Hello again, mortals, sinners, imps, devils, and otherwise. Now I'm gonna be frank with this episode...I like this episode. I honestly don't see why it's a bad episode. In my opinion, the fact that Octavia now has someone to call a friend in Loona, means that perhaps there could be a bright future for the little starfire after all.
But enough about me...let's start story!
Chapter 2: Seeing Stars
Few days after Momo's first confrontation with the one he believed is a traitor to the Goetia family, Stella, Momo was troubled. The fact he actually grazed Stella's shoulder as a warning, even if made sure Stella didn't get gored, he felt as if he could've gone too far that time if he didn't control himself. Guess all the times he's been in Hell all those months may have begun to have an effect on him.
Made worse all the while was after the Envy Ring date incident where he slaughtered both the demonic Orochi and Yamato, where his honor felt no return after he delivered their execution. If it weren't for Verosika, he could've gotten more bloodthirsty by the minute. Later that day, a second confrontation happened with Stella. After having two assassins, he wondered if Stella was behind it all. But he knew that he had no proof she was behind it. Or if Stella was, she was hiding the truth very well.
He had warned Stella that if he found out those two assassins were hired by her, that the next time they met, he'd promised that Stella would wish she was born as fried chicken, something that even Stella found as an insult.
Now the way he saw it, not even an hours worth of meditations was going to quell the rage. He needed to find an alternative to control it. Or else the next time his bloodthirstiness came up again, both his comrades, lover, and best friend could end up being targets. Little did he know that an event would lead him to finding a way...
Years ago before the formation of I.M.P...
Stolas was using the Grimoire to show Octavia, at a young age, a galactic event in space seen throughout space that resembled a meteor shower known as Azathoth's Tears.
"In the great expanse of the nether, there exists boundless amounts of magnificent phenomenon, the great brilliance of an exploding star, the nimble dance of space dust through a nebula. But once every one thousand years our corner of reality is treated to an incredible sight from the deep eldritch recesses of the cosmos the tears of a forgotten colossus begin to fall. Tears made of the hopes and dreams of every living thing that never came to be. Condensed and sent shooting across the night sky in a dazzling final display. What appears to mortal beings as a meteor shower we can see for what it is: Azathoth's Tears."
Stolas then closed the portal after educating Octavia about the galactic meteor shower. Octavia giggled, "Daddy, can we go see it someday?" she asked, "Yes, dear. I promise, when the day comes nothing will be able to keep me from being there with you," Stolas cooed, cradling the young Octavia in his arms and then gently placing her on her bed and then giving her a friendly boop on her nose, "Good night, my Owlette," he added, closing the book and then leaving her room. Octavia yawned, "Good night!" she chirped before falling asleep.
A content look on her face, she giggled as she began to fall asleep.
Present day...
Octavia got to stay with Stolas. She looked happy as she eagerly got out of bed, crossed out a day and circled around a drawing of Stolas and her. Next to their faces was a drawing of the meteor shower. The starfall known as Azathoth's Tears was today. She rushed into the halls, putting on her boots, and was hopping down the halls in joy. She poked her head out of the kitchen, "Hey, dad!" she greeted. But to her confusion, Stolas was not present.
She looked all around the manor, making sure to leave no stone unturned. She couldn't find him, "Dad? Dad?" she called out. The teen owl then turned and heard Stolas' voice from an open foyer door, "Yes, I know! It will be there shortly. Of course, they're being careful," his voice said. Octavia then exited the manor and saw that Stolas was on the phone, an imp servant in his other hand. Imps were loading items into a van, "Dad, what's going on?" Octavia asked. Startled, the prince turned to his daughter, "Apparently, your mother can't exist somewhere for two minutes without the entirety of her possessions-"
His voice was cut off as Stella, on the other line, was yelling in response as he spoke, "What? No! I'm not turning her against you- Yes, Stella!" Stolas said. Through the phone, her voice came out saying the lines of "never have to see your fucking face again!"
Octavia approached her father, "Dad? This is going to be done before tonight, right?" she asked. Stolas turned to his daughter again, "What? Oh. I hardly think so. Knowing your mother, this will take all weekend," Stolas responded. He turned to the imps loading the car, "Don't be gentle about it, now! Break whatever you have to to get it all in there," he told them.
"What?! What did you just tell them?!" Stella screeched through the phone, "But tonight was supposed to-" Octavia began, but Stolas interrupted her, "Darling, can we not talk about this now? Your mother's being a real B-I-T-C-H." he said, using his fingers for quotations, "The fuck do you mean?" Stella's voice howled through the phone, having heard that, "Well, how was I supposed to know you can spell?! I've never seen you read!" Stolas lectured. Octavia watched her father walk to the van to help load the items. She nearly reached her hand out. Meanwhile, Stella's voice continued screaming, "I'm going to take everything! Everything you own!"
Octavia then began to run back to her room. Frustrated, she slammed the door behind her and toppled her telescope over. The telescope landing with a shatter of it's lens. Upon seeing the calendar of her special day, she ripped up her page and then threw it, yelling all the while. Panting and then calming down, she began to grab her backpack with her things and left the mansion.
At the I.M.P office, objects were being thrown at Blitzo. Apparently, today was the day he and Loona would "Have the Talk." And it wasn't going well as Loona was in a state of rage, "Loona, honey, wait just a- shit!" Blitzo sputtered before running as Loona went after him. Blitzo dodged the barrage of her attacks, "FUCK!" he shouted, but changed to, "Uh, I mean, wow! Good throw, honey! I-I'm so proud of youuuuuu!" Blitzo was tackled to the floor by the hellhound. Millie walked past her to the couch where Moxxie is sitting. He was pouring coffee. Loona's hand grabbed it off the imp's hand and handed a cup of coffee to his wife. Millie then sat on his lap.
"What's this all about, honey?" she asked, "Ah, oh! Blitzo finally talked to her about her attitude with clients," Moxxie answered, sipping from his cup. Blitzo then got behind the couch and pulled it forward, jumping and hiding behind it. Loona was growling as she lumbered slowly to Blitzo, "I just think some small tweaks might help you be more of a, uh, people person, you know?" the head imp quavered, "I am a people person!" Loona growled, reaching forward and grabbing Blitzo by the collar, pulling him close so that their faces met close, "If I'm so terrible, how about you just grow a pair and replace me?" she snarled.
