? Elsewhere in the ne of Fire... ?


    Dret couldn''t sleep.


    It was his rest period.


    He wasn''t working.


    He was eyes-closed, crouched in a pile of chalky dirt, hugging his bony knees close...


    That was... the best he could do, as far as sleeping conditions went.


    --but he still couldn''t sleep.


    The only light in the tunnel came from Maltwick. Bulbous growths on his back gave off a sickly yellow glow that illuminated the dark tunnels.


    ...the malms and malms of dark, cramped tunnels.


    "We''re almost there," Dret muttered... "I can feel it in my bones."


    There wasn''t much left of him beside bones.


    He hadn''t consumed anything resembling essence in weeks.


    Dret''s bloodline was particr resilient...


    He could survive off of food if he wanted to. He could bask in the dark energies from suffering and sin. He could even be like everyone else on the Eternal Battlefield, living off of the anger and hate rife on the battlefield.


    But in Dret''s case... the thing that kept him going over the past several moons... what kept him existing... was his own gods-damned will.


    "We''re almost there," he said. "We keep digging."


    Dret pushed himself forward, crawling on his hands and knees. Even being careful, he felt his thrice-broken tail scrape the top of the tunnel.


    Another demonpacted his malleable body to let Dret through.


    "Feels like digging''s all there is to life, eh, Dret?"


    Dret shook his head, "It''s better than living in the below-hells as a ve."


    He took his digging position next to Maltwick.


    That guy-- he was really good at digging. He didn''t stop, either.


    Did that guy even sleep?


    If he had to guess, Dret estimated that Maltwick was responsible for half the length of the whole group''s tunnel.


    That meant Maltwick was their best chance at sessfully digging through to the Human Realm.


    "We''re demons," Maltwick said in his quiet, overly calm voice. "We were born to be ves."


    Dret swept at his and Maltwick''s dirt pile, pushing it behind them. The other demons in the tunnel worked in tacit cooperation, pushing all that dirt to wherever the other end of the tunnel had moved to.


    "Maltwick," he said.. "Why do you dig?"


    Maltwick continued to dig, no change in his expression.


    No answer.


    Dret watched and waited a few moments longer... but it seemed that Maltwick wasn''t interested in conversation.


    He was only interested in digging.


    The only things to do were... talk or dig.


    So without talk... Dret went back to doing the other.


    They dug in silence.


    The bells and suns and weeks blended together, in the dark, balmy tunnels between the Seven Hells and the Human Realm.


    "I dig... because you told me to."


    Maltwick''s answer came when Dret had long given up hope for it.


    It was an answer... he should have expected.


    Demons weren''t stupid... but it could be said they gravitated towards singr focuses.


    "I also told you to rest," Dret said. "I also told you to bandage your fingers up so you don''t work yourself to the bone."


    Maltwick didn''t respond.


    Maltwick continued to dig.


    Dret did the same.


    "Maltwick... Aren''t you tired?"


    Maltwick''s digging speed slowed-- a rare sight. More than a few demons halted their movements to look over.


    It was an eerie feeling, a tunnel packed with over two dozen demons stopping so abruptly.


    Lazy bastards.


    "I think... I just like digging," Maltwick said.


    Dret nodded.


    That would do.


    He and all the other demons of the tunnel were of the same mind.


    None of them were willing denizens of the Eternal Battlefield.


    There were lots of reasons for it. And those were reasons enough to leave that shite ce.


    Everyone had their own reason for leaving... and likewise, everyone had different hopes-- all that could be fulfilled in the Human Realm.


    "When we get to the surface... you can keep digging if you want," Dret said in a small, hopeful voice... "H-how does that sound?"


    It didn''t take nearly as long for Maltwick to respond.


    "I think... I''d like that."


    What might have been the shadow of a smile crossed Maltwick''s face.


    It was hard to tell. His back was their only light source, after all.


    Still, what Dret wanted to call the ''morale'' of the tunnel improved with that minuscule change in expression.


    "I... I wanna corrupt some humans," said another digging demon.


    "Yeah," Dret nodded. "I''m sure we''ll find some humans. Unlessmon logic has led us a-f*cked, that''s why they call it the Human Realm."


    "I wanna fight one," growled a horned devil with sharp, jagged teeth, "so bad..."<novelsnext></novelsnext>


    "There''ll be lots of ''em," Dret smirked. "You might even have to fight two or three."


    "Pretty sure I could take three," they muttered.


    "How ''bout you, Catherine?" Dret prompted.


    "GROOHH RARRGFHH GLARRgllRRK KRRHH!!" Catherine answered excitedly, "GRgur GRRRRH!!!"


