Author's note:
For some reason, I tend to write these chapters drunk late at night, regretting my work the next day.
Well, here we go?
Again I apologise for a staggered release of these chapters, I want to get this right.
(9k? Bruhh)
Chapter 18: The Truth
"Hey J, can you get some fruit please, just grab a selection, as much as you can carry" the Helltaker said, looking at the scrap of paper in his hands. The man was leaning on his forearms, the handle of the shopping cart supporting the weight. For once he was wearing a white shirt, the black and red colour scheme being too repetitive sometimes.
His huge hairy arms were bulging out of the tight shirt. He was also wearing the sunglasses Justice gifted him in Hell, they were sat comfortably on his face. He always liked to dress smart; the white shirt, the black suit pants, smart brogues, the black sunglasses. Even if it was for a short journey to the store. The Helltaker was looking good, even if he was tired, hungry, thirsty and probably still drunk.
"Yeah, I've been craving some fruit ever since we got back" Judgement said, walking down one of the aisles, disappearing amoungst the other shoppers. "We also need to get some more eggs, flour and milk" Lucifer said, looking over his shoulder at the list. "Yeah, we will get there" he replied, their shopping cart already brimming. "Pancakes aren't everything you know" he smiled at her, she thought different. The devil scoffed at his joke, going down a different aisle, eventually going out of sight.
He had awoken very hungover this morning after his all nighter with Malina, he was in a tired and dehydrated mood. Lucifer was the one that had awoken him, he was still in the same position on the sofa, head back, slouched, his neck sore. Lucifer had quite brutally urged him to wake up, that they needed to go shopping. It was some reality to wake up to, bombarded by insults from his demons. His entire harem awake and moving round him.
He had remembered the voice messaged but he hadn't any time to listen to them, Lucifer demanding he drive her, Judgement, Justice and Pandemonica to the local store. "Never put you two in charge before" he half joked to Modeus and Beelzebub. "In charge?" a confused Modeus had replied, "I can do whatever I want?". Her sadistic gaze lingering on Beelzebub who was stood next to her. "Well, within reason" he smiled, he was dehydrated, not really caring what she did. "I'll do my best!" Beelzebub had put simply, not wishing to disappoint him. "Just please don't destroy the house, that's all I ask" he said, going to take another slurp of water from his glass.
"Make sure Azazel takes plenty of breaks from her revision, if one of you could walk Cerberus that would be much appreciated", the Helltaker said between gulps of water. He had to throw on some new clothes, scrambling to grab the white shirt. He had hurried down the stairs and now was getting a quick drink before they left.
He placed the glass down and moved to retrieve the car keys. He stood looking at the two demons, Modeus was wearing her signature red turtle neck sweater with some black shorts. Beelzebub was wearing her crimson waistcoat and fly blazer, not wearing her crimson gloves. Lucifer was now beginning to physically drag him by his arm to the front door, he was looking at the two demons as she did so, trying to think of anything else to tell the housekeepers. "We won't be lon-" he said to them, now being dragged outside, the front door closing, cutting off his voice.
The rest of his demons were also dressed sharply; the CEO wearing her normal outfit without the black crown, her hair tied back with a black ribbon, Justice was actually wearing the black suit jacket instead of it being wrapped around her shoulders, Judgement was wearing her torn black jacket with the two white Xs, it was exposing more than her midriff, she was also wearing some black shorts with tights. Pandemonica's only change to her outfit was the nametag being absent from her neck, it was freeing. She could finally relax, occassionally helping Eligos when she messaged her. All the demons had assumed their 'human form', horns and tails out of sight.
"We need to get chocolate!" said Justice, from his right. She wasn't willing to venture off on her own, she had remained next to the Helltaker, not wanting to blindly wander the store. "We will get there!" he said to the blind demon, he was getting slightly annoyed at their impatience. He preferred to go round the store in a orderly fashion, stopping off at each aisle and collecting everything they needed, there was a list for a reason. Pandemonica was walking back to them, she was carrying five large bags of ground coffee stacked ontop of one another. She stood at the front of the trolley and dumped them in, crushing whatever was underneath. "Better hope nothing fragile was under there" he said, looking at the sadistic demon.
