RIIIIIIIIP!
The sickening sound rang in the air, quickly followed with Val's vicious gasp. He looked at the mess he made, the demon literally being ripped limb from limb thanks to his strength. The last part he pulled off was the sinner's arm, the pathetic appendage wiggled and twitched before it finally laid still in his grip. He dropped the flesh and bones onto the ground, frowning as blood splattered from the arm as it stained his wings/coat. This sinner's blood had a very unpleasant texture to it, making it feel more slimy and unsettling to have covering his skin. Val made a sad attempt to whip it off, deciding to sacrifice his precious wings to get the grime off his main body. It worked a little, his skin was less irritated as most of the gunk was taken off, but he definitely didn't look his best. He tried not to think about his appearance, only worried about his own comfort and nothing more, happy that there was no mirror in the room. As the usually groomed and well kept Valentino was quite an atrocious sight, looking more monstrous than handsome for once, but for the current situation it was rather fitting. The only thing still on him that was recognizable was his cigarette that by some miracle managed to stay in his mouth. Latched on thanks to the moths grinding teeth that refused to let up during his wrathful vengeance.
Val turned away from the sickening sight of the torn sinner, allowing himself to look at his final victim. Empusa, still strapped to the wall and patiently awaiting her turn, the damping anger returning in full force just from looking at her. She may be strapped down, gagged, and blindfolded, but she surely should have been able to hear him kill the others. Yet her form wasn't even fazed, she still laid laxed against her restraints much to his annoyance. No fear or terror, just simple boredom from sounds and smells that surrounded her. Val stalked towards the demoness, bringing up a hand and removing the sinner's gag and blind fold, once again being met with her piercing yellow digital eyes. She took her time licking her chapped lips, her jaw no doubt sore from being forced into the position for the last couple hours. The moth Overlord waited for her to speak, slightly curious if she would have anything to say for his carnage.
"Well hello, daddy." Val's face scrunched at the unexpected pet name, only making Emmi grin with delight. "Is it my turn yet?" Val couldn't resist, before he could even think his hand shot out like lightning, silencing her with a single slap to the face, desperate to force her eyes off of him for one second. Hoping that she would show some fear towards him, but the demoness let out a soft chuckle, turning to stare him in his eyes much to his disappointment. "Well someone's horny, don't be shy, let's have some fun." She licked her lips again, taking extra care to coat her mouth with a thick layer of saliva, Val only glared at the grotesque display of lust.
"You sick bitch," He responded, taking a step back and shaking his head at the view. "Don't you have any shame for what you did?" He asked, Emmi blinked before her laughter filled the dead air around them.
"Shame for what I did? Oh Valentino….." She cooed, leaning ever so closer to the Overlord before her. "Like you're one to talk about the personal taste of demons' pleasure." Her eyebrow raised at the ridiculous notion of his words, daring the other to defend his stance.
"What I do is nothing like the shit you're into," Val argued, crossing his arms as he took another quick hit of his smoke. "I found your videos and the shit you make and sell, they're nothing like the things I do, anyone in their right mind would be disgusted by you." He snapped back, Emmi only laughed again, rolling her eyes as she rested her head against her risen shoulder for some relief.
"Really? Well I disagree Valentino," She replied, Val's antenna twitched while the rest of his body tried to remain still and uncaring. "From what I hear Angel Dust would beg to differ." Val almost dropped the cigarette in his hand, thankfully keeping it in his grasp as he returned it back into his mouth, trying his best to ensure she wouldn't pick up on how much her piercing eyes disturbed him. "From what I've seen and heard you're quite cruel to him too, ain't that right…..daddy?" Val snapped his neck to look at her, any attempt to appear unbothered and in charge died at his moment of weakness.
"...I don't ra…..I don't force Angel to do anything," He responded, hoping it sounded more confident than how he felt about the reality. "He signed a contract, he agreed to the deal I made and has never complained about what I did to him, I made him the most famous porn star in all of hell, I gave him all the clothes and stupid shit he could want, I-" Val was interrupted by the bitches eerie laugh, mixed with her glitching digitized voice making it all the more unnerving.
"Awww, is that what you tell yourself when the guilt starts to kick in?" Val tried to calm his ragged breath, his throat suddenly dry and desperate for water. "You're funny Valentino…but not that funny." The bioelectrical face fazed off before being replaced with a static void, her eyes the only thing still visible, as her head became more of a screen than a face. "I'm your biggest fan Valentino, I've seen every movie you have ever produced and we both know you're lying." Val took another step back unconsciously, acting as though she was free from her binds and ready to strike. "The tales of what you do to your workers are well known my dear friend, even someone as lowly as me knows about the abuse and manipulation tactics you do to all your whores." Her hands open wide before snapping shut, adding the sound of cracking bones with a metallic tinge to it, desperate to grasp something.
