Theo stared in shock out the window, seeing a blood red moon casting a glaze of crimson over the city he found himself in. His body shakes from a nervous breakdown as he falls to his knees, looking out at the landscape of hell. He swallows and closes his eyes.
"This is just a really vivid dream... right?" Theo says, opening his eyes, the glistening red city still in his vision.
"You lost or something?" A woman's voice said from behind him. Theo slowly turns around, his bright green hazel eyes meeting yellow with stark contrast. Standing in front of him is a humanoid form, but it doesn't look right: cat ears, black fur with a yellow stripe that matches her eyes, a thin, fluffy tail, and a puzzled look as she scrolls on a smartphone, not looking up at him.
"You're... a cat?" Theo said his voice low and trembling in a mix of emotions.
"Watch it, dick head!" The woman says, revealing her feline fangs. "The term is Hellcat, or Bezekira if you want to get fancy." The woman says with a slight hiss in her voice. The woman finally looks up at Theo as her eyes widen and a small grin forms around her lips. "You don't look like a sinner." She says, moving closer. Theo's eyes widen as he backs up against the window.
"A... sinner?" He asks, his body still trembling from all that has occurred in a short period of time.
"Yeah, a sinner," She says with an annoyed expression. "But you don't look..." She sniffs the air. "Or smell like a sinner," she says, her ears perking up.
"I'm not a sinner, I'm a human," Theo says as his eyes scan her non-human body.
"You're a human?" She said with a hint of amusement. "How did you end up down here not dead?" She says getting closer.
"I don't really know, I just showed up here after talking to an angel," Theo says, his expression still one of confusion as he adjusts his glasses. The woman recoils at the word "angel".
"An angel." She says, expressing displeasure from saying the word. "And you're sure you didn't die, that shit can be traumatic." She asks. Theo shakes his head, sure that he didn't die. The woman's lips curl into a full smile. "Well... Welcome to Hell." She says, walking away towards an office door.
"Wait, you can't just leave me here," Theo says, standing up and walking towards her.
"And why is that?" The woman says with her fangs showing. "You're not my problem."
"But, I need to get back," Theo says with a look of desperation.
"Listen up, newbie, because I'm only going to say this once." She says, turning towards him. "This is Hell, literal Hell. Not a single person here gives a shit about what happens to you." She said coldly. Theo lowers his hand in defeat as this strange woman looks at him. She sighs with deep annoyance. "Fine, what did that angel fuck say to you before sending you here?"
Theo's eyes light up from the sudden change in mood. "He said that I committed a sin and that if I want to get out of Hell, I need to kill something called the Sins," Theo explains.
"The Sins!" The woman shouts, laughing. "Good fucking luck with that," She scoffs. "That angel must have a more twisted sense of humor than most sinners down here."
"I'm guessing he means the seven deadly sins, like the seven princes of hell," Theo said, his voice full of doubt. The woman nods.
"Yup, and you got to kill them." She laughs.
"I don't even know where I am, how am I supposed to find, let alone kill, a prince of hell?" Theo says, leaning against the wall, his body somewhat relaxed from the ridiculousness of the situation. Theo lets out a small grin and a chuckle as he thinks about everything.
"What, you think it's funny?" The woman asks, still grinning herself.
"No point in crying about it, hell, maybe it'll be fun," Theo says, his demeanor shifting.
"Finally, someone with the right attitude. Most humans would just scream and cry." Her eyes soften slightly. "You might actually survive here if you keep that up." She said. Theo's grin fades, but his attitude stays somewhat satirical in nature. "Alright, human, here are the basics: Don't piss off demons, avoid the wrath ring, and for fucks sake, don't make a deal with a sinner. Got it!" She says, extending her claws to count. Theo nods in agreement. "No, I got better shit to do than babysit a human all day," She says, pulling her phone back out.
"Wait, you're just going to leave again?" Theo asks desperately.
"Fine, you get five minutes. What do you want to know?" She responds, rolling her eyes, scrolling through her phone.
"Everything you can tell me about Hell: Do I need money? Is magic a thing, or no, that's stupid..." Theo drones on.
"Whoa, slow down before you hurt yourself. Yes, you need money, we use soul bills... don't ask me why they are called that... and yes, magic is real and it's not stupid. So be quiet and I'll explain things properly." She says with a slight smirk of amusement. "Look, it's really simple to survive, don't get your soul eaten, and you'll be fine. Can I go now?" She says, beginning to walk away. "Oh, and don't die, you're mildly tolerable for a human," She says as the office door shuts behind her.
Theo stands in the hallway, still trying to think about everything all at once as he takes a deep breath. His shoulders relax slightly as he looks back out the window. "Screw it, guess I'm a resident of hell now, just have to deal with it." He says, turning from the window and walking down a flight of stairs leading outside of the building.
