Joshua knocked on the door. Waiting yielding no results, so he tried again. "Hello?" But it remained quiet.

Katie rolled her eyes. "Just after an extermination, asshole's probably hiding in his hole."

Josh snorted gently. "You sure do like holes." He grabbed for the handle and just tried opening it. The door opened with a creak. "Hey? You there? It worked."

Inside, the place looked almost charmingly messy. It was the same mess, instead of the new mess that had been dumped all over the rest of hell's streets. "Buddy?" Josh held the door open for Katie to hop over the junk into the room. "Sensei?"

"Ain't no sensei." Darkly glimmering eyes glared from within the darkness. "But it was a good damn fight, so I'm in a good mood." He looked up at the ceiling. "Just fucked your little hell whore into my happy place."

Katie sighed as she let her hips sway with her walk. "You can't say you fucked me when I'm right here, and I was with him, damn. Use your brain."

"Doesn't make sense, just like him." A finger extended, directing a thick claw at Joshua. "He did the impossible, and he's standing here, still smiling like an idiot. You felt the blood of angels on your fists. How many did you fight off?" He swallowed thickly. "How many did you kill?"

"I dunno." Joshua scratched his head. "Three? Four? My memory's a little fuzzy."

"Fuzzy," snorted Amundian. "Good word for you, pudgy boy." Ammy emerged into the light of the front room. "You're dead walking, fuzz-boy. When the angels figure out you killed one, or maybe more, of theirs, they'll be back. They will come right back, and they won't be happy with just your damned head." He rubbed at the back of his own throat, as if feeling where it'd be split. "Every damned creature in a block, at least. You just killed us all."

Joshua stared at him. "But they're gone for the year now, so, we're good?" He paused, then smiled. "Yeah, we're good!"

Amundian breathed a heavy sigh.

Katie laughed tensely. "Right? We get a whole year to, uh, plan or whatever?"

Amundian threw up a hand. "You were supposed to put up a good fight, and die like the rest of the exterminated refuse. That's all we're good for, punching bags for angels with a hate on for the bottom rung of humanity that failed the Big Test and washed out down here."

He fell back against a wall with a heavy sigh, slumping to the ground and knocking junk aside in the slide. "But then you had to go and punch back, didn't you? With all the power and more of any sinner I've ever seen, let alone felt, you gave them hell. You gave them hell."

"You taught me!" Josh's shrill cry shook the room. "I was just doing what you showed me how to do, and now you're acting like I'm the bad guy?!"

Amundian took a deep breath. "Yeah. Yeah. Fuck." He grunted as he stood up. "Fuck! Why don't we have words stronger than that? Seriously, I messed up." He thumped Josh on the chest. "You are a little overlord. The littlest overlord, but you were pissed off enough and prepared just enough to take them by surprise. It will not be that easy come a rematch, promise you that."

"If it helps, I really don't want there to be a rematch." Josh pulled his shoulders back. "So let's train, yeah? Come on, if you've got a year, you can show me how to stop angels!"

Amundian put a hand over his face. "You're such a little shit."

Katie snickered at that. "Just figuring that out? He's my shit though. I call dibs."

"Training will help, a little." Amundian inflated with the foul air of his dingy abode. "You need power. You have the souls of your friends, somehow, that's a start. That got you through today. You want to be such a badass they maybe reconsider? You need to be on the levels of the Vees. You need people lining up around the damned block, rushing to put their souls in your fuzzy hands!"

"Wait." Katie stepped back. "I'm not down for that. I mean, he can hold my soul, but—"

"No, I can't let them be used like that. If they're going to be there, I want them because they chose it, not because they needed me." Josh stomped a foot on the ground. "Not out of desperation."

Katie pushed Joshua back a few inches. "Honey, hate to break it to you, but we're all desperate now. Oh. Right, damn. Your friends are probably telling other people you offer an angel. Those'll tell other jerks, and on and on. This isn't staying a secret for longer than it takes a fart to wander a room."

Joshua stood in place, staring at the imp. "It was worth it." He hugged her tight. "You're worth it."

"Look, yeah, it's great you got some backbone after the purge, but you are gonna need more to really handle what's coming." Katie didn't push him away though. "You're warm, and fuzzy." She rain a hand over the arm holding her. "And all kinds of dangerous. Look, getting that many people to agree to something? You need something they can't even think of saying no to. The Vees have entertainment on lockdown, both the givers and receivers. And what the hell else is there to do around here? Yeah, they got an empire. How do we get you one?"

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

Amundian rolled his eyes. "He needs souls. We could start small, and if he did enough work for enough sinners, it might work."

"And if we had time," Katie added. "But let's face it, in a year, he's has to go from someone interesting, to someone so beyond their grasp." She hissed a breath, looking over the smiling otter as she stepped back. "We have our work cut out for us." She hiked a thumb towards the outside. "And you're not helping, Ammy. Enjoy your pity party."

The door slammed shut behind them. Joshua let out a low chuckle. "We did it. I got my friends out of this alive." He hugged himself. "I think it was all worth it, all of it." He clutched at himself as he looked around at the sullen street full of sinners recovering from the savage purge. "This isn't right. We're already here, um, because we sinned, right? What's the point of killing someone already in jail? What's the point of the jail?!"

