Ouroboros

by Uros Osium

What would fit a tale of a new beginning? Why, a recent end. For a whole bloodline on Earth, it was the end of it all. For the remains of a botched murderous spell, it is the beginning of a life among the damned. From blood anointed by the holy servants of God, to one tainted by the Fell spell destined to consume their living essence. (M Rating just in case)

20. Anima Magica - Chapter VII Epilogue

Year I - Act II - Anima Magica - Chapter VII (Epilogue)

Hey everyone! Last chapter of this particular Act. We are going to be done with the introduction to the family getting magic and the 'face' of Carlos' little clique and get ready to delve into Lust and a first proper job for the 'Huntsman' as it were.

Btw, let's make a few things clear, just in case, because I am pretty sure my notes last chapter may have confused people.

The idea, if I ever get there, still has Helluva and Hazbin taking place. Of course, considering I had pegged certain things happening differently, there will be more changes than originally planned. So hey, going off the hinges!

It will take me YEARS to get there (if it ever happens. I need to work on smaller things), so by then I will have worked out how things will go. The seven year timeskip is motherfuckingly perfect though, considering the original plan had this story going for 2 to 3 years. I did get a few things right ahead of time. By pure luck, but hey, I'll take what I can get.

On the other hand it also means I will stop shooting myself in the foot and will allow this to be a bit more organic than what I had planned. Constricting my works usually leads to disaster, so let's see what the old brain cooks up now that I am allowing myself to cook with gas. I still want to stick somewhat close to canon, but with what I have made being off by a mile by now, I'll be more flexible with my own guidelines now. Fuck, Lucifer is already different here because he has more drive, his wife hasn't divorced him and all that jazz.

Oh, speaking about canon, let's make Lucifer as he is in the show. The first description I made for him was out of date. I have a good excuse for the change tho! Besides, he is a fucking Seraphim and Lord of Hell. He can do whatever THE FUCK he wants. And now he wants to be a short king… Well… it'll be explained in a bit. Plus, short Lucifer is cool.

Oh, and for some fokin' reason I didn't mention Destina's species in the description. Some of you, if you are bird nuts, will have noticed by the coloration I described. Her form, at least in my mind, comes from the Vermilion Flycatcher. Of course, thanks to her family's particular genetic disorder, it is the males that are drab and Destina instead has their usual plumage.

Anyway, let's get this show started. Hope ya lot enjoy it aaaaaand don't mind the length. This just kept growing and growing and if anyone makes a dick joke I'll smite them.

"That was something. I didn't expect Beatrice to drag Destina away that fast."

Three of the five composing the group could only nod, mostly because the fifth was talking with a Sinner not too far from them.

The Theatre named Jeu Sanglant, or 'Bloody Game', had it fit perfectly. The vast majority of people that worked within one of the more concurred Cannibal Colony's venues, a place for plays, operas and concerts, was mostly composed of Sinners that frequented the little town full of cannibalistic demons and equally ravenous Sinners. The main reason? Most of them were meant to die during the plays, but not consumed (in most cases anyway), so there were monthly plans to ensure an almost perfect run. Except when someone took too long to regenerate that is.

One of the most renowned figures was a Sinner that had worked for Rosie for no less than seven decades now, Beatrice Arrows; a relatively average woman in height, the white haired and chromatic feathered Sinner resembled the original siren of Greek mythology. With arms that were only wings, no hands (her single and most personally despised feature), multicolored tail and bird legs that almost looked plated in gold, she was hard to miss. It was also a telltale sign of her life full of narcissism, fleeting desires and flings and, ultimately, a painful death as the long red mark on her neck hinted at a singular, and very final, cut in her career.

It was somewhat ironic that many of her characters were killed just like that. At this point, years down the line, Beatrice had admitted to feeling little to no pain anymore. It was still unpleasant though, and a reminder of why her voice sounded 'wrong' even after reforming in Hell as a Sinner.

"I just mentioned Beatrice's little problem to Destina." Carlos shrugged at Evelinde's questioning look. "I thought she'd know of a mixture to fix her throat. I thought she'd be interesting, just… not that forceful."

Everyone in the group looked at the young man. Soon it would mark the end of the second month in Hell, and Carlos had finally lost almost all of his chubbiness. There were still a few remnants, but the muscle underneath was starting to show. Soon enough the curse that forced such speedy conversion would need to be dispelled. It was something Carlos was awaited with bated breath.

He was done with the constant pain.

No one dared make a comment, though. They instead decided to focus on the conversation at hand.

"Nothing can fix that." Zana was quick to point at the Sinner's marked throat, the imp doing her best to resist the desire to rip apart the formal suit that constricted all of her bits. Rosie was adamant that she would not go into the theater with her usual clothes, ever. "But her vocal chords? Maybe."

"I wouldn't mind hearing Beatrice's voice without a single constraint." Evelinde admitted, but she still looked at Carlos funny. "But offering this for nothing…"

"I am not that generous OR nice. It'll be Destina's time, so she can choose what to do. I just wanted to offer a possible gesture of goodwill."