"I don't do that to all my whores jus-"
"One?" She finished, Val cringed realizing his defense only incriminated him more. "Oh yes, I guess it's just one whore you exploit to such a sickening degree, isn't it." Despite her lack of mouth at the moment, Val could practically see the smile hidden underneath the black void. "And he was your first right, the first you ever made a contract with, first to lock up in your control?" Val didn't need to answer, the knowledge was well known by anyone who did the slightest research in Valentino's history. He had been powerless at the time, only having the slight assistance of his pheromones and his silver tongue to survive. Another pimp in a city of sex, one who would have almost been another nobody devoured by the powerful or permanently killed by the merciless angels. If it wasn't for the deal he made with Vox…..the demon who saved him. "I remember the first soul I owned," Val was forced back into reality while Emmi escaped to her memories in exchange. "The power flowed through me, the chains wrapped around her neck, so utterly desperate to survive with no idea of the demon who now owned her very existence." Emmi flopped her head back with a montone moan, her eyes disappearing for a flash before returning to stare at her captor. "You have much more self control than I do, my poor pet only lasted a month." She sighed, relaxing once again after the wave of pleasure passed. "But boy what a month…you never forget your first, do you?" Emmi looked at him expectantly, as though knowing the answer he would give to her question.
"You don't know ANYTHING about me." The moth shot back, a cascade of smoke flowing from his mouth into her face. Glaring back down at her, trying to intimidate the other demon once again. "You don't know what I had to do to survive in my life, in the afterlife, the literal hell I had to climb to be where I am today!" He turned his back towards the sinner, unable to look at her yellow eyes for another second. "In hell its survival of the fittest, every soul I made a deal with gave me power but in trade gave me an enemy. The minute you let your guard down my whores wouldn't hesitate to stab me in the back, always eager to fuck you over despite everything you do for them!" He stepped away from Emmi, feeling his back tingle at her never ending watchful eye, deciding to find refuge at the nearby table to slam his hands down. Taking his time to regain his strength before continuing his defense. "Angel was supposed to be an example, a reminder to everyone else that I wouldn't hold back if any of them tried to fuck me over…" His conviction began to die, only saying the words now to comfort himself instead of arguing his case. "...Angel never complained," He whispered again, another rush of his smoke as he spoke. "He was always such a kinky little bastard, always up to anything I offered when we first started and…he had a job to do I couldn't just let him take a break or refuse when he wasn't 'up to it', it's a cut throat business and I told him that before he signed away his soul to me…..I-" Val was at a lost, unsure what he could say to plead his innocence, probably because deep down he knew he wasn't innocent. He dropped his head into his hands, hiding his face to the world as he finally admitted the truth he tried to ignore his whole afterlife. "...I was just trying to survive….I never had power like I do now over anyone in life….And he never told me no, so I-"
"Of course he never told you no." Val clutched his head harder as Emmi joined his thoughts again, eager to torment him with the truth. "What was he going to say to you? With that crazy temper of yours! How many times have you smacked him for just looking at you wrong or speaking out of place, you honestly thought he would 'tell' you when something bothered him, when a client was rough or sadistic even for him?" Her grin reappeared as she gushed over the moth's silly excuses. "Did you really think he would have told you no to your…..advances, did you really think he would have refused you whenever you were horny?" She leaned closer as Val curled tighter into his ball on the table, ready to strike his core. "Did you really think what you did wasn't rape, do you honestly think you're better than me?" Val growled, his claws leaving his head to scratch the table as he stood and stomped his way towards Emmi, a part of him still unable to accept the truth.
"I am NOTHING LIKE YOU!" He screamed, grabbing the demoness by the front of her shirt and pulling her away from the wall at a painful angle, forcing his face right into her's to make his point. "I KNOW what I did to Angel was wrong, I see that now! But I'm still better than a sick, delusional, insane, narcissistic CUNT LIKE YO- AHHHHKFFF!" Val was literally shocked as he felt a surprise sensation of lightning running through his body, courtesy of Emmi's tail sticking out past her legs and wrapping around the moth's exposed skin. He jumped back, trying to catch his fall but failed, as his wailing arms only landed him knee first in front of Empusa, once again wrapped in a ball to soothe and protect himself from more of the pain, his cigarette landing just in front of him away from his addicted lungs along with his signature glasses that laid shattered before him. Empusa didn't give him the chance, her void of a face back in full force, only leaving the small yellow dots as her pupils. The rest of her face was dark with only the occasional static appearing on her screen.
"Don't kid yourself Valentino…" She warned, forcing her body forward to look down upon the Overlord with a murderous glare, once amused but now disgusted by his actions. "We are exactly alike whether you like to admit it or not, and you can lie to your whores, to Angel, to your friends, to Vox…" His forms stiffen as she finally mentions his name, the sound making his queasy stomach even more sick. "But don't you dare lie to me, you son of a bitch!" Her voice began to boom as her uncaring and delighted persona melted into the cold hearted demon she was in reality. "You manipulated and screwed your way up the ranks of hell, you've destroyed so many demons and broke them in ways that even their lives on earth couldn't comprehend, you beat and abuse anyone who doesn't give you exactly what you want or even just for fun…..and you have the fucking nerve to sit there and tell me that you're NOTHING LIKE ME?" Her voice dripped with venom as Val forced himself to look up at her, cowering at the other sinner as her face flashed a monstrous snarl with fangs and electric eyes, every scale on her body charged with energy ready to burst and annihilate anyone dumb enough to touch her. "Why? Because you have two demon's who you don't intentionally treat like crap, because you occasionally throw money or fame at the demon's you fuck and humiliate for fun, because you pump sinners with so much drugs they don't even remeber where the fuck they are half the time. You're a fucking joke of a pimp, and a spineless piece of shit if I ever saw one." Val didn't even try to fight, simply just laying before her, taking every nasty word she threw at him with no complaint, she felt so disgusted at the sight.
