Like herself the demons had originally been normal human’s who had been randomly chosen to be her minions. You had to keep things modern; you couldn’t have three hundred year old demons serving a thirteen year old devil, it just didn’t work. With people not being chosen for looks or anything of that sort Linda felt they had been lucky at least with appearances for her second in command demon who now popped into existence next to her. Even his name, Dante, was vaguely appropriate, though personality wise he was about average. He was tall, with long black hair and a toothy smile that would make small children run away crying. He also took his job very seriously which sometimes unnerved Linda a little but she was usually able to write that off as simple work ethic.
“You’re late,” Dante commented though there was a studied lack of reproach in his voice. He also took his position as a subordinate seriously; actually he took almost everything seriously. Linda had once asked him if it didn’t bother him, the fact that he was thirty and had to answer to a seventeen year old. He had answered very stiffly that it was his job to answer to the devil and it didn’t matter who it was. She had heard that he had served under the last devil who had, by the time that Dante had become a demon around the age of thirteen, been a very old man who wore his underwear on his head. She supposed that the training he had gotten in that situation could carry him through being loyal to anyone.
“Sorry, mom was being nagging again,” Linda told him, and she snapped her fingers. Instantly they were her plush office in hell. It wasn’t empty however; her lieutenants had obviously been waiting for her. They sat at the conference table, from the youngest who was about ten, to the oldest in her eighties. They stood and bowed when they noticed that she had arrived and waited for her to sit at the head of the table, which she did. The bowing and court formality made Linda nervous and she had wanted to do away with it but she had been informed that no matter how modern they became in other things some traditions would remain.
“So what is on my list to do today?” Linda asked in a resigned voice. She knew all too well that it would keep her busy all day no matter what it was that they had thought up for her. Usually she had to plead off in the end on account of her family and dreaded the moment that she would move out and have to work down here full time rather then just a part time schedule based off of what was offered at the hamburger joint she was supposedly working at.
“There is a man who would like to appeal his placement here in hell. We aren’t sure how long the appeal will take so we’ll go from there,” said the old woman, looking down at her clipboard. She took care of Linda’s scheduling Most of the demons looked at themselves as being at odds with god but the old woman had made it very clear that she believed herself to be doing god’s work by punishing those who had sinned. Linda had once made the comment that she didn’t think that demon’s went to heaven and it had taken her a very long time to clear up the cold silence that had descended between her and her secretary afterwards.
To be continued...
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