Hell was both a worst case scenario and a second chance for many human souls- this was Adam's experience. As the first human soul in Heaven, and the second human soul to belong to both planes of the afterlife, he was more than fortunate to still exist after his second death. In every other instance, a being destroyed by angelic steel had no chance of resurfacing from the void, but Adam wasn't a typical being. One of God's most prized creations would never be at risk of being lost forever, for he was crafted by His two hands to be the very foundation of mankind. While the title of First Man was impressive and prestigious, the man himself was far from it. A once sweet, innocent soul turned bitter over the course of 930 years on earth, and thousands of years in Heaven. An entitled, potty-mouthed narcissist slowly developed from constant coddling and unchecked bad behavior, ultimately leading to his undoing and his messy descent.

At the very moment he met his fate and fell from grace, Adam was notably the most unholy soul behind the big golden gates in the sky. Many who saw the light after passing and were good enough in life to have their names written on Heaven's book could never seem to put their finger on exactly how he was still there. They never once questioned why he was there, though- at least not out loud. He was as rude and aggressive as he was self absorbed, not to mention a literal murderer. No one actually enjoyed being around or talking to him, aside from his Lieutenant. She was devoted, dedicated and patient, a far more supporting deputy than he deserved. Lute happened to be his very first thought when he faded back into consciousness on the cold, hard ground.

Not long after Adam had been repeatedly stabbed in the back and breathed his last breath as an angel, his inner demon found its way to the surface from within him and forced him to take another breath, and then another, and so on. Small pools of shimmering white-golden blood surrounded him like liquid mercury. It soaked his robes and blurred his vision, mixing with his sweat as it dripped down his forehead into his eyes. Every part of him ached, as he had been slammed to Hell's solid rock surface from stories high with incredible force just minutes before his defeat. Though his entire body burned viscerally with every shallow breath, it somehow at the same time didn't feel like his own. His legs were foreign and heavy, as if he'd been given brand new ones. His wings felt limp and numb, like they had been detached and glued back on. With shaking arms, he managed to weakly push himself onto his side after being face down in the dirt for hours.

"Lute…?" he croaked and coughed, throat both dry from the dust and choked up with his own blood. Her broken exorcist mask lay next to him, and he grunted in agony, hot tears welling in his eyes. In a split second, he pushed himself to sit up, sensing eyes and hearing voices nearby. It was obvious he was still in danger, and that he needed to defend himself. With a quick glance around, he realized that he was surrounded by several curious Hell dwellers, lurking in the shadows.

His once golden-yellow irises now crimson red darted left and right, assessing his surroundings while his mind reeled to make sense of the situation. The small audience gawked from a distance, and for an unknown reason, none of them had even dared touch him since he was slain. Threatened and panicked, he warned back his watchers by growling like a wounded animal, but he wasn't able to keep it up for long. After sitting up too quickly and exerting himself, his head started to spin and he lost consciousness again. Fortunately for him, his subconscious inner demon- the same one that forced him back to life- took over his body, grabbing his guitar-axe weapon. His eyes shone red and he struck his weapon to the ground, creating a powerful blast of light that incinerated everything within a fifty foot radius. Immediately following his last ditch effort to protect himself, he collapsed again where he was struck down during battle.

Charlie Morningstar, daughter of hell's first residents Lucifer and Lilith, saw the good in everyone and everything. She was astute, passionate and determined with limitless empathy for others. Luckily for her, she had all the best qualities of her parents. For someone so kind and merciful, it was almost comical that she was the Princess of Hell. Charlie loved endlessly, optimistically, and unconditionally. She was the most holy hellborn in the underworld, which was exactly why when she saw an unusual burst of light from her bedroom window in the middle of the night, she got out of bed and went to investigate alone. A gut feeling told her someone needed help.

