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Chapter Text

     It was just a normal day at the well-known form of “customer service” at the entrance of Hell.  A tall redhead telling off her fifteenth corrupt pastor spewing hate while “Sky Daddy” listens intently. At another desk is a soft speaking brunette dressed in red listening to someone looking for help to get to long needed therapy they lacked in their short painful life. A Southern speaking woman striking a fear inducing look to a politician whose sole purpose was to use his influence to gain wealth and power. A woman with a trainee shirt sitting in the lap of a tall succubus listening to a wannabe Karen, critiquing her bit and leading her to a smilie face on the floor and saying something about “dumbass mode” and reaching for a lever with a deadpan look on her face.

     Then there was the last desk that was covered by a strange looking combination.  On the one hand you have a short, youthful girl in what seemed to be in their mid-twenties wearing what looked like a…shark onesie. The other a teenage looking demon with two sets of horns looking at an art pad muttering calculations and how to improve the desk’s trap door system. The desk covered with paper, snacks, a book about the care of various aquatic creatures, and a scary amount of weaponry, including a large chainsaw.

     “So, Dante,” said the small shark sitting in a chair with hands behind their head. “When is your next trip to watch buffalo launch stupid people for distance?  And will you please tell us if and who is going with you?”

     “Maybe later on. Still waiting for another chance Mr. Bel…I mean when I can find the time.”  And then looking up from homework with a sort of frustrated look, “Why do you want to know?  And WHY do you wanna know who is going with me?”

     “Because seeing you respond amuses me.”  They begin to pick up what looks like a lightsaber off the desk. “Besides, it’s been kind of a boring day, and I needed a good laugh.”

     “Well, Sharkie…maybe if you cleaned the armory off of the desk, maybe some jackass would come to the desk without backing away in fear.”  Saying this made the other ladies of the famous…at least among the demons…Hellp Desk chuckle a little, kinda breaking the monotony of the day. Unfortunately, this moment would be sadly interrupted in a way no one expected or were prepared for.

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     “Excuse me.  Can you please tell me where to find hell. I was told to come here.”

     “Hello. I was told to come here to be punished.  Will it be painful?”

     “Ma’am, I was told to come to hell when I died. Is this where I need to go to be sent there?”

     One by one, at each of the desks, the women began to get multiple questions that they normally hear day by day, but these voices seemed smaller.  Softer. Full of a different kind of fear than they normally hear. And when they look, they cannot at first see where the voices are coming from. Then they look over the desks, and what they saw was a nightmarish sight. A group…around 30 to 40…of CHILDREN are standing at the desk. They had fear and sadness in their eyes. And all in this group had the same basic question:  “Where in Hell do we deserve to go?”

     “Mmmom?  Lily?  What is going on?  Where did all these…why are all these…”. Sharkie looked at the tall redhead with a look that Lily had not seen since she made a pinkie-promise to a small eight year old who claimed they belonged in Hell. She saw Sharkie having a reaction like she was having a flashback.

     “Darling, look at me.”  Lily saw the tears. Not the tears of a mature person that is sad, but the tears of the terrified eight year old all those years ago. While placing a hand on her shoulder, Lily also stretched out her pinkie. Sharkie looks down, hooks pinkies together, and hugs the mother she found when she herself arrived.

     “Penny,” said Lily to the brunette in red, “start calling the front death-k, Luci’s office, Sky Daddy,…anyone who can help.”  Looking at the large crowd…which looked to range in ages from toddler, preschool, very young to early teen…she knew that this was gonna take a massive team to resolve this.

     At that moment, nearby elevator doors open and two very tall demonic figures exit the car.  Their primary plan was to visit and maybe take their lovely wives to dinner. But when they turned the corner and saw the huge crowd of children at the desk and their wives from the Hellp Desk were in the center of it, they went from playful himbos to protective mode in a flash.

     Prince Beleth first surveyed the situation and led the demons at the gates to lead away the worrisome souls to punishment levels, and the ones needing therapy levels were kindly led by guards and therapists who came to help. Gregorith…the fear inducing head of level nine, drove anyone who decided to force their way toward the youths there. When all of that was done, the fearful demons changed again into caring figures trying to calm the innocent souls before them.

     “Princess, what is going on?  Why are all these children here?  And why am I being asked how am I gonna torture them?”  Bel’s voice was deep, but you can tell that voice was breaking in despair. Why would a child ask him that?

     “I have no idea,” said Lily.  Her voice was also breaking, but she was also holding back tears.  “All of these children were told that they deserve to be punished here. The last time I saw something like this was…”.  She looked at Sharkie, who was still crying and being held by Dante, trying to calm them down while checking in with a small group that sat around him. He may sometimes be a snarky teen, but Dante is like a magnet when it comes to children.  Something that was seen while on a work study at the front death-k.

     Greg and Penny are with some of the toddlers. Someone from the Rainbow Bridge brought down some small baby animals to distract many of the kids. Angel brought her small pig…named Pigolas Cage…to play with some of them. Grandmotherly Judy was preparing and serving snacks to whoever would accept them. Many Paradise residents, deities, Vikings from Valhalla, and many more came. And it would be needed.

     The group of children seemed to grow. And they all asked the same horrible question… “Where do I go?  I was told to come here.”

     Another elevator opens, and out comes Bel’s mother Lilith. Behind her is a being with very powerful features, perfect dress, and a gaze that at that moment had a look of despair, sadness, and…after getting a summary of what seems to be happening…ANGER!!!

     “Lily, what in the here is going on?  Children do not belong here.”  Everyone knew he did not say this out of inconvenience, but out of concern for these children that actually believe they belong in his domain.

     “Still working that out.”  Lily looked in Luci’s eyes. Their eyes both at this time had something in common. There was anger toward those who convinced these kids that they deserve hell. Concern for all here…the kids, the deities, the demons, all that was here to comfort. And tears…tears for the pain these children went through.

     “It will take a while to go through files. See what led them to believe they deserve punishment. See who wants to reincarnate. Seeking child therapists for the worst cases. And on top of that, where will these children go?”  Lily has a kind of flashback to Sharkie.

     “When Sharkie came to live with me, I was able to have her with me in my Paradise. But that was one eight year old. We need a place to house all of this group. In a perfect world, it would be a place where all will have a space specifically designed for their interests. A place where the therapy they will need is there when needed and desired. A place that is safe, surrounded by love, friends, and joy. And a place that will allow the child to not only realize they do not deserve Hell, but there is a chance for love when returning to the mortal world.”

     Lucifer looks down at Lily and sees her care, her tears, and her resolve. Then he looks around at the waves and waves of children in a place where they were never meant to be. Then…he closes his eves. All around begin to feel a burst of power and force of will rise up. Not just from the ruler of hell, but from every deity in range. Earth moved. A new set of stairs appeared. A new “trap door” with a Slide Ride sign appeared. And a huge new elevator formed in the wall. What is going on?

     Lucifer looks out among the crowd of kids and adults bringing care. “Let me be clear. To the children, I as the master of hell am here to tell you that whoever told you that you belong here lied. Reincarnation is an immediate option, but for those who want to stay for a time to receive the help and unconditional love you should have gotten, there is a new facility for all of you. Please, follow me.”

     A huge door opened, and a path covered with multi colored bricks and surrounded by every plant imaginable and imaginary in a variety of colors and scents. It was warm, with a slight breeze filling the air. Animals…many former pets of souls who asked to help…everywhere. Smells of favorite foods from pie to freshly grilled burgers was in the air. And everywhere was covered with small cabins everywhere.

     And in the center was a huge beautiful structure with multiple levels, doors, elevators, and rooms. Entering level one was a huge row of desks, computers, file cabinets, and passages to various areas of the building. Almost set up like a college activity center. All looked around in amazement.

     “Welcome to the Children’s Hellp Center. This is a safe place for those who have been cruelly and falsely convinced you belong in hell. We have your files here and more files coming. There will be everything the children need to get help, love, and care denied to them in life. I’ve seen what this kind of care can do,” as he looks over at Lily, Bel, and Sharkie, “and Princess Lily came up with this place.”

     “There is no perfect in this place. We all make mistakes, and no one is perfect. All there is here is try, heal, grow, and enjoy. Where you stay will adjust to your interests.  All we need now are volunteers to help in this endeavor. We have seen what happens when we come together in a time of need.”  Then he begins to look around. “Do we have any volunteers?”

    Many hands raised, but one thing that was seen made the hearts of the Hellp Desk, a few demons, and even Lucifer melt and bring tears…

     …a hand holding a small gray shark stuffie raised in the middle of a huge group of children along with a tall teenager in a Godzilla shirt standing beside them with his hand raised.

MAY THE HEALING BEGIN!!!

Chapter Text

     There is a lot to do in the beginning of this venture. Massive numbers of volunteers guiding the innocent children where the rest and healing can begin. Being guided to various cabins so that the semi-sentient structures can mold to each child’s interests. Asmodius began working overtime with chefs from Andrew Bordain to Julia Child preparing favorite foods of each child as well as the mass crowds of volunteers.

     Groups of Vikings, Greek and Roman athletes, famous sports figures of all kinds were setting various sport and play activities. Kobe Bryant working with his heroes on how to teach basic skills while promoting fun, sportsmanship, and respect among their students.

     Teachers from both the various demon schools as well as human souls from Paradise, Heaven, Valhalla, Greek, and many other afterlives began to prepare classrooms for any who chose to attend, and hands-on tutoring and care for the many broken children. Many had seen kids like this in their mortal classrooms, but were held back by awful policies and horrible red tape. Thankfully, none of that would exist here.

     Lily and the ladies of the Hellp Desk were going wherever needed, either as a shoulder for crying children and volunteers who broke down when emotion broke through because of the hurting children. Many of the demons trying to convince a scared child that they were not there to drag them away. Many a tower of strength shrinking back in tears when a child began screaming “PLEASE DON’T HURT ME!!!  I’LL BE GOOD!!! HELP ME!!!  I’M SORRY!!!”

     Therapist from the therapy levels were given their own floor in the main structure in the center preparing for one on one and group therapy not only for children, but for volunteers. This was a massive emergency, and it had become all hands on deck.

     A small booth was set up at the entrance. Behind it was Dante, wearing a uniform like t-shirt with the words “Hellp Center Counsellor” with a cartoon looking Godzilla on the front. Next to him is Sharkie, wearing their best onesie and placing boxes behind the booth. A sign on the front that simply said “Emotional Support Sharks Here”.  Turns out in the boxes were hundreds of stuffed sharks of every color and size. And every child was given a shark, and many were seen holding on for dear life.

     Lily was walking through the maze of classrooms, activity and craft areas, age-appropriate libraries (nothing from her private collection at home), and private and group conference rooms for meetings, assemblies, counseling sessions…whatever they were needed for. As she was passing through, she noticed one of the rooms used for files had the door cracked open. Lily…being Lily…went to investigate.

     Looking in, she saw an unexpected sight. Lucifer, normally the image of class, composure, and power was sitting at a small desk. His suit jacket hanging neatly on a rack. But this normally intimidating figure was at the desk, arms folded, head lowered on the desk as if trying to hide. Also on the desk was a small pile of files, all strewn all over the desk.  She walked up and heard something that she thought she would never hear…the sound of painful tears coming from the Master of Hell.

     She placed her hand on his shoulder, and asked one simple question.  “Are you ok.”  She saw the normally well put together Luci rise and look tired and disheveled. Shirt with top buttons open, untucked, and wrinkled. His hair looking as if there were moments between raking his hair and attempting to pull it out. Eyes were red and filled with tears. And all he could say was one word…”no.”

     He sat up in the chair, stretching back. “These children’s stories are theirs to open up and tell, but I wanted to get an idea of what we were looking at and what was needed. So I came to get a small glimpse of what is needed.”  He began to pick up files off the small workspace, holding them to his chest.

     “I began to look through to only get through these few compared to what is in this room, and what I s-saw in these…” his voice beginning to break, “is just a small glimpse into a nightmare.”

     “I saw things that make many of the inmates on level 9 look like the Karens on level three. And these are being done to children…”.  Lily began to see the tears build, but also felt the pain felt when the Lord of Hell was entering into rage. But this anger was different. His eyes glowed. Muscles began to rip through the cloth of his shirt. The temperature in the room rose to flaming proportions. And in a flash of anger, the normally calm demon began to destroy any furniture and files in sight.

     “TO CHILDREN!!!”  Lily felt fear, nausea, sadness, rage. Not at the angry man in the room, but for those parents who did enough to make the normally calm Lucifer explode. At the sounds coming from the room, Bel, Greg, and Azzy burst in to investigate and find themselves holding Luci to attempt to calm him down. After a few minutes…and even more of Bel’s 15th legion coming to assist…Lucifer stops, slumps down on a bench in the hall, and begins to have a stare as to say “help me.”

     Thank the Universe that all signs of Lucifer’s rage repaired and reorganized itself. Healers and counselors came from everywhere. Just minor scratches, but a lot of emotional pain. Lily is sitting at one side as the three most intimidating warriors standing there for emotional support. And running around the corner was a blur in a shark onesie falling into PaPa’s arms. There was tears, worry, and care in her eyes.

     “What’s wrong PaPa?  I heard a crash and ran here.”  Anger rose in Sharkie as they spoke. “Are you hurt?  Who attacked you?  Do I need my chainsaw?  Just tell me…”

     “I’m ok. I was the one crashing things around.”  He looked in Sharkie’s eyes and remembered the small child that came to him thinking they belong there. The foster monster that placed that in her mind is now paying a price in her own pocket dimension on level 9. But what he glanced at reminded him of Sharkie’s abuse, and many of what he saw was even worse forms of evil. He did not know where to proceed, but he began to realize where to start.

     He rose to his feet, wiped his reddened eyes, pulled out a comb and straightened out his hair, and fixed his clothes. He left the shirt collar unbuttoned, and began to roll up his sleeves. The three demons saw this, and knew what was to come. Luci looked at Lily, eyes now showing the caring rage he was feeling, and made this statement…

     “Main conference room. Bring reps from the counselors, teachers, volunteers, desk personnel, and some of the demons here. Meeting in one hour.”  Lily looked in Luci’s eyes, and saw the wheels turning. It may not start perfectly…just like the Hellp Desk…but it will adjust, grow, adapt, and in the end find what is needed for success.

LET THE BATTLE BEGIN!!!

Chapter Text

     In the span of a demonic hour, representatives from the various areas that would be needed were being chosen and sent to a conference room about the size of a small gymnasium with rows of tables and chairs covered with pens, paper, various beverages and snacks, and booklets with a cover with the words “Procedures and Bylaws for CHC”. Each table had a sign on each for every need this new area would need.

     At the front of the room is a semi-circular table with the same as the other tables. The only difference was the fact that there were name plates marking the chairs at this table. All were blank except for four of the tags. The rest looked as if the rest would be determined later. Souls and demons entered and were seated at their respective area of expertise.

     One table was marked for counselors, demonic and human, who specialized in child psychology. Another was a group of teachers who would be on hand to aid in schooling in demonic and mortal studies. Of course you have a group that you knew were chefs and cooks because of Asmodius wearing what looked like a chef coat and hat looking like he was appearing on Iron Chef.

     There was those in charge of activities, some there to be emotional support, and some who would be there to do whatever called for. The one table everyone knew would need a constant revolving staff was those reading files and providing support for when feeling like Luci’s rage rose to the occasion.

     As everyone takes their seats, four enter from the small office on the side and advance to the semi-circle.  In the lead was Lucifer. He looked tired, but had a more usual tailored look all were used to. Following was Ms. Lily holding a copy of the handbooks at each table. Holding her hand was her husband Bel wearing a legion training shirt and loose jeans. He still had a thoughtful but distressed look. The fourth, Greg, entered wearing all black looking all of his reputation as the head of the worst punishment level in hell. When they all sat, any sound in the room went silent.

     “This has been a very distressing time…the worst that I have seen since Hell was formed.”  Lucifer looked at all the people within the room, and knew that they had all worked hard to get to this point, but more needed to be done.

     “At this point, I am proud at the effort made so far. All of the children have been placed and are receiving care needed for now. Many it took a while to trust souls and demons trying to help. A large majority are so soul tired they fell asleep quickly. Many having nightmares, and scared to receive love and care to help. We have started, but we have a ways to go.”

     With his head bowed, Luci reach for a small stack of files and held them up in front of the massive crowd. In his mind he kept repeating “hold your anger” over and over. There was much to do, and a fit of justified rage would be rather unproductive.   

     “I just glanced at just a handful of these children’s files, and I am sure that my actions are known by all.”  He glances down at the folders in his hands, and closed his eyes. “What has been done to these children is nothing short of a new form of evil. After seeing just this glimpse of just these, I learned that a plan needs to be in place.”

     Now it is Lily’s turn to speak.  She is holding up one of the books that were on each table. “Please open up the books in front of you.”  When they were opened, many began to look very confused. This could be because the pages were BLANK.

     Now Lily begins to speak.  “Don’t worry. None of us were low on ink or sanity. What this shows is that we are just beginning. There are no set procedures in how to deal with these innocents. It will be case by case.”

     Now Lucifer speaks up.  “Even with case by case care for each child, some protections will be in place. Mainly emotional protections.”  He again holds the files up.  “There will be a need for emotional room to all here helping as well as the many kids here.  This is where Councelor 24/7 will come into play.”  He walks to the two tables of counselors in the room.

     “Just by reading five files…just five…I entered a dark place where I thought of vengeance, hatred, and murder to whoever hurt these children. So I realize that volunteers will need help to get through. “

     “Also, we will not be able to predict when a child will want to open up, to seek healing either for reincarnation or accept a Paradise. But we will be ready when needed.”

     Lily chimed in. “To the souls, this will be a massive undertaking. If you find any of these kids to be family, please help us show them love and safety. To others, there will be a time to open up, but allow the child to do that.  These kids have been abused, broken, and unloved by those charged to care for them in life. Now, we will show what unconditional love is. “

     Bel was next.  His solemn look showed what many of the demons there felt. “To my brethren, I know you have seen the fear in these children’s eyes. Many scream to not harm them, not knowing you would never harm an innocent. I have seen…” with eyes raised to the ceiling filled with tears, “and heard those fears. They have burned into them a lie that we are here to punish them forever.”

     Bel voice now went from soft to powerful in an instant. “We are going to fight that lie. They may fear us now, but once we show them what we are in heart and soul, we will be there to bring love and care to those who are in the most need of that love.”

     Now the master of level 9 rises to his feet. His eyes have gone from their usual jeweled within black were now completely black. He began to speak in a tone that brought chills even to Luci himself. “And when the time comes, those who have damaged their innocence will meet me. Hundreds of personal pocket dimensions are being built.  And when their time comes…” Greg has now entered a state where vengeance will be a respite compared to what he is planning… “I will be meeting each PERSONALLY!”

     Luci now looked out at the small batch of volunteers represented here today. “Ones at this head table will now be a permanent counsel who will assign cases, organize care, keep updates and report to the Universe on progress, and other tasks needed. One thing: this head counsel can grow and change as the need arises.”

     Lily gives a final address to the crowd. “If any of the kids here are anything like…” mind flashing to a frightened 8 year old… “this will be a fight, or more like a war.  But we have eternity, and we will do anything to bring healing here.”

     As the crowd is dismissed and sent to their duties, Sharkie enters the room with Dante in tow. She runs straight to PaPa and gives a massive hug to him. With tears in his eyes, Lucifer kneels down to his adopted Sharkie and looks in their eyes.

    “I heard what everyone said, and I am on board.  Whatever you need, I will be ready. Sharks, ready. Hugs, practiced. Chainsaw and lightsaber, fueled and charged. I’M READY TO GO!”

     Lucifer begins to say something, but somehow a child holding a small purple shark enters. Looking a little afraid, she looks around at the many demons and souls in the room. And with the softest voice says “which way to be punished?”

     A small lavender and pink file appears on the table. At the top was the name Lexi. Says she is 6 years old, has just arrived, and loves ice cream and unicorns. She held the plush toy as if someone was out to destroy it.

     “Sharkie,” Luci says as he looks up at Bel and Lily. They looked at each other and then gave a nod to both Lucifer and Sharkie. “This is Lexi, your first assignment.”

     Sharkie takes the file, walks up to the shivering Lexi, and does something that seems to be a very usual response…she held out her pinkie!

A SHARK WITH A HEART!!!  THE FIGHT BEGINS!!!

Chapter Text

     On the day she is born, little Alexis Ann opened her eyes and looked into the loving brown eyes of a lovely, but sad looking woman.  She grabbed on to her finger with her small hand and held on with all the strength a newborn had. She felt warm and safe. She felt love…

     At one, something seemed to change. She loved her brothers, and they seemed to tolerate her. But the older man, who she once called “Popi” seemed distant. Yes there was some good times, but something felt wrong…

     At what seemed like a short time later, Popi would come in her room. A smell when he came close to her seemed wrong. He was taking drinks of a brown liquid from a large bottle, and seemed to stumble around. The looks he gave was not loving, but something dark. He came close…all there was was wrong, wrong, WRONG…

     At three, Lexi went to the doctor. She seemed to have a strange rash. They ran tests. They found what was called a few STDs. On a three year old. The mother hears this, and figures the doctor doesn’t know what he is talking about. He had to be lying. She took her child, ran out of the ER, and went home. He couldn’t. He wouldn’t. He didn’t.

     A year later, more evidence arises, but mom refuses to do anything. She is scared. She thinks she has no where to go to escape. She thinks it her fault for not being the woman he wanted. What could she do.

     Another year, and more pain. Popi would be drunk and come to her room. The pain would be there. But this time mom comes in and sees what he was doing, doing to HIS DAUGHTER!!!  He told her to get out, and she refused. He swung his fist, hitting Mommy and sending her backwards. He screams “GET OUT BITCH”!!!  She grabs a large vase and slams it on the back of his head…

     She picks up her child and runs out of the house. And keeps running. The next thing she hears is a loud bang. Mama turns around. The man is holding a rifle, pointing it at both of us. “Get your ass back in the house, NOW!!!” She turns to run again, but with another bang, her mother stops. She has tears in her eyes, and falls to her knees. “I’m sorry” would be the last words she would say before falling over.

     The man comes to her mother’s lifeless body. Standing over her, he now looks at the crying child in her dead mother’s arms. “Look at what you made me do. All you had to do was go back inside and shut up!  She is dead…” looking now eye to eye at Lexi…”and it’s your fault!!!”

     He raises the rifle, and the last words she heard her one time Popi say was…”when you get to hell, tell them why you’re there. Tell them you’re the reason your mother’s there!”  BANG…

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     Sharkie took her hand off the file and stepped back in horror. She looked at the small child, now lying in her bed, wondering what needs to be done. She is looking at a five year old who was told by the one who should have loved and protected her that her mother’s murder was HER fault. Then proceeds to tell her to go to hell and say hi to her mother when she gets here. This girl was assaulted, brutalized, and murdered…and now believes she deserves to be punished.

     On her file, it states Reincarnation or Paradise. It even states that several of the Pantheons had a place for this poor child. Each ready to show Lexi more love than can be imagined. Odin himself sent a request to bring her to Valhalla to train her for when her father arrives. Therapy is in place when she asks. Her room now already in protection mode to make her feel safe. Images of rainbows and unicorns cover the room. She found a unicorn onesie to wear. And the purple shark given to her tight in her arms.

     Sharkie went to the tv room outside the bedroom door, and took out her phone. Her first call was to a number marked “MaMa”.  Lily picks up, asking the usual questions.  Her main question is this, especially hearing her child sniff as if in tears, “Are you all right, baby?”

     “He killed her mama!!!  He killed Lexi’s mama!!!  And then blamed Lexi, told her to come here, and KILLED HER TOO!!!”  Her voice is now a mixture of tears and blind anger. “HE KILLED THEM BOTH, AND SHE IS HERE BECAUSE THAT MONSTER BLAMED HER!!!”

     Lily, trying not to burst into her own tears, replies, “I’m on my way. Need anything?”

     “Bring Penny, hot chocolates for all, and hugs.  I need all of that now. I need help for this. And…” with a broken voice…”get therapy ready for three. One child, two adults.”  Lily thinks therapy for Sharkie and Lexi, but the third…

    As Lily and Penny arrives, the small blonde in her bed begins to stir, but not to wake up. She is having a dream…a nightmare. She begins to cry, to scream. Sharkie runs in, but like Lily’s hobbit hole, a barrier went up to keep anyone out unless asked to. Sharkie is crying out Lexi’s name. She was telling her to come out or ask her in. All she needed to say was “HELP” and the shark went in, wrapping her in their arms and rocking her.

     Lily looks through the door to check on the two on the floor, rocking and doing breathing exercises just like she taught Sharkie so many years ago. Placing the hot chocolate on the table, her and Penny begin to sit at the small desk in the room. After a few minutes, Sharkie comes out, her hood pulled back and her hands running through her hair. She sits down on a recliner in the room, grabs a hot chocolate, and exhales.

     “She’s here because she believes she caused her mom to die. Her pedophile father told her to find her mother in hell. Multiple nightmares. And I just watched on Mortal Tube, the bastard got off with an insanity defense. He’s done time in a hospital, and is free again. And he’s married again. And has another child. AND IS DOING THIS AGAIN!!!”

     Lily saw the anger in her Sharkie’s eyes. If there was a weapon in sight, she would have gone to the Universe and beg to go to the Mortal World to go “hunting”.  Lily looked this monster on Mortal Tube and watched as he sat in a pew thinking of what many of the teens and preteens look like and what he would do to them. After watching him follow a crying 12 year old, she closed the app and made a call.

    “Martha, this is Lily.  I am sending you a name and background on a level 9 tagged mortal who I need something done with immediately. And as much as I hate to use my royalty status, I need to state that this is not a request…l

     On the other side of the phone Lily heard this…”Sharkie sent the video.  Death spoke to Sharkie about Lexi.  No royal order needed. They are on their way. And prepare for a horrid looking soul. They are normally goofy, but I saw a look in Death’s eyes that scared me, and I don’t scare.  Give it a couple of days.”

     After a round of thanks, her next call was to Bel and Greg. “I have a name that I need a special pocket dimension for. Spare no expense. It will be a permanent placement.”  After a round of yes and the beginning of tools firing up, she went to check on Sharkie. Penny was holding her, and the normally jovial shark was shaking, muttering what can I do.

     Lily lets her be, and then looks in at the door to see the small, scared child in the bed. She saw Lexi, and her mind flashed back to Sharkie’s first day with her. She slept for several days. She got love. She grew. And became strong, and by what she has seen has a huge heart and big feelings. Now Sharkie was here to help this small girl, and was looking for all the help she can…just like she did.

     As Sharkie was in Penny’s arms crying, a flash pops in her mind. She goes back to something…no, someone…that needs to be there. Sharkie gets to their feet, rubs out the wrinkles in her onesie, and puts on her hood. Tears still there, but a glint of the sharp mind coming to life. Sharkie is working out a plan…

     “Penny, I need you to make a call to the front death-k. There is a soul we need to find. This may be the start of what is needed to help Lexi.”  She runs to the desk, places a finger on the file again, but this time just to look for a name.

     “Her name is Jenni.  She is here somewhere. We need her here to help. She may be on one of the therapy levels, but we need her here. We need a way to get Lexi to her as a way to help two souls heal. “

    Penny picks up her phone and puts in Jenni’s name, asking who this woman is to narrow the search. Sharkie said something that made Lily also pull her phone and search for Jenni’s location. This is crucial…

     “Jenni is Lexi’s mommy.”

LET THE HEALING BEGIN!!!

Chapter Text

     “Jenni, there is someone here to speak to you. Do you think you can handle a visitor?”

     A small blonde looks up from one of the heated massage chairs located on level one therapy at the sound of Asa’s voice. The slim demon was very careful to wake the young girl seated there. She had not slept in what seemed like forever, and still looked exhausted and sad when she looked up. The seven foot demon kneels down and places his hand on hers with care. He read her file. She had Paradise. But she could only repeatedly say…”I’m sorry.  I’m sorry. I’m sorry!” before sleeping.

     When Asa saw her nod in the affirmative, he opens the door and helps an older lady with glasses and a tall succubus with ombré hair enter the room.  Asa moves some seats over and allows the ladies to have a seat.

     “Hello, Jenni. My name is Judy, and this is Angel.”  What Jenni noticed about the older was her voice. Southern sweet with just a hint of a mix of straightforwardness and grandmotherly care.  Then what popped up was one thought…how does she know my name?

     “I see that fear dear, but we’re here on a little fact finding mission. We have someone that needs a little help, and we think you can be that help.”  She looks at Angel, who is holding a file in her hands. Jenni looks down at the file, and begins to have a sort of confused look.

     “I don’t see how I can help anyone.”  She reaches for one of the ultra soft tissues and wipes her wet eyes. “I couldn’t help anyone. Not even my own daughter!”

     “I was a scared 15 year old who was forced to marry because my parents needed money. The man that ‘bought’ me seemed to care at first, but later just saw me as a live in maid and prostitute who he could treat however he wanted. I felt I had no escape. I was nothing.”

     “Pregnant at 16, I thought this would actually make him happy. I felt this would calm him down. I looked at my Lexi, and had a little bit of happiness and some hope. But later on, I saw that evil man get worse. He drank more. He would hit me more. He was seeing women and makes me hear of his conquests. But I felt that I had no way out. “

     Judy reaches out and takes Jenni’s hand. “You were in a situation where you were made to feel less than; where your so called husband constantly attacked your body, your mind, your self-confidence.  That piece of trash has a reality check waiting for them. But we are here to look for a way to heal. And that healing comes with you, and the chance to possibly help you heal too.”  Judy grabs another tissue for Jenni, but she stands and pulls away.

     “Did you not hear me?”  Jenni seemed to be speaking with a feeling of sadness and anger.  “I COULD NOT PROTECT MY OWN CHILD!!!  I tried to get away!!!  I took her after I realized what that bastard was doing to her!!!  And I ended up with a bullet through my head, and my final vision was my crying child!!!”  And with a soft tone that anyone could barely hear Jenni ends with, “I left Lexi with that monster, and there is nothing I can do to save her from that.”  And again, the tears begin to flow.

     Angel stands and walks over to her, putting her hand on her shoulder. “What that monster did is not on you. You thought at first that nothing could be done. You did rationalize that what many was saying was a lie, but when you found the truth, you fought back. You gave your life to protect that child. I know you have not accepted your Paradise, but it is there and waiting for both of you.”

     Jenni looks up with a confused look. “Both of us?  What do you mean ‘both of us?’”

     Angel and Judy look at each other. Judy has a stern ‘too much too soon’ look, while Angel has a ‘I messed up’ look and realize that she may have opened up too much. Judy finally opens up. “We got your name because we are sent to help you, and someone very precious to you.”  She now looks at Angel and the file in her hand. “We have something to tell you.”

     As the two Belles begin to speak to Jenni, a stream of emotions begin to open on all sides. As they started to look in the file, Jenni and Asa begin to realize that the file was NOT Jenni’s. As they got to the end of the file, Jenni, with tears in her eyes and a feeling of motherly anger where her heart was, looks at the two ladies and says “Please take me to my daughter. And why is she in hell?”

     “All will be explained when you get there.”  Angel states. “We will be helping both you and her. And there is an entire list of vengeful people waiting for the murderer. But now our priority is Lexi, and healing her joy and innocence.”  Before Angel could finish, Jenni was at the door. Her healing was important, and that healing will be hand in hand with her Lexi.

     Judy picks up her phone and calls Sharkie on how this meeting should take place. After remembering the last words Lexi heard from her monster father, she realized meeting anywhere near hell would be a horrible idea. But she also remembers one aspect in her file. One of her likes.

     “Aren’t there some unicorns at the Rainbow Bridge?”  Angel gives her an affirmative answer. “There’s also a “Heavenly Hash Ice Creamery there near the bridge. Didn’t you say Lexi liked…”

     “Vanilla ice cream with birthday sprinkles and brownie bites!” Jenni yelled in the background. “Can they have that for her?”

     “Can they have it?”  Sharkie had a grin as she saw little Lexi rise a little when hearing her favorite food being mentioned.  “It will be waiting when you arrive.”

**********************************************

     Within a short amount of time Lexi, now carrying a small unicorn stuffie and wearing a rainbow unicorn onesie, was awake and carefully walking with this shark person up a set of magma stairs to a large hallway that in no way looked like where she was told by her dad to go. There was no flames. There was no pain. The demons were not reaching at her to do things worse than what her father had already done to her. In fact, they looked at her, smiled, waved, and many of the smaller demons even ran up and asked where to get an outfit like she was wearing.

     And Sharkie saw something for the first time. She saw a small smile form on the child’s face. A little ease in her grip. Less fear of the demons. Maybe she is beginning to realize that she might not be here to be punished.  Nothing was her fault. Her mother’s death was not because of her. What her father did to hurt her in her short life is not her fault. Her death was not punishment. Innocents do not belong in hell.

     But along the way, the tiny unicorn pulls on the shark’s hand and looks up with a question. “After our trip, where will I go next?  Will it hurt?  Will it be scary?”  Sharkie stops and kneels down to this tiny innocent soul and looks directly into her eyes. A small tear coming down Lexi’s eye causes a wet glimmer in Sharkie’s eye.  And with that, the shark extends a pinkie finger to the tiny unicorn.

     “Honey, one of the most unbreakable promises that exists is a pinkie promise. So I am gonna make you one now. You are not ever gonna be hurt here. Hell is not for you. I had adults when I was alive tell me that since I didn’t act more like a girl that I needed to go hell. I met Lily when I got here when I was eight, and allowed lies to make me believe I needed to burn in hell.”

     Sharkie now had a few more tears now, and their voice began to break.  “It took a meeting from several demons, including Lucifer himself, therapy, and the love of Mom…who is Lily…to show me that those who told me I belong here is wrong. You can go back and try again…”

     “NO, PLEASE!!!  NO MORE PAIN!!!  HE’LL FIND ME!!!  HE’LL HURT ME!!!”  The small child stopped, dropped to the floor, and began to scream. Sharkie sat next to Lexi, wrapped her arms around her, and dared with a look for anyone to stop her. But what she saw was concerned looks on the souls’ and demons’ faces. Some even came over and became like a shield of love and protection for this small girl.

     Sharkie clasps pinkies again, “You don’t have to go back and see him again. You would be placed no where near him. Besides, there has been a placed made ready for him. He will not hurt you, or anyone again.”  Sharkie looks down at Lexi, and says in a soft tone, “But there is another option. You can stay here. You can mature to what is comfortable. But you cannot be alone right now, but there is someone waiting for you to be with you as you grow. And in a way, you can help each other.”

     “Who would want me?” Lexi said through the tears. “I deserve to be in hell!  Mommy died because of me. Popi told me to go to hell to find her!  He sent me here!  It’s all me!!!  I just don’t wanna hurt as much, but I know I’m here to be hurt. I don’t wanna be trouble…pplease?”

     “You were not the reason your mom died!”  Sharkie’s voice was a mix of care for Lexi and a need for vengeance against the monster who did this. “Your mother was willing to sacrifice her safety to save you. Sacrifice her LIFE to save you. She does not blame you for her death. I have someone who wants to see you, and you two can help each other to heal, to know true love, to grow, and maybe someday return to the mortal world.”

     After a little time, Lexi wipes her eyes and rises to her feet. She was still sniffling, but took Sharkie’s hand as if to say “let’s go”.  They continue walking to the Rainbow Bridge, now followed with a small group to be there if needed. They enter to where some of the newer animals are, along with a few live unicorns. Tears are now replaced with eyes of wonder as they pet anything within arms reach. But as they reach the ice cream stand, they see three women standing there. One looks like a grandmother. One is pinkish color with shiny horns and long ombré hair. And in the middle was holding a bowl of vanilla ice cream covered in sprinkles and brownie bites.