Carlos waved Evelinde's concern away. He wasn't going to do favors for no reason. That would be a massive faux pas anywhere in Hell, more so now, considering that with Destina the whole group's little 'noble' quality was officially going. More important: Giving something for free in Hell was viewed as almost taboo. It had three possible meanings: You were either soft (as Destina had so gently told him two weeks ago now, and still reminded him when he did something 'wrong'), the gift was some kind of 'bribe' for whatever reason, or the more common 'there is strings attached that you won't know until it is too late' kind of gift.

So the young man had thought long and hard about how to present this one to the actress. It was simple, really. "But making sure the locals know we are offering services that Rosie didn't have on hand before will help her AND us. Destina agreed with me, and I am sure you three would be of the same mind here."

Leonor was quick to nod in appreciation. "That is not a bad move. But our opinion aside, did you ask Rosie?"

"Me and Destina had a discussion about what she can do and if we could offer her inventory in Rosie's name. She just made sure to remind me not to give things away for free, six different times." Carlos grimaced. His good disposition was going to get him stares often, wasn't it? "So it shouldn't be a problem."

Zana made a face. "It is a problem that she is around."

The Cambion of the group could only give her companion a sidelong glance. "You just don't like her personality."

"It is not easy to like someone like her." Leonor was of Zana's mind, and even Carlos had to admit their interactions were… rough. "Impersonal to a fault, detached and barely emotional. We have machines that are more personable than her."

No one said the small group would integrate a new member in just two weeks without a problem. Carlos thought it would take something more akin to months, in fact.

… or years, if Destina tried harder to avoid contact with the others.

"She is different, like all of us. None of us fit the description of 'normal', after all"

Carlos' words would've been taken with an air of insight, if the reason behind them wasn't obvious. One woman was insane, sadistic and catlike in her behavior. Another was the closest thing to a professional serial killer with standards and a controlling problem. And the third was a hormonal bag of anger and brutality with poor impulse control, even after you ignored the lustful connotations, which made it all worse.

The group was a fucking mess, and that is if you ignore the moralistic little shit that was far too loyal, sincere and nice for Hell, only for his personality to do a one eight and turn into a monster the moment something flipped the right switches. Their little family was the closest thing to a walking time bomb that could be found in the area.

Positives of this: The 'Area' meant only the Cannibal Colony. Pentagram City had far WORSE couples/groups out there. That much gave Carlos a reason to smile and think 'I am not doing so bad'.

In fact, it was probably impossible to do as bad as he had seen. That was one outing no one was going to know about, other than Evelinde. No Leonor, no Zana, no Destina (though Carlos would bet she wouldn't care), and for sure not his family. That was going to be his personal 'noodle incident'. Fuck that particular day and that particular moment IN particular. The worst hour in Hell outside of personal danger without question.

A face of disgust such as the one he was displaying was all Evelinde knew to connect the dots. There hadn't been any other event such as that one with the two of them involved and the reaction was near immediate.

"In any case, dear." Thus, the Cambion did as she knew she should: Divert the attention. "I can guess you are offering her this for something more than just money and awareness?"

Before Carlos could answer, the group of four were rejoined by Destina, and an accompanying Beatrice.

The syren woman had a pair of silver colored hands, ethereal in appearance, holding a bottle. Rosie was a gracious master when pleased, and a choker that completed Beatrice's opera dress was enchanted to offer her the appendages she had lost. She didn't use the magic device during her work hours, mostly because her neck was usually the target for her characters' death and all, but also because hands weren't needed for most of her plays.

Although, were you to ask, in great part it was because she didn't trust herself to try and stop her 'attackers' even after seventy odd years of working this way. No one enjoyed the feeling of dying again, even for a short while. It was a pure sense of nothingness that left your soul cold and empty.

"I have been told it was your idea to offer me this?" The syren woman presented a bottle of 'Regrowth', only this one was trimmed in gold and much smaller. A concentrated version of the regenerative potion.

Beatrice's voice was indeed beautiful, if clearly pained and touched by an imperfection that was hard to pinpoint. It just sounded slightly off, warbled in the corners as it were. Anyone would say it was almost perfect as it were right now, but Beatrice would tell them they knew not what they were talking about. Her voice was not in its prime, thus, it was defective.

"Indeed." Carlos would've offered a hand to sake or something, but Beatrice didn't seem interested in the gesture, so he refrained. "Evelinde has taken us to your plays a fair few times." The man nodded towards the Cambion as she offered a curtsy and a smile to Beatrice. "The topic of your voice came up in some of those visits. I didn't consider it fair for that wound to remain, so now that the means to solve your problem were available…"

"..." It came to Carlos a bit late. He had said far too much when it came to what he truly thought. Still, Beatrice didn't seem to think twice before nodding. "The sentiment is… appreciated."

Well, better salvage this, or that is what Carlos thought as he sprung the question. "Will you come to the Tower?"