"Okay, well, maybe I - Maybe I might," Blitzo stammered, "What?" Loona asked, raising her eyebrow. She knew that deep down, Blitzo wouldn't do such a thing as replace her. Blitzo looked back at Moxxie, who gave him a thumbs up with a grin. Blitzo turned back to the hellhound, "Maybe I will, little missy! Yeah that's right it's tough love time," Blitzo scolded, though it sounded forced, "So, now you can...go...to your desk!" he stammered, pointing to her desk. Loona growled and then just dropped him, heading back to her desk.
Momo was seen, trying a new meditative pose where he had the sword planted in the floor and remaining in the air high up. He had his eyes closed and he was muttering phrases, "Iie osore...iie kirai...iie ikari..." as a means to clear his mind. Once in awhile he would sing the phrase, "He is, he's the shining in the light without whom I cannot see. He is, insurrection he is spite, he's the force that made be," which was a verse from He Is by Ghost.
Draiman was sitting against the wall reading a magazine, Ghoul Monthly, which seemed to be a magazine for heavy metal enthusiasts. Mau5 and Thom were seen playing a game on a console that looked like a Nintendo Switch. Thom was watching but he was amused by Mau5 constantly getting fragged in online play, "Fuck! That's fucking horse shit! Oh fuck off!" Mau5 cursed.
Unbeknowst to them, Octavia snuck into the office and wrapped hair around her neck like a scarf as a disguise. No one had noticed her enter the office. As she snuck in, Moxxie helped his boss up onto the couch and rubbed his shoulders, "Sir, if I may say so; you're doing the right thing. If we can't even hire a cheerful qualified receptionist, how can people trust us to massacre and mutilate their enemies for them? It's good for business," Moxxie compliemented. Octavia hid behind a cactus, a printer, and stopped inches from a door, which was near Loona. Octavia halted when Loona spotted her, but she didn't bother and continued at her phone.
The teen owl then snuck into Blitzo's office and began to rummage around. She found nothing but then turned her neck 360 degrees, spotting a frame portrait of I.M.P all together. She moved it and found that hiding behind it was a safe. Considering how disorganized I.M.P's boss was, she figured so was security. She entered the code which was 1234 and the safe opened. Inside was her father's grimoire. She wondered why it was there in the first place. But she didn't think too much as she grabbed it and began flipping through the pages.
Octavia inhaled and then exhaled, "Take me to see the stars," she said. Doing so caused a pentagram to swirl around her and black swirls of power streamed through the ceiling. The light coming from the office caught Moxxie's attention, "Um, sir?" Moxxie spoke up. Blitzo, who had his eyes covered while he was resting with zucchinis, stired. The zucchini slices sliding off his eyes, "The fuck?" Blitzo said. The sound also caused Momo to lose his balance and fall to the floor, "Agh! Chikushou!" the oni cursed, rubbing his head. Draiman lowered his magazine and the cyberimps stopped playing their game, "What the fuck?" Thom said. The three imps squeezed through the door, their weapons drawn, just in time to see Octavia glance at them and then disappear through the portal.
"Looona!" Blitzo raised his voice, "Oh, yeah. You have a visitor," Loona said, nonchalantly. The two sinners and cyberimps entered as well, "Hey, what happened? What happened?" Momo exclaimed. He then noticed that the room had been ransacked, like someone had just gone through them, "What just happened?" Thom asked.
When Octavia began to come to and blinked her eyes open slowly, she noticed her hand was on a golden star on a stone surface, "Where am I?" she asked. Suddenly, someone vomited on the ground, causing the teen owl to move backwards and yelp in surprise. A corpse with an eye coming out of his head laid underneath Octavia. She must've accidentally crushed him after falling on him from the portal. The book was next to him. Octavia looked up as the portal closed. She grabbed the grimoire and then began to back up. She accidentally bumped into a clown behind her, "Whoa!" she cried out,
"This is my territory, bitch! Take your shitty costume and get the fuck off my corner!" the clown snarled before pushing Via away. This caused Octavia to stumble onto a car. She grabbed her things and ran across a cross walk while cars swerved and nearly hit her. She ran into a protest mob that was holding up signs. She dodged and tripped to the ground where two ladies were looking at her. Octavia was frightened and grabbed her grimoire and scrambled into an alleyway. She sat on her knees. She was breathing heavily and her heart was pounding. What was I thinking? Octavia thought.
Back in Hell, Blitzo was panicking, rocking in a fetal position, "Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" he shrieked, grabbing Moxxie, "What the fuck am I supposed to tell Stolas?!" he screamed. Blitzo was right. Somehow, Octavia had managed to sneak into the office and used the grimoire to portal to Satan knows where. Not even Momo noticed. He was both surprised and impressed, "I wonder how the hell she managed to get in here," Momo muttered, "Well, he seems to like you, sir. Maybe he would understand if -" Moxxie was cut off before Blitzo shoved him away, "Okay, my dick is good, but it is not that good, Moxxie," Blitzo complained, "Sir, I don't think we really have a choice," Moxxie informed.
"He's right, boss. Without the grimoire, we can't do our jobs," Thom mentioned, "So, what? You just want me to call him up and be like, "Hey, Stolas" -" Blitzo questioned, making a phone gesture, before Blitzo was on the phone, speaking to Stolas. He got more worried as he spoke, "So, your daughter came by, took your book, and teleported off to who the fuck knows where, and we have no way of getting either of them back, okay?! Okay! Good talk, byeee!" he said quickly before hanging up.
Blitzo then looked relieved. Moxxie on the other hand, still looked worried. Even Momo, the two cyber imps, and Draiman was tense, "Oh, that actually went better than I thought," Blitzo chirped, "Wow...jinxing much?" Momo reprimanded. And jinx was right because the door blew off, hitting the thespian imp. Momo dodged the debris and saw Stolas, standing there in his full demon form, "BLITZO!" he roared.
