Chapter 3: Ticket Straight To Hell
The smell of a sterile room hit Zack's nose, as a soft groan escaped his lips. His body ached and his consciousness was fading in and out with each breath he took. Voices intruded his ears, as his eye fluttered open and closed. Minutes passed, then hours, until he finally grabbed a hold of his fading consciousness. His eyes soon opened, the sight of a white ceiling with a fan above him invading his eyes. He huffed a silent breath, as he slowly sat up.
"Wh-Where...am I...?"
He looked down at what he was laying on. It was a normal desk; sturdy, yet a bit wobbly. He raised an eyebrow, as he brought his right hand to his face and rubbed it, getting the sleep out of his eyes.
"What happened? Did I die...?" he said, as he placed a hand on his chest right above his heart. It was still beating. He sighed in relief, as he scooted up to the edge of the desk, letting his feet dangle. He stood to his feet, a bit wobbly at first, but kept still, thanks to the searing pain in his left side. He pressed his hand on his side, before raising his hoodie up. His eyes widened in shock from the sight of his bandaged stomach, dried blood coating the gauze and bandages.
"How the hell...? So, was that all real...?"
He brushed his fingers against the gauze, as his mind tried to replay everything that happened. He looked back at the table, bits of dried blood on the top of it. He paced around the room, searching and inspecting it. It seemed to be more of a meeting room, the ones you would see in a usual office workplace. His mind started to race, as he tried to make sense of everything.
"Okay, calm down, let's think this through. Last I remember is that I ended up getting shot after I pushed Loona out of the way. Then afterwords, I was carried into some portal by..." his thoughts trailed off at the thought of her. He couldn't believe it. Did she just save him? How was that possible, why would she do that? Zack looked down at his wound. Was she also the one who patched him up? He shook his head, as he glanced at the door. No matter what was going on, he had to get out of there. There was no telling where he could be, or who could be in the foreign place to him. He speedily walked towards the door, his hand reaching for the doorknob.
"Sir, I'm telling you that we need to stop-" Zack completely froze, his eyes staring deep into the eyes of a familiar, red-skinned, yellow-eyed creature. After a few seconds of awkward silence, he slammed the door back in the creatures face, and quickly ducked behind one of the desks. With a swift kick, the whit-haired creature barged into the office. His face had an angered, almost annoyed look on his face.
"Who the hell are you!?" he shouted.
"I should be asking you that! And where the hell am I?!" Zack screamed, as he looked from behind the desk. Within seconds, two other creatures walked in, looking strikingly familiar to the ones who intruded his home.
"What's wrong hun? Oh, hey, it's that human." the female creature stated, her southern twang extruding as clear as day. Zack stared at the three creatures, his face instantly lighting up at the realization of where he knew them from.
"Wait a minute...you're those freaky-looking things that broke into my house! And by the way, you raided my goddamn fridge! I hope you're prepared to pay for all my food!"
The trio glanced at each other, before looking back at Zack. The leader of the group stepped closer to Zack, to which he quickly started to back up, taking a defensive stance.
"Hold on, you're also that guy we were supposed to off. Wait, I thought Loonie-"
"Oh, looks like you're awake."
The group turned their heads to the doorway, showing none other than Loona, who was carrying a medium-sized first-aid kit. She walked past the three imps and made her way to Zack. To their surprise, she pulled up Zack's hoodie and began to inspect his wound. There was a slight bit of bleeding, but not too much. She sucked her teeth and began to change his bandages, earning a few looks of surprise. Zack stared down at her, his face showing that he was just as surprised as they were.
"Loona, what are you-" before he could finish, Loona looked up at him, a frown on her face.
"You've got eyes, you see what I'm doing." she said, as she rubbed ointment on his wound. "Anyway, how are you feeling? Feeling weak?"
"N-No, I'm okay. A little dizzy, but okay nonetheless." he answered, as he watched her.
"Good. You shouldn't move too much. You don't wanna open up your wound again. It's healing really fast though...I wonder why-"
"EXCUSE ME!"
The two jumped and turned back the holder of that outburst. It was the white-haired imp, his arms crossed in a look of disapproval.