As she walked down a dark path behind her hotel towards the light, her eyes glowed red, prepared for anyone or anything. Her birthright came with power second only to Lucifer. Earlier that same day, Charlie, her father, and her Hazbin Hotel misfits defeated Adam and his team of Exorcist Angels, completely changing the very order of the afterlife in under an hour. Upon finding the source of the light, she frowned deeply and crossed her arms, debating turning around and walking the other way. There was no way she ever could though, it wasn't who she was.

"Oh, this has to be a joke… You… again…? Seriously? Christ," Charlie whispered as she examined the state of his body and grimaced softly, trying to determine the extent of the damage. His breaths were shallow and fast, the sight of his pathetic, defeated form pulling at her heartstrings. Most would relish in the sight of their enemy weak and defenseless, and after everything he did to her she had every right to leave him to be torn apart, but her bleeding heart wouldn't let her. Kneeling down next to him, Charlie's yellow glowing eyes softened as she realized he had been crying. She rested her hand on his shoulder to try to wake him up. "Hey, hey… Adam? Can you hear me, Adam?"

Out cold and unresponsive, Adam was completely helpless, fate entirely left to the Princess's decision. He lay there defenseless, curled on his side in a fetal position. His wounds had finally stopped bleeding, but he definitely needed medical attention. Understanding she needed to get him to safety before she could help heal him, Charlie called for Razzle and together they moved Adam in the cover of night with some difficulty. As Lucifer teased in the battle, Adam had really let himself go since the Garden of Eden. He was tall and weighed quite a lot, which made him very hard to move. Razzle carried him on his back, using his wings to keep him balanced.

"Okay Razzle, let's… Um, I guess… We'll just take him to the dungeon, under the hotel," she said as she picked up Adam's guitar-axe weapon, not wanting to leave it out for the taking. "Yeah… yeah. Don't tell anyone though, okay? I-I'll handle it. I can handle this! Nobody knows about the dungeon anyway, so it's a good plan! I mean- I hope it's a good plan. We can't leave him out here. I can't believe he's still alive…" Trying not to second guess herself, Charlie led Razzle to the back of the hotel and through an old stone door, doing her absolute best to go completely unnoticed. She knew very well that the only reason they had a good chance of not getting caught was because Alastor wasn't around. During their one on one fight, Adam bested Alastor in minutes, destroying the source of his power, his microphone staff, which forced him to retreat wounded and fragile with his tail between his legs. Long story short, Alastor wouldn't have been happy if he saw what Charlie was doing for Adam.

As Razzle carried Adam down a long, spiral staircase, Charlie followed closely behind with a panicked look on her face. The Princess of Hell felt her nerves getting the better of her. She hadn't really thought of a plan past this point, and quickly realized her options for help were limited. Alastor wasn't the only person she'd be pissing off by harboring the fallen angel. Vaggie's disappointed look of betrayal manifested in her mind as she imagined what would happen if she ever found out. Charlie knew just how much Vaggie hated Adam, and saw just how happy she was to see Nifty end his life… or so they thought. It was true that Charlie hated Adam more than anyone else she'd ever met, but her hatred for him could never outweigh the potential she saw in him. After everything they'd been through, she was sure that deep down, something in him was worth saving. God created him with His own two hands, and he was technically the reason for her purpose in life. Without Adam, she'd have no sinners to help redeem, no friends to keep her company, no girlfriend to share everything with. She also knew at one point in The Beginning, her dad and Adam had been friends, so that had to count for something. Her eyes lit up, glowing yellow again as they reached the bottom of the stairs and walked the dimly lit corridor.

"That's it, almost there!" The relief in her voice was audible as they completed their mission. Her lips pulled into a smile as Razzle leaned down, and together they lugged Adam into a cot behind the iron bars of a dungeon cell. It wasn't ideal, but she needed to be sure he was kept secure until they could trust him. "I have an idea. We can tell my dad. He'll know what to do. I think… I'll tell him tomorrow though. He definitely still needs some time to cool off." Pleased with herself and her problem solving skills, Charlie held the door open for Razzle and they exited, then closed it behind them, locking it up with a chain. "I am going to grab a med kit, keep an eye on him!" The face Razzle made really summed up his feelings of discontent, but he nodded slightly in agreement as he'd do anything for her. Charlie gave him a big hug around the neck, planting a small peck on his nose. "Thanks Raz. You're the best."