Tense and surprised, but somewhat welcoming the request, Beatrice looked at the young man. The extra price, as it were. That was what the woman had been waiting for, although this was not what she had expected.

"Come again?"

"You work for Rosie, you have done so for a long time." Carlos ventured at the woman's uneasiness. "I have my reasons for offering, but if you ever wish for a safer place during Exterminations-"

Beatrice chuckled at the thought, cutting Carlos mid speech. "I have been around for more than half a century, boy. I am used to them and know where to go."

"I know that. No one would live that long without having an inkling of where to be and what is safe to do." Carlos hadn't learned as much as he should yet, but he was aware that a single angel could easily score dozens kills a year, perhaps hundreds for the more skilled ones. Considering the death toll was in the millions by now, the danger couldn't be understated. "But considering I am trying to make what basically became my family's prison into a safe haven…"

The syren Sinner thought for a second. "This is not an offer to join your little harem, is it?"

"No."

Beatrice wouldn't admit it, but that was a small blow to her ego. It also came as a surprise for the women around him. Whether they knew him since his arrival or had just researched him, they knew of his sincerity. The fact that he was that blunt was still a bit surprising.

"You are a 'demon', but still a human, technicalities aside. If I asked you to do this, you accepted, and at some point I gave you a child, we'd be in a world of pain." Now that made more sense to the women in his little group. "Besides, I heard from Rosie that you prefer the fairer sex. All I want to offer is a safer place for you to live, if you want it."

No eyes went to Beatrice. Whoever she liked to bed was her own business. Instead all attention was on Carlos. Again. He had said far too much.

"It is true, isn't it?" Beatrice asked, not at all surprising the group. "You are far too nice for your own good."

Zana crossed her arms with a pout on her face. "You don't know half of it."

"I am 'nice', yes." Carlos admitted. "Not 'good'. At some point people will take notice of that."

The syren cocked her head with questioning interest. "And what would the difference be?"

Carlos offered a thin lipped smile. "A good person would try to see the good qualities inside everyone, try to help anyone they could. You could seek 'martir' in the dictionary and a true good person would be the definition. They would do all they could to make the world a better place, but likely would struggle if 'a better place' included taking others off the picture." The smile was replaced by something else, hard to place. It came to him when he thought of a particular woman he wanted to find and punish. "A nice person is not a martyr." Carlos made it abundantly clear that he truly believed what he said. "A nice person cares for their friends, their family, their way of life. All that is close to them. They want to maintain it, make it last. Whereas a good person would allow others to push, even to hurt them, in hopes to bring something positive out of it, a nice person will draw lines in the sand."

He inched closer to the syren woman as he bowed over ever so slightly. "And if you cross those lines? Well, this nice person here knows who'd like to have you for dinner."

As gentle as he could be, it had been made abundantly obvious Carlos could be horrific when needed. And when truly pissed? None, not even Carlos himself, doubted that he could enact truly heinous acts on a whim. The thought of the sorceress that screwed over his family was an easy trigger to jumpstart that mental state, although the feeling of wrongness that washed over him was something he kept quiet about.

It was something Destina had pushed for him to do. Whenever he wanted to offer a more ruthless answer or appear more threatening, he just had to think o f that woman. The only problem was controlling his emotions, and not backing down when things felt truly off.

Situations like this? The baby steps Destina had asked him to do. A relaxed, risk free, conversation. A simple display of power and intent without really doing much. Something tame in Hell.

And it worked.

"Good. But let me give you a freebie, young man." Beatrice hummed as she weighed the vial in her magical hands. "Rumors about you being an 'easy mark' abound. Only the words of Lucifer and the thinly veiled threats of two Overlords keep everyone from trying to get to you and your family." She made sure to give Carlos a harsh glare. "From earthborn to earthborn, no strings attached: You should work on changing that."

Carlos' face relaxed, a more genuine smile on it. "I thank you for your counsel. But I will do that in my own time, at my own pace." Then he looked at the vial Beatrice was holding like a lifeline. "That aside. What about the offer? You can come check the place out first, if you want."

Beatrice shook her head, but she did offer a small smile. It was stupid of him to do, but being nice for no apparent reason was refreshing.

"I'll go in a few hours. Perhaps tomorrow. I would like to see if this works. If it does? I may take my time to see what I would like to move. And if not? I'll do as the youngsters say these days and become a 'Karen'. Rosie would lend me her ear if what you offer isn't up to snuff, young man."

While Destina frowned in very clear disdain, everyone else smirked. The Goetia's pride, despite the dullness she suffered when it came to her emotions, was alive and well.

"We'll be waiting." Carlos offered with a smile as Destina pouted, every pair of eyes on the angry avian demon. That changed the moment Beatrice left and Carlos motioned for everyone to follow. "For now, let's visit Rosie. I promised we'd be there for, ugh, tea."

"You hate that dirty water, tho." Zana was oh so helpful pointing that out. And laughing at him.

Leonor didn't miss a beat to get back at the Imp. "Like you didn't gag the first time."

