Be warned, this chapter is a little darker than the last. Gonna give a warning for blood/excessive violence(torture?)/swearing.
Enjoy~
Slowly, Carmilla felt herself drifting back into consciousness.
As soon as red eyes fluttered open, she knew something was wrong. Instead of the familiar scenery of her home (or office), she found herself inside a dimly lit room. A single light hung above, casting its dull yellow light around. A medium sized television hung on the wall.
From the burning sensation in her shoulders, it was evident that she'd been tied up for quite some time.
With a sigh, she retraced her steps in an attempt to shine some light on just how she'd ended up in this position.
She'd attended the meeting with the newest Overlord about a potential shipment.
After they'd finished, and signed the paperwork, she'd returned to the car.
The drive was seemingly normal until white smoke started to fill the back.
She reached for her girls as they slumped in their seats-
Red eyes snapped open as she looked around frantically for any sign of her daughters.
"Ah, the bitch is finally awake." A voice croaked from behind her. Slowly a figure walked into her eyesight. "I was startin' ta think my boy gave ya a little too much gas."
Carmilla calmly looked her kidnapper up and down. Absolutely nothing stood out that she could use to recognize him. Even standing at full height the man couldn't be taller than five feet. His allagator-esque appearance didn't seem any different than the other reptilian sinners she'd come across in her time.
"The name's Magnus. Ya will do well to remember it."
The weapons dealer filtered through her mind, trying to remember where she'd heard that name from. Finally, it came flooding back. During one of their monthly meetups, Rosie had given the 'downlow' on a potential overlord in the making by the name of Magnus. Those that spoke of him (who lived to tell) told tales of his unique methods. The whispers around the Pentagram said he was cunning and ruthless.
However, the beady-eyed man in front of her couldn't be the same. He hadn't even bothered to chain her with angelic steel. She was simply bound with iron cuffs to a wooden chair. If she'd wanted to, she could have already broken free and made her escape. However, until she knew the whereabouts of her daughters, she'd continue to let him prattle on.
"Betcha wonderin' why you're here." The sinner said smoothly. Adjusting the red fedora on his head, he fixed the woman with a glare. Carmilla kept quiet, opting to keep a watchful eye instead. "You know, I've been in hell for some time now. And gotta tell ya somethin', Carmine. You, outta all them overlords, really piss me off." He growled as he grabbed her face. His dull grey claws dug into her skin. Leaning closer he snarled. "Ya don't fight. Ya don't kill. Hell, ya don't even swear. Ya act like you're above us. I'm tired of it."
Releasing his grip, Magnus took a step back. Reaching into his suit, he pulled out a cigar, placing it in the corner of his mouth. Silence filled the room as puffed on the cigar. "By now I'm sure you've noticed that I gotcha chained up. I'm sure you're thinking to yourself, 'now, why wouldn't he use something stronger?', right? Somethin' like angelic steel? Truth is, I don't need to." Magnus shrugged flicking the butt of his cigar against the wall. "'Cause you're gonna stay right in that spot."
The Carmine matriarch spent decades perfecting the level-headed demeanor. Fixing him with an unimpressed look, she spoke. "What makes you so sure?"
"You will. 'Cause if you don't behave, it won't just be your life I end tonight." With a snap of his fingers, a white glow flashed in the room. Carmilla felt her heart stop as she looked at the television behind Magnus. Clara and Odette were sitting in a cage, back-to-back. Three figures patrolled around them. From what she could see, they had yet to harm either girl.
"I see that got your attention. So let me tell you how this is goin' to go down. You're gonna sit here and take what you've got comin' to you." Magnus smiled as he slipped a pair of brass knuckles onto his hand. From the faint golden glow, it was apparent that the weapon was coated in angelic steel. "My boys are keepin' an eye out. If you so much as think about breakin' free they'll fire off some of them lovely bullets you've made into your daughters' skulls before you can reach 'em."