"Shit..." Draiman mumbled.
Back on Earth, Octavia was exploring the place she was in. She tried to talk to everyone for advice in an attempt to find a way to see Azathoth's tears, but to no avail, "Hey, do y- Can you help - h-how do I get ah - I - excuse me, I just need to know where I can..." she sighed as everyone ignored her and everything, "see the stars," she finished before groaning and rubbing her eyes, pulling her beanie over her face.
Suddenly, a pamphlet flew into her face. She pulled it off her face and looked at the pamphlet. It read.
STAR*STRUCK TOURZ
STALK YOUR FAVE CELEB!
Believing that she is one step closer to being able to see the stars, she gasped and hugged the pamphlet, "Yes!" she whooped. Expanding it back out, she ran to the nearest tour bus.
Back in Hell, Stolas was pacing back and forth, clearly stressed that Octavia has taken the book and teleported to Satan knows where, "How could this happen?! Do you just let anyone waltz into your office and grab infinitely powerful artifacts?!" Stolas cried. His voice was a mixture of frustration and worry. He clutched his hat worriedly, "Why would she do this? How are we supposed to find her? Where would she go?" the prince added worriedly. Momo wish he had something to say. But he didn't.
Loona sniffed the air for a minute, "Well, it reeks of urine and desperation so..." she said, waving her hand in front of her face as if she it stank so much. She sniffed again before plugging her nose in disgust, "Ugh...L.A." Loona concluded. Everyone looked at the hellhound receptionist in surprise, "What?" she said, "Um...what's L.A?" Momo asked. Then everyone looked at Momo, "What? I'm from Japan. I wouldn't know what that is. And if I did, I wouldn't bother looking into it since we're mostly on contract kills," Momo defended.
"L.A is Los Angeles. As for what it is, I think you're about to find out," Draiman told the oni.
The next thing they knew, Stolas made a portal to L.A and Loona was shoved through the portal, with the rest of I.M.P following through, "Alright, Loona, let's make this quick. In and out before anyone notices us here," Blitzo instructed. They then heard the sounds of gunfire and screaming as the imp looked around the alley, "Oh. This doesn't look much different from Hell," he noted before brushing stuff of his uniform, "Alright, now let's get to work. Loonie, sniff!" Blitzo told Loona.
Loona got up, "How am I supposed to smell anything in this city?" she asked, taking an empty can off her hair and throwing it aside, "Can't you even do one thing right?" Moxxie asked, "Can't you finally do something about how fat you are?" Loona ribbed, smiling and pointing smugly at the thespian imp, "I'm not -"
"You know, it wouldn't kill you to put a salad in your body every now and then," Blitzo chimed in smugly, cutting Moxxie off. Draiman howled with laughter at the insult, "May I make a recommendation? How about something with everyone's favorite food: SOI SOI SOI SOI SOI SOI SOI SOI SOI SOI SOI SOI!" Mau5 chimed in on the insult, his face showing an LCD of a helicopter from the upgrade few years ago, "ROFLMAO XD!" the automaton imp cheered. Thom facepalmed, "For fuck's sake, Mau5," Thom said, "What? But, I'm not fat!" Moxxie protested.
"Guys, guys! Let's not start. And as much as I want to ridicule Moxxie, which I never do, Loona has a point. Draiman, what's L.A known for to your knowledge?" the oni asked the metallic Sinner, "I do know that smog is ever present here in this state," he answered. Momo snapped his fingers, "That must be why. The polluted air is what's preventing Loona from using her scent. That and the mixture of urine and other pollutants would completely block it off," Momo hypothesized, "Looks like this isn't gonna be easy," Thom noted.
Blitzo jumped up on a dumpster and taped a picture on the open lid. It was a drawing of I.M.P with Loona, Momo, and Draiman in their human disguises, with Stolas having a fake mustache. He took out a stick and pointed to the picture, "Now, first things first. If we're gonna do this the old-fashioned way, we're gonna need disguises," Blitzo instructed. Loona and Stolas immediately began to transform into their human disguises. Something about it made Momo think this referenced a certain magical girl anime.
Momo looked at Stolas with awe. Stolas chuckled at the reaction, "Oh wow...if I was a student, you'd almost be my teacher in high school," Momo sputtered. Momo and Draiman were next. Only their poses were references to tokusatsus from booth Japan and America, complete with the transformation sound effect of the first Kamen Rider for Momo and a sound effect for Draiman that wouldn't feel out of place in Power Rangers.
Millie clapped in amazement while Moxxie looked unimpressed. Blitzo's eyes widened and blushed upon seeing Stolas' human disguise for the first time, "No chance you can conjure us a couple of those, can ya?" Blitzo asked, shrugging, "Sadly, no. I'm afraid without my grimoire, my powers are just a tad limited in the human world," Stolas explained. Blitzo looked at him as if to say, "seriously?"
"What, you can't memorize your fucking spells?" Blitzo sassed, "Oh, your memory's so great? What's his phone number?" Stolas questioned, gesturing to Moxxie. Blitzo didn't have an answer to that as his memory was just as bad than Stolas', "Fuck you," Blitzo grumbleded defeatedly, "Exactly," Stolas ribbed, smiling smugly. I.M.P and Stolas strolled out of the alleyway and the Goetia prince grabbed a pair of red-tinted sunglasses which he put on his head, to replicate his second pair of eyes on his head.
Millie was dragging Moxxie along when the thespian assassin, ran into a human, "Hey, little man. How about you check out this demo right here? This is some premium Grade-A fire right here! Perfect for you to crank with the little lady," the human said, giving Moxxie a demo CD and pulling him and Millie close to him. Millie had a face of obvious displeasure. Moxxie on the other hand, was ecstatic about it, "Oh, wow! You made this? Thank you," Moxxie said before walking away. The imp couple walked away, but the guy followed and stopped them, "Oh, hey, hey, hey. Hold up a sec, you just gonna grab it and go?" he demanded, "He said thank you," Millie argued, "Twenty bucks, man," the guy countered, holding up his hand.