"To think I admired your work," Her voice was deathly silent now, her scales dimming back to their natural dull gray color as her emotion subsided in her head. "I thought I saw a kindred spirit in you Valentino, but all I see is a coward, a demon too cowardly to admit and embrace the monster he acts like, and a human bitch who's too weak to change himself for the better." Emmi shook her head, turning away as she could no longer look the Overlord in the face. "I may be a 'sick bitch' as you put it, but at least I stand with who I am and what I like, at least I don't make excuses for my shitty actions, at least I do what I do with pride." Val brought his own head down again, hiding the view of her behind his hat, but still listening despite it all. "Demon's like us don't change Val, once you do the shit you do now there's no turning back, no making up for the demon's you hurt. Sinner's like us are lost causes….." her voice lowered again, turning back into a whisper as she finished her grand speech to her one listener. "Either wake up and accept who you are and show it with pride…or go back to your fake life and live in ignorance until the day you're finally killed for your sins." She looked back at his pathetic form, sighing as she waited for the inevitable death to come her way, all in the pursuit of nothing. "Such a shame I have to waste my life like this. A shame you have to waste your time and sanity on us." She mused, resting her head against the cool wall behind her. "All for a demon who probably didn't really love you…..one that could never love or trust you now…." She sighed before giving the other one last glance at his shivering form, eyes just out of her sight. "If you were smart you'd give up and cut ties with your friends if you really cared about them…..but we know you're too stubborn for that…you'll crawl back to them and find another way to ruin their lives again."
"No….." Emmi blinked in surprise, she thought the moth was down for the count, maybe her ears were playing a trick on her.
"No?" She asked, Val's deflated arms steady themselves against the hard floor, forcing his upper body to rise and his eyes to reveal themselves to the demoness above him.
"No…I won't give up that easily…" He repeated, slowly picking himself off the ground as he defied the sinner before him. "You're right about what I did, about who I am, and it's time that I acknowledge what I did and fix it….." Val now stood, on shaky legs but he stayed upright, ignoring the pain in his system as he met the demoness in the eyes. "I won't let myself rot like you did, I won't let my friends suffer through this alone from what my actions did to them." Val approached the sinner again, wincing as he stepped on the broken glass bare footed, but didn't fault as he went on. "I won't lose the only two people who ever gave a damn about me!" Val's hand pointed at his chest, marching closer to Emmi as she watched with mild interest. "And even if I can't truly fix what I did to the demon's I hurt…I can still change for the better ... .make sure I never hurt anyone like that again…." He now gasped for breath again, the last remnants of red smoke leaving his lungs as he towered over his prisoner, making sure to avoid her tail this time as he gave his message. "And I can start by making sure you never hurt anyone again…..make sure you never hurt him again." The two were lost in each other's eyes, daring the other to deny their words or conviction, Emmi lost as her eyes fell shut and another sickening sweet laugh escaped her mouth.
"And how do you plan to stop other sinners like me? Last time I checked we're in hell, even if I die now 10 more will replace me by tomorrow." She smirked at Val's unbroken determination, waiting for the other to answer. "What can you do other than hurt people?" Val huffed and turned away from her, kicking the broken glass and dead cigarette out of the way as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. A quick text and it returned back out of sight as he reached for his hat to remove it, placing it on a table as the side door opened as instructed.
Emmi's grin died as she was greeted by the sight of the locked door opening, followed by numerous demons and demoness in dark cloaks filling up the space, all holding some sort of hidden weapons she couldn't make out. She was lost until two more sinners appeared, dragging a familiar dirty mattress that she thought would have been forgotten or destroyed by now. The dark stains of blood, sweat, and god knows what else still stuck on the material as it was tossed and placed just below where she hung. Realization began to dawn on her as one of the cloaked demons, an electric eel themed sinner, approached her and grasped her bare arms. Her powers were drained in minutes, she was already weakened from lack of food for the past couple weeks. Any bit of power she had was already used on Val, any small amount she had left was gone thanks to the eel. It would take her a day before she would be able to save up any strength or power, leaving her completely defenseless before the sinners in the room. Her chains extended from the wall, dropping her onto the grimy mattress much to her displeasure, giving her only enough room to walk maybe 10 feet from the wall if she tried. The scene was familiar to Empusa, slowly understanding what Val intended to do to her, a fitting punishment for a sinner such as her, one that was slowly bringing the cruel demoness dread and fear.
"What's the matter?" Val asked, walking up to the mattress but not stepping on it yet. Enjoying the feeling of standing above her, watching as the terror slowly began to set in her mind. "Afraid?" He cooed, Emmi snapped her head towards him, forcing a cryptic smile, desperately trying to appear in control, but failing all the same.
"Of course not," she whispered, looking directly at Val, as she knew deep inside she would begin to panic if she glanced at any of the approaching demons around her. Though the sound of someone setting up a couple of video cameras in the back did little to ease her doom. "This is my kinda party." Val didn't buy her claim, crossing his arms and lifting a brow at the fish demon's statement.
