News in Hell traveled fast, especially when said news was about lower demons who defied their rank and redeem themselves.
Even all the way in the Greed Ring, where money was always on the mind of those in "higher" standing, hearing such news was a culture shock and a means to jab fun at the relatives (if any) who were related to such a weak demon.
Crimson and his minions would have found it funny if it wasn't happening to them.
"As of yesterday, Moxie has been imprisoned in my castle here. I bring him before you today to give every imp a warning. If any of you go heavenly or even think about doing a good deed for a human or a sinner, you will suffer little Moxxie's fate…"
A gunshot sounded and the TV exploded into pieces.
Crimson held his smoking gun. His pupils were dilated, and his eyes stared forward without blinking.
The mafia don was seething with rage. He had saved this news report and watched it through his DVR multiple times. Each viewing pissed him off more than the last.
"Alessio?" Crimson asked.
"Sir?" the second-in-command sitting on the other side of the desk in another chair replied.
"Where is Prince Stolas's castle?" the don asked in his low voice which was much more frightening than his yelling.
Alessio looked at his boss.
The imp was consumed with so much fury that his claws had dug into the pristine leather of his office chair.
"In the Pride Ring, I believe, sir," the shark demon replied.
"Then let's get a little parting gift ready for my fucking disgraceful failure of a son," said Crimson as a snarl revealed his teeth.
Alessio's normally stoic eyes flashed in panic, and he replied, "Sir, with all due respect, such a mission will be suicide. Moxxie's in the Ars Goetian prince's dungeon now. You heard the news. He's a prisoner of the royals and princes of hell. We'll all be killed before we get close if we try to get near him. It would be the end of us and you."
Another gunshot was heard. The bullet grazed past the shark's cheek, embedding itself into the wall.
The shark demon remained silent and resumed his stoic demeanor.
"I DO NOT GIVE A FUCKING DAMN IF LUCIFER HIMSELF IS GUARDING HIM!" shrieked Crimson. "I WANT TO SQUEEZE THE GODFORSAKEN LIFE OUT OF MOXXIE'S NECK AND WATCH THE HEAVENLY LIGHT FADE FROM HIS EYES AS I FINALLY END HIS PATHETIC EXISTENCE!"
Alessio sighed and said, "I understand, boss. This mission will have to be planned better than any mission we've ever planned before. We will have to take our time with this one. Reformed imps are almost impossible to kill. They gain a cherub's immortality, and even if they do get killed, other cherubs will come to take them to heaven. And even if we manage to end him, there is still the matter of getting past security and escaping with our lives. If you want to pull this off, we will have to plan every step perfectly."
"I know," Crimson said, putting his weapon in its holster. "We'll need our best men for this job, and I need our weapons to be in peak condition."
"Yes, sir," said Alessio. "And I'll be sure to buy as many heavenly weapons as possible. Even if Moxxie can't be permanently killed, he'll be sent off with a bloody end."
"Good, Alessio," Crimson said, staring off into space as his demeanor suddenly shifted to concern.
Alessio knew his boss well enough to know what that look meant.
"What is the problem, sir?" Alessio asked. "Are you thinking about that night?"
"What gave that away," said Crimson, glancing up and punching the skin between his eyebrows as he closed his eyes. "I can't believe he got it too. Like mother, like son, I guess."
"No one ever found out about that one, boss," reassured Alessio. "There's no way they can find out."
"Who's to say they won't investigate, Alessio?" Crimson asked, his tone more anxious than before. "I don't like loose ends and neither does King Lucifer."
Panic crossed Alessio's eyes as he replied, "You mean, you think the king knows what happened?"
"I have my concerns," Crimson admitted. "Years ago, Lucifer would have felt a heavenly presence leave for Heaven. At that time, the entire ring was on lockdown while his soldiers searched. They did background checks on every being that lived here."
"I remember, sir," Alessio said. "But they found nothing on us, remember? They had no idea it was Camilla."
"No, but they know Moxxie is our son," Crimson said with wide, frightened eyes.
Alessio caught on, "So, you're saying…?"
"They'll come after us," Crimson said, practically jumping to his feet. "We're in the fucking shit, Alessio!"
Right at that moment, both demons heard a call from downstairs.
"Sirs!" the housekeeper called. "There's…there's someone here to see you!"
The fear in her voice was palpable.
Both demons looked at each other and practically gulped in sync.
The imp and shark demon left the office and headed downstairs immediately.
When they arrived downstairs, the first sight the two demons saw was the housekeeper holding her hands over her mouth to keep herself from screaming.
The two demons entered the front sitting room only to see to their terror that Lucifer himself was sitting in Crimson's leather chair. He stared the pair down wordlessly with a smile made more sinister by the green fire in the fireplace.
Crimson and Alessio froze in terror.
"Gentleman," Lucifer said, rising to his feet. "How nice to see you both again."
Neither demon could bring himself to talk.
Crimson finally did just to say, "Greetings, your majesty."
Lucifer hummed and twirled his apple-topped cane.
"So, Crimson… is there something you would like to tell me about your son?" asked Lucifer.
"That he's a reformed imp?" Crimson said with a huff. "I heard about it on the news. We haven't talked in months. We ain't exactly on good terms."
"I see," Lucifer said, gesturing for the demons to sit on the couch next to him. "I wonder… When I came here a few decades ago in search of the imp that turned heavenly, I kept a note of every single imp that lived in this ring. Those that died are also recorded. Your wife was recorded among that number."