Moxxie grabbed Millie's face, looked desperate in her face, "Millie, we need money to pay this talented artist!" Moxxie whined. Millie watched as the rest of the group walked past the corner without them until they were out of sight, "You can just give it back, Mox," she offered. Upon hearing this, Moxxie gasped and then dashed behind a tree, crouching and holding the CD close, "Millie! These artists put their heart and soul into their work! I can't just give it back like it's worthless!" Moxxie protested. A squirrel crawled over and was sniffing at him. In response, Moxxie hissed and swiped at the squirrel.
"It probably is," Millie said matter-of-factly. The music artist looked at her as if to say, "what the hell."
A woman passed by and flipped Moxxie a coin, "Sick demon costume, man! It's metal as fuck!" the woman complimented before walking away, throwing the heavy metal signs as she did so. Moxxie watched her go and then at the coin he received. He then stood up, "I have an ide-" Moxxie began before his coin flip flopped and accidentally dropping it. He chased after it and collected it. Millie rubbed her forehead in annoyance. He then flipped it again, this time successfully, "I have an idea!" Moxxie declared, holding up the coin.
Back with Octavia, she was on the bus. It seemed that the bus ride to where she could see the stars was leading her nowhere. She groaned and looked up to the sky. The tour guide meanwhile was speaking, "And to your left, you'll see the home of one of those influencers who thinks they're hot shit cause now they do TV shows," the tour guide said. A man was laying prostrated on the ground crying and begging to a woman and her kid before they boarded the limo and it drove away. The man then stood up and kissed another man in a pink bathrobe. Octavia groaned and turned away, pulling her beanie down over her eyes.
Back with I.M.P, Stolas stepped out of a store labeled, "Little Costume Shop of Horrors". Blitzo stepped out of it as Momo, Draiman, Thom, and Mau5 were waiting on him. Blitzo was wearing a pink shirt, blue jeans, and a wig. His horns were covered with frankly gigantic ears. The prince looked up at him as Blitzo gestured to himself, "So?" the imp asked. Momo looked at the disguise, "Uh...I'm not sure if the ears look right. I think they make you stand out from the crowd.
Suddenly, a woman was heard screaming in excitement. Momo turned around to see what the woman was screaming at, "Look, everyone! It's Holly's Wood star, Brennon Ragers!" she cried with excitement, "The fuck is a Brendon Rager -" Blitzo asked before looking up at the billboard, "Oh," he muttered. On the billboard was promotion for a TV show, "Sweetie! I'm in the House! Guest starring Brennon Ragers." It seemed Blitzo's disguise made him look like the Hollywood star himself.
The four looked at the billboard, eyes widened, "Oh, dear," Stolas said.
Momo sighed in frustration, "Blitzo...baka,"
Almost immediately, like a swarm of hornets circling a beehive as their prey, mobbed Blitzo, taking pictures and begging for things as the imp tried to escape. He reached out from the crowd swarm and looked around for any sign of Millie and Moxxie, "Millie, where are you and your whore bag husband?!" Blitzo shouted before he was pulled back in.
Millie and Moxxie meanwhile were singing a song to a couple and passerbies as they stood together to witness the demon couple's performance. The musician was looking miffed.
Moxxie and Millie: You're my lovely little monster, and I'll never say goodbye. I will kill for you, until the day we die.
The crowd cheered, throwing roses and money to Moxxie as he bowed. He pointed to the money collected to Millie. She was less than impressed as she rolled her eyes. He then gave the money he earned to the musician, "And, here you are, my fellow Troubadour," Moxxie chorused. The musician was annoyed. He snatched the mug full of coins, "Whatever, man. Get the fuck outta here, you're cramping my business," he snapped, pushing Moxxie aside and leaving.
"Come on, babe! We have to catch up to Blitzo before -" Millie couldn't finish as she ran face first into a mural, "Ayyy, wanna buy some art?" the saleman greeted. Moxxie saw a flyer, "Wha? YES!" Moxxie chirped, his eyes sparkling. Millie facepalmed.
The crowd was still surrounding Blitzo, this time they were holding the imp into the air, "I'm taking this out of their pay!" Blitzo shouted in frustration. Momo and Draiman went over to try to diffuse the situation with the cyberimps trampled when a truck pulled over and the back doors opened, revealing several agents. A man blew his whistle with a diploma in his hand and at last, the crowd let the imp go. A producer approached the assassin imp, holding a bag of fruit snacks, "Mr. Ragers, we've been looking for you everywhere. You were supposed to be on set an hour ago!" said the producer. The agents grabbed Blitzo in between their arms, "The fuck are you talking about?" he demanded, "Your guest spot on Sweetie! I'm in the House!" the producer answered, eating a fruit snack. An ad for it popped up for the show then vanished.
"We're taping tonight. Now, hurry up and get in the car!" the producer ordered, "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no! I'm not going anywhere with you, jizz-biscuit!" Blitzo hissed, smiling smugly and flipping him off, "Very funny, Mr. Ragers. Now, get in the car," the producer coaxed, trying to lure him with a fruit snack, as if the imp was an animal, "Come on, boy, come on,"
Draiman saw this and facepalmed at the fact that a human was resorting to a trick like that, "Really?" he exasperated, sighing.
"Get your fucking hands off me!" Blitzo snarled, breaking free for a brief moment before he was grabbed again and lifted from the air, the force causing the decorative ears to fall off and land on one of the crowd members who began to fight over it., "Loona! Stolas! Momo! Draiman! Cyberimps! A little help here?!" he shouted. Stolas tried to get through, "E-excuse me, sir. I'm… Mr. Ragers' agent," the prince stammered, "and I don't believe you can just-" An agent grabbed him from behind Stolas. "Oh! You are strong!" Stolas complimented
Both of them were thrown into the back of the car. Blitzo growled and tried to leap his way out, but the back doors closed before he can make his escape. Stolas knew that without the grimoire, he was powerless to do anything, "Blitzo, we don't have time for this. Via could be anywhere. She could be in danger," the Goetia lamented. Blitzo knew that since Momo, Draiman, Thom, and Mau5 were the only ones around to do the job and Satan knowing where Moxxie and Millie were, they had to find Via at once, "Don't worry, I'm on it," Blitzo assured the prince.
