"Oh baby don't you worry 'bout a thing,
Pull you closer, hold you tighter, so you can hear me sing,
Tendrils pulling you to a tight embrace,
Use these tentacles of mine to wipe the tears from your face~"
- A verse from the song "Mouthful of Madness", sung by Seviathan von Eldritch, male heir to the von Eldritch estate and brother of Helsa von Eldritch. Seviathan became a musical sensation all across Hell as the lead singer of "The Elder Signs'', named "the hottest boy band in the Seven Rings'' by S.P.I.N.E. magazine
A few moments of awkward silence hung in the air as Helsa eyed up the assortment of unwelcome guests. Ego simply smiled up at the haute demoness, waiting to be invited inside. 'Might as well try this the easy way first', he thought, hoping that the von Eldritch family would help of their own volition. Yet as Helsa stood steadfast, it seemed less and less likely that she would welcome them in. She spoke, more than a hint of contempt in her voice.
"Oh, hello… your majesty…" She spit the words out like poison, causing Ego to furrow his brow slightly. "To what do I owe the… pleasure?"
Ego regained his composure and gestured to his companions. "Ah, Helsa! A pleasure to see you too! You do look stunning this evening. Have you done something new with your… tentacles?" She scowled at him. Ego coughed and continued. "At any rate, my associates and I were hoping to speak with your father. Is he in at the moment?" Helsa narrowed her eyes at the King.
"...Daddy is very busy at the moment. Today is an important day for his business." Ego raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, well, given how all of Hell is in shambles I assumed that much. In any case, I'm not in the mood to debate, so if you could just-"
Suddenly a voice from behind Helsa interrupted, and soon the source of the brash, boyish voice appeared. Seviathan von Eldritch butted in next to his sister, making both her and Shoggy yelp in surprise. Seviathan, for his part, had his eyes focused past Ego and solely on Charlie.
"Heyyy, Charlie! I knew you would come crawling back to me someday, babe!"
Charlie's face flinched into disgust for a brief moment, and Vaggie's gained a murderous expression, but, to the Princess' credit, she composed herself and made the most of the moment.
Twirling her golden hair in her fingers and putting on her best sultry voice, she replied to her ex-boyfriend in faux interest. "Oh, Sevvy~ You won't believe it, but our castle got smashed! I was wondering if you'd let us… stay the night?" She batted her eyelashes seductively.
Helsa was glaring at her brother with a look that could kill, but Seviathan barely noticed her, walking into the crowd and putting his hand around Charlie's waist before leading her inside. "Oh, no problem, babe! You can even stay in my room~" He passed by her sister without a second glance. "Oh, Helsa, have the staff make rooms for my girl's friends, would you? Thanks sis, I owe you one!" And off they went, disappearing down a side-hallway, with Charlie giving one last knowing wink to the group before they were gone. Ego smirked and walked right past Helsa as well, followed by the Slayer and then the rest of the group.
"Well well well! Glad to see your brother has some courtesy, at least! Charmed to see you again, Helsa!" Ego remarked, not looking at the seething woman as he passed. It would have been hard at that moment to say which demoness was more furious: Helsa or Vagatha.
For how few demons had seen the exterior of the von Eldritch manor and lived to tell the tale, fewer still had ever seen the interior of that rumor-shrouded abode. As the group walked down the main hallways and into the foyer, a growing sense of uneasiness built up around them like a dense fog. Doorways seemed to appear as if from nowhere, hidden behind strange angles and in small alcoves. The wallpaper played tricks on the minds of onlookers, and one could swear the serpentine patterns moved of their own accord. Busts of the von Eldritch family looked on from black onyx pillars, their judgemental gaze following the demonic procession.
Soon they reached the foyer, a large circular room of pitch black stone and shimmering green doorways. Not a moment later one of the doors opened, and out shambled a group of three demons in elegant suits. They approached the King's party and bowed, before the middle demon spoke in a listless, empty tone of voice.
"We have been told… to organize rooms… for our guests…" He said, long pauses breaking up the sentence, as if speaking were an immense effort. The longer the visitors looked at the butler, the more odd he appeared. His suit was somewhat ill-fitting, with oddly bulging portions and a sunken chest. His eyes were vacant and classy; his movement robotic. Helsa came up behind the visiting group and grumbled her agreement before barking orders at the butlers to escort everyone to a room. Baxter and his scientist companions were led off down another hallway, while the King's friends were separated and taken into different doorways. Eventually just the Slayer and Sanguine King remained. Ego looked at Helsa sidelong.
"Now, Miss Von Eldritch, I wasn't kidding when I said I had business with your father. If you could lead me to his office, I would appreciate it." His tone ended with a slight edge, as if to imply that the King was not to be trifled with. Helsa, for her part, assessed the situation.
For all her manufactured reputation as a ditzy dame, Helsa von Eldritch was, in her core, a calculated and cold tactician. She knew better than anyone that it would be her to overtake her father's many businesses after his retirement; after all, her brother cared only for the limelight above all else, while she coveted it only as a means to more power. So, as she looked on the King, one of Hell's most volatile demons, and the strange armored giant next to him, she weighed her options, limited as they were. Her chances of having all of the 'guests' forcefully evicted were slim at best; they wouldn't go without a fight, and now of all times was not the moment to add chaos to her father's plans. Eventually she settled on going along with the King's demands, and potentially using his friends as bargaining chips, should the need arrive. As such, Helsa put on her rehearsed smile and nodded.
