Authors note:
Guess I just couldn't stay away huh ;)
If you haven't read Helltaker: A Brand New Day, please ensure you have before reading this story! (This is a prequel after all!).
[I've been feeling very confused about whether I wanted to continue working on this story, whether I should release it or not. I have now decided to do so]
Chapter I: Banished
T̸h̴e̶ ̵Q̴u̶e̶e̷n̵ ̷i̸s̵ ̶t̸h̵e̷ ̶m̸o̸s̶t̶ ̵p̴o̸w̴e̴r̵f̴u̴l̵ ̷p̷i̵e̷c̵e̷ ̶i̵n̵ ̴t̸h̶e̸ ̸g̷a̵m̵e̶ ̷o̴f̴ ̶C̴h̵e̴s̷s̸,̸ ̵t̸h̴e̷ ̷Q̶u̶e̸e̷n̷ ̶i̸s̶ ̵s̸t̸r̷o̶n̵g̶e̶s̴t̷ ̸w̸h̸e̶n̶ ̶t̷h̶e̴ ̶b̸o̵a̵r̷d̵ ̷i̶s̸ ̴o̵p̸e̶n̷,̷ ̸w̶h̴e̴n̸ ̴t̴h̸e̶ ̶e̸n̷e̴m̵y̷ ̸i̷s̵ ̴p̶o̶o̵r̷l̶y̵ ̷d̴e̴f̸e̴n̷d̷e̴d̸.̴
̷
̴H̶o̵w̸e̴v̴e̵r̴,̸ ̵c̸o̴m̷p̸a̷r̶e̷d̸ ̵t̸o̷ ̷o̸t̶h̵e̴r̵ ̵l̶o̴n̴g̵-̶r̷a̶n̷g̸e̶d̴ ̴p̸i̸e̵c̸e̴s̴,̸ ̷t̷h̷e̸ ̶Q̷u̷e̴e̵n̶ ̸i̵s̵ ̷l̶e̷s̸s̴ ̷r̷e̷s̶t̷r̷i̷c̷t̷e̴d̸ ̷a̶n̴d̸ ̸s̶t̷r̴o̸n̴g̴e̴r̵ ̴i̵n̶ ̶c̶l̷o̶s̵e̸d̸ ̸p̸o̷s̶i̴t̴i̷o̴n̵s̸.̵
̷
̶W̵h̷e̷n̵ ̸t̸w̶o̶ ̷Q̴u̷e̶e̴n̵s̵ ̸a̷r̷e̵ ̸p̷i̶t̴t̶e̶d̷ ̴a̵g̵a̶i̵n̸s̸t̶ ̵o̸n̸e̵ ̷a̵n̵o̵t̸h̵e̸r̴ ̵i̷n̶ ̵a̵n̴ ̸e̸n̸d̸g̸a̴m̴e̵,̴ ̸t̶h̶e̵ ̷g̸a̶m̸e̴ w̴i̴l̷l̴ ̶o̵f̵t̶e̶n̴ ̴e̵n̶d̵ i̴n̵ ̴a̷ d̷r̷a̶w̷.̴.̸.̸
̶B̷u̷t̵.̵.̷.̴t̷h̶e̷ ̵Q̵u̵e̷e̷n̸ ̸t̸h̵a̵t̵ ̸m̶o̷v̷e̷s̵ ̷f̷i̷r̵s̷t̴ ̸i̷s̴ ̴a̸l̵m̷o̸s̴t̷ ̶a̸l̸w̷a̸y̴s̵ g̸u̶a̷r̸a̷n̷t̶e̷e̸d̴ ̴t̵o̴ ̶w̴i̶n̴.̶.̶.̸
[Date: October 21st 2024]
"So what was it like then? I imagine she didn't just throw you out and slam the door in your face?".
"Well...HE technically did...told us never to return, sent us on our way. I could tell he regretted it though, besides I wasn't going to let her go on her own".
"Hey wait a moment! That doesn't do it justice, you weren't there B. He practically threatened me to leave it all behind, our families, our way of life...all because we didn't agree with his belief's and teachings, he saw me as a threat!".
"Did someone call for me?".
"Fuck off! We're just about to start the story!".
"Oh, story time? Hey GUYS! The two old ladies want to read us a story!".
"Justice, you're insufferable. I only wanted to be told a quick story".
"Nahh dude, why not make an evening out of it? JUDGEMENT! Can you get me a beer too- ah fuck it, just bring the whole crate!".
"Alright then...fine, fancy a whiskey B?".
"If you wouldn't mind my dear".
"Why are you doing this in here? Why are we doing this at all? Can't I just game while you idiots go down memory lane, I'd rather not listen to this story again for the millionth time".
"Do you want your vodka or not? I'll happily neck the last bottle right now".
"...".
"Then sit down and shut up, Zdrada, what would you like to drink?".
"Ha! Like you could neck a bottle of that shit ya pussy. Ehm- Just fix me a good old fashioned screwdriver, use some of that cheap shit you bought, I kinda like it, leave the good stuff for Malinka or else she will send you to the hospital again".
"Guess I'll go make another coffee then, I think I'll try some of those premium beans you brought Taker".
"For the love of- why are we making such a hassle out of this, me and B we're simply going to tell him briefly how this all started- I feel we're gonna be here all night if we do this!".
"Whats so wrong about that Ms Lucifer?".
