by Amy Starr
The black-haired woman let out a weary sigh and came down the stairs slowly, taking deliberate steps. She stood behind Hud and pointed the gun directly in between his shoulder blades.
“Well, looks like your fight is over now.”
She pulled the trigger. A loud gunshot rang out through the room followed by the screams of Emma-Lee. Hudson slumped to the ground, blood pouring over the painting. Poppy watched on, feeling as though time had come to a stop. She stared at Hudson’s unmoving corpse, her mouth open.
The basement suddenly went very dark. Within the darkness, a gentle chuckle erupted in the room. The smell of sulphur and ash filled Poppy’s nostrils as tears formed in her eyes. It was over, they had lost.
The chuckling stopped and a deep voice hissed through the gloom. It was a sound that chilled the psychic to her very core.
“I live again.”
Chapter Eleven
Hudson was falling through the blackness. He wanted to cry and scream. Hud knew exactly where he was, and he knew how it was going to end. He collided with the black water of the Purgatorium, sending a splash erupting upwards. He was beginning to sink deep into the ocean, but this time he made no effort to fight against it. What was the point? There was nothing else he could do.
He watched as bubbles floated from his mouth and rose upwards. He had failed. Emma-Lee, Poppy and everyone else was doomed. Hud allowed the strange black water to fill his lungs.
After a while, he noticed something light up below him. Squinting, it became clear to Hud as to what it was. A portal. He began to swim towards it at a slow pace but soon quickened when he saw the face of the man appear in it. He recognized it as the one from his dream. It was a beautiful man with long flowing blonde hair that rested on his shoulders.
Hudson entered the portal and in a sudden flash of light, he found himself standing in an elegant room.
There was Victorian furniture set up around the room, including a matching pair of white chairs and a low table. Elegant paintings were hung around the room in golden frames.
The man, who looked to be in his mid-30s, was sitting in one of the chairs. He gestured for Hudson to sit. Anxiously, Hud sat in the empty chair beside the man. The man gestured to the porcelain tea set on the table.
“Would you like some?” He asked. He spoke with a gentle yet regal tone that reminded Hudson of a member of royalty.
Hudson gave a small shake of his head. The man gave a small nod of understanding and began to pour himself a cup of tea. Brown liquid flowed into the white cup from the spout of the teapot.
“What’s this?” He asked.
The man lifted the tea and gave it a small smell. “Mm, this is Tienchi flower tea. It is exceedingly rare, especially for this strain. It needs to be picked from specifics peaks of the Himalayas.”
“No, I mean, where am I?”
The man chuckled and placed his teacup down.
“Oh, of course. You’ll have to forgive me; I don’t often have company.”
The man gestured around the room. “This is my home; or rather, my prison.”
Hudson’s face went pale. “You’re Lucifer.”
The man let out a small sigh and continued to sip his drink. “It’s a little more complicated than that, but sure. I’m often known by that name to mortals.”
Hud felt a great rage boil up inside of him. “You’re the cause of all of this. If it hadn’t been for you, none of this would have occurred.”
Lucifer let out another a small chuckle. “Is it really my fault? Tell me Hudson, what was the Infernal Region like before I was trapped?”
Hudson went silent and the demon continued. “I’ll tell you what it was. A place of punishment. I exist to punish bad mortals. I also ensure that the lesser Princes do not get out of hand with their own punishments.”
“My ancestors fought you and your kind!”
Lucifer held his hand up and Hud went silent. “Your ancestors existed to ensure that demons did not go into the mortal realm. They sent them back or trapped them in paintings. Speaking of paintings…”
He pulled a painting out from under the table and examined it, clicking his tongue. “Not a great likeness, is it? Your grandmother was a fine demon hunter, but she was a headstrong woman. She figured if she defeated me once and for all, her family could stop being demon hunters. Her and that angel touched woman, they found a way to seal me here, and it worked to their advantage for a while. Except for the side effects.”
“Side effects?”
Lucifer lifted three fingers. “One, demons without a leader become agitated and aggressive. Two, magic required to seal a demon like me away causes severe physical damage to humans. Three, sealing me away in a painting that looks like this? It will change me.”
Hudson took a moment for all of this to sink in. He thought about how angry and loopy his Grandmother had been in her old age. Perhaps it had not just been dementia after all. One thing still bugged him though.
“What do you mean it changes you?”
Lucifer sighed. “I wish I could say this is the real me, but since I was sealed in this-” He pointed to the painted of the gruesome slug creature. “-that is how I will manifest in the mortal world. The anger and malice put into the making of this picture will reflect onto this version of me as well. I will cause pain and terror beyond any mortal’s wildest nightmare.”
“Wait a minute, who are you then?”
“Consider me an afterimage. The final sane part of my true form. I exist, but only deep inside this mask your Grandmother created for me.”
“I don’t understand why you’re telling me all this.” Hudson muttered.
Lucifer put his cup down and clasped his hands. “I’m telling you this because you are my final hope, and the only thing that will stop me from wiping out all of humankind. It may come as a shock to you, but I do care about the wellbeing of humanity. I gave you your free will, after all.”
He glanced at the grandfather clock. “In a few minutes, I will bring you back as an ethereal spirit. When I am summoned, the six lesser Princes will spawn in your world too. You need to destroy each one of them and send them back to the Infernal Region. Then, you must defeat me in my disgusting form.”
Hudson’s eyes went wide with shock. “How am I supposed to defeat you?”
Lucifer tilted his head to the side.
“If angels can defeat me, surely you and your demon blood can. Good luck, demon hunter.”
The grandfather clock began to chime, and Lucifer snapped his long pale fingers. Seconds later, Hudson opened his eyes.
Chapter Twelve
Harkness was laying on the floor of the mansion. Its body was heavy and aching from the jolt of electricity that had passed through it. Below, it could hear screaming and gunshots. Even without seeing, the reaper knew from the lack of lifeforce that Hudson was no longer in the mortal realm.
“Amelie should never have painted the portrait and sealed Lucifer into it.” It whispered to itself.
“Amelie did it for a good reason. She did it to protect her family. She did it to protect Nanette. She did not mean for any of this to happen.”
“Nanette is angry. Since Amelie sealed Lucifer away, Nanette got sick and died and caused her granddaughter great pain. She also got sentenced to the Infernal Region and tortured. Now, Nanette must watch her granddaughter die. She never wanted any of this to happen. Amelie should have just continued to be a demon hunter.”
“Amelie is so sorry. She just wanted to end all of this, but she knows she had a purpose in life. She never got to say goodbye to Sugrat.”
The reaper slowly stood up and picked up its scythe. It began to float towards the exit of the house.
“Are we going to end our life now?” The reaper asked itself.
It heard the sound of gurgling laughter erupt from the basement, followed by the horrified cries of Poppy and Emma-Lee. It turned its cloaked head around.
“No, we must not. We must protect them.”
&nb
sp; Gripping its scythe, the reaper stood ready for anything that dared to come towards it.