Green eyes glanced out of the large, pink-tinted window, watching as the large hand of the clock tower struck four.
The pair scheduled a meeting for six o'clock on the dot. Yet here Zestial sat, almost twenty minutes past their original agreed upon time. An unease started to grow within him. In the time he'd spent with the white-haired Overlord, he could count on one hand the times she'd been late.
"I'm sorry sir, the Carmine's haven't returned from their meeting yet." A voice pulled Zestial out of his musings. The pale-blue skinned sinner apologized softly as she peeked her head into Carmilla's office. "Can I get you anything while you wait?"
Zestial simply shook his head.
"If you need anything, just call." The younger soul gave a tight smile as she ducked back out of the office.
Zestial looked around his friend's office. It was far from the first time he'd set foot in the room. It was, however, the first time he'd been truly alone for such an amount of time. Clara, Odette, or most often Carmilla -herself- resided with him. Whether it be for matters of business or not, one of them always accompanied him.
He let his gaze travel along the walls. Taking note of the completely contrasting decor styles the two held. He preferred a darker pallet and spiderwebs. Whereas Carmilla leaned towards white and varying shades of grey, with self-crafted weapons that hung along the walls. He couldn't deny it truly suited her.
Beautiful, yet deadly.
Just like the woman herself.
The voices of Carmilla's underlings pulled his attention away from his musings.
"I don't like this. It's not like the boss to be late."
"Especially, since she has a meeting with Zestial."
"He's here?"
"In the office."
"We have a problem." Another hushed voice joined the pair. The masculine voice sounded out of breath, almost as if they'd run to the others. "We found Manny's body outside in the dumpster."
"If Manny's dead, then who's driving the boss?"
"Oh shit."
"What are we going to do? Zestial's waiting for her."
"Get rid of him. Reschedule or something. At least until we find out what's going on."
"Why me?"
"Because you're the secretary."
"Fine! Ahem. Sir Zestial, would you like us to reschedule your- Where'd he go?"
Zestial stepped out of the inky black shadow and into the alley behind the Carmine building. Raising his arms out, hundreds of quarter sized fuzzy spiders spilled out of his cloak. They gathered along the walls of the alley, huddling together in a black and green mass. Thousands of black eyes were on him, waiting.
"Disperse. Search the entirety of Hell if thou must. Seek out the Carmines." Zestial ordered.
Instantly, the spiders scattered in all directions. Terrified screams could be heard from the street as lines of arachnids flooded the sidewalk. Zestial paid no mind to this though as he stepped back into the shadows.
Once inside, he floated as if suspended in air. Being truly submerged in the darkness blocked out all sounds. It would allow him to focus solely on his arachnids as they scoured the Pride Ring.
A mental tug caught his attention. Focusing in, he was easily able to look through his spider's eyes. From its spot atop a building, it stared at the Carmine's car parked below. His concerns only grew as he noticed the other two unfamiliar cars. "Enter the building."
The spider spun around, finding a vent in the roof of the building to crawl through. It wasted no time, skittering along the vents listening for any trace of the women.
"Damn, I guess what they say about motherly love is true. I wouldn't know though, mine was a piece o' shit."
"Stop." Zestial ordered. The words the man spoke could only mean that the women were close. Given the situation, little else would explain the man's choice of words. "There."
The sight before him stirred up a wrath he hadn't felt in a long time. The alligator sinner swung, striking Carmilla in the side of the head. Even from the spider's position from above he could see the horrid state of the woman who'd claimed his demonic heart.
"Color me fuckin' impressed. You've lasted much longer than I thought." The shorter man snarked. Carmilla only gave the man a defiant look in return. "Oh, come now. What's with that look?"
The situation only proved to confuse the Spider Demon more as the sinner continued his assault, striking Carmilla three more times. Not once did she move to defend herself. Instead, choosing to keep her head down. He knew that violence wasn't something Carmilla particularly liked, but she would never let anyone lay hands on her without reason.
