It had been six months since Xorelaz and Vylania had been taken in by Azazel and Gloria, an attempt to make them realize that following Lucifer is not the path they should follow. Summer had passed away into Autumn, and Autumn had passed away into Winter, the growing and hunting season over, as most animals had gone into hibernation a month ago, not including deer or other animals that had cloven hooves. It was early evening; the sun having been set for two hours. A few canvas tents were pitched around the homestead, a trading caravan having stopped for the night.
The people with the caravan were inside the large cabin, music, food, and drink being passed around! They were celebrating the Winter Solstice with Azazel and Gloria; venison and mead being eaten and drunk! Xorelaz and Vylania had never seen a celebration like this before, people singing, dancing and being merry! An improvised band were playing shanties; Azazel and Gloria dancing to the music! They were captivating the room, their bodies moving swiftly and fluid! The people of the caravan were clapping in rhythm, entertained by their hosts!
When the song ended, they were breathing heavy, Azazel wiping a few beads of sweat from his brow. The others began cheering and clapping, having admired their dancing. The band, laughing, began retuning their instruments, preparing for another song. Azazel walked up to the band, holding out one of his hands. Nodding, one of the women gave him her violin, allowing him to play for a time. Azazel sat down, feeling the instrument to be light. He dragged the bow along the strings, hearing them to be properly tuned.
"Alright, lads and lasses! Hold onto someone and try not to let go!" Azazel announced, tapping his foot for a fast-paced beat! He began sawing away at the fiddle, the band soon joining in, playing 'Rocky Road to Dublin'! And per his advisement, everyone quickly found a dancing partner, stepping quick to the music, the synchronized tapping of feet on the floor shaking the room! Xorelaz and Vylania were the only ones not dancing, not really knowing how to.
Soon, one of the older men drinking home-brewed beer saw them just standing to the side, seeing they couldn't make themselves dance. Clearing his throat of the head of the beer, he stood up, walking over to them, pint of beer in hand.
"Seems ya two can't decide on dancing or not." He observed. The two former Archdemons couldn't really say if they were deciding to or not. They themselves had never seen dancing before, excluding the dancing of the souls upon the scorching sands of the Circle of Violence.
"I guess we don't actually know." Vylania said, causing the man to shake his head, setting down his beer.
"Time you learn. Just go onto the floor when the next song is being played. You've been watching them dance all night, so you must have something memorized." The man explained. Xorelaz and Vylania looked at each other, wondering if they should or not. Soon, the song had ended, everyone cheering and clapping! Azazel returned the instrument to the woman that gave it to him, herself taking back her spot with the band. Holding out an open hand, someone shoved a tankard of beer into his hand, allowing him to drink.
"One more song before we take a break, everyone! Now, everyone grab someone close to you and get ready to take things slow." The man with the Cello announced, loosening his grip. The band soon began playing a classical rendition of 'Can't Help Falling In Love' by Elvis Pressley. Going against what their instincts said, Xorelaz and Vylania stepped out onto the floor, copying what everyone were doing. They hesitantly held each other close, slowly stepping around the floor. Vylania was blushing brighter than she thought was possible, not having been this physically close to Xorelaz since they first arrived on Mobius!
Xorelaz was having the same thoughts, but instead of blushing and being embarrassed about it, he actually embraced these feelings, holding her very close to him. After a few moments, Vylania's blushing soon receded, noticing how secure she felt in his arms. If she didn't know any better, she'd think that Xorelaz was… no, it couldn't be possible, could it?
"Xorelaz." She whispered, getting his attention. He looked into her eyes, focusing on her.
"Yes?" He asked, still dancing with her to the music.
"Are you… okay?" She asked, not really knowing how to talk about this.
"Of course! I'm dancing here with you, aren't I?" He answered, flirting with her.
Vylania slightly blushed at this, now knowing something was happening between them. She knew they would have to be mortals for the rest of their lives, not knowing how long that would be, but to her, it seemed Xorelaz embraced his mortality much better than herself! She constantly fought against some of the emotions she experienced when close to him, but it seemed Xorelaz was willing to follow them instead of fighting them!