"Oh shut it" she smiled, walking off again. The two figures both wearing sunglasses continued their route throughout the different aisles, Justice making idle conversation. "Judgement is worried about what to wear on your date" Justice stated, the subject seemingly coming from nowhere. "What?" the Helltaker not sure if he heard the demon correctly, "Yeah, she is really worked up about it". "She shouldn't be, I wont judge her" he joked, seeing if she would understand the pun. "Heh, nice" she smiled.
"I think it matters more for her how she looks, I don't think she cares what you think" the former prosecutor said, she was adjusting her gloves. "Well, tell her not to worry. You seem to have all gotten it into your heads that these dates determine my favourite demon" the Helltaker grabbed a few tins of canned vegetables. He looked across the aisle, a man was giving him a strange look, overhearing the Helltaker's last sentence. He chuckled quietly, "What?" Justice asked, "Nothing, just got a weird look is all. Come on" he replied.
"Well it is the question that we will never know the answer too" Justice spoke, holding onto his arm for a few minutes. "You all know the answer" he said, looking at a shelf and finding Malina's favourite brand of Vodka. "Yeah, you say that, but there has to be someone you prefer over all the others?" Justice pushed a little deeper. "Hmm, you know you're right" he said sarcastically, "I prefer the ones that don't ask stupid questions". He received a light punch in the shoulder. Judgement came around the corner, carrying a variety of fruit, some in plastic packages, others on their own. She dropped them all into the shopping cart, causing most of them to bruise as they rained onto some metal cans.
"Thanks J" he smiled at her, she automatically smiled back, but instantly became embarrassed after smiling. It was very cute. "Yeah well I didn't do it for you, I love fruit, we don't have any in Hell, the only thing I missed when we went back" she said, crossing her arms. The only thing? Yeah right. "Sure Judgement, keep telling yourself that" he smiled, playfully pushing her with his hip as he walked past with the cart. He received another much harder punch in the shoulder.
The three continued their route, the Helltaker chatting mainly to Justice, he had assumed Judgement was following."Where would you like to go on our date?" she asked him, still holding onto his arm. "Well, I never dated a blind person before, so taking them somewhere for the visuals is a no go" he joked, "I know this nice restaurant". "Yeah, your go-to romance hot spot, Lucy told me about it" the demon laughed. "Try something else than that old trick". Well I thin-" he was cut off, "HEY! Eyes up here buddy!" Judgement's voice sounded loudly from behind them. He turned round to see Judgement grab a young man by his collar. The Helltaker quickly rushing over to intervene. The poor man was lucky she didn't manifest her gauntlets, or worse her chains.
"What's going on Jud- J?" he stuttered, coming to stand next to her. She didn't break her glare."This fucking pervert was eyeing me up while I was looking at the magazines, I'm gonna teach him a lesson" her right hand balling into a fist. The thin young man was well and truly scared, he was frozen on the spot, staring into the white eyes of death. "He's not worth it, leave him be" the Helltaker said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
She looked to her left, looking at his hand and then at him, Why was he trying to defuse this? This creep deserved to be punished! She was trying her best to hear his logic. She looked back at the man. Her fist moved towards his face faster than the Helltaker could react, but her fist didn't make contact with the man, stopping just before. The young man had his eyes closed, he had saw the fist coming and prepared for impact, whimpering when he felt it coming, she was clenching his collar harder.
She shoved the man back, then barging past the Helltaker. He looked as Judgement walked past, turning back to the source of the whimpering. "Keep walking buddy" the Helltaker said to the terrified man, the black haired pervert didn't need to be told twice. "S-s-sorry!" the only word the man said, walking quickly away. He shook his head, walking back to the shopping cart. "What was that about?" Justice asked upon hearing him return. "I'll tell you later" giving a quick glance to an angry Judgement.
Pandemonica and Lucifer soon returned, the contents of the shopping cart were now almost overflowing. "Jeez almost have enough to feed the five thousand here" he joked, the cart was becoming very difficult to push, being heavy even for him. "You can drive" he said, letting Judgement push the trolley, her strength much greater than his right now. "Didn't happen by the way" Lucifer said walking at his side, the group now heading to the checkout. "What? Jesus feeding the multitude'?" he said, mildly shocked. "Yeah, it was a lie, five loaves and two fishes" Lucifer laughed at the last part, "Well I'll be damned" he said, thinking about any other biblical events.
