A towering flame shot up from the gigantic abyss, roaring high into the air with a deadly resolution.
Suddenly, from its center, the flame was split asunder with a deep flapping sound and within the new void inside the flame, an angel appeared. The flame subsided with its annoying bright light and the audience saw that the angel was dark and sinister. His wings were like those of bats and as they flapped, they sent clouds of cold, freezing wind in every which direction. The chills grasped onto the edges of the abyss as thick layers of ice was crusted on them, as if in an attempt to keep the random raging flames from shooting to the surface.
Drums were beating. Around the circumference of the vicinity hundreds of unclothed demons ritually danced in frantic circles.
"All hail, Supreme Lord Baal'eze'baub, the first fallen angel and the Eldest Grandson of God." Morpheus shouted.
A gigantic rock stalagmite floated from beneath the abyss and stopped in the middle of the air. Baal landed on it and rested his wings. The wind stopped blowing.
Baal breathed out as he floated on top of the chasm. Baal looked around, and the nether host bowed in respect. The abyss was about eight cubic miles in diameter, seems to be getting wider and wider every century, he thought to himself.
Suddenly, he shuddered as he looked deep into the dark abyss and remembered the time when he and his wife Lillith were cast into this very abyss millennia ago. He was thrown out of heaven because he felt sorry for Lillith and wanted to release her from her pain after Raphael ripped her wings from her body in Eden. Ever since then, he had taken up residence in Inferus and was recognized as the First child of Lucifer, and thus heir to the Devil title. He called himself Lord of Flies; flies are a symbol of putrefaction and thus a symbol conforming to the second Law of Existence of which the Devil is bound to.
Around the edges of the abyss and at nineteen different points stood one creature, mostly demons, but some (like Hades and Inanna) were either secondary age demons or of altogether different races that earned royalty titles in Inferus. This was the council of Satan; nineteen senators, each one representing one of the nineteen tribes of Inferus and (for the highest ranking ones) their corresponding Pantheon on one of the regions of Earth. And through them, all the matters of the universe were discussed once every period of sixty-six years, seven months and six days.
"Thank you, my brothers and sisters. Arise." Baal said, raising one of his hands in the air as he gestured. He spoke it with a soft, mesmerizing voice that could grab even a deaf man's attention.
"And let me first start with thanking all of you again for hosting myself and my wife, Queen Lillith into the sixth circle, your utmost hospitality I truly appreciate." he said.
There was a soft cough.
Baal turned towards the direction of Ra and asked, "Ra. Always want to skip the formalities, don’t you?" Several people in the senate laughed in agreement.
"What seems to be the problem today?" Baal’s voice traveled down the chasm and disappeared, but the nineteen senators caught the words before falling into the abyss with their clairaudience.
"Nothing, milord." Ra replied.
"Save me the apprehensive routine, Ra!" Baal said abruptly. Ra fell down on his knees and choked. "Gah. Forgive me, lord! I shall not lie to you again! I swear it!"
"Good." Baal said, dispelling his choke incantation.
Ra stood up. "I cannot tell a lie, but I believe that there is a traitor in our midst."
"Traitor?!" Baal shouted. The nineteen senators looked at each other and the council was in an upheaval.
"Speak up, Ra. Who is it?" Baal shouted.
"Him." Baal pointed at the third-generation demon Hades, residing over the fifteenth seat.
"Son of Cronus?" Baal shouted. "Ra, what kind of insolence is this? How can the son of Cronus be a traitor to his own friends that have taken him into our blessed kingdom?"
"You see, my King. The Olympians have plotted to take over the entire earth for their own selves. The recent war between the people of Zeus and the people of Apollo was just a cover to spread their dominions over the lands. I have close affiliates tell me that they are planning to move their Pantheons onto Syria and Canaan then take over the land of Egypt, of which, as you know, is the share of the sixth senator Amen and mine on that region of Earth." Ra explained.
Suddenly, everyone turned towards Amen’s direction as if just remembering that he actually existed.
"Is this charge seconded by you, Amen?" Baal asked.
Amen nodded: "Yes, milord. Absolutely." He said with a voice that disinterred the utmost of confidence and dignity. He was so confident that no one would dare gamble against such authority.
Baal turned to Hades, "Very well, what is your defense, senator?"
Hades sighed: "Milord Baal. Our kind, unlike the rest of your esteemed children are demons who were reared on the very earth that we have inherited from our Titan mother, Gaia..." Ra interrupted: "...Right! That is why he wants to..."
"Quiet! My patience runs thin!" Baal screamed. There was a wind storm, Ra was struck with it and was flung hundreds of miles upwards through the pitch black air. The storm stopped blowing abruptly and Ra dropped with break-neck velocity, roaring in anguish as he fell deep into the abyss. Amen's eyes followed Ra's fall with a worried resolve.
Baal put his hand down, his face fuming with anger.
"Continue, son of Cronus!" Baal shouted.
Hades continued, "Well, between her children, there were three of us. Zeus, myself and Poseidon. After overthrowing the unjust rule of our father Cronus, Zeus was given dominion over the earth, myself over the underworld and Poseidon over the sea. However, we were only part demonic as we were born during the archaic ages after the creation of the earth. So when we actually visited these places, we found that we weren't the first beings to claim Godhood to those lands."
