CODEX Part 3: Between Heaven and Hell
Introduction to Darkness

Jasper woke up for the third time that night when he heard Zoe scream in her sleep. Her door was wide open so he could see her from his spot on the couch.

It was the third night like that and it didn't look like she was going to stop anytime soon.

She had been in that state for a few days already and when she finally fell asleep, she started to have nightmares. His heart would break every time he heard her scream in agony.

On the other hand, after many arguments, Ezekiel could finally get out of his house. Eneizar spent a lot of time with him and even brought alcohol while Iaosur and Gakhas would come and go as they seemed fit.

Ezekiel was wondering why they were so busy and what exactly work meant for them.

"The war is not as accentuated in Hell as it is in the Upworld," Eneizar explained.

Ezekiel left the basement in the favour of his room after one day but his bed was no match for Zoe's.

"Why?"

Eneizar grabbed a chocolate off the table and bit into it; Ezekiel asked his mother for some sweets but he didn't expect the demon to eat some.

"Demons are supposed to taunt humans into committing sins. The greatest the sin is, the more power the demon gets. You should look outside and see it for yourself,"

Ezekiel sat in front of the window but didn't see anything remotely different.

"Watch closer," The demon mumbled, coming next to Ezekiel, his icy blue eyes concentrating on what was outside.

At a literally closer look, Ezekiel noticed a few differences but they weren't out of ordinary. For example, the man who used to stand in front of the bakery was now assaulted by teenage boys. It was still winter but no one was trying to help the girl who was getting bullied down the street. Every human was surrounded by mist that could cover any type of demon pushing humans against each other.

"They're trying to show off?"

Eneizar shook his head and jumped on Ezekiel's bed.

"No. They're inflicting madness. Most of them are Lucifer's demons. You don't want to see what Asmodeus' do,"

The human narrowed his eyes at the overall picture; it was subtle but the demonic manipulation was there.

"But if this is only the beginning, how are things going to degenerate?" Ezekiel asked.

Eneizar rolled on his back and crossed his arms beneath his head, "Very bad,"

The human sighed and rubbed his back, already worrying for their future.

Zoe was survaying her room, assured that someone was there, hiding in the shadows. She grasped the covers and glared at everything, anticipating the upcoming attack.

Jasper entered with a bowl of soup and put it on the nightstand. He sat next to her and smiled but she ignored him completely.

"There is no one in here, Zoe. Come on, you have to eat," He started softly, pushing the bowl to her.

But Zoe didn't seem to realize Jasper was in the room, her eyes constantly staring ahead blankly.

"Please," He continued before trying to feed her; unfortunately she wasn't responding well.

Jasper sighed and walked out.

"Good morning!" Chen was still his usual self. He glanced at Zoe's door but it was closed. He went straight into the kitchen and waved at Jasper, "How is the patient today?"

"The same," Jasper muttered in frustration.

He came back home only to get dragged into a mess; moreover, he was acting like a nurse for someone he met last month.

"She's annoying,"

Chen raised an eyebrow and hurried behind Jasper, massaging his shoulders to soften up the inheritor.

"Keep the faith, bro. She's going through a hard time now,"

Jasper pushed Chen away, "And I'm not?! I have my own life! I couldn't even act for the past month because I didn't have time to think about anything else but death!"

Chen nodded understandingly, Jasper's reaction being nothing but normal, "I know but she needs us now more than ever,"

Jasper stared at Chen, "Why are you so loyal to her?"

Chen's smile dropped and his eyes softened, "She saved my life and taught me how precious it is. That's why I want her to realize the same. She should treasure her life more,"

Jasper closed his eyes and rubbed his head, "I'm getting sick of this," He mumbled.

The door to the kitchen slammed open, the two boys jumping in their seats.

"Then leave."

Zoe was standing in the door frame glaring at Jasper. It made him feel small for some reason, "I am no good, right? Just leave or better, die." She hissed.

Chen frowned. Zoe wasn't acting like herself. She hurried towards Jasper and pushed him against the stove, the gas suddenly turning on by itself. Jasper's eyes widened and tried to keep away from the flame.

"Do you want me to do it for you,inheritor?"

Once she growled the last word, Chen realized something bad was going on. Jasper was right in front of her so he could see her eyes changing to yellow, her chin becoming sharper and her whole face sucking into itself; she looked like a skeleton, to be precise.

“Zoe?" Chen took a step towards her warily.

Unfortunately, he couldn't get closer than that because the knife on the table rose into the air and pointed at him. The human gulped and raised his hands in surrender.

"You know nothing about this woman. None of you." Her voice was different, lower and huskier.

"Is she possessed?" Chen asked glancing at JAsper before he turned to look at her.

Jasper winced, "I'm not sure,"

She grabbed his face and pulled it closer to hers. Jasper noticed the long nails and shuddered when she breathed on his face; it smelled like fire.