The imp smashed his head from the window and spotted Loona punching the people in the crowd and the samurai yakuza trying to get out of the crowd, "Loonie, Momo, and friends, go find Via! We'll catch up soon!" Blitzo called out. Loona just flipped him off. Blitzo took it as a yes, "Yeah! Way to be a team player, sweetie!" Blitzo called out proudly, giving her a thumbs up. He turned to the prince, "She's in great hands," Blitzo consoled Stolas.
Momo understood the objective, if they could just get out of the crowd. Draiman then took out a machine gun, raised it in the air, and fired in the air. This caused the crowd to disperse, running away screaming, "Alright, celebrations over, dirtbags!" Draiman shouted as they ran away. Momo looked around and found an alleyway, "Quick guys, in here!" he instructed.
The remaining group ran into an alleyway and turned a corner where a dead end was at. Momo looked around to see if anyone followed. He then sighed. Loona, as usual, was playing on her phone. Momo then turned to his comrades, "Okay, so I think we need to cover ground and begin searching for Octavia. We'll split up into teams of two. I'll be with Loona to help out. Do each of you, minus Loona since she has one, have hellphones on you?" Momo asked. Draiman, Thom, and Mau5 showed their phones.
"Okay good. If any of you find Via, contact us right away. Now, get searching on the double." Momo instructed. "You got it," Thom said. The three took their leave. Momo and Loona then began their search for Octavia. Though Loona didn't seem interested at first though as she'd rather not be finding her at the moment, "Hey Momo," Loona asked. The oni turned to the hellhound, "Yes?" he said, "Why don't you go on ahead and look for her. I can handle myself," Loona suggested. Momo thought for a minute, "Alright. I'll keep you posted if I find anything," the yakuza assured before dashing off.
Octavia was seen walking out of the tour bus alongside the crowd. Octavia, annoyed that the bus went nowhere, ripped the pamphlet in half and proceeded to walk away from the group. She didn't notice that she walked into a crime scene, stepping on a corpse and proceeding to stroll forward. She continued walking, ignoring the stares of locals until she saw a sign with an enchanted owl that said, Star Owl: Souvenir Shop. Smiling and believing she was one step closer, Via took a picture of the sign and proceed to walk off. She slowly stopped to take a look at what was in the store, with a box labeled as Starstruck.
At a building which was called Starstruck Studios, one agent had Stolas slung over his shoulder while the other agents were struggling to drag Blitzo inside, who was resisting. Blitzo was struggling furiously, even biting the entryway so he could escape, but it didn't work, and he was pulled inside. The paparazzi was around him and he was thrown into a chair in a makeup room, "Let's get him ready! He's on in five!" ordered the producer, clapping his hands and pointing at his watch, "What? "Five" what? I-I can't be on a sitcom!" Blitzo pleaded before he was struck with a powder pad and engulfing him in pink smoke. After that, both him, the producer, and Stolas were backstage. The prince was holding water bottles. Blitzo tugged on the shirt he was wearing.
"Should've had an ego crisis before signing the contract," the producer responded, "I-I-I… Whoa-, I don't even know the fucking lines, idiot!" Blitzo shot back at the producer, stammering, "Well, that's why God invented teleprompters!" said the producer. A guy on a teleprompter was leaning against it before he accidentally broke it down and he got electrocuted. Stolas was growling ferociously at the producer at this point, "Shouldn't he rehearse or something?" Stolas asked, "No can do, we're live in 10, 9 -" the producer left and began counting down.
At the thought of performing again, after the events that have transpired in the past, Blitzo began to hyperventilate, "Oh, shit! Oh, shit! Oh, shit! Oh, shit! I-I... I can't do this. No, not again. I-I haven't performed since-" Blitzo panicked, but Stolas boldly approached the imp, "Blitzo, if your performance on stage is half as good as it is in bed, you'll leave them breathless," Stolas encouraged, whispering sultry into his ear and stroke his face. Blitzo gulped.
"Now, hurry up and wow them, so we can get back to finding Via," Stolas said, pushing the imp onto the set, "Break a leg, darling!" Stolas encouraged before he quickly closed the door and going onto the audience stands to watch. The lights turned on before the imp could respond and he then looked at the audience, "Action!" the producer announced. The sound of sitcom music was playing and Blitzo saw the actor sitting on the couch, "Well, if it isn't our neighbor, Ronnie. You feel that earthquake earlier?" he asked, pointing to the back.
Blitzo looked towards the stage crew and the audience looking at him. He was nervous about the whole thing, "Say something," the Goetia whispered for encouragement. Blitzo decided to try and read the teleprompter, though he was sweating profusely at playing along," Oh, yea? Yeah. "That was just my wife rolling out of bed." Blitzo began. Stolas looked at the audience nervously, who was unresponsive and looking at the set with straight faces. Then, they laughed instantly. The imp smiled at their reaction. Though he was unaware that the signs were telling people to laugh above the set.
"Yeah, yeah!" This time Blitzo was enthusiastic, "Yeah, and then that bitch hit her head on the way down and shattered her skull!" he said. No one was laughing, except for Stolas, who was finding this funny, "There's blood everywhere... pee in her pants..." the imp replied. The signs aboce said, "Srsly, laugh anyway," and the audience decided to laugh anyway. Blitzo was now confident and winked at Stolas, who was blushing and chugging a bottle of the acid water.
Back with Loona, she was sipping coffee and looking up Sinstagram on her phone. She walked around the city as a song was playing on her phone. She stopped when she spotted the Star Owl: Souvenir Shop sign on the wall. She admired the look and then took a selfie with it to post it on Sinstagram. After posting the picture, she began scrolling down on her feed while she sipped her coffee. She then noticed that Octavia was at the same location and posted the selfie like she did. In surprise, Loona spat our her coffee and looked at Octavia's profile. Loona looked at the recent posts she made of the pictures she took throughout the city of Los Angeles.