    --"Yeah, that''s right."


    --"Oh, wow."


    --"That''s bold..."


    Dret nodded slowly. He wondered how long Catherine had been keeping that private.


    The excitement in the tunnel began to grow. Confidence and enthusiasm fueled everyone''s spirit, and it showed in their efforts.


    "I wanna eat one!" said a toothless, jelly demon.


    "You have a dream and the will to achieve it," Dret said, clenching his fist.


    "I want a human boyfriend!" said a tentacle with eyes.


    Dret sucked air through his teeth, "Not gonna lie. Kinda weird, that one."


    "I wanna eat that guy''s boyfriend," shouted a demon in the back.


    "Hey, quit that," Dret chided. "We''re all in this together."


    "Sorry!" they shouted back. "I want a boyfriend too, though~"


    Dret took a deep breath.


    "We''ve been fighting on the Eternal Battlefield for decades in human time... some of us even centuries.


    "But we''re all here because we want something... maybe something different, maybe something more.


    "Once we get to the Human Realm, we can do... whatever we want.


    "We can corrupt the humans. We can form rtionships with them. We can just... dig holes because, f*ck it, that''s fine too.


    "But... what''s important is breaking the cycle. We''re not just demons and devils with one-track minds. We''re--"


    Suddenly, Maltwick thrust his w into the ceiling, breaking through ayer of rock.


    Withdrawing his arm, a stream of golden light spilled through.


    "Out of my f*cking way!" Dret shouted as he shoved Maltwick aside.


    He began digging frantically, going as far as pulverizing the sheetrock with a mana-empowered right fist.


    Finally, Dret punched his way through, pulling himself out onto the red dirt.


    He stretched his back, fluttered his torn wings, flexed his tail, and for the first time in a long time... stood up straight.


    "Haha! HAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" heughed, "Finally! The HUMAN REALM!!!"


    He was ready to be a proper devil! Any humans he would find, he''d corrupt or kill or eat-- or maybe ALL of those things!


    "It''s awfully hot up here."


    "Augh?!" Dret jumped in surprise. Maltwick stood beside him, still hunched over and only as tall as Dret''s waist.


    The other demons and devils were emerging from the tunnel, looking around with mixed expressions.


    The horned devil was brushing dirt off his head, "Maltwick''s got a point, y''know. Is this ce really the Human Realm?"


    "The Human Realm has a thing called ''seasons,'' Dret exined. "Currently, we''re in the hot season-- but that could change at any time! --to the other season!"


    Understanding dawned on Dret''spanions and they responded with ''oh''s and ''yeah''s and nods of agreement.


    "So, uh... where do we get some humans?" asked the eyed tentacle.


    Dret looked around.


    They were in a barren wastnd, covered in cracked red rock... and waterfalls of flowingva.


    And... no humans.


    Admittedly, it looked like he and hispanions had dug from one hell to another one... but... but that-- no.


    No, that was impossible.


    Dret HAD to be in the Human Realm.


    They''d spent literal years digging in those tunnels. But it was worth it! Because they made it! --to the Human Realm! That''s where they were.


    "The Human Realm is a big ce," Dret exined. "In the Eternal Battlefield, there isn''t *battling* everywhere. So naturally, here, there won''t be humans, err... *human-ing* everywhere."


    Dret lifted up a nearby rock, looking underneath it, "So... let''s start lookin''?"


    "Huhhhh," came the breathy whisper of a demon with loose, leathery skin, "Maaaybe they''re jusssst like ussss~"


    "If that''s true," mused a demon with two-fingered ws, "I wouldn''t feel so great about corrupting ''em."


    "Yeah, and we wuz thinkin'' about eatin'' ''em!?" eximed the sharp-toothed devil.


    "If any o'' you guys died, ahaha," the jelly demonughed, "I''d chew you right up. Hah hehe... wouldn''t even hesitate~"


    That was the demon that didn''t have any teeth.


    "GRAH GORO HARHHHH??" Catherine shrieked, "ARA RARA?"


    Dret ced his ws on his head. She was right! Coming to the Human Realm was a TERRIBLE mistake!


    If humans were just like demons and devils, then they might want to EAT THEM TOO!!!


    "(Good afternoon.)"


    That was HUMAN SPEECH!!!!


    "(Ah, we meet again. How have you been?)"


    It was a man with green hair. And... he was dressed in white, just... like an angel.


    He might have actually been one!


    Everyone knew that angels were the most wicked, unjust, and dangerously cruel creatures in existence!


    Yes. Dret was going to die. And he was going to die to the worst, most evil, most ANGELIC man he''d ever met.


    And his name... was Boss.