"What about Noah's Ark?" he asked, they had now joined the queue for the checkout. "Nope, Noah was just a story made up to teach young angels. The ark is real, but that is another story entirely" she said looking at the people in front of her, more puzzled looks were going their way, mostly from anyone in earshot. "What about Moses parting the Red Sea?". "That one is true, but again not really special, big man just moved some water for him" Lucifer looked at him, her arms placed on her hips. "Wha-" he began, "Oh save it" she said, reaching up and placing a kiss on his lips.
After the family returned home, the shopping took a while to be put away, the household now having enough food for a few weeks. While the demons went about their business he decided that he would do some exercise, he needed to get in shape again, he had lost a little muscle mass over the past month. He went upstairs to swap into a red tanktop and shorts, the hot sun combined with the workout will definitely make him sweat for sure.
He went to his backyard, there was a small square of gravel where his equipment was, there was a wooden table with a white umbrella in the centre. You could sit a small party around the circular table, the family sitting on it whenever they had a barbecue. The burnt grill was next to the side of the house, he looked at it, smiling at the memory of Judgement thinking adding alcohol would be a good idea.
Sitting on the dumbbell bench. He selected one of the heaviest dumbbells he owned, lifting it nearer to his feet. He put in his earphones, the motivational playlist lined up. The Helltaker began his workout.
"Judgement, it's just a date! Stop creating more problems" an annoyed Lucifer said, trying her best to ignore her Prosecutor's rants. "He will take you to a restaurant, make you feel nice and then you come back. Why are you worried about what he will think?". "I'm not! I just wanted your advice! You've been with him before, what am i meant to say?! a flustered Judgement said, her back turned to Lucifer.
The two were currently in Lucifer's bedroom, wanting some privacy from the rest of the household. Lucifer was organizing her wardrobe, a seemingly bottomless wardrobe. "You, my high prosecutor, my right hand, the one who has squared down the worst Hell has been sent, doesn't know what to say?" a small sharp laugh escaping the CEO. "Pathetic" she smirked.
"Are you going to help me or insult me?" a menacing Judgement said, now approaching the back of the CEO, her grey fists clenched. "Judgement darling, what do you want me to say? You want me to tell you how to act, what to say?" Lucifer grabbed a worn suit jacket and demanifested it. "...yes" Judgement whispered in reply. The devil turned to look at her, "He loves us all for different reasons. You don't change that just because you're on a date". She paused, "Be yourself" she turned to resume her wardrobe clearance.
"THAT'S WHAT MODEUS SAID" a now annoyed Judgement shouted, "BECAUSE IT'S THE TRUTH!" an equally annoyed Lucifer shouted back, she turned to meet her prosecutor's gaze. "If you're that worried about what he will think, don't go. I'm sure he would love to take me again" Lucifer smirked, purposefully trying to agitate Judgement further. She succeeded.
"LIKE HELL HE WILL" the two were now stood uncomfortably close to one another, Lucifer had her arms crossed and was smiling, Judgement had manifested her gauntlets, the metal fingers clenched into fists, she was gritting her teeth. "There we go, that wasn't so hard was it?" Lucifer smiled, she again resumed her wardrobe clearance. Judgement took a minute to calm down, demanifesting the armour, taking a deep breath. She could feel the incoming regret of what she was about to say next.
"I don't know what to wear, can you help me..."
"Playing message"
A man's voice could be heard clearing his throat. "Entry log number one. Darker, yet darker, this abyss has consumed all sources of light and colour. I can barely see the silhouette of those two. When he told me to create, no manufacture a personal Hell, I didn't think I would become trapped in it. We have tried exploring this plac- Darlings! Don't go too far! Young female voices could be heard in the distance. We have tried to test the limits of this place, so far there are none. I was with Uriel and Jez when it happened, but those two trouble makers just had to come visit their dad while he was working".
There was a long pause, it sounded like there was a mass of people constantly whispering in the background, only just audible.