"Actually, I think she is!" He barely whispered through the tight grasp.

"Zoe? Can you hear me?" Chen took a few more steps towards her when he noticed the knife wasn't moving.

She threw Jasper into the wall so hard that he hit his head and fell unconscious. Chen gulped, his eyes still on Jasper when he felt something crawl up his legs.

"Don't look down," He whispered to himself, closing his eyes and clenching his fists.

"Are you scared, human?" Zoe asked, her head tilting to the side. Chen's nod brought a wide smile on her face, "Good~" She whispered into his ear, "Humans are only good to pollute the world. You think you are powerful but you are only pawns in a game of chess." She continued, kicking his knee.

It hurt but he muffled the groan. She trailed her nose down his neck and bit him slightly, licking the hickey and leaving a wet trail up towards his lobe.

"Come and join the dark side, Kyungjae,"

He felt a chill down his spine, his body shuddering when she breathed in his ear.

"Let him go Zoe,"

Her head snapped to Mehrdir, her eyes narrowed and face scrunched in disgust, "Who is Zoe?" She hissed in anger.

Mehrdir growled and walked furiously towards her. Zoe stood her ground, not moving an inch and not showing any type of intimidation.

"Did you come to the rescue, lover?" That simple word, rolling down her tongue, was enough to make Mehrdir mad; besides, they all knew that he was really easy to annoy.

"Let her go."

The demon in Zoe chuckled and cracked his neck, "You left Mammon for this creature. She didn't even resist me. She let me in like it was nothing!"

Mehrdir leaned in and growled, "Leave." Zoe glared at the demon but Mehrdir's level was surpassing hers, "Now."

"I do not possess her, weakling. I am her; the part she tried to keep locked in the depths of her mind and heart. I am Zoe's dark side," She licked her lips and leaned to bite Mehrdir’s face. Zoe touched his lips and grabbed his hand, “This hand of yours; the hand of a greed demon,” She pulled it close to her face and kissed it softly, closing her eyes and caressing it as if it was precious before she plunged her nails into it, “Where was it when she reached out, in waiting?” She opened her eyes and stared at him, those yellow irises sending a chill down his spine, “Where is your so called love for her, Mehrdir?” She whispered before she gave him a soft peck.

That was the moment the colour in her eyes came back and she fell in his arms, unconscious.

Mehrdir put Zoe on the bed and let her to sleep. He kissed her forehead before he went in the living room. Jasper was on the couch and Chen was helping him hold an ice pack on the back of his head.

“She threw me against the wall and almost burned me. Did you turn the stove off?” Jasper asked Chen but the human nodded, “It’s getting really crazy,”

Chen bit his lip and nodded, still feeling somewhat scared.

“She needs to be alone right now. It was only normal for her to break at some point,”

The humans looked up at the greed demon, waiting for an explanation.

“Ezekiel fought an Izmedu. Don’t let them meet or they will inflict pain into each other without even knowing,” The greed demon advised.

Chen and Jasper glanced at each other before the Asian boy asked, “What’s an Izmedu?”

Mehrdir sighed and ruffled his hair, “Izmedu are broken souls who do not belong to Hell or Heaven. They live in the purgatory and they feed with all kinds of souls. Once you get targeted, he’s allowed to follow you here. They don't have any rules to obey. They’re monsters in between worlds,”

Chen listened with wide eyes and mouth hanging open; he was fascinated.

“But Ezekiel survived, right?” Jasper asked, scared. He became really paranoid after Elijah vanished.

Mehrdir nodded, “He did and Zoe killed the creature. But once you hear his voice, he transfers his conscious into you so everything the Izmedu lived through gets into his killer. Most demons don’t have a problem with it but Ezekiel is not a demon. I sent Eneizar and Iaosur to take care of him but he won’t be able to sleep for a while,” He sighed and leaned back.

Chen hummed and nodded along before questioning further, “Why does Zoe have these nightmares, then?”

Mehrdir looked down at his hands with a frown, “The Izmedu triggered her past memories and the emotional baggage she’s always been carrying. She hid it well but now, it just exploded,” He leaned his head back and rubbed his face, “She’s been through so much pain. It won’t stop anytime soon. She’s becoming unstable and Lucifer will use it in his favour,”

Chen tilted his head and dropped the ice pack to Jasper, “Aren’t you the one who got her so emotionally unstable? I know Ezekiel told me something about you bullying her. You pushed her towards death only to be the one to pull her back,”

Mehrdir froze. He did that, he did even worse if he remembered correctly.

“Doesn’t that make it your fault?”

Jasper turned towards Chen, a bit surprised. He seemed like he wasn’t aware of how important or how dangerous the dark world was, but Chen was well informed and brave enough to go through it until the end.

Mehrdir didn’t get the chance to respond because Zoe started to scream again.

“It’s your turn,” Jasper stated coldly and walked out the front door, his clothes and things still in the next door apartment.