Too Broke For Afterlife

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If I had a heart, beating, it would stop right this second as the big doors open, revealing what's lying behind.

The soldiers are forcing us into a big hall with giant windows and polished stone everywhere. The Mayor is on a throne like chair, an evil grin on her face.

To the left and right are two of the important people of my life. Both Parker and Judy are tied to small stools, their mouths are covered with ductape.

Thank God, Parker is alive.

"Priscilla, what have you done?" Nox shouts and stomps forward.

"You kidnapped our friends? For what?"

"Why do I need a reason?"

She leans over to stroke Parker's hair. I want to punch her.

"18 and 19."

Two of the soldiers step forward.

"Please lead my guests to their seats."

One by one my friends get grabbed and forced onto a row a chairs opposite the Mayor and her throne. I'm the last one standing.

"Isabella," Priscilla purrs. "Come closer, darling."

But I don't move.

"18."

The soldier rams his gun into my back and I stumble forward. "Ouch," I hiss.

Prsicilla chuckles. "Forgive his roughness."

I ignore the fake apology. "What do you want?"

"Why in such a bad mood?"

I just roll my eyes, something I've been doing way too often lately.

"Isabella, I'm given to understand that these are your two closest friends?"

I look at Parker, then Judy. Their eyes are begging me for help.

"I sadly wasn't able to watch when you guys broke into my temple because some incompetent wannabe locked me into my own dungeon so I'd like to repeat the show."

Whatever she is about to say next, I won't like it.

Priscilla smiles. "In a moment I will kill one of them. You decide who gets to live."

I hear someone gasp behind me, Parker and Judy exchange a panic filled glance and I freeze.

"Kill?"

"Yes. Kill. They'll go straight to Hell, no more second chances. So, who should live?"

My legs are shaking and my stomach turns.

"I can't make that decision."

"If you have no answer, I will kill both."

"No!" My trembling hand covers my mouth. This can't really be happening.

Whatever decision I make, it will kill me as well. Both deserve to live equally as much.

"I..."

"Isabella, wait."

I turn around to Nox who walks towards me. The guards run over to pull her back but the Mayor waves them away. "Let her, I'm interested in hearing what this woman has to say."

Nox stops next to me and stares into my eyes.

"Do not choose Judy."

"What?"

I look over to my ex who seems just as shocked by that statement.

"I know you still love her but that's exactly what Priscilla wants."

"I don't understand."

Why would Priscilla care about who I choose?

"Listen to me. Judy is an ordinary human. Parker is not. He holds powers that threaten her plans for world domination."

Parker doesn't seem to know what she is talking about. One of his eyebrows are furrowed and if his mouth wasn't taped right now, I know what he'd say.

'Powers? Me? Yeah, right.'

"What powers?" I ask.

The Mayor seems to be getting nervous. "Enough. Isabella, make your decision now."

The guards pull Nox away and force her back onto the chair.

F*ck, this didn't make it any easier. Should I believe Nox? Should I prioritize Parker?

"Prissy, you think you're so smart!" Nox shouts. "But with all your crazy plans you forgot one thing."

The Mayor turns to her. "What are you talking about?"

"You forgot about the crystals. Clemens."

The German pulls them out of a small sack hidden in his jacket.

"No..." The Mayor looks shocked when she sees the two gems. "But...18, 19! Get the crystals!"

The guards run over as Nox screams. "Throw the right one!"

Clemens reacts quickly and before the guards can grab him, he shoots one of the crystals through the air. It flies in a high curve until it falls onto the ground near where Parker is sitting, shattering into a million pieces.

"What did you do?" I shriek.

They just smashed the crystal!

The Mayor starts laughing. "Stupid! How dumb are you?"

Meanwhile, the guards have successfully acquired the second one and are tying Clemens, Nox and Walter to their chairs.

"What now? Hm? Was that your plan? How si-"

Priscilla stops as she notices blue fog streaming out of the shards.

"What..."

I watch as well as the corner of the room starts filling with the strange gas.

"The barrier has been broken," Nox announces. "Hell is no longer bound to one place and neither are Satan's powers."

As the fog nears Parker, he starts twitching. His head turns in all different directions and his hands turn into fists.

"What's happening to him?" I turn around to Nox.

"The crystal activates his secret side, a side not even he knows of."

"No, guards! Grab him!"

But neither 18 nor 19 or any of the other soldiers standing around are sure if the should follow the instructions.

I watch with an open mouth how Parker's skin turns blue. Two horns are growing out of his forehead and the eyes turn red.

He looks like...

"The son of the devil." Nox smiles.

With inhumane power, Parker rips the ropes that are holding his arms and legs close to the chair, then he removes the ductape.

Completely changed in his being, I don't recognize anything familiar about the demon that is now looking at me.

"F*CK!" Priscilla Godwin jumps out of her throne to face Parker.

"You think you can beat me? You are merely a fraction of the devil and even he is far behind my greatness! I surpassed that idiot decades ago."

In response, Parker opens his mouth and an ear piercing scream leaves his throat. I fall down onto my knees, holding my ears shut but the Mayor seems only slightly bothered.

"You pathetic little shit. You can't beat me on your own."

"So what if I help?"

All our heads shoot around and we look at a man standing in the doorway.

He is blue like Parker, his hair is gelled back and he is wearing a suit.

"Stanislav," the Mayor hisses. "You parasite of a man. How did you get here?"

"I had some help from an old friend but that's beside the point. I'm here to stop you from killing Parker and Isabella."

I am completely lost. I thought the Mayor's plan was to get rid of us all!

"You don't know what you're talking about." But she doesn't sound so confident anymore.

"Oh really?"

Stan starts wandering over to us. None of the guards dare to stop him.

"You know that these two humans keep parts of some of the most powerful beings in their hearts. Even if you were surpass Death, they'd always remain a threat. That's why you lured them here. But I'm not going to let that happen."

I look at Parker, he looks at me. We both have special powers?

If he is the son of the devil...then what am I?

"Parker." Stan has reached him and puts a hand on his shoulder.

"The reason you've seen me in your dreams for all these years and the reason you were the one to enter Hell are both the same. Where Priscilla Godwin stored parts of her power into objects to create artefacts..."

He takes a deep breath.

"I stored them inside your heart. You are my artefact."

What.

The.

Fuck.

"What?" Parker's voice is merely a wift of air.

"If you die, my powers will be reduced drastically. For this reason I have made you immortal. You can only die by the hands of a cosmic entity, like Priscilla for example."

Stan turns to me. "The same goes for you, Isabella. But I am not responsible for that part."

"Then who is?" I ask, my voice trembling. "Whose artefact am I? Huh?"

He shakes his head. "It's not my place to tell you. And right now there are more important things we need to take care of. Parker, free your friends as I untie Judy."

I stand there and watch the two demons loosening knots. What about Priscilla? Shouldn't she try to stop them?

I look at the woman but her expression is unreadable.

Once Stan and Parker are done, she starts clapping. Everyone turns to her confused.

"Nice show. But what's the point? Even with your little puppet, Stanislav, you can't kill me. Not even Death could do so on their own. I have reached a Karma balance that is almost equal to theirs."

Is that true?

Did we take too long to get here?

Judy stumbles over to me and I pull her into a tight hug.

"That is true."

Nox rises out of her chair.

She calmly tucks the red hair behind her ears.

"Luckily Stanislav and Parker aren't on their own."

Priscilla laughs. "You little girl want to fight me? Seriously? How disgusting!"

Nox smiles innocently and waits for the Mayor's laugh to quiet down.

"I'm not a little girl, Prissy."

She takes a step forward.

"I'm your biggest nightmare."