"Certainly, your highness. Will your friend be coming with us?"
Ego looked up at the Slayer, then back to Helsa. "Allow us to speak in private for a moment, would you?" The demoness nodded and smiled, internally hating taking orders. Ego and the Slayer walked away from the snake-tongued woman.
Ego raised an eyebrow at his companion. "Alright, as best as I can I'm going to attempt to handle this whole situation verbally. Now, no offense, but that isn't exactly your strong-suit…" The Slayer simply stared down at Ego in silence. Ego smirked. "Case in point. So, if you're willing, play along with whatever accomodations little miss voidspawn comes up with, but stay on your guard. If she tries anything, make sure her goons know why you're the Demon Slayer, capiche?" The Slayer just nodded, let out a grunt of agreement, and was led through yet another shimmering door. At last, it was just the Sanguine King and Helsa von Eldritch, two faces grinning to conceal their motives. Ego broke the silence. "Well, lead on, Miss Von Eldritch."
The daughter of the estate led Ego down a series of disorienting pathways. The further they went, the less the architecture of the build seemed to make any coherent sense: three rights no longer made a left, and stairways seemed to bring them upwards and downwards at the same time.
Eventually, just as the King was starting to feel somewhat nauseous, the pair arrived at a set of large wooden doors, similar to those at the entrance of the manor. Helsa took a deep breath and reached out her hand to knock, seemingly afraid herself. Her knuckles impacted just once, the sound of the strike echoing through the halls, before a voice from inside bellowed out.
"What is it?! I'm busy, dammit!" Helsa winced but replied.
"You have a visitor, daddy! The King!"
No noise was heard from inside, followed by a brief period of shuffling papers and sliding drawers, before the gruff voice spoke again, notably more polite.
"Oh, I see. Come in, then." As instructed, Helsa opened the door and the two of them walked into her father's office.
Fear has many different causes, and can take many different forms. Things that can harm oneself are, naturally, frightening. Yet there are certain things that go beyond a natural fear. Some things speak to some ancient, unnameable sense of unease that has existed in the souls of mortals since before consciousness existed. It cannot be defined by sense and logic, for it is not of the realms of understanding. Sir Frederick von Eldritch's office was one such place. Truth be told, nothing about it was particularly frightening. A large, dark oak desk sat towards the back of the room, adorned with typical amenities: a three-dimensional map of Hell and its rings, a set of Newton Balls, various papers and pens, etc. Paintings of von Eldritch family members were hung along the walls. A roaring fireplace with a distinctly green flame cast its glow across the room, including the large bookshelf on the opposite wall, full of various cursed tomes. In their own right each of the aspects of the office were strange, but not particularly distressing. Yet, like the pieces of a puzzle, their whole was more than the individuals, and all came together to instill a feeling of subtle, creeping unease to anyone that entered.
It was no surprise, then, that both Helsa and Ego were affected upon entering. Helsa, even for the daughter of a man with some… unscrupulous connections, still felt her blood run cold whenever she was forced to enter her father's place of work. Ego, meanwhile, hadn't felt fear in a long, long time. Death had had no meaning to him for decades, and once one's sense of mortality was gone, feelings like fear and love follow suit. To the King, it was almost refreshing to feel fear again; the beating of his heart and the sweat on the back of his neck was the return of an old friend. Of course, these feelings for both of them only increased when the patriarch swiveled around in his chair to see his intruders.
Frederick von Eldritch was a man of imposing style. His outfit was Victorian-esque: the tentacles that made up his 'hair' also curled into a dapper moustache, and he wore a monocle at all times, which some rumored allowed him to see things others couldn't. Atop his head was a black stovepipe hat, with neon green markings around the brim. His suit was immaculate and flamboyant, similar to what a plantation owner might wear while their slaves toil in squalor. It was obvious that he was not pleased to see the Sanguine King, yet attempted some form of greeting in his usual gruff tone.
"Ah, what a surprise! Ego, my friend, how is the kingdom these days?"
Ego smiled, enjoying the feeling of his hands shaking. "Oh, you know how it is. Buildings destroyed by giant tentacles, countless demons dead. Not a great day, all things considered. I don't suppose you would know anything about that?"
Frederick glared down at the King past the edge of his desk. "Are you accusing me of some involvement in this, your majesty?"
Ego raised an eyebrow in mock skepticism. "Do you want the blunt answer or should we continue playing word games? This place is the only building standing in a hundred mile radius. Your family has been rumored to deal with otherworldly forces for generations."
Von Eldritch snarled and stood up, slamming his hands on his desk. "Enough! You have nothing more than rumors and superstition on your side! Do you have a scrap of proof that I have been dealing with the Void?"
Ego shrugged knowingly, confidence starting to push out the fear in his heart. "Well, I might now, since I never mentioned the Void until you just did."
The expression on Frederick's face dropped, and Helsa froze in place. Ego strolled over to a recliner near the fire, grinning like a madman, and sat down comfortably before speaking to the man of the house again.
"So… should we start our conversation from the top, then?"