Hellbound: Chronicles

by Brashear, Nicholas

  “I mean you no harm, ma‘am.”

  “Perhaps I mean you harm! Do not underestimate me!” her voice was different and very familiar, like that of Charlie. He stood and ripped the guise from his face. “Hello, Jon. Consider this a lesson.”

  “A lesson in what exactly?”

  “You cannot trust your perceptions. You hang to closely to the ways of Earth. You have to understand that Hell works differently. Until you can accept that, you are sure to forever fail.” I didn’t say anything. I didn’t even nod at his words. I didn’t respect him, and didn’t care for anything that he had to say.

  “Have you spoken with Asmodeus?”

  “Did he not tell you that he would meet me before you did?”

  “Stop with the riddles, Charlie. Have you spoken with him or not?”

  “Yes, I have spoken with your master.” He stopped speaking.

  “And?”

  “And I don’t believe that you deserve to learn his wishes. Your insolence has run amuck and I shall not tolerate it any longer. Until you begin giving me the adoration that I deserve, you won’t know what he asks of you.”

  “Just how the hell am I supposed to do that?”

  “You could perform a small deed for me,” he said with a more evil smirk than usual.

  ‘What could he possibly want with me now?’ I asked myself. ‘I don’t have time for all this. It’s not fair for all this shit. I have a job to do for Asmodeus and Charlie has me jumping through hoops just to find out what Asmodeus wants. “What do you want?”

  “If you don’t want to do this, then I can just tell Asmodeus that you declined his will. I must warn you, however, that he does not take lightly to disobedience. I’m sure you already know about that, though.” He laughed.

  “No!” I said. I didn’t mean to yell, but I was tired of being burned. I wasn’t sure if my flesh could still burn and disintegrate like mortal flesh, but I was sure how much it hurt. “I’ll do what you ask of me.”

  “There is a man here in Hell that is causing me problems.”

  “So why do you need me to take care of this? Don’t tell me you lack the ability to do so, because we both know you do.” I wanted to watch what I said. I was trying to play it cool after all.

  “How right you are. I am assigning this task to you because I do not have time to police the whole of Hell. As I am sure you are aware, Hell is very large and I just don’t have time with my endless errands.” I nodded. “He is here in Asmodeus’ realm and he has been doing something of great annoyance.”

  “What that?”

  “He has been preaching.”

  “What’s so bad about that?” I was confused. ‘Preaching? But he’s in Hell.’

  “Yes, preaching. What is so hard to believe about that?”

  It was like he was reading my mind. “Because we’re in Hell. What is a preacher doing in Hell?”

  “It is true that only the righteous ascend to Heaven, but it is not true that only the evil descend to Hell. The myth comes from believing that only the wicked go to Hell. The truth of the matter is that only sinners go to Hell. An honest and good man may meet the end in this place because of the sins his life aggravated.” I only nodded. “In any case, you have to stop him.”

  “And how exactly am I supposed to stop him from speaking?”

  “That is entirely up to you, Jon. Use your imagination.” As the last syllable left his mouth, he vanished.

  ‘My imagination?’ I thought. ‘What does he want me to do? I suppose I could speak with him. He must be an understanding man if he is preaching, and if I explain the situation and the ramifications, perhaps he would agree to end his preaching. That’s exactly what I’ll do. Now where to find him.’ I had no idea where to start. I had yet to explore the entirety of the first level and he could be anywhere. So, I picked a direction and started off.

  I walked for some time without seeing anyone of interest. There were a few random passersby but nothing. I bumped into a few people, but no glances were shared, let alone words.

  I came to a small clearing next to a few makeshift shanties. I was about 30 feet away and I noticed that there was a small gathering of people sitting next to the hovels. They were all sitting on the ground in a circle with a man standing in the middle. He was wearing an all-white robe. His skin was gray like a corpse and his face was slightly rotted off exposing his skull on the left cheek. I approached them cautiously. I knew that it could be the man that I was looking for, but he could be something else, maybe something worse. I couldn’t risk it being the final moments of my afterlife. I felt that I was getting closer to being with my Shannon, and nothing would stand in the way of that.

