Alastor didn't like taking orders from people. It simply wasn't his style,especially for long periods of time. Once or twice was tolerable but he got on his nerves and having to abide by Satan's commands and take out those who were 'disloyal' to him didn't exactly please Alastor one bit.
Striker's drunken rambling was more or less the final nail in the coffin.
Because if Al didn't already have doubts about working under Satan, Striker certainly helped solidify his doubts tenfold with his drunken confession. Satan's treatment of his subordinates who expressed different desires from his was to kill them without a second thought and then find newer ones to take their place. They were all just tools to him and Al wasn't intent on ending up like Striker and his old partner.
And Al had fallen into the same trap. Only difference was that he was fresh blood and Satan didn't have him fooled like the rest. He had questioned him from the start and no doubt Satan was eager to test his 'loyalty' towards him to see if he was worth the risk.
He had an awful feeling about today, more than usual. He just knew something bad would happen, an itch on his body just wouldn't go away and it was as if his body knew things were about to go down.
He had told Niffty about what Striker said, despite not being able to see the smaller woman's expression he could tell that she wasn't that shocked and seemed to almost expect something like this to happen behind closed doors.
Guess he wasn't the only one having deep suspicions about this place and Alastor was more than eager to leave, though he knew better than to announce his departure considering what had happened to those who had tried outright leaving Satan before.
"Niffty darling, there's a meeting today…" Al said,"I believe Satan's going to…put my loyalty to the test. He's rather unpredictable so we should be on guard."
"It'll be fine, Al. There's nothing to worry about…"
"But he might try and make me…hurt you…And I don't want to do that…"
"Don't worry, we're gonna be alright. We're going to find a way out of this in one piece.."
"But what if-"
"Don't think about it, Al. We're going to be fine. I promise. There's always a way out of these types of situations. We'll find ours soon enough…"
"I hope you're right…" He mumbled,"Come on, let's get going before we upset that wrathful beast for being late…"
"Agreed."
They soon heard out and walked towards Satan's throne room. Several of Satan's closest servants stood there, awaiting their arrival.
The tension when they got in the room was potent and Al didn't need his eyes to see that their eyes were on him. He could feel Satan's glare on his every move and he had to do his best not to show any sign of discomfort in front of them. He couldn't falter, not here anyway.
Remaining calm, he stood tall and in a completely calm voice said,"Hello Satan. What is the reason that you have summoned us?"
"Ah, Alastor. Still bold as always…" Satan chuckled, seeming more amused by Alastor's lack of fear if anything,"How quaint. I would've thought you would've faltered a bit by now. I suppose your emotional fortitude is a bit stronger than I expected after all the blood you spilled. I wouldn't take a teenager to have such a strong resolve."
Al scoffed; the nerve of this man to assume he'd break over killing other beings. It was downright offensive and Al considered it an insult to his pride and his worth as a person. Especially since he had killed before…he had done so other times in his life, long before he got into this world.
Albeit on his own terms and for his own reasons. It would take more than blood on his hands to crack him and he sure as hell didn't appreciate being infantilized like this. He was no child and he sure as hell wasn't didn't appreciate being looked down upon. He didn't care if it was Lucifer, Satan or any other type of all-powerful being who could crush him in an instant, he wasn't going to break in front of them like paper.
"I don't break easily," He stated, a moody tone slipping into his normally affable voice. Normally Al usually didn't let his pettiness be so obvious in his tone but Satan was definitely pushing it and he saw no need to pretend to be nice around him.
"I can see that," Satan admitted, sitting back in his throne room,"I must say, Alastor. You and your little maid have done a spectacular job. My palace hasn't been this spotless in centuries and you managed to extinguish so many lives within an instant without hesitation, as if you were born to be a cold-blooded killer…I like that. It's not everyday you find someone so cold blooded at a young age."