"You just seem… different." She said, not really having a better word for it. Xorelaz grinned at this, beginning to understand her better.
"I am different. Same as you. Of course, the constant lectures from Azazel when we were hunting may have had something to do with that." He explained, keeping their voices low.
"No, I mean… you're not as angry as you were when we first came here. You're more calm, not as brash." She clarified. Xorelaz nodded, agreeing that was the case. He himself had begun to notice that he didn't react the same to things that would normally enrage him into a frenzy! For example, when he smashed his thumb with a hammer when driving a nail into a plank of wood in the early weeks of Autumn, instead of using the hammer to cave in the closest person's head, he only stomped his foot into the ground and silently cursed!
"The Liar will not have my soul, as much as he won't have yours." Xorelaz stated, using the alias they have given to Lucifer. After they were wholly convinced by Azazel and Gloria that Lucifer was only the Universe's greatest liar, and nothing more, they began calling him that, an effort to distance themselves from him as much as possible. Vylania giggled a bit to herself, at least knowing Xorelaz wouldn't allow himself to not be angry enough to not show his disdain for Lucifer and his lies.
"Alright, but what about me?" She asked.
"What about you?" He asked, not really knowing what she meant.
"How am I different than when we first came here?" She asked. Xorelaz didn't really know how to answer this. She had always been the more collected out of the two, not really giving into her Demonic nature. Granted, she was the one that caused them to have sex, but Xorelaz felt it was more because of some kind of emotional overload when they first got here.
"I guess I can't say how much different you are. But I will admit, you are much more willing to talk about what happened in the Inferno than myself." Xorelaz answered. He himself wanted to try to forget, new emotions of dread and remorse having become apparent to him during the first weeks of mortality. And for the months they've been working for Azazel and Gloria, he had been trying to disassociate himself from his previous life as Archdemon of the Circle of Violence, but with very little success.
"Forgetting isn't recovery, Xorelaz. Repressing your memories isn't forgiveness." She responded, feeling this was the case. Soon, the song ended, the band putting their instruments away for a time, taking a break. Xorelaz felt a pain rush through his head, suddenly feeling lightheaded. His vision began blurring, everything becoming fuzzy! He let go of Vylania, stumbling towards one of the chairs, not making to it before collapsing onto the floor, his body going into spasms!
"Xorelaz!" Vylania exclaimed, quickly crouching down to him. A slow but steady stream of blood was coming from his nose, his nose not having made contact with the floor! Gloria quickly ran to the collapsed wolverine, putting two fingers onto his neck, feeling his pulse. His pulse was pretty much throbbing in his neck, feeling like his heart was there! His breathing was becoming labored, breaking out into a sweat!
"Move over, Gloria!" One of the women said, taking over. She had a red cross on the sleeve of her shirt, showing she was the doctor that travelled with them. Xorelaz's body stopped spasming, becoming still. She rolled Xorelaz onto his side carefully, making sure she didn't agitate any possible injuries. She quickly felt his pulse, feeling its strength and speed.
"George! Leslie! Get our medical equipment! It's a Hypertensive Crisis!" She ordered, revealing her diagnosis! The two men quickly ran out of the cabin, heading towards their tents. She quickly turned her attention to Vylania, who was beginning to panic.
"Don't panic! We can turn this around! How long has he been experiencing Hypertension?" She asked. Vylania didn't know what that was, never seeing it before!
"I don't know what that is! Is he dying?!" She asked, feeling her heart racing!
"Not if I have anything to say about it! But to explain, Hypertension is when blood pressure is too high for the body to function! By the looks of it, he's been in Hypertension for a few months!" The Doctor explained, going off how severe this episode was.