"I'd rather not spend my night dredging up the past Azazel. Too many painful memories...".
"Oh no, no! I want you to dredge, I'm actually curious. You can stop if it gets too bad...but I'm sure the Queens of Hell won't turn up a challenge like this. Also lik- oh here Zdrada-".
"Cheers cunt".
"Watch it- Like did you tempt Adam and Eve? Were either of you the Serpent telling them to eat the apple? Hey B, here you go".
"Thank you dear".
"No! That was simply propaganda by Jehovah to justify her expulsion of me and Beelzebub, you mortals took it literally too!".
"Bit of an understatement, not like it's included in one of our biggest and longest recorded religions".
"What are we doing? Justice said to bring beer but this feels too serious to get drunk over".
"I'm here too! Y-you called for me?".
"Yeah Modeus, Judgement...Lucy and Beel here are gonna tell us how you were all born. Except you Az".
"Oh my fu- Don't say it like that!".
"I already know how I was born!".
"That story is for another time, everyone got everything they want? Anyone want anything else while I'm still standing?".
"Bag of Chee-".
"You have already eaten both bags, I ain't getting anymore till we go shopping again".
"Oh yeahh...forgot...".
"Get me a piece of that fine ass".
"Fuck off Justice, don't finger gun me. Alright I'm sitting down now, if you want anything...get it yourself. Cerberus! Stop fighting and come listen to your master reminisce".
"Beel, you can start us off, I'll fill in any inconsistencies. I'm gonna get some wine in me in order to be able to dig this deep".
"Can we have something to eat? We are starving!".
"You've literally just had dinner...".
"Beelzebub's gonna just talk about herself I bet it will start like...'I..The Greatest of Angels in Heaven, The Archangel of Superiority'. Something like that?".
"Hey! High Prosecutor watch your tongue".
"OR WHAT BEEL?!".
"I'm bored already...when do I come along again?".
"Shut up Justice! Shut up Judgement! Alright, can we please go? I'm dying of anticipation to hear how it started. Did you try rival the power of God?"
"No! Shut up everyone and listen!".
[Date: U̷n̸k̸n̶o̸w̴n̸. Believed to be nearly ten billion years since the creation of the known universe]
It had been a tense last few weeks, it seemed that everyone was on her back. No one even wanted to speak to her after what she had said yesterday. Lucifer, The Rebellious Angel now walked alone towards the next seminar. The misunderstood and misguided woman walked above the clouds, head down, wandering through the what would in the future become the APD; The Angel's Personal Domain. However, in the early days of Heaven there was simply one domain.
It would still be a couple of billion years before even single celled organisms would be created. Another few billion ontop of this before early humans began to evolve. Hell even planet Earth had yet to be created.
For now, Angels simply had to wait and learn what their roles would be...
The angels lived in this domain, they learned in it, they rested in it...some would even die in it. These angels were the first generation that would guide the human race from the clouds, Jehovah acted merely as a parent when the angels were younger, but now he had become a strict teacher. Lucifer was one of the first generations of angels who would go on to become Archangels and even Seraphims...however...many would be lost in the conflicts to come...defending their realm. At the moment, there was exactly one thousands Angels in this host, all of them needing to study hard in order to graduate and 'get their wings' so to speak, to prove they were worthy.
Many of the different angels lived in 'dorms' with each other, in groups of ten or so, these groups being what they considered 'family', these families of angels were formed mostly because they had grown up with one another. Before Heaven and Hell became militaristic powerhouses of productivity, these dorms were much more comfortable, less strict and more welcoming compared to the barrack style bunkbeds that the modern angels were subject to. Routine and discipline was now life...there was no room for error.
However in the past, Lucifer was now learning the hard way what the consequences of disobeying orders were...when she disagreed...she would let you know. Despite being a young and rebellious angel, she still had to keep up attendance in order to pass this semester. Ontop of the stresses of exams, assignments, lecturers, and seminars, now she had to deal with the other angels constantly talking about her behind her back. But he encouraged this kind of behaviour...he encouraged different thinking!
Lucifer was wearing an entirely different outfit from what we have come to known of the devil; white was the main colour scheme of this grandiose outfit. As you would expect the golden halo orbited her Black and dark Navy Blue hair, the woman's hairstyle still being a long fringe reaching down to just below her eyebrows, two bangs, one on either side of her face. The devil's facial features remained unchanged, but were more kinder, younger, the signature mole was under her left eye, her white face as pale as always, however her eyes were light blue instead of those red crimson ones. In her dark hair, a single ribbon, a white star with a golden rim on the left side of her head.
The woman's outfit consisted of a grand white trench coat, the back of it stemming down to below her thighs, almost to her shins, the white silky soft material flowed behind her elegantly. The coat was long-sleeved, reaching up to her wrists to meet a pair of silky golden gloves. On the Epaulettes of the outfit there was raised material making her shoulders seem larger than they originally were, another golden trim on the outside of the white material.
Underneath this coat, Lucifer was wearing a tight white waistcoat, underneath this was a pristine white shirt, attached to her neck was a light blue tie, being the same colour as her eyes. The tip of the matching tie disappeared under her waistcoat. There was a large white belt going across her waist, with two smaller belts going across her lower abdomen in varying directions. On her chest, there was a thick golden, metal spade, like on a deck of cards, it was upside-down with a two-dimensional crown ontop of it. The emblem had a tiny light blue star at the tip of the spade before it met the crown. Alongside this, Lucifer's tight outfit came with skinny white suit pants, these stemming down to her ankle high white boots.