"Stuff it, bitch! We all know you refill yours with alcohol you little shit!"

"Maybe, but I keep appearances." Leonor gave her friend a sidelong smirk. "So. Learn to swallow, midget."

As Evelinde and Destina engaged in their own talk, Carlos couldn't help but smile. After two months in Hell it looked like things were getting there, or at least reaching a stable point. There were moments that burned into his mind as if he had seen a Lovercraftian horror (which, apparently, did fucking exist), but this was his life now.

You know what? It wasn't looking so bad. At least the girls hadn't murdered their fourth companion after they saw his wounded throat, they had grown to the point of being able to talk things through. Although part of it had to do with some kind of secret the lot of them shared and kept Carlos out of. Not like he minded, Destina and him had their own now. Secrets aren't inherently bad. And if they helped the group connect? All the better.

Yes. Carlos couldn't contain a smile, despite his muscles still screaming from yesterday. Life wasn't that bad. All he had to do was make sure it would keep going that way.

So he knew for a fucking fact that something was brewing to shake things a little bit if nothing else.

*** Magne State - Lucifer's Throne Room ***

Give time for nobles to think and their minds will wander to useless and petty shit. Like, why was Lucifer MORNINGSTAR's state named 'Magne'? Why did he entertain that damn moniker? It was as if he didn't care that the commoners fucked around with him behind his back. No respect, just fear. I mean, that was fine and all, but the many Goetia waiting for the king to arrive to hear their complains (and every bit of petty shit they had in store could be just chucked under the 'complain' label), and one of them, or many, really, would, as always, have to do with Lucifer's lackadaisy approach to his rule.

Of course this would be worded in ways that did not land anyone in hot water. Because if it did? Then EVERYONE there would be fucked. Those still to arrive, those that would've left by then, and those present being the lucky ones to get it first. But the fear did nothing to calm a noble's thirst for fucking around and likely finding out, not when it could serve their own interest if things went right.

Many grievances went through the many nobles, young and old alike. Many plans and insidious schemes. Many thoughts tha-perhaps not. Thinking was not really a Goetia's forte. At least the majority of them. There were smart ones, but they usually didn't need to come here and bother Lucifer with their shit.

Oh, don't get me wrong: They were clever, conniving bastards, and they could craft magnificent plans, webs of intrigue and projects that could better not only themselves but Hell as a whole. Thing is, they usually didn't. The noble caste of Hell was the closest thing to the biblical representation of Hell's eternal strife just as much as Sinners' turf wars and a few of the Rings' internal scuffles, like the ones going on daily in the Greed Ring. Many would say their pride was their main sin, but in truth, it was their pettiness first and foremost.

Which is why it was a miracle none of them died when Lucifer appeared.

Much shorter than ever before.

Lucifer could be a massive dick if he wanted to, and he had no problems with displays of power. But those that knew him well enough were aware of the niceness underneath, although it was usually reserved for family and good friends. More often than not he didn't spend a lot of time with people that got his mind in a tizzy, much less those that pissed him off, Mammon being, sadly, one of the few exceptions. Generally he was mostly business-like and rather decent, much like his meeting with Carlos and his family (before trolling him a bit alongside Alastor that is), or perfectly friendly and even somewhat open, as he had been with Stolas.

But he was still a prideful dick.

There was a love for red, gold, white and general glamor in whatever he designed, barring his duckies (that no one should know about). His throne room had been no different, although he had to let go of some of his preferred aesthetics. People in Hell expected his throne room to at least invoke a level of dreariness and he, sadly, had to comply so they'd shut the fuck up.

His private rooms, for whatever use, could be considered somewhat decadent for human standards, sure. I mean, gold was everywhere, the guy liked his gold. Did I mention gold? Not enough. Can you fault him? Gold is for winners after all, no participation trophies here. And fuck, in Hell it was everywhere, it was even cheap. But it was used mostly in ways that would permanently consume it. Making something permanent of the thing was a 'waste', which fit Lucifer perfectly in the eyes of his people. Rare materials for furniture, perfectly made paintings, the works. All of that was usual wherever he liked to spend time.

The throne room wasn't like that. Lucifer could be happy with his position and power to an extent, sure. There were many downsides to it however, and part of it had to do with always being reminded that 'All evil came from your decision', as if humanity would've been all fucking sunshine and rainbows if they had been left to their own devices and constrained freedom. Bullshit of the highest order. They would've been flesh puppets, which would've ended being even worse. But does anyone thank him? Fuck no.

So, if his position sucked balls because it was a constant reminder, everyone coming to bitch and moan should be reminded of the fact. If Lucifer disliked something, and felt petty enough to let you know, then you'd be screwed too.

As such the throne room was indeed a fancy creation, that is for sure. But with a purpose. Magical lights illuminated an extremely detailed ceiling that had the history of how Hell came to meet its new master, a story Charlie usually thought, or even recanted aloud, after Exterminations. It was engraved like a fresco, but with magic, offering moving pictures that fought to catch your attention and move it away from the King of Hell. And if you were weak willed enough to fall for it? Lucifer would make it known.

