Chapter 6: Professionalism

It was ten pm but the sun hadn’t set yet. It was crossing the horizon, but the sky was as bright as it was on a cold winter morning. The old, wooden stairs squeaked underneath their feet as they made their way up to their room one last time. Seconds before, they had hugged their family goodnight, and as they were walking up the stairs past the window that looked out to the backyard, they moved the first two fingers of their right hand from their forehead to their belly button, to their left shoulder, and then to their right shoulder. ‘I will never forget you,’ they thought to themselves and to the dog that was buried at the edge of the garden. ‘Even if I leave,’ they thought, ‘I will never forget you.’

The next morning, they brought the last few boxes and pieces of furniture into their new flat, and they finally got around to making their new bed for the first time. Their mind occupied with unpacking, getting settled, and putting everything into as close to a working condition as possible, time passed without notice, and before they knew it, it was evening already. They looked at the woman in an oversized t-shirt who was in the flat with them.

“Want some dinner?” they asked, and she nodded.

“Did you unpack the pans? We can just heat something up real quick,” she said.

They hadn’t, and now they were looking for the box labelled ‘kitchen.’ They came to the small apartment kitchen with the box in their hands while she was grabbing leftovers from the small fridge in the corner of the room, put the box down on the counter, and took three pans out that were neatly stacked in one another. The smallest one fell down and left a dent in the plastic counter top.

She looked at the damage, wiped her hand over it to feel how deep the dent was, and with a shrug, she said, “Whatever.” But they had just damaged the furniture in their new flat, on their first day, and they couldn’t stop staring at the dent. “Don’t worry, it’s not like we’re ever gonna see that deposit again anyway.” She gave them a reassuring smile and took the pans from their hands.

Later that night, after dinner, the two of them were in their new bedroom. It was just large enough for a double bed and a wardrobe to share. On one side of the bed was a bedside table, and on the other was a chair with a light attached to its backrest.

“This isn’t my bedroom,” they said and hugged her from behind. They caressed her stomach and pulled her close to them, kissed and nuzzled her neck. “It’s not yours either. It’s ours.” They took a deep breath, held it in for a few seconds, and released.

She wrapped her arms around them behind her back. “Our bedroom. Our kitchen. Our living room. Our bathroom… and our empty storage cabinet, I guess.” Her head fell back and she whispered in their ear, “It’s all ours.”

“Our life,” they whispered back. Minutes passed and both remained frozen in place, until they broke the silence with a smirk, saying, “You know, there’s something I’d love to do, now that we have our bed.”

“Not today,” she replied. “Tomorrow’s Monday and I’ll have to get up early, you know that.”

“Fair,” they said and released her from their embrace. Each on their side of the bed, the two of them went to sleep. After a few moments, they huddled together in the middle.

The alarm that woke them up at five-thirty was cruel, and it was persistent. She had to get up and get ready for work, and although she liked her job, she didn’t like getting up this early. Seeing them wake up next to her cheered her up, but she would rather have watched her partner wake up a few hours later and kissed them without having to yawn halfway through.

“Is it just me or do you sleep much calmer these days?” she asked over a cup of coffee. She was right, the quality of their sleep had increased by a lot over the last few months. They couldn’t tell why, but the ringing in their ears had started to get quieter until it had completely vanished one day. There was some stress that made them toss and turn for a minute every other night, but once they finished those last two classes and got their degree, they were sure that, too, would cease.

At six-twenty, she left on her bicycle to ride to the hospital she had found a job at three months after finishing nursing school. It was her first month on the job, and as exhausting as the nine-hour days were, she was glad she didn’t have a long commute. She would hop on her bicycle and ride across town in thirty minutes on a slow day. In the summer, this was pleasant, but the eventual winter made her a bit anxious. For the time being, it was June, and it only took a quick kiss, and a ‘love you’ before she was off to work.

They still had some time to waste, and they put it to good use and finished their assignment they had to hand in that day. It was an easy assignment, at least that’s how they felt about it, and it only took them twenty minutes to write it all down and proofread it. A fair bit of code but nothing too bad. Coding had really started to grow on them this semester, and they almost wanted to regret specialising in research and security.