One post the hellhound looked at showed the owl teen at a castle she was nearby, with a caption that red, "Found a cool looking castle, reminds me of home..." which was posted two minutes ago. Loona looked behind her and saw that the same castle from the post was right behind her. She was right behind her that tine. She looked at the castle and then the coffee, before crushing it and running towards the castle.
Loona tried to find Octavia, but then her phone went off again, with another post showing that Via was at another location. But each time, Loona couldn't find her. At one point when another post was made, Loona thought she found Octavia in front of the Holly's Wood sign, but it turned out to be a human who looked like Octavia. Post after post, Loona still had no luck searching for Octavia. Finally, it appears that Via was at an observatory and continued her search.
Momo meanwhile was using his ninja skills to leap rooftops in an attempt to find Octavia. His feet landed on the roofttop of a stadium. As he was about to make his next sprint, he heard a sound. It sounded like people cheering and music playing. The sounds of a guitar and bass strumming were heard from the ground on top of the stadium roof. He then put his ears on the floor. It was heavy metal playing and people cheering. But what intrigued Momo for a second was who was playing. It was Ghost, one of the many bands he had heard during his time alive as part of the Senbyakuryu clan. One of the few English speaking bands he heard before.
But then he started to feel as if something felt calm. What? What is this? He thought. He felt the bloodlust and rage that he had during all his time in Hell, suffering for eternity, suddenly leave him. But that couldn't be. Heavy metal usually sounded violent and motivational. The song he heard in question was Cirice. He decided to sit in a meditative state before resuming his search. As the song continued, he began to sing them too with the song nearing the end. At one point, he stood up, singing along.
Momo: Can't you see that you're lost without me?
I can feel the thunder that's breaking in your heart.
I can see through the scars inside you.
I can feel the thunder that's breaking in your heart.
I can see through the scars inside youuuuuuuuuuuu whooooaaaaa!
(I can feel the thunder that's breaking in your heart.)
I can see through the scars inside you.
I can feel the thunder that's breaking in your heart.
I can see through the scars inside you.
Upon hearing the audience cheer from the rumbling on the roof, Momo opened his eyes. Feeling a new wave of relief and a quiet determination, he went on to resume his search for Octavia. During this, he heard his phone ring, and answered it, "Moshi moshi?" he answered, "Momo? Come to the observatory?" Loona instructed, "Ossu?" the oni answered, "I think Octavia is at that location. I've been following her posts," Loona reported, "When you find her, keep safe til I arrived. I'll begin contacting the others ASAP," Momo said, "You got it. Over and out," Loona replied before hanging up.
Momo stretched his arms, "I just hope we're not too late," he hoped. As he leaped from building while looking at Octavia's posts on Sinstagram to follow the footprints, he contacted Draiman, Thom, and Mau5 of the teen's whereabouts.
Draiman was picking a fight with several gang members in an attempt to gain info from them of where Octavia was. He was about to punch one of them when his phone rumbled. He dropped the gang member and looked at his phone before turning to the gang, "Uh...hold on a second," he told them. He answered, "What is it Momo? This is a bad time. I got my hands full...What?...Octavia may have been found? Where?...The observatory?...Gotcha, I'll meet you there on the double,"
Draiman dropped the guy and began to leave. The gang members saw this as an opportunity to attack, but Draiman turned into his demon form, revealing his metallic angel-esque wings as an intimidation display. The gang members saw this and screamed in surprise, "Don't even think about. You can't afford to anger an angel of judgement, where your souls be damned," Draiman threatened before leaving.
Thom and Mau5 were at an internet cafe where the latter was going undercover in case Octavia's whereabouts were found. Mau5 was playing the same game from earlier on a computer and was still getting fragged, "Die asshole! Eat my shit, prudes! This is horseshit! Oh fuck off! This game is garbage!" Mau5 cursed, as the players continued fragging him. Thom facepalmed. It lucky that since it was October, that and the people in L.A were apparently stupid, that the humans paid no mind to the automaton imps. But Mau5 being here seemed like they were just wasting time.
Suddenly, Thom's phone vibrated and he saw a text from Momo. That Octavia may have been found, "What the fuck?! What a fucking cumbucket!" Mau5 shouted. That was enough for the two cyber imps to be kicked out of the place for foul language, "And stay out!" barked the employee, "Whats his problem anyway?" Mau5 asked, "Probably it's because you said cumbucket typically," Thom deadpanned, which sounded natural due to their Microsoft voices, "Anyway, I think they found Octavia. We better get a move on," Thom ordered.
Back at the studio, the audience, having listened enough of Blitzo's humor, were either bored, disturbed, or mentally scarred. Stolas was also looking troubled. Blitzo was still putting on an act for the audience. This time with a pug who seems to have urinated on the set's couch, "Oh, Uggie! You've gone and done it again. That's the fifth couch this year!" Blitzo said. The screens above the set were still advising the audience to laugh. Most were struggling to do so. One seems to laugh out of insanity before foaming at the mouth and passing out.
"You know, maybe it's about time I found you a new home, one that could put up with your attitude," Blitzo coddled, booping the pug's nose. As Blitzo took out a leash and putting it on, other actors appeared on set, "I could take him, Mr. Ronnie! I'd be happy to adopt old Uggie and give him the attention he needs!"offered the child actress. The spotlight then centered on them and the audience could be heard, awwing them, "Yeah... yeah, m-maybe, you should adopt..." Blitzo mumbled as he looked at Uggie, where he begins to have a flashback to several years prior.
Blitzo was looking in a cell with a bunch of hellhounds, one of them resembling present day Uggie. Blitzo was at a center for hellhound adoptions, "Aww, they're all so cute. And they're... sad," Blitzo grieved, "Maybe you could adopt this one here. Quite a strong lad, he'll be perfect for whatever work you want to use him for," said the adoption lady. The imp set his sights on a dog he was recommened. His look of excitement recoiled to digust after seeing the hound's face.