"Oh I doubt that," he responded, his second pair of hands resting on his hips, his body once again relaxed as it usually was, secure of what was to come to his enemy. "I told you I saw what you made, and we both know how much you hate not being in control." As if on cue all of the sinners in cloaks removed their covering. Demons of all sizes dressed in skimpy black leather outfits and spikes, all carrying numerous sex toys, bats, paddles, whips, and more. And all of them shimmering from angelic gold laced into the weapons they all carried, meaning any hit or strike used by them was to cause her permanent damage, or perhaps even death if they weren't careful enough.
"...you sick bitch….." Val couldn't help but grin at her words, feeling pride of scaring the perverted monster into shock with his own lustful ways, for the first time in that room a grin began to appear on the moth demon's face as he inched closer to his victim. "You can't do this." She tried to reason, but instead was met with Val's own laugh.
"Oh I can, and I will" He sneered, finally stepping onto the disgusting bedding. "Once you're gone I'll post this video to everyone in hell to see, as a warning to anyone like you who tries to ever cross me in my territory again." He reached down and snatched Emmi by the neck, bringing her up and above his own head as he manhandled her around like a doll. "You should be honored, this will be the last film I or you will ever perform in again, and demons will see you how I do." He brought her face close, no longer having to worry about any retaliation from the powerless demoness. "As a weak, worthless piece of meat" Her eyes dilated at the threat, as Val seemed to hit her biggest fear right on the head "One that'll be thrown out as soon as we're done with filming….." He leaned in closer, now whispering so only she could hear him. "What you did to Vox will look tame when me and my crew are done with you." Emmi fell back onto the bed, gasping for air while Val walked away, the camera operator aiming the lens right into shot as Val made his way beside the sinner behind the camera. The various demons with weapons stood by, waiting for his orders despite how eager they clearly were to get started.
"Boss?" One of the directors asked nervously, standing next to the Pimp with a boom mic looking at him for command. "Are ya ready?" He asked, Val gave another look at Emmi, deep in thought on what he wanted to do first…there were so many options he couldn't think straight….he needed time.
"I need a minute to think," He admitted, he held out his hand to check his nails, a habit he got into when he was deep in thought, the monotonous action did wonders to help jog his mind. "You and the others can start without me," He turned his gaze and voice towards the demons by the bed as they looked at him expectedly. "You can rough her up, nothing's off the table, just make sure you don't kill her until I get a turn with her, got it?"
The sinner's grin and howled in joy as they finally approached the star of the show. Emmi looked around fearfully, like a rabbit surrounded by a pack of wolves and helpless to escape. She still gave a shot at it, yanking on the chain and trying to avoid the hands, claws, tentacles, and god knows what else that began to creep closer to her form. She turned her head and locked eyes with Val one last time as the moth demon leaned against the wall on the other side of the room, he was still checking one of his nails, not even giving her the time of day. But he did look up to the director who asked him a question she couldn't catch, but she was able to hear the booming voice of the Overlord as he gave the cue to begin filming regardless if she was ready or not.
"ACTION!"
And her faith was sealed as the demon's all together pounced and ripped apart their prey with joy.
—-
~~~5 Hours Later~~~
Valentino groaned as he sat himself into his plush office chair, cracking his neck and back hoping to ease the knots that formed all over his body. He couldn't remember the last time he did a shoot that long with no breaks, grateful for it to be over and done. Emmi was no more, abused just like Vox, killed, and thrown away like the trash she was. The only evidence of her existence was the video he made and the memento he took as a reminder of her demise. Her face, or more specifically the black screen that served as her face. A hollow sculpture of the fearful expression she had before he had finished the deed, a nice hole in the forehead to complete the look. He thought about perhaps mounting it on a wall….but he decided against it. He didn't need to show off the corpse, to bring in more unwanted questions about who she was and why he had killed her the way he did. He would keep her head somewhere away from sight, only as a reminder to him of this day, and the changes to his life he was about to enact. Whether for the better or the worst, he would have to wait and see. One last look at the demon's face and he placed it carefully in his desk draws, he would take it home with him later. He still had one last thing to take care of today before he would be free from the dark and barren studio.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
Val looked up towards his door, he didn't have to wait long before the sinner who knocked opened it. Making his way into his massive office was his top star and model, the one that had been with him since day one, and the one he had hurt the most due to his negligence and atrocious actions. Angel Dust, who was in his usual attire, but clearly just as tired as Val was, covered in hickeys and bruises. Val did his best to hide his frown, wishing he would have told his producers to go easier on Angel. But with all the drama and trouble Emmi and her 'friends' caused, he had been too distracted to think about anything else other than his revenge. It didn't help when he noticed the slight limp he had as well….hurt again, because of him.
Angel did his best to hide his limp as he approached his boss, mentally preparing himself for whatever last minuet fucking he wanted before he could go home. Angel had been enjoying himself for the past couple months, as Val and the Vees had been busy with some sort of 'secret project' that had kept the Overlord almost out of the studio completely. That meant a few blissful months of just doing the basic stuff required for his job before returning home to the hotel, with less bruises and less stress. His job still wasn't ideal as they still demanded a lot from him even without Valentino fucking him every chance he could get, he still did have some tough days….but overall it had been like a vacation for the spider. But when he saw the text from Val demanding his presence after work once again, it was a bitter wake up call that his 'vacation' had come to an end. Whatever project Val had been working on was done and it would be back to business as normal. As he got closer Angel was disheartened to see Val seemingly get more frustrated (?) the closer he got to him, not to mention the horrid state he was in. Covered in what looked like old blood with filthy clothes made Angel want to gag, thinking he would have to get fucked by the dirt pimp didn't help his own soured mood. Angel took a deep mental breath as he finally reached the Overlord's desk, resting his hands on the counter and forcing a suggestive smirk on his face for Val's pleasure. The faster Val got off the faster he could get out of this hell hole.
