Hell, a place which most if not all mortal lives fear, depictions of this realm differ depending on which religion, culture, and society you look at. And it is due to the fear of Hell, as well as the lack of knowledge concerning its existence, that leads many to live good or even strictly pure lives. Yet there is a question very few ever ask when contemplating the specifics of this supposed dark realm, a question some would say is rhetorical for the answer is obvious, what does the devil fear?

Now as said this question to most seems rhetorical, "GOD IS WHO THE DEVIL FEARS! FOR IT IS WITHIN HIS HOLY LIGHT THAT HIS EVIL SHALL BE VANQUISHED!", is the answer

that is most commonly given and accepted. But the truth is that this could not be farther from the truth, for both God and those of their direct creation all abide by ancient laws they set in place long ago. These laws state that they shall not interfere with the affairs of those who reside in creation outside of their heavenly domain, for if they were do so then they would be impeding upon the free will that God instilled within their souls. But if it is not God nor their angels that the devil and his legions fear, then who could possibly ever hope to instill fear within them?

A being who is not bound to serve or uphold the laws that maintain order within the Heavens, a being who of their own free will seeks to walk a path of perpetual torment. Only known by the name given to him by his victims, as who he was before he embarked on this crusade has long been lost, the Slayer though seemingly a normal human man is NOTHING of the sort. He never tires, never hungers, never grows ill or weary, seeming to be sated on nothing but his pure hatred for all sinful creatures, and the suffering he brings them as he marches endlessly through creation. And in his conquest he seeks out every dark realm and devil who governs it, as to deliver them and their servants to death.

However there is something ironic about his existence, as the very reason for why he hunts down all manner of unholy soul is darkly humorous. Long ago, when he first encountered the likes of demon kind, he was actually willing to let it end there, to simply relish in that victory and never deal with them ever again. But the denizens of the now forsaken realm of Doom were far too spiteful to let such a loss go without response, they sought to make him pay for their humiliation by bringing his world to ruin. And while that in of itself most certainly ignited the fires of hatred within his soul, it was when they took the one thing that he cared for most that truly sealed their fate.

From there on the Slayer would never stop in his mission to rid creation of any demon and devil, regardless of how they should appear. He would hunt them without pause for all time, only ever putting down his fists and armaments once the last of their kind had been torn asunder. Yet in the light of his success of having destroyed the most vile of realms within creation, he found his task was far from over as there were more Hells to be seen. Which in turn meant there were more devils and demons who needed to die.

That is when the Seraphim, the very same who had aided him in the earliest days of his conquest appeared before him and offered him a new choice.

"Not every Hell is as vile as your own great slayer, the denizens of Doom were born from the malice and evil of all living things, though some possessed minds and intelligence they were all but beasts seeking to satiate their hunger, but the other circles that exist are far different from the one you know so well, and perhaps unlike the realm of Doom there is some hope for repentance."

These words continuously played over and over again within his mind, for while he knew people could change, the same from his experience could not be said for demons. Still the Seraphim had

been the one to bestow upon him his great power, without him his task of ending Doom would've been far more difficult. So out of a sense of having owed the heavenly figure he chose to at least hear these other demons out. But he would be certain to keep his weapons ready, should he need them if things went awry.

"All preparations have been completed, your arsenal is fully stocked and your equipment modified to your desired specifications." The voice of Vega informed him as he went about his business.

Simply nodding in response as he was preoccupied with other matters, Vega decided to keep this one sided conversation going.

"The Seraphim wasn't lying, not that we suspected he was of course." He began as the Slayer stared down at the screen he was typing into, "I have been conducting a great deal of surveys on this new Hell, and for the most part it seems to mirror human society and civilization in great detail, which makes sense as these new demons are mostly human." He reasoned.

Though not ignoring him the Slayer chose to keep his attention primarily on his work, which did not go unnoticed by the other.

"I understand your reluctance to let your guard down." He told him which for a brief moment caused him to pause, "Though these are not naturally born Hellspawn they are still there for a reason, from what I could see of the populace they're all rather unpleasant people, seeming to refer to things like murder, prostitution, rape, drug abuse, and other such activities with little care, it is clear that very few if any of them could be described as decent, despite this however I do think there is some potential." He admitted.

For the few seconds that followed after this statement the Slayer didn't move, as he was giving his companion's thoughts on the matter genuine consideration. However, as he contemplated his words his mind began to bring up memories, some quite old, others fairly recent, all sharing one common trait. That even if you give someone all the chances in the world, all the trust you have to offer, some people would always choose to remain the same. And so it was for this reason that the Slayer's response was simply to return to his task, which he was close to finishing.

