Asarius led the new Berrick leagues across hell to a stone pedestal and distributor just like those where he had first entered hell with Marflinda, albeit, these were few feet closer to the ground.

“This is your egg station. This cave,” Asarius indicated to a large cave opening a few yards away from the pedestal, “is your home. I admit, we haven’t had a new Egg Guardian in centuries, so I don’t remember if you need anything else.”

“I’m certain it won’t take me long to get the hang of things.” Berrick responded. “I do have one question, though.

“What is that?” Questioned Asarius

“What do I do?”

Asarius’ one eye blinked, then he sighed. “Eggs will come out of the egg distributor, there.” He indicated to the stalactite, which was rather interesting for a twenty-foot tall sludge without limbs. “They will arrive in the pedestal there.” He indicated to the pedestal. “These eggs will hatch when they reach the ground. The longer they are kept from hatching, the stronger the demons will be that hatch from them. Obviously, different kinds of eggs will hatch different demons. As for how to deterimine all of that, you’re on your own. Now, the pedestal can only contain a single egg at a time. You are responsible for making sure more powerful demons enter hell, and at the right times. Once you’re assigned an overseer, you’ll receive reports about hell’s status and be able to make decisions about what eggs to hatch when. You and the other Egg Guardians will be judged at the end of the year by a multitude of factors. This judgment will decide your rewards or punishments based on your performance. Any eggs you are keeping from hatching at the time of the report will be accounted for in that judgment as well.” Asarius stopped, and his eye rolled up, as though looking at the ceiling.

“Hmm… Ah yes, if any living being other than yourself touches the eggs they will hatch as well. Um, yes, you may also designate an egg before it hatches to become your familiar when it does hatch. This familiar may be banished if you’re not satisfied with it, but that will look bad on your annual report. Your familiars are your loyal servants, and you’ll be needing them before long to help you guard your eggs. Right now, you are only allowed a single familiar, but if you do well, you’ll be allowed more every year. You don’t need to worry about getting a familiar right away though, as we’ll help you guard your eggs for the first three months.”

“Is that all?” Berrick asked.

“I’ve probably forgotten something, but you’ll figure it out. Good luck.” Asarius said then turned around to leave.

“What about the aid in guarding my eggs?” Berrick asked before Asarius got far.

Asarius grunted and produced two large pieces of sludge which fell from his body and formed into miniature versions of him. Asarius grunted again then left.

“We’re here to help.” Said Mini Asarius 1.

“Guard your eggs!” Said Mini Asarius 2.

They both spoke in much higher pitched voices than Asarius, who spoke with a thick, drawling baritone. They were both shorter than Berrick, though, which made him question their usefulness.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

“Excellent. Make sure nothing disturbs us. This is important work.” Berrick said, then stood in front of the pedestal and egg distributor. There, Berrick waited.

For five days, Berrick waited without receiving a single egg.

“Why are there no eggs?!” Berrick finally shouted in frustration.

“Because you suck.” Said Mini Asarius 1.

“Yes. It’s definitely because you suck.” Chimed Mini Asarius 2.

“Impossible. I’m one of the greatest Egg Guardians to ever grace the planes of hell. At least, I’m sure I will be once I get some eggs to guard.” Berrick responded then turned his attention back to the distributor. A few more hours passed until Berrick spoke again.

“Is it like this for everyone?” Berrick asked.

“No. It’s just you.” Said Mini Asarius 1.

“Most of the other Egg Guardians get eggs daily.” Said Mini Asarius 2.

“Then why don’t I?” Berrick pouted quietly. “Where do the eggs even come from?” Berrick asked louder.

“Most demon eggs are formed when the souls of demons that die begin to reincarnate. The second largest number of eggs come from the energy of active succubi.” Supplied Mini Asarius 1.

“Some demon eggs come from the collective souls of non-demons that are harvested by demons, and just a few eggs come from the queen herself.” Supported Mini Asarius 2.

“So you’re finally helpful… Wait, millions of demons die all the time. How many Egg Guardians are there that I haven’t received a single egg?”

“You make Egg Guardian number 15!” Shouted Mini Asarius 1.

“Most demons that are born don’t come to the Egg Guardians; really only about one percent come from eggs. Most demons are born from the spawn pools, but those are mostly just imps, abominations, or other weaklings. Even comparatively powerful demons that are born in the pools are limited since they usually leave the pool’s influence quickly. That’s why Egg Guardians are so important. The most powerful demons in hell are born from the eggs because they are allowed to mature longer before they are born.” Said Mini Asarius 2.

Berrick furrowed his brow. Mini Asarius 2 had just said more in that go than it had in the past five days combined. Berrick was about to ask another question when the distributor began to move. Berrick looked and saw an egg begin to emerge.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

A demon with long, white hair and six black wings sat in a chair at the head of a stone table. The table sat in the middle of a small island in the middle of a large pit of lava. Also at the table were a short, squat, red demon with curled horns and an ugly face, and a tall demon with stylish black hair. The tall demon was wearing a very fashionable, modern suit and tie. He could not be told apart from a human were it not for his antlers, spaded tail, and bat-like wings.

“As you have heard, we have another Egg Guardian.” The demon at the head of the table said. “Belphegor, Mammon. What say you?”

The short demon spoke first. “What’s there to talk about? It’s less work for us with more powerful demons running around. Never look a gift horse in the mouth, I always say.”

The demon in the suit spoke next. “I agree with Belphegor, Lord Azazel. The more Egg Guardians we have, the better.”

Azazel, the demon at the head of the table, spoke again. “There is something not right about this. We have always known ahead of time when a new Egg Guardian was going to appear, yet this one came out of the red. I suspect heaven is up to something.”

“They probably are. They always are. But what can we do about it now? We should give it time and figure it out later.” Belphegor said, yawning.

“Even if there are strings attached, we can always cut them later. So long as we increase our own gain.” Mammon said as he leaned back in his chair.

Azazel looked between the two, then sighed. “Very well, you are right. I shall assign some agents to keep track of our new Egg Guardian. In which case, I suppose it is time to open up his distributor.” The three demons each rose and flew their separate ways. It was not long after this that Berrick received his first egg.