Racing back up the stairs, her highness snuck back around the front of the hotel and grabbed a first aid kit from under the bar. She opened it and haphazardly stuffed her pockets with gauze, wraps, a bottle of painkillers and a tube of antibiotic ointment. Right before she left, Charlie grabbed a cheap bottle of vodka and a large bottle of water, then slipped back out into the night. Incredibly, she'd still managed to go unseen. She figured everyone must have been sleeping deeply, exhausted from the fight. Upon arriving back to the dungeon, Razzle gave her a stern look, obviously worried.

"Shit, what's wrong boy…?" she whispered, her question almost immediately answered by a gruff, pained groan. Adam was coming around again.

"Ungh…. Oh, owww..." His grunts were faint, followed by a weak cough. It was very clear he was in a lot of pain. He couldn't even lift his head. Charlie rushed to his side and kneeled by him, truly taken aback by what she saw. Bloodied, curved bull-like horns protruded from either side of his head, just above his temples. They must have grown from his head in the ten minutes she was gone. Adam finally opened his luminous red eyes, unable to focus them, his vision so blurred and useless that he just closed them again seconds later. "Lute? H-Help me…"

"Hey, Adam… Listen, you- you're going to be okay. I- I know you and I don't exactly, well, get along. But I want to help." She ripped open his dirt and blood soaked robes with quick hands and tossed them aside, working dexterously to identify his wounds and clean them. Adam's heart began to race and he inhaled sharply, his brain connecting the dots and giving the voice a face. His eyes opened again and he tried to pull away, but his body did not move as he intended, and he ended up crashing to the floor. He screamed in agony, only making the situation worse for himself.

"St-stay… away!" Through gritted teeth, he huffed and held up an arm in front of him stiffly, doing his best to create some distance between them. Charlie sat back with a sad frown, recognizing how scared he was. She didn't want to push it, so she gently held out her hand under his, hoping he'd give in and take it.

"I want to help you. Adam, listen to me. Please. Let me help you, please, you don't have a lot of time," she begged quietly, trying to be patient but fully knowing she had to act fast to mitigate the damage. Shaking, he started to drop back out of consciousness and his hand dropped into hers. The pain was too great to bear. "Trust me, I won't hurt you," she spoke as his entire body relaxed into the floor. Given the opportunity to help him without a fuss, Charlie grabbed the vodka and poured it on his right shoulder where she had impaled him with her pitchfork, grimacing, tears in her eyes. She hated that she had to hurt him, but it was what needed to be done. Her life, all of her friends' lives, the hotel- Adam put everything she worked so hard for in jeopardy. She had to act, but now all she wanted was to take away the pain she caused.

The extensiveness of Adam's injuries was surprising; both she and her father, and Nifty of course, had really done a number on him. She found countless surface wounds, and was confident he had a few fractured ribs, noticing his breath cut short every single time his chest expanded too far. Channeling her hellform, she used her demonic strength to awkwardly lift him back onto the cot once she finished tending the front of his body. She turned him to lay flat on his stomach, his wings draping lifelessly around him, hanging over the sides of the bed and resting on the ground. After cleaning and dressing all of the stab wounds on his back, and wiping the grit from his face, she draped a cold cloth over his head and put a blanket over him. Charlie then brushed herself off and sat nearby, pulling her knees into her chest, and waited. It was the best she could do.