Currently Heaven was more a place of learning than a militaristic operation, Lucifer was simply one of the many young angel students who wished to learn, likened almost to university students. Sadly the yet to be devil was not looking as beautiful as she would on a normal day, strands of blueish and black hair were jutting off in random directions, the woman not having enough time to perfect her appearance today. A fact her friends would soon find out.
"H-Hey L-Lucy!" a voice called to her from behind.
"O-Oh...hey Zadkiel...h-how are you?" the not yet devil asked her friend weakly, the not yet Archangel of Mercy had noticed the black bags under Lucy's eyes, she hadn't been sleeping at all...while humans did not experience hunger, thirst, tiredness and other mortal burdens in Heaven, angels did...eventually. Zadkiel was wearing a similar outfit, it would be a few million centuries before she would be in reach of wearing the attire of the Archangel of Mercy, so for now she was stuck wearing a standard white shirt with golden trim around the collar, there was also a golden waistcoat over the top of it, but no tie was present.
"I'm fine thank you-" the two of them were walking side by side now, heading to the Great Hall, a large amphitheatre for God and his angels to gather in-order to begin their learning, "-how are you feeling after yesterday?" the other angel being one of few who actually wanted to talk to the Rebellious Angel.
"Don't even start" Lucifer sighed, embarrassment flooding her mind, the memory of her shouting match with God on the main floor of the Great Hall, using- what she thought, solid logic to prove he needed to adjust his approach. The rest of the angels looking in fear, disgust and awe at their heated debate.
Not. Everyone. Could. Be. Saved.
Not. Everyone. Could. Be. Forgiven.
"Well- I think you were very brave, no one has ever talked back to him like that before! It is always good to hear the other side of the argument" Zadkiel supporting her friend, "I don't think I'd ever be able to do such a thing".
"That's cause you're a pussy Zee. Yeah- I guess you were kinda badass Lucy" another voice joined the two.
"You always like creeping up from behind don't you? Ya fucking temptress" Lucifer turned, smirking at another one of her old friends.
"I like to listen before speaking my mind" Jezebel teased her friend, joining the two on their walk to the Hall. Jezebel...not yet The Angel of Temptation, her purpose would be to tempt and then expose the sins of humanity, making them bask in their repentance. Jezebel...Not yet the Wife of Mantus...not yet the Mother of two children, one smokey, one sour. Currently Lucifer was walking in the middle of her two friends, Zadkiel on the left and Jezebel on her right.
The Angel of Temptation wore a silver and gold cloak, a silver body with golden patterns and trim down the sides. Hidden underneath this cloak was a white and short-sleeved gold coloured casual shirt, similar to the one that Azazel would wear on a normal day. Her arms and body were hidden under the cloak, Jezebel often wore the hood up when she wished to be alone. The angel was also wearing white skinny suit pants with a golden belt, the design being interlocked circles going around the angel's thin waist. Jezebel preferred to wear platforms rather than knee high boots, the black shoes giving her height a little increase. In her fair blonde hair, a golden hairclip, in the shape of a bird's feather, rested above her right ear.
Jezebel was one of Lucifer's first friends, the two of them being in their first classes together when they were young.
"Fuck off Jez" Lucifer grinned, it seemed that her protest the other day had really made an impact on the other angels, some good and some bad.
"Never seen the big man become so flustered before" Jezebel brushed off the devil's insult, laughing at the memory of yesterday.
"Do you think it will have any repercussions?" Zadkiel asked from Lucifer's left, curiosity in her blood.
"Most certainly. Already has been, you two are the only ones other than Beel to have spoken to me today" Lucifer wishing she had a simply kept her mouth shut, there was bound to be more consequences as the day progressed. "Not even the folks in 66 would talk to me...a-and that hurt most, not even fucking Selaphiel", Lucy gulping down a wave of emotions, they were her family...they were supposed to be there for her no matter what...
"I'm sorry to hear that, Euri and Azrael both have expressed a hatred towards your rant yesterday. I also caught Michael chatting to Jesus about a certain 'rebellious angel', it seems your on everyone's shit list now Lucy" Jezebel not doing well to comfort Lucifer's nerves.
"Thanks Jez" the devil speaking quietly, a plain, blank look on her face, the woman glared back at a group of angels to their right, they had been giving her an equally nasty stare as the groups of three passed each other. "I did have quite the unpleasant encounter with Isaac when I left my dorm" she then confessed, attracting the attention and worry of her friends.
"What did that fucktard say? He is supposed to be your family for fuck sake!" Jezebel's tone dripping with venom.
"Let me guess. Another empty threat, that bully is all talk and no action" Zadkiel being the only one to settle the devil's nerves.
"It was mostly name-calling, nothing I haven't heard of before. And no...I didn't kick him...down there again" Lucifer giving her friends an evil smirk, the two of them laughing softly in reply,"I mean at first it was friendly between us...but now- not so much, I don't think it will ever be friendly again".
"Thought he would of left you alone after that one though...but I guess some people never learn" Zadkiel manifested her own notepad, flipping to the front cover and reading a few lines of writing off of the page, demanifesting it after.
"Some people never learn" Lucifer simply repeated, sighing afterwards.
