God's Gone AWOL

[10] Hell Breaks Loose (Physically)

Loud —That was the only word Xander could think to describe it.

Deep within the cavern of Hell, a hundred thousand different obnoxious noises echoed out, ranging from the wailing emergency alarms to the scuffle of panicked footsteps. Beneath the incessant screaming of the siren, and the confused shouts of his fellow demons, Xander couldn't get his head on properly.

When he spoke to Yardley on the phone earlier, she had made it seem like things were actually decent in Hell. Nobody was really aware of the threat of an incoming invasion, and with any luck, the High Council would be able to handle the affair without anybody else even finding out. However it appeared as though word had already gotten out, and suddenly the streets were flooded with frightened demonic civilians all trying to figure out what to do now that they might possibly be under attack. Xander decided that he would have to find whoever leaked the information and give them a good slap over the head, because now everyone had become insane and we're all acting out on their own accords. It would practically be impossible to deal with the situation in a calm manner.

Everyone was just randomly running about. He had no idea where they were all running to. Shelter? Their living quarters? Were they trying to evacuate even though the Council hadn't given any recommendations yet? Because that would be quite stupid as Hell was infinitely safer than the no-man's-land of Earth —even under the threat of potential invasion. It was so confusing and dumb. No matter where any of these frantic demons were running, Xander had to run between them. So he struggled and swam against the current of bodies as he tried desperately to reach the parliament building.

Just how hard was it for the Council to do things normally?? Even over small and trivial matters like economics, they couldn't hold a decent conversation without arguing. Now that there was an actual emergency, someone had already screwed up in the short time it took Xander to get from Atticus' house to Vancouver; he hadn't even left the Pacific Northwest. Just what in the heck were they supposed to do —especially with their only collective braincell locked in prison??

Amidst the swirl of bodies and echoing sirens, Xander could hardly think straight. None of the other demons were subconsciously clearing a path for his frightening stature now. They were all more afraid of the general panic than they were of him. So he had no choice but to continue pressing forward against the current.

"Xander!" someone shouted.

He tried to turn and look for whoever was calling him, but there were so many colours and noises blurred around him that he couldn't see anything properly.

"Xander, over here!"

"Over where???" he shouted back.

A grip on his arm caused him to spin around. Yardley was standing right behind him, like an island of hope in the sea of chaos. Her orange curls were coming loose and she was wheezing slightly, having just scrambled her way through the crowd. But despite her disheveled appearance, Xander was eternally grateful to see her.

"Yardley. What the heck is going on?" he asked her.

"After your phone call, the gateway to Purgatory started acting all crazy," she explained, "Eleazar panicked and sounded the alarm before we had a chance to discuss anything. Now Wingo's trying to round up some fighters to help stand guard in case anything happens,"

"Alright." Xander kept a level head, despite being extremely annoyed. "How many has he got so far?"

"I dunno. Maybe a couple hundred?"

A couple hundred was nowhere near enough to handle whatever army Camael had amassed. Wingo was competent enough when it came to guiding the justice system and upholding the laws of Hell, but he wasn't as familiar with militaristic affairs. And the current wailing fiasco of downtown Hell was proof that the more battle-minded Eleazar couldn't handle such a problem tactfully. Yardley, Knox and Naz weren't exactly fighters either, and Smythe was still out of the picture. Unable to stand any more of this chaos, Xander decided to take matters into his own hands.