"Some of the lab equipment made it in here with us, this stupid recorder for one. I thought, if we are trapped here, I may as well record this, as a warning. Or someone will hear it and rescue us...Yeah, like that's happening. The experiment spiraled out of control so fast that when I came to, I had been separated from Uriel and Jez. I hope wherever they are, they aren't here. Jezebel my love, they are safe, they are with me.
Another long pause.
"God if you are listening, I'm gonna need one of those miracles I hear you're so good at granting" a dry laugh can be heard after.
"Who are you talking to Daddy?" a curious voice was heard approaching, accompanied by the sounds of shuffling feet. "He talks to himself, he is already crazy" a sour voice was also heard. "I'm just thinking out loud Zdrada" the man's voice said. "Where's Mommy?" the sour voice asked. "I'm not too sure Malina, come on, let's go find her".
The voice message ended with a click. "Jesus" a shocked Helltaker said to himself, he had a hand massaging his brow. While he was working out, he realised he had the privacy to listen to the voice messages. Amazingly the old flip phone connecting to his earphones. He was not expecting this. He had to learn more, he quickly selected the next voice message and played it.
"Playing message"
"Entry number-" an ear piercing noise cuts off his voice, it sounded like the most horrible, blood curdling scream torn apart by static. "fuck, fuck, fuck. They are gone, they were taken from me! My daughters...One minute I was looking at them, the next they were falling into an even darker pit. It was some strange circle on the floor? I couldn't move, I couldn't call out to them...It doesn't matter, they are gone... I am still here, trapped. The desperation was obvious on the man's voice, an occasional sniff could be heard. "My daughters, wherever you are, I hope it's better than here, Zdrada don't make fun of Malina, Malina try be kind to your sister. I know I wasn't the best father, not making time for you two, spending too many hours in the lab..."
A long pause, the man was now sniffing more frequently. His breakdown now in full effect. In the background, the sound of static and white noise was gradually becoming louder, the choir of whispers increasing in volume.
"Zdrada...Malina...Jezebel..."
The background noise had quickly increased in volume, the blur of whispers, static and screams becoming almost deafening.
"Forgive me..."
The mans voice could just about be heard, screams and whispers drowning him out. The Helltaker swore he heard the man scream in pain just before the message ended.
"Fuck me" the Helltaker sat, the hand holding the flip phone trembling. His mind processing what he has just heard. Mantus was their dad, he was some sort of scientist for Heaven? Why didn't Malina or Zdrada ever tell him about this? Turns out there were more fallen angels than he first thought. Fuck the abyss.
"At least ask me out to dinner first freak" a voice said from behind him, he turned startled to see Zdrada coming up to him, cigarette in hand. She was walking up the gravel path, returning from the beach, wearing her usual red shirt, black gauntlets affixed to her wrists. She was smiling at her insult at him. "Whatcha got there?" she said, swiping the phone from his hands. He had tried to hide the phone but he wasn't fast enough.
"Oh my god you still own a flip phone, these things are ancient man" her voice muffled, she was using both her hands while the cigarette remained in her mouth. "I can give you one of my old phones if you wanna upgrade, Hell sure does have some nice tech. What happened to your other phone?"
She finally navigated to the text messages, "Having a little affair are we?" she jabbed at him, "Zdrada" he said deadly serious. "Whatcha hiding big guy?" she smiled, looking through the messages. "What? It's just one unknown number" she said puzzled, selecting it and reading the first message.
She froze, her cigarette falling out of her open mouth. She read the second message...She read the third message...She played the first voice message...She played the second voice message. It was a grueling few minutes, he could feel the fragility of the situation could be shattered if he said anything. Zdrada stared blankly at the phone's screen, tears were now slowly forming. The demon now dropped the phone onto the floor, look at him as he did so. It landed with a metallic thud as it hit the gravel. She stomped on the phone with one quick step, her huge boots crushing the device in one. Zdrada didn't break the sad glare.
"NO, ZDRADA!" he shouted, not expecting her to act the way she did. His hands on his head, both grabbing the black hair. "That was the only-" she shoved him backwards, "You fucking think you know everything about me huh? You think that just cause you listened to those two messages you have the right to know everything". Her voice was breaking, it still maintained the anger but her tears were now falling, concealing her true anger. "You just pretend to care, but you are just like everyone else in my life, you left"...
