Smoke filled the air of a dimly lit penthouse suite. The blinds on all of the windows were pulled mostly shut. The light from the sun only reached a few feet into the space.
As for other forms of illumination, there were only two. One came from the cigarette smoked by the room's owner. In front of him was an ashtray filled with the remains of past cigarettes. They glowed faintly, their embers still burning as the eventual arrival of another continuously fed them.
The second source of light came from a smartphone. It brightly shined on the face of its owner, perfectly revealing her identity. She had an ear-to-ear grin, massive ponytails, and eyes filled with unhinged madness.
"...They should be back by now..." The man cast in shadows spoke. Following his words, another cloud of smoke left his lips.
"Aw, come on, Val. Give'em a break! They probably just got to the warehouse. It's only been ten minutes since they called to say they were following Angel." The woman replied, maintaining her expression.
"Ten minutes too long..." Val argued, taking another whiff of his cigarette. "That bitch hasn't worked in weeks. He OWES me..." He said.
Before their conversation could continue, the door to the room was suddenly opened. Only ONE person besides themselves had permission to do that without asking. So, there was no mystery about this individual's identity.
"Ooh! Voxy!" The woman excitedly greeted.
"Velvette. Val." Vox greeted in return while closing the door behind himself.
"What're you doing here?" Val questioned. "Didn't you say some business came up?" He added.
"I've resolved it for now. It didn't take long." Vox responded as he walked over to join them.
Val's cloaked gaze focused mainly on Vox's face as he watched the Tech Demon sit on the couch. Something didn't seem right.
"What was it?" Velvette inquired. "You told us that someone at your factory demanded to see you. Was it an unsatisfied customer wanting to speak to the manager?" She joked.
"Please. No one is dissatisfied with MY products. Well, not counting that antlered bastard..." Vox replied, muttering that last bit.
"Then WHO was it?" Velvette pressed, quickly moving to sit next to him so she could get in his face. "Tell me! Come on!" She begged.
"A potential partner! That's it!" Vox exclaimed, lightly pushing her away from him.
"...Heh..." Val chuckled, getting their attention. "You're such a shit liar, Vox." He said.
"What? I'm not lying." Vox denied that accusation. "It was a potential partner. They wanted to see if my facilities could handle their product demand. Of course, my genius spoke for itself. That's why the meeting took so little time." He explained.
"Then who WAS this potential partner?" Val persisted. "Surely, I'd know about them. You wouldn't give the time of day to some random upstart with big dreams." He said.
"It was one of the many tycoons from Greed. You know I can't keep track of their names. They all look and sound like the Monopoly Man." Vox replied.
For a few seconds, there was silence. Vox and Velvette waited to see what Val would say or do next.
"...Alright..." Val began, leaning forward to put his cigarette out in the ashtray. "I'm already in a not-so-great mood, Vox. So, here's what's going to happen. I will pull out my phone, call my contacts in Greed, and ask that they find out who this person is. If they get back to me and say they've got nothing, I will beat you so goddamn bad that you'll need to replace your whole fucking head." He warned.
"Hey, no need to be so aggressive, Val." Velvette intervened yet still kept her smile. "Voxy wouldn't lie to us. There's no reason to-"
"Velvette." Val cut her off. "If you open that mouth again while I'm talking, your next selfie will be missing some teeth." He told her.
Whoa. Val RARELY ever spoke like that to Velvette. This was serious. And Velvette, even with her insanity, was frightened by that reaction. At last, her smile faltered. She sank into her seat to avoid his stare, now genuinely worried about Vox.