He needed to stop this.
He needed to get to her.
"Hey, Magnus. You might want to see this."
"Why don't you hold this for me, bitch?" Magnus laughed as he embedded an angelic knife into Carmilla's upper thigh. "Now, don't go gettin' any ideas when I step outta here. Remember what I told ya."
As soon as the door closed, Zestial manifested behind her. Moving to stand in front of the chair, a new wave of rage surged through him. Up close, she appeared far worse than he'd originally seen. Her head rested against her chest as she breathed, shallowly. Golden blood seeped out of the various cuts that littered her arms and face.
Making a mental note to discuss the subject of her origins (once she was safe of course), he bowed down, getting closer to her. Gently he took her face in his hands. Tilting her head up, he softly called out to her.
It pained him to see the hurt and confusion that swam in her red eyes. "Zestial? Why?"
"Suspicions arose when thou didn't attend our meeting." His voice was gentle, just as it always was when he spoke to her. "I shall release thee from thine binds."
"No."
"No?"
"He has my daughters." Carmilla looked past him. "Please, go find them."
He'd been so preoccupied with Carmilla that he hadn't even noticed the television screen that displayed the Carmine daughters. Glancing at it, he noted that while they may have been caged, unlike their mother, the pair were not in immediate danger.
"I shall retrieve thine daughters after I see thou safe."
"Magnus isn't alone. There's more of them. If I leave, he'll kill them. I won't take that risk, Zestial. Please, get them to safety."
He took in the site of the woman before him. Even now, bound and beaten, she remained steadfast in her daughters' well-being. "Very well. I shall retrieve thine daughters first. I shall return as soon as Clara and Odette retain thy freedom from thy cage."
"Gracias."
"Hey! Do you idiots better let us go." Clara shouted to the men on the other side of the room. "Or you're going to regret it."
"Sure, we will." One of the men scoffed, not taking his eyes off the playing cards in his hand. The other two didn't even bother to respond, each too invested in the game of poker they'd started.
"You will! Don't you know who our mother is?"
"Do you think I care?"
"You should!"
"Well, I don't! So, if you know what's good for you, you'll sit down and shut up."
Clara sighed as she leaned back, resting her head against her older sister's shoulder. Clara may not have known exactly what was going on, but finding herself and her sister in a cage could only mean that they'd been abducted.
What truly made her nervous was the lack of concern from the trio. It was as if they weren't scared of the repercussions of their actions. Which could only mean that something had happened to their mother.
A small movement pulled Clara's attention from their captors to the bottom corner of their prison. With a nudge to her sister, she leaned down, trying to get a closer look at the black object. "Check this out."
Odette shifted. The bespectacled Carmine squinted her eyes. "Is that?"
The girls shared a look as the small fuzzy green spider came to a stop in front of them. "Zestial."
Odette laid her hand on the bottom of the cage, allowing the arachnid to crawl into the center of her palm. Lifting her hand, managed to get a better look. Four of eight of the spider's eyes shifted from black to green. An indication that the Spider Demon could see them. "Zestial. They've taken us. We're okay, but we haven't seen mom. Something must have happened for her not to come yet. Please, find her."
"I told you two to be quiet!" The man sneered, throwing his cards to the ground. "If I have to come over there, you'll regret it!"
"Thou doth threaten to lay thine filthy hands on these girls?" The haunting voice growled. Zestial rose from the shadows. Coming to his full height, he narrowed his eyes as he focused his rage on the pathetic creatures in front of him.
Spinning around, the goons all startled at the powerful voice that echoed throughout the room. The sinner furthest from him fell out of his chair. "W-what the fuck."
Harnessing the anger that surged through him, Zestial slowly began to grow in size. Red irises appeared as green eyes glowed. The sinners scrambled back, trying to put as much room between them and the growing Spider Demon. A devilish smile grew as the men reached the inner wall of the building, trapping themselves in. Like flies in his web. Leaning forwards, he towered over the shivering men. "Thou shall regret the folly of thine actions!"
