Chapter 23

Huh, well it seemed to have worked. I don't know how to feel about that.

Blocker306- They all can totally fit. Some may have to be drastically different than their canon origins, but they can fit if enough work is put into making an alternate backstory for them.

Fiddlestonks- That is spoilers-level territory there. So, I can't say anything. Sorry.

LezGo35- Now that's something worth considering. I never liked Azir's playstyle, but man do I love the character.

Konsilisto- He'll probably be fine with it, so long as he gets something in return.

Other enemies are appearing, but that's spoilers so I can't say.

I can see the complaint with using Mordekaiser that often and not doing much to show his power. Hopefully, I'll start showing his power soon when worthier opponents show up.

Hazbin characters will start to show development from this point on. With the focus being on Charlie, Vaggie, and Angel Dust. Hopefully.

Guest- I can see the want to have Pantheon be in a better story in Ruination. I'm indifferent to how the Sentinel of Light event went, but even I can see what went wrong. Specifically the characterization of certain characters.

Mordekaiser

"So, this is all that Sona had on her?" Asked Mordekaiser as he looked upon two letters in his left hand while his men ransacked Sona's room. After Rosie and Alastor returned, they informed both Charlie and Mordekaiser of all that Sona told them. As a result, Mordekaiser went to Sona's room with his men and had them ransack the place. Charlie, meanwhile, was telling them to be gentle, something that Hecarim laughed at, though complied when Mordekaiser ordered it. Though they knew the location of one piece of information, that didn't mean they couldn't find more, hence the ransacking.

"It appears so." Said Karthus as he floated in front of Mordekaiser, having delivered him the letter personally. "Not only does one of those letters provide evidence that Sona is responsible for the turning of your guards, but the other provides the location of this individual that serves one of these primordial demons. It appears this individual is locked up someplace on Earth. According to the letter, she is located in the Bermuda Triangle. Guarded with a few dozens wraiths, as the letter calls them. It appears that Sona was supposed to go there with food for the priestess after mind controlling you, milord."

"I see." Said Mordekaiser. "And that is all that you can find?"

"We're still looking for further information, but it appears that is the source of information here." Said Karthus, making Mordekaiser hum.

"Then we much to do with little information to do it with." Said Mordekaiser before speaking to Charlie. "Princess, if I may be so bold, may I use some of your staff to assist in bringing Viego to…justice." Charlie just looked at Mordekaiser in surprise.

"W-why do you need my staff?" Asked Charlie, confused at his statement. He had countless soldiers under his command and he could go get this priestess himself. Why use her own people to find her?

"You and I need to go to your father and inform him of what we've uncovered." Said Mordekaiser. "No doubt that he would like to know of a plot to wage a war in Hell between him and me, yes?" Charlie just looked to the floor before nodding in agreement, knowing that he was right.

"Good." Said Mordekaiser before speaking up. "Fear not, Charlotte. I'm merely asking you to have your hotel staff help me in uncovering what Viego has planned for Hell, nothing else. They will not be abused or suffer under any of my people. Unreasonably that is." Charlie pouted at that before looking at Mordekaiser.

"Why do you need my people?" Asked Charlie. "Your people are better trained and skilled in battle than any of mine. Why have us help in this?"

"Because I'm also trying to establish better relations with the rest of Hell." Said Mordekaiser. "In addition, I need to have my warriors grow accustomed to working with their lesser. In terms of combat skills, that is." Seeing that Charlie was still unsure about all this, Mordekaiser continued. "Miss Morningstar, do you not wish for Hell to be a better place for all denizens of Hell?" Upon hearing that, Charlie looked at Mordekaiser in shock before replying.

"I do." Said Charlie.

"Then this is something that we should both be encouraging." Said Mordekaiser. "My people and those of the rest of Hell only begrudgingly tolerate one another and only because of what we can provide one another. If we wish to have a better society for the citizens of Hell, we must try to make efforts to unify our people. Yes?" Charlie opened her mouth to speak but stopped when she realized he was right. Still, having her people sent out on their own with Mordekaiser's people, who are mostly killers and warriors, left her a bit uneasy. Eventually, she spoke up.

