Cautiously, he crept towards the opening, making absolutely no sound whatsoever, and glanced around the corner. The corridor was empty and lit by fire burning in evenly-spaced sconces along the walls, each made out of a human skull.
He passed a number of turns and openings. Where it was possible, he tried to keep going straight. Not that he knew where he was going. He had no idea and only the vaguest of notions about what he was going to do. It was just good to keep moving, just in case his mental and physical blocking techniques failed him. For all he knew, every demon in Hell might already be alerted to his presence, thanks to the attentions of the fire serpent.
He trudged on. The tunnels he was in seemed to be deserted. He senses told him he was alone but he wasn’t about to take that for granted. For all he knew, the rock underground could easily disguise the presence of demons.
He soon learnt that his demonic senses were working — just not all that well.
He must have been walking for an hour when he heard it. The sound of misery. Human misery. The tunnel he was in stretched on for another forty odd feet in front of him before reaching a t-section. The noise was coming from that end and getting closer. It was only then that he detected their presence: humans, of course, and many of them — but not just humans. There were several demons with them, including at least a dozen Lemure and probably two or three horned demons. Thankfully no Astaroth or Hellhounds, but there were others he could sense — extremely powerful, and clearly quite different from the others.
Just ahead on Sam’s left was an opening. He’d encountered a few of these alcoves during his walk, all as deserted as this one. He’d investigated them as he’d moved along. Some contained various grisly items that Sam could only surmise was torture equipment. Others contained skeletons and various other human remains. With each new discovery, Sam’s demeanor grew even more grim.
He darted into the alcove — just in time. The column of humans and demons rounded the corner, shuffling, limping and stomping down the tunnel towards Sam. This alcove, thankfully, was completely empty. It was unlit — the only light coming from the diffuse illumination of one of the corridors wall sconces. Sam crouched near the entrance in almost complete darkness. He slowed his breathing like Hikari had shown him, feeling his heart rate slow as well. The figures passed by his hiding place, giving no indication that they had seen or sensed him. The humans went by first. Collectively, they were a miserable and wretched group, chained together by their necks, eyes downcast. They didn’t look undernourished, however. Either they had just arrived in Hell or they were being sustained in some fashion. Their clothes were in tatters, though, and the scorch marks and tears in their clothing were abundant. Many had scarlet smears all over their body, and Sam could see bloody claw marks on almost all of them. A few were sobbing uncontrollably but most were completely silent as if resigned to their fate. Clearly, they had suffered from their time in Hell.
The last of the humans passed him. Then came the Lemure, jerking and gibbering as they lurched down the corridor, gleefully prodding the humans in front of them with their clawed hands. The horned demons came next, lumbering along on their massive limbs, almost rubbing the sides of the corridor with their sheer size. Their black, goat-like faces were impassive as they moved past Sam, clutching their huge stone mallets. But it was the last two figures that most interested Sam.
At first glance, Sam thought they were human. They were, however, slightly larger than regular people, dressed in tight fitting black armor, with swords buckled on at the waist. One appeared to be male while the other was female. Their faces were blacker than the deepest night — a black that clearly was not earthly in nature. Sam couldn’t see their eyes, but something told him that those would be black, too. As they passed by Sam — almost close enough to reach out and touch — he realized that they weren’t human at all. Small, black, bat-like wings adorned their backs, and horns twice as large as his own jutted from their foreheads. They weren’t even half-breeds or Cambions like himself. To him, they smelt like fully fledged demons — just a type he hadn’t encountered before.
His ancient tome of demonology mentioned creatures like this — much like Succubi, they were demons that could almost pass as humans, demons Satan often sent to Earth to complete his bidding. They must be high-ranking, Sam figured. There was definitely a pecking order in Hell. Surely Satan couldn’t control his legions all by himself. He must have an officer class that Satan could use to dominate the others. Even Samyaza had mentioned that there were other Princes or Princesses of Hell.
Sam watched them, intrigued. Other than his brother and father, these creatures were the closest thing to kin he’d ever seen. It almost made him want to jump out and introduce himself. This fleeting thought lasted only long enough for Sam to feel a little disgusted with himself. He remembered then the humans they were herding and the looks of dismay on their faces.
He couldn’t do anything here. He was outnumbered and he’d been in this position before. He simply couldn’t save every human he met in Hell. It was impossible. He just had to remember that he was here for a reason: to find Grace and possibly his mother. Even though it pained him, that was all he could possibly do. To try and do more would be disastrous.
Sam was about to breathe a sigh of relief as the two royal demons passed but then, abruptly, the male one stopped. The female followed suit. They were less than ten feet from Sam’s position. They started talking, low-pitched noises that Sam strained to hear. At first, he couldn’t understand them but then the words gradually unraveled themselves.
They were conversing in Hellspeak, the language of Hell that Sam understood instinctively. It was, after all, hard-wired into his DNA. As befitted its origin, the language was harsh sounding, guttural and clipped, but Sam found himself warming to it as he listened, almost as if he’d been reunited with an old friend.
“… I too, have better things to do than go chasing after rumors,” the male demon was saying.
“My sources tell me that this isn’t just a rumor,” replied the female.
The male demon laughed; the sound made Sam wince. “Your sources? You mean that mentally- challenged serpent of yours? How can you possibly trust anything that says?”
“Because I do,” she snapped. “Besides, it emerged on a disused portal. Last time that was used was eight hundred Earth years ago. Coincidence, I don’t think.”
The male demon snorted derisively. “Even if you’re right, whatever it is will be long gone. I fail to see the point of this trip. I haven’t got time to spare for this. I’ve got to get these humans down to the pits.”
“You’ll do what you’re commanded to do,” said the female demon. Her voice was flat.
Moving ever so slightly so that he could peer out of the alcove with one eye, Sam simply had to watch what happened next. The male demon’s hand was edging slightly towards his sword hilt.
“I wouldn’t if I were you,” said the female calmly. The male demon’s hand froze. “The Lightbringer himself ordered me to investigate this personally,” she continued. “And to recruit whoever I saw fit to help. That means you. Consider this also; whatever or whoever this intruder is, our senses will reveal its true nature before long. It cannot hide from us. Now, I suggest that if you want to keep breathing that you do exactly what I ask.”
The male demon did not respond. He didn’t move either. Instead, he stood facing the other demon. Sam could sense his hatred and rage.
“The longer we delay here, the further away our quarry will get,” said the female. “I suggest we make haste.” She extended an open hand along the corridor. “After you.”