Hell was a place of fire and darkness, where the damned were condemned to suffer for eternity. 

 

It was a realm of unending torment, where the screams of the damned could be heard echoing through the fiery pits, and where the cries of the damned could be heard filling the air. 

 

It was a place of utter desolation and excruciating pain, a place where the wicked were tormented for their transgressions while other wicked people delighted in their suffering. 

 

And in the very depths of Hell, the Supreme Archdemon Baal, who was known as the ruler of the damned, presided over all. Baal was a cruel and ruthless being who took great pleasure in the suffering of those who were subject to his rule.

 

“Lord Baal!” A familiar female voice called from behind the archdemon. 

 

Baal spun on his heel and gave a curt nod to another demon who was standing just beyond his reach. “We have sealed the hole sixty kilometers northeast of Avernus City, but...”

 

“But what?” Baal demanded impatiently.

 

Before giving her response, the female archdemon displayed a brief moment of hesitation. She had been dispatched by Lord Azriel with the mission of ensuring that all of the demons in Hell had been properly sealed up and that each and every one of them had been accounted for as thoroughly as possible.

 

“I-I’m very sorry, sir, but a group of demons had escaped to Earth, sir. W-we have estimated at least two hundred of them, sir. Several aristocrats had vanished, and we believe that they had also made their way down to the surface of the planet.” The female demon reluctantly admitted her wrongdoing as the expression on her face contorted in fear.

 

“I will deal with it myself.” In a deep voice, Baal commanded, “Tell Azriel to handle the rest; I’m stepping down as the king of hell,” and then he began to walk away into the distance, quickly vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye. 

 

The female demon made a profound bow and then hastened back toward the city, eager to provide Azriel with an update on the situation.

 

***

 

Meanwhile, on Earth, in a train station in Tokyo, Japan, George Serizawa, a 16-year-old man dressed in a black suit, stood leaning against the wall with his arms crossed in front of him. His eyes scanned the area around him with intense concentration. 

 

He opened his bag, took out his phone and a book, and started recording as the minutes ticked away until the train arrived. He was standing there with his face visible and a page from a notebook in front of him that had the following message written on it:

 

“To the man and woman who had brought me to this world with the intention of raising me as a puppet, as an asset, as a business opportunity,

 

To the educators who choose to ignore or simply do not care when one of their students becomes a victim of violence at the hands of another student,

 

To my fellow slaves, who are living a life they never asked for, a life that was forced upon them, and a life in which the only reward for one’s labor is to be whipped for the smallest infraction of one’s duty, 

 

To the God, if he does exist, who chose to play a cruel, cruel joke of spawning me in this heartless world with nothing except suffering,

 

To all of you, farewell.

 

From this day onwards, I am no longer a slave. Not to my family, not to my community, not to God, and most definitely not to the hands of fate. 

 

As a human being in possession of a free will, it is up to me to determine how my story will end.  

 

Do not weep for me. For today, I shall soar the skies and fly.

 

When I pass away, the digital safe that is hidden underneath my bed will open on its own. The amount of money contained within it is sufficient to pay for the repairs to the train station as well as my own burial expenses.

 

For the mind of the train engineer, which I am about to permanently scar,

 

For the passengers whose work I’m about to delay,

 

For the cleaners who will have to clean my body from the tracks and the train,

 

And to everyone else whose daily life I’m about to disrupt, I apologize and ask that you forgive my selfishness.”

George could hear the sound of the incoming train. He could feel it approaching.

 

He closed his journal and stowed it away in his bag, but he did not turn off the recording feature on his phone, ensuring that it would capture his passing as well.

 

The oncoming train can be heard approaching. The low rumbling sound it makes is becoming increasingly audible. 

 

George took a few slow, deep breaths before beginning his amble towards the railroad tracks, all the while making an effort to project an air of nonchalance. When it was already getting close, he turned around so that his back was facing the railroad tracks.

 

He leaped into the railroad tracks.

 

George was killed instantly when he was run over by the speeding train after it collided with him. It didn’t show any signs of slowing down and kept moving forward without stopping. After it had come to a complete stop, passengers in front of the train were able to observe a cracked windshield. A terrified driver peered out the window from the interior with bloodshot eyes while his body was drenched in sweat. The loud sound of the impact reverberated throughout the atmosphere, and the terrified passengers on board the train let out screams of terror.

 

***

 

George witnessed his entire life play out in front of his very eyes. He relived his childhood memories of being confined to his room as a young boy with nothing but books to read and his bed. His mother and father insisted that he always study, and they made him read constantly. It wasn’t even possible for him to go outside, let alone play with the other children in the neighborhood. 

 

After that, he saw himself being beaten until he was unconscious by his father. He recalled the numerous tears that were streaming endlessly down his pale cheeks, as well as the cold sweat that was on his forehead. The manner in which he was thrown across the room, with his head violently striking the adjacent wall. He witnessed how he was able to maintain consciousness for a considerable amount of time after the beating had stopped, as well as how his stomach burned with the taste of iron. 

 

After that, he witnessed himself being tormented by his fellow students. How his classmates forced him to lick the toilet, brought him to an abandoned house where he was waterboarded using a metal drum, and how when he tried to breathe, the man in charge of the group, a man with hazelnut hair, ordered his friends to put him back in the water. He nearly died after being too exhausted to resist anymore. He witnessed how he was coerced into working a part-time job so that he could pay his bullies and put an end to the suffering they caused him.

 

He witnessed how he approached the faculty members for assistance, how they declined his request, how they placed the blame on him, and how they threatened to call the authorities. After leaving, he approached the authorities for assistance, but they flatly refused to assist him. He believed that he could put his faith in them and that they would act in his best interest, but they were not trustworthy in either regard. 

 

Do you wish to continue living?

 

George was startled and made a momentary jolt in response to the low and guttural voice coming from behind him. As soon as he turned around, he noticed a large man standing behind him with the head of a cat. It appeared to be giggling from ear to ear and had teeth that were extremely pointed and long. It appeared as though his entire body was made of bloody bones, and some of them were even sticking out of his shoulders. It had an open abdomen that was hollow and devoid of any contents.

 

 George trembled as it spoke because the sound of its voice made him extremely uncomfortable. He cast a quick glance toward the road where he was certain the train would be approaching. He dreaded having to answer any more of the bizarre questions and hoped that the train would arrive soon so that he could escape the situation.

 

George shook his head and said, “No,” as he met the yellow gaze of the monster head-on. 

 

No?

 

The monstrous creature chuckled malevolently while repeating something. 

 

What if I told you I could give you power, enough power to live on your own, to choose your own fate?

 

It questioned with an inquisitive tone.

 

George swallowed painfully.

 

“I-if I said y-yes... w-what would happen?” he asked, staring at the ground.

 

The beast’s grin suddenly widened even further, exposing its teeth that resembled those of a shark.

 

You would become mine. You will act as my limbs and support me in this world.

 

The voice of the beast had an evil and benevolent quality to it at the same time.

 

With a grin on its face, the creature continued,

 

And I will become your strength. Together, we will be unstoppable.

 

When George considered everything that was about to happen to him, his heart began to race, and he momentarily went into a state of fear.

 

What would happen if he agreed? Would it be possible for him to survive on his own?

 

“I-I accept your deal...”

 

The beast let out a devilish laugh upon learning that the boy would take him up on his offer, and then it vanished into thin air, leaving behind with it only the sound of a train striking George’s body.