At ten minutes to eight, they held their hands together in front of their face and parted them again, opening a portal from their living room to an unoccupied toilet stall at their university. Somewhere on the fourth floor, all the way back, where nobody would’ve been found dead at eight on a Monday morning, the empty space in the middle of the room was being torn apart. Along the rough edges of the portal, there were bits ripped off, as if someone had used a dull blade to tear into a piece of paper. They would have to work on that, they figured, but at least they made it to class on time.

 

“How are your studies going?” Agarus asked. Long after their class was over and well into their daily training, he and Agbar were sitting in a small tea house in Bangkok in Thailand. Both were speaking Thai with the local accent, and both looked like office workers from the area. Outside, the sun was hiding behind the skyscrapers, and the heavy clouds crying thick, loud droplets made it all the darker.

“I’m really starting to like coding,” Agbar replied. They took a sip from their cup of tea and stared at the crumbs of loose tea floating in it. “I was okay at it, but now it’s as if I’d been doing it all my life.”

“Coding, you say. How exactly does that work? You give an automaton orders, and it fulfils them, right?” Agarus asked and leaned back in his chair.

They nodded. “That’s a very simple way to put it, but yeah, I tell the computer when it’s supposed to do what.”

“And how do you tell the computer what it’s supposed to do?”

“Well, there are different languages that all have their purposes, so it really depends on what you want it to do,” they replied, and noticed the slight grin on Agarus’s face.

“Languages. Interesting,” he said and took a sip of tea. “I know a thing or two about those.” Agbar’s eyes widened as they began to understand what Agarus was very clearly implying, but before they could put their amazement into words, Agarus continued, “And your other class. How is that going?”

“We’re closing in ten minutes, Kiet,” the owner said to Agarus, and he gave her a nod.

“Well,” they began but hesitated. “Here’s the thing. It’s a class that I have to take as a computer science student, but it’s really meant for maths students. It’s all statistical theory. Like, yeah, it’s not completely unrelated to my degree, but it’s more of a formality, and she, the professor, even said that CS students wouldn’t have to hand in the assignments. So I didn’t. I completed them, I just never handed them in because it wasn’t required, and I thought it might save her or whoever corrects them some time, right?”

Agarus shook his head lightly. He knew where this was going.

“Now she’s changed her mind, apparently.” They got a bit hectic and started gesturing around with their hands, but Agarus urged them to calm down. “Now she’s all like, if you didn’t hand in the assignments, you won’t pass, not even attendance. There are two other CS students in that class, the others all managed to get into a class with a different professor, and we just don’t know what to do. It’s not like we’ve got anything in writing.” They sighed. “She wants the assignments handwritten, that should’ve been the first red flag.”

You are reading story Duke of Hell at novel35.com

“I understand the dilemma.” Agarus put 150 Baht on the table where the owner could see them and stood up.

Agbar watched him stand up with big eyes. “Yeah, it’s a dilemma. Like if they told you a cup of tea costs two dollars, and then you drink it and they want to charge you ten. Or whatever the currency here is called, you get my point.” In the distance, the owner raised an eyebrow.

Agarus started walking towards the exit and waved his hand to make Agbar follow him. “My advice is that you apply for accreditation regardless. The worst that can happen is rejection.”

With quick steps, Agbar followed him, and this time, they kept their voice to a whisper. “It’s just that I won’t be able to take this class again when I’m all booked out with… with this next semester.” Agarus gave them a questioning look. What confused him was that Agbar wouldn’t need the degree for their position in the family, yet they insisted on graduating. “It’s an ego thing,” they finally admitted.

Outside, the rain kept hammering down on the awnings in front of the the shops and restaurants. The two dukes walked along the street for a few steps before Agarus said, “My advice remains the same. Sign up and stop worrying.” With a clap of his hands, he turned into a side alley. “That shall be enough of a break for us. Let us return to our duties.” A portal opened up before them, a perfect circle, and on the other side, they could already see the beach they were heading to. Agbar, too, could sense the unscheduled portal that was being opened from Hell to the beach at this moment.

On the other side of the portal, the two Dukes exited in their demon form as hawks wearing their informal clothes. Their black pants were form-fitting enough for their royal status, but their dark red dress shirts were more on the casual side. A long robe made from a black, silken fabric with red accents on the edges and a black belt around the waist completed their outfits, and had it not been for the white feathers that, to Agarus’s dislike, were peeking out of Agbar’s shirt, the two would have looked identical. It was more comfortable with the top buttons undone, they felt. If they had at least tucked in their shirt and worn some – any! – kind of tie, Agarus might have found it more agreeable.