     After a minute, the young lady locks eyes with the small girl, and begins to smile.

     “Lexi, is that you?”

     And with a cry of joy and laughter, a small unicorn with brown eyes ran to the lady, ignoring the ice cream. In fact, it seemed everything but the blond she ran to vanished. And she screamed with joy one word…

     “MOMMY!!!”

Chapter Text

     There has been a little time past since Jenni and Lexi have reunited.  A lot of tears. A lot of walks. Meetings with therapists and others who have gone through similar trauma in life, friends for growth and love, fun times and intense bonding. Mother and daughter growing, healing, and learning to forgive themselves. But a day they both knew was coming was coming soon. It was gonna be a day of reckoning, and they were gonna be ready!

     Reginald had arrived to the front desk. He was a mess. It looked like he was hit by a semi, but his file only said that he died in a single car drunk driving accident. But it seems that a lot of his injuries came from a very pissed off Death followed by Martha herself. He was now at the front death-k and was looking for a reason for his treatment.

     “I would like to make a complaint. I have been abused, brutalized, and treated like a criminal.”  His voice sounded as if he was still drunk. “I demand to speak to someone in charge NOW!!!”

     The lady behind the desk looked up. A dark black file set before her. It says two things about him: (1) automatic level 9, (2) call Gregorith and Beleth to pick him up. This woman, who was wearing a beautiful pink hijab, picked up her phone and made one call. “Lily, call the boys. He’s finally here.”

     Siedah could feel a smile over the phone when she heard, “They just happen to be here. Everything is ready. They are on their way.”  Just as she hung up the phone, the evil came out of the soul.

     “Are you listening to me you stupid bitch?”  He stands up and slams his meaty hands on the desk. “Get someone here now or I will bring the pain. There is only one way to get someone like you to work faster!!!”  He then draws back and swings with all his might.

     He makes contact…with a very strong, non breakable reflective shield surrounding the desk. The force that sent him backwards made him tumble a few feet, where he just happened to land at the feet of two very scary gentlemen. One was about seven or so feet tall, grey, with large horns, a build that would make the Hulk cringe, and…a Metallica tank top. The second was red skinned with a leaner build, black turtleneck and trousers, and a look that would make a statue cower in fear.

     “Just in time guys,” said Siedah to the two giants. “This jacka…I mean gentleman has been waiting to talk to someone in charge. Does this mean you, Greg, or Luci?”

     Beleth, prince of Hell and general of 85 legions picked Reginald off the ground by the throat, held him up, and looked as this piece of garbage with distain and hate. “He’ll be speaking to Lily first, then sent down to Greg’s domaine.”  Then looking at the gagging soul, “We have a special place for you.”  And with that the two most feared warriors in hell carry the choking soul to meet a Princess.

***********************************************

     Arriving at the Hellp Desk, there was a buzz of souls either with complaints, concerns, and legitimate questions of the many ladies behind the desk. At the sight of the two demons and dangling soul (yes, Bel carried him by the throat all the way to the desk) coming towards them. One look from the demon in black made all the complaining souls return to their lines. The brunette that the red demon winked at called any over looking to use either the therapy levels or facilities there.

     Bel then proceeds to take this dark soul and carry him to the desk of an almost six foot tall redhead. The black skull T-shirt she was wearing was in contrast to the gray sweats and fuzzy bat slippers that she wore. But she had the no nonsense look of someone who would taketh no crap today.

     “I would say welcome to hell, but your very presence here is making me wish there was somewhere worse to send you.”  Now the snarkiness shall begin. “To what do we dishonor this pile of dung’s presence?”

     Reginald rises up, rubbing his neck and trying to walk up to the desk as if to intimidate the fiery redhead before him.  “There has been a grave mistake made here. What gives you all the right to judge me?  I’ve tried my best to live a traditional life on earth. Why am I here?  Answer me, bitch!!!”

     Bel begins to see red, and begins to draw his lightsaber and send Reggie down to level nine in pieces, but one look from Lily stops him in his tracks. She can handle this creep, and with a wink he knew that there was a surprise waiting for him.

     “Why are you here, you ask,” begins Lily with a soft tone. But everyone knew that tone would not last.  “Where shall I start?  Let’s begin with some of your ‘traditional values.’  You thought that your money and status made you untouchable. You bullied those that had less than you, stole from many to grow your wealth, lived a high life off of those you cheated, scammed, and broke. “

     “I was a ‘honest’ businessman. Just because there were some who wasn’t able to profit because of…”.  Lily raised her hand to stop him. “Many trusted you to make them rich, but instead many were ruined to the point where several only saw one way out.”  Lily pointed to a small crowd that were at the entrance to the therapy levels. The one thing about hell is that he recognized all of those souls as ones he had tricked into investing with him.

     “Then there are the women. You began a reign of terror with girls and women since you turned 16. Some were brave enough to turn you in, but daddy’s money saved your ass every time. Many said nothing out of fear or false shame. Some were paid off.”

     “Then your daddy decided you needed to settle down. He ordered you a mail order child bride for you to marry. You did this out of obligation, because love is a foreign word to you. She was 15…..A FUCKING 15 YEAR OLD!!!  You abused her, beat her, treated her like she was nothing but a purchased toy for your pleasure.

     “Then she had a child. A beautiful little girl. You didn’t care. You paid for her food, bought her clothes, even a few toys. But you only saw her as an inconvenience to your playboy ways. But then the alcohol you drank by the bottles opened up your true thoughts, your evil heart. You abused that precious baby…and it seemed like no one would stop you.”

     Reggie wiped the blood from his mouth. “It was the alcohol. It was proven in court. I was acquitted. You have nothing…”. Then Lily laid a backhand across his face hard enough to where he was spitting teeth.

     “That girl’s mother had enough. She left everything behind except her precious daughter, but you were not gonna let her disrespect you. She was not gonna shame you. So you decided to do something about it, didn’t you?”  Lily looked down at this man with the rage of a protective mother.

     “L-l-like I said. I was drunk. I didn’t know what…”. Lily slaps him again, this time with one of Sharkie’s favorite baseball bats (the one wrapped in razor wire and bedazzled).

     “Did I happen to mention that YOUR file has every detail of your life. You have no judges to bribe. No test results to alter. No false testimony from paid off neighbors. No one can be made to vanish here.”  She picks up the file, places one finger and looks at Reggie with pure hatred and stated one fact. “Blood alcohol level at the time of the double homicide…0.00%.”

     A look of fear came over the beaten soul as he is lifted over to a place on the floor with a smiley face on it. “It’s all a lie. I’m innocent!!!  I’ve been framed!!!”

     “Let me tell you what is about to happen.”  Lily places her hand on a lever next to her desk. “You’re gonna take a very painful ride down to level nine complete with cheese graters, lemon juice, and a landing of flaming dull spikes are waiting at the bottom. Then from there you have a room just for you. And we have a waiting list an eternity long of those who will redefine pain for you. You will be here forever.”  Then with an evil smile says, “And additionally, the Void will never be an option.  Rest in pieces!!!”

    With a pull of the lever, Reginald’s afterlife begins. His screams rising from the trapdoor. When reaching the bottom, a group of demons all in armor carry this squirming piss ant to his pocket dimension.

***************************************

*A short time later (to some it feels like eternity…)

     Reggie is in the corner of his cell after his routine sessions with the souls he has wronged. And if it’s not them, the demon in black comes and delivers worse. But today, he was told that there some special guests coming to see him for one final time. He was in fear. He was in pain.  He was there for eternity.

     He hears the lock, and then the door opens. The light from the outside of his cell blinds him a little. But he can see demons come to carry him to his pocket dimension. After he is shackled to the wall for the unknownth time, a light is shined directly into his face.

     “Whoever is there, let’s get this over with. I mean, what worse can you do to me?”  He will wish he never said that. Especially when a voice comes from the shadows.

     “Hello, Popi…”. His eyes now shutter in fear. The light dims before his eyes, and the shadows become clearer. A blond that he remembers from what seems like years, yet she looks the same as the day he…oh,no!!!

     Beside her stood a teen girl. She was very attractive; the very image of the woman she stood beside. They both had a glow about them in this place. They did not belong here. Why were they … oh, no!!!

    The two women said nothing, just stood there. Then a short youthful looking person dressed in a shark onesie handed each woman a few things:  plastic suits, goggles, hair ties, caps, and gloves. After these women put on the gear they were handed, the shark handed each one more thing…a chainsaw.

     As Lexi and Jenni started the chainsaws, he could hear Sharkie say the following…

WELCOME TO HELL!!!  DON’T WORRY, HE’LL REGENERATE!!!

(Now’s the time to use your imagination. Just know the screams were heard all the way to the Hellp Desk.)

Chapter Text

     “Asmodius, all this looks great.”  Bel has to slow down a little as he shoves another Cajun chicken slider into his mouth. The line of food, from all cultures, tastes, and favorite lists line the massive table at the front of the massive dining hall. “You and your team have built a huge spread here.”

     “Well cuz,” slapping Bel’s hand with a wooden spoon, “we had to make this much for several reasons.  One being heathens like some people,” side-eyeing his sneaky cousin, “and two we all wanted to make sure the kids and volunteers are well fed and made to feel special. We cater to all here, and want to bring love in what we are preparing.”

     “Plus, it keeps you off the training fields, huh?”  Bel elbows Azzy’s ribs, which is met with a stern but sly look from his cousin. This is just the relationship they had: love, respect, but times of gentle ribbing. Their laughter became contagious among all the cooks, and made the day lighter. But lunch time is near, and afterward beginning to prep for the next meal, which will be covered by the next crew.

     “OK everyone,” Azzy cried out, sounding like a chef in an opening five star eatery, “doors are opening!!!  Everyone attention!  Let the fun begin!”  With that, everyone cried out with a strong “Yes, Chef!”  With a sly smile, Asmodius bows and begins to work.

     Crowds of children come up to the massive buffet that has been set up, many with eyes opened wide. They have never seen the different foods set out for them. From burgers to tacos. Vegetarian to seafood.  Food from every culture laid out in Azzy’s organized fashion when it comes to visual placement. Many from one of his own legions there, all with hair nets, aprons, and gloves, standing there asking what everyone would like.

     Many asked for favorites.  Some wanted dessert first. Some were scared to ask for too much because of trauma from previous lives. Many who faced eating disorders caused by bullying or hurtful guardian influence were afraid to maybe gain an ounce. Some even wanted to wait because they were used to being told to wait for what might be left; many expecting to go hungry this day.

     But each child was served with patience and love. In some ways it took some convincing to trust the demons, but eventually all of the children were served. Some even came up for more, and Azzy sat back with a smile on his face. A warrior was not needed at this moment, but he could take his passion of cooking (which is a distant second to his passion for Sariah 😈) and hopefully put smiles on faces.

     Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a small boy (possibly too small for his age) taking some of the food he got and putting it in his pockets. Mostly breads, and maybe a few tater tots, and a little meat. When he finished, Azzy watched as the boy left the dining hall and headed outside. Azzy (being Azzy) became a little curious. Yes, there were meal times set, but food was available constantly. Why would someone sneak food out?

     This seemed to be happening a lot when it came with this boy. Some days he would bring a backpack and take food with him all the time. After watching a few days, Azzy decided to follow him. Not to accuse him, because food can be in the cabins (each had appliances). His curiosity was driving him nuts, and he wanted to get to the bottom of this.

     And just like clockwork, the small boy gathers some food in his backpack, rises to his feet, and heads out the dining hall. Asmodius used his military training in stealth (even if built like a seven foot tank) to follow the youngster to his living space. The small boy…with black hair, jeans, simple T-shirt, and sandals…looks around like he is checking to see if anyone is there. Then he enters.

     Azzy came to the cabin, and was curious of the boy’s body language and mannerisms. It looked like he was afraid someone would catch him. So he moves in closer and listens at the door. He heard something that shook him to the core. He heard the sound of not one person, but several in one space.

     Azzy felt that something was wrong here, so he walked up to the door and softly knocked at the door. He hears a shuffle and soft voices before the dark headed boy opened the door slightly. “May I help you?”

     The huge demon kneeled down to this youngster’s level to look him in the eyes. “Hi.  My name is Asmodius, but my friends call me Azzy. What’s your name?”

     The boy looks down, and with a small voice says “I’m Ari.”  He begins to shuffle his feet, almost like he was uncomfortable and trying to hide something. Something a respected general…and loving father…noticed easily.

     “Can I come in?  If you don’t want me to, the house will not let me in.”  He gently raises the boy’s chin to look him in the eyes. “First of all, you are NOT in trouble. I am just concerned about you. I noticed you at lunch sometimes taking food…not stealing, take as much as you want…but bringing food back here.”  Then thinks about what he saw. “But why do you look around to see if anyone is watching.”

     Ari looks at this huge demon. He knew that he was here in hell to eventually be punished for some of the things he had to do. But now he knew that the demon watched him steal food. And now, he looked up with tears in his brown eyes. He began to shake in fear. He was caught, and he would face his consequences.

     “I’m sorry.  I know that stealing means I go to hell, and I’m ok (no he’s not) with that. But before I go for punishment, can I say goodbye, please.”  Now tears were really beginning to fall, but not just from the child.  The normally goofy Prince of Hell has now entered dad mode, and whoever made this child think this would pay.

     “Like I said, you are in no way in trouble. Take as much food as you want. I’ll even deliver it personally if you want. You are an innocent, and no child belongs here for punishment. Whoever made you think that,” his eyes turning completely black with anger, “will be taken care of personally!”  After calming down, Azzy begins to think of Ari’s request.  “By the way, who were you gonna say ‘goodbye’ to?”

     Ari again looks down, not sure whether or not to trust what the scary demon said, he looks back between him and whatever is behind him. With a look of uncertainty, he looks in Azzy’s eyes and says, “come on in.”

     Azzy walks through the door, which adjusted for his height and build. Inside the cabin looked simple. He knew each room adjusted to the interests and tastes of who is staying there. But this place had none of that. Saw shark stuffies on the counter, and a meal set on the table. But what he noticed was that there were three seats and two plates on the table. The food he brought back was on the plates. Which begged the question:  why two?

     “Ok, I’ll tell you why I stole…I mean took…the food.”  He walks to a small closet door and, with trembling hands, opens the door. What he saw broke this mighty soldier’s heart.  Inside of the closet were two very small children…a boy and girl…looking at Asmodius with fear.  Azzy knelt down again, with even more tears than he ever thought he could shed.

     These small ones looked about the size of his youngest. They could not be any more than three or four. Their clothes were tattered, and their bodies and faces looked like they haven’t eaten in a long time. It seemed like no matter how much they ate, it was not helping.

     Ari now turned to look at Asmodius, still with a frightened look. “This is my sister Miranda and my brother Jakie. I was bringing the food to them.”  He now looks down at his feet again.  “I was afraid for anyone to see them, because our parents told them and me to go to hell when they left…and never came back.”  Now the tears began. “I will take the punishment, but please don’t hurt them. I stole so they could eat. They’re afraid to go out and be hurt. I don’t want to leave them,” with a shaky voice, “because I don’t want them hurt like when our parents left!!!”

     By this time, Azzy has reached the point to where all he wants to just hold all three of the children, rock them, and protect them from all the pain. But he saw the fear they had of him. But this was not gonna stand. He has got to get help. So he pulls out his phone and begins to make some calls.

     “Hey, Az, where did you go.  Are you trying to skip out…” Asmodius becomes a serious form of himself and cuts off his cousin. “Bel, I’m at cabin 777. I’m sending three names to you. Grab Lily and meet me here as soon as possible. This is a code 911.”  With a broken voice says “and bring a couple of healers with you. There will be a need for them.”

     “On it, bro. You ok?”  With a voice softer than Bel is used to hearing, he hears, “I will be, but please hurry.”  As Bel hangs up, he dials again.  This time he calls the chef on duty at the dining hall.  “Chef Bourdain, I have an order for you. Please ask one of my soldiers to bring it to cabin 777 when it’s ready. I may be here for a while, so I need you to take care of the kitchen, please.”

     “Yes, Chef,” he says in his official tone, but then goes to a caring tone. “Whatever you need, just let me know.”  A smile came over Azzy’s face. But he needed to make one more call. Someone very important to him answered on the first ring. “Hey sweet cheeks, what can I do for, or to you?”  She then heard the tears through the phone. “My love, you ok?”

     “Sariah, please come to cabin 777.  I think I got myself in a situation that needs a mom and dad. There are children…literal babies…that need us.”  He now breaks down, and drops to his knees one more time. “I need help!!!”

     “I’m taking the kids to Lilith. I’m on my way, my love. I’m on my way.”  Sariah grabs her children, takes them to their aunt, hugs them a little tighter, and heads to the CHC.

MOMMY ENERGY IS ON THE WAY!!!

Chapter Text

     When Sariah arrived at cabin 777, she did not need to enter the door to realize that something was terribly wrong. Outside, sitting against a tree on the ground, was her mighty husband. He looked emotionally broken. Head slouched down in his hands, with signs of tears between his huge fingers. She walked up, knelt in front of him, and put her arms around his neck.

     “They’re so scared. They were afraid to come and eat. They did not want pain. The boy,” with broken sobs, “thought he had to steal to feed his siblings.”  He looked up at his loving wife with pain in his eyes. “Ari became more of a parent to his brother and sister than their actual parents were.”

     “Oh my love,” she said. She had seen all sides of her husband. The mighty General of his legions. The prankster who acts like a frat boy more than as an adult. A loving uncle willing to fly every niece and nephew twice if asked. A great husband (emotionally…and physically), but most of all a loving father who would give his very existence for his family.

     At this moment, she was seeing “Daddy.”  She saw a protective male who saw hurting children no older than his own. He saw their pain. He saw their fear. He saw what evil can be done to those who place their personal desires over loving and protecting their own children. An in this Sariah saw her husband in pain, and will split hell apart to whoever caused this pain.  Not these innocents, but whoever caused them to be there.

     “Lily and Penny are in with the kids. I have some soldiers who will be delivering food to keep here and keep coming until these kids gain enough trust to come out. Healers,” he had to pause for a moment to keep composure before continuing.

     “Their souls are in so much pain that the ravages of abuse, illness, and malnutrition followed with them after they died.”  The image of what he saw when Ari opened the closet now burned in his mind. “I am a soldier and a father, and neither one of those were prepared for what I saw.”  He looks up into the eyes of his wife, and with a broken voice says to her, “l don’t know what to do.”

     Sariah looks in Azzy’s eyes, kisses him on the forehead, and sits next to him. “We both know what a loving relationship is. This realm does not have the same distractions as mortals have.”  She the looks over at her proud warrior. “But there are times people allow distractions to cause neglect. And there are also those who allow the distraction to be their whole life, and to here with everyone else…even family.”

     “I don’t have all the details of this. And I for sure do not have all the answers when it comes to parenting.”  She begins to look around. “That’s what the CHC is here for. A place that shows broken souls that love does exist. That protection is there. That they do not deserve the pain they are feeling or think they deserve.”  She now looks at her husband. “And now, you are a part of that. And so am I!”

     Azzy, with tears through his eyes, looks at the love of his life, places his hand on her knee, and smiles. “I love you, babe. So, what shall we do?”  He looks down again, and looks in her eyes again. “I need you on this one. Kinda out of my league here.”

     “You know,” with Sariah now holding his hand with both of hers, “I think the Universe knows what they are doing.”  And, with a kiss on the cheek, says, “and I also don’t believe in coincidence.  You are exactly right now where you need to be.  And when the time comes, we’ll be ready. “

     “We?” he thought. But knowing his wife, what she has planned will be mind blowing.

***********************************************

     “I glanced at all three files,” says Lily. “And I can see why Azzy was so affected.”  She looked at the children being treated by the team of healers and therapists trying to bring some relief to the souls in the room.

     “What are we looking at,” said Lucifer over the speaker of Lily’s phone sitting at the small table in the cabin. Lily and Penny look at each other, knowing what they had to report was bad.

     Lily speaks first. “Well, the boy Azzy saw first…Ari…is a small seven year old who has had to grow up way too fast.”  The sound in Lily’s voice was direct, but holding back the anger she felt. “His parents were only parents by biology. They thought of the child as a means to gain funds under the welfare system.”

     Penny now entered the conversation. “Any money they received was used for drugs and alcohol. And then a little time later, they had two more children…twins Miranda and Jakie. And it was basically the same.”  And now the normally calm Penny now was almost yelling at the master of hell.

     “Ari was left days at a time to take care of infants, sometimes without any food in the home. The…” almost gagging to say it, “…’parents’ would take any funds to get drunk, high, or both!  Any food in the area was either junk, expired…” and this is where Penny looked at little Ari with pity…”or stolen by the older brother.”

     Lily chimed in again. “At the end, the two reprobates walked away and disappeared. Their final words…’GO TO HELL!!!’”  And now the tears flow. “They fought to survive, but there was no one to help.  Ari did more in his short life as a brother than his own parents did. But in the end…”. Here Lily, the warrior princess of hell and the Hellp Desk, was speechless.

     “I think I can figure the rest,” said Lucifer over the phone. His voice now going from official to a more quieter tone. “Miss Penny, how are the children now?”

     “Much of the maladies they had at death carried over, but the healers are working with all three. The counselors are speaking to them, trying to bring comfort to them. But their ability to trust will have to almost be completely rebuilt piece by piece. “

     With a knock at the door, Lily goes and opens the door. She sees Sariah, and asks if it is ok if she enters. Ari sees the female demon at the door. He has fear at first, but one look in her eyes allowed him to see that this person means no harm to him or his siblings. He nods in the affirmative.

     “Lily, please tell me how bad is…”. She cuts off looking into the eyes of both Lily and Penny. Sariah is known as a wonderful judge of emotions, and just by looking in their eyes can tell that it’s worse than she thought. If Azzy had a “Dad” mode, Sariah has a “Mama Bear” switch that comes on. She glances over at the children and sees her own children in them.

     “Do you think it would be ok if I try to talk to Ari.  He seems to be very protective of his family, and I want to see if it might be ok to bring our kids over and let them meet them.”  He is looking at the two smaller children. “I would have brought them with me, but I would want the blessing from ‘the man of the house’.”

     Jakie hears Sariah talk about the idea of having other kids come to meet him and her sister, and he looks at Ari, who is being worked on by healers with a glimmer he never had in his mortal life. “Ari, she seems nice. Can we go play with her kids, please?”

     Miranda, with an excitement that actually brings all in the room to smiles and tears, jumps up and down with joy for the first time ever. “I wanna go. Please Ari, please, please, please.”

     Ari at first is a little skeptical at first, but after seeing the caring look in Sariah eyes and how the joy in the twins seemed to make them begin to seem to become more…ALIVE…he asked in a way that he has not been able to in what seemed like forever, “Can I come to?  Sounds like fun!”  He was wanting to just be a kid again.

     Sariah smiled, and called Lilith to please bring her children to the park at the CHC. She had some new friends for them to meet. Then he looks outside at Asmodius, and realizes that not only would there be their children there, but her biggest kid there to play. “Better call Bel, Lily. Flyboy outside may need help with flybys with all of these kids.”  Lily is already on her phone.

THE HEALING CONTINUES. JUST WAIT TO SEE WHAT’S COMING NEXT.

Chapter Text

     The first few weeks were a little tense between the small mortal family and the demon family, but after a little time…and a few flights with Asmodius, Bel, and a few winged soldiers who have ‘adopted’ these small children…the trust seemed to grow. Picnics, pranks, play dates, and soon sleepovers became regular occurrences.

     They were no longer the scared, emaciated babies too scared to even be seen together. They were happy children. Yes, they sometimes still had some trust issues, but when it comes to ‘Uncle Azzy’ and ‘Auntie Sariah’ they could let their hearts open and accept love…and have a lot of fun.

     It’s one day while at Azzy and Sariah’s house while the ‘Prince of the Que’ (yes…he was wearing an apron that says that) that Ari walked up to him, watching how he is running the grill. Now almost presenting as a twelve or thirteen year old, he has began to gain interests, especially in cooking. Just like his demon uncle.

     “Hey kid, wanna help with these?”  He hands Ari an apron (which has a pic of a demon tossing pizza dough in the air). Ari puts it on with a smile on his face, takes over the tongs, and goes to work with a caring teacher instructing on the finer points of grill marks, doneness, and presentation.

     As everyone begins to eat a feast of burgers, steaks, ribs, and sides of all kinds Ari looks up at Azzy with a thoughtful look on his face. “I was asked a few days ago about reincarnation, and I don’t know. I have a few concerns about that.”

     “What’s up?” Azzy asks (after putting a mouthful of potato salad in his mouth).  “Are you worried about what kinda situation you’ll go to. You won’t have to worry about that. One of the newer aspects of the Hellp Center is a team of researchers who will find placements that will not damage the growth done there.”  He now looks Ari in the eye. “You can have a childhood. You won’t have to be a parent until you grow up to be a parent.”

     “I know.”  He looks at his own plate, moving things around with his fork. “It’s not so much where I would go to, but…” He now looks at his brother and sister talking joyfully with all of the kids and cousins and nieces and nephews there.  He sees the happiness in their lives now.

     “I wonder about my family. I’ve been their protector while alive the first time around. I have watched them grow and heal here.”  Now a few happy tears come from his eyes. “And I love them very much. I guess it’s just the idea of leaving here and being separated is a little painful. I do not want to be without them ‘if’ I go back.”

     Azzy puts down his fork and moves to sit next to Ari.  He puts an arm around Ari and shows him what fatherly love looks like. His pride in seeing a young man who grew from the hurting child that first snuck food from a dining hall to someone with trust and a new sense of wonder.  He thinks back about times with Bel’s father Samuel, getting his love of cooking. The pride he saw when he got a recipe just right, but also the laughter at every failed attempt to bake bread.

     And now, with Ari, he sees a young man who loves to learn. His want to help prepare meals. Knife skills he did not have until his teens. Patience it took eons for him for him to learn. Presentation he never thought of. And now he saw a man whose only thought now was toward Miranda and Jakie and not himself. That’s why he asked what did Ari mean when he said ‘if’.

     “I was also given another option. I have the opportunity at a Paradise here where I can live until I want to return to the mortal world. The only issue is that I feel I need to grow a little more before I can do that. I know we can stay at the CHC, but I know more that have gone thought what we have will need it.”

     “From what I know of living there,” says Azzy, “the number of living areas can grow as needed. So I know it’s not from lack of space.”  He now looks down at Ari, giving a slight noogie on the top of his hair. “So let’s not trick the King of Tricksters.  What is in that mind, kid.”

     “I just…” Ari begins to feel a little bit of uncertainty to ask what he is gonna ask. “I wondered…if it would be ok with you and Aunt Sari…if it would be ok if we stayed…here with you.”  The speed that Ari began to speak increased.  “I’ll clean, help cook, whatever. The twins will be no trouble. I’ll take care of whatever they need. Just wanna stay till I mature a little more and gain my Paradise. I just do not wanna leave them.”  Then looks at the ground, and with a soft voice says “Please?  Can we stay together?”

     Asmodius slowly rises to his feet, picks up Ari in his arms, and takes to the sky like a shot.  Ari at first is scared. How dare he ask a prince if a trio of mortals can stay in his home, his palace. But then he opens his eyes and looks at Azzy’s face. Not only did he see tears in his eyes, but a huge smile on his face. He then hovers over the house.

     “If you look at the house, it may look a little different than the first time you were here.”  He points to what looks like a huge new addition to his own palace. “Call it wishful thinking. Call it the Universe. Whatever it was, I felt kinda led to have this addition to my home. Enough room for three…”. Ari now had a shocked look in his eyes hearing this. Was his adopted uncle preparing for…his family?

     “I also am going to be starting a kinda cooking school at the CHC. I need a first student. I have some of the best coming as teachers. I believe that if some learn the joy of cooking and the creativity in it…” as now looking down at Ari, “as a way to bring healing to who needs it.  I can’t count all the times it has helped me heal.”

     Ari looks back at the addition, and then back into Azzy’s face. He gives his answer without words…he gives a massive hug around this demon dad’s neck. The answer is absolutely yes. As they land, Azzy looks at Sariah, tears in both their eyes. He now knows what she meant when at the cabin she said ‘we’.

     “Mir, Jakie, what would you think about living with Uncle and Auntie for a while?  We have a Paradise, but we need to mature a little first. But until then, how about…”. Before he could even finish, two blurs run up to him, jumping and screaming with joy. Sariah and her kids run toward Azzy with the same enthusiasm of the twins.

     Sariah was right. The Universe had a plan for little Ari, Miranda, and Jakey. And that plan involved a demon clown with a heart of gold. He may love cooking and trips to Margaritaville, but his love for family, his whole new extended family, go beyond limits. He was exactly what was needed.

*****************************************************

     Working in the dining hall in the CHC can be a challenging but rewarding experience. Groups of broken children enter. Many fear the demon’s there serving food, but kinda relax when they see them in the lunch lady appearance with the hair nets, beard guards, gloves, and aprons. Some show signs of abuse, eating disorders, horrible treatment in life.

     Asmodius is standing in the kitchen, leading his crew like an army going to war. This war just happens to be a fight against hunger. At his side, working on several grilled meats with expertise and passion, is a tall 20 year old working at a speed that impresses even the best of chefs in the room.”

     “That looks wonderful,” says Julia Child as she passes by. Azzy hears that, and gives a wink to Ari. He graduated at the top of Asmodius’ cooking school, and now is putting those skills to use part time at the CHC and the rest at his own food stand in the Paradise hallway next to the coffee stand there. His “Helluva Good BBQ” stand even got a five star rating from Anthony Bourdain, the Hellp Desk, several demons, and even Lucifer (his best customer) himself.

     Azzy looks out, and sees a group coming in. It was a mix of his own kids and Ari’s siblings (and Azzy’s adopted niece and nephew) running in. Ari places the various meats onto serving platters, hands off to the demon waiters, and walks over to greet the group with Azzy.  “How was school today?”

     Miranda jumps in. “It was great. We learned about mortal technology compared to what’s here. I never knew some in the mortal world faced ‘dead spots’ when it came to cell phones and the internet. Never seem to have that issue here. “

     Jakey jumps in.  “And in gym class, we had a soul named Walter Payton come in and show us all how to play football. He told us about the time played in something called “The Super Bowl.””  He now gives a confused look. “How you play football in what people eat out of?”  Ari and Azzy are now looking at each other, trying not to laugh.

     “I tell you what,” says Ari, “when I finish here, we’ll go home and we’ll watch that particular Super Bowl.”  Jakey looks with a smile at that suggestion. “Ok.  In class I saw a brown bear, a black bear, and even a polar bear. But I personally want to see what a Chicago Bear looks like.”

Now the laughter could not be held back. All Jakey could do is laugh, shrug, and ask “what?”

     In the middle of the laughter, Ari notices out of the corner of his eye a small blonde teen girl with a backpack. He watches as she just eats a small amount, and places the rest into the small bag that she has carried in. His eyes follow her out the door, and she has the same body language he once showed at one time. He just knew…

     “We may have to put the Super Bowl on hold for a little bit, but I tell you what. Uncle Az, can the twins go to your house for a little bit. I heard about the arcade you put in the basement.”  He looks at the twins.  “I know in history you learned about games like Pac Man and Donkey Kong?  Maybe these two could do a little ‘research’?”

     Azzy nods his approval, which makes all the kids scream with excitement and run out, hugging Azzy and Ari on the way out. Then Azzy looks toward Ari with a kinda confused look. “What’s up, sport?”

     Ari looks up to look at his demon uncle and mentor in the eyes. “Call the team. It seems we have an issue.  One that I think I need to check on.”  Azzy looks confused until Ari says this:  “I see me. I see the signs. Tell them to prepare for a group of siblings. And have the emergency takeout team ready. And…” he says with tears in his eyes, “call down there to level one. I may need to make a visit after this.”

     Azzy wraps an arm around Ari’s shoulder, grabs his phone, and first calls level one to get an appointment for two. Next he calls Lily.  “We have a code Ari. Call everyone…especially Sariah.”  He then looks down with pride at Ari.  “Son…let’s go to work.”

     And they leave to find the girl. The battle was won in saving Ari and his siblings, but unfortunately the war continues.

AND THE HEALING GOES ON…

************************************

Side note: if you are wondering about the parents, it turns out that after learning what their actions did to their children in the mortal world, they learned what rock bottom was in their life.

Both were arrested for neglect, possession with intent to distribute, involuntary manslaughter, along with other charges. They spent years in prison, and put in the work to grow. Detox was hell, sobriety seemed to them in the beginning its own form of torture. But now…after many years…has learned and grown in their life.

Reuniting after years in prison, they join together to help others who are going down the same life they are still fighting to escape. And every time they think they might go back to old habits, they look at the old photos of the children who they lost because of their actions. It makes them fight harder. And in the end, they have grown. Did not have any more children, but felt that they grew as a family.

When they enter the afterlife, there were some who knew Ari and his siblings and felt a need for vengeance, but this is a place of justice. They were going to hell, but just to level two. They had grown, but had to face some hard truths. There had to be a meeting, but not for revenge.

Ari entered the room. Behind him are his twin siblings, healthy but kinda having a scared look in their eyes. Ari says nothing, but opens the bag he is carrying and begins pulling out bowls and placing on the table. In the bowls were a variety of meats, sides, desserts. Now the dishes come out, and they all sit at the table.

The meal at first begins in silence, but soon there is a little small talk. Questions about school, how some dishes were prepared, talking about how the kids have grown. Then the mother breaks everything with two words:  “we’re sorry.”

Ari then looks at them both, “There was I time all I felt was hate, abandoned, grief. My childhood was gone, and I blamed you. I did things to help us survive thinking I…that we…needed to come here for punishment. But I learned since coming here that your addictions were a disease, and it just took over.”  He bows his head. “But it still hurts.”

“I know about prison. I know about your fight to get past the addiction.”  He then looks up. “I know about the photo.”  Mother and Father begin to show tears. “I know how it made you fight harder. And by being here, there will still need to be some growth.  But I have something I hope helps.”  Miranda hands over a couple of small packages. Opening them up, the parents pull out a couple of framed pictures. It was a pic of Ari, Miranda, and Jakey standing in front of their lovely home in Paradise. All smiles, and grown to a strong family.

“Please use this to inspire you to heal, and grow, and to prepare to try again for your Paradise.”  Now the tears begin to flow. “We forgive you. We love you. And we will be watching as you grow and mature and return, hopefully to Paradise.”  And with tears and hugs all around, and packing up some leftovers for the parents, Ari and his siblings head home with a promise…”we’ll visit more.  We love you.”

The parents are left in the room. They are both hugging the pictures they were handed and saying just one thing before leaning on each other and falling asleep…”we love you too, and we will get better.”

Chapter Text

     “THIS IS A RAID!!!”  A team of officers with heavy body armor bust through the doors of the dingy bar. They had received a tip on a human trafficking ring, and this was one of the many transfer centers used. It was also said that this particular scumbag made a lot of his money offering children to fulfill some people’s perverse desires.

     As they comb through the building, some in the back rooms pull weapons and try to either end the raid or find a way to escape. High powered weapons firing back and forth, but in the end, the traffickers were either dead or arrested. As the police go room to room, they begin to find some horrible sights.

     There were children chained up like animals. At first, there was a lot of fear when they saw the flashlights, but for many became cries of relief when they realized that they were being rescued. But there was one girl, who looked to maybe be around thirteen or fourteen, who was non responsive.

     Paramedics tried everything. CPR was not helping. They tried several shots of Narcan to stop the effects of a possible overdose. Shock paddles, Adrenalin, attempts to wake up this battered child, but nothing worked. These monsters had killed her innocence, and now, just as rescue was in reach, she was gone.