"Alright, I'll agree to it on four conditions." Said Charlie as she looked at Mordekaiser with fierce eyes. Intrigued, Mordekaiser asked her what her conditions are. "I'll only do it if you promise me that my people will not be punished by you and only by me. Vaggie oversees my people. You don't recruit noncombatants. And you do your absolute best to protect them from harm." Mordekaiser chuckled at all that before looking at Charlie, noticing just how serious she was. Puffing her cheeks at Mordekaiser for laughing, Charlie glared at the Iron Revenant as best she could, trying to make her look intimidating without transforming into her more monstrous form. After a quick laugh, Mordekaiser spoke.

"Very well, Charlotte, your conditions will be met." Said Mordekaiser, making Charlie blink a bit, before smiling.

"Good." Said Charlie, satisfied. "Now, who are you picking?"

"Vaggie, and Angel Dust." Said Mordekaiser. "The rest are either too under the employ of an Overlord, too weak to be of use in a fight, or are needed here. Will that be fine, princess?" Charlie just pondered on it for a moment before nodding. Both Vaggie and Angel Dust would be upset about what just happened between her and Mordekaiser, but she was confident they'll be fine with it with the conditions she laid out.

"Yes, but your people better treat them fairly, Mordekaiser." Said Charlie firmly. "They're my friends and I will never forgive you if they get mistreated by your people." Seeing the fire in her eyes made Mordekaiser chuckle. So she did have some fire in her. That's good.

"Believe me, Charlotte." Said Mordekaiser as he looked at her, his tone filled with respect for her. "My warriors will face my displeasure if they treat your friends unjustly or unreasonably. You have my word." Charlie's firm stare softened at that, knowing that Mordekaiser was good on his word.

"Good." Said Charlie before changing the topic to something that she felt needed to be addressed.

"My remaining staff and patrons need a new place to live." Said Charlie. "I don't think a lot of them want to stay here after what happened today. They probably don't feel safe with how easily it was that your people turned, even if it was from someone on the inside." Mordekaiser noticed the hurt in Charlie's voice upon saying that. "Do you think that Rosie will allow these people to settle in her emporium or at the very least her territory in Pride? So they can feel safe again?" Mordekaiser hummed at that. While Rosie would be more than happy to take most of Charlie's surviving staff, seeing that they're her employees or servants, he wasn't sure that she would be inclined with Charlie's patrons. Not unless she gained something out of it. Then again, she still is an investor in Charlie's hotel/passion project, and it would certainly look bad on her if she backed out of an investment. Although considering what happened today, it would probably be seen as smart with the number of deaths that occurred in the hotel. By his own men no less.

Humming to himself as he thought of what to do, he suddenly thought of Blitzo and his little association with Stolas of the Goetias. Chuckling darkly, he told Charlie that he had a better alternative.

Later

Stolas' manor

"I can't fucking believe you!" Yelled Stella as she yelled at her husband, who was enduring one of her rants again. Although this time, it was something completely justified. "You just fucking allowed Mordekaiser to take your grimoire and you got knocked out by him in just one hit! Do you have any idea how badly this will look upon our family!?" Stolas sighed at this. Much as he hated to admit it, she was right. After recovering from being knocked out by Mordekaiser, Stolas called Blitzo and asked if he was alright. When the Imp said yes, Stolas was instantly relieved, only for it to completely evaporate when Blitzo revealed that his Grimoire was now in Mordekaiser's possession, a consequence of the fiasco with D.H.O.R.K.

Stolas, upon hearing that, instantly panicked. His Grimoire was not only important to maintaining the delicate balance of food production in Hell, but it also contained several powerful spells that, if fell into the wrong hands, could affect the balance of power in Hell as well. Lucifer entrusted the Grimoire to him as a result, seeing Stolas as one of the few demonic princes that wouldn't try to usurp him or any of the other leaders in Hell. He trusted Stolas and he ended up allowing his strongest rival to take it without much effort. Oh, Lucifer would have his head and possibly his entire family as well.

Now, Lucifer wasn't the most ruthless of demon kings in Hell. That belonged to the Prince of Wrath. Quite frankly, Lucifer was quite fun to be around. The King of Hell knew when to have fun and his taste in music was amongst the finest in Hell. But if you get into his bad side, things tended to get messy. He'll just as happily murder his enemies with a flick of his wrist just as much as he'll happily have a party with his friends, singing songs all the way. Stolas couldn't help but whimper at the thought of Lucifer's ire on him and his family. He remembered the prince destroying an Imp utterly for getting a stain on his wife's dress, he couldn't imagine what he'll do to Stolas for not only letting an Imp use the Grimoire he entrusted to the Goetian prince, but also letting Mordekaiser get his hands on it.

