A Cold Wind In Hell
Chapter Eight: A Friendly Warning
Back at the Jaded Vipers military complex, Terumi sat in his office, his fingers intertwined as he was in deep thought, before a rushed knock on the door was heard.
"Enter."
Sneaking Rodent barged in, breathing heavily.
"Sir, it was a disaster!" Rodent blurted out. "The termination squad was wiped out and our Metal Gear was easily destroyed!"
"I see." Terumi nodded, not sounding worried at all.
"Sir, what do we do now?!" Rodent practically demanded. "Sam's bound to know who we are and word of Lucifers park being attacked will spread! How are we gonna-"
With a raised hand from Terumi, Rodent went silent, before the boss rose from his seat, gathered his swords and grabbed a suitcase, then made for the exit.
"Calm yourself, Rodent." He said calmly. "I have a backup plan for everything."
And with that, Terumi soon left, leaving Rodent with only one question.
"Boss, where are you going?!"
"The Jaded Vipers."
Upon returning to the Hotel, the members of I.M.P. decided to sit down and discuss the assailants that had attacked them during their trip to Lu Lu World, everyone sat gathered in the lobby, the Jaded Viper badge laid upon a coffee table.
"We've had beef with those shitheads for a while, ever since they first formed up years back." Blitzo explain, leaning back in his chair and arms crossed. "They're the top mercenary gang that runs the south side of Pentagram City. They mostly run drug and human trafficking, along with protection and assassination services."
"And I assume these guys are your competition?" Vaggie sarcastically asked her question.
"Why do you think we run assassination contracts in the huma-" Moxxie tried to say, but Blitzo was quick to silence him.
"That's besides the point!" The taller Imp quickly said, his hand clamping down Moxxie's mouth. "The point is that these guys are bad news and you're best off avoiding them!"
"You do realize they threw the first stone, right?" Charlie pointed out.
"And dropped that giant robot on us." Angel added.
"What was the leader like?" Sam asked. "You ever saw his face?"
"Not like I had a one-night stand with the guy," Blitzo stated. "But no, never met the guy, but from what I heard, he's ruthless all the same."
"So, you're better off avoiding him, if you can." Millie said. "I heard he beheaded a guy with a rusty knife, just for looking at him funny!"
"Still, it wouldn't hurt to know more." Charlie frowned. "To at least know who we're being threatened by."
"Well, this has been fun for a while!" Cherri then got up and made for the door. "But I gotta jet! Got turf to look over, after all!"
"You're not gonna stick around for more?" Loona said with a raised brow.
"Nah, as long as he doesn't start shit on my turf, I'm keeping my distance." Cherri said, before looking over her shoulder and blowing a kiss at Sam. "See ya, babe~."
"See you later, Cherri." Sam smiled.
"Fuck you, bimbo." Angel called playfully.
Cherri simply flipped the finger without looking back, before making for the door, opening it to leave, but stopped when a tall, intimidating new arrival blocked her exit.
The figure was tall, wore a cloak that concealed his body, but she could see under the hood, the man appearing to be a lion with a trimmed down mane, had gray hair slicked back and wore an eyepatch, and wore a serious look that would send most sinners and demons running.
Cherri Bomb, however, didn't seem to give a fuck, "Sorry, old man, but the retirement home is down the road."
The new arrival didn't seem bothered, "Is Vagatha home?"
Shrugging, Cherri called over her shoulder, "Hey, Bitch Moth One Eye! Ya got an old fart, looking for a booty call!"
She turned back, surprised to see that he had gotten closer, practically towering over her in height.
"Tell me, cyclops," He said in a growl. "Have you ever had every single bone in your body broken one at a time?"
"No?" Cherri said, feeling her skin crawl.
"Would you like to?" He said as he bent slightly, his face closer to hers.
Cherri felt sweat run down her spine, as the glowing one eye stared into hers.
"What the fuck are you going on about?" Vaggie yelled before coming into view. "I wasn't expecting any-"
She stopped when she saw who stood at the doorway, her eye widening in surprise.
"Papa?!" She exclaimed.
"Vagatha!" The man declared, before pushing the statue frozen Cherri aside. "Pardon me."
Vaggie ran forward and jumped at the man with a hug, the man returning the hug in kind.
"Papa, I had no idea you were coming!" Vaggie said in a happy tone.
"Figured I owed you a visit, my little Mothra." The man said with a gentle smile, hugging her tightly. "My, you've grown so much!"
