"God, I conclude, compensates, punishes."
"I didn't think that was possible." Samuel said carefully.
He was always cautious when it came to Fiesole, he was a demon after all. They had been bound together for 3 years now and he still knew very little about him and even less about the reach.
"Perhaps not. All is as God over-rules. Beside, incentives come from the soul's self. The rest avail not." Fiesole climbed up a few more steps on the ladder he had been using and pulled a rather old looking dusty tome from the shelf.
Samuel could hear the sounds of gears turning throughout the walls followed by a loud heavy thud, the shelf behind him swung open.
"Why do I need you?" He asked annoyed.
He hated that Fiesole was always holding things back. The house had been inherited along with the demon. With that also to his displeasure, they both still held a great deal of secrets.
Fiesole smiled devilishly at Samuel's frustration as if a part of a joke. "You really should read more." He motioned towards the opening, revealing a staircase.
Samuel entered the door, paused for a moment and stepped back. He then peered inside again carefully studying the opening and the corners of the room. He could see that the stairs spired downwards.
"This goes to an outside wall, it should lead outside." Samuel said, pointing to the windows directly on either side of the now open shelf, one then the other.
"The only limitations to the reach are you own, it makes the impossible possible." The demon's body seemed to momentarily melt as it descended the ladder, solidifying again as it hit the ground.
No longer hesitant, Samuel began to walk calmly down the stairs followed closely behind by Fiesole. Leaving the light behind them, the walls were left unnaturally black. The stairs themselves seamlessly blended into the same darkness. This left Samuel feeling disoriented, he was sure he was going up now.
"Have I turned around?" Samuel wondered, Fiesole could no longer be seen either. He reached into his cloak and revealed a flashlight.
"It won't work."
The words stung in Samuel's mind, he spun around while licking the light on. As the beam shone out it seemed to travel on and on until fading back into darkness
Now panicking he desperately shined the light all around him, revealing only the same nothingness. The light flashed across a figure reflecting back only a row of tiny teeth, he stopped.
"Where are we? What exactly is this place?" Samuel said now focusing on Fiesole.
"Hell." Fiesole said . "Or rather it could be. This place is where ever you want it to be."
"What's that supposed to mean? Are you saying -this- is the reach?" Samuel had never been inside the reach. He was growing agitated now.
"Yes. And no." The words seemed to slither from the demons unmoving smile.
"Out with it already or I'll punish you." Samuel was no longer in a mood for the demons games.
Fiesole's smile was gone now. His eyes flashed red for moment emitting the only other light to be seen.
"And thus we half-men struggle. At the end." Fiesole's words clawed their way through Samuel's mind causing him to wince slightly.
Now losing his patience Samuel dove his hand back into his cloak, grasping ahold of an object that sent a burning pain through them both.
"WAIT!" Piped the demon.
He let go, immediately stopping their shared agony.
"We are not in the reach. We are no where. But if we were you would find it very hard to punish me there." Fiesole said breathlessly.
Samuel made a motion for his cloak once more.
The demon spoke up again quickly.
"IF, you like to think of this as anywhere. Think of it as a doorway that will bring you anywhere you need to go. This place focuses the reach and draws you and whatever you're holding to the destination you want. Focus on where you want to go. Just remember if you're carrying something with you it will cost more."
Just then Samuel's stomach let out a huge rumble.
He realized that he hadn't eaten in what feels like days. In fact he became acutely aware he had no idea how long he had been in this place, he was starving.
"Sounds like your minds made up, or rather your stomach." The demon was grinning again.
"Anywhere?"
"Anywhere."
Samuel decided to give it a try, he imagined his favorite pizzeria. He had been there when was a child one of the only memories he had of his mother. He could almost smell the pizza already, he focused hard on what he wanted.
Tiny dots of light of all different colors started to fill the darkness in front of him. He could feel himself reaching out to the pizzeria, drawing him in as it formed before his eyes.
The faint sounds of laughter could be heard, a birthday. Now they were singing, and the smell of fresh pizza in the oven. He was almost there, just a little further.
Suddenly everything was gone, darkness again.
"What good is a door to anywhere if you can't come back through it, am I supposed to walk? Can I reach back?" Samuel had nearly forgotten the pizzeria was hundreds of miles away.
"Simply put, it would kill you. You would burn out your soul before you reached your destination. You lack of focus and will to ever do anything so dangerous. No, you must only go through here." The demon was now smiling bigger than ever his white teeth shining brightly in the face of the flashlight.
"Oh. I suppose it still has it's uses." Samuel now disappointed.
"However." The little demon's voice almost singing.
"Perhaps we could take it with us."
"How do you take a doorway with you?" Samuel said confused.
"You put it inside of something of course, here try this." The little demon was suddenly holding a dull looking lantern, and placed it on the ground.
"What am I supposed to do with this? It's too small how would I fit an entire well.. whatever this place is INSIDE." Samuel was completely lost.
"Don't worry it's bigger on the inside." The demon chuckled.
"Maybe you need a little motivation, you humans will never get this right stop thinking and reach. You're already here, just bring all of this in there." And with that suddenly Fiesole was gone.
Samuel stood there complexed, staring at the lantern and the place Fiesole had just been standing.
"But what am I supposed to do." Samuel said to himself.
Then, Samuel noticed something. He could smell smoke, but there was nothing here. Moments later he could see a faint glow in the distance, about 100 meters away. Fire, and it was growing.
Samuel turned and started to run, but it was all around him. "Damn that demon. What is he doing he knows we'll both die."
He had to think fast, no choice he had to use the doorway leaving it behind. Focusing on the first place he had in mind he could feel himself reaching, lights began to fill the scene before him.
"Wait." He thought. "This place is currently connected to the house what if it burns too?"
There was still so much for him to learn about the reach, and the library would be the first to burn. He couldn't have that. "I've got it."
Samuel kneeled down and touched the ground had been standing on. The fire was nearly on top of him now.
"This has to work." He tried to reach, the lights began to slowly one by one appear, this time much slower than before. He could feel the cost, a burn somewhere deep inside. Samuel screamed in pain, the lights started to fade.
"No! I have to try harder." He yelled.
Again the tiny lights lit up in front of him, nearly engulfed in the flames themselves. The blaze was now only 5 meters away, the smoke was choking him. Now feeling the burn both inside and out he pushed deeper. His clothes began to smoke and singe, he was just about to pass out when suddenly he felt the release in his soul as he was pulled into the lantern.
"Almost didn't think you had it in you." Fiesole was now standing in front of Samuel fully bathed in the fire.
Samuel collapsed, the fire was still all around him ready to him alive.
Fiesole snapped his fingers, suddenly the flames turned purple.
The feeling of relief washed over Samuel like a gentle spring breeze as the flames covered his body.
"Demon fire, it'll never go out but atleast now you won't be burned by them anymore." The little demon sighed as he looked over Samuel's body wreathed in flames.
Samuel blacked out.
"I suppose we better get out of here, still so much to do." Fiesole snapped his fingers and they both vanished.