Hades paused for a moment, looking around and noticing that everyone was listening intently. He continued: "Later, when I arrived in the city of Dis, I was welcomed with open arms and was allowed to take part in the senate, and even be given my own world right here in the nether realms. I went back to earth and told my brothers about your empire, and that you were attempting to control the humans by residing over their Pantheons. I convinced them to swear an oath of allegiance to you, Lord Ba'al, and they submitted. And in fact, ever since we laid control of the lands of Ionia, Phoenicia, Troy and the Aegean we had confined ourselves to those places. Our borders were Libya and Egypt in the South and Sirya and Babylon in the East, and the land of the Norse pantheon in the North, Quetzalcoatl's domain in the west and Miluchra's domain in the North-west."
"Senators Tezcatlipoca of the west, Miluchra of the north-west, Hel of the North, Marduk of the north-east and Reshef of the east. Do you all testify that this is true?"
"Yes, lord." The three male and two female senators said in unison.
Baal turned towards Amen. "Anything more you want to say on behalf of the Egyptian Pantheon, Amen?"
"No, my lord." Amen said, his head bowed down in shame. If demons could blush, he was doing it now.
"Alright then, this case is dismissed." Baal said. There were relieved sighs in the senate. And as sudden as it happened, everyone mysteriously forgot Amen’s involvement.
Baal turned to Senator Morpheus and ordered: "Let Ra remain in the abyss for eighty years for his iniquity; let him think twice about doing any false accusations next time."
"Now, onto business. First of all. As with our tradition. We begin with Morpheus, the senator residing over the first seat. Come forward and declare your Natas Amra Mungis."
"Yes, lord." Morpheus said, he turned himself into a griffin and flew towards the abyss. Another stalagmite floated from the bottom and stopped in the middle of the air, the same level as that of Baal's. Morpheus morphed back into demonic form as he landed on it.
He pulled his long pony tail to the front of his body, revealing a long and dark shadowy necklace running down his back and forming strange assymetric tattoo lines that traced themselves to the front of his body and connected together in front of his chest. He broke the link on his chest and took off the necklace, as he did so the tatoo lines became alive as shadowy snakes that snapped in the air as if angry that they have been awakened from their long slumber. He placed the necklace in the middle of the air and it floated there.
The symbol shone in the air, it looked like a drawing of geometrical circles connected with swirly lines in a peculiar but masterful fashion. It seemed like the drawing of particular planets or the alignments of stars. In fact, if you had lived in the 21st century, these symbols would look like some of the "crop circles" that had mysteriously appeared on some of the fields of earth.
"I am." Morpheus said, as the symbol glowed, turned into a dark shadowy color (or discolor, if that was an actual word) then glowed again. "Morpheus. Primeval. Duke. I swore my allegiance to Satan on the eighth moon, sixth morning star, and second alignment of sol with the dog star."
"Thank you." Baal said. "Now, brief us, of what has been going on in the dream world the past century."
"Although I still haven't convinced Eris to join the senate, she still holds true with her promise of allowing Satan to access the pool of discord and thus extending our abilities into the unconsciousness of the Ignorant race. We have been successful in our fear campaign and causing the people of the East as well as the North West to believe that a serious calamity will befall them soon and thus return in worship onto their respectful Pantheons." Morpheus said.
"That will do nothing!" Tezcatlipoca spoke with an uncouth interruption, "I say we break these rules of not speaking directly to mankind and show ourselves unto all of them at once and tell them about the real choice they are up against." Tezcatlipoca spoke.
The council was in upheaval. Some shouted "Yea!" the others just murmured.
"Nay!" Morpheus shouted with a concluding resolve. The council fell silent.
"The human mind as ignorant and fragile, it will not be able to stand the truth. And all the centuries of progress will be wasted." Morpheus explained, "They will fall into mass hysteria, as had happened when Apollo tried to reveal himself unto his priestesses. This method is the best and most proper. We send them the messages subliminally, and for those who catch on to our messages, blessed be, if not, that is their loss." Morpheus replied.
"Yes, we understand all of that." Hel said. "But the costs of us sending agents to Purgatory and attempt to repair the damage caused onto their souls from the concept of guilt is too expensive. I say, to hell with the risk, pardon my pun. And I side with Tezcatlipoca's suggestion of revealing ourselves and teaching them about the concept of Inferus and eternal indulgence. We can't afford to lose so many souls onto Purgatory when they can be coming straight down to the lower levels."
The senate was in upheaval again.
Inanna, residing over the third seat, shouted only to make her voice remotely heard: "Listen to Morpheus! It is not in our interest to provoke mass panic. Whatever happened to the old Satan I remember who only wanted the best for mankind?"
Hel pointed at Inanna with a threatening gesture: "Shut up or I’ll push you into the abyss! We’re here for OUR interest; the last time I’ve seen a hundred thousand new satisfied souls was a thousand years and only after a religious war! We’re running out of resources because we’re losing all human souls to Purgatory, and you know why? Because we haven’t put OUR interest ahead for a long time!"
Inanna shook her head: "You’re not making sense as usual, Hel. You never do. But then again, you have the right to say what you wish."
The ruckus went on, seemingly for hours.
Baal, getting fed up very quickly, shook his head in gloom and sighed. Suddenly he noticed one of the senators being eerily quiet. It was Satan thirteen: Locan. And he was hiding something.