The three now arrived at the giant silver doors to the Great Hall, ancient unknown inscriptions were etched into the very metal of the doors, no one knowing what language they were or what they said. However, the three women never wanted to go through the front door, they always avoided making awkward eye contact with the big man himself. Instead the group of friends ventured upstairs to the stands that gave them a raised view of the floor, it being filled with various debates, questions, lectures, demonstrations, you name it...everything had been done on this open floor over the years...to some degree.
"Alright, let's see what the damage is-" Lucifer sighed, leading the way towards the side entrance to the stands as they reached the top of the stairs. The Hall could seat thousands of angels, but at the moment only one thousand filled the room, the other women and men were all slowly filtering in through the five different entrances, coming to sit either in the stands or in the front seats as close to the man as possible amphitheatre had an open roof and gave the congregation a magnificent view of the cosmos, even though not all of it had been created...yet.
Hopefully no one would notice her entering the-
"Lucifer..." an angry voice made her jump, it was joined by an even more angrier angel teleporting and appearing in front of the door, blocking the three from entering, Lucifer's outstretched hand reaching for the door was now recalled.
"Adriel..." Lucifer glared at the slightly smaller woman, crossing her arms. "What is it now? Whatever Isaac said to you it is not true- I don't want to catch you two fucking in our dor-" the Rebellious was Angel was stopped dead in her tracks.
"Silence!" the not yet Archangel of Discipline also had her arms crossed, it was like a passive aggressive defence mechanism. Adriel tried her best to help enact the will of the Lord wherever she could...as well as discipline the younger angels when she saw fit... Adriel started her career from a young age, mostly wishing to rise through the ranks...and succeeding. The woman now took a deep breathe before exhaling out her nose, summoning her courage. "I'm sorry L-Lucy...but I have been ordered to forbid you from entering the Hall and interfering with seminars until further notice" the slightly older angel not moving at all.
Adriel would always dress as smart as possible, liking to keep up appearances. Currently she was in a three piece suit, the impressive outfit showing off different colours of white, gold, silver, grey and navy blue. The woman had made the suit herself, with his permission of course, tailoring it to her own dimensions and taste. The creme white jacket, the golden tie, the navy blue waistcoat, the skinny white suit pants, those silver brogue shoes, the navy blue handkerchief on her lapel, silver cloud cuff-links. Adriel looked quite masculine back then...she still does to be quite honest. Her short black hair was not hidden by a Commander's Cap then, it was plain and simple with a slight fringe pushing the black hair backwards and to the left, the woman not caring for accessories or decorations.
Lucifer often targeted her fashion or love-life with Isaac when Adriel was unfair, a bad mistake. "W-What? That's insane!" the devil was shocked, not knowing whether to scream or cry. How dare he deny her access to learning! How dare he restrict her freedom of speech!
"Go on in girls, you'll be late otherwise" Adriel not caring about Lucifer's distress, allowing Zadkiel and Jezebel to enter the hall, holding the door open for them.
"S-sorry Lucy" Zadkiel not wishing to disobey the disciplined Adriel, the angel was soon followed by her friend.
"Don't worry. I'll tell him how stupid this decision is" Jezebel giving a comforting smile to Lucifer, placing a hand on her shoulder before entering the Hall herself.
"What the fuck! Did he at least give a reason why?!" the devil glaring at Adriel.
"What do you think? You think he is willing to accept that kind of back-chat from his students?" the angel glaring at Lucifer.
"Fuck..." the devil watching as Adriel turned around and entered, the woman looking down at the floor, lost in the confusion her mind was trying to process. However, since the devil had been so close to the door, she was still in reach of Adriel.
"Chin up buttercup" the disciplined angel teased, flicking Lucifer's halo before retreating into the Hall, closing the door quickly behind her. The loud ringing above the angel's head filling the silence of the realm.
"Fuck you!" the devil shouting just as the door closed on her, but unfortunately no one heard her profanity. In a fit of anger she pounded on the door with her fist, screaming abuse and slandering both Adriel and Jehovah. Eventually she slammed her foot into the door as if to kick it open, immediately regretting doing so as her foot would now be injured for a time. "Ow! Fuck. YOU!". What was she to do now?!
"Fuckkk Lucy- I wish you had pent up anger like this everyday" the devil's first lover teased.
"Uhhh shut up. I still can't believe they barred me from learning- what else am I supposed to do with myself?" Lucifer asked, pulling the soft white duvet up to cover her nude body. The beds of Heaven's dorms may be small, but boy were they comfortable. Currently the two angels were post-coitous and the devil was lying in Beelzebub's bed, since the Rebellious Angel had nothing to do she decided to pay her secret lover a visit, she needed to release some... 'stress'. Now the two were cuddling, both angels nude, Beelzebub clinging to her partner's warwm body, her head resting on against Lucifer's collar.
They...like many angels in love, believed that their relationship was kept a secret, but truly the angel families had their suspicions and besides...you truly couldn't keep anything a secret from God. Relationships between angels were forbidden, apparently they interfered in an angel's work and core purpose; to watch-over humanity. Back in the day, the grandiose demon was simply a hard working pupil, but the woman was also manipulative, convincing angels in to doing her bidding. She was always like that...started from a young age.