Katie lifted her shoulders up, hands out at her sides. "Dunno. Killing us makes the angels feel good?" She waggled a hand side to side. "Something like that. They call it mercy killing. Sure feels like bullshit to me, but who cares? Who cares!"

"I do." Joshua set a hand on her shoulder. "You should too. You live here."

"Look." She couldn't meet his eyes. "I'm not a sinner. They're not after me. We imps? We live down here. We were born down here."

Joshua grabbed her other shoulder. "You said I'm your little shit!" That got a few eyes peeking at them. "Uh, I mean, look. We're friends, right? Care about your friends."

She pulled free with a playful smile. "Yeah, whatever you say, fuzzball."

He stared at her back for a moment before shaking his head and following. "If they are coming back to kill us, I'm going to make sure we're ready for them.

The sound of footsteps approaching them quickly made one of Josh's ears prick. He turned in time to see three figures heaving, sinners, the lot of them. One of them, a disgustingly overweight bear that barely looked like he had managed the run heaved desperately for air. "You! Uh, one moment." He sagged to gasp for breath.

Katie blinked slowly. "Can we help you? I mean, maybe, but mostly just probably not." She eyed up the other two, a pink haired lizard and a large goat, both looking on with wary, weary eyes. "Either of you got more words than fat-ass here?"

The goat smiled nervously, wringing her hands. "We heard he—" She pointed at Josh nervously, as if afraid of him. "—He fought the angels. He protected some of us!"

Joshua beamed at that, waving happily at the trio. "Hey there! Uh, it's okay. I'm just a guy. A little wet behind the ears, even. So, um, what do you need?"

The lizard grabbed at Joshua's front, both hands on his shirt. "Help us! Please! Please." He sank against Joshua. "We don't have anyone that can fight them like you can. We'll do anything!" He laughed softly. "I'll pay whatever you want. Just please keep my sisters safe."

Katie grinned a little wickedly at that. "Well now." She grabbed onto Joshua's back, pulling herself up to whisper in his ear, "Bet they'd pay a soul or three. You look goofy enough to trust you would play nice with it."

Joshua let out a soft groan. "Come on, Katie, really? Is that all you care about?"

"Yup." She didn't hesitate even for a second. "This is hell, dude. Also, you want to not die? You need more of those. So stop pretending this doesn't involve you."

Joshua huffed gently as the bear recovered. "Sorry. What they said." He grabbed for the lizard, pulling him back off of Josh. "We need help, protection. Are you selling?"

Joshua lifted a paw. "I'm not looking for your souls." He pinched at the bridge of his snout. "But I'm told the more I have, the better I can fight. I hate the whole thing, but I won't use them for any other reason. People's souls are not toys, damn it all. You gotta use them if you don't want to die though. If you need my help, you'll need to work with me."

Katie moved around Joshua, stretching her arms. "He's serious about this. Give up those vapors to this guy right here." She hiked a thumb at Joshua. "He'll keep them nice and safe until the angels come back and want a rematch. Bonus, if you already gave your soul away, it can't be stolen or swindled by some asshole, and you know there's plenty out here waiting for the chance."

The bear cleared his throat, straightening his spine and stretching to stand to his full height, as unimpressive as it was. "You said you weren't looking to buy our souls. That doesn't mean you're not trading them."

Joshua rubbed behind his head. "I don't like the idea, but anyone who give me a soul, I will do my very absolute best to keep them safe from those angels. So long as you all are with me, no harm will come to you." He sighed gently. "Not that it's really enough. There were a lot of angels, and more coming every second."

The lizard threw up his hands. "But who the heck else cares?! We're just left on our own and told to die and like it." He shrugged slowly, head low. "What can we do? But at least we might have a shot now."

Joshua looked to Katie. "You know anything about this?"

Katie squirmed a little. "I know your odds go from zero to a little bit if you get serious about this."

The goat grabbed Joshua's hand. "You're trying." She squeezed his hand, warmth flowing from her into him. "That's more than anyone else. You're trying. I'll put my faith in you." With a bright little flash, the deal was done, and Joshua could feel the tingling surge as his power grew.

Katie suddenly got between them. "One thing." She shoved the goat back. "You're a sinner, comes with the zip code. What'd you do, or more specifically, what sort of sick shit should we expect? Because I don't care who you were on Earth, down here you're all sinners, so don't fucking try to tell me you didn't do something wrong. Fuck that guilt trip. I want details."

The goat trembled at the imp's sudden change in demeanor. "I just, uh, I cheated on my husband, a lot. Like, a lot. And I'm not even sorry." She blushed softly as she brushed a lock of her hair back.

Katie burst into rough laughter. "Oh, well." She turned back to Joshua. "Harmless. She's just operated by her groin. Go on, grab it. I bet she'd like it."

"Not now," muttered Josh with a hot blush creeping up his cheeks. "So, um, thanks." He eyed up the other two sinners who were definitely looking to Katie and the goat. They were his first converts. The first of many others? Josh nervously laughed at the thought of what the future might hold.