"Vaggie, who is-" Charlie was starting to say, but stopped when she saw the visitor, before breaking out with glee. "Uncle George!"
"Nice to see you as well, Charlie." The man called George said as he embraced a hug from the daughter of Lucifer. "My, look at you! About as tall as your old man, if not taller!"
The other demons and Sinners peaked in and watched with utter confusion, before Alastor, Blitzo and Husk instantly recognized him.
"Why, isn't this an interesting surprise!" Alastor laughed.
"No fuckin' way!" Blitzo blurted out, jaw dropping.
"What the fuck is the Royal Protector of Lucifer doing here?!" Husk said in shock.
Cherri, Moxxiw and Millie, Loona and Gray Fox looked on in confusion, as the man called George stood at his full height, pulling down his hood and pushing back his cloak, revealing him to be wearing a sharp three-piece suit.
"Can't a father visit his daughter when he has the chance?" He asked with a chuckle.
"For those who don't know, this is my adoptive father, George Sears." Vaggie introduced. "Formerly the president of the United States of America!"
"Damn, Vaggie being okay with a guy?" Angel questioned. "Did Hell freeze over when I wasn't lookin'?"
"He's treated me like a daughter, ever since he adopted me in life!" Vaggie snapped at the spider demon. "And he's the only guy I'm perfectly fine being around!"
"Vaggie, dear, no need to holler." George said, placing a reassuring hand on Vaggie's shoulder. "And especially no need to get upset over such ignorant people."
Vaggie sighed before leaning into her adoptive father's side, "Right, my bad."
"So, what brings you in, Uncle George?" Charlie asked.
"Well, I was hoping to collect Vaggie for father daughter day." George said. "But from the looks of you, it doesn't seem like-"
"As if!" Vaggie declared with a smile. "Just give me a moment to get changed and grab my purse!"
The moth demoness then ran up the stairs, leaving the former president to chuckle.
"You should know by now that Vaggie's always up for a father daughter day." Charlie giggled.
"Yeah, serves me right." George chuckled before frowning. "But I also came to speak with you, Charlie." He then looked up towards Sam. "As well as that new guest of yours."
"Me?" Sam questioned, pointing at himself.
"Yes, actually." George nodded, pulling a folder from his cloak. "I figured you wanted to know."
Setting the folder on the countertop of the lobbyist desk, he flipped it open to reveal a dossier.
"Terumi; leader of the Jaded Vipers." He said in a serious tone. "This particular Sinner has been active in the south side of the city, slowly but surely taking up territory and recruiting vicious and loyal gangsters and building up his gang as one of the top mercenary gangs in the city."
Sam took a good look at the mug shot of the gang leader; dark, piercing golden eyes, jet black hair slicked back neatly with green bangs sticking out the front, as well as having some reptilian features.
"I swear, I've seen him before…" Sam hummed, rubbing a thumb and finger against his chin.
"Ever since he dropped in, he's been raising Hell like never before." George said. "He's ruthless, cruel, even kills his own men for showing sympathy for those he deems enemies. He's quite skilled with a blade, and from the looks of his outfit, his gang has a lot of superior firepower. Even The Three V's wouldn't dare lay a finger on him."
"Vox, Velvet, and Valentino?" Charlie nearly gasped. "All of them are afraid of him?!"
"None of the other overlords would dare challenge him." George stated. "Last one that tried? He and all his men were skewered and left on pikes in the streets."
"Sounds like a real handful." Sam remarked.
"I only thought it wise to warn you." George said. "Especially after he dropped that Metal Gear Ray on you at Lu Lu World."
"Wait, you were watching us?" Charlie raised a brow.
"You know I could never let my little Mothra out of my sight." George sighed. "But don't tell her; I don't need her ragging on me about the 'overprotective dad' act."
"You are being overprotective." Charlie said. "Still, I'll keep quiet."
Just then, Vaggie came dashing down the stairs, wearing a pair of booty shorts and a gray and black tank top, along with flipflops.
"Okay, I'm ready, Papa!" She called, excitement clear in her voice.
"Glad to hear, little Mothra." George declared before turning to Charlie. "I promise to bring her back, safe and sound, your majesty."
Charlie nodded, and so father and daughter left, with Charlie and Sam looking at the dossier.
"Terumi…" She mumbled, her eyes concentrating on the picture of the gang leader. "Does that ring any bells, Sam?"
"There is one." Sam said with a serious look. "Terumi was the name of the one who killed my father. No doubt a connection is there."