Beelzebub had never wanted to change from her traditional attire, it deviating only slightly throughout the centuries. Currently her angelic uniform was that of a white blazer with a long black, a white waist coat with a light blue shirt on underneath, a golden pocket-watch on a chain from her waist coat pocket to the golden buttons in the centre. Slim white jeans lead down to knee high golden boots, being laced up to the shins. On her ears the woman had golden cross earrings dangling on small chains. However, at the moment both demons had no clothes or accessories on their person, both of them enjoying the other's company, the sweat dripping off of them.
"Well...you could always...apologise?" Beelzebub, The Manipulative Angel instantly regretting saying these words.
"Fuck off am I apologising to him!" Lucifer almost laughed at this comment. "He should be apologising to me!" the woman now turning her head to look directly at the top of her partner's head, placing her chin ontop of it after.
"I'm just saying Lucy, the man decides whether you are kept back with this new batch of angels he is making. You don't wanna be learning alongside the new hosts" Beelzebub making a good point.
"I guess you've got a point...but besides, what's he going to do? Kick me out of Heaven?" the Rebellious Angel smirking to herself, she was safe.
"Don't or else it will happen and you'll doom us both" the Manipulative Angel kissed her partner's neck, tempted to leave a mark, sucking more than kissing at parts.
"Don't you fucking dare leave a mark" the devil's hands wandering along her partner's sweaty body, she adjusted her position to get more comfortable, lying on her side to face her lover. The devil's hand left hand tracing the curve of Beelzebub's right hip. "Why didn't you go to the Hall today?" Beelzebub had seemingly been avoiding this question.
"Well...I didn't feel like it. Plus I wanted to independently study today" the not yet Great Fly scoffing, glanced over the devil's head, looking around her empty dorm room. "So much for that...", her half-opened eyes locked with Lucifer's again.
"Beel...you can't just not attend. We all have to be there" the early devil was concerned about rules and following orders even despite her previous outbursts. Lucifer winced slightly when adjusting her foot to rest ontop of her partner's ankle.
"What's wrong?" Beelzebub noticing her pained expression.
"Kicked the door, suffice to say the door kicked back" the devil chuckling almost. "You should be at the Hall Beel, he will notice that we are both away!" Lucifer was getting slightly panicked.
"Well why aren't you there? the Fly teased back, however Lucifer wasn't in the mood to be teased.
"Because he fucking kicked me out!", Beelzebub was not helping subdue Lucifer's worries. "Sometimes you're amazing..." the devil decided she had had enough of lying on her side for fifteen seconds, removing herself from her lover's embrace, "But sometimes you're just plain fucking annoying B" she turned her back on The Great Fly, swiveling her legs out of the other's single bed.
"A fair point" Beelzebub now rested the back of her head against the pillow, looking up at the bottom of the bed that was above her own, the golden metal patterns that were woven into the bed-frame.
"What's going to happen to us B? We can't keep doing this...we're going to get caught at somepoint, more now than ever" Lucifer's mind was drowning in panic, this was only going to get worse.
"What do you want to happen? the Fly countering devil's question with one of her own.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" the CEO turning back and glaring at her partner, Beelzebub's face remained facing up, staring at the bottom of the bed above them. In truth, their relationship had been a long one, starting as a crush in the early days of their classes as young angels, it had developed until Lucifer couldn't take it anymore, Beelzebub sure did like to tease...not giving her the satisfaction. Eventually, the two would sneak out of their dorms together, whether it be to simply go for a midnight stroll in this Kingdom of perpetual light, to sit at the edge of the realm, or laying in the clouds gazing at the stars. Lucifer loved those nights...
However, in these final years before they were to graduate, their relationship had come under immense strain, to the two of them being so busy that they couldn't afford the luxury of seeing one another. The other angels in their families had begun to grow suspicious, always entering the dorm as either Beelzebub or Lucifer were leaving it. Many angels also shared a scandalous relationship similar to their's, however, now due to Lucifer's sudden outburst she hadn't been out of the public eye since, attracting an almost infamous-like status.
"If you want this to work...you'll have to put your fear aside. Your fear of the consequences, your fear of whether you think you're good enough" the other angel now moving off to where Lucifer was sat, sitting next to her, dangling her legs over the side too. The devil glanced down at her bare feet as they stood on flat cloud floor.
Lucifer took a while to respond, a tense silence filling 32's dorm. "I want you to be happy. I l-love you...and I want what's best for you. And if that means ending what we have n-now-" the devil hesitating again. "Then that's a sacrifice I will make. I know you- we're both in a strange place right now...I just want what's best for you".
"What's best for me is sat right here..." Beelzebub not hesitating, placing a hand on her partner's shoulder.
"I-I'm not-" again the timid devil hesitated, turning away from Beel, "We only see each other s-sexually, I-I'm not what you need right now in your life".
"Those nights under the stars weren't what I needed in my life? Those whispers in the dark when we snuck out past the gate? Did I not need them either?" Beelzebub was now moving her face closer and closer to the devil's, Lucifer becoming an increasingly brighter shade of red. "The times where you simply held me...stroking my hair, staring at my stupid face...telling me that is was going to be okay", Beelzebub began playing with Lucifer's blue hair, wrapping a bang around her index finger and twirling it. While Lucifer's partner continued her reminiscing her light blue eyes scanned up and down her partner's bare body, her eye lids half closed, an enthralled look on her face.
"The time we spent together...the looks you'd give me from across the room, how you'd turn a way and pretend you weren't looking at me...", Beelzebub's fingers were now tracing Lucifer's collarbone, moving down her bare chest.
Gulp.
