It’s Dark And Hell Is Hot

Kai makes his way through the portal to see demons all around him. There are broken down buildings all around him. Kai sees a giant wall around this rubble of a city. Then one demon walks up to him.

Some demon: Follow me.

Kai walks with the demon. Eventually, they make it to stairs that bring back deja vu for Kai. Once Kai makes it to the top of the stairs he sees the reason he was getting deja vu. Beelzebub is sitting on his throne. He picks up a human, and then bites all the meat off the bone. Then he throws the bone away.

Beezlebub: What brings you to my kingdom? Did you miss me?

Kai: Hell no. Hell is a shit show right now, and beast wants me to fix it.

Beezlebub: You fix Hell?!

Beezlebub starts laughing hysterically.

Beezlebub: You can't handle Hell! You're one of the weakest in all of Hell!

Kai: I was able to help take down your army.

Beezlebub: Army?! Those were the weakest demons I could find!

Kai: What about Malphas. He's a general, right?

Beezlebub: General?!

Beezlebub starts laughing hysterically again.

Beezlebub: I ran out of weak demons! He was the only regular demon in the mix, and you almost lost! Have fun trying to fix Hell! You'll end up stuck here just like the rest of us!

Kai: Better try than do nothing.

Kai starts walking down the stairs.

Beezlebub: Go back home. Unless you want to be eaten!

Kai: I'll take my chances.

Kai walks down the stairs, and walks out of the west kingdom. Malphas walks up to Beezlebub.

Beezlebub: Kill Kai.

Malphas: I thought you believed he wouldn't be able to make it out of Hell?

Beezlebub: Kamaitachi is helping him. Never underestimate anyone. Especially when they are trying to ruin your plans.

Kai is walking in no particular direction.

Beast: You must go to the southern kingdom.

Kai: Why?

Beast: They will be able to help us.

Kai: Don't you control this realm. Why don't you just fix it?

Beast: Because I can't control people. I can erase them and create them, but not control them. So I need you to find the one who is doing this.

Kai: Alright, but am I not able to take down any regular demons.

Beast: I know a place where you can go to be able to take in some of my power.

Kai: Like I did against Malphas?

Beast: Yes, but you'll be able to constantly use my power.

Kai: Where is it?

Beast: Across Lava Lake.

Kai: I can't swim in Lava.

Beast: There should be a boat there. Find your way across lava lake. Until then I won't get into contact with you.

Kai: I guess I'm on my own.

Kai walks for a long way until he sees the giant pool of lava. Kai squats down to look at the lava.

Kai(In Head): I wonder why I don't feel hot even though I'm this close to lava?

All of a sudden black smoke starts to surround Kai. Then out of the smoke comes a little funerary boat with a man in a black coat that goes down his whole body is using a scythe to row the boat. His hood covers his face so that you only see dark.

???: Why have you come here?

Kai: I would like to travel across the lava.

???: To travel across the lava you'll need a soul coin.

Kai: Soul coin?

???: If you have no soul coin I shall not bring you across this lake!

Kai: Where can I get a soul coin?

The man starts to fade away with the fog.

???: I shall not bring you across this lake.

Soon he disappears as if he was never there.

Kai: Now I gotta find a way to get a soul coin. I guess it's time to travel some more!

Kai walks around aimlessly until he reaches a broken village. The village is small with mostly housing. Can't see anything going on, but if he focuses he can hear movement. Then Kai sees a female demon sitting down on the ground laying her back against one of the buildings. She has a backward baseball cap on, and her horns are poking out from under the cap. She is wearing a sweatshirt crop top and short cuts. She has on thigh high socks and running shoes.

Kai: Well aren't you just a ball of teen rebellion.

She rolls her eyes at Kai.

???: Are you here to make a deal?

Kai: Why?

???: That's what I specialize in. If you don't have a deal for me. Then I don't want to hear another word.

Kai: Fine, I need a soul coin. What do I have to do to get it?

???: Good boy. My name is Miscreant.

She moves faster than Kai can see, and puts a claw to his throat.

Miscreant: Don't ever call me a teen again. I am hundreds of years old. You don't even have three decades under your belt. I will slaughter you in seconds. Ya got that?

Kai: It was a simple mistake.

Kai puts out his hand.

Kai: No hard feelings?

Her eyes glow for a second, and she lights Kai's brown jacket on fire. Kai quickly takes it off and stomps on it. The jacket is burned badly. Miscreant starts walking off, and Kai follows her leaving his jacket.

Kai: So, are you leading me to my quest?

Miscreant: If that's what you want to call it, yes.

She stops at the entry to the broken down village.

Kai: Now what? Are you going to ask for my soul?

Miscreant: You're full of judgment. No, I won't be. We don't trade souls that are already in Hell. Demons only trade souls that are still alive. What do you think soul coins are? They're souls that have been traded around.

Kai: What do you want from me then?

Miscreant: I want you to protect this village.

Kai: From?

Miscreant: Hellhounds. The reason this town is destroyed is that a pack of Hellhounds continuously destroy this town more and more every day.