"Is that right?" Crimson asked as he sat down on the couch.
Lucifer hummed, leaned in closer, and said, "Yes, in fact, you labeled her dead on the same day I arrived after sensing the heavenly presence in the Greed Ring. And I showed up in this very same manner mere hours after you labeled her dead and the presence suddenly disappeared."
"I see," Crimson replied.
Lucifer narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "'I see'? Is that really all you can say at this time?"
"I-I'm sorry, your majesty," Crimson stammered fearfully. "I meant to say that I remembered! It's just like I told you then. We all felt it down here. It was a bright heavenly light and then there was nothing. It was the same day my wife died. It was an unforgettable day."
"Yes indeed…and where were you again?" Lucifer asked, leaning in closer. "And do be truthful. Because I can smell lies, no matter what the rank of sinner."
"I was out with Alessio," Crimson said in half-truth. "We were taking care of some business."
"Oh, really," replied Lucifer, leaning in even closer. "What sort of business?"
Crimson's heart was beating out of his chest, but he lied, "Family business, your highness."
Lucifer narrowed his eyes. For a second, there was a flash of burning hellfire of rage in his yellow serpentine eyes.
Crimson shut his eyes and braced for the pain. The king knew he lied. It was all over now.
"Your majesty, please," Alessio tried to intervene.
Gripping his cane tighter, Lucifer snarled, "TELL ME THE FULL TRUTH, IMP!"
"Okay, okay, okay!" Crimson said. "I'll tell you everything. It all started 20 years ago. Moxxie had to have been about 7 or 8. His mother Camilla was being too soft on him, making him weak. She kept getting in the way whenever I tried to direct my son's interests to other things. It pissed me off to no fucking end. I planned on appealing to her one last time before I ended her, so I went to her room and that was when I saw them. The wings on her back. At first, I was amazed. I thought we could use that. But then she announced she was leaving and taking Moxxie. That was it. It didn't take long for the boys and me to subdue her. Then Alessio and I took her to the water and dropped her in. We thought our work was done and started to row away, but then there was this bright light. A group of cherubs were there diving into the water. Others were there just singing in the sky. I couldn't count how many. They pulled her out. Camilla kicked her shoes off at me. She sang with the cherubs. And then suddenly in a flash, they were all gone. Just like that. Alessio and I were the only ones who saw it. We swear we never told anyone else! I never even told Moxxie, but that bitch rubbed off on him anyways!"
"He's telling the truth, your highness," Alessio added. "I was there."
"We haven't seen any sign of her since then!" Crimson cried. "We kept it under wraps so it wouldn't ruin our family's reputation. We were successful. Moxxie has no clue, but he still changed. My own fucking son! It's goddamn humiliating!"
Lucifer narrowed his eyes but grinned and said, "There now. Was that so hard? But I do hate those who lied to me. Especially about an important matter like this."
"Sire, please," Alessio begged.
"Please, sire, we were afraid you would kill us," pleaded Crimson. "I'm a man of business. It would have ruined everything. Please, let us make it up to you somehow!"
Lucifer stared hard at the two before sitting back up straight and said, "If you want to make it up, I have something you can do."
"Yes, sire?" Crimson asked.
Lucifer answered, "I want you to take care of your son. Permanently."
Crimson's mouth hung open for a moment before he asked, "What?"
"You heard me," Lucifer said. "And I have some generous gifts to give you when you accomplish it."
"Yes, sir?" Crimson asked curiously.
Lucifer smiled and replied, "You will be gifted a proper grandson who will follow you and your orders without fail, a perfect heir for your family line. And he will have a longer lifespan, longer than most imps. For that, your lifespan will be increased to raise him to be your perfect successor. I'll also give you a generous cash payment for your work. How does such a deal sound?"
A wicked smile flashed across Crimson's face, revealing all his teeth.
"I'd say that sounds perfect," Crimson said.
Lucifer held out his gloved hand for the imp to shake and said, "We have a deal then?"
Crimson held his hand up and said, "I expect proof of my grandson's conception before I carry this out. An ultrasound will do. And Moxxie's wife Millie will be captured, held prisoner, and given proper medical care till she gives birth to my heir. I don't want my grandson being harmed in any of this."
Lucifer grinned and said, "Understood."
"Then you and I have a fucking deal!" Crimson cried, shaking his king's hand.
Lucifer grinned widely as he shook the imp's hand.
"So, what do we do first?" Crimson asked.
"I will be keeping a close eye on the imp and watching the castle of Goetia from afar," Lucifer explained. "Wait for my call to see what will happen next."
"Will do, your highness," Crimson said. "I'll be getting the nursery ready."
"We still have to choose his name, sir," Alessio reminded his boss.
Crimson thought for a moment until Lucifer interjected, "You could name him after your son."
Crimson glared in Lucifer's direction and hissed in fury, "NO! Never again will I have another child by the name of Moxxie. He will have a name that's fit for this family. A real proud name!"
"Understood, sir," Alessio said, trying to get his boss to calm down. "What will you name him then? Do you need other suggestions?"
Crimson thought for a moment before speaking, "I wanted to name Moxxie Andre before he was born. But Camilla somehow convinced me to name him Moxxie instead. So, since I get to start over, I'll call my grandson Andre."
"Andre? What a lovely name!" Lucifer said, getting up to go. "I'll be sure to let you know when he's been conceived. Until then, farewell."
With that, Lucifer teleported away, leaving Crimson and Alessio to begin their plotting.