II. Hell of a Day Job
Darrus left Rass to Lemuel and walked down the corridor. He'd expected to end up here since he was a teenager. It wasn't until he actually made it down here that he'd imagined being on this side of the whip.
Darrus was technically a demon now, but didn't much look the part. He'd always beem grim and severe, tall and gaunt. Like most former humans, Darrus had no tail, wings, or horns, had feet instead of hooves, and had skin that was a little paler than normal, as opposed to the deep red favored by the Archdevils.
The Archdevils were the original fallen angels, the ones the Big Man Upstairs had cast out of Heaven aeons before humanity walked the earth. They had been down here long enough that they'd learned to change their shape, a gift they'd passed on to a few. The Archdevils had one fatal flaw--they couldn't leave Hell until the Appointed Time. With the exception of the Big Man Upstairs, no one knew exactly when the Appointed Time was, only that it was after the Tribulation that would end the world over the course of seven years. This hadn't always been the case, but the Big Man Upstairs had cracked down after Noah's flood.
In the meantime, that's what the demons were for. The former humans could come and go between the worlds without much difficulty. They'd been doing so since shortly after humans had begun dying.
Darrus had only met one Archdevil, his current destination. His name was Cankerworm, and he was destined to come to Earth some day. In the meantime, he was on the third echelon of Hell's hierarchy, one of the lowest rank of Archdevils who reported directly to Lucifer himself.
Darrus had never met Lucifer and hoped he never would. Lucifer had been described as (appropriately, Darrus thought) the most singularly unpleasant being in the whole of creation.
Darrus' current location was one of the countless corridors that honeycombed the plane of torment. Dante had been right for the most part--some said that he'd had a source on the inside--but not all of hell was a blistering inferno. Of course, the Lake of Fire dominated the center of hell, and the rest would eventually be consumed by it after the Antichrist and False Prophet were defeated and cast into it at the end of the Tribulation. Once that happened, a cataclysm would begin, causing the rest of hell to collapse into the Lake, burning the damned for a thousand years while Lucifer was bound.
The Big Man Upstairs was the only one who knew what happened after that. Perhaps Lucifer did as well, but he wasn't talking. Darrus hoped he wouldn't still be around then.
Darrus entered Cankerworm's office without knocking. The office could have been out of any terrestrial skyscraper but for its lack of windows. The Archdevil could change his shape at will, and so chose to let each individual see whatever they expected to see when looking upon him. Darrus saw him as sixtyish, well groomed man in a gray suit.
"Darrus, you got the summons." said Cankerworm. His voice was supernaturally deep.
"Of course." Darrus replied.
"I'll make this brief." said the Archdevil. "There have been reports of a very unusual corpse in New Liberty, not far from your beat. The local Searcher doesn't know what to make of it and has requested assistance. I think you're qualified for the job."
"How unusual are we talking?"
Cankerworm shifted. "It could be one of the Big Man's lapdogs."
Darrus' eyebrows rose. "An angel?"
"Yes." Cankerworm sneered. He knew all too well what he'd lost all those aeons ago. "What do you think you'll need on this trip?"
Darrus thought for a moment. "The standard equipment should do, but I want a contact down here, someone who can tap straight into the Nexus and feed me information as I need it." The Nexus was Hell's overarching directory of knowledge, a database that had existed since before the written word. Access was instant in Hell, but a connection could be difficult to hold on Earth.
"I assume you have someone in mind?" said Cankerworm.
"I was thinking Odin."
Cankerworm chuckled. "You seem to have an affinity for the failed god."
"We have enough in common to have a bond, but enough differences to cover each other's weaknesses. We've made an efficient team in the past."
"So you have. Very well. Tell the false god he has my clearance to be your Nexus tap until further notice."
"Understood."
"Darrus, you're useful because you haven't failed before. Twenty years without a mistake is remarkable enough that you've made this far up the ladder in such a short time. It took Baal 800 years to get this far. But I'm still going to remind you that one slip up is all it will take."
"Don't worry about it. I was never one for failure."