"Hey daddy," He purred, leaning farther down to show off his pseudo breast to the moth demon eyes, which he now noticed were missing his glasses. "You called?"
"DON'T-" Angel flinched at the others' abrupt shout, unintentionally bringing his hands up to slightly cover his face as Val surged forward glaring at the spider. However the other sinner stopped himself, eyes widening, looking at Angel as though he saw him for the first time. Val relaxed his body against his chair and sighed, resting his face into his left hand while motioning his others to wave towards the chair next to Angel's. "I-i'm sorry just please don't call me that Angel…" Val groaned, Angel's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets from Val's genuine apology. "Have a seat…..we need to talk….." Angel slowly sat down in the chair beside him, not taking his eight eyes off the other demon, looking at him as though he grew a second head just before him.
"You okay Val?" Angel questioned softly, doing his best to not anger the moth, but curious about his strange behavior. "You seem a little….off?" Angel waited for the others' response, but was met with silence as Val remained in his current pose. Angel could feel the other watching him through his hands, which wasn't unusual as Val always loved to watch Angel whenever he got the chance, like a child watching his favorite puppet dance for him. But this time the staring felt less predatory and more curious, as though he hadn't seen Angel in eons, when it had at most only been a week since they last saw each other.
"I'm…not fine Angel," Val admitted, bringing his head out of his hand but now resting his chin on the same spot, looking to the side of the wall to avoid the spider's stare. "But that's not what I wanted to see you for," He clarified, another breath Val seemed to gain the strength to finally look his worker in the face as he continued. "It's about your contract." Bringing up one of his lower hands, Val conjured the porn stars' contract before him, the glowing piece of paper floating on the desk for both demon's to look at with interest. Angel felt the sense of dread he had multiply like never before, much more afraid when he thought the other only wanted to fuck him.
"Oh?" Angel asked, desperate to fill the dead air with some sound. "My…my contract?" Angel shivered at the sight, Overlords did have the ability to 'update' it or change a contract as long as both parties agreed to the changes. Val had never attempted this as the current contract was already air tight, no loopholes and no way out unless the pimp chose to set him free. Any change to a contract could potentially create a loophole or other problems if an Overlord wasn't careful, which is why many tried to keep from doing it as much as possible. There was a chance that Angel could try to give himself a better deal if Val was serious, but there was a bigger possibility Val would be looking to make the deal worse, much worse than what it currently was. But to update a contract both parties had to agree, and if Angel refused the moth's request, he shivered at the possible ass beating he would get if he refused the moth demands.
"Yes, your contract…... .there's something I need to do…something I should have done a long time ago." Angel gulped, feeling lost on what to do. He'd been dealing with Val for 50 years but he had never acted like this before, any of his usual tricks to keep Val calm and happy felt worthless. He could only watch with bated breath to see what the unpredictable pimp would do. Val grabbed the floating paper from the air, holding the contract in both hands and brought it before his face. But Val didn't even give the words a glance, simply looking right at Angel with a….. regrettable expression on his face, something he never thought was possible on the cold hearted pimp. Then Val ripped the paper, he tore it in half and then shredded the two remaining pieces in half as well. He kept pulling the bits of paper apart until it was nothing but confetti on his desk. Angel froze like a statue, looking at the ruin paper as it slowly grew a hot pink and burst into flames. Turning what remained of the contract into dust on Val's desk, and as if that wasn't enough to prove to the sinner this wasn't a dream. His neck felt tight as his chained collar appeared, but then heard a crack, as the hot red metal around his neck shattered away like a piece of glass, falling off Angel's into smoke as his neck for the first time in 50 years was bare once again. Angel gasped as he fell forward onto the surface in front of him, he reached up his hand to feel his tender skin, tasting the fresh air like never before. It was official, Val had broken the contract completely…he was free.
"I'm free…" Angel whispered to himself, trying to comprehend what the fuck just happen. Val whipped the dust off his desk before resting his hands on the wood, still looking at Angel as he took in his newly given freedom.
"Yes," Val confirmed, trying his best to sound soft and kind to the spider, but was not too successful thanks to his sore throat. "You've met the deal of our contract more than enough, you can leave whenever you want, and I'll even compensate your extra work with a…..generous last paycheck, you can expect it to show up in your account by tomorrow. And if you don't think that's enough then give me a call and I'll see what I can do to send you more if you need it." Val leaned back into his chair, his eyes finally looking away from Angel's awkward form as he decided to stare at the dark stain on his desk instead. "You're free…" He repeated the others words, hoping to cement the reality into his no doubt shocked mind. The well meaning statement had the opposite effect on the ex-porn star. His hands dug into the wood beneath his claws as he forced his body up and glared at the pimp. His eyes a unsure mix of anger and confusion, desperate for answers as he for the first time in half a decade, shouted at the moth before him.
