DEVYN'S POV
The smell of cooking food wakes me. Am I still alive? Whyyyy? My stomach growls in response. Well, I guess whining will not help me right now.
I open my eyes. I am lying in a small cave. A crackling fire catches my attention. A small pot hangs above the fire. My nose catches the scent from the pot, and my mouth waters.
My heart drops as I look at the figure sitting beside the fire. The demon tosses twigs in the fire to keep it alive and stirs the pot of food.
The flames dance on his pale face. His crimson hair hangs in his eyes. His jaw clenches as he is deep in thought, highlighting his sharp features. His eyes are a deep grey.
"You hungry?" The demon speaks.
His voice is surprisingly soft and smooth. I swallow as I look at him.
He turns to look at me. "You haven't eaten in a while."
The demon stands and walks over to me. I shrink away as he bends down beside me, shutting my eyes as his hand reaches for me. I relax when he places his hand on my forehead and checks my temperature.
"It's better. You won't die," the demon says before he scoops his hands under my knees and back and lifts me in his arms. He sets me down on a fur beside the fire and fills a bowl with porridge from the pot.
"Why won't you let me die?" I ask the demon as he holds a spoon to my lips.
"You're more valuable to me alive. Now, eat."
"No. You can't keep me alive forever." I stare straight into his eyes. Why am I fighting to die? Should I not fight to live?
The demon sighs and sets the bowl down. "Why do you want to die so badly?"
This question makes me pause. "I'd get to be with my parents, and...won't be hurt anymore."
"So you just want to give up. Death is just an easy way out for you."
His words shake me because what he said is true. I just do not want to try anymore. I am tired. Ughhhh. When did I become such a coward?
"Well, good news," the demon continues, "you will die eventually. Just not now." He picks up the bowl. "Eat. I decide when you die," the demon says as he forces the spoon in my mouth.
The food actually tastes pretty good, and I end up finishing two bowls.
"How 'bout we make a deal. You live now so you can be my sacrifice later. You help me; I help you. What do ya say?" The demon proposes.
This actually makes me laugh. "A deal with the devil, eh?"
"Sort of. I'm a slightly different type of demon."
"So, why do you need a sacrifice?" I cannot believe I am intrigued about a demon. "Just so I know what kind of deal I'm making," I try to convince myself.
"It's kind of like keeping myself and my family safe. My family has to offer the souls of human men each year to the king of Hades, so we don't get killed."
I lean back on my hands, interested. "Why would demons kill their own kind?"
"My family and I are part of a clan of demons that are a different kind than the demons in Hades. One of our ancestors bred with an angel, so we are a type of mutation from them. We were discovered and got banished to this planet, Sendrum. We have to buy our lives with the souls of humans. That's why I bought you."
"What makes you different?"
"We have this ability called soul crypting."
"What's that?"
"We can basically trap a person and their soul in a fire crypt. It's mostly used to keep people imprisoned, but it can also be used to save a person who is close to death."
"How does that work?"
The demon smirks at my unusually high level of curiosity. "I would have to crypt myself with the person and slowly heal them over time. But we hardly do that because we will be vulnerable."
"Wow. Why would they banish you for that?"
"They're scared we'll crypt their souls."
"Oh."
"Mmm hmm," the demon nods. "So what do you say?"
"What's your name?" Why am I asking him his name? He is going to sacrifice me!
"Denzyl. You?"
"Devyn."
Why did I tell him my name? Wait, why did he ask for my name? I just a slave to him. Oh well, we will see where this goes.
One problem though, I finally got over the shock and scare of being kidnapped and sold to a demon, and I do not want to die anymore. I refuse to let my soul be absorbed into the king of Hades. I will not help that demon in his efforts to take over the universe!
The result: I begin thinking of escape.