Underneath a pier, between the beams of the wooden support construction and in the darkness of the shadow that it cast at high noon, they stood waiting for the portal to open.

A circular portal tore open the air underneath the bridge, and Agbar couldn’t help but notice how much smoother than their portals it was. It was a bit rough around the edges, but it was presentable, and whoever was casting the spell had plenty of experience.

They could see what was on the other side of the portal, and whoever was on the other side could see them. This didn’t stop three small creatures from stepping through. All three of them were barely half as tall as Agbar, which wasn’t a surprise as they couldn’t fit through any human door frame in their demon form, and all three had large horns, tails, and red skin, though one had a white spot around his right eye. Two of them had hooves as feet, and the one with the spot was wearing boots. Agarus had taught them that these Hell-born creatures were called imps, and they had already seen plenty of them during their strolls through Hell.

“Hey, Agarus,” the one with boots said. “It won’t be long. In and out, you know how it is.”

“Of course.” Agarus turned to Agbar. “See, these three here are associates of Prince Stolas. He tasks them with highly important jobs that they carry out here on Earth, and naturally, he takes full responsibility for their actions.”

“I understand. And those jobs…”

Agarus shook his head. “It is not a matter that I need to concern myself with. Prince Stolas approached me to allow them passage, and thus, all they do is his will. They are Goetian servants and may access the mortal world at will if it is necessary to fulfil their duties.”

“Stop talking about us like we aren’t even here,” the one with boots said. He approached Agbar and held his hand straight up to shake theirs. “I’m Blitzo, the ‘o’ is silent. You’re the new one, huh?”

“I am Agbar of the Ars Goetia, a Duke of Hell, and--”

“--and guardian of the portals,” Blitzo interrupted him. “We already know that line. Heard it plenty of times from the old guy there until Stolas sorted that out for us.”

Taken aback by the imp’s behaviour, Agbar’s two upper eyes opened slightly, but they kept their composure. “The three of you are all associates of the Prince, is that so?”

“That’s right,” one of the other two said with what they recognised as a Southern US accent. “The Prince and our boss are--”

“Stop it, Millie!” Blitzo interrupted her. “Not in front of the new one. I’ve got a reputation to lose.” He turned back to the Dukes. “So if you’re done being all teacher-y, we can take care of our business, right?”

“You are free to go,” Agarus said, and the three imps went on their way. As they were leaving, the third one bowed slightly with a quiet ‘Your Highnesses’ before joining the other two.

Once they were out of sight, Agarus shook his head and sighed. Agbar watched their brother.

“What’s wrong?” they asked.

Agarus wiped his face down with his hand. “I hate letting these three run free in the mortal world. They’re disrespectful. They can’t be bothered to acquire human disguises. They’re nothing but trouble, and they’ll get Stolas in trouble sooner or later.”

“Then why do you do it?” They cocked their head. “Can’t you just deny them entry? If they might reveal the existence of demons by negligence?”

“I could.” Agarus walked through the forest of wooden support beams, careful to remain out of sight from beach goers. “Any other imp and this kind of behaviour would send them back to Hell in two. It is a favour I’m doing our cousin Stolas. King Bael and King Paimon, the Prince’s father, are brothers, and with this blood that we share comes a certain… inclination to assist.” He drew lines in the sand with his talons, speaking absent-mindedly and turned away from Agbar. “Goetian servants may enter the mortal world to fulfil their duties, but these three, they are assassins and work for sinners who have unfinished business left on Earth. I hate doing this, but if Stolas insists they are following his orders, I cannot simply deny him.”

Agbar approached their brother and put their right hand on his shoulder. “I’ve always perceived as an intelligent, even wise person… or demon. If you trust the Prince to handle his three… friends… then I am inclined to trust your decision.”

Agarus held Agbar’s hand on his shoulder and turned around to face them. His eyes weren’t as sorrowful as they had been, but they were bitter still. “I pray to Satan that you are right, sibling. But there is still a lot that you need to learn about our family, and entire books could be written about Stolas.”

You can find story with these keywords: Duke of Hell, Read Duke of Hell, Duke of Hell novel, Duke of Hell book, Duke of Hell story, Duke of Hell full, Duke of Hell Latest Chapter