     This is where Carmen’s story begins.

********************************************

     Dante, Petik, and a small group of teen volunteers are walking through the main courtyard of the CHC.  They seem to look like a trash clean up crew, except since everything is self cleaning there is no need for that. They are basically a hidden squad of wherever needed volunteers ready for anything.  There are many here around their age, and they are here to help however needed.

     They are also practicing a new sport that some of the souls have taught to the demons.  They still wonder how an oblong ball being thrown around is called ‘football’, but it is fun. One of the teens, Destus, tells Dante to ‘go long’, and he throws the ball. He jumps in the air, misses the catch, and accidentally trips over a small girl in a huge grey hoodie that looks about three sizes too big for Dante.

     After dusting himself off, he goes over to the girl. “I am so sorry.  Are you ok?  Are you hurt?”  The girl shakes her head under the hood, and begins to get up and walk away. Dante reaches to help her off the ground, and is met with a scream of “DON’T TOUCH ME!!!”

     Everyone in the crowd is kinda shocked. The girl begins to crawl into a corner and bury almost her whole body in the huge hoodie as if trying to hide from everyone. Dante is not used to this kind of reaction. He feels like he cannot scare anyone, and that is a part of his personality. Why is she so scared of him?

     Then one of the other teens in the group, Emaline, went to check on the grey lump hiding under a tree.  She goes up slowly so not to scare her any more. When she does this, she notices something that makes her wonder. She was terrified of Dante. But when Emaline goes to help, she shows a little fear, but that soon goes away.

     Dante has seen this before when he did a work study at the Front Death-k. Some women would come through who would act just like this young girl. Would be comfortable with other females, but when it came to males would cower and avoid out of fear. He finally got it. Oh, no.

     Dante began to reach for her phone. This small girl is too young to have experienced the trauma he feels she has gone through. He may not know the whole story, but he is smart enough to realize that this young girl needs help. So he is gonna call in a little adult assistance, and he knows just the ones to call.

     “Hey Dante, how’s the volunteering doin’?”  Answers a very excited Sharkie. They were shining up her baseball bat after meeting with her fifth corrupt adoption attorney today. So she was in a great mood.

     “Hey Sharks, is Miss Lily at the desk by any chance?”

     “Not at the moment. Her and Penny took their significant others for coffee. Just me, Ruggy, Judy, and Angel visiting her adorable boo at the desk. Whatchya need, my bro?”

     “I don’t know. We have a girl here. Maybe around thirteen, that is showing signs…I hope I am wrong…showing signs of assault. She will not let any males in our group near her, but some of the girls here have been able to get close to her.”  He uses his camera to show what he is describing.

     Angel sees the video, and takes off like a shot toward the path to the CHC. All at the desk look confused…all except Ruggy. She knows Angel’s story. She’s held her through the nightmares. She’s wiped the tears out of her girlfriend’s eyes. She knows Angel has a form of PTSD from being assaulted. She knew what this girl was experiencing, and Angel will be the one needed to help…and later avenge…this poor little child.

********************************

     The few moments that it took Angel to get to Dante’s location seemed like an eternity. Running there she began to have flashbacks of one of her darkest times. Times before the rebellion. Times before peace was made. A time where she was just a teen succubus who had aspirations of love and a carefree life.

     Then the war came. A time where violence became second nature. She was a warrior that fought with great ferocity. She was seen as an ally by some, and a traitor by others. Her time then was filled with pain. She had her wings taken. She was imprisoned. She was physically…and sexually…abused on a regular basis. But in the end, she escaped. After treaties were in place, she received help for her trauma, but the memories remain. The nightmares remain.

     But now she has grown. As one of Lady Lilith’s personal assistants and as a succubus with access to the mortal world, she has shown that you can become stronger and grow past the pain. Surfing has been healing. Therapy a great help. Finding Ruggy and knowing love again has been awakening. But she still has her memories.

     When she arrives, she see the small band of teens standing in almost like a shielding position in order to protect this child. A couple of the girls are sitting next to her trying to get her to talk, to try to let her open up about who she is. Just a name. But as is known, the Universe knows when to supply what is needed to help. And now that help would be a tall succubus who knows what this poor soul has experienced.

     A file appears in Angel’s hands. Shocked at its sudden appearance, she holds it up to examine it. The bright red folder has a kind of jeweled writing on the cover. She reads the name, places one finger on the page, and gets a download of this child’s short life. When she takes her finger off the page, a small tear goes down her cheek.

     She is gonna keep her composure. She felt anger and sadness and pain for this small innocent child.  But this was not the time. There is a soul…a young innocent soul…on the line. This is a time for healing.

       Angel walks through the crowd, walks up to a small girl hiding under her enormous hoodie, kneels down in front of her, and asked a question that gets the attention of the small lump of gray on the ground…

     “Sweetheart, is your name Carmen?”

      She looks up, tears in her eyes, sees the beautiful succubus in front of her, and runs into her arms. “Yes. Is it time for my punishment?”

      Angel begins to feel tears coming from her eyes. “No, honey. In fact I promise you this. No one will ever hurt you again.”  She then reaches for her phone and calls Ruggy. “Ruggy, my darling. I’m going to bring a visitor. Do you think Lily would allow you to meet me at my place?”  She is holding tight to the small girl now. “I might need some help.”  She will need help. This girl is her, and she was at one time this girl. This is gonna be a fight to save this girl. To save her, and show her how to heal, how to grow, and how to love again.

     And those who have hurt this child will face the wrath of one pissed of succubus with a need for vengeance. Not just for Carmen, not just for herself, but for all the innocents these evil creatures tried to destroy. Hell will be redefined for them, and it will be painful forever.

Chapter Text

     Angel’s home, like many of the homes in hell, can adjust itself as needed.  Many of Angel’s racier decor kinda put itself in storage as not to be seen by her guest. But her home also prepared a room specifically designed for a scared teen girl who, at this moment, trusts no one. Too much hurt. Too much pain.

     When they enter Angel’s home, Carmen looks around the gothic/surfer girl decor of the female demon. Huge living room with huge sofas and recliners. Boards from old timey wooden to modern fiberglass lined in a rack against one of the walls. A small breakfast nook off to the side next to a window overlooking a lava ocean. Beautiful views, but the girl is focused on Angel…wondering what she is going to do to punish her for what she has done.

     Angel led Carmen to a guest bedroom. Inside was a huge bed set to whatever comfort level she wanted. A closet that would cycle any kind of clothing she would want. A dresser with a mirror like any normal teen girl would want. Private bathroom with a shower. Everything she would need to rest.

     “Now Carmen, this room is all yours. You have free rein to go to any part of this home except for my room and the storage in the attic.”  She opens the fridge. “If you get hungry or thirsty, anything is up for grabs. If it’s not here, we’ll get it here. Your room is also warded. No one can enter unless you allow it. You are safe here.”

     “Safe?”  Carmen was so confused. She was in hell. She did things…things that no good girl would do.  She took drugs to stop her from feeling. She allowed men to do things to her…horrible, perverse things that no god can forgive her for. And in the end…

     “Yes,” said Angel with a smile. “No one will ever hurt you again.  What you went through is not your fault.  You were forced. You were abused. Nothing you were made to do was your fault.”  With those words, Carmen dropped her hood off from over her head and began to cry and scream uncontrollably.

     “Not my fault.  NOT MY FAULT!?!?!  I let myself get taken.  I was groomed, and used, and sold, and molested, and treated like trash over and over.”  Now the tears really flowed. “I allowed myself to be used so that I could live and maybe escape. I took drugs to block the pain. I hoped someone would take me away from that life!”

     She began to calm down, dropping down on one of the huge sofas. “But after what seemed like an eternity, I gave up hope. I accepted that this would be my life from now on…if I didn’t do something drastic.”  On hearing that, Angel sat next to this girl…this child…and prepared to listen and comfort Carmen.

     “I was to be taken to a client who paid for a night with me. He was some big shot political type who ‘liked ‘em young’.”  Carmen began to curl up into herself. “I told myself that I would rather die than go through that again. One of my ‘handlers’ was getting me ready to go when I heard the sound of gunfire. The handler runs out, leaving the syringe he had filled with the drug they used to control me.”

     Angel sat listening to Carmen tell her story. She felt the pain in the girl’s tiny voice. “I knew I couldn’t go home. I shamed myself. My parents would not want a broken slut as a daughter. I also knew that these men would never hurt me again. So I took the needle,” she begins to cry again as she says,” I shot the drug into my neck, pulled back the plunger, and…and…”. Now the sobs came to where she could not speak, but Angel did not need to hear more. These creatures hurt this child to where she thought there was only one way out.

     Angel grabs Carmen in her arms. She begins to rock back and forth; allowing the tears to flow as she fights her own from falling. Angel could say nothing now, but knew that there was a lot of comfort, therapy, and protection that this girl was going to need. But Angel knew she had backup, and they will do what is needed.

*************************************************************

     A few hours later, Angel was checking in on Carmen as she lay sleeping in her bed. Ruggy has arrived earlier with Thai food, relaxation tea given to her by Lily, a couple of Penny’s bigger red hoodies, an afghan Judy sent,…and a body pillow Emotional Support Shark. She fell asleep in the hoodie holding both the afghan and shark for dear life. The tea Lily sent was given by a fae to help Carmen sleep peacefully. Ruggy set two cups of coffee on the small dining table, and waited for her love to sit and relax.”

     “She blames everything on herself. ‘Her fault she was taken,’ ‘her fault she was abused,’ ‘her fault she was drugged,’ her fault…her fault,” Angel closed her eyes and shook her head, “my fault, my fault, MY FAULT!!!”  Ruggy ran to her as the tears began to flow from Angel. She remembers the nightmares, the long talks about her past. If this girl has gone through the same or similar aspects of Angel’s past, this poor child needs as much support as Angel, her, and anyone else can muster.

     Ruggy looks into the eyes of her beloved, and can see not only pain in those eyes, but fiery anger. She also remembers hearing about what Angel did to those that hurt her. The pain. The blood. Scenes too gory to describe. The Universe will not be able to stop her when the time comes. But in the meantime…

     “Angel, I know as well as anybody what you want and can do to these people that hurt Carmen, but right now we have to focus on Carmen. That girl believes that because of the things she was forced to do, she believes she deserved to die, to be in the deepest parts of hell, and that no one wanted her after going through that.”  Ruggy kissed her on the cheek.  “We need to show her that all of that is a lie.”

     “I know,” says Angel as she wipes her tears away. “Because I know how I felt after going through a similar trauma. But I was hundreds of years old.  She was taken and assaulted and molested from the age of 11 till she died at 14.”  She bows her head, and with a soft, sad voice tells Ruggy, “and she killed herself because she thought it was her only way out. She was made to believe she was too dirty for her own parents to take her back.”

     “Those creatures that did this to her killed her spirit, her fight, her hope!!!”  And then she looked back down the hall toward the room this innocent child was sleeping in.  “And now I will do everything in my power to bring it back again.”

     “That sounds like my Angel,” said Ruggy with a smile. “Where do we start?”

     “Well,” said Angel, still wiping a tear away, “in the morning I want you to call Lily and Penny for me. Lily loves research. Have her look on Mortal Tube anything she can find on Carmen’s parents. She thinks they rejected her. I want to know the truth.”

     “Ok, done. Now what?” said Ruggy.

     “I need you to be on standby.”  She looks at Carmen’s file. “I need to look at her file for the whole story. If it is as bad as I think, I may need tactical cuddles and emotional support. And have my therapist on standby.”

     And with that, Angel sits at the dining table, opens the cover, and places her finger to get a download of Carmen’s life.

********************

     Carmen Maria was born to two people who saw a bright future for their newborn daughter.  School, college, marriage, children. So much hope for this young child. Her future would be filled with laughter and love, so much promise…

Chapter Text

     …so much hope

     She was raised in a church going family, but this church taught about love and forgiveness. The congregation was a mix of several classes, nationalities, and personalities. Here there was no toxic messages given. At this church, all were family.

     Carmen had a lot of friends in her youth group, and on most days they did a lot together. Parties, sleepovers, church picnics, whatever the event this group was together. And it was like this until one day…

********************************

     Angel had to stop for a moment. She knew the worst was about to happen here.  She wondered who of her friends were around when this event happened. What happened to get her to where she was now. She closed her eyes, placed a finger on the page, and continued…

*********************************

     …Carmen and her family were at a huge carnival that came through around the beginning of Autumn. It was a mild day, just right for a day of games, rides, and food of all kinds. There were people everywhere enjoying the festivities. As they walked along between the dart game and giant dunking booth, Carmen notices a small churro stand a little ways away. And churros covered in cinnamon sugar was her favorite.

     “Mommy, can I get a churro?”  She cried as she jumped up and down in excitement. The carnival was usually the only time she could get one…or three.

     “We’ll get churros in a little while. Besides, if you eat too many, you’ll get sick on the Tilt-a-Whirl…again.”  Her mother continued to take them further in.

     “But pleeeeeeeease???”  Cried Carmen, looking up at her mother with ‘the look.’  When she looked with her wide eyes and fake sad expression, she would eventually get her way.

     “Well, you have been a good girl. And the grades I’ve seen so far means you worked hard…so,” She hand the girl a $10 bill. “But just get ONE!  I forgot to bring extra clothes if you get sick.”

     “I promise.”  She raises one hand as if to say ‘scout’s honor.’  “Thank you, Mommy. I love you.”  Little did she know these would be the last words she would say to her Mommy.

     She bought two churros. She was eating one as she went to where her mother told her to meet her, which was just feet away from the stand. But out of a dark area between a couple of stands a person came up behind her a placed a funny smelling rag over her face. She felt dizzy, then fainted. She dropped her churro.

     She woke up in the back of some kind of vehicle. Her hands and feet were tied too tight.  It hurt. She cried out. She cried out for her Daddy. She cried for Mommy. She cried out to God. She cried “I want to go home.”

     A man with a funny smell looked at her.  “Baby girl, you are home. We’re your Mommy and Daddy now.”  Then a laugh…that horrible laugh. He just put tape over her mouth to keep her quiet…her and some others that were tied in the truck also.

     Then the grooming began. She was told every lie from ‘your parents don’t want you back,’ to ‘we’ll take better care of you.’  Started giving the girls funny tasting drinks that made some sick.  Then it was shots of something that made us drowsy. Older girls applying makeup on younger girls. Boys dressed in various costumes like sport uniforms to school uniforms. Girls from little princesses to cheer outfits to school uniform skirts and stockings. But this was not a game of dress up.

     Then the ‘parties’ began. Pills and alcohol. Men and women would come in and look. And if they picked you, you were taken to a private area. “Please don’t hurt me,” seemed to make them want more. Cries were met with laughter. They were made to do vile acts of perversion. Used in videos. Drugged, abused, raped, beaten. Makeup covered bruises.

     Then the lies became worse. “If you escape, your parents will just send you back. No one wants a whore as a child.”  She fought that lie. She would escape. Her parents would love her and take her home. Then the days and months seemed to make that hope fade more and more.

     It didn’t matter to her captors who wanted her. Rich or middle class, just as long as she was bringing in money. Politicians, socialites, entertainers, men with a daddy fetish, corrupt pastors, women, couples,…it did not matter. To them she was no longer human, just a money making piece of equipment.

     After three years, Carmen decided that any hope she had to go home again was gone. Not only could she not escape, but her parents would never want her back. Maybe they forgot about her. She wants to find a means to end her pain.

     One day, while being prepared for a high dollar client, she begins to hear gunshots and a lot of yelling out front. Her handler ran out with gun drawn to see what is going on. He left a needle filled with what she was given to be more docile.  This was her time to escape everything. All the pain, shame, guilt…everything will be gone.

     She picked up the needle, closed her eyes, and inserted the needle into her jugular vein. Then pulled the plunger back again and injected an air bubble into the vein. She begins to feel herself go, just as the police bust into the room. The last she hears are the cops and paramedics trying to save her, but she was gone. The pain was gone. It was finally over…

**********************************

     Angel removed her finger, rose up, and looked in on her sleeping guest. She was going to have to thank the fae for the tea so that this poor girl could sleep peacefully without the nightmares.  She has gone through more in her short 14 years than most go through in fully lived lives.  The mortal world definition of hell is what she has gone through. But now the question is how to help this girl.

     A knock on the door startles Angel for a moment. Through the door came not only Ruggy, but Penny carrying a tablet. She had looked up and found the girl’s parents, especially the mother. She hands the tablet to Angel to watch on MortalTube the many truths to fight the lies this girl was made to believe.

     As she watches the video, she sees an entirely different story than what Carmen had been told. She saw the girl’s mother at the carnival frantically looking for her daughter. She called her husband, took the other children to their relatives, and they as well as police officers and carnival workers looking and yelling for Carmen, but to no avail. She was already several miles away.

     Then the FBI comes in. Flyers made. Everyone in her town becomes part of the search.  Hopes of finding her alive slowly faded to just wanting to know what happened to their little girl. Cadaver dogs, dredging waterways, and looking for any sign. The whole time the mother constantly broken, everyday stating why did she say yes and let her daughter go.

     Then the news of the child trafficking ring.  That among the children found was a fourteen year old teen found dead by suicide. When identified and after informing her parents, the mother collapses in a mound of uncontrollable sobs. The father goes to comfort his wife. Her sibling in corners crying uncontrollably at the news.

     The trials brought out the details of what poor Carmen had gone through.  The beatings, the starvation, the grooming, the line of perversion she went through. Her parents were there for every trial. Watching as many go to prison, and watching many that got off because of their money and influence. And every time when asked, the parents said they loved her and wish they could have brought her home.

     Angel watched as the mother became an outspoken advocate against human trafficking. She helped establish what is known as Carmen’s Sanctuary. It is a place for victims of child sex trafficking to find a haven of safety and love to reunite children with their loved ones without the ideas of shame and guilt.  She watched as one became two, then ten, and now over sixty all over with more being built.

     But the toll of the loss soon became too much for this mother. She never really got over the guilt and pain of the loss. She did a lot in her daughter’s honor so no other parent has to go through this.  She became ill.  Her heart.  All that could be done was being done. The latest image show her mother in a hospital room surrounded by family.  A man who looks older than his actual age is holding her hand. Two grown adult children are there to say words they did not want to utter…goodbye.

     This woman had gone through so much, but also turned that into a mission to help so that no one had to experience her child’s fate. But she is tired. Her husband, as he holds her hand, says to his love of thirty years, “Hug Carmen for us, and tell her we will see her again.”  At that sound, a small shuffle is heard behind Angel.

     “Mama?  Is Mama here?”  She sounds like a little child as she says this.  Younger than her actual age. Her eyes shiny with tears, still holding on to her afghan around her shoulders. “Is she in heaven?”

     “She has her own paradise, but she left into the Universal Hallway, where she waits and searches every day, just like she did in the mortal world.”  Angel now reaches out and guides Carmen to the small table to see her mother on the screen.

     “Is she waiting for Daddy when he gets there?”  Her voice breaking at that question. Penny, who knows the pain and guilt of suicide knows that this girl still believes that she is here to be punished, but as it took time for her to accept her own paradise, she knew it would take time to forgive herself and accept that she is not hated. She is loved. And her mother was, as she did in life, was looking for her baby.

     “She is honey, but…” Knowing the response of disbelief she may have, Penny continues. “She is also looking for you.”

     “No she’s not,” Carmen says. She seems to accept the lies she has been made to believe for years. “She wasn’t looking for me.  She had forgotten me.”  The tears now began to flow. “Besides, after she heard what I did, she and Poppa would think I deserve what…”

     “Now we are gonna stop right there!”  Angel raised her voice to Carmen.  “I just watched the video of your mom search the day you were taken. I watched your parents spend every waking moment since you vanished rally volunteers, police, FBI, family, strangers to do anything to find you. They celebrated your birthdays by passing out flyers to find you.”

      “When you were found, that woman who you thought just ‘forgot you’ dropped to her knees.”  Angel began to break down now. “She blamed herself till she passed.  She went to every trial with a picture of you in her hand. She watched as what had been done to you was told. And all she thought of was she wished you were there alive. No shame. No hate. She wanted you.”

      Carmen was hearing this, and then as she is sitting down, Penny shows her the building that was founded by her mother to make sure no other mother has to go through what she did. “Look at the name of the building.  She named it in your honor.”  She sees the plaque with ‘Carmen’s Sanctuary’ on it.

        Penny now speaks to Carmen. “I know you feel shame. Not just for what you were made to do, but also how you got here.”  She takes Carmen’s hand. “I came here the same way. I was lost. My family made me feel like nothing. When I was abused by an uncle, I was made to feel guilt for it. But it was never my fault. I wish I realized that before I did what I did.”

       “What…what did you do?” asked Carmen with a soft voice. “How did you work through the guilt and pain?”

       “It took some time, but with the help of friends like Ruggy and Angel, some time at the therapy levels, and time to heal at the Hellp Desk, I was able to forgive myself. I looked past the lies and learned I deserve good things. Now I have a purpose, friends, a husband, and a life I could only imagine of.”  Penny looked in Carmen’s eyes, and saw the tears begin to flow.

       “I…I…I…” with tears in her eyes, Carmen speaks, “I want to see Mama. I want to see my Mama!”

Chapter Text

        Judy is sitting at Common Grounds with a woman named Helena. They are sitting and speaking just like two old friends. When Helena arrived, she only was concerned about one thing, finding her little girl that she lost twice in her life: once when she was taken and then when she learned of her fate.

        She fought in her daughter’s memory. She pledged the rest of her life to make sure that no mother goes through the pain she did. But she made a promise to her husband. And just like in life, she would not accept her paradise or any therapy until she found her baby girl. She is continuing her mission.

          When she met the crew of the Hellp Desk, she went just to see where she could find her daughter. When they told her what her daughter believed in the last year of her life, she asked where to find her. After hearing she was receiving help from a succubus in hell, she at first was a little leery.  But she met Angel, and Ruggy, and everyone helping to fight the lies she had been told.

           She was asked to be patient. Carmen had to go through a time to deconstruct the pain and lies she had been put through. Then there was a time to heal to a point to where she wants to reunite without flashing back to the guilt. Angel, with her own personal experience, has been a major part of that reconstruction. Penny is there to help with the guilt of how Carmen came there, and shows that there is grace here.

         Helena is chatting up with Judy, talking about her daughter, the organization in her name, and the hundreds of families affected by trafficking. She thinks that she could have done so much more, but almost everywhere she turns she meets someone who was helped by Carmen’s Sanctuary.

          “What you did, darlin’, is amazing, and it is still going. We kinda have something like that here for kid’s who feel they need to be punished…like Carmen thought when she arrived.”  Then Judy grabs the sad mother’s hand. “But the ones here work to fight that. But we could also use some help gettin’ better. Maybe, if you would…”

         “I’m flattered, but I’m probably the last to ask. Some have told me that Carmen being taken was not my fault, but I still have that guilt that I let her go alone.”  She now stares into her coffee cup. “The Sanctuary has saved a lot, but the one that I started looking for was lost to me.  And that is pain that I don’t know will heal.”

           “I know you think it was your fault, but there was no way of knowing what will happen in life. It could have happened right in front of you.  But it happened, and the ones to blame are the scumbags that did this. And trust me, they have a special event planned for them when they arrive.”  Judy now has a gleam in her eye, knowing she drew a low number for a turn.

        “You know, there was a time where, even as a religious woman, I would have sold my soul to the devil to find her, to hold her, and to bring her home.”  Helena looks up, and realizes that when she said that was a well-dressed, very handsome, and very tall demon standing behind an empty chair at the table.

         “I’m sorry.  I gave up buying eons ago.”  They were in the presence of Lucifer, but he is not here as a lord of hell. He’s here as Judy’s friend, and as one here to bring news. “I believe your name is Helena, and it is my pleasure to meet you.”  He extends his hand, which Helena takes a little apprehensively.

         “Don’t worry.  He may look like a hungry bulldog, but he’s more like a giant teddy bear.”  That brings a smile to everyone. “So Lucifer, what brings you here this fine day?”

          “Well, I am here for two reasons.  One is kinda selfish…my assistant is out and, well, I cannot make coffee for anything. Xander tried, but it was like drinking brown water. So I just wanted some good coffee for once.”  This brings a round of laughter at the table.

          “The second reason is the kind of reason that personally brings a smile to my face.”  He then places all of his attention toward Helena. “I have read your file, and seen videos of your accomplishments. But the main thing I saw was your fight for and on behalf of your daughter.”  He takes her hand.

            “You are not just a mortal woman, you helped so many in your life after your tragedy.  On earth, you were an angel to hundred of children, returning them to families. Many from those families that have gone through here and other realms speak highly of you. But you had pain in your life, the loss of Carmen. But now…” The master of hell now stands, takes Helena and stands her up; she turns and looks behind her.

           Walking up is a quartet. On one side is a very tall woman with ombré hair, horns with shiny decorations, and black bodysuit with gold trim. The other side, another woman wearing a red “Hellp Desk Trainee” T-shirt and jeans. Behind is a brunette wearing a red blouse and jeans, with a smile on her face.

             And in the front of this group was a blonde teen with green eyes. She was tall, wearing a Sharkie T-shirt, jeans, Nike shoes, and carrying a bouquet of wildflowers…her mother’s favorites. She did not look like the scared little girl Dante met and called for Angel as backup.  She was not the guilt ridden child that thought she deserved level nine. There was still more healing to do, but she was looking to do that together.

          “Mama,” said a tear filled Carmen. “I’m so sorry. I…I…” and she had to say nothing else. Helena wrapped Carmen so tightly that if she had to breathe she would have trouble doing so. Tears from all directions, but no sad tears. Only tears of joy. Even the normally stoic Luci shed a few of his own.

            “Oh, my baby! Oh, my baby! I have missed you so much! I’m sorry, baby!  I looked and looked!  I tried to find you!  I hoped every day to bring you home.”  Through the tears, she raised Carmen’s head up and looked in her eyes.  “I’m sorry for the pain…”

             “No, Mama.  You have nothing to be sorry for. It was not your fault.  You did not cause me to be kidnapped. You did not hurt me. I was ashamed for many of the things I endured. I blamed myself.”  She looks up at the trio she came with.  “But my new friends have shown me that I was never to blame. Even the way I got here,” she looks at Penny for that one, “was not my fault. And what I thought I deserved…” she then gave a kind of sly smile, “will be waiting for the ones who hurt…us both.”

             She grabs up her daughter again, then reaches for the trio of friends for hugs of appreciation. “Thank you…thank you for giving me my girl back.”  She reaches for Angel and looks her in the eyes. “I see why you were able to help.”  Angel begins to have a tear in her eye.  “You have gone through similar pain. And through that pain you have gained strength.  You were who she needed…all of you!”

                The rest of the reunion became a party at Judy’s paradise. Lily, Bel, and Greg met there, with Sharkie, Dante, and even Tech Support John came to celebrate. Food flying, conversations all over the place, even Lucifer dancing with Helena as Carmen takes pictures on the phone she was given. And dancing with her gave Luci the opportunity to ask again about helping with the CHC.

               Helena can now say, as she agreed to help the CHC board, that she took the job because “the devil made me do it!”

***************************************************

            Helena is sitting at her desk in a meeting with Lily and Lucifer to work through many things that need to be done to improve on how to help the kids that are there. Just like those she helped in the mortal world, she works with drive for any hurting child.

             She is working on some new files coming in when her phone goes off. At the other end of the line is a shark person with an excited voice to state one thing…a call she has waited on for a while. “You know the person than ran everything that hurt Carmen…he’s here.”

             That brought a sort of sly smile to Helena’s face. This has been a day she has waited for years to come. “Carmen was at the Desk,” said Sharkie. Helena worried about her daughter facing her captor again until…”she grabbed a baseball bat and a mace and proceeded to layeth the smacketh down on his head, torso, groin, and anywhere there was to hit!  I’ll send the video!”

                All in the office gathered to watch as the once frightened little girl was beating the very person that had her taken and used in her mortal life. That girl who now wore a black “Hellp Desk Trainee” t-shirt, taking the job in order to release her rage on idiots and, as they come, the slimeballs that hurt her.  Carmen, after she is finished, pulls the lump of pervert on the smiley face.

              “Welcome to hell, this is the Hellp Desk,” Carmen says with the fakest of customer service voices, “how are you gonna help meet my pedophile jackass quota for today?”

                Being barely able to speak (hard to talk with a broken jaw) he just looks up into the green eyes of the blonde over him, spits a little blood on the floor, and says defiantly, “I am a very powerful man!  It would in your best interest to do as I say,” which Carmen answered with the spiked ball of the mace slapping onto his balls.

                 With a smile on her face that would scare Sharkie, she said “lm sorry. What would you like for me to do for you?”  She then walked over to the desk next to a lever. She was pushing setting, like destination, speed of slide, and add ons like cheese graters, spikes, and a variety of other painful settings.

                 Trying to raise himself up to his feet, he adjusts his tie, turns toward Carmen, and says, “I want to GO HOME, BITCH!”

                 Carmen looks at this man with distain, grabs the lever, and with a calm demeanor…saying the way it was said to her so many years ago…”oh,honey. You are home!”  And she pulls the lever.  You could hear the screams all the way to level nine. But this was just the beginning. One of her friends that helped her heal to where she is now had something special in mind.

********************************************

After several months of constant pain…

        The group of people within the trafficking ring felt where they were rocking back and forth, like on an ocean. But there was no water in hell.

         The group, wearing nothing but hoods over their heads, were lead by some guards up stairs and made to stand in line. The chains around their necks, wrists, and feet held all of these evil of evil together.

          They had their hoods removed, and they now knew they were on some kind of large sailboat. Walking past the guards was a female demon with ombré hair and black eyes (she was angry). She walked to each person, placing a chain through the ring that was around their neck.

             Then, as they look over, they see the demon attach the chain to a large anchor. By the time she had finished, all of these criminals were now linked by this chain. The guards carry the anchor to the end of the boat.

              The leader of the group would go last, with around ten feet of chain between each person. He then saw that it was not water the boat was on. It was lava!

               Angel, without saying a word, nodded to the guards, and they threw the anchor overboard. They watched as the chain ran off, dragging the first person into the lava sea. And more was going in.

             He heard the screaming, the pleas for mercy, and his turn was coming. He now heard himself begging. The last thing he saw…until he regenerated…was Angel, holding a phone recording and waving.

Chapter Text

     “ Where do you imagine you’re going young man?”

     “I’m goin’ over to Jackie’s to play video games for a while.”

     “I don’t think so, Jase.  Have you finished your homework?”

      “Mom, it’s Friday. I can do it to-“

      “I got a call from your teacher, today.  She tells me that you haven’t turned in an assignment in a month.  IN A MONTH, JASE!!!”

     “Mom, can we talk about this later?  I’m goin…”

     “Nowhere!  Not to Jackie’s, not to the basketball game, not to the winter dance, not anywhere for a month!  You are grounded!”

     “Are you serious?  You’re gonna lock me up in this hell hole with you because I missed a little homework?  Come on, Madge?”

     “Yes, young man!!!  Your mom has just grounded you so that you can catch up on your schoolwork. They’re afraid that you won’t move on with your class.”

     “Like I care. I don’t have too many friends, anyway!  It’s hard when you’re the son of the town slut?”

     “How dare you say that!” The lady now in tears. “Why would you say that?”

    “Oh come on!  You don’t think I hear why Dad left?”  He slams his fist on the dining room table.  “Where did he catch you: bed, shower, dumpster,…?”

      “You have no idea why your father left!  I wanted to wait until you were older, but …”

     “You have nothing to say, BITCH!  I know the reason he left: because you are a WHORE!!!  I’m 13, and you should have told me by now.”  He then grabs his mom’s keys off the table. “Screw this, and screw you!  I’m gone!”

      “You come back here young man,” as she reaches for her son’s hand.  On reflex, he slaps his mother, knocking her down to the floor in tears.

     “Please, Jase!  Don’t leave, please!  I love you!”  And you listen closely, you could hear her heart break with what she heard as her only son ran saying:

     “I hate you. I wish you were dead, and I live with dad!”  And he leaves, and then hears her car pull out of her driveway. The next seconds seem like an eternity when she heard a loud crash outside.

She ran out and sees…

*******************************************

      Bel, Asmodius, Greg, and a few of the teen demons were working in the gymnasium at the CHC with a group of 12 to 15 year old mortals in fitness and self defense classes. They came up with this concept after teaching the “tiny Valkyries” when summoned to the mortal world. Pads on the floor.  Bel and Azzy adapting how they train legions to a basic class for fitness and stress relief for the group there.

     While they were doing takedown techniques, Bel noticed in the corner someone being taken down kinda hard. The one who did the throw reached down, apologizing for the hard landing. In response, the teen on the ground slapped his hand away, then tried to kick his shin on the ground. Bel runs toward the two boys to separate them.

    “What in the here is going on?  This is self-defense training, not a UFC match.”  He noticed that it did not take much to hold back the one who did the throw, but needed a little help with the second. Azzy came around trying to help with him, but as he is grabbing the kinda big for his age teen, the kid spins around and lands an elbow on Azzy’s…bells!

     The bigger kid ran for the entrance with a couple of teens going after him. Greg calls them back to help pick up an almost throwing up prince of hell holding his jewels. “Someone brings Azzy an ice pack,” which he takes with a very high pitched “Thank you.”

     Bel talks to the teen still there. “I’m so sorry. When I went for the throw, my grip slipped. That’s why he landed so hard. I was just helping him up to apologize, but he just went nuts.”  Bel was trying to calm him down.

     “You did nothing wrong, dude!”  His voice was in no way angry. These kids had been terrified enough.  “Accidents happen, and this is your first day.  It’s ok.”  Bel looked around to see if he can see the other boy, but he was long gone. And with that kind of anger, he knew he had to be found before any souls got hurt.

     “Get a few of those in the legion to check the grounds.”  He then looked at his cousin, still a little shaken with the ice pack.  “Hey, Azzy?  You ok to do some aerial recon?”  Azzy looks up, and says (with his normal voice), “Still in a little pain, but let’s fly.”  And with that, both generals expand their wings and go airborne.

     Now Greg is standing there, thinking to himself, “Where would I go if I did not want to be found.”  Then he also added the mindset of those in the various reasoning of why the CHC was built. His brain came up with two options, then sprinted to the more permanent one.

     On his phone, he called all the level heads with a description of the young boy as he ran to the Void.  He came thinking he was to be punished, but thinks this boy got enough info that he knows how to not exist.  He had to stop him, before making the biggest mistake of his afterlife.

     He reaches the entrance to the Void, and begins to go through the crowd waiting to enter.  Greg looked at all the faces in the crowd. He saw many who decided this was a better option than being on his level. Many tired and sad faces who just wanted the rest of non-existence from their lives. He also remembers when Bel’s father entered in, and how he feels about it to this day.

       Then he looks toward the entrance of the Void. The demon at the entrance was telling a young preteen boy that he could not enter because of the rule of children not being placed in the Void. Kids are given an option for reincarnation or placed until old enough to accept a paradise. At this, he tries to push past the guards, but the two seven plus tall demons dropped their weapons and hooked both of the boy’s arms and carry him to a small room off to the side. Greg went to them, and asked if he could talk to him.

     Greg opens the door to the room the youngster had been placed in. As any room, the room adapted to the situation. Walls were padded just in case his rage got extreme so he could not hurt himself. The comfy seats and tables in the room also bolted to the floor. But by this time the youngster had tired himself out. He just sat at the table with his head on the table…just emotionally exhausted.