"The countless nights we spent together...the promises we made-".
GULP!
"You remember them too...right? Remember when you first told me you loved me, we were under the stars and you simply to leaned over and whispered it to me...", Beelzebub hand went down Lucifer torso and onto her thigh, sending an electrifying sensation through the devil. Lucifer was at her breaking point.
"You need to find someone else who ca-" the devil finally spoke, but Beel's hand came up from her thigh and extended a finger, pressing against her lips, the woman silencing her partner.
"I just poured my heart out to you...That's enough doubt for one day. I'm not leaving you. Period" a genuine, warm smile spread across Beelzebub's kind, young, freckly face.
"I lov-", the two were about to kiss again...but sadly their last tender moment in Heaven was cut short, Lucifer was being summoned somewhere, golden holy light had begun to consume her body, giving her enough warning to change into some clothes. "What the-" the devil said as Holy Energy began consuming her, the woman looking at her own body, lines of golden light were spinning repeatedly around her fingers, then her hands and then arms.
At a click of her fingers she had changed into her usual outfit, this type of teleportation usually took thirty seconds to work properly. "B-B?!" the devil looked terrified at her partner, the two of them were both panicking.
"I-I'll come find you!" Beelzebub was already out of bed and into her holy attire, heading out of the dorm at a pace, leaving her partner to wonder where she was being summoned. The devil simply looked at her hands as her own skin became a blinding white and gold, preventing her from seeing anything else. It all happened so fast...everything torn was away from her.
"Lucifer..." his voice called to her. The demon had seamlessly appeared in The Great Hall...on the centre stage, stood next to the big man himself. A terrified Lucy glanced around as hundreds upon hundreds of angels looked down on her as she stood on the floor with Jehovah.
"W-Why am I here?" she said, no longer looking at her hands and glaring in terrified wonderment at her fellows colleagues, all of them watching silently as judgement was about to be passed on her.
"You have been summoned-" the man sighing, Lucifer could tell he didn't want to do this. "You have been summoned for you have defiled the practices and teachings I have instructed you to follow".
"W-What?!" the devil was now more than terrified.
"I'm sorry my child, I cannot allow this type of behavior to go unpunished. You have disregarded that which we hold dear; fornication, disobedience, corruption of others...Y-You are unfit to become an angel...you put all of our work, all that we sacrifice at risk!". A choir of murmurings and whispers were heard amoungst the Hall, some in agreement, some disagreeing with Jehovah's decision.
"Jehovah p-please! I beg of you to reconsider! I have been nothing but faithful! Lucifer turning instantly to despair, taking a few steps towards the man, the stars were witness to her begging.
"You are a danger- not only to the other angels but to the very integrity of Heaven! I need you to understand child that this is not easy on me either" the Deity felt awful, but he had no other choice.
Lucifer now looked at her creator dead int the eye, her despair was slowly bubbling into anger. The Creator of literally everything took the form of what the being wished to see, the Helltaker had seen Jehovah in her female form, Lucifer saw the Deity as a man. In truth, the higher being had no gender, being able to take on an unlimited number of appearances. Jehovah could consciously change appearance, case in point with her meeting with the Helltaker, even transforming into a parent from a human's memory.
Currently the man looked as you would except of the Christian 'God'; he had a messy head of fair blonde-brown hair that hid his ears, it ran down to the back of his neck, he had a smooth beard that covered his face, it falling down to his adam's apple. He had a fair skin complexion, as pale as Lucifer was...without the makeup. He wore a weathered toga, it still remained a beautiful shade of white but this one had seen it all, the creation of everything. The man was slightly taller than Lucifer, almost seven foot in height, his kind face had no distinguishing features other than a mole under the left side of his lip.
The Deity was also bare footed, never expressing any interest for fashion, nor preference to outfit, it was extremely rare that you would see the entity in anything other than this toga in the early days of Heaven's operation. It was only after the 'Birth of Christ', around 4 BC, that Heaven became a militaristic powerhouse, uniforms included had to change. Jehovah would become the Commander the Helltaker had come to see, both Heaven and Hell having to ramp up production as the human population expanded.
However, in this moment, Lucifer saw him only as her enemy.
"You are banishing me for speaking my mind! YOU ENCOURAGED US TO THINK FOR OURSELVES! she now roared in defiance against her creator, the fact that she was being punished by following what he had instructed them to do made her blood boil. The sound of banging on the front door could be heard in the silence between the words exchanged, Beelzebub was trying desperately to enter. It eventually stopped after sometime and Lucifer thought she had given up trying.
"I am banishing you for constantly breaking the rules I have put in place to ensure your success! Yesterday was evidence enough for me that you are already far too gone! Watch your tone with me Lucifer", the man retaliated, the woman noticed he was gradually opening and closing his right fist...a sign of his annoyance.
So she pushed a little further...she had nothing else to lose.
"Our work is pointless! You are preparing us to protect these creatures you call 'humans' but you have not even made them nor the planet they will live on! We do not truly know what our life's work will amount to!", the devil now addressing the entire crowd of angels while speaking to Jehovah, shouting so loudly that her voice reached the four corners of the Great Hall.
"Lucifer-" the Deity said through gritted teeth, "-we have spoken about this. Your job will be to guide humanity once they have evolved to carry the mantle of responsibility, when their burden of sin becomes too great, they turn to you to save themselves from damnation. You will be there salvation".