"I hate to ask, but what the fuck is going on?! Why are you patching up our target, and what the hell is he even doing here?!" he gritted out, causing Loona and Zack to glance at each other.
"What's his problem? Did he sit on a dick or something?" Zack asked aloud, causing everyone to let out a snicker, except for the shouting imp.
Zack slipped on his hoodie, as he lightly stretched his arms. He looked at the three imps, inspecting them a bit better. They did look similar, yet distinct enough to tell them apart.
"Well, uh, sorry about not introducing myself first, but, I'm Zack Trevle. What're your names?"
The white-haired imp scoffed, as he stepped forward with a menacing disposition.
"Like we would tell you our name-" he couldn't even get his sentence out before the leader of the group pushed him to the side and into a table.
"Name's Blitzo kid. The O is silent. This is Millie," he pointed to the female imp, who waved happily, "and the other one is Moxxie, her hubby."
The one known as Moxxie brushed himself off, as he mumbled to himself. Probably a few curses and words of disapproval. Zack nodded his head in understanding, making a mental note of their names.
"I see. It's nice to meet you all." he responded, as he waved back at Millie. He smiled for a moment, before looking around the room again, curiosity still present on his face. "So um, where am I? Is this some kind of office building?"
The band of misfits looked at each other, then back at Zack, none of them really knowing how to respond. The silence was soon broken when Millie stepped forward and cleared her throat.
"Well, that's simple. Right now, you're in the IMP building. It's where me, Moxxie, and Loona work. Blitzo is the CEO and owner too." she replied, a smile on her face. Zack tilted his head in confusion, as he opened his mouth to ask another question.
"It stands for Immediate Murder Professionals. Though you probably should have guessed that already..." Loona muttered, as she began to swipe and tap away on her phone. Zack's eyes bulged in shock. So it was true, they were actual hitmen! Zack took a deep breath as he tried to control himself.
"So basically you guys are hitmen? No, that's impossible, that's straight up illegal. You guys can't have a literal hitman company out in the open, and in an office building no less. You'd get caught and arrested in a snap."
A silence filled the air, as the four misfits stared at him, each one conveying their own source of awkward disbelief. He couldn't be that dense, right? Moxxie shook his head, as he walked to one of the windows and pulled open the blinds, showing the outside world.
"I don't think that really matters when you're literally in hell." he said, as he gestured to the opened window.
Time seemed to have stopped, as Zack tried to process what was said to him. His hands became clammy and his heartbeat quickened, as he took slow, cautious steps to the opened window. As soon as he got close enough, his eyes widened more than ever. On the other side of the window, it didn't show a blue sky with bustling streets, cars on the road, and the sunset dimming in the evening sky. Instead, the sky was a dark, blood-red, the skies filled with violet clouds. There was no sun, nor moon, yet the world was still illuminated by an almost red glimmer, as if there was a spotlight shinning down on the entire world. The streets were filled with countless red-skinned imps of different sizes, and above all else, there was no human in sight.
Zack's legs trembled, as his breath quickened. Unable to keep himself on the ground, he stumbled back on to his rear, a bit of sweat forming on his forehead from the stress. This wasn't New York, it wasn't even Earth. He knew that for sure. No, this was just as Moxie said. This strange, murderous, dangerous world, was hell.
*
Zack was deathly silent, as he stared down at the cup of water Blitzo gave him. He was sitting in one of the chairs in the meeting room, as the others talked outside of it. Zack looked out through the door window, as his mind began to wonder.
"They're probably talking about what they're gonna do with me. Wouldn't be surprised if they just went ahead and offed me."
Zack sighed softly, his head hanging low. Not only was he taken from his home, but he was shot in his left side, and basically told that no one would mourn him when he died. Though she was kinda right about that, it still stung a little. Pushing that aside, he had to think of a plan to escape if things got dicey. Maybe the window? No, he was on a crazy high floor, jumping out at that height would break his legs, and there wasn't a fire escape from what he saw. He looked around the room, determined to find anything to help him escape. The only thing he could see was a stone statue, a whiteboard, and some markers. Nothing that could help him make a break for it.
"Maybe I can fight them off... No, there's too many of them. Plus, even if I did escape, where would I go? It's not like my house is right around the corner."