"WHAT THE FUCK VAL!" Val jumped at the sinner's shrieking irritation, standing away from the desk and shoving the chair to the ground in his outburst. Ignoring whatever the furniture knocked over as the spider demon paced back and forth in front of the Overlord, needing to release energy as he spoke. "YOU AND THE VEES HAD BEEN ACTIN' WEIRD AND CLOSED OFF FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS, BARELY MAKING A SCENE AND NOW,'' Angle stopped for a moment, waving his arms dramatically that only a full blooded Italian could muster up to convey his outrage. "AND THEN YOU TOOK THE BEST CONTRACT YOU EVER MADE WITH ANY DEMON AND YOU JUST TORE IT UP LIKE IT WAS NOTHING! AND JUST GAVE ME MY FREEDOM WITHOUT EVEN SO MUCH AS A REASON OR A DEMAND!" Val was becoming annoyed at the others' shouts of despair, unsure why the demon was reacting in such a bizarre manner.
"Why are you upset?" The moth asked, his hand unconsciously went to grab a cigarette only to be frustratingly reminded at his lack of smoke. "I thought you would be happy with me giving you your freedom back, what's the problem?" Angel paused his movements, snapping his head to glare at the moth, slowly marching towards the demon as he looked at the other with disgust and unfiltered hatred.
"My PROBLEM is," Angel smashed his hands onto the desk for dramatic effect, causing cracks to spread across the wood like a deadly spider web. "Why now….." Val was surprised by the others' soft words, barely loud enough for him to hear as the spider's courageous front began to crumble under the stress. "For 50 years I was your money maker, your best performing star, your most…..obedient whore." Val cringed at Angel's description of himself, was this how Angel saw himself, even now that he was free. "Why did you let me go now….did I do something wrong…..are ya bored of me?" Angel ran a hand through his greasy hair, moving it to focus on his thoughts better but still unwilling to look at the demon behind his desk. "Is this a joke, some sick prank?" Val caught the spider's face, the frantic and paranoid look in his eyes as he tried to figure out the moth's secret plan, there had to be one, that was the only thing that made sense. "Are you…are ya going to kill me, and you just wanted to break our contract before you throw away the worthless whore?" Angel's other hand came to join its twin, running through the fearful spider's hair as his pupils began to dart around, looking for the hidden foe before landing on Val with that same terrified look, the one Val had ignored for so long until now.
"Angel" He whispered, standing from his chair and making his way around the furniture, hoping to comfort the other sinner. He tried to rest a hand on the other's shoulder, unsure on how to approach this new situation. His attempt was hopeless as Angel jumped back from his hand, his hair standing on end as he tried to make himself look as big as possible. "This isn't a trick I swear, you're free to go I just….I needed to let you go….I just can't keep you after what happened to….." Val sighed, unable to finish, Angel didn't relax in the slightest, still prepared to bolt the second the pimp jumped him. Like he always did. But despite his instinct begging him to get the hell out, another part of him was just confused and curious, and wanted to know what was going on.
"After what happened to who?" Angel asked, bringing his hands down from his head as he studied the imposter that was his boss. "Tell me Val…..please, just so I know this ain't a trick ... .please" Val considered whether or not to tell Angel everything. He had sworn to never tell another soul about what happened to Vox, they could never risk the public knowing the truth. The rumors and attacks that would come to their group would no doubt destroy their business, as every up and coming demon would stop at nothing to get their hands on the damaged TV demon without mercy. Val could tell Angel no, order him to leave and go and never look back. But…..he was doing this to make up for his horrendous actions, and judging by Angel's paranoid reaction he would never be truly free if he lived the rest of his afterlife afraid of Val coming after him. Angel deserved the real answer, he deserved to know the truth and get an honest apology from Val….it was the least the pimp owed him.
"If I tell you," Val whispered, catching the curious attention of the other as Val leaned against his desk, preparing for the long story. "You can't tell anyone about this…you got it Anthony?" Val glared threateningly towards the demon, he hated having to use that now but he had to make sure the other wouldn't blab about this. Angel flinched at his threat, but didn't leave. Angel made his way towards the chair he knocked over and reclaimed his seat, giving the moth his full attention while nodding his head.
"I won't tell anyone what you say, just…tell me what happened….." The moth gave another sigh as he reached a hand up to massage his pounding head, not at all eager to relive the horror story that was his past couple of months, but pushing through it regardless.
"Vox didn't go on vacation," Val started, causing Angel to sit up taller, desperate for the story. "About two and a half months ago he was kidnapped by some psycho smut producer 'fan' of mine who wanted to…impress me with her work. And she figured the best way to do that was through Vox, as I'm sure from the rumors you know I care very…..deeply for." Val turned away from the watchful spider, knowing he wouldn't be able to keep speaking if he looked at his audience.
"You mean those rumors are true?" Angel asked, sounding genuinely surprised. He knew Val and Vox had something going on for sure, but he didn't think the pimp was capable of any emotions, let alone romantic ones.