An angry Helltaker did not take too kindly to this, "I CAME BACK!" he shouted at her, his hands clenched into fists. "YOU LEFT ME, JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE!" she shouted back louder, "I DIDN'T LEAVE BY CHOICE, AND IT WASN'T JUST YOU!" he took a step forward towards her, taking his sunglasses off, throwing them onto the table. "FUCK YOU!", she finally exploded, swinging at him, he quickstepped backward. "ZDRADA!" he boomed, holding his arms in a defensive posture, blocking incoming fists. Through her tears, she saw red, she wanted to hurt him, hurt him for caring about her, making her care about him.
"YOU FUCKING CUNT!" she sobbed, still swinging at him, her blows being caught or blocked. "Zdrada" he said, more quietly, begging her to stop. She feigned an attack to his stomach, making him move his arms down, she then struck as hard as she could. The blow connected with his nose, knocking him backwards, he reeled and tripped against the dumbbell bench, falling over it onto the gravel. She knocked him out cold.
Zdrada opened the garage, dust falling from the ceiling once the huge door collided with the wall. She brushed her shirt of dust, it clinging to the red fabric. She began walking towards the object that was hidden under a grey tarpaulin. She lifted the bricks off of the floor which were holding the cover down, throwing them at the wall of the garage. More dust falling off of the ceiling. She ripped the grey sheet off of the object, the beautiful black body of the car now being revealed, still in pristine condition. It was his old Mustang.
She opened the driver's door, slinking into the seat and shutting it with a loud slam. She gripped the wheel, excited to drive. The Helltaker was very surprised when Zdrada was the only demon who was interested in learning to drive, actually asking him. He didn't think portal conjuring demons would want to learn. He had taken her out in his large Mercedes, the huge vehicle being difficult to handle at first. She had learned very quickly and soon she could drive on her own easily. He had only ever mentioned his Mustang rarely, but she knew he kept it hidden. The only question now was where were the keys?
She opened the sun visor above her and the keys fell into her lap, Of course she thought, placing them in the ignition. She looked at the side compartment on the passenger side and reached over, picking up a small case. Inside were some dirty sunglasses, a very old pair of his. She blew on them and cleaned them with the end of her shirt, placing them on her face after she was done. The engine purring as it came to life. Lets drive.
"Taker? Are you there?" he heard a muffled voice say, "Come on big guy, give us something" another voice said, "Is he hurt?!" a third voice squeaked. His ears were ringing, as if an explosion had rattled his eardrums. His head throbbed with pain, he blinked looking up at the cloudy sky, rays of sunshine filtering through.
"Uuuuuh my head" he said finally, the taste of blood in his mouth. He looked at the three faces around him. "See he is fine" Justice smiled down at him, "You had us worried there hun" a concerned and tired Pandemonica said, the caffeine having worn off from this morning. "You're okay!" a happy Modeus squealed, clapping her hands.
The punch he had received had made his nose bleed considerably, landing on the gravel had also given him a nasty gash on the back of his head. He sat up, grabbing his sunglasses which were thrown to one side after the punch. "Where is she?" he asked the three demons, all of them giving puzzling looks to each other. "Where is who?" Justice asked.
"Zdrada, she did this" he said, using the dumbbell bench to stand, steadying himself, Modeus also letting him lean on her. "That stupid girl, we haven't seen her" Pandemonica said, "Come on, lets get you cleaned up" she said, taking him by the hand, leading him inside. "Fucking Zdrada" he groaned, placing a hand on the back of his head, grimacing upon seeing his hand bloodied. As he went inside, he looked at the red stain on the gravel where he was lying, his eyes also going to the smashed phone. Maybe it could be repaired? "Goddammit".
"Gonna have to postpone that date J" he said, holding a bag of frozen peas to the back of his head, "At least until I go get her". He was sat in the kitchen, his demons stood around the table, he hadn't told anyone the reason for her outburst, not yet. "Why did she punch you?" Beelzebub asked, she picked his bloodied tissues off of the table and threw them into the bin. "Let's see your head" she said, making him remove the bag of peas.
