Ball of Nothing

"Is everyone ready?" Coux asked.

It didn't take them two days to finalise Zero's escort party. Zenobia was very firm about who to send. Coux was in charge of the expedition and nobody disagreed. The party of five consisted of Coux, Amaraline, Qin Yun, Sekkin and Wiser. Hua Tuo was worried when Wiser volunteered to go with them. The strategist had no means of protecting himself, much less Zero. The oddball was human through and through.

"Don't worry," Wiser smiled. "Demon Lord Baal gave his word, nothing will happen. Besides, I don't feel like hanging out with a bunch of wussies in the village who cannot see past some flimsy stereotype."

At that, nobody protested further. Mitchnew was unhappy that she couldn't accompany Zero to the Spring of Vitality. However, she didn't have much of a choice. Sekkin managed to convince her to stay behind to look out for threats. The half-demon was a much better candidate for the escort party for obvious reasons.

Amaraline chose to leave the village for a while for the same reasons. She couldn't put up with her brother or uncle for much longer. Lovina wanted to go but was still recuperating. The witch also had the responsibility to keep Soon and friends 'alive' so she sent the small party off with a sad wave.

Zenobia wished the small party luck and entrusted the brunet to them. Cleo tucked a small four-leaved clover in Zero's hair for good luck and blessed them before they stepped into the hell chariot. The dark horse neighed and snorted smoke before kicking off into a gallop once the party settled in the carriage behind. The familiar Baal sent sat in the coach seat and whipped he dark horse twice before the beast ran straight into the portal, leaving a trail of fire behind when the portal closed.

It was over too quickly and reality hasn't quite sunk in yet. Zenobia continued to stare at the empty spot for a little more before snapping out orders to the remaining villagers, assigning tasks for everyone to resume the rebuilding project. With Coux gone, there was little left to do. The materials the needed to continue fortifying the village would have to wait.

The chieftess sighed. It wouldn't be long before the villagers started voicing their discontent, opening the can of worms about Zero's identity. She only hoped that the matter would be resolved before the brunet returned. Leon and Clowis were especially hard to reason with and Zenobia wished she didn't have to choose between her village and the brunet who'd done no wrong.

***

As the portal closed behind them, Coux peeked from behind the blood-red velvet curtains in the carriage. The scenery changed immediately into one that she wasn't familiar with. As a trader, Coux was well-travelled but the trip to the abyss wasn't anything she could compare it to.

Firstly, the chariot was not touching any form of ground. They seemed to be moving in the direction of where the dark horse was bringing them to above the sea of darkness. The half-succubus was nervous as she peered into the never-ending pit of black. At the back of her morbid mind, she wondered how long the fall would be before they hit the ground if they fell.

Sekkin wasn't familiar with the abyss. Despite having demon blood in him, hell remained a myth to him until Zero introduced Demon King Baal to them in the most astonishing manner. In a way, this was his motherland. However, it didn't put him at ease. If anything, he was more concerned about the familiar Baal sent. The coachman and their only form of contact was a small rat demon with sinister red eyes. The coachman didn't speak common and nobody else in the chariot knew how to speak demon tongue so that was awkward.

Amaraline held Zero's hand throughout the journey. She wasn't too concerned about the darkness outside or the restlessness of her comrades. The only thing on her mind was how she could convince her brother and uncle to not see Zero any differently. After Zero had given her eyesight back, the fortune-teller had decided to dedicate her life to him. It didn't matter if Zero was a demon or god, she would stand by him. Sadly, her family didn't share the same sentiments. Clowis kept saying that they were unworthy of Zero's attention and shouldn't be disrespectful by speaking to him or bothering him in such a casual manner when he woke up. Clowis kept insisting that Zero couldn't be trusted after he revived the bastard called Douglas and let him go scot-free after betraying the village. Amaraline didn't know what to do.

Qin Yun was equally quiet. Of everyone present, she was the most relaxed. The fox demoness didn't think that she would be returning to hell so soon. In fact, she was amused by how fate worked. Grandma Moppo confided in her last night that she wanted Zero to become the next head of Half Moon village. She was even more insistent that Zero became the successor after finding out that Zero was an immortal and a powerful one who could use divine spells. The old lady begged Qin Yun to convince Zero to consider her proposal and the fox demoness couldn't say no. Being the village's second-longest occupant, Qin Yun had certain attachments to it. It would be lovely if Zero was in charge, she would love to see the things Zero would accomplish.

