The Devil

A suffocating feeling consumed Olivier's lungs. He gasped for air but instead only found water. Just as his mind began slipping, a man expertly pulled his head back and let Olivier take in air once more.

Olivier shook his head, tossing water everywhere. After taking a quick breath he looked at the man holding his neck.

"Hey, I think I dropped my keys in the water; can you help me check?"

The man scowled and dunked Olivier's head into the water once more, holding him in place. He gripped Olivier's hair tightly and shook his head.

He looked behind him at some nearby men and said, "He's just being an ass, like always."

The interrogator's boss put a lollipop into his mouth casually. One of the men surrounding him said, "Well, just keep dunkin' him. Until he tells us what we want, the fuck is he gonna do?"

Some time passed with Olivier being dunked into the water over and over again, each respite he got was shorter. Eventually the members of the gang got bored of tossing the warehouse over for loot.

"So, where do you think he comes from?" One asked.

"Do I look like I got a clue?" Another retorted.

"No."

"Then why're you asking me?" He looked towards their boss who still had the lollipop in their mouth, "Boss, if I can be honest, this seems like a waste of time. He's not gonna give up the code to the safe."

The boss glanced at his subordinate from the corner of his eye, "Well, I guess it's about time you all are told anyway. I don't really care about the safe, I just wanted something to do while we waited."

"Huh? What're we waiting for?"

The boss looked at his watch, "For the rest of his gang to show up. We already cleared this warehouse, but it's not like he doesn't have anyone else under his command… It's about time they arrived as well."

As the boss said that he let out a light chuckle and grin. The men instantly understood what their insane boss was trying to say and lifted their guns.

A second later, men burst through all the windows and fired their guns upon the rival gang. Men flooded up the stairs as well. The hail of lead didn't last long before most of the men on both sides were dead or dying.

Olivier lifted his head slowly from the water and coughed. He stumbled backwards and looked around the room. He saw the rival boss sitting in a seat casually sucking on a lollipop. The rival boss noticed Olivier and grinned before biting down on the sucker, cracking it throughout.

It was just the two of them left alive, Olivier couldn't believe it. Even if his gang didn't surprise their enemies, surely, they were well trained enough to have one or two alive.

'They wouldn't all run in blindly and die.' Olivier thought with furrowed brows.

He frowned and hopped over his handcuffs that were previously behind his back. He began walking towards the rival boss who still lazily sat in a seat.

"My, my Olivier, how the cards fall… Is it some pitiful luck or something else?" The rival boss grinned widely causing Olivier to freeze in his tracks.

The rival boss stood and tossed the lollipop stick onto the floor. With a single clap of his hands, all the dead bodies disappeared, and the boss materialized in front of Olivier.

"What the hell?!" Olivier blurted out as he backed up with baffled eyes.

The rival boss's body convulsed and slowly transformed. They let out a moan before looking at Olivier with a grin that stretched ear to ear. Their face was no longer human, instead devilish horns sprouted from its head.

"Pardon me for being greedy, but I'd like for you to participate in a game of mine. Its mighty boring just sending people to hell, but as you can see, I've recently gotten creative! I let you go out with a bang instead of your destined death which was to be shot by the man I previously appeared as."

Olivier stared at the strange creature. It cocked its head with its grin still apparent on its face. A slight chuckle escaped through its teeth.

"Well, let me tell you your charges, I'll get in trouble if I don't." Its body grew in size until just its pupil alone was nearly three times the size of Oliver. It was standing far away above Olivier, looking at some papers.

Olivier would be lying if he said his heart was calm. He took a slight gulp of saliva.

It was too sudden and too strange. Did he just die? What was this creature? Where was he?

The creature tapped its chin before quickly leaning down and peering at Olivier with one of its large eyes. "Twenty-two counts of murder, generally bad people. Countless acts of robbery, breaking and entering, blah, blah, blah… The list goes on."

"You my friend, have piqued my interest!" It laughed wildly, "Really, it's like you wanted to go to Gehenna. My oh my, I fear for the native citizens."

"What?"

"Oh, Gehenna, it's one of my hells. The worst of the worst for those considered, 'redeemable.' You're really teetering on the line for the actual worst hell. But enough of that, redemption, bah, who cares right? If you redeem yourself in Gehenna, you can enter the afterlife, free of any concerns!"

Its eyes widened and it cupped Olivier in its hands.

"However, like I said, I'd like you to play a game of mine. You see, I want a vacation, but I can't just go and leave my spot vacant now, can I? No! So, I need someone to fill that spot. Those in the deepest layer of hell are all mindless idiots, but Gehenna, it's a cruel place in that it lets you keep your sanity."

Its eyes narrowed.

"What better a place to find a temporary replacement! And I also get to have some entertainment as well!" The creature's grin somehow widened even more. The gums of its mouth stretched to the limit and there was even some tearing of its skin.

"What'd'ya say?" A smaller version of itself emerged from its palm and walked over to Olivier. Even this version was twice his height.

It stuck out its hand and said, "If you accept, I'll put you at the top of the food chain, because I think I've taken a liking to you Olivier Gascoigne…"

Olivier stared at its hand that hovered close to his chest. After a brief pause, Olivier looked directly at the creature which could only be the devil.

"No."

For the first time, the devil's face contorted away from the eerie smile. It looked dumbstruck instead. It wasn't long however before the creature bent back so far it looked like its spine would snap.

It let out a howling laughter as its body twitched unnaturally.

Eventually, it launched itself forward and pressed their foreheads against each other.

"Come on, you won't just be a king, I'll make you a god amongst men!" It moved its hands away in an extravagant manner.

Olivier declined again. This time the creature's face showed a strange sadness.

"You're breakin' my heart darling." It pouted before the massive grin returned. It laughed and snapped its fingers. "Alright, fine. Have your way."

It wrapped an arm around Olivier and spoke, "Lemme give you more details then, maybe you'll change your tune darlin'… It's a game of mine! Might as well get some sort of entertainment before I pick someone. I thought humans liked games… Do you like games?"

"Depends on the game." Olivier responded uncomfortably.

"Last! One! Standing!" The devil emphasized each word, their expressive face getting more manic each time. A small army of creatures identical to the devil appeared and began clapping.

Olivier remained silent for a moment before mumbling, "I'll think about it."

The main devil clapped its hands and returned to its original massive size; the old devil that stood tall before had disappeared, as well as all the smaller devils.

"Excellent! I'll send you on your way! Beware though, not everyone is so malevolent as I in your new world! I think you'll realize quickly just how much you need my powers." An oddly normal smile was on its face.

"Good luck human." The devil said with an amused expression. "And keep my offer in mind."

The devil disappeared, leaving Olivier alone in a strange black void. He rubbed his chin and began thinking as sweat trailed down his head. He knew he had died, at least according to that thing, but he felt he'd die all over just by speaking with it.

'Just what the hell is happening?' He thought with gritted teeth. He took a deep breath to calm down his turbulent heart and straightened his back.

'That creature said that if I survive Gehenna, I'd go to the afterlife. How hard can it be?'

As his mind reached this conclusion, a massive spear impaled his body in the dark void. He clutched his body which trickled with blood as his mind quickly began fading.