     “So kid, you’ve made quite an impression today.”  He looks at his phone and messages Bel that he found the boy. “Azzy’s voice still hasn’t gone back to normal.”  This gets no response, so he walks up to the table and takes a seat. “Let’s start this conversation off right. My name is Gregorith; Greg may be easier to say. What’s yours?”  This would get no response.

     “Silence, huh?  Ok.”  Then he thought about the ability to get his file. The Universe has a way of helping when it was needed. So when he looked at the table, he noticed a red folder appear.  Usually he has had to use his assassin skills to hunt, but this was just handed over to him. So he picks up the file and looks at the cover.

       “So, Jase,” said Greg, which made the young boy look up, “it says on here that you should be with family here until you can claim your paradise. But you are currently shown to be living in the CHC because you don’t seem to accept that.”  He looks in Jase’s eyes, and the anger seemed to be trying to return.

       “Look, man…or demon,” he said, “I know what goes on here!”  He stood up and went to a small recliner in the corner. “I know I deserve to be here!  I stole my mom’s car, and the next thing I know I got here.”  He then looked away. “But you want to hear the best part of this, I blame my cheating mother for this. If she had not ran my father off, or if I could have lived with him…NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED!”

Chapter Text

     Bel had just arrived at the Hellp Desk just as his phone started to go off, seeing that it was Greg on the other end. When Greg told him where they found the boy at. Bel still gets flashbacks of when his father entered, he begins to wonder what had this young man gone through to want to no longer exist.

     “Have you read his file yet?” asked Bel as he arrived. “Not completely,” states the master of level nine, “but it seems that this anger is not just a knee jerk reaction. He carried it with him to the afterlife.”

     “ ‘Carried’ with him?”  Bel knows anger is a powerful emotion, but to say that it came with him means that his anger is what brought him to the afterlife. He knew that something in this child’s life was unresolved, and he had to find it.

     “I’m gonna send the file to you, but I’m gonna stay with the young man.”  Greg’s tone became a little softer as he speaks.  “This kid is in a lot of pain, and although the doors are locked, anyone that can drop Azzy and get away from him can be a little sneaky.”

     “I know.  He’s still using ice packs, but sure Sariah will kiss it and make it better later.”  Greg…and Lily at the desk…almost break out in giggles. As this is happening, the Universe uses its form of instant messaging and not one, but two files pop up.

     “Why are there two files here?  I only asked for the kid’s, but who is this one for?”  Bel and Lily pick up the files, and begin to notice one thing about them. The people in the two files had different last names, but have a familial connection. Jase was a thirteen year old boy. But Madge was in her early forties, and was Jase’s mother.

     They looked at the dates of death. The mother passed three months after her son’s death. The son died of an auto accident.  The mother’s came from…what the file said…’intentional overdose and crippling depression’.  Some pieces were beginning to fall, but he needed to know more. So he did the reading on Jace’s file first.

     He saw the child’s birth. His mother…and father. He read of his Roman Catholic upbringing by his parents. He knew parental love and care. Then, at age five, he came downstairs to see his father leave with a suitcase and some angry words. His son runs for him, but his cries can’t stop his father from leaving.

     Jase began to show signs of anger. “It’s all mom’s fault,” became the reasoning for his bad behavior, his grades, his downward spiral. He started to hear the rumors of why his father left. “Mom cheated on Dad.”   This is the voice he listened to, even though his mother worked hard to provide and give her son all he needed. But his response was anger, disrespect, violence, and blame for his dad being gone.

     He saw the rough days, but also saw that there were some good days between the two. But there was always the moments of strife between the two. She kept trying to discipline and help her son, but he did not want that from someone he could not respect.

     Then Bel saw his last day.  The argument. What he had said to his mother about what he thought of her. Then he saw him grab her mother’s keys, the struggle, the slap down to the floor. Then saw the child’s final words to her: “I hate you!  I wish you were dead!”

      And, even though only 13, jumped in his mother’s car, turned the key, and peeled out of the driveway. But without looking, he backed his car into the path of a large delivery truck, which impacted the driver side of the car. The car was smashed, and Jase was ejected. The last thing he saw before things went dark was his screaming mother holding him, screaming for help.

      “It also show what he was thinking at that moment.”  He had a sad look on his face, almost to the point of tears. “He just thought ‘Help me, Mommy!  I don’t want to die!  Please Mommy.  Please!!!’ “. By this time Lily went to comfort him, seeing her giant husband curl up in himself. “And this boy now wants to no longer exist. How do we fight this?”

      Lily then picks up the other file. She looks at the cover to see that Madge had a paradise, but has refused to accept it. An attached note stated that she was currently on level two for intense therapy. When she called down, the therapist working with her states that she locked herself in a sensory deprivation chamber and refuses to come out until she finds out.

      “Finds out what?” said Lily, thinking that Madge may have applied for reincarnation, but she was wrong. “She has appealed that she be allowed to enter the Void.  Since she had a paradise, there was a waiting period she had to have before being allowed.”

      “How long?” asked Lily.

      “It’s a six mortal month wait time, which is almost up.” The therapist looks up the notes and returns with “That wait period is up in two mortal days.”  With this, Lily thanks him and turns to Bel. “We don’t have much time. This woman feels so much pain she is willing to give up paradise to end her own existence.”

      “What can we do?” asked Bel. “She is here because of her guilt. She is in so much pain, and is so tired from all the battles she must have fought…”. He now begins to flashback to the day he watched his own battle worn, tired father walk into the Void. He remembers how he felt that day. It was a good day that ended with him watching his father leaving him behind. He remembers his own pain, and Jase already has chosen to end himself in the Void.

      “I looked at Madge’s file, and she is about to make a major mistake!” said Lily. “None of what they went through was ever truly their fault. Yes, they expressed their pain in destructive and self destructive ways.  This is not just a mission to save a child, but a family.”

      Bel now takes the mother’s file and places a finger on the top page. He gets a far away glance in his face, but also knows what he has to do.  “I need to…to go the Void.  I need to talk to this kid!”  Lily sees the look in his eyes. She knows he has not been there since his father. This was gonna be hard, but knew she could not stop him.

      “What’s the plan, Big Guy?”  Bel reaches for both files, spreads his huge wings, and prepares for take off. “No one should go through the pain I went through. My father was tired, but it still hurts. If Jase sees his mother go in, he might force his way through, and may not be able to be stopped.”  He then he looked in his Princess’s eyes. “I have to stop this!”

      “Call Greg and tell him I’m on my way.”  He looks back at Lily.  “I hope what I’m about to do does not break the rules, but I have less than two days. Fingers crossed. Love you.”  And he takes to the air. On the ground, Lily says quietly, “The rules be damned.”

*********************************************

      Bel lands near the line to the Void and goes up to the guards and asks where the one who tried to sneak by them. He is led to a door which is locked on the outside.  He walks in and whispers into Greg’s ear. He looks up with a real intense look and says to Bel, “I will do my best, but I cannot physically interfere.”  Bel pats his shoulder, and Greg heads on his mission.

      He walks up and takes a seat next to Jase. Compared to who just left, he saw Bel as a whole lot bigger, but maybe not as scary as Greg. He set down the two files on the table. “So, you no longer want to exist anymore?”

      Jase looks more weary than angry at this moment. “What’s the use?  I’m alone, doomed to an eternity here, and I just want the nightmares and anger to stop.”  He then looks into the eyes of the demon in front of him. “I would rather disappear.  My feelings did not matter in life, so why shouldn’t I just vanish. No one will miss me.”

      Bel looked out the window of the side room at the entrance of the Void, and saw his father enter again. “That, in my opinion, is the biggest pile of horse crap that I have ever heard!”  He turns to look at the shocked teen. “Do you know what is beyond that entrance?  Nothing!  Eternal emptiness.”  He then begins to point out the window at the entrance.

      “This place was originally designed for older demons who felt that they were tired, ill, and have suffered the pain of constant battles or stresses in life, not for mortals to quit when times get rough.”  He looks back at Jase. “My father was one of the original generals of hell, and I watched him enter because he was old and tired and battle worn. For him, it was time.”

      “You said that you are alone, but you left family behind who lived in pain after you died. There are still several in your school who think of you.” With this, the anger begins to return, but there is nothing to throw, so Jase just begins to yell at Bel.

      “Miss me?  MISS ME!?!  No one misses me.”  He then just begins to pace around in the room. “The son of a cheating slut who runs her husband off not to be seen again. Those who tolerate you are as close as you are gonna get.”  He is now in tears. “And my mother…she is the reason for all of this. Her actions.  Her cheating. She’s probably partying now because she’s free to do what…and who…she wants now!”

      “You know, I read your file.”  He now turns to Jase, then sits at the table. “And one thing I noticed is that in many ways you are just like your mother.”  Jase looks at Bel with an eye roll, but Bel continued. “You are both strong willed, stubborn, and living with a lot of mental and emotional pain.”  Then he grabs the blue file and looks him dead in the eye. “There is just one major difference!”

      Jase looked at the demon with distain. “What difference, O wise one?  Please explain to me what is this difference?”

      Bel looks at Jase, puts the file down, and pushes it toward him. “You think your pain came from your mother, but your mother’s pain is caused by true trauma and sacrifice…and loss!”  He now taps on the file in front of Jase and opens it as to not show the name on the cover.

     “Let me tell you how this works. You place a finger on one of the pages, and you get like a download of what is inside. Kinda speeds up the reading process, and right now we have very little time for explanation of what I said.”  Bel is now hoping toward the Universe that this works. “Put your finger on the page please. If this does not change anything…” He made a physical gulp at what he was gonna say next, “I will walk you myself to the Void and you can walk in if you want.”

      Bel knew he was making a massive gamble, but he was gonna do what it took to keep Jase…and his mother…out of the Void. But as a demon, he could not break his promise to do what he just said. He was putting everything on the line here.

      Jase saw this as his chance. He wanted to escape the punishment he believes he deserves. He wants to no longer feel or be. He wants a final solution, and this demon would bring it. So with that, he placed his finger on the file, and the download began…

*********************************

     Mageline Anne was born to very strict Catholic parents in a small town.  Her father was a banker and deacon. The mother was a traditional homemaker and wife. But life would be very hard for her…

Chapter Text

     …and with that upbringing came with expectations. She did not date much, and when she did she would not tell her parents. Lost virginity at seventeen, which caused her to become pregnant. With how her parents believe, when she told her father he replied by telling her that she must wed the boy. When suggesting abortion, her father slapped her and said she would burn in hell forever.

     So her parents got together with her boyfriend Wil’s family and basically had like a shotgun wedding. Wil worked in her father’s junkyard business while her plans of college were smashed. She was constantly reminded that door was closed for opening her legs. Not just by her father, but almost everyone around her.

     Her lack of self confidence was made worse when her and Wil lost their daughter in childbirth. There was the sadness with loss, but much of her family brought the guilt and shame. It mostly came from her father and husband by telling her this was punishment by God for her immorality…but no blame to Wil for his part.

     Because of not wanting to face wrath because of her indiscretion, she stayed married. There was some good moments, but Wil turned out to be a nightmare. While they seemed to be good Catholics, behind closed doors there were problems. Wil was an angry drunk, and was at first verbally abusive, but later she was having ‘accidents’, or how the bruises and ER visits were caused. And everyone believed the lie. No one helped.

     As time went on, a lot of intimacy became non-consensual. Wil saw it as one of her wifely duties and had no right to say no. And in this, she became pregnant again. This time she gave birth to a healthy baby boy that her husband named Jase…after his father. She actually thought that by giving him a son that life would get better, but it just got worse.

     Drinking got worse, and with that the abuse got worse. She raised Jase pretty much alone.  If Wil was not at work later and later, he went out with her father and their friends drinking. Her mom tried to help, but she was very judgmental of her daughter. All because of what her daughter did over ten to eleven years ago.

     Then finally there was a last straw. Her husband had forgot his lunch at home. When she arrived, she saw Wil’s assistant straddled across his lab, blouse partially open, kissing her husband. She dropped his lunch on the floor, he turned looking at her with a smile, and she ran off crying.

     She got home and began to pack a suitcase for her son and then herself. Wil got home before she got to leave. He began to yell, stating if she was still the hot teen she was the first time he would not have to look elsewhere. Turns out this was going on for years with several women. No sorry. No guilt. NO MORE!!!

     After leaving, she basically lost everything. Wil provided false evidence that she was actually the one cheating. Her own parents not only disowned her, but testified against her. The only thing she did not lose was Jase. Wil wanted to party, and a three year old would cut into that fun. Except for her son, she was now alone.

     It was hard, but she worked hard. Starting out living in a horrible apartment, Madge would take every dead end job in town. Working two to three at a time, there were days she could hardly move. But no matter how tired, she took care of Jase with love. She had a small group she trusted to babysit while at work. And every other weekend…and she hated thinking this…she was able to rest and recharge. Did not date. No parties. All was for her son.

     Years started to improve. Part time school became a career in nursing. Long hours for ok pay, she was able to buy a small home and a used car. Tried to give her son everything, but it was hard. His father spoiled him and plugged in lies about his mother. But she still believed a boy needs his father, so refused to defend herself. The respect was waining. She was now in her son’s eyes the bad parent.

     Then came the day. Her son’s teacher called about all the missed homework. He begins to walk out to a friend’s house, but felt that she had to ground him so that he would not be held back. Then the anger, the name calling, the blame for the divorce. She knew he needed to know the truth, but he just turns to leave. And when she tries to stop him, there was the pain…emotional and physical…when her own son slapped her down.

     Then the words…”I hate you!  I wish you were dead!  I wish I lived with dad!”  He sees the keys, grabs them, and runs out. She then hears a crash as she gets to the door. Saw her car after being hit by a large truck. She ran toward the scene screaming for her son, seeing that he had been thrown out of the car.

     She ran to him and looked in his eyes. Kept telling him she loved him.  Pleading for him not to go. Seeing the fear in his eyes. And finally losing it when her only family left dies in her arms. Then the police, the funeral home, her parents, Wil…all came in on her all at once. The guilt heaped on by others and her own inner voice. Accusations. Arguments. She felt no comfort…no comfort for the one everyone thought of a the town slut. She was truly now alone.

     Nothing got better. The stares. The accusing statements. Judgments based on rumors and lies. She gave up on finding love, but in everyone’s mind…even her son’s mind that horrible day…she was screwing every man around. She could not take it, but what made it worse were her own voices of blame and guilt in her head. She just wanted it to stop.

     She wrote a long letter about the truth. About Wil’s abuse, control, infidelity. She stated that there was only one man she cared for and spent time with…her son. And that was also destroyed by all the lies of her ex. She had nothing left, so there was no reason for her to live anymore.

     She pulled out a large bag of high dose tranquilizers and a bottle of cheap whisky. In tears, she begins to swallow the pills chased by the alcohol. By the time she is done, she almost took all the pills and emptied the bottle. As she begins to get drowsy, she lays on her bed, holds a picture of Jase, kisses it, places it to her heart. And begins to drift off. With her last breaths, she whispers out “I will love you forever.”

************************************

     Jase slowly removes his hand from the file, sits back, and at first looks like he is holding back the tears. But after a few moments begins to choke on his tears. He looks up and asks Bel only one question:  “She’s here?”

     “Yea, she’s here. She has a paradise here, but she is so ate up with guilt that she has refused to accept it.”  Bel then pulls out a small notepad and reads. “She has allowed the many lies told on her, the fact her own parents turned against you, and the fact all those factors turned the only one left against her to believe that SHE deserves all the pain.”

      He now put his finger on the file again, and this time he was focused on the letter she wrote. He saw everything. He was focused on one particular paragraph:

      ‘ I allowed the lies too long. I hated Wil’s manipulation and abuse, but I was made to believe that every boy needed their father. So I took all the rumors, all the disrespect, all the heartbreaking moments like having my father disowning me but treating Wil like his son. And now my son…the very son his father did not want. But I allow it. Now my own son hated me when he died. I have been blamed by everyone, including myself. I tried to tell the truth that day, but he did not want to listen. He runs, and ends up dead. All I went on for is gone, and no one will miss me. My only wish is that my son is happier now. I love him, and my heart is him. I know I won’t be missed. Goodbye.”

      “What have I done?”  He now has tears down his face. “It was all lies, and she took all of that to protect me…because she loved me. And I,” his words now come back to that day, “I told the one person that truly loved me ‘I HATE YOU’!”  He stands and walks toward the window looking at the entrance to the Void. “Now I want to enter there even more, because I don’t think there is any coming back from that!”

      “That’s just it, there is!”  Bel walks up and places his hand on Jase’s shoulder.  “You had been fed a bunch of lies for most of your life. Your mother allowed it to destroy her because she wanted to protect your thoughts of him, even at the cost of your thoughts of her.”  He points at the file. “She was gonna tell you eventually…when you were older…but when she tried, you tried to run away and take her car. Then you ended up at the CHC.”

      “And everyone blamed her for that…even herself.”  He heard of something here called MortalTube, and he had one request. “I want to see my funeral, and also hers.”  Bel pulls out his phone, and types in Jase’s first. He saw his dad and both grandparents welcoming guests and being comforted by them. But in the back in the corner sat his mother. Shattered and in tears, she received more accusatory looks than comfort. When she came to the casket, many said it was nothing more than looking for sympathy. Her parents actually told her that she should leave.  She ran out, and stood at a distance at the gravesite rites.

      She visited the grave every day, at hours at a time. No comfort. Then many avoided her, blaming her for everything. When it was too much and she made the choice to end the pain, she had no mourners except for people from work. Her parents refused to attend, or even pay for her service. One request she had written was to be buried by her son, but Wil had her cremated and dumped her ashes in a lake. No sadness, but indifference.

       Jase put down the phone, and looked up at Bel. There was no anger, just the look of a child that just wanted one thing…his mom. “They hurt her.  I hurt her. She was in so much pain in her life.”  Then he looked down to the floor. “We killed her. First her spirit. Then her will. Then a broken heart. Then finally…”

      Bel kneels down and looks in his eyes. “Stop right there.  There were many factors in what led her to do what she did.  But it began so long ago that it was just a build up to that point.”  Jase then looked up, “But I was the last straw!  It even said that I was the reason she went through her own hell on earth. And when I slapped her…when I ran off…when I said that I hate her…I broke her. And now…”

      Bel’s phone then began to go off. It was Lily. “Greg just called me.  Madge just left therapy, and is on her way there. He tried to stall, but said she just ran.”  Then with a frantic voice, she said, “I have her on camera. She’s close.”  Bel hung up the phone and looked at Jase in the eyes.

      “That pain she had followed her here. She had tried to enter the Void about six of your months ago.”  Bel’s voice became a little faster. “She was told to wait and think, and she did. She refused therapy, spending the last six months in a sensory deprivation chamber. She just left…and is on her way here.”

      “I watched my own father enter that place, and for years wanted to enter there to make the pain stop. I have nightmares to this day. But you have a chance to stop that.”  Bel looked into teary eyes through his own tears. “But unlike me, you can stop her from that. She is tired and hurting, but you can save her.”

      “I don’t know if I can,” said Jase. “I hurt her. She probably hates me. I put her through so much that I drove her here.”

     “You saw her death,” said a frantic demon. “You saw her tears, you read her words. Did you listen?  What was the last thing she said before she died?”  Jase, with tears in his eyes, remembers her saying after kissing his picture, “I love you, forever.”

      “I want my mom.”  His voice was soft and sad.  “I want my mom!” He became louder. “I WANT MY MOM!”  And with one final yell, with tears, screamed, “I WANT MOMMY!!!”

      Bel pounded on the door, but guards were not moving fast enough. So the General hits the door with such force that it flew off of its hinges. Both Bel and Jase run out of the room, and without even thinking to ask for permission, grabbed the boy, spread his wings, and shot into the air.

      He calls Lily, who he know was watching on cameras. “Give me an update, Princess. Which way should I go?”  Lily, watching the camera, begins to yell. “She’s at the desk to enter. You better hurry!”

     Bel turns toward the entrance, and begins to go into a power dive toward the desk. As they go to land, they both see Madge walking toward the darkness.  She delays for a minute, and then begins to enter. All of a sudden, she hears a familiar voice yelling. She stops in her tracks with the sound of one word….

      “MOMMY!!!!”

Chapter Text

      Madge stands at the entrance, preparing to step into the emptiness of the Void. All of the pain and hurt she has suffered pointing her in that direction. But after a lifetime of shaming, of accusations, of being beat down had taken its toll. She was tired. She thought one final time of her beloved son, smiled, and walked forward. But she thought she heard a voice. She stops and turns around.

      Her eyes fall on the boy who at one time said that he hated her. She saw the scared child that died in her arms. He heard her son, and now he was in front of her. Was this a cruel illusion, or could this be real. Her eyes, already full of tears, looked tired. But Jase’s voice seemed to liven them just a little. He begins to walk closer.

      “Please, Mommy, don’t go!”  He cried. “I was so wrong.  I know you were gonna tell me the truth, but I was so blind with anger that I…I hurt you. I hit you.  I broke you.”  He then breaks into tears. “I’m the reason you’re here!  I do not deserve you, but I need you.”  Now the young teen becomes a boy as he drops to his knees in tears. “Please, Mommy!  I’m scared!  Please don’t leave me!  I LOVE YOU!”

      Bel was watching this. Thinking back to the time he was the boy watching the parent enter the Void.  His father, Samuel, was tired. He had been through war and pain, and he was tired. Bel remembers the tears that fell when his father vanished within the darkness. He wanted…he needed…his dad. But Samuel was tired. This mother is tired. But something is different here. Instead of him watching, this boy was showing that he needed her now more than ever.

      Madge, with tears in her eyes, began to walk toward her son. The steps, slow at first, become a run as she gets closer. By the time they reach each other, both are crying the happiest of tears. There was no need for words. Their actions showed their joy, their relief, their love for each other. Relief in Jase’s eyes. Renewed strength in Madge’s.

     Bel smiles at the head of the Void entrance, who gives a relieved smile of their own. Lily runs up to her husband, grabs his waist, and looks up into his eyes. “Princess, I think these two need to be taken to their paradise. They seem to have some repairing to do.”

      “I have a therapist that will meet them there.”  She hugs him a little tighter. “Do you need me to take you home?  Looks like you’ve been through a lot.”

      “Not just yet.”  He looks into the Void thinking of old memories. “You take these two home.  I’m just gonna hang around for a bit.”  Lily knows of Bel’s feelings about this place, and understands that he needs this right now. He bends down for a kiss. Then he watches as Lily leads two new paradise residents to their home.

*****************************************

      Bel sits at a bench near the Void entrance looking in. He knows that there is nothing to see inside. As much as he would wish throughout the years his father would reappear, he knew it was not going to happen. He sat with his eyes closed, playing out both scenes.  He saw his father enter. He saw Jase stop his mother. He tried to see what was the difference. Why did Madge stop while his father entered?  Why?

     As he sat, a couple of people sat on either side of him on the bench.  One is his best friend Greg. The other side is a tall elegant demon in business dress. “Hi Mom,” Bel says as Lilith sits next to her son, holding him. She was not a high ranking demon now. She was Mommy checking on her son. “Honey, are you ok?”

      He looks up at her with red eyes. “Why did he still go?  I begged him!  I cried for him!  I still needed him!  I loved him!”  The emotion began to break out of him. Through tears he asks, “Why was that not enough?  Why did he go?  Why did he not stop?  Why did he leave me?”

      Bel, prince of hell, general of 85 legions, overall badass: but at this moment he was a broken child that wanted his dad. Lilith wrapped her arms around her son. He cried into her shoulder. A misty-eyed Greg has an arm on his shoulder. Tears everywhere.

      “He had been through wars, trials, pain.”  Lilith is comforting Bel while fighting her own tears. “We talked for a long time before his decision. He did not want to do this, but he hated the nightmares. Lives he lost. Lives he took. He wanted quiet, but hated the fact of how that had to happen.”

      “He cried uncontrollably the night before. He was afraid that he would give you the impression that he did not love you. But when he told me, he wanted to make sure you knew your love was enough!”  She then reach into her pocket and handed Bel a small envelope. “He knew he would stop hearing your cries, so he used these.”

      Bel opens up the envelope, and discovers inside is a small note with what looked like a pair of earplugs. Bel held them in his hand, and then read the note. It was just four words, but it explained everything. He could not hear him that day because of earplugs. His tears flowed as he read the four words…

      YOUR LOVE IS ENOUGH!!!

******************************************

      It’s been a few weeks since that fateful day at the Void. Madge accepted her paradise, which looked like a small cottage in a huge forest. She had neighbors all around her, but unlike in life these people accepted her without question. No rumors. No talking behind her back. It became a neighborhood of family. And she had her son, who had moved with her. They both had work to do. Some trauma was still there. But they were going to face it together.

      They both went to level one therapy together. They now look at their issues, their pain, and slowly accept the fact that they both deserve love, especially between mother and child. Forgiveness was given, but mostly what was needed was forgiveness for themselves. Jase now saw his mother finally as his main support system. The one who truly loved and protected him.

      They were walking out of a therapy session and ran into Bel with a tall female demon holding his hand. “Hello Jace. Madge.  How is everything going?”

      “It’s going great.”  Jace’s voice sounding a little softer than when they first met.  “I’m making up for lost time.”  He then looks up at his mother. “I let lies and anger take her away from me, but now I will spend every moment hopefully making up for that.”

       Madge grabs his hand tightly.  “Oh, son!  Nothing took my love away from you. And it was your love that saved me from ending everything.”  She then looks at Bel and the lady next to him. “Thank you for what you did. Jase told me your story. That must have not been easy.”

      Lilith speaks up. “I think your son helped him some too.  And as for you,” she lays her hands on her shoulders, “you have proven to be a very strong woman. As Bel’s mother, I showed love by being strong even when I just felt useless. I felt like after his father entered the Void that I was a sad substitute for his father.”

      Bel looked at his mother as she continued. “Samuel had been through so much, and the nightmares became too much. But I believe if he had not blocked his ears, that he would have not went in.”  Then looked at Madge. “You went through level nine hell on earth. Husband, parents, family, community: they all used rumors, accusations, and lies as weapons. You were tired. You went toward the Void.”  Now with a mix of tears from both mothers and sons. “But you heard your son, and his love was…and is…enough!”

      “Thank you, Lady Lilith.”  Madge looked at her son, and she knew Lilith was right. She just needed her son’s love, and his love saved her. “And what are you two doing this fine day?”

      “We have an appointment, with the therapist you just saw.”  Bel looks at his mother. “Some new facts have come to light that I…that we…need to talk about together.”  He looks at Jase. “I think some of my nightmares might be resolved. I just learned that my love for my father was enough. I think I’m ready to accept that.”

      “I have an idea, mom.” said Jase. “My mom is an excellent cook, and would love to invite you both to dinner. It seems our house can adapt for room and provide whatever ingredients we need.”  Bel looks at Lilith and says, “That’s a great idea, but on two conditions. We are allowed to help cook, and my wife and child can come. They would love to meet you both.”

      Bel did not even have to finish asking. Madge, being an observant mother, noticed as they passed the Hellp Desk a tall redhead and small shark person hugging on Bel. She had invited them before meeting Bel and Lilith. “Oh, I think that can be arranged.”

      After exchanging directions, phone numbers, and menu plans, Madge and Jase head home to prepare for guests. As they leave, Bel’s name is called for his appointment. He and his mother. It seems that a teen mortal and his mother was not going to be the only ones to begin healing today.

AND FOR THE REST OF THE FAMILY…

Madge’s mother — level 2.  She was not a bad person, but allowed her husband to control what to do about Madge.

Madge’s father — level 6.  He allowed bias and a seeming unsubstantiated feeling that Madge was sinful, and he did not want that in his family.

Wil (Jase’s father) — level 9. He was a violent misogynistic abuser that saw his wife as property that ruined his life. Used lies to have people alienate Madge, to turn Jase against his own mother. He did not care about his son, only the pain he could cause Madge. He is now Prince Beleth’s personal ‘project’ for eternity.

Chapter Text

      “ 911, what is your emergency?”

      “ My name is Eleanor Vasquez. I need an ambulance at 2432 Sterling Way, apartment number 382!”

      “What is the nature of your emergency?”

      “One of my foster sons, Hector, is not breathing!  He was taking a nap in his room, and one of the other kids went in and said that his lips were blue and his hand was cold!  Please hurry!”

      “We have an ambulance on the way, ma’am. Have you tried CPR on the child?”

      “I tried mouth to mouth, but haven’t tried chest compressions. I was afraid of breaking a rib and making it worse!  Please hurry!”

      “Someone will be there in two minutes. Please be calm, ma’am. They’ll do what they can. Now I’m gonna talk you through chest compressions, ok?”

      “Ok, but please hurry!”

      By the time the ambulance arrived, the paramedics saw that they were in a race against time. They hurried with CPR, defibrillator shocks, shots of adrenaline, all the life saving measures possible, but it was too late.  Little Hector is dead, at just six years old.

      Of course there is an investigation by the hospital, Child Protective Services, and later police. And what they find was saddening, shocking, and criminal.

**************************************

      “So, Penny, how is it going today?” asked Sharkie. Penny and Greg were going to dinner at The Flaming Pit to try some authentic Memphis style barbecue since their newest chef arrived. Asmodius said it was great — just not as good as his own in the pit he added on to his home.

     “Just fine Sharkie,” said the red clad Belle of the famous Hellp Desk. “We plan on meeting Judy and James there. Azzy also told her they make a mean Texas brisket, so they wanted to try.”

      “Also wanna see if they can make sweet tea right,” Judy chimed in.  “Only found two so far: me and Anya at Common Grounds. I need a backup for that.”  Judy then directs the conversation to Lily. “So what are you and Bel up to this evening?  We can handle more coming with us.”

     “Well,” said Lily, “Bel is on a patrol mission with his fifteenth legion for a few days, so me and Sharks were going to stay at their paradise with Ruggy and Angel.  It’s been a while since I’ve gone to a sleepover.”  Then begins to think on it. “Since the time I was…”

      “Mom, I see the tear in your eye.”  Sharkie knows about Lily’s assault as a teen at a friend’s sleepover. It took a little convincing to get her to do this. “This will be just us, three women and a shark, in my safe space where nothing will happen except for a pillow fight and excessive ingestion of snacks and alcohol.  Just an adult sleepover among family.”

      “And I appreciate that, Sharkie.”  Lily knows she will be safe, except for the pillow fight. Sharkie even got the softest pillows they could find for that. “So do I need to pick up any extra booze or snacks?”

      “No need. My paradise has prepared everything for tonight. Even added beds instead of cots…four single beds.”  She looks at Ruggy and Angel when saying that, giving the most innocent look that they can…but they’re not fooling anyone.

      “Excuse me. Which way to hell? I was told to go there when I get here. I’ve been a bad child.”

      Sharkie looks down at the front of her desk and sees a small little boy in a tattered T-shirt, dirty jeans, sandals, and a ragged old teddy bear in his hand. His black hair was long and in front of his tear filled brown eyes. What was most noticeable was that he brought bruises and scars with him.

      “Hey, buddy,” said Sharkie. Their voice going from their chaotic tone to a caring softer tone, “I think your lost. You don’t belong down here.”  He looks up at the one in the iconic shark onesie with tears in his eyes. “Ms. Eleanor told me to come down here after I was bad. She sent me here to be pun…pun…punished.”

      “Ms. Eleanor?  Is that a teacher, or a stranger or,” Lily began to shutter at the next question, “a parent or guardian?”

      “She’s my temporary mother until my real mommy was supposed to come get me.”  The child then looks down at the floor. “But I was bad, so I won’t get to see her again. I’m here to be punished for that.”

      “Did you hear someone say…” Sharkie begins to get shivers down her spine. Memories rise up as Sharkie asks, “say foster parent?”  The child nods his head, and Sharkie begins to feel the anger rise in their body. The word ‘foster parent’ causes horrible flashbacks to when they were a child.

      “Sharkie, are you ok, baby?” said Judy. She can tell that Sharkie is struggling with this. This is another Sharkie, and knows that this will be a rough case. Sharkie’s life was short and tragic, but the trauma this small child had basically followed him to the afterlife.

     “Uh, yeah Judy.  Thanks.”  Sharkie’s voice was a little softer now, kneeling down to look in the small child’s eyes. “So, sweetie, what’s your name?”

     The child looks up cautiously, and when he saw the care in Sharkie’s eyes he said, “My name is Hector.”

      “Well, Hector, my name is Sharkie. This is my mom Lily, this is Judy, the tall one is Angel, and that’s my adopted sister Ruggy.”  Hector waves at each of the ladies, but becomes a little frightened at Angel.

      “Is she gonna take me to be punished?” Hector asks. When Angel hears this, she looks sadly at Ruggy and goes in her blanket fort followed by Ruggy. “No, she’s not here to punish anyone. She’s nice and helps with some of the good souls here. She would never hurt you.”

      “I didn’t mean to make her cry!”  Hector seemed to curl in on himself. “Will what I need to do hurt?  I’m sorry I was bad!  Please don’t hurt me bad!”

      “No one is gonna hurt you, baby,” said Sharkie as they wrap her arms around the shivering child. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” was all Hector could say.   

      “Mom,” said Sharkie, “can you call someone at the CHC for me. I need Hector’s file delivered to my paradise.”  She picks up the small child and carries him toward the paradise gate. “Also, call Luci.  I might have to arrange a meeting with him and Hector.”

      “I’m on it.” said Lily. “Also,” said Sharkie, “sleepover is still on, but we’ll be switching out the alcohol with juice and sodas if that’s ok.  I’m gonna need some backup on this one.”

      “Do you think,” asks a sad Angel, “it is still a good idea if I come?  I don’t want to frighten him in any way.”  Before Sharkie can even answer, Hector answers. “P…p…please come. I’m sorry I made you cry. I try not to be scared.”  With that, Angel smiles at the small boy as he goes in Sharkie’s arms to her aquarium paradise.

      Lily looks and sees in the distance her grown child carrying the small five or six year old to her paradise just like she did when a nine year old in a shark onesie arrived years ago. And just like years ago, Lily saw Sharkie show her commitment to help this child by seeing Sharkie give the strongest of promises in the afterlife…a pinkie promise.

Chapter Text

     As Hector enters Sharkie’s huge aquarium paradise room, his eyes become huge as all of the multiple forms of aquatic life pass by. As a large orca passes by, the tears and fear were replaced with curiosity and wonder. Sharkie glanced down at the child holding their hand and remembered the first time Luci took her here for the first time. When they found out this was her paradise, Sharkie remembered the first few days awake naming many of their new friends. And now she sees the same wonder in this child’s eyes.

      “So, kid, can I get you anything. I have snacks, drinks, I can order anything you might want?  I know many of the restaurants as well as some chefs at the CHC.”  Sharkie is just trying to show that there is nothing to fear here. He was safe now. “I have games, videos, music, whatever you want.”

        “No thank you. I haven’t earned it,” said Hector. Sharkie heard this, and their anger to whoever hurt this child became greater, but held it in. “You don’t have to earn anything here. You are my guest.”  Hector looked kinda surprised, thought for a moment, and asked, “Can I have pepperoni pizza and grape soda?”  He shyly looks up. “That’s my favorite.”

       “A young man after my own heart,” cried Sharkie. “Since we have more coming, I’ll order a few. And I have grape soda here, so let me get you one.”

      Sharkie reaches in the fridge and pulls out two grape sodas, hands one to Hector, then picks up the phone and orders 8 large pizzas of various types…especially pepperoni. Then calls Lily to ask her to swing by Deep Delish Pizza to pick them up as all the ladies head to her paradise.

      The next few hours were filled with pizza, popcorn, candy, soda, games (Among Us), and videos. Hector was beginning to open up a little bit, even smiling at some of the funny acting during a game of charades. But something changed. The word was ‘baseball’, and Angel was acting like she was at bat. Hector’s expression changed. He began to curl in on himself. His eyes began to water. He was shaking. He was terrified.