"Vox..." Val started again, pulling out another cigarette. "I get enough bullshit from my workers. They're always trying to pocket MY profits or get out of work with some bullshit excuses. I've got STDs! My ribs are broken! He hit me so bad I can't see out of my left eye! Crap like that." He continued as he took out his lighter. "Then, you've got Angel. That bastard has skipped nearly three weeks of work. I'll admit, he's clever. There ain't no better way to get out of fucking than to be living with the Angel of Death. Yet now, hopefully, his ass will be dragged back here, and I can have him compensate me for his absence. But until that happens, I'm still in a bad mood." He went on, igniting the lighter's flame. In its orange glow, Val's face was revealed. His eyes, even in darkness, were shielded by sunglasses. His skin was blue, and his mouth was full of jagged teeth. "So, it's up to you whether or not my mood worsens. Do you want to start being truthful, or will I have to knock it out of you?" He concluded, lighting the cigarette.
Sadly, Vox couldn't maintain his poker face. He and Val had a...complicated history. Friends. Lovers. Dom & Sub. Vox's role in that dynamic wasn't hard to guess. Anything Val wanted, he got. There was never a "no" with him.
"...It's...Lucifer..." Vox hesitantly said after a minute of quiet. He knew Lord Lucifer wouldn't be pleased if he learned about this. But he...couldn't disobey Val. He knew what would happen. "He wanted to talk to me about a big project he's working on. He didn't share any details yet. He needs to know he can trust me." He explained.
"See? Was that so hard?" Val asked with a crooked grin. The way he said that sent a shiver down Vox's spine. The hooks were deep, and Val knew when to pull them. "So, Lord Lucifer's cooking something, huh? Makes sense. This recent Extermination wasn't normal; everyone knows that. Then you've got the Angel of Death showing up out of nowhere and going on about that damn hotel Angel stays at. There's BIG stuff happening, and now, because of you, we might be able to get in on it." He said.
"So...I did good, right?" Vox inquired with a hopeful smile. Velvette felt a pit in her stomach. She hated when things got like this. It disgusted her. It was horrible seeing what it did to Vox and where it usually went.
"Yeah, babe. You did well." Val praised him, continuing to use that affectionate tone. "Alright. So, here's what we're going to do. Velvette, hit up your people to see if you can't learn anything. Use blackmail if you need to. Vox, keep playing the obedient dog to the Devil. Don't let him suspect shit. I'll use my network to poke around with the other Overlords and some Nobles." He instructed.
"Right. Got it." Vox agreed with a nod.
"...Yeah...sure..." Velvette also agreed, her smile still not returning.
"Heh, suddenly, I'm feeling better," Val admitted with a smirk. "Although, I still won't be my usual self until that spider bitch is back here. Those mercs we hired better be beating his ass right about now." He said, leaning back in his seat.
Meanwhile, At The Goetia Estate...
BOOM BOOM
"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!"
That exclamation, following the simultaneous explosions, came from Blitzo. I.M.P., Octavia, and Doomguy were outside in the front yard. They had just witnessed an astounding display courtesy of Angel Dust. He had brandished his beloved pistols and shot at some targets Cherri set up using the Goetias' garbage. After that, it wouldn't need to be collected.
"Pretty fucking sweet, huh?" Angel Dust asked the group with a toothy smile.
"Sweet? SWEET?! That is a fucking UNDERSTATEMENT if I've ever heard one!" Loona exclaimed with a grin. Wow. A happy Hellhound. This was a rarer sight than a leprechaun riding a unicorn.
"Yeah! How'd you do that?" Millie inquired, the same excited expression on her face.
"Thank the big guy, here." Angel Dust replied while pointing at Doomguy. During the demonstration, the space marine was busy writing on his notepad. He permitted the Spider Demon to show the others his guns, provided they used safe targets and didn't become reckless.
"Wait...are you saying Doomguy modded your pistols?..." Moxxie asked in disbelief.
"Pfft. Mod? Fuck no. This beautiful man rebuilt these babies from the ground up. They may LOOK the same. But, as you can tell, they sure as shit ain't." Angel Dust answered.
"...Could you do that to a flintlock?" Blitzo asked while turning toward Doomguy, immediately pulling out the firearm. "Please. I'll do anything. I'll even suck your dick." He offered.