"Can everyone truly be saved?! Can even the most twisted, evil, corrupted human be forgiven?" Lucifer taking a few steps closer to her creator, returning to her original point from yesterday's conflict. Jehovah did not back down. "You can't expect us to follow these rules blindly...not like this...not out of fear" the woman growled.
"Lucifer- this argument doesn't change what has been done. I am no longer asking for you to be banished-" Jehovah was ignoring this question, one which he refused to answer. However, the big man simply clapped his hands after this sentence and in a flash of blinding light the entire room was consumed. Lucifer instinctively held up her two open hands to protect her eyes.
"Wher-" Lucifer blinked rapidly, removing her golden gloved hands from in front of her face, the objects had done little to block the light from reaching her eyes. The sight now returned to her eyes slowly, the darkness the light had induced was pushed back.
"I'm sorry...my child" the man's voice came again, but softer this time, the devil turning around to look at Jehovah. The two of them were alone at the golden gates, the entrance to Heaven was currently closed. Lucifer began to realise she had no choice in the matter...she was helpless.
"Jehovah- you are going against the very thing you taught us. Am I not worthy of forgiveness?! Do I-" but the devil was interrupted.
"My child- you won't ever understand why I have to do this, this is entirely my fault...I have set things in motion that cannot be undone" the man looked with sadness down to the layer of clouds they were stood upon.
"What? What are you talking about?" Lucifer took another step closer, hoping to tempt out the truth from within her creator. "Do you truly expect me to just leave all this behind? My entire way of living, my fucking family and friends! You can't do this!" her voice was breaking now, tears were streaming down her face. "DO YOU?!" she screamed, the devil losing control of her emotions.
"Please forgive me-" the man now raised his hands above his head, manipulating the invisible mechanisms that controlled the gates of Heaven. As the large metal doors silently swung open, a slight gust of wind entered through them, chilling Lucifer's core, her hair standing on end. A long and uncomfortable silence followed between the two. Jehovah awaited for her reply before committing himself to this path, after almost five minutes of absolute silence, filled only with the sounds of Lucifer crying.
"Forgive you? No...you have a choice here and you're choosing to do this...I will never forgive you" these were the devil's last words to the man before she was cast out of Heaven, the woman had composed herself , no longer crying, and now she said these words with ever last bit of anger, resentment, hate and venom she could summon.
"I'm sorry" the man whispered before his voice changed into a booming deafening roar, "LET IT BE KNOWN TO ALL, THAT FROM THIS DAY FORTH- LUCIFER- THE DEVIL IS HEREBY BANISHED!". The clouds beneath their feet darkened almost immediately, lightning and thunder being produced almost instantly. When the devil's terrified eyes moved from the floor back to Jehovah, she noticed that the creator's eyes were a blinding white. "YOU ARE A DEVIL, THE SOURCE OF ALL EVIL AND CORRUPTION WITHIN THIS WORLD. YOU. ARE. BANISHED!".
A terrified Lucifer watched as a storm of clouds and wind approached, blowing past Jehovah and picking her up, carrying her at an unnatural speed out of and far beyond the gates of Heaven. Her screams were muffled due to the intense howls and blowing of the storm's eye, carrying her to farthest reaches of this realm. In under a few minutes she was at the edge of what she thought was an infinite layer of clouds...and the storm simply let go...throwing her off the side.
"NEVER RETURN..." his voice projected from within the storm.
"Wha- WAIT!" the woman reached up, hoping to grab onto the presence of clouds as if that would save her, but she was already falling. She began her descent falling backwards, laying on her back and falling wildly, struggling to stay in on position, flipping, twirling, flailing, her limbs all struggling to steady herself. Pure panic filled every fiber of her being...
The fall...
The fall that would forever change Lucifer, the betrayal, the hatred, the anger, the sadness...the absolute despair...she would have time to contemplate it all. The abandonment...The fall that would shape Lucifer the Rebellious Angel into Lucifer, The CEO of Hell. Over the billions of years that would follow, her mind would always come back to those few minutes she spent falling through reality...it had felt like she had been falling for years. The woman fell off of the clouds until the light slowly faded, the darkness becoming her only friend. Eventually she steadied her fall, simply laying on her back, embracing her fate and watching as time past her by.
But into the darkness she saw something quite bizarre; different worlds were being created, giant gas giants, rocky planets and even bigger stars were being formed right before her very eyes, time was passing her incredibly quickly. Seeing this celestial dance made her feel small and insignificant, she was a mere ant scurrying between the toes of giants. However, the stars soon faded, giving way to nothing but a black void, but eventually even the darkness finally changed, a red hue began to infiltrate it as she fell further, the blackness mixing with the red and forming one.
All throughout her fall she felt incredibly lonely, there was no one there to listen to her screams, her cries for help, her wailing, her silent cursing. The woman felt she had to speak out-loud or else the silence would consume her too, there was no wind, no sound that a skydiver would normally experience, simply a calm but speedy descent through the unknown. Finally, the devil saw something other than the colours of red or black, she saw what looked like mountains beneath her. The tips of gargantuan spikes of black rock were jutting out from the landscape she was fast approaching.
Looks like this was her stop...
The devil adjusted her position and began falling slower, stomach first, her arms level with her head. Lucifer was done falling, she wanted to be on solid ground again, however, the mountains had been deceivingly closer than she thought. The woman had thought that the darkness beneath her was apart of the void she had been falling through, but in fact it was a sea of black liquid, the edge of Hell...she was falling straight into it.