Wiser felt nauseous the first five minutes into their ride. He turned a deep shade of green after the dark horse lurched into a mad gallop after they entered the portal. Half of him regretted coming aboard but the other half remained stubborn. He had an argument with Tambolt and Raj about Zero's identity. Raj and Tambolt refused to recognise Zero as a lab member stating that he was too much of a magic person who shouldn't be tied down by their shabby presences. Wiser insisted that they should have Zero involve himself more with their activities for it could help them overcome the technological barrier with his magic capabilities. The djinn and dwarf kept insisting that it wasn't right to pull Zero into their crummy group and burden him with their nonsense but Wiser disagreed. Things got heated up and the strategist ended up calling them prejudiced fools with double standards. He got booted from the lab and spent his days sulking before choosing to volunteer for the escort mission.

"Wiser, are you alright? You're looking a little green," Qin Yun commented.

The human shook his head and the fox demoness chuckled. "Here, this is some motion-sickness medicine Hua Tuo packed for us before we left. He thought that you might need it."

Wiser accepted it gratefully and swallowed them. As expected of Hua Tuo, the medicine worked quickly. Wiser found himself sighing in relief and was curious as to how none of the other passengers in the carriage didn't feel ill.

"That's because we have demon blood to a certain extent in us. The abyss isn't a place that humans could easily waltz in and out of. If it wasn't for Lord Baal's protection, you would've been ripped apart by the lesser demons the moment you entered."

At that, the strategist looked out the windows and shivered. Even in the darkness, he could see thousands of red glowing eyes were staring at them from a distance as the passed. His whimper caught Sekkin's attention.

"Why did you volunteer anyway? It would have been fine with just the four of us."

Wiser scowled. "I had my reasons alright? Also, who's to deny such a rare opportunity to tour hell? It's like she said, with Lord Baal's word we would be safe."

Amaraline giggled. "Is it because of the argument with Raj and Tambolt?"

Wiser didn't answer but Amaraline knew she hit the mark. "Don't worry," she told him. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm here for the same reason. Clowis and Lowis are stubborn fools who wouldn't listen."

Coux frowned. "Let's hope that Zenobia would be able to resolve everything before we return."

Qin Yun sighed. "The chieftess is capable but she isn't infallible. In the worst case, we should brief Zero about the situation before we return. In fact, I think we should speak to him about it."

Sekkin agreed. "Do you think we should inform Lord Baal about it? Just to know what he thinks is the best for Zero..."

Qin Yun and Coux made a face. Lord Baal cared for Zero, there was no doubt about it. However, a demon's way of showing concern was very different from the other species on Earth. Sekkin was only a half-demon who lived like a human so he wouldn't understand the implications. Coux knew that it wouldn't be as simple as giving the villagers a slap on the wrist. If Baal was feeling generous, the entire village would be cursed. If he wasn't, Half Moon village would burn.

"Let's keep this to ourselves and place our faiths in the chieftess for now," Qin Yun reasoned. "Lord Baal is a busy person, no need to trouble him with our business."

Sekkin nodded. "I guess so. Well, Mitchnew is still in the village. Whatever the chieftess cannot accomplish, I'm sure she would take care of it before we return. How long do you think the journey will be?"

Qin Yun shrugged. It had been some time since she last visited the abyss. Many things have changed. Then again, she was in a new district so there were many things unfamiliar to her. The fox demoness observed the rat familiar and sighed. If only it was a fox, she would've been able to communicate with it and manipulate it. Then again, Demon King Baal wasn't a fool. There was no way he would send a familiar that they could manipulate. All the party could do was sit tight and wait.

Time passed very slowly in the abyss. It was quiet with nobody having anything much to say to each other. Coux glanced out of the window often enough to know that she wouldn't be seeing anything more than darkness below and the occasional pairs of red glowing eyes. It was boring. Amaraline had long spaced out on them, probably attempting to peer into the future. Sekkin was snoring away and Wiser was trying to keep his eyes peeled. Qin Yun looked the most comfortable in their party of five. She was playing with fox fire magic, shaping the blue flame into different shapes to amuse herself and pass the time. Coux sighed to herself. With nothing much to do, her thoughts returned to the brunet in comatose.

What was she going to tell Zero when he woke up?

Uneasy about the future, she could only sit tight and wait as they pulled closer to their destination. Demon King Baal's castle could be seen from a distance. It was no less magnificent than what Coux had seen during her travels on Earth. It was built with a touch of death and screamed creepy just like everything else in hell. Still, the dark horse and their coachman remained undeterred, heading straight for the looming fog surrounding it.

Swallowing her nervousness, Coux braised herself to meet the infamous Demon King. Zenobia put her in charge of their party for a reason and she wasn't going to fail her secret mission. Demon King or not, business was business.