Just then, Cherri joined in, looking at the dossier, "So, got trouble coming up?"
Sam and Charlie turned to the mad bomber, both confused.
"I thought you were leaving." Charlie said.
"At first, yeah." Cherri said with a shrug. "But I have a few activities that I thought I could add to your 'rehabilitation' project."
Sam raised a brow, especially taking notice of the way Cherri said that, but he chose to ignore it.
"Wait, really?" Charlie said in surprise.
"If it helps my man, I don't see why not." Cherri said with a shrug. "Besides, I think you can't go wrong with yoga!"
"Why's that?" Charlie asked.
Grinning, Cherri leaned into Charlie's ear and whispered, "Because he's got an ass you wanna squeeze and a six-pack abs you wanna rub your face in."
Charlie blushed madly at this statement, while Sam simply chuckled and shook his head, having heard with his feline hearing.
'This is becoming more interesting.'
Meanwhile, Terumi marched through the streets, ignoring the various passerby's that passed him by, before coming upon a tall building. Walking in, he walked past the other demons and sinners that cowed at his presence; some hiding behind furniture and even jumping inside garbage bins just to avoid his deadly gaze. Taking the elevator upward, Terumi soon arrived at a set of double doors, which was guarded by three hellhounds. Two of them shrank back as he approached, but the third one was foolish enough to remain where he stood.
"Hey, piss off." The hellhound snarled, not moving an inch. "You got no business being here."
"Bro, don't get in the way." One of the other hellhounds said in a scared tone. "This guy's-"
"I don't give a fuck who he thinks he is!" The hellhound snapped. "Ain't nobody meeting with the Three V's without an appointment!"
Terumi only stared back with a dangerous scowl, "Get out of my way, mutt."
The hellhound responded by spitting on Terumi's boots, "Make me, cock sucker."
The other two hellhounds backed away in fear, watching as Terumi slowly drew out his two swords, saying only two words.
"Challenge accepted."
The next thing they knew, the rude hellhound was sent crashing through the door, sliced up and bloody, crashing against a table, much to the shock of the Three V's.
"What the fuck?!" Velvet shrieked, jumping to her feet.
"Seriously?!" Vox snarled, glaring at the corpse of the hellhound. "Those were rich Italian maple, you idiot!"
Terumi walked in, sheathing his sword, before the Three V's looked up at the unannounced visitor.
"Well, look who decided to drop in!" Valentino declared with a sick grin. "The man himself!"
"We weren't expecting you to drop by, leader of the Jaded Vipers." Vox said with a grin. "What brings you in?"
"I was wondering if you were interested in a partnership of sorts." Terumi said. "One that could benefit us all."
The Three V's listened as Terumi went on, "You see, I can understand well set businessmen when I see them. With the addition of my mercenaries, you can be next to untouchable."
The Three V's looked to each other with confused expressions before looking back at the gang leader.
"You've never shown interest in colluding with us before." Velvet said with narrowed eyes. "Why would you now?"
"Because we both have a common enemy."
With that statement, Terumi tossed down a flyer containing pictures of Sam and the Hazbin gang at Lu Lu World.
"Jetstream Sam; the Clyde of Hell." Terumi explained. "He's an old nemesis of mine from our past lives and he's proving to be more persistent."
"Well, he IS one hell of a badass." Velvet said. "A sexy one at that."
"And what do we gain out of this?" Vox asked with a raised virtual brow.
Setting the briefcase on the table, Terumi opened it to reveal large stacks of money.
"My gang has limitless resources and allies you wouldn't believe." He said. "Work with me and you will live like royalty."
The Three V's looked at one another several times, all sporting big grins on their faces, before turning to the gang leader and nodding.
"Glad to hear it." Terumi nodded before pulling something from his coat. "And before I forget…"
He then slid it in front of Valentino, revealing it to be a photo of Angel Dust with the rest of the Hazbin crew.
"Your boy toy -Angel Dust, was it?- was spotted hanging around the folks at the Hazbin Hotel." Terumi stated as he turned to leave. "What you do with that information is up to you."
And with that, Terumi left, aiming to plot his next move.
And there's the newest chapter! And so we see George Sears make his appearance, as well as Terumi making moves. I really like the backstory I gave Vaggie here and I look forward to exploring more of her relationship with Solidus and I hope you guys look forward to it, as well as to other stuff I have in store.
Anyways, not much to say, except I hope you guys look forward to more! Stay tuned and reviews are greatly appreciated!