THE MOMENT
"Wait?" the demon asked. "For what?"
"The other buyers of course," George couldn't hide his grin.
"That soul is MINE!" a shrill voice interjected. The spindly demon in a navy blue suit turned to see a foot-tall fairy staring at George. She fluttered closer, then looked at the demon.
"Get in line, sulfur-brain. I was here first."
"Well, technically…," he tried to argue that he was there first but a different, rounder, demon appeared with a cloud of yellow smoke.
"The hell's this? A party?" he asked with a gravelly voice.
"A party?" another new voice asked. It was another fairy entering through the door. George's hospital room was becoming crowded. "I'd love to join you all once I process this poor soul." She flew straight to George's bed to claim him, ignoring the others. George had to stifle his giggles to lean away from the fairy's reaching hand.
"Not so fast! There are still more buyers!" he cackled. Luckily, the fairy pulled back and finally looked around at the group.
"How many more?" the lanky demon asked.
"Well, if you guys wanted a party…" George beamed. "...get ready." Within the next few seconds, puffs of sulfur filled the room with more demons as more fairies flew in. Soon, the cacophony of arguments made it impossible for George to hear his own thoughts. He looked around and counted 12 demons and seven fairies. It wasn't all the buyers, but he was eager to stir the pot even more.
"Satan should be here any moment," he said casually. All conversations ended instantly with a collective gasp.
"She's here," a woman said. Unlike the other demons, Satan walked in through the door. She was a petite woman when long thin horns. She wore the same navy blue suit as the demons that moved out of her way.
"Well, hello Satan," George said. He sat up in the hospital bed; it was easier to move now that he felt no pain. "It looks like you've got something of a situation on your hands." She nodded at him.
"It does look that way…," she said. Satan looked around the crowded room, then she focused on George. "..to someone who wouldn't know any better." Her voice sounded cool and confident as it always did and George felt a sudden unease.
"Wha.. what do you mean?" George asked. She smiled at him.
"Do you think you're the first person to die?" She asked.
"What? Of course not," George chuckled but the mirth was gone; it was a nervous reflex this time.
"Then, why is it you assumed you were the first one to try… this," she gestured at the group. Now, George was the only one that wasn't smiling.
"Try?" George asked. "I succeeded! I got everything I demanded from every one of you! You have to fight for my soul!"
"Says who?" Satan asked.
"But.. But.. That's how it works! You can't all own my soul!"
"We don't," the gangly demon chuckled.
"We made a deal!"
"We did," the stout demon added.
"You just don't know what your soul is worth," Satan said. "Once your soul is marked for Hell, no one else can claim it. Any other deals you made are considered amendments to the original bargain. Everything you gained from all your dealings could have been accomplished in the first."
"Then why are you all here?" George asked. It was his last defense. If what she said was true, there was no reason for the buyers to show up. The first, shrill fairy that arrived floated forward and landed on his bed.
"That's easy…," Satan said.
The sound of a pop-top being opened distracted George and he tried to turn towards the sound, but couldn't. He felt a sudden, familiar pain in his back and the rest of the fairies landed on him. George was relieved when he finally died. At the time, the pain of a broken back was the worst he ever felt and he was glad to be free of it. The pain returned now, for some reason, but it was nothing compared to the intense burning itch he felt as the fairies began to feast on him.
"... this happens often enough that now it's just an excuse to throw a party."