Hell'O'Seers - Revamped

2: Rising High, Plummeting Low

The seventh overseer, Sullivan, had just left the tormented soul behind when something stopped him in his tracks a burning sensation that hit him deep in his core. The sky above was thick with yellowish clouds, raining down a strange, ichor-like liquid onto the pavement. He stood there for a moment, confused, scanning his surroundings to regain his focus. Tall, concrete apartment buildings, ashen wooden houses, and tents stretched endlessly toward a rocky ceiling that replaced the sky, trapping this layer between the sixth and eighth.

Concrete pavement stretched downhill, dotted with lampposts here and there. To his right was a highway, bustling with cars, carriages, and demons riding horses in both directions. It looked almost like the overworld, except for the strange mix of centuries-old structures and, of course, the demon inhabitants.

Even a few succubi were lingering around, though this wasn't their layer. But then again, a "horny" demon was easy clientele no matter where they were. Sullivan shook off the existential dread creeping in, focusing instead on the bodies of tormented souls hanging from the lampposts, each marked with a brimstone symbol carved into their flesh.

"Great," he muttered under his breath. "Missed all the hangings because of stupid paperwork. Why'd they pick me to be the greeter this century?"

Sighing, he felt a buzz from his jacket pocket. He pulled out a beat-up old cellphone a reminder flashed on the screen: "Coffee time!"

His eyes widened. "Shit, I'm late!"

Without hesitation, he bolted downhill. At the bottom stood a neon sign, glowing in purple: "Naughty & Nice Cafe." It depicted a heart with an upside-down droplet where the halves met at the top. Desperately scanning the street for a parked car or horse, Sullivan spotted only a stream of blood running downhill. No ride in sight.

Except for a lesser demon.

Sullivan's devilish grin spread wide. "Perfect."

"Hey, you!" he called, leaping into the air.

Random passing by demon in from of 7th overseer looked up just in time, terror in his eyes, but it was too late. Sullivan landed squarely on the demon's face, using him like a board, his boots pressing down as the demon screeched in pain. Together, they slid downhill, picking up speed. The demon's wings tore open from the friction, leaving a bloody trail behind them.

Sullivan was grinning ear to ear.

Soon enough, they reached the cafe. Sullivan jumped off just before the demon's mangled body tumbled away. Dusting off his jacket, he pushed through the cafe doors.

The inside looked like a pub from the early 1900s wooden furniture, a long bar counter, round tables, and stools. A tall shelf behind the bar was filled with all sorts of strange substances. Demons of various kinds filled the place, but two stood out in particular.

At one of the tables sat a female demon, pale with frostbitten traces all over her body. She had two sets of horns, one large pair that started white at the base and faded to black at the tips, and a smaller pair that went from black to blue. Chains hung from her horns. She wore a fur coat draped over her shoulders, a black and white shirt, a skirt, thigh-high socks, and boots. Jewelry adorned every inch of her.

Beside her sat a slightly taller male demon with short brown hair, wearing a brown checkered suit. His sleeves were stained with food, and a bowler hat sat on his head. He seemed unbothered by the mess he had made of himself.

"There you are," Sullivan said, glaring at the two. "Both of you, in my damn realm."

The female demon, Eko, glanced up nonchalantly. "We've been waiting for you. Shouldn't we be saying that?"

Sullivan scoffed. "Not my fault I got stuck filling out paperwork while you two lazed around."

Eko shrugged. "Paperwork, huh? Must've been real exciting."

"Yeah, well," Sullivan rolled his eyes. "I got voted in. You two couldn't be bothered to help."

"Anyway," Eko shifted in her seat, "we're here because Dokas wanted coffee."

"And I'm still waiting for it," grumbled Dokas, staring hungrily at his empty table.

Sullivan glanced around the cafe. "I hear this place still serves demon dust in its coffee."

Dokas nodded. "Exactly. Best place around."

Sullivan sat down with a sigh, finally letting himself relax. "So, what's the latest? Heard Sab's got some new torture method over in her layer."

Eko rolled her eyes. "Don't care. Almost no new souls show up in my layer anyway."

Sullivan smirked. "You've got all the big names though Satan, Cain, Beelzebub. You're the tail end of our world."

Eko shot him a look. "Yeah, but no one likes my layer."

Sullivan laughed. "Your layer's nothing but ice and snow. What's not to like?"

Eko crossed her arms. "Cold places don't bother souls, you know."

"They don't bother them, but it's a problem for me," Sullivan shot back.

"It's unbearably hot in the other eight layers," Eko replied coolly. "Maybe you could use some fresh air."

"Yeah, because a 'fresh breeze' from the ninth layer is just what we need," Sullivan said sarcastically.

Eko grinned. "You've never even visited."

"And I'd rather die than set foot there," Sullivan retorted. "Oh wait, I can't!"

Eko raised an eyebrow. "Right, because you're scared of ice."

"I'm not scared of anything," Sullivan said, his voice growing tense.

"Sure," Eko teased, "that's why you're sweating just thinking about it."

Sullivan narrowed his eyes. "Says the demon who has to take her coat off because it's too hot in here."

Eko shot back, "Says the guy who can't handle a real dog like Cerberus."

Sullivan grinned, leaning back in his chair. "Says the demon who talks to a frozen Satan."

Dokas, who had been quietly eating pie, finally chimed in. "I'd rather just watch people eat until they explode. That's more my speed."

Sullivan snorted. "Yeah, and I heard heresy's got a never-ending Bible to torment the Catholics."

Eko and Dokas both perked up. "Now that sounds fun," Eko admitted.

"Good luck to them," Dokas added between bites.

"Times have changed," Sullivan sighed, staring into space. "Back in the day, I was on top."

Dokas chuckled. "Now you're just like the ninth layer a bottom feeder."

Eko nudged him, smirking. "See? Even Dokas gets it."

"Yeah, yeah," Sullivan grumbled. "You're still freezing your ass off in your layer."

Eko laughed softly. "You'd know all about freezing, huh?"

Sullivan raised an eyebrow. "Wait, did you get your ass stuck on ice because you sat too long?"

Eko blushed, looking away. "M-maybe."

Sullivan burst out laughing, but quickly stopped, coughing awkwardly. "Okay, okay... I should probably head out. Got files to prep for the new greeter election anyway."

Eko stood up, stretching. "Fine by me. Let's get out of here before another demon bleeds all over the place."

"Yeah, that happens a lot," Sullivan shrugged as they left the cafe.

The two walked uphill in silence, carefully avoiding the blood and chunks of meat left behind by the demon Sullivan had ridden down. Eventually, they reached the hellevator. Sullivan coughed to break the awkward silence, then, without thinking, pulled Eko into an awkward hug.

"Uh, take care," he mumbled.

Eko gave him a slight nod, stepped into the elevator, and vanished. Sullivan stood there for a moment, staring at the closed doors, shaking his head with a smirk before heading off on his own.