      “NO! PLEASE NO! I’LL BE GOOD!  PLEASE DON’T HURT ME!”  Sharkie leapt over to grab the terrified Hector; everyone wondering what set him off. Angel ran outside with Ruggy following behind. She was in tears. She scared Hector again, and it hurt that she did that.

      “I shouldn’t have come!” said Angel as Ruggy held her from behind. “I don’t know what he has been through, but I feel that I just made it worse.”  She turns and looks in Ruggy’s eyes. “I think I should just go home for now. I don’t want an innocent to hurt because of my presence.”

      “Oh, baby!” said Ruggy. Usually in their relationship Angel is the strong one, but this time she sees her love in pain. “What happened in there was not your doing.  He has a lot of trauma. He still carries some of the wounds…” A thought pops in her mind.  “Wounds…wounds.  We need his file now. I’m calling CHC.”

      “What’s going on?  What are you thinking Rugs?”  Angel, still in tears, looks a little confused at Ruggy expression. “I think,” said Ruggy, “he did not come here to the afterlife by accident. He reacted when you made a baseball swing during charades.”  Ruggy and Angel look at each other, and in unison say…

      “Oh my gods!”

**********************************************

       “He’s finally calmed down and went to sleep,” says Sharkie. “I hade to pinkie promise that I would watch him through the night.”  They went through a list of what they did. “I had the Universe bless the bed to only allow good dreams and let him sleep as long as needed. The room is warded, so no one can enter without permission. He has Herman next to him and George and Gracie (a pair of electric eels) swim by as sort of a nightlight.”

      “You’ve done very well, Bug.” Lily is now showing her pride for her Baby Shark. They may present as a person in their mid 20’s, but Sharkie is her baby. “This child has gone through a lot. I know that before even reading his file. But you have done a great job in trying to help.”

      “Look who I learned from,” said Sharkie as they place her head on Lily’s shoulder. “I know how he feels. This is another case of a foster monster.”  Sharkie’s voice becomes a mix of sad and angry. “I have seen on MortalTube many examples of wonderful foster parents.  Even some who adopt the child. But there are still those who play the system for gain.”  They now look at their chainsaw, “and it’s those I would love to meet when they arrive.”

      Lily remembers when she first read Sharkie’s file. The pain.  The abuse.  The small child that thought they were destined for hell, just like her foster monster rotting on level nine told them. The years it took to change that. She felt Sharkie’s anger, and now whoever it was that hurt this child will have pain redefined for them.

      At that moment, Ruggy and Angel run back in Sharkie’s paradise, file in hand. “How’s Hector?” asked a still teary Angel.  “He’s ok,” said Lily. “Sharkie got him to go to sleep, and as soul tired as he is, he’ll be out for a while.”  She sees the file. “So, what’s up?”

      “We got Hector’s file from the CHC.” said Ruggy. “I had a little hunch about what set Hector off. I remember his wounds. Very rarely does a soul come covered with wounds.”  She takes the file from Angel and hands it to Lily. “I know why Angel as a baseball player set him off.”

      Lily opened the red folder, and was preparing to touch the first page. But Sharkie reach up and grabbed the file. “No, Mama.  You took care of me when I came in thinking the exact way Hector did. I want to help, but I need to do this.”  Tears in their eyes, Sharkie looks at them all, checks in on Hector, sits on one of her recliners, and opens the file. Closing their eyes, Sharkie touches the top page, and the download begins.

      “You might want to call Lucifer to get here Lily,” said Angel. “I read the file. We may need major backup for Sharkie.”  She looks in Lily’s eyes. “It’s not going to be good.  Sharkie’s story was horrible. This is gonna be worse.”  And Lily called, and got this answer…

     “I’m on my way, and I’m bringing Bel with me. I also bringing others. Sharkie’s gonna need it.”

Chapter Text

      Hector is born on a beautiful fall morning to a young girl whose family threw out of their home because of her being pregnant at 16 years old. The girl goes through complications during childbirth, and she fought to give birth. In the end, they place the newborn in the mother’s arms, she smiles for a moment, then unfortunately goes into cardiac arrest due to the complications. In the end, a new life enters the world, but the young teen girl passed. They notice her smile. They notice the tear down her cheek.

      Because no one claimed the child, he was given the name Hector by a nurse at the hospital. They found the girl’s ID and gave the child his last name. Then after a few days, the child was given to CPS and placed into the foster system. There were foster families that took good care of the child, but in the end they did not want to adopt a child. You see, little Hector had some issues…medical issues.

      Every time he was placed in care, the foster parent would be given a list of health issues. He had asthma. He had physical growth issues, meaning he would never really reach a normal height. He was shown to be on the autism spectrum. And with these many issues, the families were given funds to aid in his care.

      Some families took him because they care. They would use the funds as intended, but a few would do the bare minimum and pocket the rest of the cash. This was a constant in his short life. After the contract was up for each foster family, he would move on. He was loved sometimes, but some thought that they could not handle his issues for long periods. He would not find home.

       Then would come the Vasquez family. On paper, they were a good Christian family that had quite a few foster children in their family. He was a deacon in the church and a successful small business owner. She was the model mother and housewife who taught Sunday School and homeschools all of the kids. She seemed to be the perfect mother.

      But behind closed doors, the foster monsters here were a new form of abuser.  Many of their children were ones with special needs, which meant funds came in for their care. They would filter the money through the father’s business while providing the bare minimum to the children. When it was time for CPS to check in, the children were cleaned up, fed, and threatened not to say anything.

      But at one of these CPS checks, little Hector had let slip that this was the best he has eaten in about a month. When the investigator heard this, they began to question the Vasquezs. At the thought of losing the children, the Vasquezs used a combination of lies, manipulation, discrediting Hector for making up the story and his evident special needs to avoid losing their major sources of income. So CPS left, leaving Hector and the other children with Mrs. Eleanor.  There would be consequences for going against “the script.”

      After CPS left, little six year old Hector was taken to the basement and attached to a support beam by a long chain attached to a dog collar around his neck. He was sat on a couple of crates and left there for three days without food or water. At the end of the three days, Hector heard foot steps coming down the stairs. It was Mrs. Eleanor, and little Hector thought his punishment was over. But it was just the beginning.

      “How dare you!  How dare you, you little brat! No one else would take you in, but out of the goodness of my heart I allowed you in our home!”  Eleanor walks around the room, throwing items all around in anger. “You are so selfish, you know that!  You should be happy to be anywhere, and you do this!  I only asked for one thing, and you can’t keep your damn mouth shut!”

      She walks around, and yelling becomes slaps.  He could see the hatred in her eyes. He had been appreciative. He had been good. He followed the rules. But it was not enough. Eleanor walks around the room, and she sees something that would cause pain. She saw one of her husband’s softball bats. She slowly picked up the bat, walked up to the terrified Hector, and began…

***********************************************

      Sharkie threw the file across the room. They could not read anymore. Sharkie had a mix of sadness, anger, hatred, and a glint of vengeance. She sat back on the chair they were sitting in. All the times she has dealt with molesters, murderers, and horrible level nine monsters with her favorite weapon…her bedazzled Louisville Slugger with the non-slip grip handle. But this bitch took an aluminum softball bat and beat this child…this six year old child.

      Lily walked up to her child, and could feel Sharkie shake as she held them. She remembered the day when she held a trembling Sharkie while riding the elevator to get help from Lucifer to finally show that she did not belong in hell.  Tears fell from her eyes, but even more from Sharkie’s eyes.

     “He was beaten. She beat him with a bat,” Sharkie said through their tears. “She hung her foster child like a dog, threw a tantrum, and proceeded to beat him with a bat.”  She looks down at the floor and sees the file on the floor. “I have to read the rest. I have to know…” Sharkie braced for it all.  “I have to know what happens next.”

      “Bug, maybe one of us needs to do this.” said Lily. She is speaking with concern for her baby, but Sharkie would not hear it. “I need to do this. I need to know the end of Hector’s story.”  Sharkie got up, picked up the file from the floor, straightened the papers inside, and sat back down on the sofa. This time, though, Lily sat on one side and Angel sat on the other to comfort Sharkie. Ruggy sat in front of the trio prepared to stand by her sibling and friend. Sharkie then places a finger back on a page of the file.

***********************************************************

      After being hit multiple times with the bat, all you could hear is a whimpering little voice slowing saying, “Please stop…I’ll be good…please don’t hurt me…”. His crying is followed by winces due to bruised or broken ribs from strikes of the metal bat. His breathing is shallow. He is bleeding externally and internally. But the monster in the room with him did not care.

      “You were a mistake…YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED WITH YOUR MOTHER!!!”  Eleanor is yelling so loud that her husband opened the door above. “Everything ok, honey,” he yelled from the door above. “No, it’s not ok. All we have could be gone because of this brat, and he must face the consequences!”  She now looks down at the bruised and bleeding Hector, and becomes even more angry.

       “Please Mrs. Eleanor, I’ll be good. Please, it hurts!” said a crying Hector who is now trying to back away and cover up. He has bruising, cracked bones, and other bloodied wounds from the blows of the aluminum bat, which is now dented from the attack. But it was about to get worse.

      “Please?  Stop?  It hurts?” said a sarcastic witch with a bat in hand. “This is not even close to the pain you truly deserve!”  She looks at the chain, the collar, and the boxes Hector was made to stand on. “You deserve the pain your slut mother deserved!  We looked hard to find you!”  She walks over to the chain and begins to rearrange it to where it was shorter…and tighter. “She was just so rebellious to her father, to the point that he threw her out…BECAUSE OF YOU!”

      As the pain ridden six year old was made to stand, Eleanor continued to rant. “All she had to do was say she would get rid of you, but she wouldn’t do it. So her father tossed her out with nothing.”  She continued as she was slapping the walls with the now bent bat. “We got a call ten months later that they traced a young 17 year old that had passed to us. We knew how she died, and we refused to take her. She became trash, so out with the trash is where she belonged.”

      She now placed her foot on the boxes that Hector was standing on. “You caused all of this. We became foster parents to just find you. The financial side and the influence we gained was a plus.”  She actually giggles at this. “But it was just to find you. You killed my daughter. You took her away from us.”  She now placed her foot at the bottom box.

      “And now, you can go meet her.  Because of her actions, I know she is rotting in the deepest parts of hell.”  She now raises the child’s face to look at her eye to eye. “So Hector, I have a message for you and your whore of a mother.  TELL HER HELLO FROM YOUR GRANDMOTHER!  MAY YOU BOTH ROT IN HELL!!!”  She then kicks the boxes out from under Hector’s feet, turns off the light, and calmly walks upstairs. After a few minutes of pain, it became dark, and six year old Hector arrives to the afterlife.

      After about an hour, Eleanor Vasquez called 911 to try to pass off Hector’s death as a health issue and the bruises were because of life saving measures. At first they got off with it being natural causes, but later all of the truth came out. Eleanor and her husband were arrested and all of the children in her care were taken. It did not take long for them both to be sent to prison for life. And when many of the other inmates found out what they had done, they had to beg just like Hector had to.

*********************************************

      “They’re on level nine!” said Sharkie. “They faced some justice in the mortal world, but they have an eternity of it to face here.”  Lily reached for her phone, and placed a call to Greg.  “I’m sorry to call while you are on a date, but I need a favor.”  She recalled the worse parts of the child’s story and the names of his murderer. “I’m calling now,” said Greg. “A new pocket dimension will be ready shortly. Hell will be redefined for both shortly!”

      Sharkie then speaks up. “Call Papa for me. Hector needs a conversation with him…just like I did.”  Sharkie then looks at Angel and Ruggy. “I also need you to find someone for me. I’m sure she has a paradise, but I need her found. She needs to meet her son. He needs his mom.”  Now everyone is on their phone, and Sharkie goes to Hector’s room. They pull a comfy recliner in front of the door, grabs a support shark, leans back, and goes to sleep.

      Sharkie is woke up for a minute after she felt someone crawling into the chair with them. Sharkie looks over and sees a young boy carrying Herman crawl next to her in the recliner, curl up, and went to sleep. Sharkie smiles, places her blanket over him, leans back, and goes back to sleep. Just as Sharkie became Lily’s child, Hector was now Sharkie’s. His mother was coming, but Sharkie would be this child’s protector for eternity.

Chapter Text

      Hector wakes up after being asleep for a few days. His soul was exhausted from all of the trials he endured in the mortal world. Sharkie had gone to speak to Lucifer about Hector, Lily and Ruggy went to work at the desk, and Angel waited behind if he woke up. He peeked around the chair she was sleeping in, and sat in the beanbag across from her.

      “She is pretty,” thought Hector. He was at first frightened of her, but she did nothing to hurt him. He saw the sadness in her face when he asked when he was to be punished. He heard that she would stay away so that she would not frighten him. She had a nice smile, and loved to hear her laugh. Maybe what Mrs. Eleanor said about demons was wrong.

      Angel began to open her eyes, and then got startled in seeing Hector sitting in the beanbag just looking at her. Was he getting scared?  Would he try to run away?  She wondered if disguising her appearance would even help. Then she looked closer, and Hector did not look scared, but looked in wonder.

      “Good morning, Miss,” said the small boy. “I’m sorry for what I said yesterday.”

      “Good afternoon, Hector,” said Angel. “You’ve actually been asleep for several days. After all you have been through, you were extremely soul tired. It’s been at least six days.”

      “Wow!  I knew I was sleepy, but not that sleepy. But I had some nice dreams.” Hector now came out of the beanbag and sat right next to Angel. “I saw this woman…a really young girl…hold me and smile. And then I was taken away.”  He began to cry. “It seemed that when anything in my life was bad, I saw her smiling with a small tear down her cheek.”

      He came closer to Angel, allowing her to hold him in a one armed hug. “When Mrs. Eleanor punished me, I saw her. And after the last time she punished me…when I couldn’t breathe…I saw her. She tried to stop the bat. She tried to hold me up. But she couldn’t stop it. And before I died,” his tears flowing, “I heard her say that she was sorry for leaving me.”

      Angel grabbed Hector into her arms. She did not know what to say or do, so she tried to comfort him. He grabbed on with all he had, and the tears began to flow. “She said it was my fault!  She said I deserved all of this!  She said she was my grandmother, and I killed my mommy!  She told me I was trash, and I belong in hell!”

      “No you don’t,” said a young girl’s voice out of nowhere. Angel looked up, and there was Luci, Sharkie, and a small barely twenty year old girl with fair features, black hair with a few blonde highlights, and a sweet smile on her face. She began to walk up to Angel and Hector, and the boy’s eyes became wider and wider.

      “That’s the woman I saw.”  Hector began to look even closer.  “Every time I needed comfort, I saw her. When I was punished, I saw her.  In the end, I saw her!”  He then began to be a little frightened.  “Who are you?”

      “Oh, my baby,” said the woman in the softest tone possible, “my name is Aylexis, or Lexi for short. I gave birth to the sweetest angel I have ever seen, but did not get to name him.  Turns out I had a heart condition that I could not treat after being thrown out for being pregnant.”  She walked closer to Hector and Angel and sat on the sofa.

      “I heard what my mother said to you,” said Lexi. “I had to watch as that woman did what she did. My connection allowed me to be there, and I hoped that connection would let me save you.”  She broke into tears as she spoke. “I stepped into the path of the bat, but each swing passed me and hit you. I screamed at her to stop, but like when I was alive she refused to hear me. I tried to beg the Universe to make her stop, but it could not interfere.”  The tears flowed more from everyone.

      “Lucifer, I have a request,” said Lexi. “Allow my son to go to my paradise, to Heaven, or back to the mortal world.  He does not deserve to be in hell. Let me take his place. I left him there!”  She fell to her knees in front of the lord of hell. “I deserve the pain he went through. I should have fought harder to be with him. He deserves another chance.”

      “NO, MAMA!!!” screamed Hector. “I was the reason you died. Mrs. Eleanor told me you died because of me. They threw you out because of me. They said you were in hell because of me.  I deserve to be here!  I’m a bad person. I…”

      “STOP!!!”  Lucifer raises his voice, and the power behind it silenced all in the room.  “There will be no ‘deal with the devil’ situation here.” He first turns to Lexi, placing his hands on her shoulders. “You have nothing to be punished here for. You got pregnant, but even without support of the father…either your own or Hector’s…you fought to give him a chance. This even at the risk of your own mortality. I heard you argue with a doctor that wanted to end your pregnancy to save your life, and you refused.”

      His voice went somber as he continued. “I was there the day you held him. I saw your smile. I wiped your final tears. You arrived to my realm, and took a long time to convince to accept your paradise.”  He then wiped her tears on her face. “You will never see punishment. You deserve your paradise. You were invited to join Valhalla because of your warrior spirit, but you took paradise. So there will be no trade.”

      He now turn his attention to Hector, kneeling down to speak to him. “And now for you, young man. You do not belong in my domain either. You did not cause your mother’s problems. She died because she had an illness her mother denied and her father ignored. She was thrown out because her parents thought more of appearances than love. You died because your grandmother was an evil narcissist that wanted no reminder of her daughter.”  And now he reaches for the child’s pinkie, which Hector returned.

      “I swear by this ultimate of promises here in my domain, you do not belong in hell. You do not deserve punishment. You were an innocent who was abused to the point of death.”  He now looks into the eyes of Hector with a smile. “I, Lucifer, master of the realm of hell, now proclaims,” as he holds both Lexi and Hector’s together, “neither one of you belong in hell. Paradise is your home, and I would be honored to take you both there.”  Looks at Lexi, and says, “It is your paradise, but has also adjusted for Hector to be there. It is your home; it is where you both belong.”

      “Mr. Lucifer, can I ask something?” asked little Hector. He looks at him with very kind eyes to hear this young boy’s question. “Can everyone come with us. I want Sharkie, Ruggy, and Angel to come too to visit.”  He looks at Angel. “Will you come?  I wanna show my friends where I live.”

      Angel, with tears in her eyes and a huge smile, says softly, “I would love to, Hector.”  Sharkie and Ruggy say yes, and both called Lily to tell where they would be. Lexi ask them to invite Lily and other friends to come. “I know this great barbecue place that delivers. I’ll call now!”

      They all meet up in Lexi and Hector’s new home, which is built like a modern adobe brick home with a huge garden. Part is flowers, but much of it is massive vegetable, fruit, and herb gardens.  When Lily and Bel arrived, that’s where they headed for. Penny and Greg were attracted to the barns where they found animals of all kinds. Judy and James brought sweet tea and sat on the porch swings with Lexi. Sharkie, Ruggy, Angel, and Hector were busy playing tag and hide and seek, laughing like crazy.

      When they all begin to eat at a huge table, Hector sat next to Sharkie. He sits there and has a question for Sharkie. “Why did you help me?  I told you I deserved to be here, so why help me?”  Sharkie looks over at Hector and holds his hand. “Kid, when I first got here, I was you. I thought I deserved to be here, to be hurt for who I was. But Papa, Mom, and Dad (Luci, Lily, and Bel) showed be that those who told me that was all lies. It took a while, and therapy, to show me that.”

      They now look into Hector’s eyes. “What that evil woman said to you about what you and your mommy deserved was a lie. She hurt you because she thought people would think bad of her if they knew the truth. She was evil. She and her husband are in a place for evil people. And they will never escape to hurt anyone again. You…you deserve good things. It will take time, and probably some therapy. But this…paradise…this is what you deserve.”

      Hector has gone through a nightmare on earth, but in the afterlife has friends and family. Judy has become Grandma. Penny and Lily have been adopted as aunts, while Bel and Greg are uncles. Ruggy and Angel are like big sisters. And Sharkie…is Sharkie. And to Hector, that is how he wants it.

*************************************

      “She’s here, I mean here in the afterlife?” Lexi is now looking into the eyes of her hero and resident angel of chaos.

     “Yup.  As soon as we found out your parents were on level nine, we had a special pocket dimension created just for them.”  Sharkie begins to have a glint in her eye. “It looks like the basement where they took Hector. And I have a couple of things for you.”  Sharkie then hands Lexi a box.

****************************************

       Eleanor woke up in a dark room, a little confused by her surroundings. This was different than her normal cell on level nine. She remembers the day arriving here. Her husband arrived before she did, but under the same painful circumstances. Who knew that many actual mothers were in prison. Who knew the hatred they would have for a child murderer.

      She began to stand, but noticed that the floor below them was kind of wobbly and unstable. A tight strap was around her throat. She reached up and felt it. It was a dog collar attached to a chain on the ceiling. She began to struggle trying to loosen the chain, but to no avail.

      “Hey,” she began to yell out to the darkness. “I want to go back to my cell!  You have no right to lock me up in here!”  She is becoming to become very angry. “Listen, you bitches!  Let me go!  I will cause a world of pain and aggravation for all of you!”  And with one final big breath screamed out, “LET ME OUT OF HERE NOW!!!”

      A sound begins to break through the silence (after Eleanor stops yelling).  It is the sound of a lock opening, and then a large metal door opening. Because of the dim light outside the door, Eleanor did not see the face of who entered the room. She begins to hear foot steps heading toward her dragging something that sounds metal.

      “Who’s there?  Who’s out there?”  Eleanor becomes a little more scared than angry, but tries to act brave. “I don’t know what you are, but I am telling you to let me go NOW!!!”  At this, the other person in the room turns on a small light in the room. Eleanor squints as the small light is blinding in the very dark room.

      When her eyes come into focus, she at first sees a girl wearing jeans, steel-toed boots, t-shirt with a plastic smock over it, and long black hair with highlights covering her face. In one hand was the key to the room.  In the other hand, a metal (this is hell so this was not aluminum, but iron) softball bat. She slowly turns toward the door, grabs the handle, and looks up. The chained woman began to scream and beg when she saw the face of the girl. Before locking the door, the girl says two words…

      “Hello, Mother!”

P.S.  The screams were heard all the way to the Hellp Desk, putting a smile on Sharkie’s face.

Chapter Text

     “ Mama, why are you crying?” said the young girl speaking to her mother. Her hair was in tangles, and a bruise raised in her tear filled eyes. There was a cut above her eye, and was grabbing at her bruised ribs. This little girl saw the after effects of what had been a daily round of physical and mental abuse.

     “I’m just fine, honey,” said the mother. She wiped her tears, fixed her hair, and tried to look as if all was ok. “Just having a little difficulty, that’s all.”  She is trying to figure out how to lie to an innocent ten year old girl about what her newest boyfriend had done. She went to also check on her six month old son, who was crying. She went to get him to please stop crying.

     “Hey!” came a loud yell from the downstairs living room of the small duplex in the outskirts of Columbus. “Would you please shut that brat’s crying nonsense?  I’m trying to watch the TV for fuck’s sake!”  From his voice, this man was either drunk, high, or both.

     “I’m trying, Reg,” cried the mother. She knew what could happen when Reg gets angry. She wore the marks of his temper on her body and soul. She rocked, sang, patted, gave a pacifier, but it seemed like nothing worked. And the louder the baby cried, the angrier Reg got.

     “I SAID SHUT HIM UP, YOU STUPID BITCH!!!”  Reg is a mean drunk, especially when things are not done his way. “Do I have to come up there and shut his mouth myself because you can’t control your kids?”  The mother is now working even harder, begging a baby to please be quiet.

     “I’m trying my best, but,” said the mother in the quietest way possible, “he’s just a baby. I mean he is gonna cry, that’s how babies show if their hungry, or sick, or…”

     This made Reg even angrier. “Are you disrespecting me, Marie?”  He begins to rise from his chair and climb the stairs to where Marie and her children are. “You come into my home with you bastard children, I provide for us, and when I want a little quiet you sass me!?!”  Marie huddles her children closer to her to protect them. Reg is a mean drunk!!!

     “No, Reg, I was just sayin’…”. That was all Marie could get out before a hand reach out and slapped her across the face. He wore an old high school class ring from his long gone glory days on the football field. The impact causing some teeth to loosen and a huge gash on her cheek from the chipped cubic zirconia in the center. He knocked her backwards onto the bed while she was still holding a crying child.

     “You dare talk back to me?”  He now had not just anger, but hate in his eyes. “I took you into this house, you and your two brats, and you talk back to ME!!!”  He hovers over her in the bed. “You slut yourself around, have two children, then meet me. I give you security…and you give me nothing but back talk!!!”

     “No Reg,” said Marie, “I wasn’t sassing you!”  She has a fearful tone as she speaks. Tears are running down her face. She is desperately trying to cover up her infant child, prepared to take any hits just to protect her baby. All this as her little girl watches in fear. “I’ll get him quiet. I just need a little bit of time to…”

      “You can’t make him be quiet…OK!”  He then turns like he is going out of the room, but turns around with a face of pure evil. “But I can!”  He then proceeds to jerk the crying child from her arms and slap Marie back down to the floor. Then he proceeded to slam the baby into his crib screaming “STOP CRYING YOU STUPID PIECE OF…”. But before he could finish, he places a pillow over the baby’s face.

      Marie tries to pull him away with all her strength, but Reg just punches her in the stomach and then the face. She collapses to the ground. The baby stops crying. The mother goes to check on her son, but is grabbed by the bastard that is committing all of the violence. “There, baby quiet. Now time for the only thing you are good for!”  When Marie fights to get away, her effort is met by a knee to her stomach.  Then Reg feels small fists hitting him on the back.

      “LEAVE MY MAMA ALONE!!!”  cried out a screaming, crying, and brave ten year old. She watched as this monster hurt her baby brother. He made her mommy cry. He was hurting her mommy. She had to stop him, and would fight to do it.

     “You little…YOU SEE!!!” said an now enraged Reg. “You taught her disrespect!  You failed to teach her what her place is!”  He now focuses on the small but brave girl. “Do you know what happens to disrespectful brats who go against MY RULES?!?”  The little girl in one final attack kicks Reg in his shin.

     “GO TO HELL, YOU LITTLE BITCH!!!”  He, in a fit of rage, back hand slaps the little girl with such force that she falls down the stairs. At the bottom, she hits her head on the corner of a table.  She lies at the bottom of the stairs.  Massive internal injuries. Cracked skull. But enough fight to crawl to a phone, call 911, and say as her final words, “Help, he’s hurting mommy!”  And with that, little Belle enters the afterlife.

*********************************

      “Hey, Greggles,” said a joyous Asmodius. He was dressed in a Margaritaville T-shirt he got as a gift, Hawaiian shorts, a lei, and a pair of bat wing sunglasses…also a gift. “You and Nickel ready for Cheeseburgers in Paradise tonite. And,” almost screaming like a giddy teenage girl, “Jimmy himself will be performing, and joining us for drinks after.”

     “Yeah, Azzy,” said the normally dark head of level nine, “but I can’t wear the rubber duck shirt. Every time Penny sees it, she has a semi panic attack. When I ask he why, she says she’ll tell me later.”  Both demons look confused at each other when Bel and Lily walk up, dressed in their island best.

     “Thanks for setting this up, Azzy.”  said Lily. “It’s been a long week. If I have to face another Karen, I might send myself to level nine for a break.” With this, everyone breaks out with laughter.

     “What’s the joke?” said Sharkie. They have abandoned the onesie for one night for a baseball cap, Hawaiian shirt with sharks and “sky-sharks” covering it, and a pair or cargo shorts given by Steve Irwin at Christmas. “What stupidity came out of Azzy’s mouth?”  Now the laughter is even louder.

      “We’ll talk about it later,” said Bel, “after a few shots of Jose Cuervo and a couple of orders of fries!”  Then Penny chimes in. “And a cheeseburger covered in bacon and mushrooms. I’m starving!”  Greg now turns to his wife in her red tank top, jeans, and heels.

     After Greg picks his jaw off the floor, he bends down and kisses Penny lightly on the cheek. “The main event kissing will come later,” is what he whispered in her ear. Penny’s face got as red as her shirt. Lily gave a thumbs up. Penny mouthed to Lily ‘thanks for the outfit’.

     As they begin to walk away, Greg hears a whimper in the room. It was a sound of sadness. He usually hears tears of pain, screams of anger, and sounds of fear. These are people who deserve what they are getting, but this sound was softer, painful, and innocent. He kisses Penny and tells the group to go on. He’d catch up.

     Greg now begins to investigate. He feels that he needs to find that sound. Maybe it was a demon working at the CHC that felt a child’s pain. It could be someone whose friend has reincarnated. It might be a variety of things, but Greg’s nature is to find and aid as needed.  Lucifer has been referred to as Papa, Bel was Dad, but Greg was like the cool uncle that will comfort and avenge as needed. He even was given a plaque by Penny he keeps in his office:  VIOLENCE OR CUDDLES!

     Greg searched high and low. Checked the gate twice. Went to the other demons at the level entrances if they saw or heard anything unusual. As he walks up to Krun’s desk, the sobs get louder. He gets closer and closer to the source of the sadness, and when he finds it the normally stoic master of the worst punishment level in hell faces something that shatters his heart.

     He sees a small girl holding what looked like a baby doll. When he looks closer, he sees that the child is holding a baby in her arms. She’s rocking and speaking to the child. What Greg heard next began to stoke his anger. Not for the girl, but to whoever made this girl say the following…

     “Please, be quiet Lex. If Reg hears you, he’ll be angry. He’ll hurt us. He’ll hurt mama.  Please don’t cry.”  She says it through her own tears. Greg picks up his phone. “I won’t be able to join you tonight. We’ll talk about it later. I’m gonna need it. Love ya, Penny.”

     “Lily,” said Penny, “something’s wrong with Greg. I think we…”

     “Let’s go,” said an unlikely voice. “Y’all go see what’s up. I’ll come with you.”  Everyone is kinda surprised, but Azzy could only say one thing…

     “Ok, Jimmy. Let’s go!”

Chapter Text

     “Please don’t be afraid,” said Greg. “I’m not gonna hurt you. My name is Greg, what is yours?”  His voice is very soft. He is trying to hold in his emotion at the moment. Sadness for these children. Anger for whoever hurt them. Fear of causing more trauma to a hurting child.

      “My name is Belle, sir.”  The girl’s voice is quiet. She is still trying to get the small baby to stop crying. She was not afraid for herself. Her fear was in protecting her little brother. No one would hurt him ever again, even if she has to fight a demon to protect him.

     “That’s a beautiful name, Miss Belle.”  He then looks down at the infant in her arms. He looked into his eyes, and the small child actually stopped crying. “And what is this young man’s name?”

     “This is Lex.  His name is Alex, but I always call him Lex.”  Belle is still very quiet, and very protective. She turned to show her brother to the giant demon kneeling before her. She had been told about demons by some she knew from school, and she always was told they were mean and evil. So she wondered what trick was coming.

     “Well, honey,” asked Greg, “what are you doing hiding here?”  He was looking around to see if a newly arrived level 9 monster was chasing them or wanting to hurt them. But it seemed like they were hiding from someone specific.

     “I’m just protecting my brother!  I try to keep him quiet so that Reg won’t find us!  Lex might cry and hurt him again!  I tried to stop him, but I was too small.”  Tears begin to fall down the child’s face, but Greg also sees a determined look in her eyes. This is a small warrior princess who will fight to protect her brother. This child belonged in Valhalla, not hell.

     “Don’t worry.” His voice was still gentle, but a little anger began to rise in his voice. “Whoever this Reg is (and he will find him), he will never hurt you or Lex again!”  He now stands and looks at the child. “Would you like anything to eat or drink. We can find food for Lex; he looks hungry.”

     “We’re fine, Mr. Greg,” said Belle. “I need to find someone to care for my brother. I don’t want to be punished, but,” through tears Belle says, “I let my Mommy die. I let Lex die.  Reg told me to come here when I hit him.”  She now cries with emotional pain. “I need to be here!”

     Before Greg could say another word, Penny and the rest of the Hellp Desk arrived. Penny bent down to the two children and smiles. She gets a glimpse of her husband and saw the pain in his face. She comforts the two children as the rest surround them. As Judy comes in to help, Penny went to find her husband. He was in a dark corner, seated on the floor, trying and failing to hold back tears.

     “Honey, are you ok?”  She sits next to the master of the most extreme punishment level in hell. He leans his head against her shoulder.  She wrapped him in a hug, and his tears begin to flow. “I…I…I don’t know what to do.”

     “She was hiding from an evil monster that hurt her, her brother, and her mother.”  He looks at the little girl now drinking a juice box as Asmodius is holding Lex and feeding him a bottle. (He may be a goof, but has a dad heart when around small children.)  “She thinks that she could not fight the bigger adult, and deserves to be here.”  He bows his head, and says, “She blames herself for her brother’s and mother’s death.”  He pauses for a moment. “She thinks she was told to come here, but she does not belong here.”

     “I want to find the monster that sent them here!” said a now angry Greg. “I need to find out where he is now. If he’s still alive, I am gonna personally speak to Martha myself. I want this murderous fuck here. I want to deal with him personally!”  Penny knew how protective Greg is, and knows that whoever this Reg is, he’ll face a very vengeful demon.

       “Greg, we have a small issue,” said Sharkie. “Normally we would try to get into contact with the kid’s parents to stay at their paradise if they wanted to wait to reincarnate. But,” with a surprised look said, “their Mama survived. She is still in the mortal world!”

       “Penny,” said Greg as he stood up. “I need you to take the children to your paradise. Our home on the residential level might be a little too frightening.”  He has seen the care that his wife has taken with many of the little ones at the CHC, and that care was needed now. He knew he could be scary sometimes, and these two have been through too much trauma.

       “Ok, Greg.”  Penny could see the pain in his eyes. His reputation is one of intimidation. Many when he is out with Penny look and try to avoid him out of fear. Even some deities feared him, but once they get to know him, they see the kind gentleman who will be there for his family and friends.

       “I need to go check on a few things down at the office. Make a few calls.”  Penny began to see ‘the look’ in Greg’s eyes. He has gone from pain to anger to vengeance. “Call in a few favors.”  He kisses her on the cheek as he walks toward the offices of Six Feet, Incorporated.  “Greg,” as he is walking away, “what are you about to do?”

        Gregorith, master of level nine and avenger of the innocent, looks over his shoulder to look back at the two children who do not belong in his domain. He sees their pain without looking at a single file. Then he looks at his wife, gives a serious look, and says, “I gonna go possibly break a few rules. I’ll be home for dinner. Love you, baby.”

***********************************************

        A knock at a very familiar door causes the young lady at the desk in the small office to yell a familiar “Come in” without looking up to see who comes in.  What she sees when she looks up is a familiar, but not often seen face. Especially at least not at this office.

        “Hello, Martha,” says the red demon dressed in all black. He has a look of a man on a mission. “Hello, Greg.”  She turns her chair to look at the towering Greg. “Please, have a seat.”

        As he sits, Martha goes to the office coffee maker, pours herself a cup, and asks Greg if he would like a cup, which he declines politely. “So, what is so urgent that the head of level nine pays a visit?  Did Hera finally get angry enough to send you after Zeus?”

       “I wish that was why, but I have something more pressing at the moment.”  He crosses his legs and places his hands on his knees. “I need to find a mortal that is still on earth.”  He then hands over a request form for the files of Reginald Hampton and Maria Samson. “One is an innocent, the other will be a personal project.”

       Martha types in both names, and both files appear on the desk. Maria’s is in a white binder with floral designs. The second file is in an all black folder that just seemed to radiate the evil soul it speaks of. “It says here that Maria has many years before coming here. She was very close to arriving here, but her life was saved when the police came to stop her death in her then boyfriend’s hands. She was saved because…” Martha stops and shows rare emotion.  “Oh my God. Her daughter…”

       “Her name is Belle. She called the police before she died.”  Greg now pauses and thinks about what Belle said about could not save her mother and deserved to be in hell. “She saved her mom, but what about the other file.”