"We had a slight...disagreement" he said, trying his best to hide the real reason for their fight. Lucifer was stood, arms crossed, her high prosecutor was sat on the table next to him. "A disagreement about what?" the devil knowing he wasn't speaking truthfully. After a long pause and Beelzebub applying a cloth to his head, he spoke. "It was about Mantus, I just wanted to ask her a few things" he lied, he winced as Beelzebub applied the peas without warning him. "Sorry" the Mistress of Flies said, rubbing his cheek. He didn't see the recollection flash in Beelzebub's eyes upon mentioning Mantus.
Cerberus suddenly came bounding through the backdoor, Malina followed, angrily looking at her phone. "These three are a fucking nightmare" she spat. She looked up from the screen to see an injured Helltaker, a second of concern visible on her face, her resting sour face returning straight away. "What happened?" she asked, looking back at her phone.
"Your sister packs once hell of a punch" he laughed, a concerned Cerberus came and sat on his lap, he began petting her slowly. "Fucking bitch" Malina said, she pocketed her phone, anger now consuming her. "Where is she?!". "We don't know, I did hear a car start but I thought that was you" Judgement said, looking at the man. The one Cerberus currently sat on his lap spoke up, "That big door outside is open, it smells weird in there". Her goofy face enjoying his attention, "Ah, I know where she is" the Helltaker finally put two and two together.
"Where?" Malina and Lucifer said in unison, "Remember when I taught her how to drive? After a lesson I would drive her to a diner on the coast, we would get milkshakes and-" "You never told us about this!" a jealous Modeus cut him off. "I know, it was supposed to be our secret" he smiled at the jealous demon. "Wish you'd take me to get milkshakes" Malina muttered walking into the lounge, hearing her sister getting treated like that made the sour demon depressed.
He stood up, throwing the bag of peas onto the table, the loud thud making everyone jump. He turned to the CEO, "Portal me up" he said simply, he threw the bloodied tissue that was stuck up his right nostril into the bin. "Well, I don't know where it is" she said, smirking at his enthusiasm. "Yes I know that, I do though" he said, "Just like Seattle" he said, knowing it would embarrass her and make the other demons jealous.
"You said you wouldn't bring that up!" Lucifer said through gritted teeth, her pale face now flushed red with embarrassment. "Wait, where is Seattle?" Judgement said, "When did you go there!" Modeus squealed, jealousy consuming her. In their second year together, Lucifer wanted to go somewhere different rather than be confined to the house, he had visited Seattle in his youth and knew the place quite well. The two had gone on a weekend escape.
Lucifer was able to conjure a portal purely by visualizing the place in her mind, this also worked for anyone she was touching. She had retained her angelic skill of reading ones thoughts. They were able to spend the weekend there due to this ability, now he was reminding her to use this power again. "Doesn't matter, I'll let Lucifer answer while I go find Zdrada. Portal me up" he repeated.
Lucifer angrily stomped over to him, she rolled up her sleeves and took off her white gloves. She placed her hands on his temples "Fine, concentrate, visualize it". The Helltaker closed his eyes, instantly remembering the diner, located on the cliff overlooking the nearby town. He heard her mutter something in a deep guttural voice, not understand the language she spoke, an incantation of some sort. He felt her lips press against his as he was pushed backwards into the swirling orange portal. Was that always part of the process to make a portal? She was a much faster conjurer than any other demon.
He was greeted to a pleasant vista, he had appeared in the diner's carpark, he turned to his right to see the small seaside town, it's inhabitants were busy going about their normal lives. The afternoon was just beginning, the sun warm on his skin. He could hear the cry of gulls below the cliffside.
He turned to his left and looked at the red and white patterned umbrellas scattered across the outside seating areas. He walked across the parking lot, patting his black Mustang on the hood as he walked past. He ignored the confused looks he was receiving from the other diners. He already knew where she would be.
The furthest table outside, the one closest to the cliffside, the one with the best view had a very upset and lonely white haired woman sat facing the sea. Her ashtray was overflowing with cigarette butts, she didn't look up upon hearing the approaching footsteps. "I already told you, no I don't want to order anything" she took another drag of her cigarette, the sun was shining off of his sunglasses on her face. "How about a salted caramel milkshake, on me" he smiled at her, Zdrada now turning to look at the man on her right. Tears now forming.
"Hi Zdrada"
I'll begin writing the next chapter right away!- Author