“The lesson I’m trying to impart today, is that humans fight organized religions, in the name of organized religions, every day, and have done so since the day the second religion—however you want to define it—arose. I trust your educations were complete and accurate enough that you are aware of the Papal Schism a hundred years ago, where there were two Popes fighting one another, both in the name of the Lord against one another?!”
“Yes, Domina,” they agreed, concerned and disturbed at the idea.
“And even today—I know you are both English, and doubtless feel loyalty to England.” She rolled her eyes at the idea of someone caring about something like that. “Do you consider the French to be Catholics?”
“Of course,” they agreed.
“Pious Catholics?”
Chas deferred to Penny, who cautiously declared “as pious as most others.”
“A good answer. I know you’re aware England, Spain, the Holy Roman Empire, and, incidentally, the Pope, wearing his other hat as leader of the Papal States, were at war with France and Venice through most of this past decade. And although not spoken publicly or made officially…”
“No!” Penny cried, in shock, guessing where she was going. “No!”
“What?!” Chas demanded, as Channah smiled.
“It’s nice to see all those school fees and tithes aren’t going completely to waste on orgies and pederasty.”
“DOMINA!” Penny huffed.
“I’m sorry, honey,” she patted Penny’s shoulder. “Please forgive me for shocking your sensibilities unnecessarily. And to answer your question, Penny, yes: Yes, yes, a resounding yes: Of course the French and the Venetians have spoken with, and cooperated in practice with, the Ottoman Muslim Caliph against the Catholic Pope. Exactly as the Crusaders themselves aligned with Venice, Pisa, and Genoa to sack Constantinople and dismember and cripple the Byzantine Empire—the most powerful Christian kingdom fighting Islam—in 1204. Because, as they say in the East, my enemy’s enemy is my friend.”
She had so shocked the girls by connecting the dots that Latin authorities and clergymen allowed to be taught, with the obvious truths they tried to prevent people from seeing, that they were stunned into silence.
She allowed the pause to continue, and the girls to think, for a good minute or more that seemed even longer, before she continued: “The Succubae are engaged in a contest with the Lord and the Angels. But the battle between good and evil takes place within each human soul. Not on Earth, or in Hell. It is not a war between realms. It’s a competition for recruits. And at least Penny will have been formally presented with the question before, why does the Lord allow Hell to tempt humans? I won’t answer that question for you, I’ll ask you to answer it yourselves. Think on it a good long while, and discuss it with one another. I will look forward to hearing what you have concluded when you’re confident. Obviously I wouldn’t have let the priests have you and train you for so long, if my only preoccupation were human souls. Or if I wanted to corrupt yours. Or for you to corrupt others’ souls. Would I?” She enjoyed the silence she heard, even Penny too confused and thoughtful to argue.
Unholy War
“No, I trained you to fight our war, our true and unholy war, the war of the Succubae, against our sworn enemies.”
“Who?” The girls asked breathlessly.
“The Devils,” she practically spat, unable to keep her voice even when she spoke of them. “Above all others, the vile, disgusting, contemptible Devils. And their allies. The Zombies—fucking disgusting” she shook her head with an expression of revulsion. “You can’t imagine how disgusting, and if you’re lucky, you’ll never need to find out. The exact opposite of Succubaean beauty and love of the erotic. Nobody likes either of them, or wants to be around them, although the Genies and the Spirits are so unprincipled and vile they usually cooperate with the unbearable ones, against us.”
There was another silence, both girls looking up at their Domina in awe and consternation at what she was saying, trying to make sense of it. And perhaps even more, trying to reckon with the fact anything could upset Channah enough to interrupt her normal, utterly unflappable and practical demeanor.
Finally, she wrenched herself back to the present, and to them, looking down, almost surprised to see how intently they were looking back at her. She smiled faintly, touched. “You’re both so darling. But that is the war I raised you two to fight. A war that benefits Heaven, not because I have any affection for Heaven, but purely instrumentally, because it diverts our attention and energies from Heaven. This the war that matters the most to me, and to the Succubae, and our operatives—to every one of us.”
“How can a war among Demons, possibly matter more than the war between Heaven and Hell?!” Chas asked with uncalculated candor and genuine curiosity.
“Penny, was that the right question?”
“Not if—” she blushed and corrected what she meant to say. “Domina, you said it was not a war between heaven and hell, but a contest for human souls.”
“Do you see armies of angels battling devils? Or saved souls fighting the damned? No. Now your turn, Chas. Matter to who?” she asked.
“What?” they both asked. “The Lord does not consult me, but doubtless you are right, the contest for souls means more to the Lord, and to some humans, than the war among the Seven Hells. But it is our war with one another that matters the most to the demons. This will bring you back to the question I already posed you: Why does the Lord, suffer Hell to exist? What purpose do we serve to Heaven, that we were banished instead of annihilated, when we rebelled? Whatever answer you come to, I suspect it will persuade you of what you really need to understand: That no matter what the reason is, the Lord does suffer Hell to exist, and the only ‘battleground’ between Heaven and Hell is inside humanity. I am where the Lord put me, doing what the Lord allows me. My fortunes are subject to the Lord, and the number of servants I have depends in part on what the Lord allows, but my life, and my existence, are not threatened.”
Literature Section “06-49 Hella Honeymoon VI”—Part 49 of Chapter Six, “Le Saccage de la Sale Bête Rouge” (“Rampage of the Dirty Red Beast”)—Continued from 06-48—1064 words—Accompanying Images: 1552-1554. Published 2025-04-02—©2025 The Remainderman. This is a work of fiction, not a book of suggestions. It’s filled with fantasies, idiots, and criminals. Don’t believe them or imitate them.