  “And you sir, did you accept Jesus Christ into your life before you ended up here? And you? And you?” he was yelling into the crowd. I knew that had to be the man I was looking for. “He did love you, and he will forgive your sins if you just let him!” The crowd was cheering him on. “I do not believe that Hell will be your final resting place if you don’t want it to be! Ask him to forgive you. Live your second life as a second chance. Forgo the sins that are so abundant and rampant around you! Reaccept Him as your savior and prove to Him that you are still his child! He will forgive your sins and He will love you again; as it says in the bible: We are all His children. He made us in His likeness. He didn’t abandon you here. He sent you here to learn from your mistakes! So that you may live again in the beauty of His realm! Heaven! That’s all for now. Now go and live like you want to be with Him!” The crowd dispersed and he bid everyone and individual adieu.

  After the crowd was finally gone, he looked at me. “I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you before, child. What can I do for you?” He seemed like a nice man, and his words made sense, but I knew what I had to do.

  “My name is Jon…” I began.

  “Well hello, Jon!” he interrupted with a smile and a handshake. “What is it that you need?”

  “I need to speak with you about something rather urgent to me.”

  “What is it? I will do anything in my power to help my fellow man.”

  “I’m glad you said that, because I need to ask you a pretty big favor.”

  “Anything.”

  “I need you to stop spreading the word of God.”

  “I’m sorry? I don’t follow. I know you only caught the tail end of my sermon, but there is much to rejoice in and share when you only let Him into your life!”

  “I understand all that. I went to church and the like when I was alive, but there are other things going on in Hell that you probably wouldn’t understand.”

  “You’re right. I don’t understand… What did you say your name was again?”

  “Jon, Jonathon Cowley.”

  “Well Mr. Cowley. Giving up the word of God is something I just can’t do. As long as He is there and I am here, I will not end my campaign to reform Hell. I know that is the reason He sent me here.”

  “He sent you here because you’re a sinner, Mr.…?”

  “Niles Braddavir, preacher for 22 years.”

  “Well Niles, I don’t have to tell you what you did to end up here. I’m sure you know, and I don’t need to know, but I need you to stop preaching, at least for a little while.”

  “Maybe if you explained it to me. Why do you need me to stop preaching?”

  “I made a deal with the man that brought you here. You know that man in black right?”

  “Charlie?”

  “Yes, Charlie. I made a deal with him. He said that if I work for him and complete all the jobs he has for me, then he would send me back to Earth to be alive again. I could be with my wife again, but in order to do that, I have to stop you from preaching.”

  “I will not accept anything that will aid in a deal you made with a demon!”

  “Don’t say that word! Did no one tell you the rules when you entered?”

  “I do not care for the laws of Hell. I only obey the laws of the one true god!”

  “Look, that’s grea
t and all, but if you don’t watch out something bad is going to happen to you. Listen to me, you can’t do that. That is an off limits word. They prefer the word Elohim. That’s what they were called in Heaven and that’s what they demand to be called here. You should count yourself lucky that you haven’t already been struck down for saying that. The only thing saving you is that there aren’t any of them in earshot of you.”

  “I really do appreciate your concern Mr. Cowley, but I will not obey their laws. I do not fear the demons of Hell!”

  I pushed him. “Seriously! They will end you!”

  “Better to end carrying your beliefs all the way than to die in fear of what might happen should you be found out. If the demons wish to fight me, they will find that God is a worthy foe. He is on my side, and with Him I shall not fall to the evil that surrounds us. Come my son, you have much to learn.”

  “No, you have much to learn. God isn’t here. Didn’t you notice that when you stepped foot through the black gate? He isn’t here, and He isn’t on your side. You are the only one on your side. You and those followers you managed to ensnare. If you don’t watch out, they will get you. Then all your work will be for naught.”

  “I will not fear them!”

