Hellbound - Chapter 4

Empusa continued to guide the carriage through the busy, winding streets while the pair of them sat in a tense silence. Lucifer had a great deal to think about as he watched the demonic city pass by. In some ways, it was completely different than Earth, but in other ways, it was all too similar. He wondered if he had seen this place before the betrayal, if his own pride and hubris would have allowed him to even recognize that much.

The city was filled with carriages. Some were pulled by lizard creatures similar to the one pulling their carriage, while others were being pulled by large horned beasts that Lucifer recalled were called Hellbison. Hellbison were a delicacy among the Earth population. Allegedly, the moment the Hellbison died, its body self-cooked to the perfect temperature to be edible for human consumption. It was the steak that cooked itself.

There were also countless creatures walking, sliding, or crawling down the sidewalks. Although they all contained the same name, demons, they were far more diverse than humans. Some had scales while others had fur. Some were pale-skinned while others had dark green, blue, or red skin. They traveled on feet, paws, hooves, and even the underside of long, slithering bodies. Earth had always believed the demon tribes were separate. When they did missions, they were usually paired by demonic type. If it were a team of werewolves, you would expect all werewolves. If it was lamia, the entire party were snake people.

Yet, this tiny view outside the carriage window had already dispelled countless myths about the demonic people. They were far more diverse, organized, and spread out than Lucifer had ever been told. He wondered if anything he had ever been told was the truth.

Even the city itself had massively tall buildings that suggested a level of construction and infrastructure equal to humanity. Most humans believed demons lived in mud huts and spent as much time killing each other as invading Earth. If humanity truly knew how intelligent and prepared they were, would they recoil in fear or rise to stop it?

The answer really didn’t matter to Lucifer. Nothing would change in the immediate future. This war had been going on for centuries, and even the apparent death of the Demon King didn’t appear to destabilize things down here. The riots, fear, and devastation he had been anticipating weren’t there. It truly showed that everything about his life and subsequent death had resolved nothing.

The carriage came to an abrupt stop in front of a towering structure of black stone. It was a tall, gothic building covered in hauntingly beautiful décor. It seemed to be carved of volcanic glass with veins of silver and gold running through it. Pointed arches formed a vast portico, while windows stained obsidian glowed with light from the inside, creating some kind of intricate mosaic.

“Mistress, we have arrived,” Empusa announced, jumping down from the front of the carriage and opening the door for her.

Lilith stepped out casually. When Lucifer followed her out of the carriage, Empusa gave him a wink. He wasn’t really paying attention to her, though. His eyes were on Lilith, who was heading straight for the building’s entrance. He followed after her, but as soon as he got close to the door, a large demonic eyeball sitting above the ornate double doors suddenly opened up and looked at him. Lucifer couldn’t help but freeze.

This was a detection system he was all too familiar with. The eye of perdition could detect humans. It was one of the most basic and most common detection systems demons used. Of course, humans had their own demonic detection systems, but there was something quite unnerving about the inhuman eye suddenly locking onto someone.

Lilith seemed to notice Lucifer freezing, looking back while tapping her heel. “Are you coming?”

Lucifer couldn’t help but look back up at the eye. It suddenly closed again as if to say it had lost interest in him. Lucifer could only take a breath. He really wasn’t human anymore. He had chosen to give up his soul and become a demon, but it hadn’t really clicked until that moment.

Lucifer quickly followed after the annoyed-looking Lilith while Empusa seemingly parked their carriage. She didn’t start moving again until he reached the steps of the building. She then turned and pushed through the massive doors, which led into a large ornate lobby. Unlike the outside, this was tiled black and white and draped with red velvet, giving it a somewhat posh feel.

“Hmm? Lilith! Welcome home, my dear.” The voice came before Lucifer noticed the source.

There was a large gargoyle standing on a platform. On Earth, one would have confused this for a fountain statue, but the being on it actually was alive. It could fight too. Gargoyles were among the more difficult demon types. Being made of stone, they were especially hard on weapons, and for a sword-user like Lucifer, they could be the bane of his existence. Taking out even a few dozen of them could force him to blow through five or six swords that might have served anyone else in battle for decades.

“Gareth…” Lilith’s frown became temporarily less severe as she looked at the gargoyle with something approaching fondness. “Do you have time to speak?”

“I am always here.” The gargoyle responded. “You need not ask…”

“I’m afraid this is something…” Lilith softened her voice. “That needs a bit of discretion?”

“As a resident of the Obsidian Spire, your problems are my problems. It is my job to keep the residents here safe.”

“You don’t say…” Lucifer muttered, his voice catching in the acoustics of the lobby so everything he said was heard clearly.

“What is that?” The gargoyle glanced over at Lucifer with a frown.

“Ah… I was just admiring your demonic marks.” Lucifer pointed to the writings carved into the walls. “Not even an angel would be able to open a portal into this building, and are those restriction runes? What kind of demons live in this place? I’ve seen cathedrals less defended.”

“We… take the security of our residents seriously,” Gareth explained slowly before glancing at Lilith. “Is this… person with you?”

“Just ignore him.” Lilith shot Lucifer a scathing look, as if it was his fault she was asked a question. “Keep your mouth shut. What would you know about demonic seals?”

Lucifer shrugged. It would be too much effort to explain that he had some experience with demonic runes, too. Every hero at a high enough level eventually found their moves restricted by runes. The powerful tended to keep themselves safe. This was why battles where demon kings or high-level reavers died were exceptionally rare. Even if a mission could bring two powerful enemies together, powerful wards were often used to tip the scales.

Earth and Hell had been in a magical arms race for centuries, each trying to build barriers and wards to keep the other from intruding. Of course, even the strongest seal could be broken, so other wards would debuff the enemy. This is why attacks on facilities or major cities were exceedingly rare. One would need to not just be strong enough to survive the constant siege of being in enemy territory, but also overcome those debuffs.

Of course, high-security places could be broken into, but it definitely took time and effort. Usually, these were places that housed powerful artifacts, extremely important demons, or intelligence. Why would a random apartment building like this have security on par with an angelic citadel?

“I’m just wondering what a girl who works on the racks is doing in such a nice place.”

Gareth raised an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me, is this a boyfriend?”

Lilith whirled around, her face filled with fury. “That’s enough. Empusa! Take him up to my apartment, now!”