"Keep it that way." The Archdevil's words followed Darrus out the door. He shut it behind him and made for the Hall of False Gods.
Darrus was technically a demon now, but didn't much look the part. He'd always beem grim and severe, tall and gaunt. Like most former humans, Darrus had no tail, wings, or horns, had feet instead of hooves, and had skin that was a little paler than normal, as opposed to the deep red favored by the Archdevils.
The Archdevils were the original fallen angels, the ones the Big Man Upstairs had cast out of Heaven aeons before humanity walked the earth. They had been down here long enough that they'd learned to change their shape, a gift they'd passed on to a few. The Archdevils had one fatal flaw--they couldn't leave Hell until the Appointed Time. With the exception of the Big Man Upstairs, no one knew exactly when the Appointed Time was, only that it was after the Tribulation that would end the world over the course of seven years. This hadn't always been the case, but the Big Man Upstairs had cracked down after Noah's flood.
In the meantime, that's what the demons were for. The former humans could come and go between the worlds without much difficulty. They'd been doing so since shortly after humans had begun dying.
Darrus had only met one Archdevil, his current destination. His name was Cankerworm, and he was destined to come to Earth some day. In the meantime, he was on the third echelon of Hell's hierarchy, one of the lowest rank of Archdevils who reported directly to Lucifer himself.
Darrus had never met Lucifer and hoped he never would. Lucifer had been described as (appropriately, Darrus thought) the most singularly unpleasant being in the whole of creation.
Darrus' current location was one of the countless corridors that honeycombed the plane of torment. Dante had been right for the most part--some said that he'd had a source on the inside--but not all of hell was a blistering inferno. Of course, the Lake of Fire dominated the center of hell, and the rest would eventually be consumed by it after the Antichrist and False Prophet were defeated and cast into it at the end of the Tribulation. Once that happened, a cataclysm would begin, causing the rest of hell to collapse into the Lake, burning the damned for a thousand years while Lucifer was bound.
The Big Man Upstairs was the only one who knew what happened after that. Perhaps Lucifer did as well, but he wasn't talking. Darrus hoped he wouldn't still be around then.
Darrus entered Cankerworm's office without knocking. The office could have been out of any terrestrial skyscraper but for its lack of windows. The Archdevil could change his shape at will, and so chose to let each individual see whatever they expected to see when looking upon him. Darrus saw him as sixtyish, well groomed man in a gray suit.
"Darrus, you got the summons." said Cankerworm. His voice was supernaturally deep.
"Of course." Darrus replied.
"I'll make this brief." said the Archdevil. "There have been reports of a very unusual corpse in New Liberty, not far from your beat. The local Searcher doesn't know what to make of it and has requested assistance. I think you're qualified for the job."
"How unusual are we talking?"
Cankerworm shifted. "It could be one of the Big Man's lapdogs."
Darrus' eyebrows rose. "An angel?"
"Yes." Cankerworm sneered. He knew all too well what he'd lost all those aeons ago. "What do you think you'll need on this trip?"
Darrus thought for a moment. "The standard equipment should do, but I want a contact down here, someone who can tap straight into the Nexus and feed me information as I need it." The Nexus was Hell's overarching directory of knowledge, a database that had existed since before the written word. Access was instant in Hell, but a connection could be difficult to hold on Earth.
"I assume you have someone in mind?" said Cankerworm.
"I was thinking Odin."
Cankerworm chuckled. "You seem to have an affinity for the failed god."
"We have enough in common to have a bond, but enough differences to cover each other's weaknesses. We've made an efficient team in the past."
"So you have. Very well. Tell the false god he has my clearance to be your Nexus tap until further notice."
"Understood."
"Darrus, you're useful because you haven't failed before. Twenty years without a mistake is remarkable enough that you've made this far up the ladder in such a short time. It took Baal 800 years to get this far. But I'm still going to remind you that one slip up is all it will take."
"Don't worry about it. I was never one for failure."
"Keep it that way." The Archdevil's words followed Darrus out the door. He shut it behind him and made for the Hall of False Gods.
posted by Andrew Michael at 9:00 PM
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