Pillars of brass depicted the volatility and fiery nature of Hell, and all of them were enveloped in golden serpents that nested on the base and watched those inside with their heads hanging on top, touching the ceiling. The walls were red hued marble from blood drenched mines, cursed during the conquest of Hell itself by Lucifer, now their innards decorating The Devil's throne room with a surface to appear to be constantly melting or bleeding, an interesting magical effect to be sure.

In contrast to this color and display, the floor was basalt. Pure, dark, hellish rock, with a singular golden embroidered red carpet leading to a pair of thrones. Lucifer's own throne, to the right, being a creation of dark, twisted metal and bloodstone, an intimidating chair with six wings and six eyes, alive and watching, forged by the fallen Seraphim himself. Lilith, to his left, had a more modest creation; a red cushioned throne of purple wood that mimicked snakes like the ones her husband tended to have in his hat whenever gold was not the call of the day. Apples at the end of the legs, another crowning the mighty chair, with two snakes nuzzling, as if kissing it, holding it afloat was the last touch. A less ominous but no less significant and descriptive visual representation of Lilith's hand in Hell.

Had she had her way with this, she would've preferred something that had to do with music. But that was tried and instead of nobles, the throne room was usually filled with fans when Lilith was allowed to have time to practice her music here. That had been surprising and welcome for a time, but even Lilith had her limits and six hundred years of raids to hear her sign, only to disrupt her practices, had been far too many.

The first of those days had probably ended with the Goetia as wide eyed as they were today, for there were few things that made them look at something as if struck. The basalt the floor was made of? Many of them thought it an insult to them when Lucifer had this place constructed, thus it was the first time someone said something stupid. Thus came the explanation as to why that stone and not something fancier was used: Lucifer all but turned one of them to dust with fire and light. No great loss, considering that man was one of the worst back in the day, so good riddance and an easy lesson to learn.

But when the Goetia saw a much smaller Lucifer, donning blonde hair instead of the white, if not silvery, that he had sported for as long as all of them, and probably most of their ancestors, could remember, many found themselves close to forgetting old lessons. Instead, and much to Lucifer's surprise after seeing the gawking birds, no one made a comment until Lucifer approached his throne, snapped his fingers, resized the thing for his new buttcheeks, and then sat down.

"Okay. So. What do you guys think? Like the new look?"

The king was in high spirits today.

And no one present knew what the fuck to say. The wrong thing would have the dozens of Goetia there all but gone in a flash, literally.

"It is… different, my king." A voice offered the most neutral and uncompromising thing they could.

"I know! That was the idea. I thought it was time anyway." Lucifer twirled his cane before making it disappear. "Speaking of ideas. It was Lilith's by the way. Said it would perk me up."

An older Goetic woman cleared her throat. She had experience here, and some leeway, so she felt bold enough to ask. "Why so, your majesty? Were you… in low spirits?"

"Thank you for the concern, but no, not really." Though Lucifer knew the woman enough to be aware this was just her fishing for future gossip. "But after I got myself a new prize to flaunt at Adam's face next time I have to see the fucker? I thought it was time to be more unique, to finally shed what was left of Heaven as an extra 'fuck you'."

Another Goetia ventured. "But sire. You are Lucifer. There is hardly anything more 'unique' than you?"

Perhaps that one had been genuine, but Lucifer found the compliment distasteful. "Not when I have a twin brother that I am reminded of every day that I look in the mirror." He growled slightly under his breath so as to not alert those present. Instead, he smirked wide quickly after. "But that is no longer a problem! Fuck Michael. Father made us similar. I made myself look like I want, not like my motherfucking twin. And Lilith loves the look, so that is a plus. Now, no more questions about my looks. We are here for more pressing matters, are we not?"

There were a few murmurs and Lucifer knew this little bit of theatrics would get his court to leave him alone and start talking shit away from him for a few days at the least. Once this session was over anyway. Give them something silly like changing oneself, something Lucifer could do on a whim if he so wanted, and these pigeons would peck at it like idiots.

In a way this was one less slump for him to worry about, and another reason to give Carlos' family a little something. The change hadn't been incredible, but it had been meaningful. White and blue had been his brother's preference, and Lucifer's hair had been originally blonde whereas Michael HAD white hair. Lucifer had only made that change to be closer to his brother. The height? That was new. Originally he wasn't that much shorter than his wife, but Lilith had a thing for guys with a bit of a, you know, 'vertical disability'.

And, to be honest, compressing his form a little bit had made him feel tougher. True Lucifer was more magic than anything else, but his physical form had compacted and hardened. He was smaller, true, but anyone thinking that meant he had become lesser would eat a backhand capable of toppling a building.

Plus… He had only changed his height. The only size that matters has been kept intact, if you know what I mean. Lucifer couldn't help but murmur a 'Bow-chika wow-wow' to himself as the nobles talked among themselves.