"Do you really believe that will be necessary?" Vega asked as he now noticed what the Slayer had been working on, "You used that weapon to specifically kill the most powerful of Doom's demonic population, even with the potential of some of the residents of this new Hell possessing some power, will you actually need it?" He questioned.

Not even responding with a simple nod or grunt the Slayer just kept inputting different commands into the touchscreen in front of him. After a few seconds more he would finally be finished for the moment, causing him to turn around and walk away from the terminal. Without needing to even ask where he was going Vega opened a portal that led back to Hell, closing it once he went through.

"Hurry hurry hurry everyone! We need to get this done faster!" Charlie instructed as she walked through the hotel.

True to her word, once the princess of Hell made it back to her hotel in Pentagram City she bust through the doors, before then barking orders like a rabid dog to everyone in sight. Now normally this wasn't too unlike her, for she was taking a big risk trying to convince the populace they should try to be better. But there was something different about her this time, instead of being peppy and energetic she was serious and commanding. This of course was noticed by everyone ESPECIALLY her girlfriend Vagatha, who as Charlie was going about the place seemingly in a

frenzied state of panic, was doing her best to keep up.

"Charlie!" She called out as she finally managed to catch up to her, "What is going on? Why are you acting so high strung all of a sudden?" She asked.

"You there! I see you slacking off! Put away the sandwich and get back to work!" Charlie shouted with a surprising amount of authority, which actually managed to startle the lazy worker she was addressing.

Upon being ignored yet again Vagatha decided she had enough, so she grabbed onto Charlie's shoulders and turned her so they could be face to face.

"CHARLIE!" She shouted hoping to finally get her attention, "WHAT. IS. GOING. ON?" She asked loudly and slowly, wanting to drill each word into her head.

Only just now realizing that she had been ignoring her, Charlie let out a quick sigh before explaining herself.

"I'm sorry Vaggie, I didn't mean to ignore you..." She apologized calling the other by her nickname.

"It's okay, just tell me what has you so worked up, does it have to do with your dad?" Vagatha asked.

"Well...kinda, look even I'm not entirely sure what's going on, but what I do know is that whatever is happening is enough to freak out my parents." Charlie answered.

"Wait...YOUR parents were freaked out?..." Vagatha asked with widened eyes earning a nod in response, "What the fuck could possibly scare them? They're literally the king and queen of Hell!" She exclaimed.

Almost as if it were on cue the gray skinned demon would receive an answer, though it was from the scream of another demon elsewhere in the hotel. Startled by this both women took off in the direction it came from, which was near the front of the building. Once they reached the lobby they discovered who had made the scream, as well as what had caused it. On the floor and on their back was one of the workers, and standing adjacent from them just outside the open front doors was a man, a HUMAN man.

Watching as he slowly stepped across the threshold, the demon who seemed to have upset him in some way began trying to escape, using his elbows to push himself backwards.

"H-Hey look man I'm sorry! I-I didn't mean to insult ya, please just...just leave me alone!" He begged.

Responding with actions instead of words the demon was grabbed by the collar of his shirt and lifted from the floor, where he could now see the eyes of the man who held him in his grasp. But before anything else could happen Charlie was quick to act, as she ran over to them and grabbed onto the man's arm.

"WAIT!" She exclaimed gaining his attention, "Please, whatever it is he did he is sorry for, there is no reason to escalate this situation!" She insisted.

Moving his eyes slowly from the demon to her, Charlie for the first time in her life felt as if she was about to die. Even though his eyes were normal as he seemed to be human, it was the raw unbridled emotion within them that made her want to cry. For in his gaze she saw only one thing,

an anger so powerful and so passionate that even hellfire would seem tame by comparison. Yet despite the animosity that he clearly possessed towards the demon, he chose to listen to her and released him.

This however presented a new issue, for once the demon was free he immediately ran away, leaving her to deal with their unexpected guest.

"U-Um..." She spoke after a minute or two hoping to make things less tense, "I d-don't think I've ever seen you b-before..." She said doing her best to control her nervous stutter, "W-What's your name?..." She asked.

Sadly she wouldn't receive an answer from him, and as he continued to stare at her with that unwavering glare, her girlfriend decided to intervene herself.

"Hey!" Vagatha exclaimed as she walked over and got between them, "She asked you a question asshole! Are you going to answer her or what?" She asked.

"V-Vaggie..." Charlie said as she put a hand on her shoulder, "I-I don't think you should make him angry..." She told her.

"I apologize for the Slayer's silence, it's just how he is I'm afraid." The voice of a man suddenly spoke, "My name is Vega, I am the Slayer's personal assistant, if you have any concerns, questions, or issues you would like to have answered, please direct them to me." He told them.

"S...S...Slayer..." Charlie stammered out with her eyes widening as much as they could.

"Charlie, do you know this guy?" Vagatha asked noticing the shocked look now present on her face.