"Yes….." Val agreed unashamed, no use in lying about that now. "And she knew that too, so she kidnapped him and he disappeared off the face of the map. Vel tried to track him down but she couldn't detect him anywhere, they were able to hide his signal and any other method we had to find him. This bitch was cunning and had him for two whole fucking months. We finally tracked her down and caught most of the guys who worked for her. We found Vox, underground chained by a 'bed'...alone, beaten, half starve and…... .naked." Val caught the slight intake of breath from Angel, as he no doubt could guess what happened to the TV Overlord.
"She….she didn-"
"Yes she did," He admitted, taking a deep breath to calm his shattered heart at saying the truth out loud for the first time to himself, let alone to another demon. "She and her men raped him…they did it for two months and made Vox do…unspeakable things…even for my taste….." Angel was at a loss for Val's story, watching as the moth simply leaned against the desk and stared at the wall beside them, deep in thought and seemingly forgetting about those around him.
"I…I'm sorry to hear about that…" Angel felt unsure about his words, he did feel somewhat sorry for Vox. They weren't close by any stretch of the imagination and Angel didn't have the highest opinion of him either. But he was never cruel to him particularly, with Vox everything was business, nothing personal. He never took the same sick joy that Val got when he harassed and forced him into doing things he would rather forget. Even if Vox was a bit of a bastard…..no one deserved that kind of torture, not even the Vees. Well, he thought again while stealing another glance at the pimp in front of him, almost no one deserved that. "How did they manage to kidnap Vox?" The bold question brought the Overlord back into the present, looking towards his single audience and considering the question. "Vox is pretty strong, especially with his electro teleportation trick, how did they get the drop on him? And how does this have anything to do with letting me go?" The spider sinner leaned forward, which only caused the moth's stomach to ache in pain, as his guilt began to build again, fearful of the others' response to the truth. But this is what Angel deserves…he couldn't back out now.
"...they used the love potion on him…" Angel froze like a statue, realization dawning on him as the other stumbled through the truth. "Turns out my pheromones and Vels magic made the stuff extremely strong…stronger than either of us realized…." Val brought his head down into his hands, unsure how to calm himself otherwise without a smoke…god he needed a cigarette. "Strong enough to affect even an Overlord…like Vox…" The room was silent as Angel processed the confession, as the pieces of what happened slowly began to come into place. "She never would have been able to hurt him, if it wasn't for that fucking potion. The one Velvette made…the one I suggested to her…" His voice began to break, cracking as he desperately tried to save his pride and not break down before the other.
"So Vox got kidnapped and assaulted…and it was your fault for putting that potion on the market?" His conclusion was supported by Val's soft nodding of his head, still blinded by his hands and despair. "And this is why you're letting me go? Because you feel guilty or something?" Angel didn't need a response to know that was clearly the moths intention, Angel sighed at the others sorrow reaching into his voluptuous chest fluff to pull out a hidden cigarette and lighter. After lighting the cancer stick and taking a sweet taste of his cherry flavored nicotine before giving his sagely advice to his ex-boss. "Like that'll do any good….." The surprisingly uncaring words caught the moth off guard, looking up again to stare at the spider with a shocked and insulted expression.
"That's all you got to say?" He asked, trying his best to keep his rage down, but barely managing as he stood taller and away from his desk. "The love of my life has been violated like never before and that's what you got to say about that." Angel blank expression as he gave more attention to cigarettes only caused his bad temper to deteriorate as he stalked before the ungrateful spider. "Honestly out of anyone I told this to I thought you would be more sympathetic! Especially after what-"
"You do to me?" Like a bucket of cold water on a flame his rage was doused, causing his looming form to freeze as the smaller spider turned his way and glared at Overlord as though he was nothing but the lowly bug he manifested as. "Don't get me wrong," Angel corrected, taking another taste of his own smoke much to Val's envy. "I feel awful for Vox, we weren't close or nothing but…..for what it's worth I do feel sorry for him and hope he recovers as best as he can from that." Angel's eyes soften at his condolence, meaning every word he spoke about the TV demon. "No one deserves to suffer like that…not even him…." His sympathetic gaze died as he turned his hatred back at the pimp, narrowing his eyes as he stood. "But you Val, I feel nothing for the mess you got yourself into." The moth's eyes widened as Angel's voice rose, getting closer to a scream as he for once felt somewhat free to speak his mind to the slimy bastard. Not safe mind you, but bold enough to tell him as it was.
"But….I-"
"You what Valentino?" Angel's words boomed as he talked over him for the first time in half a century, standing taller for himself as he took an intimidating step towards Val, as though he was the Overlord in the room. "You think letting me go is going to make up for the shit you put me through for 50 years? You think that's gonna make the stupid as fuck idea you had to sell a powerful roofie to the public any more forgivable?" Val backed up as Angel marched towards him, the hints of his true demonic form sneaking through as his six smaller eyes became more visible, his extra pair of arms ripping through his jacket to make himself appear bigger. "You know how many of my work buddies and friends suffered because of that goddamn drug you sold on the market, it wasn't just your boyfriend who got literally fucked over by your idea, I've lost count of how many horror stories I heard from demons who were affected because of your actions!" Angel grew a few inches taller, if it wasn't for the long strenuous day he had he would have towered over the pimp, who was left speechless as he didn't dare interrupt his old worker.
"I…..I didn't mean to hur-" His pathetic excuses were stopped as Angel's hand caming crashing into his cheek, silencing his words with a painful smack.