She struggled with all her might to position herself anywhere other than the body of water, but her efforts were ultimately in vain, only getting her slightly closer to the shore. She came crashing down close to the water's edge, plunging straight into the deep dark abyss, like a star had fallen out of the night sky.
No angel had ever been taught how to swim...Lucifer was no exception.
The devil hit the surface of the body of water with such force that she rendered unconscious for a few brief moments, landing feet first, her lifeless body began sinking further and further off of this shelf, this bottomless body of water was the gateway to the void beneath Hell...nothing else existed below her. Thankfully, whether it was due to some divine intervention or some stroke of blind luck, she had remained unharmed physically, she would have been killed on impact otherwise. The first thing she saw as she awoke was the precious greyish bubbles of oxygen escaping her mouth, the woman expelling any water she had unconsciously taken in before beginning her ascent.
It was a harrowing few minutes, the devil fighting with all her might to surface, thankfully kicking her legs furiously was doing most of the work, propelling her upwards while her arms flailed, useless. There was barely any light filtering down into the depths, her only way of telling which way was up was the surface of the motionless water that she had previously disturbed was still generating ripples and splashing furiously, that impact sending waves across the ocean.
As she approached the top, the devil's body could no longer fight her urges, gasping for oxygen, drawing in the black liquid and finding none. At the last moment she dug deep and closed her eyes forcing herself up. She would not die here...not here...
"GAAAUUUUUUUUUH- Fuc-c-ck" the woman coughed as she surfaced, first taking in a huge gulp of air before coughing out the remaining liquid that had flooded her lungs. The devil then repeated this pattern of breathing and coughing for several minutes while she managed to tread water...barely. "FUCK YOU!" she then screamed into the sky after recovering all of her oxygen. No response. The devil sighed and turned around in the water, looking for the land she had seen on her descent, turning a half rotation allowed her to see her destination. In front of her, past the great black ocean, a wide coastline of a flat sandy red beach lay stretched out as far as the eye could see. Beyond the beach, the hills rose up and eventually met the mountains, beyond them she could not see.
So since she was unable to do literally anything else, she began her struggle towards the shoreline. During this fight to stay afloat, Lucifer' fear of the unknown lurking in the water was born, the woman had never swam before and now she had been tossed into the deep end...literally. There could literally be any number of monstrous creation underneath her...just waiting to drag her down to the depths...
Panic now began to set in...
"C-Come on, Come- on!" she grunted to herself, fighting harder and harder towards the shoreline, spurred on by the adrenaline her body had produced during her descent and ascent to the surface. A strong or even regular swimmer would have reached the shore in less than five minutes as there was no tide, no rip currents, no waves...Just a still body of water, but due to how far Lucifer was out and her inexperience of swimming she took almost thirty minutes to reach the shore. At one point, things became so desperate that she slipped under the water again, the devil actually drowning, unable to continue due to fatigue, taking in several mouth-fulls of the vile liquid...but thankfully, the seabed was there to meet her. With one last push she sprung up from the sandy floor and splashed closer to the land, swimming until the surface beneath her rose so that she could stand and breathe at the same time.
But as she waded the last metres to land the last of her energy had been exhausted, her adrenaline reserves had run dry. The devil resorted to moving on her hands and knees, collapsing onto them, receiving a face full of the black water in the last few feet of this struggle. The devil crawled the last few metres to safety, not caring about anything else until she was finally on dry land and away from the damn ocean. Lucifer crawled out of the black sea, gripping the soft red sand and thanking her lucky stars for being on solid ground again, pulling herself up to rest far enough away from the water's edge.
When she was satisfied and her arms and legs could carry her no further, the fallen angel fell onto her stomach, curling into herself, the swim, the coldness of the water as well as the wet clothes had made her feel incredibly frozen. The stuffy, warm air was soothing against her face, so, in order to survive she slowly stripped off all of the wet clothes that clung to her body and pushed them...barely to one side, her naked body appreciating the warmth of this realm's air. The devil had tried to demanifest her clothes like usual, but since she had been banished the woman had lost all angelic powers, resorting to manually taking off the soggy outfit.
Lucifer's wet black and blue hair began drying, it being a soggy mess combined with the red sand that now clung to her fair and face. All of the left side of Lucifer's body was coating in the sand, it sticking to her wet body, but she had to warm up and she saw no other way to do this that didn't involve moving.
The devil lay on her side now, curled into the fetal position and shivering, but only for a brief time. Eventually, she would become acclimatised to the warm air of this realm, but in these first few hypothermia inducing moments she cursed into the silence. "W-Wh-What fresh Hell is this?!" the woman shivering on the sand, her pale body beginning to slowly warm. The numbness was slowly disappearing, being replaced by the warm embrace of Hell's sulfur fire filled air, "B-B-Beel" she whispered, "P-P-Please c-come find m-m-me".
With that this tiny, fragile, vulnerable and naked being passed out, succumbing to fatigue and lured by the drowsyness induced by the realm's climate. So started her journey...so started her path to domination, so started the vengeance she swore to take...the power she would come to wield.
The devil was born...
Angel Lucifer and her outfit design inspired by artwork done by u/D00T666
(Please see Chapter 50 of Helltaker: Brand New Day for ownership of all characters, new ones will be listed in the credits of this story).