Normally Al would take such compliments with stride…but given this was Satan, he felt a bit uncomfortable at being called such. It felt like Satan was describing him as a weapon and not as a person, only noting his efficiency in taking lives and not his other attributes.
"Is..is there any other reason you've summoned us today? I take it that we're not just here for pleasantries and tea right?"
"Of course not. You see, I've been wondering that perhaps it's time to test your…loyalty so to speak. Your skills are excellent but I need workers who I can trust, especially after how many have dared to…turn their backs on me. I need to be sure that you are loyal. It's nothing personal, it's just a safety measure given how many…traitors I've had to deal with for all these years."
"And just what would that test entail?"
"Nothing major, just a…change of targets. You see, I believe a local orphanage has been avoiding paying their taxes and I need you to sort it out…alone…"
"What do you mean by 'sorting it out'?" Al asked, already having a bad feeling about where this conversation was going. He was asking him to do this alone and that already urged him, given that Striker had been accompanying him on every other mission before.
This one must've been very important and specifically selected for him to do and he was already feeling uneasy with every passing second.
"I need you to…eliminate the orphanage by any means necessary. And to prevent any…controversy from spilling out, make sure that there are no survivors. No witnesses whatsoever. Understand, Alastor?"
Normally Al would merely nod and force himself to say,'Yes' but the order Satan was asking him to fulfill was a high bar because of what it entailed. It wasn't the first time he asked to ensure there were no survivors but it was the first time he demanded the target children. This was an orphanage and no doubt there were kids inside and Satan was demanding he kill them.
In disbelief, Alastor acted on impulse and asked in a disgusted tone,"Are…are you asking me to murder children, Satan?"
"Yes?" He asked in a matter-of-fact tone,"What of it? Is there a problem,Alastor?"
"Yes there is. I don't know who you think I am, but I don't kill children. It is simply not in my blood to murder innocent children on the behalf of another."
Satan seemed…unsurprised by this answer, though Niffty could tell he was disappointed by Alastor's reply. The tension in the room ran high as the other servants and even Striker himself became tense,Striker giving Alastor a concerned look as he whispered,"Kid, what are you doing? Are you trying to get yourself killed? Be quiet."
Al shrugged off Striker's well-meaning advice. He knew Striker was just scared and he could hardly blame him. He knew Striker liked Satan just about as much as he did but was too scared to show his true feelings towards him.
But that didn't mean he was scared. It was probably foolish not to fear someone so powerful, someone who could crush you within mere seconds, but Al didn't care. He didn't care that Satan was stronger than him, could murder him within the blink of an eye. He had his own agency and he wasn't going to cower before some wrathful abomination with an ego.
"Oh…so you do have some sort of 'moral code'...Hmph…I can't say I'm surprised…" He said simply,"Regardless, codes can be broken if pushed and I'm certain you can make an exception, especially if someone you care about is on the line…" His gaze shifted to Niffty, who narrowed her eyes at his gaze.
Al didn't show any sign of surprise, even without eyes he could tell that Satan was doing it. Trying to threaten Niffty in order to make him give up his code. A pathetic yet effective tactic, to force someone's hand by threatening their loved ones.
A cruel and heartless tactic, but Al knew he shouldn't have expected empathy and understanding from the embodiment of wrath. To expect otherwise would be a foolish mistake and he wasn't taken into his 'charming' facade he put up around others.
"Resorting to threatening my loved ones won't solve anything. I'm not like the other's, Satan, and I'll be damned before I let you lay one hand on my darling or myself for that matter. I will not abide by your command like a lap-dog and I'll never answer your demand to kill an innocent child over some personal squabble. Especially after what you've done to your…other employees who dared to express other interests…"
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb with me, I know what you did," Al said,"You've sent me to kill anyone whose tried to get away from you. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what's going on here. And it's not even those who betray you that you want dead, it's those who dare what their own lives and what to live out by themselves. You killed them for daring to grow independent, as if they were your slaves. I always knew there was something off about you but my suspicions have long since been confirmed after some…digging around."
