The Devil Within

Cults Are Easy to Come By

"I can get you there quickly," Lucifer said when you got to the top of the stairs.

"But then I'll be too sick to pay attention to the situation," you reasoned, shaking your head. "I have a better way as long as you and Ramsey stay close."

"We won't leave your side," Lucifer assured you, watching you stare at a nearby cell door. "But what's with the sudden interest in the empty cell?"

"So it is empty?" you questioned. You figured it had to be since there was no screaming coming from behind it. The door was just what you needed.

"Hold on a minute," Lucifer said, looking around. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"By the time I lock it from the inside, it'll be like I never touched the door," you said, walking up to the door. "I need to get home quickly and this is the fastest option."

"Alright," Lucifer said, trusting you as he made sure that no demons were coming out of the cells. "Go, quick."

"I'm sorry for cutting this short," you said, pecking his cheek before turning to the cell. "I'll make it up to you."

"Just solve the problem and you already will have," Lucifer said as you unlocked the door. "I'll see you back on Earth."

The door to the cell emitted a white light as it popped open, indicating you were free to enter. With one more quick goodbye, you stepped through the door and quickly closed it behind you, not wanting any demons to see it or where you were going. The scene you walked in on was concerning, to say the least. Every human and angel connected to the House of the Blessed and each other surrounded the main couch, trying to coax Aleksei into telling them what happened. The angels noticed you first, ushering you over to the couch. You quickly walked up to the couch and saw Aleksei sitting in the middle with his legs tucked up and his head in his hands, apologizing over and over again. Only Zadkiel was sitting next to Aleksei, the other spot was free while Don was leaning on the back of the couch behind Aleksei. The others were standing around, trying to help the best they could but they just seemed clueless as to what to do. You decided to sit down next to Aleksei and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. Aleksei flinched before looking up at you, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"I'm so sorry," Aleksei cried, falling into you. His grip on you was tight as his apologies flew out of his mouth, muffled by the fabric of your dress. "I should have been more careful."

"It's alright Aleksei," you whispered, carefully holding him. "We'll solve it together, but I need you to tell us what happened."

"I... I wasn't careful," Aleksei admitted quietly, you almost couldn't hear but the angels sure as Hell could. "I always keep an eye out and the one time I didn't, I mess everything up!"

"Whoa, let's not get ahead of ourselves," you said carefully, gently petting Aleksei's head. "If you tell us what's got you so panicked, I'm sure we can fix it."

"He knows," was all Aleksei said before burying his head in your dress, clearly not wanting to say another word about it. 

You sighed out of frustration but took a breath and decided to try and figure this out. "Okay, what would generate this response?" you whispered, lightly brushing Aleksei's hair.

"Fear," Raphael responded simply. "Humans tend to fight, flee, or freeze but there is also- as you would call it -shutting down as a trauma response."

"I've seen Aleksei's fear before," Zadkiel said, a worried look on his face as he gazed at Aleksei. "His fear response is more of a fight response than anything else."

"He could be afraid of our reactions," Diogenes suggested.

"That is a fair assumption," Raphael agreed, nodding as he turned to Zadkiel. "Has he exhibited this kind of fear before?"