The Sin Hunter: Double or Nothing

We Interrupt This Holiday

The beach shone with sparkling silver mist in the breeze and a lustrous bronze on the horizon of sandy shores while two umbrellas set themselves on the beach. Chairs were laid out, coolers filled with sparkling ice and cold, carbonated mocktails, and a towel with fashionable cartoon characters of blue, red and yellow lay itself out in the sand. Two pairs of pearl white and beautiful gold sandals graced the beach as Simeon lifted his sunglasses, gently coating his skin with a brand of lotion called Celestial Sunblock. While Simeon hummed a slow, gentle tune through the air, like the cool breeze in the warm jungles of the Living World, Josiah retrieved a glass of sparkling cider from the cooler, stepping onto the beach with his Angelic buddy.

Simeon combed a hand back through his hair, admiring the view out to sea. "What a nice view. And we've certainly earned it, good sir." Josiah flipped the seasonably heart-shaped glasses into his head of pure silver hair, waving in the salty breeze while he turned to face the slightly taller Angel, robe, t-shirt and shorts to match the look. "Yup. Sounds about right." Josiah muttered through a glass of cider, the foam gently folding over his lip. Simeon shuffled in the sand, digging his hands into his pockets. "Look how far we've come, man. Two Angels, enjoying a nice, quiet weekend on the beach. Who could ask for anything more?" Josiah shrugged, kicking back in his foldout chair beneath the umbrella while a volleyball soared just below his view.

"I most definitely couldn't. We're Angels, man. No bad days, no rainy nights unless we want 'em, this is the superior way of living." Simeon nodded, sitting down in his own chair with crossed fingers and twiddling thumbs. His arms hung out past his legs as he hunched over the sand, chewing at his lip. "Have you been keeping up with the news about the new Laws?" Josiah turned from his phone after snapping a picture, swiping closed on his device. "The new Laws? Oh, yeah, I read 'em. Tough stuff, huh?" Simeon nodded, standing up while kicking a cloud of sand into the air and retrieving a golden apple from the cooler, tossing the orb up and down in the air. "It bugs me. Why do we keep squeezing this bottleneck tighter every time?" Josiah shrugged, a few pairs of eyes on his hands and wrists blinking in puzzlement.

"I'm not the one to answer that. If you wanna talk business, take it up with the Exorcist Department. Only our Lord knows what they're up to." Simeon threw his shoulders at the ground, waving his hands out in irritation. "Y'know, I get that, dude. But really? You're telling us that, hey, now there's less people coming up here to enjoy all of this?" The Angel concluded, spinning with outstretched arms to gesture at the beach, the coastal utopia behind and the beautiful groves of palm trees on every side. Josiah nodded, moving out of his seat and putting a hand on his pal's shoulder. "It doesn't seem fair to me either, Sim. Nobody who isn't a slaughterhouse fan is happy with this. I mean, if you wanted to just keep sending them to Hell, just get rid of Heaven altogether, huh?"

Simeon nodded, flicking his glasses back over his eyes while the glistening gold sun splashed across the ocean far beyond the horizon, shimmering in ripples of peach and rose gold. "It's like Jack told us before we came back here. You laugh at everybody, or you laugh at nobody." Josiah turned with a surprised and puzzled expression on his face. "What does that have to do with this?" he asked. Simeon stuffed one of his hands into his robe, the other helping him dine on the golden apple. "Mmf. I'm saying," Simeon gestured with his shoulders to a group of Angels enjoying volleyball on the beach, "if the Exorcists think that everybody deserves Hell, then why don't we take away all their fancy toys too? Like Jack said," Simeon muttered, when Josiah joined in solemn and relaxed agreement, "you laugh at everyone, or you laugh at no one."

Josiah nodded, watching as a volleyball rolled to his feet in the sand. Scooping the ball from the beach, he tossed it back to the Angels and their volleyball game, watching the ball bounce up and over, soaring like a bird taking flight. "Funny. We came here for a nice, quiet vacation, and here we are debating our Heavenly political powers." Simeon shook his head, reaching low to remove his sandals while his glistening gold halo began flashing a faint green, flickering. Josiah, turning just in time to see the faint green, tapped his friend on the shoulder. "Sim, somebody's calling you." Simeon returned to standing height, reaching both hands for the halo. "Huh?" he muttered, removing the halo from atop his head. The Angels swirled their hands around the outer edge of the circle, creating a mirror to gaze through and see a face they hadn't seen in years.

In fact, such a face nearly caused Josiah to drop his sparkling cider in shock. Simeon's sunglasses slid away and hit the beach in stunned silence. The lens continued shaking, adjusting itself until the Sin Hunter could comfortably stand in the center. "Is this thing on? Hello?" He asked. Simeon collected himself, answering the call. "Jack! Jack, hey man, are you there? Can you hear us?" A crystalline voice responded, like dragging a gemstone against more gemstones. "Hey! Hey guys! How've you been?" Josiah leaned in, smiling and waving. "We've been pretty good, Jack! Are you keeping yourself in line?" Jack nodded, patting his hands by his sides. "Absolutely. Actually, I found Shrap, like you guys wanted." Simeon turned to Josiah, both fist bumping and nodding with wide smirks.

"Good stuff, good stuff. Hey, so why the phone call?" Simeon asked. "Not that we're in a rush, but it's a bit odd right now, y'know?" Josiah restated. Jack nodded, fixing his fedora. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but my crew and I have some news for you. And you are NOT gonna like what's happening in Hell in response to the new Laws." Simeon and Josiah both turned in deafening silence, concerned expressions being exchanged between the Angels and Simeon's grip on his halo tightened. Both Angelic pals turned to the mirror again, nodding. "Tell us, Jack," Josiah requested.