How could this be happening? It should be impossible to summon me while I was already in the midst of a contract. My essence was pulled along as though by the strongest of magnets and I had no choice but allow it as a dimly lit room materialised around me. I tried to assess my surroundings but having my world ripped out from under me without warning was strangely disorientating. Shifting about as much as I could, I discovered that I was trapped in a pentagram drawn in chalk on the ground.
It was like a cage. I could not step over the lines. I knew only too well that they would burn me if I even ventured too close. Since this pentagram was not even all that large I had no other option than to hover in the centre in my non-corporeal form. To anyone observing me I would appear as a ball of black smoke, tendrils constantly shifting and swirling.
"Who dares to disturb me" I said in my most sinister voice.
"Oh, knock it off". I had been so pre-occupied with the pentagram I had not immediately noticed the woman stood there in the shadows. She came forward now, short black hair framing a sharp looking face with red eyes glowing back at me.
Another Demon. It was most impolite for us to summon each other. That must be how she had succeeded in calling me here - I could sense the immense power radiating from her.
"Do you know me, child?" she asked, a small smile playing over her features.
I looked harder. The room became clearer to me as I recovered from the unexpected journey. I saw furniture pushed aside, two sofas and a large television. There was a coffee table with a mobile phone resting upon it, evidence that I was in a different time period to my precious contract. This seemed to be someone's living room, and the whole setting screamed casual. This woman had barely put any effort into my summoning, something that was a great accomplishment for most. Even so, the pentagram was extremely powerful and I could feel heat radiating out from each expertly drawn line.
The woman regarded me calmly. I reached forth with my senses as much as I could in my confines, and what I felt made me recoil. I had been wrong - this was no mere Demon. This was so much more.
"Lilith" I said, addressing her. She was practically a Deity, a being more ancient than even myself. Much more. She had not walked this world inhabited by humans in quite some time, having been cast out in a war with angels well before my time. I had never actually met her but I would know her anywhere. After all, she was the creator of my race. Not that that really had anything to do with me personally, of course. But she had obviously found her way back in to this world with high expectations.
"Good" she said, pleased at my recognition. "Let us get the formalities over with. How would you like me to address you?"
I didn't even have to think. "Sebastian" I told her. Somehow that name still made up my identity even though I couldn't be further from a butler right now.
"Sebastian, so good of you to come" she said as though I had a choice. "I have a task for you - you might be pleased to hear that there will be an alignment very soon. We can reclaim what was once stolen from us. I just need your assistance, slut-sucker".
Slut-sucker was a derogatory term for a Demon such as me. Incubus was another. Neither were entirely accurate - I had tired of messily sampling every dish long ago and preferred to shape my meals using other methods. Before was a different story, however. When I was a young Demon I admit that I would use intercourse as a means to obtain souls. The premise was similar to the contracts of today - I simply provided one service in exchange for another. It was not my fault if the humans could not sense my nature. They had always accepted eagerly enough.
My more recent contracts were different. They were entered into with clear intention from both parties and more finesse was required to complete them. It allowed me to guide and shape the souls to my taste, and provided much more of a challenge and a greatly satisfying meal at the end. I almost never performed sexual acts with a human any more, and when I did they had to at least benefit me in some way. My latest contractor had been a rare exception, though I told myself that those deeds were done for entertainment purposes only.
Ciel - I found myself thinking of him. What must he have thought when I disappeared in front of him? Especially since I had only just threatened to leave. He probably thought I had gone through with it, that it was his own fault. That bothered me more than it should have.
"Do you hear me?" she asked firmly when I had not replied. In truth, I had focussed on the more unimportant part of her words, but now I thought back to them. 'Reclaim what was once stolen'... she had to mean the earth. Before my time, this world had belonged to the Demons. They were cast out too long ago to truly know the details but it was rumoured that humans and angels had worked together to bring about a 'peace on earth'. Of course it hadn't lasted, Demons still crossing over now and again but never enough to cause a real threat. Life went on, but some of the more ancient Demonic Entities like Lilith had strived to take the world back for themselves. They became obsessed with this sense of entitlement. It never mattered to me - as long as I could wear my human disguise I had no problem co-existing, even finding pleasure in manipulating the humans and being subject to their admiration.
