Bells And Buckets (Hells Unleashed 2)

The Royal Palace, Ylf’nim Kingdom of Ardyth’tol
Hilock woke to hear the steady steps of a single guardsman marching up and down the hall just beyond the solid iron door of his prison cell. From a window slit in the wall high overhead, a sliver of predawn paleness shown down on him as he lay on the cold, damp floor. He rolled onto his back and stared up at that small light, while taking an automatic assessment of himself. His wounds were nearly healed, the bruises gone, with only some slight stiffness in his joints. His health made little difference, for the Lord of Hordes was surely on his way to put a permanent end to him.
He told himself that at least he had tried to save King Reilln Ehland from the Lord of Hordes. Reilln, an ylf’nim king with the mind of a child, had been a puppet of a corrupt council. The demon God, hidden yet constantly present, had ruled through them for the last twenty years. Hilock knew of the demon’s plan to possess the king, taking over his body, then his kingdom, and eventually, the planet. He tried to spirit him away before that could happen, but Councilman Drakmeau caught them. He was accused of abducting the king. Beaten and thrown in prison, the only thing Hilock accomplished was pushing the Lord of Hordes’ plans forward.
At the end of it all, Hilock really just wanted a drink. He had his doubts that there would be any granting of last requests. If the Lord was in a magnanimous mood, he could hope for a swift death. He was certain that would not be the case. He knew the demon God could take years, decades even, to punish one of his own that had wronged him. Hilock expected a very slow and painful existence, until the Lord of Hordes tired of him and moved on to something else.