"Ugh! No, I'm not looking for no ugly wonker, heh. I need something that's more family-friendly," Blitzo hesitated, "A gift for the wife, huh? No problem. We have a nice selection for other hounds," the lady deadpanned. As they continued to walk, Blitz stopped for a moment to look at the next cell in front of him, "Who's that?" he asked, pointing to the cell. In the cell was an angry teenage Loona texting on her phone. She was growling in rage at a younger hound who was holding a bat full of nails, wanting her phone, "Oh, her? That's just Loona. What a nightmare," the lady deadpanned.
The younger hound was thrown against the cell bars, with Loona panting furiously before crawling back into her space, sitting with her arms around her knees, "Serious attitude problems," the lady reported. Blitzo observed Loona. He saw her face turn from anger to sadness as she crawled up, "She'll be out of our hair next month when she ages out. "Good riddance, if you ask me. She'll never amount to anything much," the lady deadpanned as tears streammed from Loona's face and Blitzo had a sympathetic look on his face.
Blitzo then snapped, taking the pug to himself and hugging it close. It seems that this causing Blitzo to have a breakdown, having been reminded of seeing Loona, his adopted daughter, showing the sad look when the words from the adoption lady continued to haunt him, "No. No, no, no, you can't have her! She's mine, and I love her!" Blitzo shouted. The signs above changed to "Laugh" to "Awww?" as this seems to move the audience. Stolas on the other hand was confused. Blitzo seemed to be having a panic attack from the reminiscence.
"But, Mr. Ronnie, you gotta let me have the puppy. You just gotta!" the child actress begged. Blitzo hissed at her, not letting her even near Uggie. "Don't you touch her, you little anal fissure!" he snarled, pointing at . The child actress stepped back, grinning before angrily steppying away from the scene. The audience could be heard laughing. Having seen what Loona had been through, this offended Blitzo, "Oh, you think this is funny, assholes?!" Blitzo exploded. The child actress was attempting to walk away from his outburts, "She's not fit to be a mother! I saw her doing lines of coke in her dressing room!" the imp stormed. Seeing as Blitzo was breaking character, the producer sent his agents to try and deal with him.
"Now, uh...Ronnie. I think maybe you should-" the female actress began and tried to take Uggie from Blitzo, but he smacked her off of him, as well as the wig on her head, "No! You can't have my baby, bitch!" Blitzo screamed. As the agents were about to corner the imp, the assassin pulled out his flintlock pistol, alarming the audience, "I'LL NEVER GET RID OF HER!" Blitzo raged at the top of his lungs. As the agents were piling on top of the imp, he shoots several of them in the head, but he is still trapped within the crowd. Stolas then tried to go save the imp, "I'm coming, Bliiiitzo!" Stolas yelped as he tripped, "Excuse me! Would you mind?!" he said.
The Goetia prince tried to move through the crowd to get to Blitzo, but he was pushed back. Fed up with this, he grabbed one of his water bottles and threw it across the room. It hit the producer. Since the water bottle was acidic, it began to burn his skin. Screaming in agony, he fell onto the teleprompter, causing the stage to catch fire. This causes the crowd to panic and run around screaming. Stolas accidentally gets knocked aside by the crowd, almost falling into the raging inferno, but Blitzo caught his arm.
Blitzo had his gun in his hand and his shirt ripped in half, showing his chest, "Now, let's go find our daughters," Blitzo vowed as an explosion was seen behind him. This made him almost like an action hero, causing Stolas to blush. The two began to make their way out of the building as the studio caught fire and was now burning down.
(soft version of Mary on a Cross - Ghost)
At the observatory, Loona was still searching for Octavia. She had stopped posting, which could mean that the trail may be in the right direction. Loona glanced to her left and then looked at the staircase to see a crying Octavia by herself. She then approached the owl teen, demorphing back into her hellhound form, "Hey," Loona greeted, walking up the steps. Octavia sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes, before turning away, "Hey," Via greeted back sullenly. Octavia wondered how someone else was looking for her, "How did you find me?" she asked. Loona leaned on the railing.
"Your Sinstagram. Nice pics by the way," Loona complimented, showing Via the pictures on her phone, "Oh, thanks," Octavia sniffled. The hellhound could tell the owlette had been crying this whole time, "You okay?" she asked, "Can't believe I was so stupid. I spent all day looking for a place where I could see some dumb meteor shower. And all I get is...this!" Octavia wailed, gesturing at the smog covered city in the distance, "Yeah, smog's a bitch," Loona agreed. She attempted to light a cigarette, but no flames were coming out. Octavia then snapped her finger and a flame for her cigarette. The hellhound took a smoke, some of it getting on the owlette's face from the wind blowing.
"Yo, am I late?" a voice said. Octavia and Loona looked up to see Momo on the rooftop of the observatory. He dropped down next to them. Octavia looked at the oni samurai, noticing that he looked different than when she last saw him, "Momo?" she asked, "Yeah. I maybe different, but I'm still the same guy," he assured her. He leaned on the railing as well. The three looked out at the smog covered city.
"You know, your dad's really worried about you," Loona told Octavia. She sat next to her on the ledge. Octavia just scoffed, "Right! That's why you're here instead of him. He couldn't be bothered to keep his promise, and now he can't be bothered to come and get me himself. He'd rather spend his time just screaming at my mum. Why does he hate her more than he loves me?" Octavia lamented, sniffling. There was a long silence between the three. Momo closed his eyes and sighed. It seems Octavia is slowly learning what Stella was becoming. And the fact that, just like Paimon, Stella had inherited the king's traits, whereas Stolas never did. Loona extracted her cigarette and exhaled smoke
"Sometimes... sometimes it's not as simple as that. This kind of shit gets messy, and everybody's got issues, especially dads. And sometimes they fuck up - well, all the time. But, that doesn't mean they don't care," Loona said, "If he cares, where is he?" Octavia questioned, "He's somwhere down there," Loona answered, "He's here?" Octavia wondered. Momo nodded, "Looking for you. I mean..." she paused to smoke her cigarette once more, "Try to cut your dad some slack," Loona advised. The hellhound continued to light up her lighter, and a flame finally lit up, "He may not always get it right, but... he's trying," she said, looking at the lighter with the I.M.P logo on it. She looked at the teen with a smile, "That's more important than you think," she said.