While she sat, she felt overwhelmed and crushed by guilt, consumed with emotional conflict. Being an empath came with feelings she couldn't quite understand. Happy that Adam definitely got what was coming to him, sad that he just wouldn't listen and that it had to be this way- she couldn't help but feel responsible for his downfall. Charlie knew fully well Adam would have killed her if her dad hadn't shown up at the last second. Not only that, Adam tried to turn her against Vaggie, mocked everything she said, belittled her in front of all of Heaven… It enraged her. Reflecting on every interaction she had with him caused her to second guess her decision to rescue him. Deep down though, she knew she did the right thing.

"Everyone deserves a second chance," she patted his shoulder lightly, feeling deeply for him. One, two, and three hours passed before Charlie decided that she needed to go back upstairs before anyone noticed her absence. It was almost 9am. There would be a lot of work to do at the hotel today, and everyone would be looking to her, their fearless leader, for what to do next. In a few swift movements, she exited the cell and secured the door, leaving all the remaining medical supplies with him, including the water. The vodka stayed too, as a peace offering. She figured that since his personality closely resembled that of an unpleasant college frat boy's, vodka was probably his drink of choice. Plus, it'd help ease his soreness and dull the pain.

Adam slept the majority of the day, healing and regaining his strength. One moment, he was yelling at a small crowd of losers about how they should be worshiping him, and the next he was resting on his side in a dark, cold room. Now able to sit up, he lifted his torso and swung his legs over the edge of the bed, trembling weakly with every movement. He reached up and pressed his palms into his eyes, then pushed his hands up towards his forehead, using pressure to try to relieve an ache pulsing in his head. The dark bags under his eyes were more sunken and prevalent than usual, and his puffy black eye made him look way worse. His dirty fingertips touched the base of his new horns, and almost instantly stinging tears welled in his eyes again. There was no doubt he'd changed form, like all sinners did when they were damned for eternity.

Looking down at his legs, Adam gasped and winced, frightened by his new hairy lower legs, hooves now in place of his feet. He was a monster. One arm clung tightly to his chest as he turned his head to the right and flexed his shoulder, pulling his right wing forward to see large black feathers that had once been a divine, heavenly gold. Shocked, he reached up and grabbed his horns with his hands, examining their size and shape. As he touched his horns, he felt his long, soft cow-like ears and gasped weakly, cursing under his breath. Finally, his eyes locked on the water bottle left for him in the corner of the room, and he cried out, throwing all his trauma aside to hastily move towards it. He didn't yet understand how to use his new legs, so he army crawled across the floor, groaning desperately. The thirst nearly suffocated him, so when he got his hands on the bottle he downed it as fast as he could, chugging all of it messily with shaking hands. It ran down his neck and chest, creating streaks in the dirt on his skin.

After finishing the water, he reached out for the vodka and took a few large gulps of it, relishing the different kind of burn in his throat. It was familiar and constant, and familiarity brought a sense of comfort. His surroundings, his body, even his own mind… everything was different. But the vodka drank the same. Drinking it took an edge off and did help settle his nerves, allowing him to calm his breathing and focus on his plan. He didn't know how he got here, but he knew he couldn't stay here. There was no way anyone who locked him up in this dingy place had good intentions.

Adam popped five or six painkillers and washed them down with vodka- nothing new, he'd done this plenty of times before to remedy hangovers after late night ragers. Now finally able to see properly, he scanned the room while capping the bottle of alcohol, then set it down beside him. He noticed his robes in the far corner, and realized that he was completely naked. Next, he noticed the bandages, which seemed odd. Why would his kidnapper help him? Carefully, he crawled back over and considered getting dressed, but ultimately opted to tie the blanket from the bed around his waist instead, sort of like a towel after a shower. The angelic garb was absolutely soiled, and he just couldn't bring himself to put it back on. Suddenly, all of the previous days' events emerged in his mind, after the panic and fear finally subsided. They had lost… He and his angel army had lost to the sinners and the hellborns… to Lucifer, specifically. Adam, a once almighty, divine power- the leader of the Exorcist Angels- was now a mere prisoner.

