Punishment

Lord Satan spoke, the sound a thunderous roar mingled with a menacing whisper. It was a name; the name of one of his first born, to be precise.

Djinn appeared in the presence of his Lord, incapable of disobedience when the King of Hell called him by Name.

"You have summoned?" the fire demon uttered dryly.

Lucifer snarled at his creation, prowling a predatory circle around his son. "I have been more than patient with you, <_______>*," the Fallen declared, tone lilting, malevolent. "Forgiving -"

"Perhaps, if you had forgiven me before falsely accusing me in the first place," Djinn quipped. It wasn't wise. Others were severely punished for less - Djinn himself had been. He did it anyway. It was such insolence, such blatant rebellion, that endeared the first fire demon to his creator - if only it had not been directed at himself.

"You betrayed me! It does not matter when - you moved against me!" A lesser being would have quaked at the tone Satan was using, at the fury in his voice. As it was, Djinn felt the effect of it to his very core, and he was no lesser being. "First, with your little pets, the vampire brothers, and more recently, your half-breed spawn. That isn't even mentioning your acts of open defiance in between and since. Your betrayal was certain."

"My betrayal," Djinn snarled, bursting into hellflames as his temper flared, "would never have happened had you not cast me in shame because of the lies and rumors of the mortal damned! I was your most loyal!"

<<DO NOT>> roared his creator, <<PRESUME TO ADMONISH ME>>

This time, Djinn did quake, not from fear, but the sheer raw power rife in Satan's voice.

"So fond my son is of walking the Earth," Lucifer continued, tone much quieter, almost paternal. "Perhaps, it would be beneficial for him to experience the... charms of the mortal plane first hand."

"You would banish me," Djinn stated tonelessly.

Satan's eyes gleamed. "Oh, yes," he replied.

"And the rest of my... punishment?"

"Now, now, <_______>. That would ruin the surprise."

Djinn lifted his head, his eyes showing a hint of wariness for the first time in millenia. "It never had to come to this," he said.

"Oh, my child." The Devil laid a hand atop the demon's head, touch caressing and gentle. "I think it did."

The last Djinn knew of Hell was excruciating agony, and then all was darkness.