Octavia looked at her and Momo by surprise. She then noticed a light shining on her face. It was coming from the moon when a bit of the smog cleared up. Momo watched the moon with them. They talked for awhile. He apologized for Loona for being late, "Doesn't matter. We found her, that's all it matters," Loona assured the yakuza. Momo explained that he landed on the rooftop of the stadium and heard metal music playing. He heard that there was a concert going on inside. That band in particular was Ghost. And he described how somehow, the sounds of heavy metal had a calming effect on his inner bloodlust that he had been suffering from.
"Well, I did learn that heavy metal tends to reduce negative emotions," the hellhound answered. As for Octavia, he explained that the past came back to haunt him during his and Verosika's date. Even Octavia was surprised, "No way. You're dating the pop star?" she asked, "Yep. Bet you didn't expect that. And then Orochi came to try to drag me back. But I killed him. And that's why I have been feeling the rage and bloodlust from within...and why my face looks different without the mask," Momo explained. Octavia giggled. Perhaps there was more to Mum than it seems, Octavia thought. She was willing to cut her dad some slack thanks to Loona's words.
Loona turned off her light and threw away her cigarette. She stood up and stretched, "You ready to go?" she asked, offering her hand. Octavia instead gave the hellhound the grimoire, "Yeah," she answered, standing up. Loona offered her hand again, but this time, she was greeted by a hug from Octavia. Loona returned the favor, smiling. Momo joined in, both of them not minding, "Heh. It's like we became brothers and sisters now," Momo chirped. It was then Draiman and the cyberimps arrived, "So...what did I miss?"
Blitzo and Stolas were seeing using his phone to use the maps app after having escaped the studio burning down, "Now, if we could just find where..." Blitzo was interrupted when a portal appeared in front of them. Loona came out of the portal, "Loona!" Blitzo cried. Her hand was carrying Octavia's as the two exited the portal. Momo, Draiman, Thom, and Mau5 exited the portal, "Oh, Loona, my sweet baby girl! I'm so sorry, I'll never replace you no matter what you-" as the imp went to his adopted daughter, Loona furiously kicked him in the groin. He went down on the ground wincing in pain. She smirked at this before turning to Octavia, "You're good," she said.
Stolas looked at Blitzo who was in pain before turning to Octavia, "Dad...I'm so sorry," she apologized. She had expected her dad to yell at her. But instead of doing that, Stolas ran up and hugged her, reverting back to his demon form, clearly relieved that Octavia was unharmed, "I'm just relieved you're okay!" the prince cheered in joy, "But, what would possess you to do such a thing? You know I haven't taught you spells like this yet."
"I just wanted to see the stars you promised," Octavia explained, "The stars?" the prince asked, confused. But then it hit him. He gasped. The starfall was today, "Azathoth's tears! Oh, no. Oh, my dear sweet Via. I am so-" he apologized, which Octavia stopped him by hugging him, "I know, dad. It's okay, you're here now," the teen assured him. The Goetia prince returned the hug. Loona was watching happily at the scene. Blitzo tried to hug her, in response, she smacked him with his book, a smug smile on her face. But she knew that Blitzo was at least trying as a dad, despite his issues.
Momo heard the name Azathoth's Tears. First the alleged legend of Cthulhu resting in the Envy ring, now the mention of Azathoth. Did the legends of the Great Old Ones turn out to be real?
"Well, all's well that ends well," Thom noted. Suddenly, a faint glow lit up in the sky. The group saw fireworks exploding in the sky. Loona began to record this on her phone, "What the fuck is that?" Loona marveled, "My acting career," Blitzo groaned, crossing his arms, "And my kill/death ratio," Mau5 joined in, earning him a smack on the head from Thom, "Ow! No hitting!" Momo chuckled. Octavia and Stolas looked in awe at the fireworks exploding in the air in magnificent colors, "Look at that one! Did you see that one?" Via gasped happily, "Now, where the fuck are M n' M?" Blitzo asked.
The two imp couples were seen in an alley. Moxxie was following Millie, dragging a heavy bag filled with art paraphernalia. Millie was texting on her phone.
Blitzo: B1TCH were u ?
Millie: Near the alley! Portal Plz :-) 3
Blitzo: kk I gotchu
Blitzo: Mackin Stols do it now.
Millie: Thx!
"Art is heavy!" Moxxie complained, dragging the back as the portal opened. But before Moxxie could enter the portal, he is stopped by another music salesman, wanting to sell another demo CD. Moxxie took out the money to pay him, but Millie, finally fed up with Moxxie's foolishness, killed the salesman by throwing a knife at his skull. She then grabbed the CD and threw it into the street. Millie grabbed Moxxie and turned him around to face the portal, "March, mister!" she ordered, pointing at the portal.
The thespian sadly walked into the portal, but Millie carried him into it, leaving the bag behind.
After work back in Hell, Momo was on the rooftops of a building in Hell. The face he had learned from Loona heavy metal seems to have a calming effect on the psyche, this gave him a few ideas. He looked at the money he had made during their assassinations. He might just have enough money to pull this off.
There was a music store that Momo had decided to visit. He looked around for a sick looking guitar. He looked around and then laid eyes on what was a guitar. The design of the guitar was like that of a heavy metal battle axe. One that any Sinner or human would see in the many cover arts for CDs. The guitar cost 50 souls.
After acquiring it, Momo decided to head back home and pluck the strings of it. He felt the waves calm him. He felt that perhaps he had found a new way to calm the bloodlust from within. But then an idea hit him. If he had a whole cover band that made song covers of many metal songs, perhaps he could use it to make more money and once and for all quell the bloodlust. And he knew three other people for the job.
And now...words uttered by Momo in Japanese...
Iie osore...iie kirai...iie ikari... - No fear...no hate...no anger
chikushou - goddamnit
baka - idiot
moshi moshi - a form of greetings
ossu? - what's up?
Another chapter down. Now next time, we move on to another chapter where the I.M.P crew deal with another shitty father. Keep on rocking folks. And stay tuned, because we're getting another addition to I.M.P