"Has he ever complained about headaches? Chest pains? Previous history of seizures?" She asked, trying to get a reference point of how long this has been untreated. Vylania only shook her head, never hearing anything from Xorelaz! Suddenly, the two men burst through the door of the cabin, carrying a large container of medical equipment! They brought it to the Doctor, who quickly opened it, taking out an IV bag and a collapsible stand. She quickly snapped the stand into place, placing it beside Xorelaz. She hooked the IV bag on the stand, fixing an intravenous needle into the tube. She quickly tied a band around Xorelaz's arm, looking for a vein. The moment she found a good one, she deftly inserted the needle, taping it into place.
"That'll bring down his blood pressure in time, but right now, we should move him somewhere where he can recover." The Doctor explained, repositioning Xorelaz. The two men grabbed a blanket from one of the closets, laying it down next to him. The Doctor secured his neck, where she could feel his pulse was actually beginning to slow down already. Gloria grabbed his legs, the both of them slightly lifting him to allow the blanket to be placed under him. The each grabbed an end of the blanket, carefully lifting it as a stretcher. Vylania got hold of the IV stand, wheeling it with them to Azazel and Gloria's room. They placed him onto the bed, his breathing already returning to normal.
"Alright, I'm going to stay with him for a few hours. At least until his pulse and blood pressure go down to normal levels." The Doctor explained, sitting in the chair next to the bed. Vylania quickly ran out of the room, returning with a chair from the Living Room. She sat it the opposite side of the bed, sitting down as well.
"I'm not leaving, either!" Vylania stated, refusing to leave him in this vulnerable state. The Doctor nodded, feeling this was good. Her being there might give him some more comfort to help him recover.
"This might take a few hours." The Doctor said, letting her know how long this might take. Vylania nodded, knowing this won't just be a simple fix.
Three Hours Later:
Xorelaz soon roused from his unconcious state, the first faces to greet him being the Doctor and Vylania. The Doctor explained what had happened to him, telling him that he needs treatment for his blood pressure before another episode would occur. She had made a list of foods he should avoid to help lower his blood pressure. Along with this was a list of herbs that could be used to help lower blood pressure, such as garlic, thyme, and Chinese cat's claw being the most recommended.
"Our caravan will be back here in about two weeks. That'll be a good amount of time to see how along you are with these instructions. Now, take is easy for a few days. Don't do things that'll cause stress. I recommend taking some time to read and listen to music. Avoid red meat and eat more vegetables. That should be a good step in treating your blood pressure." The Doctor advised, removing the IV needle from his arm, securing a cotton ball with a piece of adhesive tape onto the injection site.
Xorelaz breathed comfortably, feeling rather calm and peaceful, even though he was as close to death as he had been since they got to Mobius. Although, the remains of the IV bag told him it might be the medication that was responsible for his calm state. The Doctor grabbed the IV stand, wheeling it out of the room, leaving Xorelaz and Vylania in the room. Vylania took the list out of his hands, looking it over. She began growing concerned, seeing that a lot of the foods he needed to avoid were what they had preserved and stored during the Autumn months. The only things they had that were preserved he could eat without risk were dried fish and root vegetables, mainly being carrots, turnips, and potatoes. He could definitely live off of them, but it would be rather boring for him.
"No salt, red meat, sugar, processed foods. Welcome to the Circle of Gluttony." She said, joking a bit at the end.
"What these shades could not satisfy in life, in death, they shall be denied for eternity." Xorelaz said, quoting a certain Roman poet he once met in the Circle of Limbo.
"Alright Virgil, we're going to let you get some rest, huh?" Vylania said, getting from her chair. As she made for the door, Xorelaz cleared his throat, getting her attention. She turned around, seeing that Xorelaz was sitting up.
"I think I know how you're different than when we came here." He said. Vylania walked a bit closer to him, wanting to know.
"Yeah?" She asked.
"You care about me more than before. If I would've died when we first got here, you'd probably chalk it up to me being some kind of idiot who wasn't worthy of the title of Archdemon. But tonight, it actually proved to me you care about me greatly." Xorelaz answered. Vylania blushed at his assessment, beginning to realize that may be the case.
"I mean, we sleep in the same room, we oftentimes share our food with each other. If I didn't know any better, I'd say we were… getting sweet on each other." Xorelaz said, Vylania's blushing becoming more dramatic. He soon saw this, realizing this may be closer to truth than he previously thought.