Kai: Why do you want to help this town? It's long since destroyed, and there isn't anyone here.

Miscreant: People are here. You just haven't seen them.

Kai: Is that why there is so much noise?

Miscreant: You can hear them? They hide from humans because of what humans have done.

Kai: What have humans done?

Miscreant: I'm not here to give you the latest news on Hell.

She hands him a soul coin.

Kai: You pay before the job is done?

Miscreant: Of course.

She starts walking away.

Miscreant: By the way. If you don't do what I have asked you'll become another soul coin.

Kai: I thought you don't trade dead souls.

Miscreant turns around.

Miscreant: A punishment is not a trade.

She jumps into the air turning into a fireball that quickly dissolves away.

Kai: The fuck is going on here? Everyone is so goddamn flamboyant.

Kai waits at the entrance for what seems like forever. He eventually sits down staring off into space. Hours later he hears the sound of barking. Kai closes his eyes, and listens to the sounds of the hounds' footsteps.

Kai(In Head): Five hounds.

Kai takes out his staff, and uses it to help himself up.

Kai(In Head): Bring it on.

Kai keeps his eyes closed. He hears the hounds circle around him with low growls.

Kai stands there for a good minute as the hounds growl. Then the hounds pounce on him. Kai spins smacking the first dog in the snout with his staff. He then swings his staff up. The staff slams into another dog. Then Kai jabs behind him. The staff thrusts into the dogs snout. Then a hound jumps at Kai biting the right rib cage. Kai tries to punch the dog off, but the hound's jaw is locked. Kai grabs the hound. One hand on its jaw, and one hand on the roof of its mouth. Kai pulls extremely hard, and is just able to get the hounds jaw off of him. Then Kai ribs the hound's jaw off of its skull. Blood goes everywhere.. One hound bites Kai's right arm. The other one bits the left, and Kai falls to the ground. The other dog tries to run at Kai, and bite Kai's neck. Kai kicks the dog before it gets to his neck. Kai does a kick up, and moves his arms together fast. The two hounds on his arms slam together, and drop to the ground. Kai stabs through one of them with his staff. The other hound that was on Kai's arm jumps back. One of the other dogs jumps at Kai. Kai jumps back While Kai was in the air a hound runs fast enough to get behind him. The hound bites Kai's leg. Kai is able to pull his leg from the hounds grasp. The dog had ripped off some meat from Kai's leg causing a degloving. When Kai lands on the ground his leg is in so much pain that he stumbles to one knee. The hound that bit Kai's leg finishes eating the meat he ripped off of Kai. Then he charges at Kai again. Kai through his staff so hard at the dog it goes in the dog's mouth, and through its body. The hound falls over with some of Kai's bo coming out of its mouth. The last two dogs surround Kai as Kai is on one knee. They circle him. Then they both run at Kai with their jaws wide open. Kai grabs one of the dogs by its snout. Then slams the dog on the other hound. Kai rolls to the dog with his bo staff, and rips the bo out of the hound. The two hounds get up, and shake themselves off before charging back at Kai. Kai puts out his staff, and the dogs bite the staff. Kai is barely holding them back. He kicks one, and swings his staff pushing the other hound back. Kai kicks the dog that he swung his staff back. Then the other Hellhound jumps at Kai's neck. Kai pushes his hand through the Hellhound's skin, and rips the Hell hounds heart out. Kai crushes the heart in his hand on accident. Then the final hound jumps at Kai. Kai punches the hound in the head so hard it rips the head off the hound. Kai is breathing heavy.

Kai: Fuck man.

Kai limps over to the entrance of the village, and lays against the gate holding his leg. Kai lays his head back with his eyes closed. The fireball appears on top of one of the buildings. Miscreant appears as the fireball disappears.

Miscreant: You were almost killed by Hellhounds?

Kai: Yeah, those dogs are vicious!

Miscreant: Those things are pets to demons.

Kai: Then how did they destroy this town?!

Miscreant: I destroyed this town stupid.

Kai: Are there even any people here?

Miscreant puts out her hand, and dark shadows from the ground of the village absorb into her hand.

Miscreant: Nope.

Kai: You made shadows to make the noise, great. Why did you do all of this?

Miscreant: To test how useful you'll be.

Kai: For what?!

Miscreant: Maybe you should focus on healing your wounds, and not asking questions. If you didn't have regeneration you would have bled out already.

Miscreant turns into a fireball again and disappears.

Kai takes the soul coin out of his pocket.

Kai: At least I got this.

Kai gets up, and limps aimlessly until he reaches the lava lake. The dark figure reappears on his funerary boat out of the smoke.

???: Do you have the soul coin?

Kai hands him the coin, and then gets on the boat. The dark figure starts rowing the boat.

???: Would you like to hear a story?

Kai: You tell stories?

???: What's a ride without entertainment? An old man's story could teach you a few things.

Kai: If you're calling yourself old then you must have been in Hell for centuries. I would love to hear a story.

???: Where do I begin?