Upon hearing that, everyone, including the space marine, slowly looked at the Imp in shock. Thankfully, his adopted Daughter would give a response for Doomguy.
PUNT
With a mighty kick, Loona sent Blitzo flying across the lawn. She had impressive leg strength. The Imp nearly made it to the other side and into the wall. However, he stopped short enough to fly face-first into the dirt.
"There are no words to express how sorry I am." Loona apologized, now looking at Doomguy. "Please, do NOT hesitate to do the same. There's no brain in his head; you won't damage anything." She told him.
"I can vouch for that." Moxxie chimed in with a raised hand. "We constantly warn him about his behavior. But he is impressively persistent in being...hm...what would be the right word to use?..." He said, trailing off as he struggled to think of the perfect thing to say.
"Disgusting? Retarded? Self-Destructive? Socially Inept?" Loona suggested in a rapid-fire fashion.
"Yes. Those will do." Moxxie accepted.
Doomguy gave no reply, which the others didn't fault him for. He went back to writing in his notepad. The space marine was busy explaining what was happening with the pistols and why their bullets turned out like mini mortar shells. After a few more seconds, he was finally done.
"Forgive the wall of words; there's no quick way to say this. Plasma energy, which I've incorporated into your pistols, differs greatly from regular ammunition. Depending on the charge and output, Plasma's impact can range from light to devastatingly destructive. For example, my plasma pistol is only good on small targets, even at full charge. In contrast, my Gauss Cannon hits like a locomotive traveling three-hundred miles an hour. So, out of curiosity, I wondered what would happen if I could combine the two ammunition types. Plasma energy and gunpowder-based. What we're seeing from Angel's guns is a chain reaction. This is what's going on:
-Holding the trigger rather than quickly pulling and releasing it will begin infusing the loaded bullet with plasma energy.
-In standard firearms, a bullet is fired by striking the primer and igniting the cartridge. However, with this design, what propels the projectile is the built-up plasma charge being released as you let go of the trigger. This means the bullet is sent out of the barrel with the primer and cartridge intact. Yet it also takes with it that plasma.
-The result of this, you've already seen. But, for clarity, I'll go step-by-step through it. The bullet strikes the intended target. Regardless of penetration, upon making contact, the plasma energy explodes. The detonation ignites the contents of the cartridge. However, this is FAR more violent than the standard reaction. So, instead of propelling the bullet at the projectile's tip forward, the entire thing bursts. Two explosions, one plasma, and one gunpowder, happen simultaneously. Their force and power are combined to form the devastating outcome you see.
One final note, you can still shoot the pistols like normal. As I said, the plasma gets added if you hold down the triggers. However, for safety and convenience, you can toggle the plasma application with the safety switch. I added a third option to lock the components that generate the energy so you can cut it out altogether." Doomguy wrote.
Watching as the others read what he had written, Doomguy wasn't surprised when everyone eventually looked at him with amazed expressions.
"You...are a goddamn wizard..." Cherri whispered.
"I'm just good with my hands." Doomguy wrote. The level of restraint Angel Dust had to call upon NOT to comment on that was godly.
"Could...you maybe show us?" Octavia requested. Of all people, she was the last one any of them expected to say that. "Don't get me wrong; I'm not asking you to make us weapons like those. I'm just fascinated and want to see how it comes together." She explained.
"I want one." Loon quickly interjected while raising her hand. "PLEASE. I will do ANYTHING. Of course, not to the same depraved and uncomfortable level as Blitzo." She told him.
"Ooh! I want a cool laser knife! Could you make that?" Millie inquired.
"Hey! I call dibs on getting my weapon first! Doomguy, come on, you've GOT to make me some badass explosives! Please!" Cherri pleaded with her hands clasped together.
As the group quickly devolved into them asking Doomguy for various things, the space marine couldn't help but be flattered. He didn't expect they'd want anything else from him other than his knowledge of Doom. So, after getting things under control, he agreed to show them his gunsmithing capabilities. All the while, Blitzo remained face down on the ground.