"Are you alright?" He asked, never seeing anyone blush that dark a shade of red before. She nodded, trying to conceal it as best as possible. As she stood in the room, Azazel walked in, sensing they were still here. He closed the door behind them, causing Vylania to turn around, surprised by his presence.
"We need to talk about what is happening to the two of you." Azazel said, already knowing what was wrong with them.
"What do you mean? Just a string of bad luck, Azazel." Xorelaz said, believing that's all it was. Azazel shook his head, knowing exactly what was wrong.
"It is your mortal bodies. They are having trouble keeping up with your Demonic physiology." Azazel explained. They were confused by this, not having been told by this by Lucifer before they left the Inferno.
"Lucifer didn't say anything about our bodies having trouble." Vylania said.
"He would not have a reason to do so, since he believed you would have killed me and then be done before too much time has passed. But the more time passes, the more your bodies will begin to deteriorate!" Azazel explained. They suddenly became terrified by this, knowing they were nowhere close to finding forgiveness for their sins.
"What about you? Your body isn't failing you!" Xorelaz asked.
"That is because more time was used to forge my body. But it had cost me my memory, due to it being so traumatizing! I was only able to remember upon myself losing control of my nature! Now, I can stabilize your bodies to stop the deterioration, but the cost is high!" Azazel warned.
Xorelaz quickly got out of bed, ready to do so! He walked to Vylania, standing beside her.
"Do it!" Xorelaz demanded, not wanting to give Lucifer the satisfaction of having their souls. Vylania looked over to Xorelaz, feeling her skip a beat! She herself was terrified of what could happen, but she knew that they had to do this to find their own redemption. Her hand quickly latched onto Xorelaz's, himself feeling her racing pulse. He breathed deeply, knowing she was scared.
"It's okay. We're doing this together. You're not doing this alone." Xorelaz comforted. Vylania's pulse calmed somewhat, feeling this was their only chance.
"Hold your breaths. This is not going to be pleasant." Azazel cautioned, before his hands ignited. They quickly held their breaths, Azazel enshrouding them with hellfire! They had no ability to scream in pain, their skin burning and healing at such an accelerated rate! Their clothes remained unscathed, only their skin being affected! Soon, the shroud of hellfire dissipated, leaving them in the room. Their skin didn't burn as it should've, but they knew something was wrong with them.
They looked at each other, seeing their faces were scarred with healed burns! Xorelaz gently reached towards Vylania's face, careful if her skin was sensitive to touch. She didn't flinch at his touch, indicating she experienced no pain. She touched his face as well, not believing her own eyes.
"The cost of our bodies was vanity, wasn't it?" Xorelaz asked, Azazel nodding to answer him.
"Many will no longer trust you, based upon appearance. But if they could only see the renewed light within you, they would flock for a chance to shake your hands. Unfortunately, the damage already done cannot be reversed. Like many mortals, you must learn to cope with your conditions." Azazel explained.
They nodded, still unable to look away from each other. It was almost as if the bond they shared was reforged into something stronger.
"Well… we dealt with worse, right?" Vylania asked, looking for a few comforting words. Xorelaz nodded, knowing their appearances were the last thing to worry about, compared to their conditions.
"Hope you can stand to look at this face for a while longer." Xorelaz said, joking a bit with her. She giggled in response, looking down, noticing she was still holding onto him.
"Yeah… maybe we should get you to bed for the night." She suggested, knowing he was going to need plenty of rest.
"That would be best." Xorelaz agreed, feeling exhausted.
"The caravanners went back to their tents for the night. They'll be leaving early in the morning. Feel free to sleep as long as you need to, the both of you. It'll take a few days to begin feeling whole." Azazel said, opening the door. The two of them left, Gloria cleaning up some of the plates and cups left by their guests. She looked up towards them upon hearing their footsteps, but she flinched upon seeing them, noting how scarred their flesh was!
"What happened to the two of you?!" She asked, shocked.