He huffed softly and laid his head on the large table in defeat. There was nothing he could do at this point and moment. Fighting would only delay the inevitable, and running wouldn't do him any good either, due to the fact that Loona was much faster than him, to which he found out when she was chasing him before the armed men showed up.
"Wait...armed men... Those guys weren't with them, were they...? They were definitely shooting at Loona, too. What was that all about...?"
Zack rubbed his chin, as he sat up in his chair, his face twisting to a look of pure confusion. Was there a reason? Were they some sort of gang? Maybe hired mercenaries? Zack shook his head. There weren't enough clues to suggest anything like that. For all he knew, it could have just been a rival hitman group, or the secret service even. Still, it was a little strange to him. With a shake of his head, he leaned back into his chair and stared at the ceiling, his body growing a bit more relaxed. Solving mysteries and enigmas always calmed him down at least a little.
Suddenly, the door opened, as Blitzo and his team walked in. Zack turned to them, fully prepared, yet scared, of what his fate was to be. Though he did hope they would kill him in a way that wasn't too painful.
"Alright kid, now then, what to do with you... Any of you guys got any ideas? This hasn't really happened before." Blitzo asked. Everyone merely shrugged.
"Wait, what about that one kid that we brought here?" Moxxie stated.
"Yeah well, that kid was an asshole, killing him was too enjoyable. This guy here, I don't really have much of an opinion on him. So, I think we should just kill him by throwing him off the roof. Moxxie, Millie, grab his arms and-"
"Hold on a second," Loona interrupted, causing everyone to look at her, "you guys can't kill him, at least not yet."
Zack's eyes widened in shock. What was she doing? Was she actually helping him? Blitzo raised an eyebrow and placed his hands on his hips in disapproval.
"Now Loonie, I know you're my favorite and all, but we can't just let him live. We have a job and he needs to be offed so we can get paid."
Loona shook her head, as she walked behind Zack and gripped his shoulders. Her claws dug into his shoulders slightly, bringing out a slight wince from Zack. He could feel an almost feral and evil aura emanating from her, which caused him to sweat in fear.
"I know, but I wanna have a little fun with him first. Asshole really got me good, and I never got a chance to kick his ass. I was thinking, maybe a week or two. You don't mind, do you," she rolled her eyes, as she finished her sentence, "dad?"
Blitzo's eyes widened, a sparkle flashing in them. With a soft squeal, he smiled widely and folded his arms above his puffed out chest.
"Well, if it's a week, I'm sure that it won't be a problem. I'll just tell the client that we killed him and then we can get paid. What he doesn't know won't hurt him." he said with a hearty chuckle. That was a weakness of his. All Loona had to do was call him dad every now and then, and he'd easily be manipulated by her.
Zack gulped nervously. In a way, he was happy that he wasn't gonna die, but at the same time, he was fearful of the pain that Loona might bring. He hoped that he wasn't gonna get hit by those claws of hers. He looked up at her. Up close, she easily towered over him. She had to have been 2 or 3 feet taller, much higher than the 1 foot he ascertained before. She noticed his staring and smiled a menacing smile, her eyes filled with anger and malice.
"Great. If that's the case, I'm taking him home." she hissed, as she threw Zack over her shoulder, earning her a small eep from Zack's lips. He squirmed, his heart pounding against his chest.
"H-Hey, let me go! I'm not gonna be your punching ba-" before he could finish, he felt a hand harshly slap his ass, making him yelp and shudder.
"Oh shut up, just be happy you'll live for a little longer, dumbass. Now then, I'm off. Later fuckers."
Loona waved a hand at the three imps, as she walked out of the door of the office and down the hall, before she made it to the elevator. Zack shouted from Loona's shoulder, as the elevator door closed. After a few moments, the two were outside and Loona was walking down the sidewalk with a screaming Zack in tow. She looked behind her in a cautious manner, before putting him down.
"You can stop acting like a pussy now. Honestly, I thought you were gonna piss your pants."
Zack stopped screaming in an instant, a soft smile on his face. He brushed off his clothes, as he slipped his hands inside of his pants pockets.