"And just where have you heard this?"
"None of your business," Al stated,"What matters that I'm done working for you. I've grown tired of working for you and this is merely the straw that has broken the camel's back. You'll get nothing more out of me so long as I."
The room was consumed with silence. It was quiet enough that a pin-drop would've been like a nuke falling from the sky.
Satan then chuckled, clapping up on his throne to break the silence,"Well…well well..perceptive child aren't you? You caught on far quicker than I thought, Alastor. You must think you have me all figured out, don't you?"
"There's not much to figure out," Al said flatly,"Doesn't take much to see that you're nothing but an arrogant vapid beast who only views the rest of us as pawns. I was never fooled by your act, I know a monster when I lay eyes on them…"
"Strange thing to say given you are completely blind. What would a blind child know about monsters?"
"Takes one to know one," Al replied, a smile growing on his face,"I've walked among countless monsters, big and small. Even the ones with the most pretty and innocent faces can hide the bloodiest atrocities that most wouldn't dare speak of. Some monsters are troubled, others are just…insane and do depraved things for the fun of it. I personally see myself in the latter category but even someone as warped as I can see that you're not an ordinary monster, but one that is devoid of any compassion or positive qualities. Just a wrathful beast that hungers for blood of the innocent without batting an eye. I may be a monster….but you are nothing more but a vapid bloodthirsty monstrosity that deserves rot in the depths of Hell…"
"How poetic," Satan snickered,"And just what do you think you're going to do, Alastor? You know I possess far more power than you do. I can crush you within an instant, just like every other subordinate who disobeyed me in the past. What do you think you can do against ME that they couldn't?"
"This…"
Al summoned a hunk of rock from the ground and fired it at him. To his shock, Satan raised his hand and stopped it with the force of gravity, levitating the rock in his hands with a smile on his face. Al tried to take the rock back but Satan's grip was far too powerful.
"W-What?"
"Aw, what's wrong? Did you think that your little rock tricks would hurt me? If so, then you are much more naive and delusional than I thought…" He then crushed the rock with his gravitational powers, turning it into pebbles.
The next thing Al knew, Satan began holding him in a choke-hold with his powers, lifting him up into the air and choking him. Al grit his teeth, trying to free himself to no avail, hissing,"Gngh!"
"AL!" Niffty shouted,"LET HIM GO YOU MONSTER!"
"I don't think so," He chuckled,"Your blind friend has been disrespectful and it's about time I put him in his place." His hold on Al's neck was tight and Al could feel his breath becoming shorter and shorter, his consciousness fading.
Her mind in a panic, Niffty quickly acted on impulse in an effort to save her friend and summoned glass shards in his direction. Several guards attempted to stop her, however the glass shards penetrated their skin, cutting them like paper.
Glass may have been fragile but when used as a projectile it was an excellent weapon,especially when used to pierce the enemy's skin and turn it into bloody ribbons….
Niffty tried to attack Satan but he stopped her attack with gravity, not moving an inch from his throne room.``Ah ah ah, those petty little attack's won't work on me…"
Niffty clenched her teeth, glaring hatefully at the Lord of Wrath with rage in her eyes. It was as if she was becoming him to hit her with all he had. She wasn't afraid and she sure as hell wasn't going to go down without a fight.
Satan seemed ready to end her life quite eagerly, a menacing grin on his face as he prepared to launch her own attack at her.
Only for the attack to never make contact with her and for someone to jump in front of her. Niffty looked up to see Striker covering her, glass shards sticking in and out of his body and heavily bleeding from his wounds.
"S-Striker…why did you do that?"
"Couldn't let a little lady like yourself get bruised up…Though I think I got a little more than I bargained for," He admitted, attempting to shrug off the pain he was in. Niffty attempted to help him but he shrugged off her help and hissed,"I don't need your help…" He then pulled out his gun and aimed it at Satan with a scowl painted on his face.