"FUCK!" Adam roared, seething with fury. Lucifer- it was always Lucifer. Lucifer effortlessly took everything from him- first Lilith, then Eve and then his place in the Garden. And now, he was a monster locked in a cage in Lucifer's Hell, thanks to none other than the King of Hell himself. That slippery son of a bitch had successfully managed to drag him all the way down to his level. Adam shook with rage, eyes wide and feral, pupils small. He rose to his hooves unsteadily, using his arms to pull himself up with the bed, suddenly fixated on the cell door made of iron bars keeping him captive. Once upright, he stumbled to the front of the cell and grasped the bars in his hands, fuming. Violently, Adam shook the door and screamed so loud that the ruckus was heard faintly all the way up in the Hazbin Hotel lobby.

"Um, did anyone hear that?" Angel Dust said with mild interest, gesturing everyone doing their chores to stop and listen with a wave of his top left hand. The screaming was very faint, but the rattling sound of the iron was hard to miss.

"OH my gosh guys, I have something SO CRAZY to show you!" Charlie squeaked, drawing all their attention to herself. She giggled frantically as she rushed over to the TV. Vaggie cocked her head to the left, smiling a little bit.

"What are you up to, Charlie…?" Vaggie's smooth, slow and low voice questioned curiously, and Charlie slammed the TV's on button. She turned on the 666 Channel News with Katie Killjoy and Tom Trench, who just happened to be conducting an exclusive interview with her father at that exact moment. Surprised herself, Charlie stepped back and turned up the volume with the remote to drown out Adam's fit, and tuned in with the rest of them. She didn't know her dad had agreed to be interviewed- public appearances weren't really his style. But there had to be a reason for it.

"Well well well, if it isn't the man of the hour, the King of Hell himself. Congratulations to you, your hellspawn, and her little army of underdogs for being the first to successfully fend off an exorcist attack-" Katie cackled, it was clear she almost didn't believe the words coming out of her mouth, "-that you willingly agreed to, may I remind you."

"Uh… thanks, Ms. Killjoy," Lucifer nodded, scooting away from her slowly, clearly uncomfortable. Never a fan of being in the spotlight, he fidgeted with the leaf on the apple at the top of his staff awkwardly.

"Astonishing! Really, so impressive, King Morningstar," Katie leaned back and took a big draw of her cigarette.

"Yeah, it's… great! Sooooo... great."

"It's so good to know Hell's leader is finally out of hiding," she continued, pressing his buttons. "What were you doing all those years while your people were being brutally murdered on the streets and in their homes by Heaven's darling angels every Extermination Day? Didn't want to see the consequences of your actions with your own eyes?"

"I- I was busy, and- and I never agreed to the purges, by the way. Heaven just… they do what they want. I tried to talk them out of it… Adam was insistent that an extermination was the only solution, and they wouldn't listen to me. Hell is overpopulated and there wasn't anywhere else for sinners to go," he paused, and then smiled. "But if you happen to be looking for a way out, you can redeem yourself. Charlie- my daughter- at her Hazbin Hotel… We don't know if or when Heaven will strike back, and they definitely probably could… so if you don't want to die for good, try redemption first." Lucifer smiled into the camera again, flashing his sharp, toothy grin. A surge of warmth spread through Charlie's body and she blushed deeply- her dad finally endorsed her hotel, and on live TV at that.

"Thanks, dad," Charlie whispered quietly to herself.

"Yeah, sure, great. Speaking of Adam," Trench continued the interview, bringing up the next hot topic. "Our reports say the first man and leader of the Exorcist Army was finished off by a filthy hotel janitor, is that true!? Give us all the glorious gory details, King Morningstar!"

"Well, he um… um… let's just say he won't be causing trouble in Hell anymore," Lucifer chuckled as Katie and Tom laughed obnoxiously. Angel, Vaggie, Husk, and Nifty all gawked at the TV with big smiles, proud of themselves and each other. With teamwork and determination, they banded together and prevailed in their darkest hour. Lucifer fixed a button on his coat, then continued "I have a meeting with Heaven soon to reconcile and figure out what happens next, but… the good news is everything is going to change. The bad news is, I don't know how yet."