"I just wanted to be convincing. After I saw your eyes, I knew you weren't actually serious." he said, a smile on his face. She rolled her eyes, as he legs began moving, heading down the sidewalk. Zack instantly began to follow her, his significantly shorter body staying beside her taller one.
"So, um, what now? Where are we headed?" he asked, as he glanced over at her. She glanced back at him, huffing to herself.
"Well, since I had to save your ass, again, I might as well just take you home with me."
Zack's eyes instantly widened, as his face turned a deep red. He was going to be staying with her, the one who tried to kill him? Was that even allowed!?
"S-Stay with you?! B-B-B-B-"
"But what? Is someone scared of me?" Loona hissed, as she bent down to his eye level and gave him a sinister smirk. It was obvious why he was on edge about everything! After all, she did try to-
"N-No, it's because you're a girl!"
Well...that was unexpected. Ahem, Loona's face instantly twisted in a look of shock and confusion. Was he worried about something like that? He was about to stay with a tall hellhound beast, and the only thing he was worried about was the fact she was a girl. Needless to say, she was completely taken off-guard.
"Wait, so you're just butt-hurt over the fact that I'm a chick and you're a guy?" she scoffed, as she grabbed him and carried him over her shoulder, "So what? Shit like that happens all the time. Ever heard of co-ed? Geez, you're such a goddamn virgin."
Zack's face turned a deep red, as he crossed his arms in embarrassment. It was true that he was a virgin, hell he had never even kissed a girl before. Of course he had his crushes and interests, but of course, when you're an awkward individual, creating a relationship of that caliber can be very taxing. However, that was beside the point. Sleeping in the same house as Loona, that was what ate at his mind. Was it really safe to stay there? After all, he would e staying in hell, one of the most dangerous, evil, stressful places in existence. On the other hand, there was no telling what would happen if he was to go back home. For all he knew, those armed men could have come back to finish him off. He huffed, seeing no other option. To stay alive, he had to risk it by staying with the only person that he believed could protect him. Not to mention that he was curious about this mystery. Zack nodded his head in content, as he let her carry him, much to his embarrassment and fluster.
*
After about 15 minutes, though it felt like 15 hours to Zack, they finally made it to a small apartment building. Instantly, Zack made comparisons to his own home, or former home as of now. It had a similar size and shape to the walls, however the color-scheme looked slightly run down. Perhaps they hadn't gotten on the renovations yet. Zack shrugged the thought off and within a few more seconds, Loona had stopped at one of the doors on the 3rd floor. She placed him down on the ground and pulled out her keys. As she fumbled with the keys, Zack's mind filled with questions and thoughts about her place of residence.
"Hm, so this is where Loona lives. I wonder how she decorates. I mean, even if she's a bit rough, tough, and other things that end in 'ough', I'm sure she keeps a clean house. Yeah, I guarantee that-"
She opened the door, and without even stepping inside, Zack knew there was something wrong. The smell, it wasn't pleasant by any means. His eyes widened, as his legs moved on their own out of shear curiosity. The smell grew worse, as he moved past the threshold and his eyes, hey almost burned, not just from the scent, but from the sight. Bottles of booze and alcohol littered the ground, stains soiled the floor and the walls, and even the ceiling! There we scraps of food everywhere, and the smell. That god awful smell! Zack gagged, as he covered his nose with his hands and coughed violently. This was just rancid, putrid, inconceivable! Loona raised an eyebrow, as she placed a hand on her hip.
"What? Got a problem?"
"Got a problem?! Yes I have a problem! You call this a house?! This is a dump, a pigsty, a literally walk-in trash can! You live like this?!" Zack coughed again, as he continued, "Look at this place! You have food everywhere, bottles of moldy booze, and the smell! It's like a mixture of body odor and... ugh... body fluids."
Loona growled in annoyance at his constant complaining. Zack instantly picked up on this and stood at attention, putting on a fake smile.
"B-But, it's definitely better than nothing! Thanks for letting me stay!" he corrected, as he let out a forced chuckle. Loona shook her head and rolled her eyes, as she walked past him, her hips slightly swaying with each step.