"You dare stand against me Striker? I understand the child and his friend, but you, my most valuable henchman? After everything I've done for you, this is how you repay me?"
"After everything you've done for ME?" He laughed mockingly,"Now that's rich. You think you did me a service when you met me? What a joke, everything you've done for me has only been for yourself. You don't and have never cared about any of us little people who cling to your feet to survive and I sure as hell don't feel grateful to the bastard who stole the one man I gave a damn about…"
"Oh you mean Blitzo? That poor ignorant fool got what was coming to him. Never understood why you cared so much for that waste of space. It's a shame that you grew too attached to him, Striker. You knew relationships between co-workers weren't allowed and yet you still went behind my back. I had done you a favor and yet you repay me by turning against me like the other ungrateful bastards I took you off the street when you were poor and hungry and made you who you are and yet you betray just like the rest of them…"
"Because you're nothing but a goddamn bastard who uses us for our use until we develop the smallest sliver of independence and want to be more than your personal puppets. The kid and his girlfriend are no exception, only difference is that they saw through you from the start unlike the rest of us…" Striker said lowly,"Done a lotta bad things under you and I won't claim to be moral, not by a long shot…But I'll be damned before I let you kill these two."
Striker then shot near Satan several times, the bullets missing him by a few inches. The King chuckled,"You missed…"
"Did I?"
Before he could question this, the pillar that Striker hit began to shake and crumble. The force in the weakened pillar caused the front foundation to shake. The ground became unbalanced and Satan's palace began to become unstable.
Satan's focus shifted to his crumbling palace that threatened to crush him. Rocks fell over his head and as a result, his grip on Alastor waned enough for him to break free, collapsing to the floor roughly."Gah!"
"Al!" Niffty shouted,"This palace is falling apart! We need to get out of here!"
Al nodded his head before turning and sensing Striker's presence,"Striker! We need to get out of here! This place is going to crumble! Come on!"
To Alastor's surprise, Striker didn't move.
"Striker!"
"Sorry kid, but…this is the end of the line for me," He admitted,"Satan got me pretty good..Even if I go with you, it's only a matter of time before I bleed out. It's not worth taking dead weight with ya…"
"Striker, stop messing around! We can help you! Just come with us!"
"Kid, I'm dying…" Striker said,"There's no coming back from death here, it's not like all those magical fairy tales. The dead are dead in this world and I'm long overdue. It's probably better off this way…"
Al bit his lip, conflict stirring in his mind, he wanted to take Striker with them but he had the feeling that Striker was right. He knew the smell of death and Striker's time was coming, the glass had pierced vital organs and he'd likely bleed out by the time they got him out of the building. Saving him was a pointless effort as sad as it sounded…
"Al…you know he's right…" Niffty said soberly,"We need to leave before we die as well…"
Al fell silent before coming to a decision, giving Striker a small nod of the head and saying,"Well…in that case, I suppose we have no choice but to part ways. It was a honor working with you, Striker…"
"You too, kid…Gonna miss ya…"
Niffty tensed when the roof began to shake,"AL! We need to go!" Without giving him a choice, she grabbed his hand and rushed out of there, dodging the falling debris and whatever else stood in their path.
Striker watched the two of them flee before feeling his legs wobble, crumbling to the floor. He looked down at his bloodied hands, his vision becoming blurry. He could feel his heart-rate slowing, his body becoming weaker with each passing second, said seconds feeling like an eternity passing by.
As he was bleeding out, he reached into his pocket and pulled a locket with him and Blitzo together. He weakly smiled before saying,'See ya soon...partner…' He then closed his eyes for the final time before the rest of the palace came crumbling down on him.
Alastor and Niffty rushed out to the front, narrowly avoiding getting crushed to death in the process. When they got further enough away they(or rather Niffty to be exact) watched as the palace came crumbling down, turning into nothing but rubble.