"You're not looking so hot there, Carmine."
A shout pulled Magnus' attention away from Carmilla. Shooting an annoyed look at the closed door, he shouted to the men on the other side. "Keep it down out there!"
"Magnus!" A man threw open the door, looking around panickily. "We have to go! H-he's here! He killed them!"
Glancing at the monitor, Carmilla watched as Zestial freed her girls from their cage.
"What are you talkin' about?" Magnus demanded, staring at his subordinate. Before he could move closer, white webbing shot through the open doorway, attaching itself to his back. With a cry, the man was drug back out of the room. "What the fuck was that?!"
Carmilla let out a breath, now that her girls were safe, she could make her move. With a quick pull, the iron shackles fell to the floor. Standing to her full height, Carmilla rolled her shoulders, trying to ease the soreness. Coming to stand behind Magnus, she sneered down at the man. "That, is the least of your worries."
"What do you think you're doing? Did you forget that I have your daug-"
Carmilla moved faster than he could see, kicking the shorter man square in the chest. The man flew backwards. The sheer force was enough to knock all the breath out of his lungs as he collided with the wall. Slumping down, he struggled to regain his breath.
Carmilla stalked towards him, red eyes glowing with barely concealed anger.
"St-stay back! I'll shoot!" Magnus stuttered as he shakily raised his gun and released a single shot. His eyes widened as the bullet lodged itself in the Overlord's shoulder but did little to slow her advance.
"Did you honestly think that would stop me from tearing your head from your body?"
"P-please, I'll make a deal-"
Carmilla may not have shared the desire for violence like the others. In fact, if given the chance, she'd prefer to keep from shedding blood. But the man in front of her not only committed crimes against her, but her daughters.
His actions would cost him his life.
Pressing the tip of her shoe into his throat, the man's eyes widened in fear. A single push separated the sinner's head from his body. Relieved that the threat of her daughters was eliminated, exhaustion finally took over. Falling to her knees, the last thing that filled her vision was the concerned face of her friend.
Carmilla groaned as she regained consciousness, again . She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so horrible. Her head throbbed. There was a dull burning pain in her right shoulder and respective thigh. Still, she refused to rest without knowing where her daughters were.
With a hiss, she attempted to sit up. Some relief found its way as she took note that she was no longer in the same room. Instead, she found herself in an overly large bed. The dark mahogany wood complemented the thick black blanket that covered her.
"Zestial?" Carmilla called out.
The Spider Demon materialized a moment later. Concern still etched on his face. "Carmilla, I implore thee, do not shift thine position. Lest thy risk tearing thine stitches. Doctor Addams parted ways with strict directions for thou to adhere to. It will take time for thou to recover fully."
Carmilla already suspected as much. Even with the advanced healing that came with owning so many souls, wounds from angelic steel healed at a considerably slower rate. "My girls?"
"Safe." Zestial assured. Taking a seat on the edge of the bed. He reached out, resting a hand on her own. "Slumbering across the hall. As thou should'st be."
"I need to see them."
"Upon awakening from slumber, rest assured Clara and Odette shall return to thine side." Carmilla stared at him for a moment, as if considering his words. Reaching out, he gently brushed her hair to the side. Red eyes fluttered shut as he rested his hand against her cheek. "I vow to thee; thine daughters' safety is assured."
Taking a breath, Carmilla covered his hand with her own, taking comfort in the tender display of affection. "Thank you, my friend. I'm sorry you had to get involved."
"'Tis not of concern. I would'st confront Lord Lucifer, himself, to ensure thine safety."
A silence fell between the two. Carmilla knew well that Zestial would have figured out that she wasn't a true demon. The seer amount of blood that Magnus had drawn from her wouldn't have gone unnoticed. Especially to one as perceptive as the Spider Demon himself. "I'm sure you have questions."
"A discussion for another day. For now, thou needst rest."