THUNK
"These codexes contain all of our current information on Doom."
THUNK
"These codexes contain all information regarding the UAC and the mars complex."
THUNK
"These codexes contain information on the species of Doom that we've managed to capture, observe, and perform autopsies on. My partner has confirmed with me that this is but a fraction of the overall fauna. We've barely begun to see the worst Doom has to offer."
THUNK
"And finally, these codexes contain information regarding the events that preceded our discovery of your Hell. The tragedy that I mentioned previously. I'd advise saving these for last."
Huh, so this is what it felt like to receive homework rather than be the one to give it. Although Olivia never forced anything of this quantity and magnitude onto her students. She still felt regretful now that she faced a seemingly unconquerable amount herself. But her resolve did not waver; she was going to get through this as fast and diligently as possible so she could begin to be of use.
"Where should I read them?" Olivia asked, not wanting to be in either Doomguy's or Samuel's way.
"Here, in my office. I need to go and see how repairs throughout the complex are proceeding. Giving you all the privacy and quiet you need." Samuel answered.
"Oh. Well, thank you for letting me use your office, then." Olivia replied with an appreciative smile.
However, before Samuel could say more to her, Doomguy suddenly headed for the door. Olivia was set for now, and nothing required his field of expertise. So he planned to resume attending to the dead.
"Hold on," Samuel spoke once he noticed his associate's departure, making him stop. "Before you wander off somewhere, I need you to return to Hell." He said.
"You're sending him back? Why?" Olivia inquired. This was the one area she could assist with at the moment, so if she could do so, she wanted to.
"I'm curious to know how your Hell is reacting to the disruption of the Extermination. Do they somehow suspect us, specifically? Or do they have a general suspicion that gives us all the time we need? These are questions that need to be answered with haste." Samuel explained. "Furthermore, we've yet to see the realm's ruler for ourselves. If possible, I'd like you to try to get close and study them for a few hours." He added.
"Is that wise?" Olivia asked. "I do not doubt Doomguy's abilities, but he would be near or within the presence of lord Lucifer. There is a good chance he could be detected." She told them.
"Lucifer? He exists in your reality?" Samuel questioned, astounded by that.
"Mhm. Lucifer Magne. You'd think it'd be Morningstar, but it isn't, surprisingly." Olivia confirmed.
"Are there other religious figures? Be they from the same mythos as Lucifer or otherwise?" Samuel pressed, wanting to hear more about this.
"Only one. Gabriel. I don't know if he's the leader of the Exterminators or if he merely oversees them and the Extermination. However, if Gabriel is real, it's reasonable to assume that most or all of the significant people from certain religious texts are as well." Olivia responded.
"I concur. This demands much greater investigation. However, we still need to gain some intel..." Samuel trailed off before focusing on the Sinner in their company. "Olivia, is there any way we can safely learn more about Lucifer without the risk of alerting him?" He asked.
Oh...shit. This was her first chance to contribute. And it caught her completely off guard. Did Olivia know something that could help?
Her mind raced through every last bit of information she's learned about Hell since she was sent there that had ANYTHING to do with the devil. He barely left his home. His wife was a performer in addition to being the queen. And their daughter...
"YES! THERE IS!" Olivia excitedly shouted with a smile while pointing upward with her finger. Only to instantly feel embarrassment afterward. "Sorry for the outburst..." She apologized.
"It's alright. Please, continue." Samuel replied, not bothered by her enthusiasm.
"You won't be able to get close to Lucifer, at least not yet. But you COULD get near his daughter. Her name is Charlie, and she runs the Happy Hotel." Olivia informed.
Upon hearing this, Samuel suddenly went silent. Of all the reactions Olivia expected, that wasn't one of them.
"Is...something wrong?" Olivia inquired.
"The Happy Hotel. You're sure that's the name?" Samuel asked with a noticeable intrigue.
"One hundred percent. Even without a place to live, advertisements for it frequently played across all media and devices. Commercials on TVs that I saw through store windows. Flyers or posters plastered throughout Pentagram City. With the most prominent and annoying of them all being the radio ads. This is undoubtedly due to the Radio Demon, with whom Charlie has a partnership." Olivia answered.
"Radio Demon?" Samuel questioned. The more she shared, the more curious he became.
"Alastor, I think, is his name. He approached her with an offer to become her business partner. At least, that's what I've heard. It happened before I died by about a few months. So, I don't know the details. I can tell you, though, that no one fucks with the Radio Demon. People talk about him like the boogeyman of Hell. A human who, on arrival, was abnormally powerful. So much so that he single-handedly slaughtered a LOT of Overlords. Powerful Sinners, to be clear. And he didn't do it to try and make a name for himself, like become the new big-bad Sinner in town. He did it just because. A true sadist." Olivia explained.