"The price of health." Xorelaz answered, he and Vylania exiting the cabin. They walked out into the snow, heading towards the repurposed shed, which was now bigger than it was back in the Summer. They had taken down a wall, added another section to it, making a rudimentary kitchen in the new section. They soon got inside, the shed much warmer than outside, a small fire still burning in the woodstove. Vylania opened the door to it, throwing in a few sticks to keep the fire burning. Xorelaz shut the door, feeling his exhaustion hit a peak point upon seeing their beds.
Kicking off his boots, he stumbled to the bed, flopping down onto the straw-filled mattress. He yawned loudly, not even bothering with getting under the covers. Vylania went to her own bed as well but took the time to get herself under the blanket. She looked over to Xorelaz in the bed next to hers, hearing him already quietly snoring.
"Good night." She said, not really expecting him to say anything. She soon closed her eyes, drifting off into a dreamless sleep.
Two Weeks Later:
Xorelaz was finishing up his medicinal tea, being composed of thyme, garlic, and Chinese cat's claw. While he didn't like the combination of flavors that made it up, he found comfort in knowing it was going to help. He and Vylania had been recovering nicely, having been working like normal for the past week. He set the empty mug down, walking back over to where the others were, working on a transport sled for the snow. Azazel had this built to help in carrying any large game he would bag so as to reduce risk of injury. While he himself was not worried about injury, he didn't want to risk Xorelaz and Vylania getting injured, since they were weaker than either Gloria or himself.
"Another nail and we will be finished." Gloria said, holding a plank of wood that would make up handle. Vylania positioned the nail in its spot, hitting it with a hammer. The nail was soon driven into place, the plank secured. Gloria moved the sled a bit with the handle, finding it to be perfectly secured.
"I can hear the caravans on their way from here. Vylania, I require you to grab a barrel of mead for them. Once we do that, we will have enough leeway to trade for our supplies." Azazel requested. She nodded, soon running off to the storeroom where Azazel brews beer, wine, and mead. Xorelaz got to them, admiring the design of the sled. He could see that it could haul something the size of a moose! Of course, he himself had never found moose while he and Azazel had been hunting here.
"The Doctor should be here soon, Xorelaz. You should make sure you are ready for your appointment." Azazel advised, pushing the sled away from him.
Xorelaz did as he was asked, pulling up his hood to ensure she couldn't see his face very well. He walked to the shed he and Vylania lived in, going inside where it was warm. He sat down in his chair, picking up the Bible that Azazel had given them, so as to help them understand just who Lucifer was.
And as he had ascertained from the book, to which he took great enjoyment out of in his own words to describe Lucifer, it was 'A big, jealous crybaby that could not handle the fact Mankind became favored.'. Xorelaz laughed at his realization of the nature of Lucifer, still having trouble believing that he actually once served him!
As he sat there, reading from the Bible, laughing as he read about Lucifer's failures, especially about being beaten by Job by him simply standing by God instead of abandoning him, he heard a knock on the door. He closed the bible, using the ribbon to mark his place. He got up from his seat, opening the door, seeing the Doctor with a blood pressure monitor and a stethoscope.
"Won't you come in?" He asked, letting her into the shed. She walked in, Xorelaz closing the door to keep the cold out. She pulled out a chair from the small table, Xorelaz sitting down near her.
"If you'll just sit down, we can get this over with." She instructed, pulling the Velcro band to put it on him. Xorelaz rolled up his sleeve, the Doctor seeing his arm scarred with burns! She knew those burns weren't there before when stuck him with the IV, immediately becoming concerned.
"What did you do to your arm?" She asked, confused how the arm had severe burns, but looked as if it had been healed for years!
"What do you mean? I've had these burns for years." Xorelaz lied. She shook her head, knowing that couldn't be the case.
"I saw your arm two weeks ago! You didn't have any burns!" She said, still confused by the healed state of them.
"I don't know what to tell you, doc. Obviously, I couldn't have gotten burned recently, because then they would still be healing. My burns are scars right now, which would indicate they've been healed for years. So, that could only mean you haven't noticed them when you were treating me." Xorelaz explained, using logic to help his case.