       Martha looked at the file, and dropped it in horror. “That monster!!!  Belle and her brother…he killed them?”  Greg did not have to say anything. The look he gave was all the answers she needed. “They were not his first. But they were the last. He’s now at a maximum security prison on solitary confinement for his own safety.  After hearing what he did, almost all of the prisoners want to kill him.”

        “This is a request for his death,” said Greg. “But I have a request for this one. I need a favor from you.”  He hands Martha a note, which she opens and reads. Then she looks up at Greg, who says just one thing:  “I’m calling in one of my favors.  I need to do this!”

       “Death?”

        “Yes, my mortal companion.”

        “I have a pickup for you with a special stipulation that comes with it.”

         “Martha, what have I told you. I not good at requests. I just do pickups and paperwork.”

        “No, you pickup, me paperwork.”

         “It the principle of the thing.  Besides, who can have a special request for death?”

           “I can,” says a very dark and scary voice from a dark corner of the room. Greg comes out and hands Death the file, which she reads. “Those kids are with Penny, and I just have one request for this monster’s pickup…”

             “I’m coming with you!”

Chapter Text

     Penny places Lex in the crib that Sariah sent over. After a couple of bottles, being passed around to Sariah, Lily, and Judy (along with Bel, Azzy, Sharkie, and even Dante and Tech Support John) the child went to sleep. His room has been blessed by a fairy friend of Lily’s, so that loud sounds won’t wake him.

     Belle is sitting at the little breakfast nook in the kitchen. She is currently eating her second helping of ‘pasketti’ and toast. She is looking around at all of the different people in the house, wondering why they are making such a fuss.  She, in her mind, was just in the way.  She thought about running out again.  She didn’t have full trust in them yet, but watching them take care of her baby brother made her believe they would take care of him.

     She watched as everyone seemed distracted, so she got up quietly and snuck out of the door. She ran a little ways, looked back, and ran away in tears. She would miss her brother, but he would probably be better off if she was not in the way. She got to the Universal Hallway, snuck past a group of demons in business attire, and ended up sitting behind a wall near the gate of hell. She knew where she belonged, and she was going alone.

***************************************

     “Belle, Belle!  Are you here Belle?”  All of the people who were there began looking frantically for a little ten year old. Penny looked around her paradise, asking all of her neighbors if they had seen her. Lily and Dante went to check cameras and see if they can find her. Bel, Azzy, and a few volunteers are on sky duty. Judy put out a few calls to many of the shops in the Hallway. Calls have been made to the Void, every pantheon and deity, and every level of hell.

     Penny tries to get a hold of Greg, but it keeps coming up as ‘out of range.’  She is worried. Where could she be?

*****************************************

     Belle is sitting at a bench just outside of the Rainbow Bridge. She smiles a little as a small calico kitten is playing with a huge bulldog.  There was no violence, they were playing as if they were siblings. She thought about her brother how much he would love visiting here. Maybe the nice ladies will bring him sometimes. She began to feel tired, and she laid down on the bench and went to sleep.

     An old man sits beside her. His long grey hair and medium length beard gives a look of wisdom, of distinction. He’s dressed in casual wear. Polo shirt with jeans…and silver Crocs. The only odd thing about this man was that he was wearing an eyepatch over his left eye. He watches there as she sleeps. No one was coming to bother this child as long as he was there.  He picks up his phone and makes a call.  “Lily, I found her.”

     The little girl begins to wake up, and is startled by the old man.  “I’m sorry, my dear. I didn’t mean to startle you.”  She wakes a little more and takes a closer look at the man. Except for the eyepatch, he looked like Santa Claus, except that ol’ Saint Nick had a belly while this man looked like a bodybuilder.

     “I see you like animals, would you like to go closer and look. They’re all very friendly.”  He looks at the little scared girl and then points at a lion sitting in the corner.  “That one there, that’s Leo. He looks scary, but he’s a big kitten around kids.”

     “I…I…I’m not suppose to talk to strangers.” Belle begins to look like she is gonna run, but the old man reaches out a hand. “You’re quite right, young lady.  Let me introduce myself.”  The little girl looks at the man’s hand, and notices a tattoo on his arm. It is a hammer with lightning surrounding it. She looks up as the man says, “My name is Odin.”

**************************************

     Penny arrives at the Rainbow Bridge after receiving a call from Odin himself. As she arrives, she is met with the image of a little ten year old girl playing with a pride of lion cubs and hearing something new from the girl…laughter.

     “Hello, All Father,” says Penny as she bows to the king of Valhalla. “Penny, as I have told you and all of the Hellp Desk, my name is Odin. None of the formal stuff.”  He now turns his attention to a laughing and playing Belle as she is now playing hide and seek with a couple of baby pandas and a huge gorilla. All are having fun.

     “I have her file,” said Odin. “I knew when I saw her she had a warrior’s heart.”  He turns to Penny. “That girl has a revered place at my banquet table. Stories and songs have been written in her honor. She fought. She saved her mother with her dying breath.”

     “She doesn’t know her mother is alive.”  Penny hands another file to Odin.  “This is her mother’s file.”  She begins to show emotion in her words. “The bastard put her in a coma for six months!  Multiple surgeries to repair the physical damage, but the level of PTSD and depression is another monster all together.”  She looks again at Belle. “But her mom is a survivor. She saw the bravery of Belle. She knows that she is the reason she is alive.”

     “I see where her mother gets her fighting spirit from,” said Odin. “And I already know of her. Her place in my domain is waiting for her. Her warrior spirit after the pain she has experienced in my opinion is greater than my own.”  He looks again at the girl. “I want the dark heart of whoever did this to her. To her brother.  And not just me. My two sons, Loki and Thor, want to,” as Odin thinks of the right words, “as Thor says, ‘bring the hammer down’ on him.”

     “You may have to wait in line.”  Penny looks at Belle. “If there is anything left after Greg is through with him.”  Odin looks down at Penny and asks, “Where is Gregorith by the way?”

     “Hunting,” said Penny. “He’s gone hunting!”

***********************************

     Reg is sitting in solitary looking at the tray that was brought to him. He has a black eye after a run-in with a group of fellow inmates. They found out why he was there. These men have very little contact with their own kids, but this bastard killed two and attempted to murder their mother. All because he felt ‘disrespected.’

     He moves the food around on the tray.  He got his last meal today. Convicted of several murders, assaults, and sexual assaults, he knows he will die today by lethal injection. He wants no priests, because he feels that he has nothing to confess to. He has no remorse, and he showed that by laughing at victim impact statements. He mouthed to a sad woman who came every day, “I should have killed you, then fucked you, bitch!”

     He swallows his last bite of his meal, sat back, and pretty much invited death to come for him. He knew he was going to hell, but he knew when he arrived that Lucifer would make him a chief demon of his realm. And no one would disrespect him ever again.

     At 10:59PM, Reg is lying on his cot as his cell door is opened and two huge guards enter the room. They are there to take the dead man walking to his final destination. He would be placed on the table either by walking on his own, or dragged kicking and screaming.  Reg was not gonna give them the satisfaction. The doctor that came in placed the IV port in his right arm. Then in defiance places his hands out to place the shackles on.

     After a walk down a long dimly lit hallway, Reg is placed and strapped down on a long cold metal table. “Hey,” he yells, “how about at least warming up the table. Might as well be comfortable while the state murders me!”

     The doctor begins to attach a IV line to the port in Reg’s arm. A priest enters the room for one final opportunity to ask for forgiveness, which is met by a venomous “FUCK OFF!!!” from Reg. When all the preparations are completed, the doctor exits the room, and the table is tilted so that he can see the large window in front. As the curtains are pulled back, and a gallery is shown to be full of those there affected by this man.

     The head guard in the room begins to speak. “Reginald Hampton, after being found guilty of capital murder in a court of law by a jury of your peers. You have been sentenced to death by lethal injection; sentence to be carried out today.”  He now looks at Reg.  “Do you have any final words?”

     He looks at the gallery, and he focuses in on Maria on the front row.  He smiles a greasy, evil smile toward her. “Hey, Maria?  When I get to hell, do you want me to say hi to your kids for ya?”

     Maria begins to cry. She is being comforted by members of her family, but she gains comfort when she looks in her hands. She had a picture in her hand of her children in happier times. All you hear her say as she looks up is, “They are at peace, and you will never see them ever.”  All Reg could do is laugh. He enjoyed her pain.

     The guard nods to a camera. The man looking at the monitor begins to open several valves that send the drug cocktail to end Reg’s existence in the mortal world. He closes his eyes and welcomes death. But after a few minutes, nothing is happening. He looks around, and everyone looks as if they are frozen. He sees the drugs close to entering his body, but they look as if they have stopped. Then he glances at the huge clock in the room. Time has stopped.

     “What is going on here?” yells Reg. “Am I asleep, and this is a dream?”  He now begins to brag. “I have a hell to conquer, and I don’t want to be late!”

      “Oh, Reg, if you only knew,” said a female voice in the background.

      “Who in the hell are you?”

      “I’m Death, lovely to meet you.”

Chapter Text

     Reg begins to laugh at the situation. “Oh, so your Death. Never knew it could look so hot!  Are you my reward, or bribery to keep me from taking over?”  His sarcastic tone rang out. “Ok, I’m dead!  Let’s go!”

     “No,” said Death. “You see my fine son of a bitch, you’re not quite dead yet.”  She then walks over to the table and began to fiddle with the tubing. “Even holding the poison until time starts again.  Chronos has really outdone himself this time.”

     “And since time for us is more of a construct we don’t have to worry about,” said a strange voice in the air, “we have all the time in the world.”  He then looks down as if he is looking at a watch. “Yeah…all the time in the world.”

     “Who is out there!” the now agitated Reg began to scream.  “Come out, fucker!” He now began to struggle at the shackles as if trying to rise up.  “I’ll beat you till you beg me to stop!  Come out you fucking coward!”

     “Coward?” said the voice in the shadows. “You are here because of not only the murder of Belle and Alex, but for the deaths and torture you did to so many more.”  The shadow man comes out. He is in a black button up with long sleeves, black slacks, and boots with steel points at the toes. He has long slicked back black hair. But Greg, for the moment, was hiding his true looks.

        Greg walks up to the table and places his hands on his wrists. “Coward?  You lure victims into believing you are a good man that they can depend on. You gain their trust.”  He is now looking into the eyes. “And then the monster rises up. You are so narcissistic that you saw anyone around you as disposable if they ever go against you.  And now, scum of the universe, you are going to be sent to hell. But the outcome you want is so far from what you want!”

       “What do you think you can do to me?”  By this time, Reg was acting a little impatient. “I’m going to hell!  What can be worse than that?  So let’s ride the lightning. I’m getting bored of this…and I have an appointment with Satan for drinks!”

       “So you think you’re gonna be friends with Lucifer, eh?”  Greg feels that now is the time. “Let me give you a hint of what is about to happen. You’re gonna die. You’re gonna go to a line of desks where you meet someone with a file about you. It will say you are going to hell. You will go, find out you’re going to a punishment level.”

        Greg walks away and turns his back on the condemned man on the table. “You’ll complain. You’ll believe you should become a demon or be given a second chance. You’ll go to this desk, and you will meet a group of ladies and a shark who will take no shit from you.”  Now Greg kinda laughs, giving even death cold chills. She knew what was coming next.

       “You’ll either go by trap door or a couple of seven foot tall demon guards will take you to the lowest depths of hell.”  Reg still has a look of hatred. “How about you quit talking and just get this over with. I’m getting a little bored with you.”

         “Well,” Greg now stopped walking.  “You better get used to me, but let me introduce myself.”  Now the lights go dark with one dim light stayed on. Greg now turns around and faced Reg. There was no more disguise, just one pissed off demon.

        “My name is Gregorith!  I am the lord and master of Level Nine of hell!  I render justice to the worst forms of evil ever created.”  He is now pacing, and Reg is following with nervous eyes.  “I met the last two children you murdered. My wife is with them now, comforting them. Belle thinks her mother is dead, and she thinks it is her fault, when we all know that it is yours!”

        “What…uh, what are you gonna do to me?”  said a now terrified Reg. His pulse was racing, his heart was pounding. Greg now comes closer. His eyes now solid black. His horns now appear in Reg’s vision. This is the fear that Greg wanted to see.

        “I am gonna redefine what hell is gonna be!”  The anger is now very visible. “You have become my very personal project. Good news…you’ll regenerate!  Bad news…YOU’LL REGENERATE AND DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN FOR ETERNITY!!!”  He now reaches his clawed hand around his throat.  “NOW IT’S TIME TO GO!!!  BUT DON’T WORRY…I’LL MEET YOU IN HELL!!!”  And with that, Greg and Death vanishes.  Time starts up again. The drugs begin to flow again.

        But there is now one difference, the once proud and arrogant Reg…the one who said he was going to hell to take over…was now screaming and crying.  He began to beg and cry. “Please, for the love of God, stop. I don’t wanna die. I do not want to go to HELL!!!”  He struggled, he fought, he choked. He looked one final time in the gallery. And all he saw was a tall man in black…waving. And with that…Reg was gone…and good riddance!!!

*****************************************

       Maria is sitting in a 24 hour coffee shop not too far from her home. It has been a very stressful but satisfying day. She is holding a picture of her children. The monster that took them from her is gone, but there is still something missing in their life. Her kids are gone. She blames herself.

       “I’m sorry, miss. Are you ok?”  She looks up and sees a tall man holding a take home coffee cup. She is frightened to speak to a strange man, especially nowadays. Her trust seems to be gone, as well as her will to live.

“Yea…I’m ok.”

       “I hate to intrude, but you just seem sad.  I just thought something was wrong. Enjoy your evening.”  As he walks away, Marie raises her voice.  “I’m sorry, sir. I…I just have a hard time trusting anyone.”  She looks at the neatly dressed gentleman, and feels that she should talk to him. “Will you join me?”  The tall man nods, and has a seat.

       “So, why so sad?”  Marie looks down at the picture in her hand again. “I thought that I would feel better. He is now gone for what he did to me,” as the tears begin to flow, “and to my children. I watched him die, but I still feel empty. He did the act, but,”.  Now the tears make it hard to talk.

       “You blame yourself. You feel if you fought harder, they would still be alive.”  Marie looks up in this man’s eyes. How could he know how she was feeling. “How do you know that?”

       And with this question, time stops again. Marie looks around at everyone in the diner frozen in time. Even the coffee spilled by the waitress and the pancake being flipped stopped in mid air. She thought, “I’m not drunk, gave up the drugs…I must be dreaming and I’m actually asleep.”

       The man looks at Marie. “Please don’t be frightened, Marie.”  He head snapped back around when she heard her name. “How do you know my name?”

       “Well, first let me introduce myself. My name is Gregorith, but please call me Greg. I know your name because I have met your children and read your soul file.”  Marie looks even more confused and frightened. “What in the hell are you talking about?  Is this some kind of sick joke?”

       “No joke.  I have met them both. They’re…” trying how to say this, but decided the most direct approach.  “They’re currently being watched by my wife and our friends in my wife’s paradise.”  He now sees the confused look in Marie’s face. “I am from…the afterlife!”

       Marie begins to get up to run, but stops when she hears Greg say, “She came down to hell because she believes she was not strong enough to save you and Lex. Belle believes you died.  When I first met her, she was hiding from the murder who killed them and looking for some help to help her brother.”

       Marie saw the frozen world around her, and a mysterious stranger tells her that her Belle blames herself for Reg…just like she blamed herself.  “Who…or what are you?  Why are you here?  Am I gonna die now?”  Greg reaches out his hand, and Marie reaches back.

        “I’m not here to take you. I’m not Death. But what I am…please do not be frightened at this.”  And when he says this, the illusion ends, and Marie was now in the presence of an almost seven foot tall demon, complete with red skin, tail, and retractable claws. She first felt fear, but when she looked into his eyes, she saw his gentle heart.

       “I am a demon. I am in charge of the worst level in hell.”  He looks down. “I came here to help Belle, and I came to introduce myself to that murderous bastard. You saw him beg for his life, because he knows that when he arrives, he will feel an eternal redefinition of horror and pain. I introduced myself as his new and eternal worst nightmare!”

       She looks down at the picture. “How are my babies?”  Greg can see the tears starting to come as he tries to hold back his own. “They are well. Lex is still presenting as an infant while Belle…”. His voice tapers off as he bows his head.

         “Belle is a protective little girl. It took a while before she would let go of Lex. She stood and said she felt she was in hell because she was too small to stop Reg.  She blames herself for the baby’s…and your…deaths.”  This is where the shock kicked in.

         “Blames herself for…”. She thinks back to that night, and remembers when the police busted in. When the investigation was on, she learned that Belle used her last breath to call 911. “She saved my life. Her final act was to call for help…for me.”

          “Me and my wife are trying to help her, but…” Greg knows he needs to be careful what he says, “…she needs to hear from you. She needs to know you are alive and your heart is healing. She needs your love. I just need to show that you’re ok.”

            “I’m not completely ok, but I am alive, because of Belle.”  Marie tries to think on how to help, then she looks at the picture. She grabs a pen from her purse and writes a note on the picture. “Can you take this to her?  Show her I’m alive because of her. She is a little warrior hero. Her heart is the reason I’m still here.”  She pushes the picture to Greg. He picks it up without looking at the note. That’s personal.

         “Thank you,” said Greg. “I’ll give her the note when I return, but I have a question.”  He looks into the eyes of the hurting mother. “Will you be ok after I leave. When time starts again, what will be next?”

          She looks down at another picture she has on her phone. “She saved my life, and I’m not gonna waste it.  We used to play hospital where she would be a doctor for her stuffed animals. I was her nurse.”  She looks up. “Tell her mama is one for real. Tell her I continue to survive because of her. I am broken, but I am doing better every day.”

          Greg places the note in his shirt pocket and stands up.  “I will give her the note. And I have a secret for you. You will see her again. You will see Lex unless he decides to reincarnate, and even then he will be loved. I will see you there to introduce my wife Penny. She is with your kids now, and she fell in love instantly. So your children will be ok.”

          She reaches for his hand as he turns to leave. “Can you tell them I love them?”  Greg looks down in her eyes. “They will know, and I will tell them. They will see you again when the time comes. Be well.”  And with that, time starts up again. She thinks that maybe this was all a dream, but looks in her hand to see a card in her hand. She reads the note.

          “You deserve good things. Your children will see you again. And Reg will suffer for eternity. He is my personal project now. He faces judgment forever. I’ll have a weapon for you when you arrive.  Just ask for Greg. Be well and live on. See ya in paradise.”

Chapter Text

     As he comes to the door of his and Penny’s paradise home, Greg is met by Franklin, their guard dragon and huge ‘puppy.’  “Sorry, buddy.  No astral snacks today. You’re still on a diet.”  Then looks around and whispers, “Maybe later.”

      Before he could even reach for the door handle, the door flies open and Penny runs out and kisses her husband. “Where have you been, honey?  I was getting kinda worried.”

      “I just had a few things I needed to take care of,” said Greg. Penny looked in his eyes, and she knows that Greg is not telling everything.  But she also knows that whatever he did, it was an act of justice. “Is Belle and Lex still here?”

      “Yeah.  Lex is in his crib in the nursery the house made appear.”  Penny says as she walks Greg over to the nursery entrance. “Belle has a room, too; but she fell asleep on the sofa after she snuck off.”  Greg’s eyes grow wide when he hears this. “Snuck off?” he asked.

      “I’ll explain later, hon,” says Penny. “But when we found her, she said she needed to be punished. We had a conversation, and she agreed to come back here.”  She looks at the sofa in the living room. “She is a fighter, but she believes she failed.”

     “I’m gonna sit on the sofa,” says Greg. “I have something for her when she wakes up.”  Penny looks at the master of level nine, sees the love and care in his eyes, and falls in love all over again. “I’m gonna go to check on Lex. The house gave me a massive recliner to sit with her. Take your time.”

     Greg kisses Penny on top of her head, and watches as she goes to the nursery. Greg goes over to the massive sofa and sits on the opposite side. The girl is sleeping peacefully. Greg notices that she was dressed in what looked like traditional Viking dress. He sits for a little while just watching this tiny warrior princess sleep. And after a while, Greg drifts off to sleep.

     It seems like a few hours, but Belle wakes up after five days. Her soul was extremely exhausted. But she begins to wake up, and Penny comes over to check on her…and her snoring husband. The little girl opens her eyes. “Good morning sweetheart. You slept for a while. Would you be hungry?”  She shook her head yes.

      Penny brings over a couple of muffins to Belle and a cup of coffee to Greg. “Belle, sweetheart, can I talk to you for a few minutes?” asks Greg. “I have a few things to tell you.”  Belle is at first kinda nervous, but she nods as she kinda fidgets with the blueberry muffin in the plate she is holding.

        “First of all,” said Greg, “I have the pleasure of letting you know that Reg will never hurt you again.”  Belle looks at Greg with first disbelief, and now with relief. “He faced mortal justice when he was alive, but will face punishment for eternity when he arrives here.”

        Belle looks at the giant red demon in front of her. She was afraid when she first met him. But one thing Greg can do is show that he may be feared, he will never hurt you…unless you deserve it. Any fear she had was vanishing quickly.

       “He was judged for what he did, and he deserves punishment. You do not.”  Greg now moves over closer to sit next to her. “He was the one who murdered your brother, and he is the one who murdered you.”  He reaches into her shirt pocket.

       “I was at Reg’s execution,” as Greg in now looking in Belle’s eyes, “and I put the fear of here in him. He will come here kicking and screaming, but he will be on my level, and he’ll feel fear and pain for eternity!”

        “I also saw someone else there.  They went to a coffee shop close to the prison.”  Greg is now looking at the picture Marie gave him. “She is broken and hurt. She was holding a picture. A photo she carried every day to court. She showed it when she told the judge about who was in the photo. But she also was there to make sure her kids got justice.”

        He hands the photo to Belle.  She looks at the picture, and the tears begin to flow. “Who gave you this?  This is a picture my mama took on my 10th birthday. No Reg.”  She looks up. “We went to grandma’s house. She and mama made cookies, and it was the first time I got to help.  It was a beautiful day. Then we had to go home, and Reg got home before we did.”

       “That was my final good day. Reg got angry, he covered Lex with a pillow till he stopped crying. The slap…the fall…the pain!”  The tears now flow. Greg now begins to explain.

        “The person in the mortal world I saw…is your mother,” said Greg softly.   Belle turns and looks at Greg. “Reg dragged her off after he hit me.”  Belle now began to become emotional. “I couldn’t stop him.  He sent me and my brother here. Maybe if you look…”

       “Belle,” speaking softer to the small girl, “she is still alive. You used what strength you had to call 911.”  He wipes her tears. “You saved her. She was at the monster’s trial every day holding this picture. She had it at his execution.  She told me it was the only thing that kept her going.”  Now Greg, the serious head of level nine, was having trouble with his emotions.

        Belle turns over the picture and sees the writing on the back. “Mr. Greg, can you read this for me?  Please?”  She hands the picture back to Greg who sits back to read. Belle, for the first time and without any fear, curls up next to the demon as he reads. Penny is listening from across the room.

       Greg reads as follows…

       “To my beautiful angel Belle, I want to let you know that I am alive because of you. Reg was hurting me, but because of you calling the police, they were able to get there and arrest him. I was in pain, both physically and emotionally. I was now alone. My reasons for living were gone.

          “I stayed alive to make sure there was justice for my babies. I told what happened, facing my fear looking that monster in the eyes. I watched as he was executed. The whole time thinking this was my fault. I was not strong enough.

           “But your friend convinced me that we fought to save each other. He killed my baby.  He killed my Belle, but I fought to stay alive to get justice. You fought and saved my life. You do not deserve punishment, you deserve all good things.

            “I will be fine. I will fight in both your’s and Lex’s honor. I will keep my angels in my heart. I love you my guardian angel. I will love you forever here, and when we will meet again.   All my love, my warrior princess.  Mommy.”

              Greg looked down, and saw the tears. But these were not tears of pain, sadness, or fear. This was tears of realization. She now knew that she fought. She saved her mother. She beat Reg. And she would see her mother again someday.

             Penny, now walking toward the pair on the sofa while wiping tears from her eyes, comes and kisses Greg on the head. “You may be a demon and head of a punishment level, but right now, in our eyes, you are an angel to us. I love you, baby.”

            After a while, Belle fell asleep on the sofa curled up against Greg’s side. She had the picture pressed against her, holding it like it was a teddy bear. Penny sat on the other side, placing her head against his shoulder. “They’re staying with us for a while,” said Greg. “I ran into Loki on the way here and heard about her place in Valhalla. But she needs to grow a little first.”  Penny, looking in his eyes, smiles. “I love you, Greg.”

***********************************************

       “WHAT DO YOU MEAN LEVEL NINE???  IS THERE NO ROOM FOR A SECOND CHANCE???  ANSWER ME YOU…”. Before any more words came out of his foul mouth, Lily and Penny simultaneously hit the slimy Reg with lightsabers…one to the face and one to the crotch. It took a while, but he regenerated. But still felt the pain.

       “I’m sorry,” said Lily, “let’s try this again. Hi, welcome to hell. This is the Hellp Desk. How can you humiliate yourself any further?”  She delivered with her usual level of sarcasm, but she knew this was to be a special day…a day of vengeance. A day of justice. They were prepared for him.

       “Who…in the hell…do you think you are?”  The venom and rage that brought him to this position was still there. He, in his sick and warped mind, still believed he did nothing to be here. These glorified secretaries were gonna let him go. And if they didn’t…

        “I’m sorry. I’m so rude.”  Sarcasm to Lily is an art, and she is ready to deliver. “I’m Lily, and I’m more than a ‘glorified secretary’.”  She holds up her wedding band. “I am a princess of hell.  Let me introduce my husband to you.”  Then Beleth, prince of hell and General of 85 legions, came out from the shadows. For this occasion, he is in full armor complete with weapons.

          The fear began to set in, but there was more. “My name is Judy. And, bless your heart, I have a friend who would also like to meet you.”  From out of the break room comes a husky Viking carrying a hammer…the mighty Mjolnir.  “I am Thor, son of Odin, god of thunder. And thine ass is in trouble now!”

          “I’m Sharkie.”  Reg looks down with distain. “And I brought a special guest to the party.”  Sharkie points to a pillar with their bat, and a tall demon dressed in a black suit, red shirt, and black tie walks out.  Reg began to feel the power coming from this being. “I am Lucifer and this is my domain!  Are you the cowardly child murderer that said he would challenge me!!!”  He pulls out a Roman gladiator sword and walks up toward Reg.

         Reg runs toward a desk where a brunette wearing a red blouse and jeans is watching. “Please, help me!  I want a second chance!  DO YOU HEAR ME, BITCH?!?”

         “Let’s start this conversation with an introduction.”  Penny, who normally is the mild member of the desk, had a look on her face that would probably freeze magma. “My name is not bitch, it’s Penny. And I think you already met my husband.” She point behind Reg, and he slowly turns around.

           He sees a tall demon walking towards him. Black turtleneck, black slacks, black boots with metal tips, and carrying a pair of daggers. Long black hair tied in a braid with a small pink bow placed by a special little girl. Horns like a ram. And red skin. When Reg saw who it was, the fear becomes more intense. And there is no escape.

           “I see you finally made it to the Hellp Desk.”  Greg, Bel, and Thor walk up and surround Reg, who looks like he is about to soil himself (but since he is dead, he will be eternally constipated).  “We have all been waiting to officially welcome you to hell.  Now my fun can begin!”

          “Who do you think you are?”  Reg with his final burst of rage lashed out at the trio surrounding him. “None of you are gonna do anything to me. And you know why?”  He stands up defiantly before these beings. “Cause I will proceed to destroy all you mutha…”

         Before the words even came out of his mouth, a huge bolt of lightning came down on Reg with the force of a hundred billion volts. But he does not disintegrate.  But felt the force of every volt. Then a very large and angry demon prince reaches down and grabs Reg by the throat. Lifts him up to where Reg is looking with fear into Bel’s black eyes.

         “Reg, you are in hell.” Reg looks over at Greg as he is spoken to in a very calm but cool voice. “For your many evil crimes, you shall go to level nine.  You be tortured and punished for eternity. But there is one change of plan.”  He looks over at the huge glass window near the stairs.

          Now the other souls…even the ones going to lower levels…stop to watch the beat down that was happening. His crime is deemed so evil that even the worst souls in line begin to cheer for Bel. They listen as Greg says, “You’re not using stairs or the trap door.  I have some preparations for you to make, but first…Prince Beleth, if you please.”

        Bel looks at Greg with a smile, and then glares at Reg, who throat he still is holding on to.  “Welcome to hell!  That man over there has some surprises for you, so you better hurry.”  With that, Bel throws Reg through the window so that he will hit every small ridge and sharp stone on the way down. His screams were heard until the window repaired itself.

***************************************

           Reg is shackled to the wall. He tries to escape, but the chains were fashioned by Hephaestus.  No escape was possible. His tongue has been removed, so all he could is grunt or scream. Stripped naked with nothing to lean against except sharp stone or volcanic magma. The room is pitch dark except for a light that shined down on Reg.

         “Hello, Reginald,” said a familiar voice. He knew that it was the voice of the master of level nine coming toward him. “I see you like your new accommodations.  You’ve seem to be a little speechless about it.”  Reg begins to grunt and try to lunge at Greg, which is met by a backhand to the jaw.

         “Now now Reg.  Is that really any way to be.”  The voice is cold, the movements slow and deliberate. “Compared to what you did in the mortal world, I’m going easy…so far.”  He walks over as another spotlight shines on a large wooden table in the middle of the room. Covering the table are various tools, swords and knives, maces, baseball bats,…anything that can cause pain.

           “Now I thought I would have all this fun to myself, but it turns out that Lex and Belle has a very large extended family in the afterlife.”  He looks at Reg, and points a dagger toward him. “You should see the waiting list of deities that want to get their hands on you.  You should feel special, with this all-star list that wants to get their hands on you.”  He now turns toward a switch. “But someone has something to say to you first.”

             He flips the switch on the wall, and another spotlight comes on. Standing there is a now 16 year old girl in Viking warrior armor holding what looks like a battle ax.  Around her neck is a locket with a picture of her mother on one side and one of herself and Lex, who has reincarnated two years ago.  (Marie now has a loving husband and a two year old son named Alexander…Lex reincarnated.) She has a determined look on her face; the same look a ten year old Belle had when Reg murdered her.

       “You thought I was nothing. You treated my family like trash. You used fear and violence to get what you wanted.”  She tightens her grip on the ax. “You thought you were the master of all around you, but you are nothing but a gutless coward. After today, you will no longer be in my thoughts.”  She looks at Greg. “The only thing I’ll do is smile every time I hear you beg for mercy that will not come…EVER!!!”

        Belle walks over to a series of switches and flips them on. Now the room completely lights up. When Reg’s vision comes into focus, he sees that he is a huge room. And it is filled with Viking heroes, multiple deities, several demons…all armed for battle. In the center of the group stands a tall older man with armor, shield, sword at the ready. Long white beard and a patch over one battle scarred eye finishes the look.

       “I am Odin, god of Valhalla, All-Father of the Vikings, and protector of all warriors and beings of honor. I am here on behalf of one of our bravest who died in battle and now sits at my dining table in a place of honor.”  He now reaches to place a hand on Belle’s shoulder.

       Reg looks around. He remembers all of the pictures of the Greek and Roman gods he saw in books. He sees the Viking hoard in the room ready. Thor is there, spinning his hammer ready to strike. “In the name of this fallen warrior princess we are here to bring justice…and pain…to you.”  He now looks at Belle. “When you call, Belle.”

        Belle walks up to Reg, ax in hand. She sees the terror in his eyes. He sees various warriors with weapons at the ready. She looks at Greg who mouths out silently, ‘You got this.’  She lowers the ax and reaches for a wood block with spikes all over it. She turns, faces him, and slams the spikes straight into his crotch. “WELCOME TO HELL!!!” were her final words to him.

         She turns and walks over to Greg, who hugs her and lifts her up into the air. He puts her down and reaches out his hand to her, which she takes without fear. They walk hand in hand toward the exit. Belle stops and hugs Odin, hugs Thor, and even hugs Loki. She looks at this trio and says…

        “He’s all yours!”  Belle and Greg leave the room and shut the door. His screams could be heard all the way to the Universal Hallway. But in the mortal world, Marie thinks she hears a scream of terror in the air, but is no one in distress. Then she remembers the coffee shop. She knows Reg’s fate. She closes her eyes, listens, and says into the air…

          “That’s my Belle. I love you my angel. Will see you again one day.”  And as she looks at her baby sleeping…”Don’t worry. Lex is safe, and will hear the story of my Belle…my Warrior Heart.”

Chapter Text

     “Julio, where have you gone, son?” asked a worried older man. He had just turned around when his son seemed to disappear. 

     “Over here, Papa,” said a young energetic boy with short black hair, striped shirt, baggy shorts, and sandals. He had run to one of his friends at the public market. He waved excitedly as his father headed toward him. 

     The father ran toward him and knelt down. “Julio, what did I tell you?”  He laid his hand on his shoulder. “These streets are not safe, especially nowadays.”  He looks around to see the bustling streets of the small Colombian community. He also sees the police and some cartel men, both carrying automatic weapons. 

     “I was just going to see Hector from school,” said Julio. “He’s my best friend, Papa, but I only get to see him at school.”  He looked to see if his friend was still there. “Can I go back?  We were just playing a game. Pleeeeease?”  

     He could never deny his son, but today he felt as if something bad was about to happen. “Son, listen to me. We need to get home now. We don’t want to worry Mama, do we?”

      “No, Papa,” said a dejected Julio. He turned to wave goodbye to his friend.  But this is the last time he would see him in this world. 

      Julio and his father picked up a few items at the market to take home. Julio loved to help carry the groceries with Papa. As they walked along, a group of men began to walk behind them. As they moved further, Julio’s father looked over his shoulder. He saw the men. He knew who they were. 

      “Julio, run!” yelled his father.  He turned toward the men as Julio tried to run trying not to drop Mama’s groceries. He stumbled, and it became dark as a bag was thrown over his body. He was kicking with all his might, but it was no use. 

     When the bag was removed, men began to stand still against the wall and be photographed. He later was taken to another room filled with more children his age, including his friend Hector. Before anything could be said, he was taken to a small room where a man wearing what looked like a doctor’s mask was there. 

      The man took Julio, who was now tied to a chair, and sprayed a nasty mist into his throat. Then he was force fed a bunch of small balloons. He gagged, but the man held his mouth till he swallowed. After swallowing what seemed like 70 or 80 of these balloons, he was made to shower and put on clean clothes. 

      A woman came into the room dressed like one of the weird Americans who come every so often. “You are going to be coming with me.  When anyone sees us, you will call me Mommy. Do not draw attention or try to run. If you do, I will kill you. Do you understand?”  Julio nodded. He was terrified.

      At the airport, he walked through what seemed like a million people with the lady holding his hand. Ever so often she would stop to have her bags checked and papers looked over. She would bend down with a smile as if caring for him, but repeating the same threat on his life. He said nothing. 

      As they boarded the plane, Julio noticed many on the plane were the kids he saw in the room after being taken. They all had adults with them, all looking absolutely petrified. Afraid of dying if they made a sound. 

      As he was buckled in, Julio felt a sharp pain in his stomach. The lady with him told him to keep quiet, but it hurt too much. A steward came over to ask if they needed anything, but the lady sent him away. “Stop squirming, you brat!  If you need to vomit, don’t!”  But now the pain was intense. 