Samuel was quiet once more. Questions, theories, and hypotheses formed faster than his enhanced brain could keep up with. There was so much he wanted to ask Olivia. If he could, he would've continued this conversation for hours.
But he needed to remain focused. Only dwell on the things relevant to their current goal: To learn more about Lucifer.
"Thank you, Olivia," Samuel spoke after a few minutes. "What you've told us is beyond useful. If you wouldn't mind, before getting started on the codexes, I'd like you to speak with me more about everything you know. No matter how small or trivial, it is all welcomed." He requested, making her smile a second time.
"Of course. I'd be more than happy to." Olivia agreed, proud and happy to have helped.
"I don't think I need to tell you what to do from here," Samuel said, speaking to Doomguy. "My only advice is that you don't open a portal in Angel's room. Someone else might be in there, such as the hotel's staff. We have the coordinates for the location, so choose somewhere close by." He instructed, receiving a nod in response.
"...Hold on..." Olivia muttered as she quickly pieced two and two together. "You said, Angel...do...the two of you...know Angel Dust?" She inquired.
"Yes. We do," Samuel confirmed, causing her eyes to shoot wide open.
"WHAT?! HOW?! WHEN?! WHY?!" Olivia asked in utter disbelief.
"Similarly to how my partner intervened to save your life, he did the same with Angel. Only it wasn't Exterminators, simply a random gang of thugs. And, as we did with you, he was brought back here and treated for his injuries." Samuel answered. "I'm amazed you know about him." He confessed.
"Well, yeah. Angel Dust is one of the most famous pornstars in ALL of Hell!" Olivia exclaimed.
"Oh. And here we assumed he was but a prostitute. We had no idea he was a celebrity." Samuel said.
"I mean, he does that too. Porn. Prostitution. Stripping. If it's lewd, chances are he's a part of it. But that's also why Angel Dust is the perfect poster boy for the Happy Hotel. If one of the sluttiest demons in Hell is trying to redeem himself, then why shouldn't you?" Olivia replied.
"Wait, redeem himself? What do you mean by that?" Samuel inquired, finding that word choice strange.
"Hoo, boy. How do I explain this?..." Olivia asked herself, needing to find the right words. "The Happy Hotel, while an actual hotel, is also a rehabilitation center. The only one Hell has, to my knowledge. Because who else would be crazy or stupid enough to try and start one? It's the passion project of Charlie since she openly hates and is disgusted by the Extermination. So, to keep Hell's population from getting slaughtered yearly, she wants to help them find redemption. I don't need to tell you how successful THAT has gone for her." Olivia explained.
"And how does Lucifer feel about this? Does he support the rehabilitation of souls?" Samuel asked.
"If he did, do you think his daughter would've formed a business relationship with a Sinner?" Olivia answered with a question.
Fascinating. The only word Samuel could think of to describe everything he's heard. And yet, amidst his pondering, another inquiry formed regarding the Happy Hotel. And it concerned the woman sitting on the other side of his desk.
"Olivia, is the hotel open to everyone? Or is there a fee of some kind?" Samuel inquired.
"No. Anyone could walk in and get a room from how it's been advertised. Ignoring that Charlie's the princess of Hell itself, meaning she's not strapped for cash, she's not looking to profit with the hotel. She genuinely seems to want to help Sinners. And offering a free residency with food is a good way to do that." Olivia informed.
"If that's true, why didn't you seek refuge there? I apologize in advance if that wasn't appropriate for me to ask. But if there is no price to stay at the hotel, why would you not go there if only to avoid the Extermination?" Samuel asked.
For a brief second, Olivia became tense. She wasn't expecting such a question to be brought up. But then, unexpectedly, she smiled at Samuel. Yet, it was melancholic in its appearance.
"Because, Samuel, I'd rather die again than ever go to Heaven," Olivia stated.
She didn't say anything else, and she didn't need to. That single statement, partnered with that pained smile, told Samuel and Doomguy everything.
"I'm sorry to have upset you." Samuel apologized, regretful that his curiosity led to this.
"Don't be, please." Olivia requested, her smile becoming more joyful. "If I didn't want you to know, I wouldn't have said anything." She said.
"Hm, very well. But still, I promise to avoid such questions. Unless, for whatever reason, they need to be asked." Samuel vowed before looking at Doomguy. "Now then, as for you. Your objective has changed. We'll save Lucifer for later. Right now, focus on his daughter and her hotel. If you can, after arrival, try and find Angel Dust. He'll be able to help us." He instructed, to which he received another nod.
Meanwhile...
"So, what do you guys think?" Charlie asked, having just finished going over the plan.