The Doctor could only agree with him, noting how they would've had to have been healed for years to look like that. She went to wrap the cuff around his arm, making sure it was secure. She began pumping to increase pressure, his pulse and blood pressure beginning to show up on the monitor on the band. After she got her readings, she let the pressure out, taking the cuff of him.
"125/78. You're blood pressure is elevated, but much lower than when I treated you. That's good! You're really taking this seriously!" The Doctor said, finding his results to be much better than two weeks ago.
"Well, things have been rather calm this past week." Xorelaz said. The Doctor nodded, feeling it was a good thing. She got up from her chair, putting the monitor into her satchel.
"That's good you're managing, but I recommend seeing a specialist I know. He lives in Central City. He might be able to figure out exactly what's wrong with your blood pressure." The Doctor suggested.
"Why see a specialist if I'm managing?" He asked, not understanding her logic.
"If he's able to figure out what's wrong, it could mean a solution that'll be more effective than just managing it. Here, take his card. If you ever find yourself in Central City, try looking him up." She said, handing Xorelaz a business card. He looked at the card, seeing it was for a Dr. Howard Jones, a Cardiologist.
"Thank you, I guess. But I don't see myself being in Central City anytime soon." Xorelaz said, putting the card in his pocket.
"Just in case, sir. Doesn't cost much to get a ride over to the United Federation these days. And Dr. Jones, he's funded by the state for his practice. It wouldn't cost you anything." She explained, before leaving.
Present Day:
"So, after the thaw in the Spring, Azazel paid Nick to give us a ride over to the United Federation to see that specialist. We each got medications from him that were much more effective in treating our conditions. While we were staying there, we met Horace over here, and he offered us a job in his laundromat, since he felt sorry for us having to travel so far just to get a refill on our prescriptions." Xorelaz explained.
Isaac wasn't prepared to learn that these two had actually known him when he was a child, let alone the fact that his father was once 'The Prince of Hell', Second-In-Command to Lucifer! Isaac looked out of the window of the office in the laundromat, seeing it was steadily getting darker outside. He could feel the scraping inside of his stomach becoming more intense, the Demon wanting to be released.
"Listen, I… I need to get going." Isaac said, the scraping beginning to increase in activity. Xorelaz and Vylania could see tears welling up in his eyes, seeing he was in pain. Isaac saw the back exit, seeing that it was unlocked. Isaac quickly ran for it, hands clutching onto his stomach! Isaac quickly burst through it, using his shoulder to push it open! Isaac ran down the alleyway, the Demon now in a frenzy, the light of the full moon bearing down on Isaac! He soon collapsed onto his knees, retching violently!
A thick, black liquid poured from Isaac's mouth, Isaac knowing it not to be blood! Breathing heavily, Isaac felt his bones begin to break and reform! His skin darkened, his veins beginning to glow underneath his skin! His eyes glowed brightly, illuminating the dark alleyway! His clothes began to smolder and combust, bathing him in fire! His muscles began to swell, his legs growing large amounts of hair, his feet turning into hooves! Claws suddenly tore through the skin on his fingers, these claws being made of bone!
Horns erupted from his forehead, curving upward! Blood freely ran from where they erupted, Isaac convulsing at his transformation! His cries of pain soon became laughter, his distorted voice echoing throughout the alleyways! He soon got up on his hooved feet, sniffing the air! Grinning wildly, he looked behind him, seeing Sally, Xorelaz, and Vylania behind him, keeping their distance. Isaac sniffed the air, them not registering to his sense of smell! He quickly ran from them, leaping upwards, traveling by the rooftops!
"Where's he going?!" Sally asked, not knowing where he could be going in this city.
"We already know where he's going! Horace is being forced to be part of a drug deal! It's gonna be out near 5th Street! If the Demon's going anywhere, it's gonna be out there!" Vylania answered, putting her hood up. Xorelaz did the same, knowing they were gonna need to be there in case the worst would happen!