"Whatever. I'm gonna go take a shower. Don' even think about peeping at me, or your rotting corpse will be adding to the smell." she warned, as the sound of a door slamming followed after. Zack sighed, as he stared at the crusty apartment. It irked him, ate at his sanity. There was no way he was living in a place like this. With a huff of determination, he pulled off his hoodie and tied it around his waist. If he was staying here, he was gonna do it comfortably.
*
Loona sighed softly, as the warm water cascaded down her bear body. With all the shit that she dealt with, a nice bath is what she needed. She looked down at the floor, her mind racing with questions. Why did she save him? What was the point? Was it because he saved her? And why were they after him, could he be someone important? She shook her head. There was no way she was going to find out allthe answer, especially without any proof. She huffed, as she turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. There was no point in worrying about it. After all, Zack would most likely either be back at home in a few days or dead from some demon. She grabbed a towel and dried her furred body off, before slipping on a pair of boy-shorts and a tight tank-top, the white material hugging on to her full breasts. As she pulled her damp hair into a ponytail, she stepped out of he shower, her eyes filled with shock.
"What the hell..." she mumbled, as her eyes looked throughout the living room. The room was, somehow, completely clean! The bottles, the food scraps, the stains, everything was gone! Even the rancid smell now had a sweet lavender smell. Through her awestruck stupor, she didn't notice Zack throwing out a bag of trash off the balcony and into a dumpster down below. He dusted off his hands and walked back inside, closing the glass balcony door.
"Oh, heya Loona. I see you noticed the living room. You know, for someone who seems to rarely clean, you had a lot of cleaning supplies in your closet." he spoke, as he stretched his limbs. Loona stared at him, his voice knocking her out of her daze.
"How the fuck did you clean this place so fast?! I mean, what are you, a speed demon?!"
"Nah, I just clean pretty fast. You learn a few tips and tricks when you've lived alone for a few years." Zack chuckled softly, his eyes staring at the ground as if he was hiding something. She shrugged, as she walked past him, this time towards her room.
"You know you didn't have to do that, right?" she mumbled, as she stood at the threshold to her room. Zack nodded, as he sat on the newly cleaned couch.
"I know, but I wanted to. Not only did I wanna live comfortably, but I thought it could help you live comfortably too. I mean, if it helps both of us, then all the more reason to do it, right?"
Loona stood in surprise, shock even. Was he even human? To her, most humans were just trashy beings who did whatever they felt like, regardless of the consequences. They'd lie, cheat, steal, and even murder for the dumbest of reasons, so what was so different about him? She huffed, as she shook her head. There was no way he was different. All humans were the same, and one good deed wasn't gonna make her see him as an exception.
"Whatever, not like I asked you to. Just don't break anything. Anyway, I'm going to bed, you can sleep on the couch." she yawned out, as she walked into her bedroom and closed the door behind her. Zack blinked in confusion. He was sure that she didn't care, and yet, he swore he saw her eyes soften for a split second. Was she really that rough and edgy, or was she, in a sense, just a normal young woman. Zack shook his head, as he laid back on the couch, his mind moving on to other things. He closed his eyes, as the events played again through his head.
"Okay, so let's recap on everything so far. So, Loona, Blitzo, Moxxie, and Millie, are all hitmen for hire. Their job is to get revenge on specific people who wronged someone in hell, whether it be for a petty reason, or something major, at least that's what Millie said. Blitzo is the boss, Moxxie and Millie are a husband and wife duo, and Loona is the receptionist. Apparently, those seem to be the only people that work there, and the only people who can even contact them have to be in hell as well, so that means that the one who placed the hit on me has to be a demon too. Thing is though, is that I'm still confused on how he or she was able to send that group after me. Does it have anything to do with the mystery demon who wants me dead? If so, then I need to find a connection..."
Zack yawned, as his eyes drooped. There was no way in, well hell, that he was gonna figure anything else out. The only way he was gonna find those clues, was to search for them, but how? He didn't know his way around hell, and Loona was most certainly not gonna take him to go sight seeing. He shrugged it off a merely checked it off as a bridge he'd cross later. With how late it was, he wasn't gonna get any thinking done, thanks to his fatigue. Within seconds, he soon found himself falling asleep, his body curling up against the plush couch. He knew this was only going to be the beginning of this mystery, he just hoped he would somehow make it out alive.
To Be Continued...