It was clear to Charlie that her father knew Adam didn't die in that fight by how he didn't really answer that question. Charlie's eyes widened and she took a few steps back, remembering why she'd turned the TV on in the first place. She slinked into the background to get away from her friends now that their attention had successfully been diverted. In a few seconds, she snuck out the door and sprinted around back, headed towards the banging and screaming as quickly as possible. Vaggie turned and noticed Charlie had left, but couldn't bring herself to walk away from the interview unfolding before them.

"Stop- Adam, stop! You have to stop screaming!" She almost tripped over herself running down the stairs, going as fast as she could. Almost instantly he stopped throwing his fit and growled menacingly, knuckles turning white as his grip tightened. "Adam, please listen to me-"

"No, no NO! NOT- It can't be- You- You bitch! No, YOU listen to ME!" He slammed against the bars, trying to loosen one of them or break the chain fastening the door. His hellform was larger now as grew accustomed to the feel and mechanics of his changed body. He was terrifying. Lower legs, tail, ears and horns of a brown bull, powerful black wings, sharpened teeth- the sheer size of him alone was enough to send the average hell dweller running. Charlie started to change to her more medial hellform to match him, her own horns emerging from her head and eyes glowing red, just in case she needed to protect herself. "I didn't ask to be saved! You should have just let me die, this- THIS, this…" he gestured to himself and his voice broke. "This is SO much WORSE than death. I… I'm a fucking monster."

"Well, to be honest, I was pretty sure your hellform would more closely resemble swine, but- I think you got pretty lucky. It could have been way worse. I am sorry though." She spoke quietly, her voice serious and calm, but sincere.

"Sorry… SORRY?! You're not sorry, but you- you and your deadbeat dad- you will be!" He snapped, screaming and shaking the bars violently again for a minute or so before dropping to his knees and giving up. Fortunately for Charlie, he was still weak from his injuries and was lacking most of his strength. Adam sat there in silence with his head hung, fingers still clinging to the bars, and Charlie finally felt safe enough to let her guard down. Her horns retracted back into her head and she sat criss-cross across from him on the other side of the gate, trying to come up with a way to appease him until her dad could get there.

"Can I get you anything else to drink, or something to eat?" Despite his best efforts, she still wasn't scared of him. Enticed by the thought of food, he looked up into her eyes and shrugged.

"I don't know, bitch. Pizza? Pepperoni. Yeah, and- and some whiskey. A bottle of cola too."

"Oh-okay, yeah, yeah sure! Of course- I can definitely get you that," Charlie smiled, feeling like maybe they made a little progress. Of course food was the quickest way to his heart. It was encouraging to know that even though he died, Adam's normal, miserable self was still there. "I just- I just need a few minutes to get everything. I'll be right back. But please, please, please please please keep it down. If others find out you're here, I won't be able to keep you safe."

"Are you going to keep me here, forever?" He asked, resting his head against the bars. "Can you at least tell Lute I'm okay? She- she's probably flipping her tits right now. In a bad way." His lip curled up in a grimace as he watched Charlie smile and put her hands over her heart endearingly.

"Oh, Adam, that's actually so sweet! It- It's so good to know that you care about her-"

"Woah, don't get it twisted blondie- I don't-"

"-Okay, okay. Nevermind. No, I won't keep you here forever. Let me go get your pizza, and your booze and soda- and then we can come up with a plan, and maybe try to reach out to your Lieutenant. But you have to stay quiet. Agreed?" While she still hated him quite a lot, she knew she needed to find a way to get him to listen to her and stay quiet for a little while longer.

"Fine. Hurry up," His stomach growled loudly, causing him to chuckle. At nothing else, he could at least find humor in the situation. A prisoner to the Princess of Hell. What a joke.