Trying to calm down his wife, who learned about it from Stolas himself, Stolas tried to speak, but couldn't as Stella was on full rage mode now.

"I can't believe my parents ever thought it was a good idea to let me marry a clown-like you! Nor can I believe that I let it happen." Yelled Stella with rage in her eyes. "At first I thought it would just be one of the standard political marriages in Hell, I even thought it would be one of the better ones in the first couple of years, but this marriage is so much fucking worse!" Stella then started to list off the many reasons their marriage is so fucked. "First, you slept with an Imp. An Imp! You couldn't have gotten a Succubus or Incubus, no, you had to get a fucking Imp! And you didn't make him your bitch! If you had at least done that, then I could tolerate it, but no! You let the bastard have his freedom and do whatever the fuck he pleases! To top all that, it's the Imp that tried to steal the Grimoire entrusted to you by Lucifer himself! Argh! What the fuck is wrong with you!?" Stolas, once again tried to stop his wife, but she wasn't done.

"Next, you fucking made a deal with that fucking Imp that lets him keep it for most of a month and you have it for one day of that month! In exchange for fucking him!" Yelled Stella, her body becoming more and more feral as she yelled, her clothes changing with her body so as to not get destroyed by her transformation into her more demonic self. "One fucking day in a whole month! Why!? Just fucking why?! Why the hell did you give him that sort of deal!? Even if the dumbass won't try to use the power of the book for himself, it's still in the hands of one of the weakest races in Hell. What makes you think one of Lucifer's rivals won't try and take it from the Imp!? Then Lucifer will be pissed off!" Stella was now in her more demonic state. Her elegant feathers were razor-sharp now along with her beak. Her teeth were hooked and serrated. And her dress was now molded with her body. She also looked more like a hawk than a bird. Raising her sharpened talons at Stolas, she swiped at him, causing him to wince as they hit nothing but hair, before screaming again.

"And to top this all fucking off, you let Mordekaiser take it! Lucifer's greatest rival!" Yelled Stella before placing a talon at Stolas' right eye. "I swear Stolas, if our daughter gets hurt in any shape or way because of your own ineptitude, I'm divorcing you and taking Octavia away from you! Is that clear!?" Stolas, unsure of what to say, simply stayed silent as Stella whisked herself away to calm herself in wine. Once she was gone, Stolas lumped in his favorite chair in the kitchen, their conversation happening there, before burying his face with his hands.

"Oh, how could things have gone so awry?" Thought Stolas as he thought of what Stella said and how it's all true. No matter how hard he tried to defend himself, he knew she was right and that everything that was happening right now with their family was because of him. Yet, no matter how much he tried to convince himself that Stella was in the right, he found he couldn't. He loved Blitzo. He really did. The Imp gave him something that Stella could never give. Genuine love and affection from a lover.

Their marriage was arranged, and neither was really pleased with it. That Stolas could agree with. Stella didn't wish to marry someone that she didn't love nor did Stolas, but their parents forced them to do it and the two married, much to their shared annoyance. Still, they tried to make the most of it. After all, if they're stuck marrying one another, the least they can do is try to find happiness however they can. And they found it in the form of their daughter, Octavia. For a time, Stolas thought they could find happiness with each other in their daughter. That she would be the light in the darkness of their marriage. He looked at the family picture in the kitchen of the three being happy together. Being well-versed in the politics in Hell, Stolas knew the smile on Stella's face in the portrait was a genuine one. But then things started to went awry when Blitzo came into the equation.

Now, Stolas was an oddity for the Goetia family and that was because of his fascination with Imps. He couldn't explain the fascination. He always found them peculiar. They were the lowest of the low in Hell and treated so poorly as a result, yet they provide so much to all denizens of hell. From entertainment to something as vital as food production. Yet, despite all that, his fellow nobles looked down upon them, seeing them as little more than sentient pests. His grandparents thought so. His parents thought so as well. And, of course, his wife was amongst his seniors in her views on Imps. They've tried, when they've uncovered his fascination and sympathy for the Imps, to rectify, what they perceive, as a weakness and failing of Stolas. They tried everything, from lecturing him about the proper etiquette of Hell to just full-on beating and insulting him. But nothing would stop Stolas from seeing the Imps as he does now. Fascinating creatures that are abused and looked down upon by the other denizens of Hell. His fascination then took a turn for the better, or worse if one were to ask his wife when he meet Blitzo.