There was a moment of silence as they both stared at what remained of the magnificent palace before Alastor said,"He…he's gone…He's actually gone…"
"I'm sorry, Al…I'm so sorry…It was all my fault, that attack was supposed to hit me but he got in the way…"
"It's not your fault…it's his…That damn wrathful cretin killed him," He hissed, wanting nothing more than to tear that bastard apart limb by limb. The idea of tearing his vital organs out and tearing him to shred was so damn appealing and it was such a shame it was nothing more but a pipe-dream…
Niffty placed her hand on his shoulder,"Al…I understand your feelings and honestly…I don't blame you. I can tell you were actually getting somewhat fond of Striker and having him killed really left its mark on you. I really wish we could avenge him but given how powerful Satan is…I don't think there's much we can really do about him…"
"But I want to-"
"It's not about what you want Al, it's about what's best for us. Striker wanted us to live, Al. He couldn't get himself out of his situation but he knew that you could. Let's not waste that chance he gave us. Especially since Satan's probably still in that rubble and it's only a matter of time before he emerges. It's best we take our leave before he gets back up on his feet because there's not a doubt in my mind that he'll be out for blood…"
Al remained silent for a moment before growling,"You…you're right, Niffty…I suppose we should take our leave before that bastard decides to get up. What do you think would be the fastest way out of here?"
"Horseback probably…"
"Fair enough…let's go find Striker's horse. He'll be able to get us out of here…" Al and Niffty headed towards the stables. Bombproof was standing there, eagerly awaiting his owner.
Niffty made a face and reached out to pet Bombproof only for him to back away. The horse wasn't exactly affectionate and Niffty decided not to question it. After all, she was a stranger to him so it was only natural for the horse to behave this way.
"Easy there…it's gonna be alright. We just need you to take us for a ride. Can you do that?"
She doubted Bombproof understood English but he did seem to understand having to be ridden so he reluctantly allowed them to get on. Al wasn't fond of horseback riding even after all this time and made a face as he got on.
"Really wish this wasn't our fastest method of transportation," He mumbled as the horse took off.
""Neither do I, though I don't think we have much of a choice now…" She admitted,"At least we're safe for now. We should be able to get pretty far from here…"
As the two rode off, Alastor's mind couldn't help but fester with anger, not only at Satan but at himself. He may have escaped but the person who warned him had perished in the process and Satan was no doubt going to hunt them once he recovered. Wasn't like he could kill the bastard and the fucker seemed too powerful to actually put down…
Worst part was that the best thing they could do right now was run…running away like a coward. It wasn't something Al ever saw himself doing, having to run away from a pursuer but Satan made it more or less a necessity if he wanted to keep his life.
No doubt he and Niffty would be marked as wanted criminals, Satan would offer money to turn them in and the best thing they could do right now was get as far away as possible if they wanted to keep their lives…
Velvet made her way to Asmodeus's office, having took a few hours to come to terms with her loss with her ghost constructs. The former doll demon was still grieving the loss of her friends(well technically another version of her friend in the case of Val).
When she made her way through the doors, she could tell that the Lord of Lust was expecting her to his office. Asmodeus was smoking in his office with some of his servants catering to his every need, having a cup of tea and whatever else he could've asked for in a tray.
"Vanessa," He greeted,"I was waiting to see your cute little face around here. Took you long enough to come back. Though you seem a little…empty-handed…"
"We didn't get them," She said.
"What do you mean you don't get them? You were supposed to bring them back to me live!" he snapped,"What happened!?"
"It was going according to plan until that Charles guy split up and hid from me. I was gonna find him until he hit me on the head with a rock…It hurt… a lot…" She mumbled, still rubbing the sore Charlie left behind on her head.
"Is that all? You couldn't handle the powerless one, Vanessa? How pathetic are you?"
"Hey! I would've caught him if he hadn't snuck up on me!It's not my fault he's a good hider!"