  “That’s fine. I’m not asking you to fear them or give up your beliefs. I’m only asking that you take a short reprieve from preaching. That’s it.”

  “Don’t lie, Mr. Cowley. I can see the fear in your eyes. It’s consuming you, and it will be the end of you, not the hand of demon.”

  “I can’t stand here while you keep using that word. If they catch us together while you’re saying that…I just don’t want to be around. I don’t want them to think you and I are the same.” I started walking off. It was obvious that just talking to him wouldn’t work. He was too set in his ways, and what I was asking was quite a lot. I was basically asking him to give up his beliefs and do as I ask in order for me to get what I want. Charlie was right. I was going to have to use my imagination to get him to stop his preaching.

  I walked around the corner of a building so he couldn’t see me and I sat down to think. ‘What could I possibly do to get him to stop talking? I doubt there’s any duct tape in Hell.’ I laughed aloud. ‘There has to be something. How hard could it be to shut someone up? A lot harder than I thought, I guess. What could I do?’ The thought of murder started wandering its way into my mind. ‘It couldn’t be too hard. He’s not much bigger than I am. I could probably take him. No! I can’t do that. That’s probably exactly what Charlie wanted me to do in the first place. For starters I can’t give him exactly what he wants if I can help it, and secondly, I can’t believe I even started to think about it. What’s happening to me? Maybe I don’t have a choice? Maybe I should just let this evil take over, close my eyes, and see what happens. Do I really have any other choice?’ I made up my mind. It was a bleak thought, but I couldn’t think of anything else to do. And after all, I was already in Hell.

  I stood up and retraced my steps to find that Niles had already fled the scene. I walked over to where we were standing and looked around. There was no sign of him. I noticed, though, some of his followers standing in the distant talking to one another. I walked over to them. They didn’t look that menacing. One was missing an arm and the skin from the one left, and the other was missing his nose.

  “Excuse me,” I interrupted their conversation.

  “What do you want!?” the nose-less one snapped at me.

  “Hang on, Cornelius!” the other interjected. “What did Pastor Braddavir just teach us? We need to accept all others.”

  “You’re right Darrel,” Cornelius, withdrew. “I’m sorry about that Mr., I‘m not used to this righteous lifestyle, yet.”

  “What can we help you with?” Darrel asked.

  “I’m looking for Niles Braddavir,” I proclaimed. “Do you know where he went?”

  “What do you want with Pastor Braddavir?” Cornelius asked.

  “My business is my own,” I responded. I couldn’t tell them what my intentions were. They obviously respected the man, and would be upset if they knew I planned on killing him.

  “If you aren’t willing to tell us what you want with him, then I’m afraid I can’t let you know anything,” Cornelius snapped.

  “Stop it right now!” Darrel said. “We are supposed to help people whenever possible. That’s what Jesus would do.”

  “You’re right again, Darrel,” Cornelius admitted. “He went through that alley over there,” he said pointing. “One thing though.”

  “Sure,” I said.

  “What are your plans with him?” he asked with concern. “You aren’t going to hurt him are you?”

  I had a feeling that if they found out that Niles had be slain and they knew that I was trying to find him, but wouldn‘t tell them why, that they would be able to put two and two together so I had to think fast. “You seem like you honestly care about him,” I began, “so I will tell you the truth. I am seeking his guidance. I wasn’t sure if you were actually one of his followers, and I didn’t want someone that was against him to find out that I was trying to support him. That could end the wrong way. Do you understand?”

  “Absolutely!” Darrel exclaimed. “I was like that at the beginning, but he’s going to tell you that you need to get past that; that you need to accept that others will always be against you, not matter your beliefs.”

  “How right he is. Thank you for everything!” I said, as I began walking to end the life of the man that had brought them happiness in this low place. They waived and continued the conversation that I had interrupted.