Look, h e knew this was going to happen. He had to distract himself with something stupid until the birds came to roost. They were meant to stay in line and offer him their grievances. Lucifer was sure they wouldn't be able to stay like that, clucking like chickens, if he threw them another glare. But he was in a good enough mood to give the supposed 'high class of Hell' a minute or two.

BAM!

Okay, the dark steel doors being kicked open was not what he had been expecting. It had made everyone shut up, but Lucifer soon came to realize this was really serious, and not some idiot trying to ruin his own day.

Because the head of house Corvus came in swinging his cane. So, there was important news Lucifer needed to be made aware of, and an act had to be maintained for them to be shared.

"REPARATIONS I SAY!" Came the voice of the old crow. "Reparations from the crown!"

Corax was not the greatest name for a corvid demon, nor was Corvus for the house. But both played a very important role. No one knew what the Corvus House did, and no one cared. Why would anyone give a flying fuck about one of the lowest houses of the Goetia? The only mystery was how they always clung to life, being barely able to live a decent life by Goetic standards. They were few in numbers, had no real skill in magic to denote their power and were, by and large, considered 'poor representations of a Goetia'. In the public eye they were just the constant annoyances Lucifer had decided to keep around because he considered their antics fun.

That, of course, was the fucking point of the usual act.

Who'd consider an old crow, black as night, dressed in ratty robes and old noble clothes, to be really important? No one, that is for sure. With thick glasses hiding the deep yellow eyes glowing underneath making it look like he was not only hard of hearing with how he screamed, but barely able to see as he stumbled around, using a crooked cane as support, the imposing figure of the Goetic crow pushed forward.

Were he to stand upright, few would consider him what he appeared to be. The crow was no shorter than Paimon of all demons, perhaps taller, but also thinner. His beak serrated, his black feathers bristling with energy that shouldn't be in such an old looking body, but no one paid attention to the finer details as Corax moved. No, the surface looks were enough, and the lack of finery, the old clothes and crooked cane, alongside the curved posture and apparent weaknesses for all to see. Those were the things to focus on.

And Lucifer wouldn't give anyone enough time to do otherwise. "And what is our dear Corax so upset about today?"

"Them Featherfire mongrels! The house lives! Why!?" The shrieking voice of Corax made every other noble wince, but no one made a move to shut him up. The old crow was in Lucifer's sight, that would be enough soon.

"Because they are still useful, old crow." Lucifer used his more refined and noble tone, the one that basically said 'I don't need to tell you shit, bitch', and that usually invited people to shut up.

The idea was for Corax to keep on talking and 'piss him off', so he did.

"Useful? Useful!?"

The scream made a few of the other Goetia in the room take a step back. The massive size of the place was no comfort. If Lucifer wanted, it all would be cleansed in a single wave. And Corax? He was approaching the throne.

"Deceptic swine, that is what those scoundrels are! No Goetia worth their salt would betray my liege! Or so mine thoughts were, until you saw use for them!" The crow spat on the ground, feet away from Lucifer, making every other noble gasp. "Foolish! Weak!"

Perfectly laid. Lucifer had all he needed.

"Everyone?" He asked in a faux gentle and kind voice that, many times before, had invited doom. "I'd like some time alone with our… dear friend here. Visitors will be allowed tomorrow at the same hour."

The throne room was vacant before either Corax of Lucifer knew it. As it should be.

Horrid sounds would quickly come out of the throne room the moment Lucifer used his powers to close the doors with a grandiose and thunderous slam. But while the nobles outside considered this a likely long and non lethal torture session, the fact is that a simple bit of magic made sure Lucifer's laughter was warped into something far more monstrous than it should as the King of Hell got off his throne.

Within the throne room Lucifer couldn't help but chuckle as his perpetual stick in the mud spy master made himself decent. Gone was the glamor of an old, frail bird as Corax rose to his nearly 7' 4" (or 2.25m) tall height. The avian was still lean, but well defined muscles were obvious under the now richly colored purple robe and silver regalia. His cane turned into not the tool of a crone, but a spyglass made of electrum and enchanted lenses, a powerful artifact hundreds of years old.

A singular crack of his back and a groan were the more undignified and carefree sounds the old bird was going to make. While youthful looking, Corax was no less ancient than Paymon himself. Weaker for sure, both magically and physically, but incredibly specialized in his field.

"Sire." Corax finally bowed, wishing his lord would stop chuckling at the display. "I see you are in high spirits today."

"Like you didn't know already." Lucifer shook his head before lazily incinerating Corax' past display of 'disrespect'. "Lilith thought it was high time I finally did away with what little reminders I had from 'up there'." The Lord of Hell grimaced. "Admittedly, as she usually is, she was right. But we aren't here to talk about my wife and that beautiful mind of hers. What is the problem, old friend?"