"And what about the other two? What about Valentino and that other guy?"
"Vincent and Val…fell over the edge of the waterfall. They probably drowned assuming they didn't kill each other. I didn't see it happen but I did overhear the other's discussing what they saw and they had another guy with them, had some horns on his head and he looked like some hobo in the woods."
"So you're telling me, you three got outsmarted by a powerless homeless boy, a one-eyed whore and a hobo living in the forest?"
"Yeah?"
Asmodeus didn't seem amused by this,"my expectations were low…but by Lucifer's name I didn't expect you to do that bad…How disappointing, guess you three weren't worth the extra effort after all…"
"Like you did any better, you got stabbed by that one eyed dancer earlier! Don't act like you fared any better than we did!" She shouted.
"And I was barely harmed by it. She merely pricked me with a small burn, had she not lit my restaurant on fire with her friend I would've immediately put a stop to her. That's hardly comparable to the total failure this mission was. And do you know how Lords deal with failures within their court?"
"Have the feeling you're about to tell me," She growled.
"With a long and drawn out death…" He replied, eyes now glowing with hostility and hatred. Velvet tensed, she knew damn well she couldn't fight back against Asmodeus. He was way too powerful and attempting to fight him one-on-one was suicide…
Just then, it hit her. When Amorous looked ready to lay his hands on her, Velvet turned herself invisible, using her ghost powers to turn into a 'ghost' herself.
Asmodeus seemed confused, eyes wide in disbelief,"W-What? Where'd she go?"
He suddenly got hit with a tea set and hissed as he heard Velvet giggling madly,"Argh! You'll pay for that when I get my hands on you!"
Velvet soon summoned her ghosts and let them tear the house apart, causing enough chaos that it allowed her to slip out undetected.
Once she was far enough away, she chuckled as she heard Asmodeus cursing her name from afar. She knew he'd come to get her but she figured she could enjoy the sight while she could….
'Still…I better get outta here…' Bastard would no doubt be out for her head and she didn't fancy staying near Asmodeus' residence. She had to leave before she ended up like every other person who 'disappointed' the Lord of Lust…
To be frank, Velvet wasn't quite certain what to do with herself. Velvet wasn't used to making decisions like this and without Vox around she had to think for herself. It felt rather lonely and it only now hit her that she was truly alone in this.
Vox wasn't there with her, Val wasn't either and she had no one to turn to. It was just her and this big, bad world…
'Come on Vanessa…you can get through this. You gotta be strong…that's what Vox would want you to do…' She thought to herself, trying to encourage herself to no avail. Encouraging words simply didn't have that effect when it was inside her head…
She then took off and began to run as fast as she could. She didn't know where she was running off to or where she'd stop.
All she knew was that she had to keep going, until her legs bleed and her feet were nothing but worn out stubs. Until she couldn't move any longer, she had to keep going…for her own sake if anything.
And when she rested? She didn't know either, probably would sleep out on the floor, or on a bench if she was lucky enough to be around a decently populated civilization.
Maybe she could pretend to be a lost little girl and hope some fools take pity on her and house her. If that didn't work she'd just live out on the streets and fend for herself until she could get her life together. Maybe steal food from the shops if nothing was working out for her.
It was a long-shot and Velvet wasn't certain how she'd make it day to day but she figured she could make it work…somehow. She wasn't sure how exactly she'd do it but she was just crossing her fingers and hoping for the best because otherwise…she wasn't certain what to do if all those options failed…
"I wish Vox were here…he'd know what to do…" She grumbled to herself,"Why'd you have to die on me, Vox? Now I'm all alone in this stupid world with these assholes after me?"
She didn't expect to receive a response and merely lowered her head and continuing moving around aimlessly.
Thanks for 3,301 views, tell me what you think below!
Enigmus-288: Still have problems to deal with given Ozzie doesn't like people backing out of deals...