Theo walks down the streets of hell, seeing all manner of creatures that resemble humans but each with demonic characteristics or animal-like features. Theo steps in front of a neon green sign that simply reads "Drinks". Theo begins to move away from the sign as he trips on the tail of a snake-like humanoid. The snake sinner hisses at Theo, the creature's tongue flicking rapidly. Theo backs up on the ground, his black camo pants getting drenched in what he hopes is a puddle of water
"Shit shit shit," Theo says quickly as the sinner strikes at him, its fangs barely missing Theo's face. Theo gets up as the sinner strikes again, grabbing Theo's camo jacket and tearing it off as Theo's orange hat falls off, revealing his blonde hair. "Shit!" He yells, running away from the snake sinner. Theo ducks into an alleyway as he adjusts his glasses. "That was way too close." He mumbles to himself, catching his breath. Theo looks around, his vision blurry. "Damn, it's been like this since I got here. Must be nerves." He says to himself. Suddenly, the snake sinner shoots around the corner.
"You're mine now!" The sinner hisses as it lunges for him again. Theo holds his hands out as his right hand begins to glow a faint gold before his focus is lost as a slick black figure jumps in front of him. It was the Hellcat woman from earlier. Her claws are extended as she slashes at the snake sinner her heckles posted on end. The snake sinner hisses back and slinks away, cowering with a scowl.
"I gave you one rule: don't piss off demons." The woman says as she flicks his nose. Theo falls to the ground, still out of breath. He rubs his nose.
"That's a lot easier to do on earth, apparently," Theo says, adjusting his glasses again, his vision still blurry.
"Why are you wearing glasses?" The woman asks, leaning down with a smirk.
"Because I can't see properly without them, my left eye is all fucked." Theo replies.
"You're in hell, regardless, you passed through the veil, so your eyes should work fine." The woman says, reaching out her fur-covered hand. Theo reaches out as she helps him off the ground. She reaches for his head and removes the glasses. "Better?" The woman says, smashing his glasses. Theo blinks, and things suddenly become clearer.
"Shit, I can see now," Theo says, looking around.
"No shit, dumbass." She says, rolling her eyes. "Now come on, let's get a drink, you look like you could use one." She says, walking out of the alleyway. Theo suddenly picks up pace, following her into the bar with the Drinks neon sign.
Theo and the Hellcat walk into the bar, taking a seat on two stools at the bar itself. Theo sits down, his shorter stature gaining highest on the velvet cushion. Theo looks around, seeing different kinds of sinners and hellspawn sitting at booths. Two Hellcats sit in a booth, their eyes glancing at him for a moment before they go back to their drinks. In the center of the room are two pool tables, one of which is being used by two sinners playing a game of nine balls. The first sinner was a dark yellow with a long spiked tail and two horns and sharp facial features, the other a woman in a skimpy outfit leaning over the pool table, her skin a purple mix of vibrant glowing markings, reminding Theo of a poison dark frog in appearance.
"Hey, eyes on your drink, human, or do you want another fight on your hands?" The Hellcat woman says, sliding a small shot glass to him. The glass beads with a drink that finds its way to the wooden bar as Theo looks cautiously at the cherry hazel liquid. He glances at the woman who has an anticipatory and amused smirk on her face. Theo takes the drink and downs it. As soon as the drink hits his tongue, a burning numbing sensation fills his mouth as it fights its way down his throat with extreme prejudice.
"Fuck..." Theo says coughing. Theo could normally hold his liquor, but drinking that liquid was a sensation he had never felt before. The woman laughs with a knowing smirk. "What... the hell was that?" Theo asks his voice horse.
"Hellfire whisky, the good shit." She replies by taking a shot of her own.
"Definitely not something they would allow on earth," Theo says as he already feels the buzz kicking in.
"Welcome to Hell, human." She says, ordering another. "Jaxa, by the way." She says, downing another shot like water.
"Theo," He replies, his voice still strained from the poison drink.
"You're not half bad for a lightweight," Jaxa says, ordering another.
"Is this normal for people down here?" Theo hesitantly picked up another glass, his nose burning from the smell.
"Only if you're trying to enjoy yourself." She responds. Theo downs another shot of the Hellfire whisky, the sensation lighter this time, but still fatal to his senses.
"Thanks for saving me back there," Theo says, his face scrunched from the drink, as he waves the bartender over for another drink instinctively.
"I didn't save shit, I just knew you would be way too entertaining to keep around a bit long." She says as they both take another shot. Theo takes the shot, its effects almost completely muted, like his tolerance had increased, but that wasn't it; it was his want for more that kept him drinking. Theo takes another shot, his senses ignoring the burning and pain from the strength of the drink. "Whoa, slow down, there, human," Jaxa says, taking his glass before Theo can drink another shot. Theo instinctively reaches for the drink as Jaxa scratches his hand with her claws in response. "I said slow down."
"I...I'm sorry, I didn't even notice." Theo says, shaking his head and looking at the blood dripping from his hand. It stung like a papercut as his blood dripped out; it had a faint glow.
"Wow, that's different," Jaxa said, looking intrigued at his bloody hand.
"This looks the same as that deer's," Theo says as his cuts seem to stitch themselves together with the magic golden glow of holy magic.
"Deer?" Jaxa asks, taking another shot, her eyes still locked on his hand.
"Yeah, that angel said I had killed an angel when I shot a deer on earth," Theo says as his blood seemingly closes his cuts shut.
"You killed an angel?" Jaxa says, dropping her glass to the counter of the bar as she gives him a look of concern and shock.