"I presume you are Lucifer's daughter correct?" Vega asked. "Y-Yes..." She answered meekly.

"Then you are the person we have come to see." Vega revealed.

"Now wait just a second." Vagatha interjected as she poked the Slayer in his chest, "I don't know who you or this Vega guy are, but you are scaring the shit out of Charlie, so you need to leave." She told them.

"I'm afraid that isn't possible, we are here to make sure this hotel is a legitimate operation, and not just a ploy to deceive the Slayer in any way." Vega informed her.

Upon hearing this Vagatha summoned a spear that she used for the sake of protecting both her and Charlie, she then took it into her hands and pointed it towards the Slayer.

"That wasn't a question, nor was it an order, you are leaving NOW." She told them sternly.

Sadly this was the WORST thing she could have done, and both she and Charlie would soon realize that with what came next. In the span of a mere ten seconds the Slayer moved with speed neither of them had ever seen, and in that time took control of the situation completely. First he grabbed onto her spear and pulled her forward, then he delivered a headbutt to her face which broke her nose, but before she could reel back from the intense pain this brought he grabbed onto her neck and slammed her into the floor. Unable to do anything but gasp and struggle as he choked her, Vagatha besides feeling the pressure he was applying to her neck also felt the warmth of blood on her face, which was coming from her near completely shattered nose.

As for Charlie, she could do nothing to either stop the attack or save her girlfriend from her current predicament, as due to the paralyzing terror she now felt all she could do was scream. Thankfully like an angel of mercy someone appeared to stop this, which was ironic as he was the first of the fallen.

"STOP!" Lucifer shouted out as he stood in the doorway.

Upon hearing the voice of this Hell's leader the Slayer released Vagatha from his grasp, allowing her to begin coughing violently as she regained her breath. With his attention now focused solely on the devil, Lucifer even with every single fiber of his being screaming to apologize, did his best to remain firm and composed.

"I'm sorry for whatever it was that she did to upset you, but if this plan is going to work then you MUST try and keep yourself from killing any demons, less there is no other choice, surely you realize this don't you?" He questioned while doing so in a way that wasn't belittling.

Much like with Charlie the Slayer seemed to consider what the other was saying, as he slowly looked down at the still coughing demon. Yet what he did next was completely unexpected, not only shocking Lucifer and his daughter but also his companion. Bending his knees so he was closer to her he then held out his hand, and just as how Vagatha summoned her spear he summoned an object of his own. The object in question seemed to be a potion of some kind, and as he poured but a few drops of it onto the wounded demon, it was discovered to be a healing potion.

Watching in amazement as the unknown liquid healed her wounds completely, they all looked back to him with shocked expressions. Yet before any of them could respond to this action in some way, Vega suddenly spoke as to explain what had just transpired.

"The Slayer understands that he must have some trust in you to do what is needed, however he wishes to inform you that he cannot be held accountable for every incident of violence." He began as the Slayer stood upright while making the potion disappear, "He realizes that she acted the way she did out of a desire to protect your daughter, but if she should ever brandish that spear of hers again in any other situation, things will not end as they did here." He warned.

"I understand, thank you." Lucifer replied truly grateful this was resolved peacefully, "Now, would it be too much to ask if you and the Slayer could leave us for a bit? Not Hell of course just give us some time before we continue?" He requested.

"Not at all, we will take a walk around and through the hotel, we shall return to the lobby in about ten minutes given the building's size." Vega said before the Slayer then walked out the door.

Waiting until his thunderous footsteps could no longer be heard, Lucifer quickly hurried over to his daughter and began looking her over.

"You're not hurt anywhere are you? He didn't lay a hand on you did he?" He asked.

"N-No dad, I'm fine." She responded as she looked over to Vagatha with tears coming to her eyes, "I-I'm sorry Vaggie, I should've done something, anything at all to stop him..." She apologized feeling horrible for having done nothing.

Yet instead of responding the way she expected which was with anger or insults, Vagatha surprised her by embracing her in a kiss and wrapping her arms around her.

"Don't." She told her as they slowly pulled apart, "I was the one who threatened him, I'm the only one to blame for getting into that shitty situation." She assured before she then looked to Lucifer,

"And YOU, who the FUCK do you think you are bringing someone like that here?! And who the fuck is that guy anyway?!" She questioned.

Even though he barely knew anything about this woman, only that she was his daughter's love interest, Lucifer did still feel guilty as none of this would be happening were he a better ruler. So with a heavy sigh the king of Hell walked over to a nearby couch and sat down, both his daughter and her girlfriend looking at him with expectant gazes.

"Okay, you both deserve to know the full story, so here it is..." He began as he closed his eyes to remember, "In the first age, in the first battle, when the shadows first lengthened..."