I laughed at her. "And how can a slut-sucker like me possibly help one such as you?"
"I'm glad you ask, I was beginning to think we had a problem" she said, letting the power behind her words fill the air and put me in my place. It was obvious who was in control. "The veil will be thin at the time of alignment. I need a sacrifice to make the tear. Souls. Pure and Innocent. Nothing less will be accepted. Do you understand?"
A tear? She intended to rip open the fabric of this world. It could certainly work - the force of many innocent souls being unleashed when the veil was temperamental could make it unstable. I assumed she had something else planned, such as a ritual or incantation which would cause a complete dimensional rift. Demons would be able to enter easily, the borders breaking down between here and all kinds of different worlds. It would be pandemonium. Life would completely end as the humans knew it, one mass free for all. A banquet. In theory it sounded good but I knew it wouldn't last. What would be left afterwards? This would become just another Hell like all the others.
"You certainly have big aspirations, Lilith" I told her, treading carefully. "I would hate to disappoint you -"
"Don't try to weasel your way out. It won't work. I simply need you to gather these souls for me. Only the purest. You have until the Summer Solstice. It is now the eve of the Spring Equinox". She clarified. That made it March. I had three months to think of something.
"You understand the nature of making a contract with me?" I asked, pushing my luck a little. "One service in exchange for another".
"Ha! You are feistier than I would have thought. Very well, how about this - you do as I say and I won't obliterate you?"
I had no choice, then. She could destroy my essence in a heartbeat, I didn't stand a chance.
"Very well" I told her reluctantly, and my form became clearer as the contract was made.
"A good decision" she said, and I was grateful when she dispersed the pentagram with a wave of her hand. The walls had gotten far too close for comfort as I took form, donning my human appearance once more.
I stepped forward to shake her hand and seal the deal.
'My, slut-sucker, I can see why you might be good at your job" she said with a smile that seemed to stretch her pale skin far too thin over her sharp cheekbones. "Don't you shape up nicely".
I had made no alterations to the appearance of Sebastian, not feeling the need to. Lilith apparently had an appreciation for my beauty but no real need for anything specific. This was my preference. The only change I made was the attire - I had estimated from the contents of the room that we were somewhere in the early 21st century and dressed accordingly in slim black jeans and a soft grey long sleeved top, not too smart but not too casual either. I was pleased to be able to wear some lace -up leather boots I particularly liked, forgoing the pointed heel so as not to stand out too much but still feeling a bit more like myself. This period of time was slightly less judgemental than the one I had just come from and I could afford to relax just a bit without drawing attention.
She took my hand and my personal contract seal marked us both, linking us together inextricably.
"One hundred souls, slut-sucker" she told me with a grin, dropping her hand. "or you die. You may use this apartment - I have other matters to attend to. Do not think I won't be checking your progress. You had better get started" she said, and I felt the hair stand up on the back of my neck as she activated her powerful magic to leave a gigantic hourglass standing in the corner of the room. It was almost as tall as me, with sand the shimmering colour of rubies. It had just begun to trickle down into the empty lower half.
"I'll be seeing you" she said, and disappeared without a even a sound to mark her exit.
I was alone.
The room was still dimly lit and, though I could see quite clearly anyway, I immediately moved to open the curtains. Light flooded in even though it was night time and I finally heard all the sound, bombarding my senses after the years spent in the 1800's. Lilith's presence seemed to have blocked all this from me before but now I was overwhelmed with it.
Traffic. Car horns blaring, people shouting, the dull thud of music, drunks staggering away from illuminated pubs. One man vomited on the ground while people walked right on past, hardly even noticing. I appeared to be in a high building looking down on this busy street and , and since my eyesight was exceptional, I could just make out a bridge in the distance with a yellow sign that read 'Camden Lock'.
Camden. I had hardly moved, distance-wise. I was still in London, near the very market that Ciel and I had visited earlier today. Or not today, I supposed. It had been a lot smaller here then, dirt tracks instead of the noisy street below. I would have hardly recognised it if it hadn't been for the bridge.
