elevator ride was quick and the office downstairs didn’t differ a lot from what I had upstairs. The ancient books and scrolls were the main difference between the two rooms and maybe the scent. Down here the heat mixed with the humid air and the rotting souls in those torture chambers just around the corner from my office made a strong imprint in ones memory.

„Home sweet home,” Shads chuckled and as soon as he walked out of the elevator the big fireplace lit up.

I smirked.

This place brought up some serious nostalgia. Not everything that happened down here was always bad. For example the day I brought home two dragon eggs... I still can’t erase Pandora’s dumbfounded expression from my brain with the words ‘since when do we eat dragons?’

„So who’s taking in the damned while you’re on your vocation?” Matt followed me as I walked out of the office, trying to figure which hallway to take. I honestly had no idea where could they both be, but knowing Pandora – whatever her reason for coming here was- she would come straight here, knowing her living quarters were exactly next to mine. She wouldn’t miss her chance to drown in nostalgia.

„Looks like... Heaven,” I chuckled. That actually was funny. I wondered what would my punishment be this time. There wasn’t anything worse then being damned to rule in Hell.

„Pandora?” I heard the familiar feminine voice come straight from behind the doors of the lobby. „What about this door?”

Those heavy double doors opened and there she was. The angel. Her eyes went wide, yet her lips raised in a smile as an excited shriek came from her and she launched her right at me not thinking twice about it. „Syn! What are you guys doing here?” She breathed straight in my neck. My head turned slightly to look back at Shads with a what-did-I-tell-you grin. He just rolled his eyes on me.

„Syn? You said... Sy—„ Pandora came through the door, but stopped midtrack and deadpanned at me. I noticed that she was holding the grimoire in her hand. What a good girl. „Oh fuck me... And you’re here too?” She pointed out to Shadows.

„Hardly my initiative,” I could imagine him holding his hands up in defense not even having to look at the bastard.

„Hard to believe that, knowing you were the only one who knew where we were going,” Her hand rested on her hip as she stared Shads down. „Anyhow, if Gates is here we don’t have to look for the key, Teek, so we can just go back to the human infested surface.” Pandora smiled a slight make-believe smile as the angel stepped back from me.

„But what about Lumi?” She pouted shifting her attention from Pandora to me.

„What exactly are you talking about?” ‘Cause I’m a bit lost here. Who the fuck was this Lumi and why should I be bothered about something who has such an odd name?

„He’s my new dragon!” The girl practically radiated light as she smiled up at me.

„I already told you – you can’t bring him to Earth. He has to stay here,” Pandora pinched the bridge of her nose.

„Please?” She begged me with the biggest puppy dog eyes I’ve ever seen in my entire existence.

„I’m sorry, babe, but as much as I don’t want to admit it – Pandora is right. Hell’s creatures remain in Hell. Those are the rules.” My hand snaked around her shoulder as I guided her towards my office, „Come on, let’s go back and I’ll promise we’ll get you a pet tarantula or something.”

„But Lumi... He’ll remain here all by himself.”

„So not true,” Pandora mumbled from behind my back, „Drago’s also not going anywhere.”

„So is my dragon. Did you see it by the way?” I turned my head slightly so I could see Pandora. I was actually curious to know how was Luci doing.

„Matter of fact we didn’t,” She replied thoughtfully, „which is odd. I thought he didn’t travel far from the entrance to the lobby.”

„Maybe your wonderful Lilith has thrown her in one of the chambers like she did with Drago,” Matt had a know-it-all smirk on his face, before he twitched his broad shoulders and continued, „Just a thought.”

„Wait... what?” A deep crease formed between Pandora’s dark eyebrows. A dark mist started to cloud over her cold greys.

„You mean to tell me that your dragon is being held captive?” Tempest pulled away from me. „We have to find it and set it free!”

„Gates you better start talking,” If a look could kill, I’d surely be dead. Too much women in my life... Too fucking much.

„Pandora you told that these are the torture chambers, right?” Tempest was already out of the room and I could manage to get through the door in the very last minute to see her open one of the chambers.

„No, don’t go in there!” I yelled as I ran after her. Without second thoughts I rushed in after her, the door closing shut right behind us and the scenery changing immediately. Even I didn’t know what would happen in the room, it would adapt to Tempest since she was the first to go in.

We found ourselves standing in the middle of a long well lit hallway. The walls were white, the floors were white... Everything was white except for the red carpet which was neatly placed in the very middle of the floor and stretched all the way to the end of the corridor. An odd, metallic thumping sounded by the wall right behind my back, forcing me to turn around.

„Where are we?” Tempest questioned in a whisper. Only then I looked down on my feet and saw them sinking in an icy puddle of water.

Fuck. I knew exactly why we were here and where ‘here’ was. She was an angel. She was still pure and seeing more than thousand men die would destroy her. "Titanic.” I mean... Why here? Why don’t throw us to Auschwitz? At least there we wouldn’t freeze to death. Or drown...

„Where?” She frowned back at me.

„Haven’t you heard of Cameron’s movie the Titanic?” I asked her only to receive a head shake as an answer. „Someone really needs to talk to God about investing in cabel tv or something...”

„So... we’re in a movie...” She said thoughtfully, brushing her chin with her fingers lightly.

„Not... quite the deal here.” I sighed, hearing something break a couple of decks bellow us. How could I hear that? I was the devil. Enhanced hearing was one of the perks. I took her by hand and started off the long hallway. „The movie was shot based on true events, so... we’re on the actual ship at the moment.” The lights flickered as if approving my point. „And we’re... sinking.”

Notes