  I walked through the narrow alley to find Niles standing alone in a very small clearing behind four buildings. No one was around, and I was standing in the only exit. He was facing the wall in front of both of us, and he hadn’t noticed me approach him from behind. I slowly moved my hands to the sides of his neck. I could feel the warmth of his skin radiating on my hands. I was poised and ready to take him down. The picture of a strangled and dead Niles Braddavir flashed before my eyes, me standing above him, victorious. I almost gagged at the thought. “I can’t do this,” I accidentally said aloud.

  Niles jumped and turned around. “Oh, Mr. Cowley!” he exclaimed. “You startled me. What are you doing here?”

  I couldn’t answer him. I came to kill him, but I didn’t know what I was doing there. It wasn’t in me to kill another man, and I knew it. I thought, ‘There has to be another way. Killing him is not the answer. Come on, Jon. You’re a smart guy, come up with something. And then it hit me.’

  “Could we talk about all this righteous stuff?” I asked.

  “I am always ready to speak with a likely convert,” he responded. “What do you want to talk about?”

  “Can we talk somewhere else? I don’t feel that comfortable in tight places.”

  “You may speak to me anywhere that you wish, Mr. Cowley. Where would you like to go?”

  “It doesn’t really matter. I’m just a little claustrophobic.”

  “Very well, let’s go out to the open then.” He started off back through the alley and I followed.

  We got to the middle of the clearing again.

  “Is this good for you?” he asked.

  “This is perfect,” I replied.

  “So what is it that you wanted to speak with me about?”

  “When we were talking earlier, I may have been a tad brash about what I was saying. The deal I have with Charlie, why is it bad?”

  “Oh that? You should never sign a deal with a demon. They are evil creatures and they will suck the righteousness right out of your soul.” I could hear fluttering far off in the distance and I knew that my plan was unfolding.

  “So I should steer clear of Charlie?”

  “Not just Charlie. You must rid yourself of all demons! All demons are the same!” The fluttering was getting closer. I could hear wings beating and then a roar came echoing through Hell. “What was that?”

  “That r
oar, Niles?”

  “Yes! What was that!?” I could hear the desperation in his voice.

  “That roar, Niles Braddavir, is your death warrant.”

  “What!? What are you talking about Mr. Cowley?”

  “I warned you about using that word. You wouldn’t listen to my plea, and you wouldn’t agree to my bargain. The Elohim are coming for you, and they will end you!”

  “No! God save me! Protect me giver of life!”

  “He can’t hear you. Goodbye Niles.” I ran away. As I reached the entrance to the alleyway, I heard a giant CRASH. I turned to see four winged demons had tackled Niles to the ground. He started screaming as their teeth and claws ripped into his flesh. As far away as I was, I could hear the bone and sinew snapping and his voice curdling just before it went silent. Even after it did, the demons did not stop. They were enjoying it, flinging bloody flesh everywhere as they shredded that poor man. His skull got away from them as it went into the air and bounced to my feet. One of the Elohim turned looking for it and spotted me. With a FOOF he leaped into the air and landed before me.

  “I’ll take that, maggot,” his gravelly voiced pierced me and I froze in my stance. He laughed as he picked up the skull. He looked at me and proclaimed, “We are the Elohim!” He crushed the skull into dust with a squeeze of his massive hand and flew back to the massacre.

  I fell back and watched them. As sickening as it was to see, I couldn’t take my eyes off it. ‘Did I just kill Niles Braddavir?’ I asked myself. ‘I know that I didn’t directly do it, but…I killed him. I killed a man. What have I done!? What’s happening to me?’

  When they were done, they all flew into the air and disappeared into the darkness leaving a small pool of blood in their wake. A crowd of people slowly moved from the alleys and buildings to see what had happened. I recognized a handful of them as followers of Niles. I couldn’t make out what they were saying. I saw one of them point at me. I didn’t wait to see what they were going to do. I bolted from the scene.

  I just kept running. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going. I just didn’t want to be there, and I didn’t want to take the chance that they knew what I had done. I didn’t want to end up like Niles. I wanted to see Shannon. I closed my eyes and I kept running until I ran into someone. As luck would have it, I ran into Charlie. We both fell to the ground.