Maybe that was why Lilith had summoned me, out of all the Demons that were just as capable of harvesting souls as I was. Technically I was the nearest to her, regardless of the year. Time mattered little to a being as powerful as her, it was the fabric of dimensions that were harder to traverse.
I backed away from the window and located the light switch on the wall. Since she had given no restrictions on my own magic, I rearranged the furniture back to that of a typical living room with a click of my fingers. No one was around to see so it would not hurt to make a few shortcuts now and then. It was very different to my contract with Ciel, who wanted me to perform all my tasks as naturally as possible.
Even the thought of his name made my chest feel uncomfortable in a way I was utterly unfamiliar with. Perhaps it was regret at spending so much time in a contract I could not complete? I did hate to waste my time, after all. Upon closer inspection though, it wasn't the thought of his soul - lost to me - that made me feel so out of sorts. My hunger still bothered me, but when I pictured his face along with the word 'lost' I realised that I had found something that bothered me even more.
Ridiculous. I had much more important things to worry about. Like how to placate Lilith. I really did not want to spoil this interesting world by inviting the whole neighbourhood over, but I also did not want to be annihilated. For now I would choose the lesser of the two evils and see what opportunities presented themselves.
I would begin my collection of souls tomorrow. For now, I felt tired. Drained. Even though sleep was a luxury for Demons we still needed to rest once in a while.
I noticed the phone buzz and light up where it still rested on the coffee table. I assumed it was for me.
Picking it up to take with me, I quickly mapped out the apartment as I looked for the bedroom. It was modernly decorated appropriate to the times, everything clean and light and airy. The walls were all a generic shade of magnolia, the furniture either made of oak or in shades of cream and tan. It was tasteful but lacked any personality whatsoever. I supposed that was perfect for me.
The kitchen sat next to the living room, a small square area with lots of cupboards and shiny appliances. A doorway lay to the left next to the fridge, which lead to a narrow hallway. Three doors opened to two bedrooms and a bathroom, and the front door was obvious at the far end. I chose the largest bedroom and was pleased to find starched white sheets adorningly the king-sized bed in the centre. A quick look in the wooden wardrobe revealed plenty of clothes, somehow all in my size. My host really had provided everything.
I tossed the phone onto the bed and stripped out of my clothes, leaving them in an untidy heap on the floor. I was not a butler any more, I reminded myself, and there was nobody here but me.
I remained in my black boxer shorts and crawled into the bed. I did appreciate this item of clothing since it had not existed in the 1800s. I had gone without any underwear under my butlers uniform which I found to be quite uncomfortable sometimes.
I settled back against soft pillows and took up the phone. It had been a while since I had used one like this, but I remembered how to unlock it and swipe right to reach the home screen. A text message flashed up that simply read 'night night xxx'. I saw by the name that Lilith had taken the liberty of programming in her phone number. How considerate.
I took a moment to re acquaint myself with the technology. Today's date, according to the little icon on the screen, was March 20th 2017. It had been March 20th 1891 this morning when I had woken my Master and served him breakfast.
Over a hundred years. Suddenly a sickening realisation hit me, my stomach clenching uncomfortably as I tried to process it.
He would be dead now. I had left him and he would have died never knowing what had happened. His whole life had gone by while I had answered my summons. That made me feel worse than I could have thought possible.
The phone. I held it up, feeling abnormally weak as I found a search engine and typed in his name. There was a good wireless connection in this building, my knowledge of 21st century computers coming back easily. It only took a few moments to load the results, and I clicked on the first one.
Earl Ciel Phantomhive, born to Vincent and Rachel Phantomhive December 14th 1875. Died March 23rd 1891.
There was more, but I couldn't read any further. Three days. He had lasted three days after my disappearance.
I couldn't breathe. I didn't strictly need to in order to survive but right now I felt like I needed air. I threw the phone down and lay there, curled in on myself for hours just trying to breathe, hoping to sleep. Eventually I did and dreamed of his face, his haughty little smirk. When I awoke I was alone, in an empty room and an empty home. I had never felt so hollow, and for once it had nothing to do with my hunger.