      Now the pilot came out to check on the boy. “It’s just a mild stomach bug,” is what the mean lady told him, but he was not buying it. A doctor on board came to check him, but the lady pushed him away. Finally an American air marshal came to the lady and told her that her “son” needed medical attention. So they were taken off the plane and placed into an ambulance. But before reaching a hospital, Julio feels himself fading. He looks up and sees a lady with short black hair looking down. “I am so sorry, but I’m Death. You did not deserve this, but I am here to take you.”  She looked sad but kind.

      His final word was short. All he could say was who he wanted to see again… “Papa.”

************************************

      Dante, Orin, and a few other teenagers are at the CHC volunteering with Sharkie as their guide. They were headed to the sports area with equipment for the many sporting events there. Everything from basketballs to golf clubs. Whatever the interest, they had the equipment. 

      “Hey, Orin,” yelled his best friend Verick, “I challenge you to a basketball game one on one!”  Dante jumped in. “Hey guys, we have a job to do. And besides, we can’t risk Verick tripping over his tail again.”  This gets a laugh out of everyone…except Verick.

        As they move along Anath, another of Orin’s friends, sees a small boy carrying a small bag in his arms. He looked sad, and a little lost. She walks up to him. “Hey, can I help you?  Are you looking for someone, sweetheart?”

       He looks up and looks in the young demon’s eyes. You could tell he had been crying, but his eyes showed no fear. “I am looking for my Papa.  I was helping him with groceries, then I got lost. I need to get home before he and Mama worry about me.”

      Anath reaches out her hand and wipes his eyes with a tissue she has. Jadis comes over and tries to help with the bag, but the boy turns away. “No! This is my responsibility!  My Papa asked me to help carry this, and I need to get this home to Mama.”  Then he looks around. “Papa!  Papa!  Has anyone seen my Papa?”

      Sharkie hears the commotion, and they and Dante headed toward the child. “Kid, I hate to tell you this, but you died. This is the afterlife. Unless your father died before you, he’s not here.”

      “I can’t be dead!” Julio cried. “I have to get this bag to Mama!  She’s making my favorite for my birthday…birria tacos!  I have to get this to her. I need to find my Papa!  This is for my birthday!”  He now drops to his knees, “I can’t be dead!  I’m only 12!”  Then he yells out again, “PAPA!!!”

      Jadis and Anath try to comfort the boy, but all he does is fall into Anath’s arms and begins to cry out for his Mama and Papa again. Sharkie pulls out their phone and places a call.  “Mama, we might need you down here at the Hellp Center.”  She looks at the boy. “What’s your name, kid?”

       “I’m Julio,” he said through tears. “His name is Julio, and I think he lost part of his memory. He doesn’t realize he’s dead. Send help, please.”

        “I’m on my way!”  Just as she was getting ready to leave, a file appears. It was a bright green with the name Julio on the cover.  She opens it and touches one of the pages. “Oh my gods,” she said. “Someone will pay!”  And she went to meet the unfortunate soul that was taken way too soon. 

Chapter Text

    The small group of teens began to care for young Julio. He kept asking for his Papa, but had calmed down around the group of strangers. They finally convinced him to come with them to the dining hall inside the CHC main building. Asmodius prepared some birria tacos, which he ate several along with the other teens.

     “These are good,” said Julio as he wiped his mouth, “but Mama’s is better.”  Everyone laughed, even Azzy at that statement. “I’m glad you like them. I may be good, but I can’t add the love your mother must have had for you.”

     “I have never had these,” said Orin, “and I’m at the Taco Truck almost every day.” Anath and Jadis both agree with him, as this was the first time trying these. Sharkie, after downing their fifth taco, smiled. “I have these for lunch sometimes. But these make the Taco Truck have competition.”

      Lily arrives at the dining hall followed by Judy and Penny. She taps Sharkie on the shoulder. “I have his file, and it’s bad. His death was very painful, but the worst part is the fact that his parents don’t know where he is. They don’t know if he’s alive or dead.”

      Judy sat with Julio as the small group that found him listened and read the details of young Julio’s death. “He died because of balloons?” asked Jadis. 

      “Not quite,” said Lily. “The people that took him made him swallow rubber balloons full of drugs so that he could take them to the U.S. to be taken out and sold. When he and his handler were in the air on a plane, a couple of balloons burst and leaked into his system. His death was painful.”

      “How can someone be so evil?” asked Anath. “Using a precious child as a means to transport something so dangerous!  He was innocent, yet was used to commit a crime.” She looked at Julio, and began to cry thinking of the pain he suffered.

      “And you said that his parents don’t know that he died?” asked Orin. “How in the here do they not know?  Did they look for him?  Did they care?  Did they…” Dante had turned him toward him and looked into his eyes. 

      “He was kidnapped in a huge crowd!” said Dante. “I read the file just now.  When on the plane, they had given him false identification, meaning no one knew who to contact!”

      “They looked, and have looked for a few years,” said Lily. “But in the U.S. he was reported as a ‘John Doe’ because they had no matches to identify them.  They have spent all they have to find him.”

      Julio by this time had overheard the conversation.  “My Papa’s looking for me?  I have to go find him!”  He began to get up, pick up the bag, and ran toward the exit.  Sharkie stopped in front of him. “Julio, I am sorry.  You died on the plane in America. Your parents are still alive, but are trying to find you.”  He tried to get away, but Sharkie and now Dante held on to him. 

      “I want to go home!  I want to go home!” cried the young boy as he hugged Sharkie after dropping the shopping bag. “I want Mama!  I want Papa!”  He then looks up at the teens that looked on.  “I don’t wanna be dead!  I want…I want…” He was no longer able to speak as he was crying uncontrollably.

      Judy comes over and begins to comfort Julio. “It will be ok, sweetheart. We’ll see what we can do, but for now, we can help you. Do you trust us, Julio?”  Julio nodded his head, then looked at the teen demons that had found him. “Will you all come see me? I would like to have some friends.”

      “Julio,” said Anath, “you have a lot of friends here, and you will have so many more. We would love to see you often.”  He ran over and hugged his new friends, and then left to spend some time with Judy. 

      As he walked away, Lily spoke to these teens. “Thank you, guys. You were what that young man needed at this time.  Now we need to…” As she was about to speak, her phone went off. As she listened, her face showed a sense of anger and sadness.  As she hung up, she turned toward Sharkie. 

       “What’s wrong, Mama?” asked Sharkie. She looked over at her adopted child. “That was Siedah up at the Front Deathk.”  She lets out a sad sigh. “There are a group of about seven children between the ages of nine to fifteen. They all died the same way…a balloon full of drugs busted and poisoned them.”  Then Lily looks at her phone as the names appear. “One of them is named Hector.”

      “Hector?” asked Orin. “Is that…Julio’s friend.” Lily turns to the teens around her. “It is. But unlike Julio, his father sold him to the cartel to be used as a mule.”  Her face got bright red with anger. “In fact, three of the other six were the same way. Either because of poverty or greed; no matter the reason it is evil.”

      “What do we need to do?” asked Sharkie. Everyone in the group had the same question. “We need to figure this out.”  And she jumps into action. “Sharkie, you and Dante head to the Front Deathk and lead the kids to the CHC and get rooms for them and set up counseling.  Me and Penny will go get files and get the extent of the damage done to them.”

      “What about us?” asked Verin. “What can we do to help?”  Lily looked at the teens and saw the determination in their faces.  “Go with Sharks and Dante to help with the kids.  I have a feeling they’re gonna need help.”  And with that, everyone went to their respective assignments. 

**********************************

      After placing the new children in a special wing of the main building, Sharkie was speaking with her teen helpers down in the cafeteria. “I wish I had the ones who did this down here!  I would spend a few days locked up with them using my new toy…a lightsaber chainsaw!”

       “How can anyone do this to children?” asked Dante. “When I did work study at the Front Deathk, I worked with some children that came through that had died of illness, but what I have seen lately just…just…”  For the first time, Sharkie saw the normally calm teen’s eyes turn black with anger. It kinda scared them.

      “I know,” said Sharkie. “We’re all angry at this, but we need to focus on what we need to do.  We got all the child therapy specialists ready, the kids have their rooms ready, and ol’ Azzy have prepped all their favorite foods ready for when these soul tired kids wake up. We have to wait for Papa and Lily to find out what needs to be done next.”

      Anath and Jadis were coming into the room. “All the kids are asleep. A few of the kids here helped, befriending them all. Some even stayed with them until they went to sleep.”  Anath looked around and noticed something.  “Anyone seen Orin? I last saw him with Hector, but haven’t seen him since.”

      Just as she said this, Orin came into the room, followed by Lily and Beleth. “I was with Hector for a little bit. He said his father sold him…” and his head bowed down, “…sold him for $500 dollars.  $500 fucking dollars!!!”  Now Orin was angry. “I’m studying to help kids as a teacher, and I know no demon would do something like that!  How can anyone who is a parent do that?”

      “Some people may call themselves parents, but they don’t have the care to be a mom or a dad.” Lily now places her hand on Orin’s shoulder. “Your anger is justified here, but that anger also shows that you…” then looking at the rest, “all of you have a heart for children. Orin, that is what will make you an excellent teacher.”

      “Thank you, Mrs. Lily,”  said Orin.  “I just wish there was so much more that we can do, especially  Julio. Some who came in this group know what happened to their child, but his family don’t have that.  They don’t know he’s here.”

      “That is why I am here to speak to you all,” said Bel. Lily looked up at him with a loving look.  “I think I hear Azzy needing help right now, so I’ll…yeah.”  Lily sounded suspicious…especially to Sharkie.  But before they could ask, she ran toward the kitchen. 

      “Bel, mom is acting kinda weird.  Is something wrong?” asked an interested Sharkie. She knew something had to be up, but why would Lily walk away like she did. They would all learn soon.

      “No, she is just giving herself ‘plausible deniability’,” said Bel.  “What I am about to suggest is a little above and beyond.”  He now gathered everyone together so that no one else can hear except for the small group. 

      “Dante, you're gonna take point on this mission because it involves one of your ‘pastimes’,” said Bel. Dante looked confused at first, but then realized what the plan was gonna involve. “You mean…”

       “Yup,” said Bel. “You guys, except for Sharkie, are going on a kind of field trip…” as he looks around, “…to the mortal world.”

Chapter Text

     “Julio, are you ok, darlin’?” asked Judy. She had taken the young boy to her paradise. She noticed that when she looked in on him, he was just sitting on the side of the huge bed in the guest room of her and James’ home. He seemed a little fidgety as he sat looking around at his new surroundings. 

     “Yes, Ma’am,” said the quiet voice coming from the boy. “Thank you for letting me stay here. This bed is a whole lot nicer than I had at home.” He looks in the grandmother of the Hellp Desk’s eyes. “I slept on an air mattress in the same room my parents slept in. But it was great because my Mama would let me sleep in the bed if there was anything scary happening. And my Papa…”

     “I know, dear,” said Judy. “He would keep you safe.”  She then looks at the teary-eyed boy and holds his hand. “I know he feels like he failed you, but he didn’t. The men that took you…” as he holds him to look him in the eyes, “would have murdered him just to use you, but instead had used your friend Hector to…”

      “Hector?  Hector did this?  I thought he was my friend, and he took me from…”. Now tears of pain and anger formed. “No, Julio.  He did not do it to hurt or trick you.” Judy was now holding his shoulders. “He was scared. He was told that if he did not do this, the bad men would hurt him…and his sister.”

     “Gina?  They hurt Gina?”  Julio looked very sad. “She was more like a Mama to Hector than their own mother. They stayed with my family sometimes when her and their Papa disappeared for days. She was a couple of years older.”  He looked at the kind Southern lady. “What happened to them?”

     “Their father…” as Judy was trying to state as gently as possible, “sold them to the men that took you.  He sold them for drugs and money.”  He then looked into her eyes not understanding how their father could do that. “What happened to them?” asked Julio. 

     “They did use Hector to attract friends to be used to carry drugs inside of them. But after what happened to you and a few others, he tried to escape with Gina.”  Judy held his hand as he looked up. “But they were caught.  Because they attempted to get away, Julio was forced to carry drugs himself. And Gina…” She braced on what she was gonna tell a twelve year old. “She was given to the leader’s guards and they…they hurt her badly.”

     Julio’s anger turned to worry for his friends. He realized that Hector was not a traitor, but a victim who was afraid for his and his sister’s safety. He tried to get away, but was unable to. “And now…where are they?” he asked. 

     “They’re at the Hellp Center, sweetheart,” said Judy as he fell into her arms. “Gina was so ashamed of what those evil men did she took her own life.  Hector…suffered the same way you did. But he was alive long enough to escape and report the drug ring to the authorities before…”

     “So they are here?” asked Julio.  Judy nodded yes. “I would like to see…my friends, please.” Judy smiles at the young boy as she picks up her phone. After she hangs up she turns to Julio. “They are what is known as ‘soul tired,’ so they are resting at the moment. But the people helping them and the others with them will call when they wake up.”

     Julio smiled, and then yawned. “I kinda understand about being tired. I could use a nap myself. Can I sit here for a few minutes?  I’m just a little…”. Before he could finish, exhaustion set in and the small child went to sleep. Judy moves quietly and places the blanket on the bed over him. He curled up with the stuffed orange shark given to him by Sharkie. “Sweet dreams, darlin’. Sweet dreams.”  James was waiting for her. She fell into his arms in tears.

***********************************

     “Are we gonna get in trouble for this?” asked Orin. “I mean I’ve heard of doing this, but actually sneaking into the mortal world?  We’re gonna get smote for this!”

     “Don’t worry,” said Dante. “We are not gonna be smote. I’ve been here before many times…just not as a part of a secret mission.”  He looked at himself in a store window. He felt kinda strange looking like a young mortal with his horns hidden under his baseball cap. Orin reached up on top of his head and could feel his horns, but were invisible in his reflection. 

     “The thing is,” as Dante continues, “I’ve never come in disguise or actually spoke to a living mortal before, so I’m a little nervous.”  He looks down at the piece of paper Prince Bel had given him with a specific address. “I…I think we’re here.  Would you like to knock or should I?”

     Before either could knock the door came open and an older looking man opened the door. “I’m sorry.  Can I help you youngsters? Are you lost?”  They look at each other, and without any opening small talk Orin asks, “Is your name Juan, and did you have a son named Julio?”

     “A little blunt, Orin. But…,” now turning to the gentleman at the door, “we were looking for a Juan and Delia in this area.”  The man at the door looked confused. “That’s me and my wife, but how do you know me…or my son’s…”. Then his eyes widened. “Do you know Julio?  Do you know where he is?  Can you take me to…”

     “Hold on, sir,” said Dante. He held up his hand to try to stop the excited man. “We can explain all of this.  May we come in? We need to talk to you about Julio.”  Juan nods in agreement and allows the two young ‘men’ into his house. 

     “Delia,” Juan cried out. “We have guests.”  He turns his attention to the guests. “Can I offer you anything to drink or snack or…”. Dante speaks up. “No, sir.  We’re fine. May we please sit?”  All four sit at the small dining table in the kitchen. After a moment of awkward silence, Delia speaks up.

     “So, how do you know my Julio?” she asked.  Orin and Dante look at each other, and Dante turns to speak. “We met Julio a while ago. He’s a great kid.  Very excited, but kinda scared.”

     “Scared of who?”  Juan thinks for a moment, then becomes excitable. “Scared…of me?  He doesn’t need to be scared of me!  He’s not in trouble! We love him and just…”

     “No sir, he’s not scared of you or your wife,” said Orin. “He misses you, and spoke of you when we met…” Before he could say too much too fast, Dante kicked him in the shin. But it was too late. Juan picked up what Orin said. “Where did you meet?  Where is Julio?” And now through tears, “WHERE IS OUR SON?!?”

     Dante looked at Orin and realized there was not gonna be an easy way to do this. “Sir, I need you to not be afraid or jump to conclusions when I show you this.”  Both parents look confused, but the confusion ends when Dante takes off his cap, and he shows his horns.

     Delia screams, and Juan jumps back and grabs a crucifix off the wall. “Sir, we are not here to hurt anyone!  Yes, we are demons.  Yes, we came from hell. But…”  Dante tries to calm down the situation, but all there was was a whole lot of screams and yelling. Finally, Orin asked Delia a question that stopped everyone: “What’s the secret of your birria?  Julio said you make the best.” 

     “How do you know about his favorite food?  Is he not being punished by you?” asked Delia. “No, of course not,” said Orin. “Hell is more about healing and justice for evil, but Julio is an innocent child who was used for evil. He is safe and protected, but…”. Orin bows his head and takes Delia’s hand. “…he’s no longer a part of the mortal world.”  Then the tears began. 

     “Why is he in hell if he’s innocent?” asked the father. “Is he being punished?  Is he being hurt?”  Dante spoke calmly to the hurt father. “No one is hurting him. He is being cared for by some friends in paradise. There are some that believe that they cannot be forgiven or refuse to believe they are dead. But nothing was his fault. He is well. He has friends. He is protected.”

     After the father calmed down and sat back down, Orin spoke. “He misses you both, and knows he will see you again someday. But we are here to help you find some closure to where to find Julio’s body and to help through the grief.”

      “You can bring him home. Give him the honor he deserves and the peace you both deserve.”  Dante was now reaching out his hand on the table, and Juan accepts it. “Where can I find my son?”  Dante gives details on where Julio is, and Delia writes something and gives it to Orin. 

      “He is not alone,” Dante says sadly. “His friends Hector and Gina are with him. They basically died because of the cartel in this town. Their father…” Juan was angered again. “I’ll kill him myself! I’ll send him…”. Dante calmed him down again. “No, sir!  He’s being…‘taken care of’.  But I do have something you can use to get justice on the ones who did this.”  He hands Juan a folder with evidence and pictures. Julio will have his justice. 

Chapter Text

     Julio was a little nervous when he arrived a few days later to the CHC. He had slept for the equivalent of a mortal week, and the whole time dreaming of his Papa playing ball in their backyard while Mama was watching and cheering like they were at a real baseball park. She would even make hot dogs and popcorn just like at the park in the city…only better. 

     As he walked in, he saw the two ladies that he met just a few days ago. Lily and Penny were sitting and talking to Anath and Jadis. There was a pair of siblings sitting with them. The group was trying to keep the two calm, but through the tears and frightened glances they looked at the mix of souls and demons around them. 

     “I’ve done way too much to even think about paradise, Mrs. Lily,” said Hector. “I helped the cartel kidnap kids my age to be used as drug mules to pedal their poison. I lost friends! I lost my best friend! I could not save my own sister!  I deserve to be in the deepest parts of this place!”

     “Hector, if anyone deserves punishment,” said Gina, “it’s me!  I didn’t fight when that bastard touched me. I let him do it to protect you, but it didn’t. And he used me as a way to make deals with perverted sellers to save money. Then, when we tried to get away, his guards…” She was unable to say more. She tries to block the memory. 

     Lily takes Gina’s hand as Jadis puts her arm around her shoulders. “Listen, both of you. None of what happened was your fault!  Gina, you are a young teen girl that these monsters took advantage of. You thought you were protecting Hector. You were afraid for your life. No one here blames you for what you were thrown into.”

     Then she turns to Hector. “And you were a scared child who was made to do these things, and you tried to escape. You fought. You gave information to shut down a lot of their handlers in the U.S.”. She holds both their hands now. “You did not have the best life. Your mother left. Your father gave you to these men. They took advantage of both of you. You are innocent!”

     “She’s right, you know,” said a familiar voice coming from behind them. As they turn, they see the smiling face of Julio. “You have nothing to be guilty for. We were all victims of these evil men. They are responsible for us, and from what I hear, they will have more than hell to pay.”

     The brother and sister walk up to Julio with shocked faces, but shock turns to joy when the three begin to hug, scream, and cry tears of happiness. “I missed you, my friends. I hate the way we got back together, but I am glad we are together again.”

     “Oh, Julio!” cried Hector. “I was afraid I would never see you again, and if I did I thought you would hate me!”  Julio hugged his friend tighter. “I could never hate you. You are like a brother to me!  And Gina,” as he turns to the girl, “are the big sister I always wanted!  I love you both!”

     “So you forgive me,” said Hector. “Oh, my amigo, there is nothing to forgive.” And the hugging continues as the reunion continues. 

     “So, Lily,” asks Judy as she walks toward her, “I heard through the celestial grapevine that your husband has been away for a little bit. Anything I should know?  I mean in case I need to come up with a story if anyone asks.”

     Lily looks at her friend with a sneaky side-eye look as if she knows something. “I don’t know what you are talking about.  He’s just away on,” with a smirk on her face, “some personal business.”

***************************************

     Pablo reaches into the dingy fridge to find a can of the cheap beer he drinks every night. After another day of scraping by to get some beer and cigarettes, he sits back in his beat up recliner to swallow his latest dose of liquid courage. He realizes he emptied the can too fast, so he goes back and grabs the rest of the case. He was drunk, and wanted more. 

     Just as he is about to open his next can he hears a noise in the back room. Thinking it’s either the wind or a new critter walking through, he pops the top and begins to swallow the stale liquid as he hears it again, only louder. He hears a creak on the floor. He thinks, ‘Who in the hell would break in here?’

     Again, he hears movement, but this time he reaches for the small revolver he has on the side table next to him. “Whoever you are, leave now. I am armed, and I will shoot!”  He waves the gun around looking for a target. Fear has crept into his mind, but he was ready to kill whoever would dare mess with him. 

     He sees movement, and he fires. He empties the gun in the direction of where he thought he saw something. He begins to try to reload, but as he reaches in the drawer of the side table for more ammo, the door swiftly shuts with his hand still inside. He screams in pain feeling at least three of his fingers break. He looks up and sees a very tall shadow in front of him. 

     “Now, we can’t have you waving that thing around! Someone might get hurt!”  As he is saying this, he is repeatedly opening and closing the drawer, causing even more pain and more bones breaking. “Besides, I just came to talk.”

     “Who are you, and how did you get in here?  I want answers mother…”. Before he could say more, Pablo feels a large hand slap him across the jaw even harder than the punch he took at the bar two nights ago. He falls back into his chair and drops his gun. The huge shadowy figure picks it up. 

      “You won’t be needing this!” said the stranger. Pablo watched in horror as the figure picked up the gun and crushed it with one hand.  He drops it in Pablo’s lap. Barrel is bent. Chamber is a pancake. The metal looks oddly like it has been…melted!

     “Who are you,” he asked again. Now his voice is quieter, and the alcohol has seemed to have lost all of its effects on him. Fear had taken over. This was not just an ordinary stranger. This was trouble that there was nothing he could do about it. 

      “How rude of me. I’m sorry. Allow me to introduce myself.”  The shadows lifted, and a huge seven foot tall gray demon appeared. He’s in full armor with a sword at his side and a battle axe on the other. His wings were spread out enough to show their enormous size. But it was his eyes that brought fear. Jet black and showing a level of anger Pablo has never seen. 

     “My name is Beleth, Prince of Hell, General of 85 legions; and right now an avenger for two young children that you caused pain to!”  He moves a little closer to Pablo to where he can look eye to eye with him.  “How could you sell your own children to monsters?  Drugs and beer money?  That is what you thought your children were worth? What kind of monster are you?”

     “Monster? You’re calling me a monster? Have you looked at yourself?” After saying that, Bel lifted Pablo by the throat and threw him against a wall violently. “Again, fucker, I’ll ask you: WHY DID YOU SELL YOUR KIDS?!?”

     He rose up grabbing his ribs. “I wanted them gone!  Their mother left with our dealer, and she left me with a pair of brats and no money! I was gonna get rid of them, and this was easy money!”  He then looked at Bel with disdain. “I took their money! I took the drugs! And I washed my hands of them! As far as I’m concerned,” he then spit blood on the ground, “to hell with both of them!”

     Bel’s rage had now gone to nuclear levels. He ran over to Pablo and picked him up by his throat and raised him to eye level. “Let me tell you a secret. They came to hell, but that is not a place for innocent children!  But you…there is a place for you reserved. The level you will be sent to is run by a friend of mine, and he is eagerly waiting for you!”

     “What ya gonna do, kill me?” asked Pablo. “I have a secret for you: I found religion and got baptized a few weeks ago, so you can’t touch me!”  He got smug and spit in the demon’s face. “My place in heaven is reserved, so do your worst!”  With this, Bel began to laugh. 

     “You got dunked in water and think you're safe?” laughed Bel. “You did this to think you gained a ‘Get Out of Hell Free’ card, didn’t you?”  He put the man down on his sofa. “You did this for selfish reasons, and not for true faithful reasons. So all you got was a free bath, not salvation.”

     “And besides, I’m not the one who is gonna kill you.”  As he said that, a loud knock is heard at the door. “You see, you have been named as a witness in illegal activities, and I would think that is someone to shut you up!”  He then walks to the door. “But don’t worry, a police unit is on their way to arrest those men, but it will be too late for you!”

     Pablo tried to turn to run, but the door busted in. Men wearing bandanas over their faces enter in with guns drawn. “Pablo! You son of a bitch! How could you betray me?”  Pablo tried to run, but the pain in his ribs and hand slowed him down. He was caught and dragged back into the room. He is held up as the third man raises a pistol to his head. 

     As he faces his fate, Pablo sees Bel’s face behind the assassin, and hears one final thing before hearing the final shot:  “See ya in hell, murderer!”

BANG!!!

Chapter Text

     A large group has gathered in the dining room of Bel and Lily’s home at the residential level. Asmodius comes out of the kitchen carrying a huge platter of several different meats…including birria…for all the guests there. A celebration is going on as a TV is set on the news on MortalTube. It seems that a large amount of evidence has come to light and a huge drug smuggling ring has been busted under a litany of charges. From human trafficking to smuggling to murder, everyone in the cartel…including all of their leaders…are heading for very stiff sentences. 

     As the news is shown, Lily and Bel are helping set up a huge taco and nacho bar to feed all of the guests. Penny and Greg enter with a huge platter of empanadas while Judy and James have the various baked desserts of all kinds. Angel has the wine for the adults.  Ruggy and Sharkie have the sodas. And following behind is a large group of teens and pre-teens coming with huge appetites. 

     Julio watches the screen intently as the woman who was with him on the plane the day he died was being hauled away in handcuffs. Hector and Gina see the one who they were sold to as one who was hit in a gunfight with DEA agents. They all look at each other in relief. They will all have justice. 

     Azzy and Sariah call everyone to the table as dinner is served. Hector, Anath, and Jadis all reach for tortillas to fill with the spicy chicken while Gina, Lily, Penny, and Greg reach for the carne asada with chimichurri. For Bel, James, and Sharkie they went for a mix of all the meats. Judy saw some Texas brisket. 

     Julio, Orin, Dante, and Azzy went straight for the birria. As Julio takes his first bite, he notices a little difference than the last time he had these with Azzy. These tasted familiar. Not exact, but almost the exact same flavor as…

     “Mr. Azzy, did you change something since the last time you made birria?”  He looked at the demon in the apron and chef’s hat with a slight tear. “This tastes almost like Mama’s. These…I miss her. These almost taste like she’s here. Please tell me.”

      “Well first,” said Azzy, “we’ll drop the Mister from my name. Mister is my father.”  That gets a laugh from everyone. “Second, I had a little help with these.”  He reaches in his apron, pulls out a slip of paper, and hands it to Julio. He opens the folded sheet and is shocked instantly. 

     “This…this is my Mama’s handwriting. How,” as he wipes a tear away, “how did you get this?  This is her recipe for birria.”  He looks around the room as now everyone is looking at him. “How is this possible?”

     Dante and Orin look at each other. “Let’s just say that this was a gift from your family. They know,” as Dante looks now at Julio, “that you are safe and loved by so many here as much as they love and miss you.”

     “They found you, Julio,” said Bel. He walked up to him followed by Hector and Gina. “They miss you, but they now have closure…and justice.”  He looked at the TV screen. “You notice where it says that a secret informant sent the evidence to them?  It was evidence that was given by us…by way of your father!”

      “Papa! You saw Mama and Papa?” asked an excited Julio. “Dante and Orin met them, and helped with arranging the end of those monsters. They are sad, but also at peace knowing that you, Hector, and Gina are safe. And they know you are waiting for them.”

     “Read the bottom of the recipe,” said Orin. Julio looked at the paper and saw that his mother promises that the first thing she would do next time she sees him…birria for everyone. 

     “Thank you, to all my friends,” said a smiling Julio. “Mr….I mean Azzy, what was the missing ingredient? What was the secret? I mean she never told me; and trust me, I watched.”

     “Well, Julio, I found that it is an ingredient that I kinda knew but was unable to use.”  He points at the note that tells her secret ingredient. “This recipe came with the ultimate ingredient…a mother’s love.”

     Bel takes Hector and Gina to the side. “I met your father.” They looked at the demon with confused looks. “Your mother, from what I have read, had left the man she ran off with, got herself clean, and actually tried to get you back. Only by then your father had already done his evil, and you were gone.”

      “She left us with him.  Why would she do that?  Did she not love us?” asked Hector.  Sharkie hears this and turns to the siblings. “My mortal mother had her addictions in her life, and in that life she made damaging decisions.”  She looks at them both with a tearful expression. 

     “Her addictions made her lose so much. I was taken away and left to the foster system. She had a disease that she was unable to find help for, and ended up in the afterlife.” Sharkie now smiles. “But she has reincarnated, and now she is a beekeeper and will have Ruggy as a daughter, giving both another chance.”

     Ruggy now comes up. “Your mother saw the error of her ways, and is now doing all she can to live a life…and this is her words…‘that her angels will be proud of’.”  They now hand tissues to Gina and Hector. “We are proud, but will we see her again?  Will she have a paradise for her?”

     “From what I read,” said a deep voice coming up from behind, “her paradise has already been prepared.”  They turn and see the powerful image of Lucifer in the doorway. “She has put in the work to change, and is helping those that have gone through what she has. She will see you again.”

     “Hey, Luci,” said Lily.  “It seems Azzy went a little crazy cooking again.  Would you care to join us?”  He looks at the huge taco bar with a smile. “Well, since I could smell all this from my office, I would love to.”

     “You should try the birria, sir,” said Julio proudly. “It's my Mama's special recipe.”  Luci smiled and saw the joy in the boy’s eyes. “Julio, that’s what I came for. Birria is one of my favorites too.”  The boy takes his hand and leads him to the bar. 

     “So, Bel,” asked Greg, “what happened to Gina and Hector’s father?  Any redemption there?”  Bel turns to his friend, then looks at the brother and sister again. “No. He should be heading to level 9 now.  I paid him a little visit in the mortal world.  He should be in a holding room with a few cartel members…mainly the one he sold the kids to.”  He looked at Greg.  “This has one request to it…l want in!”

     “Me too,” said Judy. “I’m in,” chimed in Azzy. “Sounds fun,” said Angel. More chimed in with a wish to join in their suffering until one final voice speaks up. “As the master of hell, I call first shot,” said Lucifer. “And I have a plan to introduce myself.”  And with that, the taco party continues. 

********************************************

     In a dark, dingy dungeon on level 9, Pablo sits chained to a wooden chair at a long table surrounded by other shadowy figures sitting also at the table. They are all looking as if they were all suspicious of each other. He could feel a lack of trust in the room as well as a feeling of familiarity. 

     The sense explains itself when several spotlights shine on the many faces in the room. Pablo recognizes one of the men, an overweight older male with a gray goatee and black and gray short hair. He also recognized many there as the bodyguards and accomplices of the large man’s many crimes. They all looked around their surroundings, and then turned all their attention to Pablo. They all began to chant one word: “Snitch!!!”

     Pablo begins to look around in fear. “What do you mean ‘snitch’?  I’m no snitch, puta!” said the angry Pablo. “I live by a code. I gave up no one. I tried to prove myself to you; to join the cartel! I gave you my children! I…”

     “You sold me those kids!” said the fat boss, spitting in Pablo’s face. “You wanted drugs! You wanted cash! You basically sold your soul for $500 and a bag of cocaine!”  He tries to lunge at Pablo, but the chains stop him.  “You slimy snitch bastard!  I should have killed you when I had the chance!”

     “But, sir,” said a whimpering Pablo, “I didn’t snitch. I swear on my soul and my life! I did not talk to anyone!”  Then he begins to remember something. “It was a…a demon!  He told me one of the demons with him gave info to someone’s father!”  He thinks further about it. “I think his name was Bill…Bial…Bela…”

     “The name is Beleth!” stated a loud voice that screamed power.  “Prince of Hell and General of 85 legions!”  Then a seven foot grayish demon walked out from the shadows. He again is in full armor, but this time his sword is out of its sheath. He walks up behind the fat boss and slams his sword into the table. 

     “Who the hell do you think…¦,” screamed the boss, but Pablo jumped him.  “THAT’S HIM!!!  THAT’S THE DEMON!!! HE’S THE ONE WHO SAID HE GAVE THE INFO TO THE AUTHORITIES!!!”

     “Are you saying this…this ugly fucker is the one,” saying with an air of arrogance, “who dared snitch on me?  ON ME!?!” He tries to pull at the chains to attack Bel, but all he felt was a metal gauntlet covered glove to the side of his fat head. It almost did a 180 degree spin until he slumped on the table. 

     “Did I say you could speak, asshat?” asked Bel. He grabs what hair he has and sits him up. “Now let’s see.  Pablo I have met, but the rest of you scumbags…I am just so excited to meet you.”  He did a sarcastic dance, then slapped one of the boss’ minions in the back of the head. His head slammed hard on the table so hard he sprung back up in his seat. 

     “I have something against all you bitch ass fuckers!!!”  He turns to Pablo, pulls his sword out of the table, and places the point of the blade on his throat. “You!  You sold your children to this perv and his team of rocket surgeons over here for drugs…and $500!?!”  He pushes in a little without piercing. “You sold priceless angels for beer and drugs! What possessed you to…”

     Pablo smirked a little, looked at Bel, and laughed out, “Well, I guess the devil made me do it.”  When he said that, a large hand grabbed him in the back of the neck and pulled him off his chair with such force that his arms ripped out of their sockets. All that was heard was blood curdling screams. The arms vanished, and Pablo was placed back in the chair with arms attached, but massively scarred. 

     All of the other prisoners became ill. An immense amount of power is felt throughout the room. And in the darkness, all that was seen at first is a pair of red glowing eyes coming closer. As the eyes came into the light, all of the men begin to tremble in fright. 

    “So,” says the gigantic but well dressed demon, “let’s make this perfectly clear!”  He pulls Pablo’s hair to where they can look eye to eye. “I DIDN’T MAKE YOU DO SHIT YOU MAGGOT ON A DUNGHEAP!!!”  Then he repeatedly slammed Pablo’s head into the table until everyone heard bones break. When he stopped, he was unrecognizable as a human. 

     “Now let me introduce myself.”  He rises to his full seven foot tall height, removes his tailored jacket and black silk tie, opens a couple of buttons on his shirt, and rolls his sleeves up. He bends over to look at the supposed cartel lord in the face. “My name…is Lucifer Morningstar. I am the ruler of hell, and about to become your worst nightmare for eternity!” 

     The fat boss looked at the master of hell with scorn…and actually spit in his face.  Lucifer rises to his full height and takes out a handkerchief out of his pocket. He wipes his face as the boss speaks. “So you're the devil himself. Needless to say I am not impressed.  But in my defense, I am just a poor businessman just supplying a need for a select clientele. You can appreciate…” And before he can even finish, Lucifer turns to him with his eyes glowing. The lights go red as the power radiating from Lucifer grows.

     “YOU LITTLE SLIMY BITCH!!!” Lucifer yelled with massive anger. “YOU TOOK CHILDREN TO FACILITATE YOUR CRIMES!”  The handkerchief in his hands burst into flames as his radiating power was now causing pain. “The boys…you used like human cargo shippers to transport your poison. If any die, you can find more. And the girls…” He now turns the table over on top of Pablo and kicks it…and Pablo…into the darkness.  “You take their innocence!!!  You sell their bodies to any who will pay. You traffic all over.  And the ones who buy your poison…many are here because of it. Some here, some getting second chances.”

