[ WP ] With all the souls being sold to him , Satan has decided to build his own soul banking system , and he wants to open a new branch on Earth .

The view was breathtaking. A slight morning mist wafted its way seamlessly around the hills with a fresh breeze accompanying it. I took a greedy whiff of it and closed my eyes to savor the crisp purity. What a far cry from the city's suffocating smog! 
 
 I was on the third day of a two week vacation and had decided to take it in the Montana wilderness at my uncle's cabin. Sitting on the deck and letting my wonderstruck eyes scan this hidden mystique of nature, I took a sip of my tea and surrendered to the overwhelming peace. 
 
 I thought back at my wife still sleeping soundly in the cozy cottage style bedroom behind me. Anita was quite the beauty to behold. She was strong and intelligent; two qualities carbon copied right from her rather stern mother. She was immersed in the corporate world, leading a team of commercial realtors. One trait that attracted her to me was my sense of adventure. Our marriage was on its sixth year and running on fumes. As a renowned malpractice lawyer, I was always away on the road and spending time with each other had grinded down to a halt. Skype and FaceTime had become our primary means of interaction. Besides from taking a much needed break, this was in essence a last ditch effort to reignite our lifeless union. We had chosen careers over family so at least there'd be no collateral damage if this failed. 
 
 As I swam in the temporary ecstasy, I noticed a figure walking up the trail leading up to the cabin from the woods nearby. As I had initially feared, it turned out to be a fellow human being. I was really looking forward to zero people interaction, hence the current venue. The man seemed nice enough all the same. Quite a dashing creation as a matter of fact - athletic, maybe 6'2 with sandy brown hair and... very black eyes. 
 `` Halt! Who goes there!'' I bellowed playfully standing up to meet the stranger. I extended my hand to greet him and recoiled in painful dismay when searing heat radiating from his hand penetrated my delicate palm leaving a dull imprint. 
 
 `` I apologize. I should n't have done that. Sometimes I forget I'm the devil,'' He offered peering at me with those unblinking dark eyes. 
 
 Being an atheist, but with a very strong Catholic background, I fought a strong urge to relieve myself right there in my pajama pants. 
 
 WILL CATCH YOU UP TONIGHT