It took twenty minutes for Charlie, Azrael, and Vagatha to figure out how to handle Katie when she returned. This would only leave them that same amount to prepare. However, time wasn't the issue. Instead, it was how batshit fucking insane the plan turned out to be.
"So, I'll admit, I'm pretty wasted right now..." Husk confessed while holding up a bottle, still laying on a couch. His body was practically limp and numb, making his wounds' pain disappear. "But, even with that established, I still think I heard everything you said. If that is true, you're out of your goddamn mind." He told her.
"Aw, come on. It's not that crazy, is it?" Charlie questioned with a frown.
"Charlie, you know we love ya. You're as sweet as a candy rainbow and as nice as a newborn puppy. But I am with Husk on this. Not even someone who's had their brain removed would go along with such a farfetched idea." Angel Dust replied.
"I'm afraid I'll have to disagree with you, gentleman," Alastor interjected, coming to Charlie's support. "We need to give Katie something she can sink her mandibles into. It needs to be juicy. Sensational. And, most importantly, believable." He told them.
"Yeah, okay, that all makes sense, Al. But won't it defeat the purpose of Azrael being here, to begin with? She's meant to be a secret." Angel Dust asked.
"That was before we came up with a FLAWLESS cover story~" Charlie answered, feeling a bit proud. "Remember, the reason why my aunt is here is to find whoever killed the Exterminators. But if we have Katie, tell everyone she's here to endorse my hotel, then no one will think anything of it." She explained.
"Especially since, as I've already expressed to most of you, I genuinely oppose how the Extermination is carried out. However, I AM an EXCELLENT actor. So if I need to perform a little, then I can." Azrael chimed in.
"What about Lucifer? Won't this piss him off?" Husk inquired.
"Possibly," Azrael said...and that was it.
"Won't that be a problem?..." Husk followed up, baffled by that reply.
"Well, maybe if Lucifer did a better job ruling over his realm and his people, this situation would've never happened, and I wouldn't be here cleaning up his mess for him. So, if he should have grievances with me changing my approach to help my niece, his DAUGHTER, with this issue rather than sit back and do nothing like him. Then he can say so to my face, and I will happily inform him where he can store his ego for safekeeping." Azrael told him with a smile.
"...Damn..." Husk muttered with widened eyes, impressed beyond words.
"Hehe, isn't she great?" Charlie asked with a giggle while hugging her aunt.
"Okay, so if we are going ahead with this, what do we do for the next fifteen minutes? Do we lay out some tea? Maybe a nice brunch? What else do we need to do to sell Katie on this BS?" Angel Dust asked.
"Nothing. Once Azrael proves she is who she is to Katie, we'll let her and Charlie take it from there." Vagatha answered before pointing to Husk. "But we should get him to his room so he can rest properly." She suggested.
"Nah, you guys don't have to do that. Just throw me behind the desk." Husk responded with a dismissive wave.
"And let you drink some more? I don't think so." Vagatha denied as she walked over to him.
But before she could reach the couch, she was stopped by a familiar cane being put in her way.
"Allow me." Alastor offered, followed by a snap of his fingers.
Suddenly, a mass of shadowy tendrils appeared from the floor, and they all were aimed at the Hellcat.
"...I fucking hate you..." Husk said. He wasn't angry or surprised, just deeply annoyed that even when injured, that antlered prick couldn't keep from messing with him.
In a matter of seconds, with an amazing amount of care, the tendrils lifted Husk from the couch and carried him out of the lobby.
"Nifty, make sure he isn't lonely." Alastor requested.
"I was already planning to!" Nifty exclaimed with a quick salute before following after him.
"Well, that takes care of two of us. But what about Al and me? Do you want us to sit in on the interview?" Angel Dust asked.
"You guys can go back to your rooms if you want. We'll take care of Katie and let you know how it goes." Charlie answered.
"Splendid! Then I can go along with Nifty and keep Husk company!" Alastor decided before immediately departing. Making them wonder if he wanted to do that all along.
"And I can get back to my beauty sleep." Angel Dust said, earning him an eye roll.
"You just want to sleep all day. Admit it." Vagatha replied as he headed for the hallway.
"It's not my fault all of THIS needs as much rest as possible to stay perfect." Angel Dust argued while gesturing to his body.
And with that, everything was set. Alastor and Nifty would be with Husk in his room, and Angel Dust would be snoozing. Which, unlike before, was the truth. The sultry spider was planning to fall face-first onto his mattress and pass the fuck out.
"Ah~ It's so soft..." Angel Dust sighed once he lay on his bed. "I need a power nap after all the shit that's happened today..." He muttered while simultaneously closing his eyes and burying his face into his pillow.
Yet, as his mind and body relaxed, allowing him to ease into slumber. Something would keep him awake. The sensation of someone lightly tapping him on his shoulder.