     He then paces in front of the remaining prisoners looking up in thought. “I personally got to meet three of these children. A boy named Julio that was taken from his family and dies from carrying a mix of cocaine and fentanyl in his stomach, and it opening in his stomach. A boy named Hector who suffered the same fate due to trying to escape you and your men.”  He then walks over to the wall and picks up what looks like a pair of dull, rusty hedge clippers. 

     “Then there is Gina. A little girl you sexually assaulted, beat, and sold over and over again.” Now Lucifer’s rage flares to the point that even Bel begins to feel nauseous. “Then when she tried to run away with her brother your…pack of feral swine continuously assaulted her till she ran…” Now the power of his anger is now at nuclear levels. His red eyes were now replaced by burning hellfire. “SHE RAN AND JUMPED OFF THE CLIFF NEAR YOUR SHITHOLE!!!”

     “You all are going to have an eternity of constant suffering, but first,” as he looks at Bel, “I’m gonna ask Bel here to leave the room.”  Bel looks a little confused, but only for a moment. “I may be a little,” now opening and closing the clippers repeatedly, “ ‘rusty’, but castration is like riding a bike. I just need a few to practice on.”  He gives Bel an evil smile, then turns on a light showing a table containing several rusty razor blades, swords, scissors, and bottles of salt and lemons. 

     Bel returns the smile and opens the door to leave. “Tell the kids I may be a while, but I would like to personally take them to their paradise. Watch over them, my friend.”  Lucifer looks in Bel’s eyes. “Of course,” said Bel. “Please, take your time.”

     As he shuts the heavy door, he hears the evil men cry and beg for mercy. And then he hears an angry Luci.  “DON’T WORRY!!! YOU’LL REGENERATE!!!  THEN WE CAN START ALL OVER AGAIN!!!”  Then in a cold, growling voice, Luci says, “Now this is gonna hurt like a mutha…” and is cut off by a scream that makes Bel wince. And for these monsters…this will be just the beginning. 

Chapter Text

     “911, please state your emergency.”

     “Oh, God!  I need an ambulance at 4297 Crusin Lane immediately!”

     “What is the problem, sir?”

     “My ex-wife!  I just got to her home and saw my ex-wife with our children!  No one is responding!  There’s blood everywhere!”

     “Did you say blood, sir?  How many people are in the home, sir?”

     “I just got here! My ex-wife Helena, our six year old daughter Cherri, eight year old daughter Lilla, and nine year old son Paul…Oh, my God, our baby!  I have to check the nursery!”

     “Sir, is the door unlocked?  EMS and the police are on their way.”

     “Yes!  I’m back in the nurs… NOOOO! NOOOO!  JAMIE!!!  OUR BABY HAS ALSO BEEN SHOT!!!”

     “Sir, is the baby still breathing?  What is the nature of the child’s injury?”

     “DID YOU NOT HEAR?  HE’S BEEN SHOT!!!  IN THE BACK OF OUR SON’S HEAD!!!  OH MY GOD, HELENA!!!  WHY!!!”

     “Sir, the police are there.  They are on their way in now, sir.  Where are you now?”

     “I’m in my son’s nursery.  She killed them.  She killed them all.  I have nothing left.”

     “Sir, they are coming to you.  Please stay where you…”

     “She murdered them.  She killed herself. And now *click* she has killed me. I’m in the nursery. Tell my family I’m sorry.”

     “Sir, they are there, please just stay where you are, please!  Sir? Sir!…All units, caller has a weapon with a possibility of self harm!  Every please move in now!”

     *Bang*

     “Sir?  Sir can you still hear me?  Sir?  SIR!!!…all units shot fired!  I repeat, shot fired!”

     “This is unit 12 reporting.  They’re all…they’re all gone. Send detectives. Closing the crime scene now.  Possible murder-suicide.  Two adults. F…four children. Youngest looks to be around no more than six months…oh, God in heaven!”

     And with that, the Carter family is gone.

*****************************************

     “Hey, Mom?” bellowed a very hyper person dressed in their iconic onesie.  “What’s up, Sharkie?” answered back a tall red headed princess of hell to her adopted child. As the two originals of the famous Hellp Desk, this has been a common sight for many mortal years. 

     “What’s your scorecard for today?” said Sharkie. “I’m at twelve Karens, eight corrupt politicians, twenty religious frauds, and one bigot against anyone shorter than five feet ten inches tall.”  She then had an evil laugh. “I cut off his legs to where he was just under five feet nine and a half.  Now he’s on level 5 hating himself!”

     “Not bad, Sharks, buuut,” said Lily, “I have seen fourteen Karens, five pedofiles, fourteen foster monsters, and one who called his serial murders ‘hunting for bitches’!”  Lily almost gagged at that one.  “Greg’s gonna have fun with that one!”

     “He just called me about that,” said Penny as she walks in. “Some of his victims met him as he arrived. He’ll have to regenerate for two weeks before he can even start torturing him, but they won’t stop beating him.”  She laughs and says, “So he had a recliner brought in so he can sit back on his breaks and watch.  Easiest his job has ever been!”  Everyone breaks out in laughter. 

     “Now ladies,” said Judy, “I trump all of you.  On top of 17 Karens…three of them actually broke the internet…, six ‘influencers’ who groomed kids, and a particularly rude bigot who tried to shame me for being married to a black man.”  She takes a sip of tea.  “James then began to release some frustration built up from years of such nonsense.”  She gives a sly grin. “I’m gonna help him relax later.”  Lily gives Judy a high five and a wink while Sharkie begins to turn and gag a little.

     As they spoke, Lily received a phone call from the front deathk from a worried Siedah. “What happened?” asked Lily. As she listened her look went from humor to worry to anger in moments. “The children?  Where are they now?”  As she listens, she writes down some notes. “Ok, Siedah.  We are on the case.  Thanks for the heads up.”

     Everyone looks up at the now angry princess of hell as she paces in thought on what to do. She then looks at her family and begins to speak. “We have a murder-suicide followed by a suicide due to heartbreak. The…the…” The anger begins to rise again in her. “HOW COULD A MOTHER DO THIS TO HER OWN CHILDREN?!?”  With a collective gasp, they all gather around Lily in unity. Anyone in the lines have been told to either wait, go to their level, or face the wrath of Bel and some of his soldiers. Many found out. Some smartly went to their levels.  And those there for actual help or just to visit offered help anyway they could. 

     “Just pass the word that the desk will be out for a couple of days,” said Bel. “Anyone who can volunteer and take calls and explain the temporary closure will be appreciated. Weapons will be provided.”  Several took to the desks, and started answering calls and redirecting who they can. 

     Judy puts her hand on Lily’s shoulder. “What’s going on, honey?”  Lily looked at her friends. Tears in her eyes, she has the look of vengeance on her face. “We have a three-phase job to attend to.”  She looks at everyone in the room. “We’ll divide into three teams for this one.”

     After a little thought, a plan begins to form in Lily’s mind. “Here’s the plan.  Penny, Ruggy, and Sharkie; I need you to head to the CHC to aid with the children that have arrived in this case. Dante is already there and can bring you all up to speed.”

     She then turns to the demons in the room.  “Bel, Greg, and Angel; I want you to visit the male in this case. He is going to need a lot of help and guidance to help with his pain. He has had a lot taken from him, and he needs to see that he is not at fault. He did his best, and he needs that to accept his paradise for him…and his family.”

     Then she turns to Judy. “You and I are going to meet with the one who called herself a mother.”  Anger begins to rise again. “She’s in a holding cell on level 8 waiting for final judgment. And judgment is coming.”  She looks into Judy’s eyes. “In the end…this bitch belongs to me!”

     As they leave, Judy makes a couple of calls of her own. One is to Lucifer to meet them on Level 8.  He may need to help Lily calm down after meeting with a murderous mother.  She places one extra call. “Diane, your daughter is going to need a lot of love and support. Call Anna too. This is going to be a bad one.”

     Lily has been a mother to her young Sharkie, and hopes to soon have a child with the love of her life. But to hear that a woman killed…murdered…her own children, Lily may lose control. Her emotions may take over. And may the Universe have mercy, because Lily will not!

Chapter Text

     Andre sat in the small room on level one. He was wringing his hands in fear and sadness. He knows how he got here, and in his mind this was just a waiting room to be taken to the lower levels of hell. But even that won’t be as torturous as the image of what he saw when he left the mortal world. That image would be burned into her mind for all of eternity. 

     Then he hears a polite knock on the door. When it opens, it confirms his worst fears. His punishment was coming. He saw an almost seven foot tall demon hulk enter the room followed by a slightly smaller and leaner demon in black enter behind him. No pitchforks like he saw in pictures. Actually, he saw no weapons at all. 

     Then he sees a sight that kinda throws him for a loop. Entering is another demon, but this one had horns with jeweled decor and an ombré black and white hair. And instead of being scary…she was very attractive. 

     He then looks at the bigger demon in front of him. The muscle shirt had a Metallica logo on the front. He was also wearing jean shorts and…fuzzy crocs. For ones who were sent to punish him, these demons seemed like…nice people.

     “Hi, sweetheart,” said Angel. “Please don’t be afraid. These two are really just a couple of horned teddy bears. Especially with those who do not belong in this place.”  She takes a seat and opens the white colored file she brought in with her. “First, some introductions. The one metal head here is Beleth. He is a prince and general of 85 legions of hell. Call him Bel for short.”

     Bel reaches out his hand.  Andre looks a little tentative at the seven foot giant, but reaches out his hand. “Don’t worry. I don’t bite unless it’s my hot wife…with consent, of course.”  Before realizing it, Andre gives a slight chuckle at this demon. (Hey, Bel’s jokes are sometimes funny!)

     He then looks over at the leaner male demon. He seemed a little more intense and serious. “Oh,” said Angel, “the tall, dark, and brooding one is Gregorith.”  He extends his hand. “You can call me Greg for short.”

     “And what do you do around here?” asked Andre. Greg did not want to frighten the poor soul, but it was not in his nature to deceive anyone. “I…I…please don’t be frightened.”  He took a deep breath. “I am the master of Level Nine of hell.  I bring justice to the worst souls imaginable. I…”

     “Torture those who deserve punishment,” said Andre. He knew in his mind that is why they were there. He deserved pain for eternity for what happened to his children. What he believes he allowed by not fighting hard enough for his kids. His ex made his life hell in the end on earth; might as well let it continue in the afterlife. “I’m ready to go face my punishment now.”  He stood up, looked at the floor, and put his hands out for one of these demons to shackle him and take him away.

     Angel reached out and took his hand. “My name is Angel, by the way. And by what I just read in your file, the only place for you is therapy here if you want, or you have a paradise waiting for you to accept.”  She opened up the file. “No punishment for you. This shows that you have no reason to be punished.”

     “But there is a reason!” said Andre. “My four children are dead because I didn’t fight enough to keep them away from my ex-wife!”  He stood up and walked up to face a wall.  “When she cheated on me after 20 years of marriage, I filed for divorce. When I saw the growing anger in her…along with growing alcohol use…I took her to court for custody. I even asked for supervised visitation for her because I didn’t want to take the kids from their mother completely.”  Now he became angrier.  

     “The kids started asking to not to see their mother, but the court order stated that they would have to see her under supervision.”  Andre begins to ball up his hands. “I filed a protective order, but it was denied. I tried to alter the custody order, but was told no!”  He was now shaking. “And she just smiled at me. For her, it became less about wanting the kids, and it became more of a personal mission to punish me!”

     “How do you feel that you deserve punishment?” asked Greg. “You fought to protect your children.  You did what you could do and so much more.”  He picked up the file and held it up. “It tells that you spent all your time and resources fighting to rescue your children, but you were fighting a system that is slow and in some ways biased to the mother over the father. And in the end, you had the orders to take the children to protect them for good!”

     “BUT I WAS TOO LATE!!!” said Andre through tears and anger. “I finally got a judge to hear me and gave me a temporary full custody order, but it was late. They were a three hour drive away. So I slept for a couple of hours.”  He then looks at the wall again. “A couple of hours.  A COUPLE OF FUCKING HOURS!!!”  He then begins to punch at the wall with the ferocity of a heavyweight boxer. He continues to punch, even beginning to break through the wall.  Bel begins to walk over to stop him, but Greg and Angel stop him. “Let him do this, Bel,” said Greg. “Let him work out his pain and rage. He needs this.”

     Andre continues to punch and punch at the wall. Like paradise houses, the walls could pad themselves to avoid pain to the souls, but the room knows that some souls need to do this. Even as a soul, his knuckles bleed and bruise at each punch. He has placed holes in the walls. After about twenty minutes of this, Andre falls to his knees in a fury of tears.  “I went to sleep, and I was too late to save my babies!  I am just as much to blame as…”

     “STOP RIGHT THERE!!!” said Greg.  He walked over, knelt down, and looked Andre in the eyes. “I may be a demon, but we have something in common with humans.”  He helps him up. “Our bodies, like yours, have limits.  Our minds have limits.  Our emotional health has limits!  You fought tirelessly for your children.  You protected their emotional well being. You worked to change the situation to protect their well being. And after a while…your mortal bodies get tired.”

     “Even with that,” said Andre, “maybe I should have just manned up and stayed with her!”  He turns and sits at the table in the room.  “I could have just ignored her affair. Maybe find ways to guard the kids when she drank. She was an angry drunk. I could have stopped her; maybe taking the brunt of her anger!  I sometimes wonder if I would have just stayed…”

     “No, honey,” said Angel. “I have helped many who come here who said they stayed with their abuser to try to protect others.”  She thinks of an example. “I had one soul who stayed because he said that if they broke up that he would kill himself. Three days later…,” as she remembers the case, “they both ended up in the afterlife!  She has a paradise, but still has nightmares of what he did to her.  And the boyfriend is currently on level 8 till his pocket realm is ready on 9.” 

     “But as a man, maybe I could have…” Bel stood up this time. “Abuse is abuse! It has nothing to do with gender!”  He sat right next to him and put his hand on Andre’s shoulder. “Yes, I have seen a lot of women who are abused when they meet my wife and the others at the Hellp Desk. But I have also seen huge male souls who are also abused.  Emotionally, mentally, even physically. Some women in these men’s lives used their mate’s unwillingness to defend themselves or report it out of a feeling of shame to do whatever they want.”

     “MY KIDS ARE DEAD!!!  HELENA KILLED OUR CHILDREN BECAUSE I STOOD UP FOR MYSELF!!!”  Andre pushed away from the table. “In my mind, I am as much to blame for that as she is!  I feel I put self respect over my children’s safety and happiness!  I believe I deserve to be punished for that!”

     “And your wife in her sick mind believed the same lie you believe now!” exclaimed a new voice to the conversation. “You say that you should have kept your head down and taken her abuse.  Just let her run over you over and over until you had nothing left!”  All turned to the door to see a well dressed demon who just walked in. He found a chair at the opposite end of the table and sat down. 

     “Andre, allow me to introduce myself. I am Lucifer. This and all the levels here in hell are my domain. And I have seen your case.”  He looks at Andre from across the table. “The therapy levels are free for you to use whenever you need them. But I can tell you without any argument that you do not belong as a permanent resident of my domain.”  He reaches for the file from Greg and places his finger on the top page.

     “Sir, I don’t mean to be difficult, but…” Andre stood up and looked at all in the room. “I couldn’t save my children. I was the one that suggested the visitations. I should have ran with my kids to keep them safe, but I was afraid I would lose them.”  The tears now began to flow. “I had the legal means in my hand, but I was too late. And in the end,” wincing as he could feel the bullet entering again, “I committed suicide.  With all due respect, I believe you are all wrong about me. I deserve punishment!”

     “We will all admit that we have all made our share of mistakes in our lives,” said Luci. “But when it comes to the decisions in these files, I have nothing to do with it.”  He holds up the file. “These are compiled by the universe, and they contain all of the pertinent info that is needed to make a final decision. And that decision is paradise.”  

     “You did not alienate your children from their mother,” said Lucifer. “She used that to hurt you and the children.”  He stands and begins to walk to Andre. “You didn’t run because the consequence of getting caught would take them from you. So you fought constantly for them. I have heard songs in Valhalla of those battles!”

     He placed the file down on the table. “You said that you were too late because your body shut down to rest before going to get them.”  He then placed Andre’s hand on the top page. The download came, and a fact that Andre did not realize came to light.

     “The court clerk called and informed your ex-wife of the court order.”  Lucifer now knelt down and looked at Andre eye to eye. It was not the damning stare of the master of hell, it was the concerned look of someone with a desire to help this heartbroken father. “She grabbed a gun ten minutes later and did what she did.  The older kids ran begging, but she did not stop.”

     “So if he would have arrived straight from the courthouse…?” asked Angel. “The sight would have been the same,” said Luci.   She had no love in her heart. Just anger and hate. She is the reason…never you. Your final action came from pain and excessive grief…and I refuse to punish any for that.”

     “I watched hundreds of my family and friends die in wars with other dimensions,” said Bel. “Soldiers under my command died in horrible ways. I blamed myself constantly. I…,” as he looked at all in the room, “I almost entered the Void a few months later. Lily doesn’t know that. But I stood at the edge thinking I just wanted the nightmares to stop.”

     “What stopped you?” asked Andre. Bel bowed his head. He pulled a ribbon out of his pocket. “This is the ribbon Lily and Sharkie tied to my hair before the war. I realized that I have so much to go on for.”

     “And so do you, Andre,” said Greg. “Your children are waiting for you. They are being taken care of at our Children’s Hellp Center.”  He places his hand on Andre’s shoulder. “My wife and a couple of others are caring for them. They are too young for a paradise, but none of them wanted reincarnation because they refuse to be split apart.”

     “They are waiting for their daddy to come for them,” said Angel. “You have a paradise that is not only for you, but is there for your children too.”  She comes over and wraps her arms around Andre. “They need you. You need them. You need to heal together. In your personal paradise.”

     Andre embraces the succubus with tears in his eyes. “My children…want me?”  Angel shows a video that Ruggy sent her. It shows them caring for four very familiar children to Andre. “P…Paul?  Cherri?  Lil’ Lilla?  J…Jamie?  My babies!!!  My love!!!  My family!!!”

     “And they are waiting for their daddy,” said Lucifer. “If you want to speak to one of our therapists, they will be in great hands at the CHC. But your paradise is also ready.”  Another picture is shown. A huge farmhouse with rooms for everyone. Huge kitchen with everything needed. Pics of happier times with the children. Nothing having to do with the mother is there. Huge acreage with playground, pool, grill area, and a huge pond just made for fishing. 

     “I would like to begin therapy, please,” said Andre with the first genuine smile he has had in a very long time. “And I know I have a lot of healing to do. So, I’ll start a kind of an in-patient for seven mortal days. I will continue after that but…I want to be with my kids…in paradise.”

     As Lucifer and Angel speak to one of the therapists to arrange everything, Bel pulls Greg over to the side. “We will not be telling Lily about what I said about the Void. I’ll tell Lucifer and Angel before we leave,” said Bel. “I want to keep that between me and my therapist and support group. I think she already knows, but I don’t want to cause her pain.”

     “I understand, bro,” said Greg. “But you may want to call to check on her soon.”  He looks at Bel.  “The look she gave when she said she was going to meet with the mother…I’ve only seen that look on level 9 on some of the most violent offenders. This could be messy.”

     “I know,” said Bel. “She will need a lot of support after. And about seven clean up crews!”  He cringed a little, but he knows Lily. Her desire to be a mom and her anger for those who use that title to cause hurt. She will bring both the pain and the justice. 

     May God have mercy on her soul because her ass now will belong to an angry Lily. Stay tuned.

Chapter Text

It looks like a normal playroom complete with toys and games. A spacious playpen with large mobiles of planes, planets, and sharks hung above it. Television with a variety of cartoons and kid shows playing. Just a normal looking oasis for any kids there. But this is not a normal playroom. This was also a safe space for four children that have gone through an unimaginable traumatic event.

Entering into the room first is a group of teenage demons led by a couple of mortal souls. One has long dark hair with light brown eyes and a look of kindness and love. Beside her is a slightly older soul with short brownish hair and kinda blue green eyes. Both had red on with the older one having on hers that she was a ‘Hellp Desk Trainee’. The younger was carrying a file with her. Not far behind was a tall slender man with glasses and a kind but stern look.

“Hello, kids. My name is Penny, and these are some people who are here to help.” She goes down the line. “The tall one here is Dante.”

“Are you a de…de…de?” asks the smaller blond haired little girl. She was a little afraid at the sight of the tall teen with two sets of horns. He walked up and knelt down in front of her.

“A demon? Yes, I am. But please don’t be afraid of me.” Dante has volunteered many times at the CHC, and more times than none some see him as a monster. But after a while, they get to know the intelligent young inventor, and become one of his many friends.

The little girl walked up to him and reached up to touch his horns. Dante learned about mortal children’s curiosity when it comes to his looks. He bends down and she tentatively touches his front horns. She then looks into his eyes and begins to smile. “Cool! Where can I get some? Do they hurt?” She had so many questions, and Dante began to answer every one he could.

Penny walked up to the oldest girl and stuck out her hand. “Hello, honey. My name is Penny. By any chance,” as she looks on the file covers for names, “is your name Lilla? I was told you were the one to speak to.”

“Y…yes, ma’am,” said a sad but brave little girl. She may have not been the oldest, but she became like a protective mother when it came to her siblings. Especially at this moment, after all that has happened. “Where are we? And why are we here?” She tried to act tough, but inside she just wanted…

“This place is known as the Children’s Hellp Center, or CHC for short,” said Penny. She knew she had to speak to Lilla as the leader, even if she was only eight. ‘She kinda reminds me of Sharkie,’ she thought. “You were brought here after you arrived to the afterlife…”

“Afterlife?” asked Lilla. “What’s an afterlife?” Now Penny realizes that she has placed herself in a tight position. How was she going to tell a group of small children that they were dead, and that they were there because their own mother did the unthinkable.

“Well,” began Penny, “the afterlife is a place where no one can ever hurt you or your siblings ever again. It where someone goes after they…they…um…”

“Die,” said Lilla with a sad expression. “We’re all dead, I know. I remember what happened. Mama picked up the phone and got very angry. Said some mean and nasty words about Daddy. Then there was pain. Then we arrived at a desk where a kind lady that had a pink scarf around her head brought us here.”

Penny now looked at the sad girl trying to tell what happened in the most mature way possible. She acted more mature than most of the Karens on level 4. She put her finger in one of the files, and it showed her in detail what happened…

*****************************************

“Emergency full custody until a formal hearing is done! You mean that bastard thinks he can just take the kids from me?” Helena had now entered into a rage. They were sharing custody, but that must not be enough for him.

“Yes, ma’am. There is evidence of harm to the children, and until you can prove that the harm is not due to any action of yours, the children will stay with their father. You will still have visitation, but it will be once a week supervised by one of the case workers at CPS. Their father will be there later today to take the children. Please have them packed and ready to leave, please.”

She slammed down the phone, then ripped it from its cord and slammed it against the wall. This was an insult to her. How dare he disrespect her like that. She, in her mind, did nothing wrong. She had to go to other men. She wanted a real man, and her wimp of a husband was not it.

And when he dared defend himself and divorce his cheating wife, she actually stated that he should have just done nothing. Besides, she was the only shot he had to be happy. And if he left, she would punish him in many ways…including making sure he would never see his children ever again.

Then when it was time for her to be with her children, all they kept asking was when their father was coming. He turned them against her. So she would ‘punish’ them for their disrespect. And if any man came to her home, she would lock the kids in the closet. All she took the kids for was to get back at her ex husband. To hurt him.

And now the court has taken that from her. Oh, hell no! She was not gonna have that. Then she heard a small voice behind her. “Mommy? Was that Daddy on the phone?”

She now snaps. Her anger has grown to hatred, but not just hatred toward her ex. She was now feeling hatred for the most innocent in the room. She turned and saw six year old Cherri standing in the doorway wearing her favorite Dora pajamas holding the stuffed unicorn her father won for her at the fair a year ago. Her father won. HER FATHER!!!

She runs toward the small child screaming in anger. As she runs after the youngest girl her brother and sister come in the house. They see their mother chasing Cherri, but they realized that this was not a game. They ran over and grabbed her and ran to their baby brother Jamie’s room. They slammed the door and locked it.

Paul and Lilla tried to open the window to yell for help. They tried to escape. But the window was heavy, and it had been painted shut. They looked for the phone in the room, but Helena had removed it. They locked the door hoping that they would be safe until their father came. But it was not enough.

Helena went to her bedroom. She kept a small snub nosed revolver in her nightstand for protection. But she was not thinking of safety at the moment. She calmly pulled out the gun and began to load it. “I will not be disrespected by my own brats. They’ll see. Andre would see. Everyone will see.” In her mind, she needed to punish them all!!!

She came to the nursery door and calmly unlocked the door. She saw her oldest son and daughter pick up a towel rack to break the window. She calmly pointed the gun at Cherri, who was now crying. “Please, Mommy! Don’t hurt me. I’ll be good. I promise!” Without so much as a second thought, she pulled the trigger. The bullet hit her in the shoulder, and Cherri fell screaming.

She then turned to the two older children. They began to run toward the front door, but Helena fired three more times. One hit Paul in his back, causing him to fall on the ottoman in the living room. Another got Lilla in her leg. The bullet went through and shattered her knee.

Helena then proceeded to gather her children into the living room. She laid them in a circle facing up. All three were wounded, but still alive. Then she walked into the nursery where their baby brother was. He was crying because of all the noise. Then a loud bang. And the crying stopped.

Helena came back into the living room. She looked like she was in a trance. Her crying children begging not to be hurt anymore. Begging not to die. But the cries fell on deaf ears. She walked to the middle of the circle and loaded four bullets into the chambers. She spun the chamber and put it back in the gun. “I will not be disrespected,” she said. Then, she pointed at Cherri. “Your father is coming, but none of you will ever see him until he sees you all in hell!” She cocks the gun…

*****************************************

Penny pulled her hand away from the file and looked at the small girl looking at her. Tears began to fall from Penny’s eyes. All she wanted to do was reach out and take this girl in her arms. To protect her. To show the love her monster of a mother did not. Lilla looked in Penny’s tear filled eyes and jumped into Penny’s arms crying.

“Why did Mommy hurt us? Were we bad?” Then she asked Penny a question that made her blood boil. “Is she gonna come to punish us again? Will we hurt again?”

Penny hugged her tighter. “You will never have to face her again.” She held her back to look into Lilla’s eyes. “What she did was never…NEVER…your fault. In her way, what she did was to make your daddy sad.”

“Why?” Lilla was wiping her tears. “Your daddy was coming to get you, and he had the judge make it to where you were going to stay with him more. He was coming to protect you, but someone told your mom.”

“Dad,” said Lilla crying. “I want my Daddy!” And just fell into Penny’s arms.

Dante speaks to the oldest boy. All he could do was blame himself for not protecting his siblings. Could have jumped on the gun to stop his mom, but he ran. All Dante could do is to hold him, comfort him. “It is never your fault Paul. You did what you could. You were brave. And you will never face that pain again, I promise.”

“Why,” asked a teary eyed Paul. “Why did she hurt us all? Did she hate us? Were we bad? It hurt. My shoulder,” as he rubs it gently, “it still hurts. What did we do?”

“Nothing,” said Dante. He had sympathy in his voice for the boy, but anger and hatred for the evil entity that did this. “You did nothing. This was blind evil brought by a selfish woman that couldn’t get her way. You did nothing wrong.”

“Then why am I here,” asked Paul, falling into a crying and angry teen demon. He hoped Lily would destroy her…for in his mind, this person was worse than any of the creatures of the Great War. And she needed to be destroyed.

**************************************************

Angel went to check on the infant. She was crying…a cry of pain and loss. She sits there in the rocker as Tech Support John comes over. “Is he ok…he seems to be in ‘distress,’” said John in his usual dry manner. He tried to act like he was not affected, but he was hurting…feeling every bit of this child’s pain.

“John, can you hold him for a moment, I need to go get a bottle and a diaper,” said Angel. John tried to fight, but Angel can be very persuasive. She places the child in his arms, and went to collect supplies.

John stands there, and begins to rock. He’s never held a child before, let alone an infant. He acts nonchalant, but then begins to rock. He looks in the infant’s eyes…and his expression changed. His face softened as the child began to coo and go to sleep. A tear came down as Angel came back.

“John…you ok?” He looks at Angel, and only said one word. “Why?”

Chapter Text

     Four demons guards are in front of a huge iron door with multiple locks.  They all have disgusted and sad looks, they have all seen what this creature has done. All of these guards have families, and what they saw this woman had done will make them hold their children tighter, their family closer, and all protected even if it kills them. Each one wanted to enter and use every weapon at their disposal to hurt her.  But they heard Lily and Judy were coming…and that will be much worse. 

     It’s not known if the guards felt their anger first, or heard her footsteps coming closer to them.  The guards have no pity for the epitome of evil they have seen. The two most powerful beings of the Hellp Desk have arrived, and no being in the afterlife will stand in her way. She murdered innocents, and now her reckoning has come.

     When the door opens, the so called mother stands angrily with her hands in chains. “Who in the fuck are you, and why am I here. There is no reason I should…”. She was not able to finish that thought as Lily struck her across the face with such force that teeth flew out of her mouth. Then just as quickly she sat back down calmly and opened this evil woman’s file. 

      “So,” said Lily with an eerily cool demeanor, “why in the here do you possibly believe you don’t belong in the deepest darkest parts of this place for eternity?  Please tell me how a child-murdering psychopath justifies shooting and killing her own children.”

      Helena now comes off the floor, holding her jaw, and pointing her finger at Lily and Judy. “Now that’s just rude,” quipped Judy as she grabbed the woman’s finger and…let’s just say fingers were never meant to bend in that direction. After a scream of intense pain, Helena finally attempts to speak.

      “How can I be here for something that was not my fault?  This was a textbook case of temporary insanity!”  All Lily could do was stare blankly at her thinking ‘This bitch thinks she can talk her way out!’

       “THIS IS NOT A COURT OF LAW,” yelled Lily as she reaches for a baseball bat.  “YOUR JUDGMENT HAS ALREADY BEEN RENDERED, AND LET’S JUST SAY THAT THERE IS RESERVED A SPECIAL PLACE FOR YOU IN HELL FOR WHAT YOU DID TO YOUR OWN CHILDREN!!!”

       Helena was now pleading and crying. “You don’t understand!!!  He turned them against me.  My stupid ex-husband caused this. He made me…” Before she could finish, a baseball bat made contact with her face, sending her backwards over her chair.

       “You made that man’s life a living hell!” Judy chimed in.  “All you did was tear him down at every possible moment. And when he finally had enough, you used children as your weapon. Children he agreed to let you see in shared custody. Then the pain you….”

        “Andre told you that bullshit?” said Helena. “He would be nothing without me. He was some bum I tried to mold to be a good husband. Sometimes that took tough love.  You ladies can understand that, can’t you?”

       “You put that man through a nightmare,” sneered Lily.  “After 15 years of marriage, you cheat on him for the last five.  20 year marriage you destroyed because of your selfishness. And when he found out…you had the fucking audacity to BLAME HIM FOR IT!” Lily slams her fists on the table, making Helena jump.

       “That limp dick hadn’t satisfied me for years!  I had needs!”  Helena stands for effect. “But what Regionald did to me, that was magical.  Andre was always too tired. Whined about his ‘hard day at work’ or some other lame excuse.  I wanted passion, romance, a little bit of sexual adventure. All I got was a 20 year prison sentence married to Andre.”  Spits as she says his name.

       “He was working 60 and 70 hour weeks to support your large family, but you complained he didn’t work enough!!!” Lily was touching the file again, giving new information. “And from what I see here he made you roll your eyes back and almost scream the roof off many times when he fucked you, so don’t give me that unsatisfied bullshit. You just are a selfish witch!”

      “Yes, he had his moments, but he left me with my ungrateful brats, and I had…” the door bursts open, and a female demon entered.  Tailored suit, dignified look, but angry as hell.  One punch and Helena flies through the room making a hole in the wall.

      “YOU CHEATED…YOU DRANK…HE TOOK HIS CHILDREN!!!” said the angry Lilith, her eyes smoking a deep black from her great anger.  “That man, Andre, asked the court to let you stay in their lives. Then fought to save them from the pain you caused, but you couldn’t swallow your fucking pride to seek help or allow your children to be safe!”  And with that, her claws came out, and she went after the screaming murderer.

      Lily stands, not squirming a bit, as the ‘mother of demons’ shows the anger of a mother, tearing at and throwing around the small Helena till she became unrecognizable.  “She’ll regenerate, damnit,” said Judy. “Maybe leave a few scars on her, just as a reminder of her eternity to come.”

      “Greg will be a break compared to Lilith…and what I learned about the files.”  Lily just stands, and waits. “What have you got planned, Darlin’?” asked Judy, a sadistic smirk across her face. 

      “Just wait, it’s what she deserves…to feel the pain of all she impacted,” said Lily.  “What I learned about the soul files is involved”

      As Helena rights herself from the ground, she begins the painful process of regeneration. “You BITCHES!!!” she garbled while spitting blood.  “How dare you hit me you ugly monster!!!”

      “You shot your children to spite your ex-husband, and you dare yell at us?”  Lily now has a cold look on her face as she walks over to the beaten woman. “Imagine the fear they felt.  The pain.  The betrayal.  Can’t feel it?  LET ME HELP YOU!!!”  With that, Lily shoves a wad of papers down Helena’s throat. She is about to speak, but her look goes from anger…to frozen in fear.

      “That’s right!!!” Lily screamed. “What I gave you is a chance to see first hand what you did to your children!!!  The soul files when touched give kind of a look through the eyes of the one who is in that file. Even a piece of the file. Now you have that in you now.  They will heal. You will feel their pain…FOREVER!!!”

      “Oh God, make it stop.  For the love of all that is decent…MAKE IT STOP!!!” Helena now screamed in horror, in pain, even with a little guilt. She saw through her children’s eyes at that point where the pain she caused hurt them. Her words. Her actions. The look she gave when they begged. She now feels it all.

      “Decent?” quipped Lily. “You don’t know what that word means. It is not a part of you.  But now, what that little wad of paper is gonna do is show you their fear, and you will fill their pain for eternity!!!”

      “Guards!!!” cried Lilith. “Level 9, pocket dimension 72. Use extreme prejudice!”  The guards drug Helena away to the screams of “MAKE IT STOP!!!”

     As this was happening Diane, Lily’s mother runs in and holds Lily tight. The mighty princess of hell and founder of the Hellp Desk broke into massive sobs, dropping to her knees in a pain she never wanted to ever feel.

     “Mom, I always wanted to be a mother, and this excuse of a human killed her own children!”  Lily now sounding like a girl who needs her mother. “Level 9 is not enough for her!”

     “Pun’kin, I know it makes no sense.”  Diane lifts Lily’s chin up.  “But she will suffer for eternity!  She will feel every pain she caused. Every time she belittled them. When she did to her children.  And that pain will never stop.”  

      Lucifer enters, followed by Anna.  “Making her swallow a piece of their files.  She will feel their pain for all time, even if she enters the void. You made her punishment truly eternal.” Lucifer looked in her eyes. “I am truly impressed.  Greg has never even thought of that.”

       As they speak, Lily’s phone rings. “Bel has said that Andre has moved to his paradise. The children will be there shortly.”  Lily smiles at this.  That woman will not win. Their family is together again. Helena will never win again. Her hell has just begun.