"BULLSHIT!" Angel shouted, his eyes a bright neon pink that burned his own as Angel was only a few inches away from his face. "You never think about ANYONE but yourself! So don't you dare tell me that you never meant to hurt anyone, you lying piece of shit!" His lower arms latched onto Val's ruined jacket as he lifted the moth off the ground, making him feel small and helpless as the spider smacked some sense into the other. "You've terrorized EVERYONE you've ever known or had work for you, and you expect ME to feel sorry for you when your fucking karma finally caught up to you." He brought Val's head down, bringing the face right next to his own head as he whispered into the moth's ears, making sure he would never forget what he said next. "Do you really think Vox will ever forgive you for what you did?" Val's lungs stopped, feeling a sense of pain worse than the smack Angel gave him just a second ago. "Do you really think he'll ever love a monster like you back?" Angel pulled away to look directly into the pimps wide and ever so slightly watered eyes. "Because let me make this clear, after what he went through he'll never, ever, ever love a sleazy, sex obsessed, abusive bastard like you…..not if he knows what's good for him." Angel leaned closer just an inch, making his final word clear to the other "You hear me?" Angel then shoved the demon into his desk, knocking over half the crap that covered the space as Val groaned in pain at the impact, but didn't move as he laid on the furniture for a minute. His shoulders trembling as he fought the desperate need to cry, knowing he didn't deserve the pity his tears would bring him, but secretly wishing for it all the same. Angel only shook his head in disgust at the others' sad display, taking his cigarette and dropping it onto the ground before stomping it out. His desire for the stick was gone as he only wanted to leave and never return to this wretched place ever again. With Angel's back turned to Val, the moth demon in a desperate attempt to fix his wrong. Shot up from the desk and grabbing Angel's free arm, causing the other to jump and look down at the moth on his knees. Looking up at the spider as though he was the literal angel he was half named after.
"PLEASE Anthony, please believe me when I tell you I'm sorry." Angel's eyes almost popped out of his skull as the month knelt down before him, keeping his death grip on the other as he begged. "I know I can never make up for what I did, I know I don't deserve your forgiveness or pity…..I know I'm a monster." He took a shaky breath before looking up at Angel with the sincerest look he could ever hope to muster. "But I swear to you I will change, I want to change, not just for Vox but for Velvette and myself….and for everyone I hurt…..I want to change…" He looked upon the demon, waiting for a response as Angel considered his plea, glaring down at the other with an unconvinced expression.
"I believe you…." His answer was unexpected, but brought the moth hope as a smile almost escaped his lips, but was dashed away as the spider continued. "I believe now you want to change….love can do crazy things to a person…..make them into better demons if it's strong enough." Angel glanced down at the hand Val gripped, hidden underneath the glove was a simple chained bracelet that had the spade, club, diamond, and heart symbols dangling from the golden metal. A gift from his better half he got on their one year anniversary, one that he would never take off no matter what. "But you Val," He continued, turning his eyes back onto the demon before him. "Demons like you don't change," He yanked his arm away from the sinner, who was too distraught by his words to fight. "After the shit you did to me and others for years and years…... .people like that never change, let alone demons…" The spider brought up his hand to caress his sore wrist, slowly turning towards the door to finally leave. "You might try your damndest for a few months, maybe even last a year…but you'll slip. You'll fuck up, and you'll fall right back into your sick ways…and you'll hurt more demons again and again." Now in front of the door Angel grabbed the handle and twisted it, pulling the wood open and entering the open passage. But turning back to look at the pimp one final time, as he still sat on his knees, looking at Angel with all the hope in the world, but finding none in his eyes. "If you really care about Vox and knew what was good for all of us, you'd take that fucking holy gun of yours, and blow your brains out on the wall….and once you no longer exist on any plain of life or death…..than maybe I could forgive ya for what you did." The door slowly came to a close as Angel looked away from the moth, unable to look at the sad display for another minute longer. "And maybe for once in your life, you can do something right and make hell a better place, with you gone from it." And the door shut, followed by the sounds from his most faithful porn star softly drifted away, never to grace his ears ever again.
Val just sat there on the ground, the words rolling in his head now that the other was absent. He knew Angel wouldn't forgive him, that wasn't a shock to him in the slightest. But to think Angel saw him as so monstrous that he wasn't even capable of change, of improvement, of beginning nothing more than a irredeemable monster in hell. That hurt…..hurt more than Val would ever dare to admit, hurt more than all the pain he ever felt in his life on earth or in hell. It hurt to think that perhaps…the spider was right, and despite all the sorrow he felt for the demons he cared for so much, might not be enough to change him, that he would crawl back to his own sick ways whether he wanted to or not…it was too much. With an inhuman scream Val exploded into life, grabbing anything and everything that he was able to break, smash, and destroy within his range. Throwing his desk against the wall as it shattered into nothing but wood scraps, his precious and favorite toys and possessions broken beyond repair, even his posters on the walls of all the movies he took great pride and starred in were not safe from his wrath. In minutes his office was in shambles, nothing but a destruction zone that was expertly torn and ripped apart to its bare bones and material.
A horrific and yet beautiful reflection of his life, as the moth now laid among the rubble, the only unbroken item being the framed photo of him and Vox shaking hands after they officiated their partnership with one another.
Holding the happier memory close to his aching heart as he finally broke himself and cried like never before.