The sky above us was scorched black, fire danced in every corner of our vision, and yet… he stood there. Satan. Towering. Smiling. Mocking.
His eyes gleamed with a twisted joy as if this entire ordeal was nothing more than a game. His laughter echoed through the ruined wasteland like thunder cracking through fragile glass. My body trembled—not from fear, but from the weight of frustration and despair.
We had come so far. Survived so much. And now, at our weakest, he finally appeared.
I stepped forward, barely able to breathe from exhaustion, but my voice still carried as I shouted, "What are you doing here?! We've come so far—endured so much—just to face you! And now, when we're broken and barely standing, now you choose to strike?!"
Satan looked down at me with a grin stretching unnaturally wide. His laughter grew louder, echoing into the burning void.
Flames spiraled around us, and before we could even blink, demons began to crawl from the shadows—claws scratching, wings stretching, eyes glowing. Within moments, we were surrounded. Trapped. A circle of fire and evil from which there was no escape.
And yet… he didn't attack.
He only stood there, amused, as if we were ants pretending to be lions.
Then, with a voice like poisoned silk, he finally spoke.
"Far? Far, you say?" His laughter returned, sharper this time. "You fools haven't even crossed the border of Hell. My castle? You're not even close."
Silence.
All of us froze.
His words pierced like a blade. We exchanged shocked glances—how could this be? We thought we had reached the heart of the inferno, but now… now we were told this was just the beginning?
Only Wisdom remained calm.
She didn't flinch, didn't speak, just stared blankly at the ground. She had known. She had sensed it all along. But she never had the chance to say it.
My heartbeat grew louder. The pressure in my chest swelled. Rage. Fear. Helplessness. It all boiled together.
I couldn't take it anymore.
I couldn't watch my friends fall again.
My hand trembled. Flames began to rise—no, not just flames. Willpower. The sacred fire within me, long suppressed, now burned brighter than ever before. It wasn't just hot—it was alive. My eyes began to glow red, and I knew...
It was time.
I didn't charge. I didn't scream.
I moved.
Straight toward Satan.
He didn't flinch.
The others saw me leap, and something clicked. They joined me. United in desperation, we launched our strongest attacks—fire, light, blades of pure energy. Everything we had, everything we were, we threw at him.
But when the dust cleared… Satan hadn't moved.
Not an inch.
Not even a scratch.
He looked bored.
The demons, agitated by our defiance, began to swarm. They screamed, their wings slicing through the air, ready to consume us whole.
And then—
"ENOUGH!!" Satan roared.
A wave of rage exploded outward. Not just power—but command. Even his own demons were blasted back by the force. We were thrown like dolls, our bodies smashing into the blackened earth. My lungs gasped for breath.
He was done playing.
"I have waited long enough…" he muttered, his voice dripping with menace.
His eyes turned green—no, glowed green—and a blazing emerald fire erupted around him. The demons trembled and fled, terrified of what came next.
We tried to run. We tried to move.
Too late.
Satan raised his hand and carved strange symbols into the air—ancient letters none of us could understand. The sky responded, turning a deep shade of green. It pulsed with magic none of us could comprehend.
And in a flash… a glowing aura surrounded each of us.
We were lifted—helpless, weightless. Our bodies shook. The pressure crushed our bones.
Then—
BOOM.
Pain. Blinding light. Screams. Nothing.
Then darkness.
I awoke.
Sitting in my bed. Covered in sweat. Gasping for air.
I stared at myself in the mirror, heart pounding, hands shaking. "What in the hell… was that?"
But the day moved on. I tried to forget. I told myself it was over. Maybe just a dream. Maybe just stress. But no dream leaves your soul this heavy.
It wasn't.
Because something now pulsed faintly around my heart. Something warm. Something… not mine. It didn't hurt, but I could feel it growing. Like a flame that wouldn't die, no matter how cold the world around me became.
And by the time night fell, I found myself once again in Hell—reunited with the others. We stood in a broken clearing, the air thick with ash and silence.
No one spoke.
No one moved.
Wisdom sat alone, her back turned toward us. She didn't move. Didn't acknowledge us.
"Wisdom?" I asked softly.
She didn't look back.
When she finally spoke, her voice was barely a whisper—cold, broken, tired. A voice that had lost faith.
"In the Bible… there's so much written about Satan."
We listened in silence.
She paused. Her fingers dug into the dirt.
"I thought about what happened… and I believe…"
Another pause. Longer. Heavier.
"I think… we're cursed."