Corax offered a rare display of annoyance. "Teatrics aside, Lucifer, I do not understand why you spared that noble house. The Featherfire are largely rebellious and stupid. Having a singular genetic defect and having had no 'punishment' for it has only fed their flames." The corvid demon let out a tired sigh. "I doubt they will lay low for more than a few months before trying something stupid again, my liege. Having Destina Featherfire spared has only given the lot of them an ever bigger head despite the event being considered a 'disgrace'."

"Eh, I gave them a chance, they better appreciate it. And if not? No great loss. Just make sure to get those like Destina, the ones that do not partake in their kin's stupidity, out of there first. We can find them partners and less idiotic families. Waste not, want not." Lucifer shrugged. He had been nicer than usual, so if they spurned him, they'd get fucked. At least Destina had proven that not all of House Featherfire was a waste of time, money and patience. "But again, that is not the topic you came to talk about."

"No, it isn't." The spy master made a pause. "My great grandson, Cornelius, has been found dead."

Lucifer didn't expect any reaction from the old man. Corax was not one to show his cards during work. The King of Hell knew the old crow wasn't happy, though, but dying was sadly a very common (for a Goetia, at least) occupational hazard for his house. It had been decades since the last fatality occurred however, and this got Lucifer out of his seat to approach the old demon.

"What happened?" There was a friendly concern there, same with worry coming from a ruler. Whatever happened was serious. "Someone used holy arms on your blood here in Hell? Who'd have the balls? I mean, Cornelius was exempt from having duties on Earth, so-"

"No. It was his own son."

Well, shit. That was far worse. Corvus' house had never, NEVER, had intestinal fights since they became Lucifer's spies. He made sure that never was to happen. There were many noble houses Lucifer thought to call competents, some of them didn't even have assholes either! Corvus was the first in his list simply because the crow demons had loved their jobs, a lot. Perhaps far too much.

Perhaps they had a genetic kink he didn't know about. The less he looked into what they did when transmogrified into common ravens and crows on Earth, the better. At least they did their job almost flawlessly.

"How can that be?" Lucifer shook himself out of the stupor that sent him down that line of thought. "That has never happened before."

"We are unsure what prompted this chance, sire. None in our house knows, and I myself did not think my own blood would do this." Corax' voice was full of anger, but mostly at his own self. It was not distasteful, but expected, of his house to spy on its own members too. It was part of the job. "However, I am afraid that, no matter how this spark of madness started, its release has to do with your prize, my lord."

Lucifer frowned. "The mortals?"

"Yes. Although not directly." Corax placed a clawed hand under his beak, as if thinking how to word this. Shame was clear on his face despite his attempt at hiding it. "My great grandson, Cornelius, was unsuitable for spywork, that is true, we both know this to be the cause because he was truly capable with illusions and spellcrafting within that particular domain. Sadly, I do not bear good news on that front. The loss of Cornelius has slowed our ability to solve that problem, thus we may still lack magicians of note for another generation."

That was a blow. Lucifer liked Cornelius. The young man was much like his great grandfather, if far more open and less of a stickler for all the rules. Still, it was true that Cornelius was stiff, like everyone from House Corvus, but he was still one of the most decent people from the younger generations. This was the shit Lucifer didn't like; actual useful and decent nobles getting fucked over. He had few of those.

Corax knew this, and he was no less unhappy, but his job came first. "Cornelius was different, I need not remind you of it, but the pride in me asks me too. We have few mages of his caliber within our ranks, we thought that'd be it, considering how little ability we have with it. And yet we were fortunate. His three children looked just as likely to grow as powerful, if not more, than Cornelius. It was a promising development, like one of our weaknesses was finally going to be no more. The desire to inform you was hard to contain, my lord, but Cornelius himself asked me to wait. He wanted to make sure his children were up to the task, that we had finally acquired a powerful line of magic users that would finally serve you…" Corax' neutral expression darkened. "As you can see, his blood brought something other than gifts."

"I see." Lucifer hummed, then gave a nod. That was, or it should've been, good news. The Corvus House has always been lacking in the spell slinging department. Lucifer would've been very grateful if that was ever remedied, more so if Corax was right and these young Goetia were shaping to be great indeed. "However, if you bring this up it is not for nothing. Something happened that had to do with that particular topic AND your great grandson's death. Does it have to do with what drove his own child to do this? Or is it something else? I ask because your family has been anything but temperamental since it started."

"Sadly, if it is what we fear, it shows that we may have been lacking in discipline as of late." The old crow grumbled. "Cornelius' oldest, his son, Germaine, was showing signs of reaching his limit." Corax explained, although Lucifer couldn't see the problem there, much less when Corax went on. "Stronger than his father without a shadow of a doubt. His illusions were growing so powerful that they could truly affect the mind, not just befuddle the eyes."

"Again, not seeing the problem here."

Though Lucifer was dreading why his spymaster was making so many stops in his speech. How ashamed was he, really? Corax was not one to become this emotional when he 'failed' at something, and the worst part of this should've been his grandson's death. Corax wasn't the greatest family man alive, but normally this kind of tragedy would take precedence over whatever reason the assassin decided to go with.