Truth be told, the moment that they slept together, Stolas knew that Blitzo was only after his Grimoire. But unlike others that have tried to do so in the past, he did so because he desired to merely ensure the success of his little business. He never attempted to decipher the contents of the book beyond the one that permitted travel to the human world. He never attempted, beyond trying to steal his Grimoire of course, to bring his ire upon him and his compatriots. And, to top it all off, he treated Stolas like a normal person. Not a prince or a being above anyone else just because they were born with wealth and power, but a person. Plus, his crude demeanor was a source of amusement for Stolas. So, instead of punishing him like Stella or any other prince of Hell would do, he made Blitzo a deal. In exchange for a night of passionate sex with one another, he would allow Blitzo to keep it for the rest of a month. Something that the Imp was all too eager to agree.

Stella, of course, was absolutely furious regarding the deal and tried to make Stolas back out of it, but Stolas was firm in keeping the deal. Blitzo was special to him. Not just because of him being an Imp or because of his crude personality, but because there was something about Blitzo that Stolas found intriguing. That he wanted more of. That made him feel alive and happy. Something that Stella could never give herself, but Blitzo could. Thus, the arrangement.

It was an arrangement that Stolas loved and wanted more of, even if it meant that he was harming his family reputation and name. Stella hated it because of that, but Stolas couldn't help himself. He wanted Blitzo. He needed him. But he refused to make the Imp his paramour. That would not only be a disservice to Blitzo, but also take away one of the things that Stolas loved about him. His independence and crude demeanor. And he refused to let that happen ever. He loved Blitzo the way he is and he won't ever try to take away what makes Blitzo himself. Thus, why he refused to make him his paramour.

Of course, he hated how his affair with Blitzo is affecting his relationship with his family. Stella, despite not loving her like Blitzo, was still a person that Stolas cared about and wanted to make happy. But he didn't want it to be at the expense of his own happiness. Same with his relationship with his other relatives. He refused to let their views on proper etiquette and decorum affect what he wanted for himself, even if it came at the cost of their love and respect. His daughter, on the other hand, was something that Stolas found himself hurting the most.

Octavia had grown down and depressed of late because of how he seemed to put Blitzo ahead of her and their family. They mended their relationship a bit back at Loo Loo Land, but the issue still remained that Stolas was putting his affair with his Imp above their family and her. And it was upsetting her, especially as the fights between Stolas and Stella regarding Blitzo became more and more common.

He hated how depressed and gloomy Octavia has gotten because of his affair with Blitzo, but he can't help it. Blitzo gave him something that no one else in his family can give him, not even Octavia. And as much as he wanted his little girl to be happy, he just can't bring himself to end his affair with Blitzo for her. Not even her.

Groaning to himself, Stolas wondered what to do with all that was piling up against him. First with his affair with Blitzo and now all this with Mordekaiser. His problems were just piling on and on and he didn't know what to do.

As he thought of what to do, he suddenly heard the doorbell of the front door being rung multiple times, causing his wife to yell out in rage. Hearing her stomp over to the front door, he soon hear her yelling at whoever was ringing their doorbell, only for it to suddenly quell and be replaced with one of meekness. Curious, Stolas traveled to the front door, only to see why she stopped yelling. Because right in front of his wife was the daughter of Lucifer and Mordekaiser himself. And behind them were two Overlords, a group of people, and some of Mordekaiser's top lieutenants.

Upon seeing Stolas, Mordekaiser growled before leaving, but not before saying some words to Charlie.

"Morningstar, I'll leave the talking to you." Said Mordekaiser before looking at Stella, who was scared out of her mind at seeing Mordekaiser, and Stolas, who was wearing a look of shock. "After all, your people are the ones that desire protection from threats that threaten all of Hell. Not to mention, this is an opportunity to let others know that you are more than just an attractive face." Marching away, Mordekaiser marched towards the people that he asked from Charlie, mainly her girlfriend and that annoying spider Sinner, to embark on the task that he needs for them to accomplish with his soldiers and warriors.