So it could only mean this was pissing Corax something fierce, and the shame he felt and displayed was the only way he was willing to show it.

"His two younger sisters reached and surprised him not long ago." Ah, there it was. Envy. Rare within the crow's house, but still present. It had never really made this big of a splash however, so Lucifer urged Corax on. "Somehow Germaine considered this a slight from the family as a whole. I am unsure how, and I never knew my great, great grandchild to be this petty. Our duty comes first, not this stupid show of pride. If you pardon my language, sire."

"Hey, if you have pride for a good reason? Kudos. And hey, I would understand revenge to some extent. At least when you do something great, only to be shot down. Trust me, you have a right to be pissed if that happens." And Lucifer spoke from experience here. "But if you are indeed great and you get pissed off just because someone is better than you? Nah, you are a little shit that needs to get that skull caved in if you do something stupid. There are ways to surpass your limits, your great grandson should've known that."

"My thoughts exactly, Lucifer. There is no way he did not know. But there is the very real possibility he did not care." Corax nodded with finality and,a t last, clear anger in his voice. "He chose the easy way out. Worse than humans that deal with us and try to cheat their way out of it. He picked a woman that WENT THROUGH with their shady deals and managed to steal power from Hell itself."

Lucifer's body became stiff. "You did not just tell me someone from your house, of all the nobles under me, did something that stupid." Gone was all the mirth, fully gone was the smile. "Humans like her are not to be dealt with for a damn reason, at least not unless it is to drag them here to punish them accordingly."

"Germaine did not care, sire." No shit. That was what Lucifer wanted to say, but he urged Corax on instead. "Our house predicates patience and perfection, no matter the level of it that you can achieve. Had Germaine been inferior to his sisters it wouldn't have mattered. He had still surpassed his father, thus he would've been given great honor and an important position. That in itself would stroke any Goetia's ego, even our own. However he was very deliberate when he left notes behind, pages of his journal. He wanted us to see that he had been slighted, pride, wrath, envy and greed swelling within his breast for years. Our initial tests showed Germaine could've grown to be one of the greatest Goetia when it came to illusions… but his power was very, very far from the mark the moment he couldn't grow it any longer."

"So he sought an easy solution." Corax summoned a torn page from somewhere, Lucifer did not care where really. It was matted with black blood and stank of corrupted magic; the one that is stolen, not gained, bargained or even coerced, but outright taken from others. "He made a deal with the witch that brought your new wards to Hell, my liege. Germaine was to offer her demon souls in exchange for part of their power. Considering a demon's soul is much more particular than a mortal one, as its power dissipates and very little is left for the cycle to return, the deal would appear tempting at face value…"

"Until you think for a second and realize that if that were to EVER happen, the local Sin would bust your doors down and destroy you." Lucifer sighed, tired beyond belief. This had stopped being funny a while ago. "Alright. Give it to me straight. Where is that idiot great great grandson of yours? Imp City? Hidden in Pentagram somewhere? Or perhaps one of the other cities, towns, or-."

"Lust."

Lucifer almost let out a loud 'FUCK!'. "I had expected him to remain in Pride. Then again I was thinking about your house's quirks again. Other Goetias may travel. You lot? Only if ordered or if you have a vested interest. Even then i t is like you guys can't do it by yourselves. Why has he to be this fucking abnormal?" The King of Hell fought the urge to rub his eyes in annoyance. "So. What is he going to do?"

"That is the problem I have, my liege." Corax finally admitted with an air of sadness that hinted at just one thing: Shame.

Failure was one of the few things that could drive Corax to feel like this. He prided himself in his success when serving Lucifer. This was clearly the opposite.

"He should've died months ago. We had members of our family ready. Yet somehow he escaped. Worse, he stayed his hand when dealing with those he has enslaved." The corvid Goetia was now looking down, unable to meet his king's gaze. "My children spied on him. He has a large number of enslaved demons he forced into contracts. Ignorant he may be, but at least he is not stupid enough to offer just deals or pacts, that would not work with the Hellborne… But contracts for those desperate enough for an out? That is an easy way to lay claim to what little power a demon may take from another."

"And a way to have a smidge of control on their souls before they dissolve into Hell after their death. Just enough to, perhaps, send them to someone that can use all that energy." Lucifer hummed in disgust. He had lost hope for many of his subjects long ago, but this was fucking vile. He had shown to the mortals that there were lines that shouldn't be crossed, even in Hell (even if many still did the worst things imaginable. It WAS Hell after all). But the bigger problem here was clear. "Then why hasn't he gone through with it? Why haven't you done anything about it?"

"The first question I have no answer for." Corax finally raised his head, but he still averted his eyes. "All our spying pointed at Germaine planning on killing all demons under contract at least three months ago if we failed to end his life. Something stopped or delayed him, but we don't know what or why he didn't rush anyway. Our precautions against traitors did work after all, even if Germaine prepared to nullify the worst of them."

Lucifer's eyes widened. He had never thought he'd see those curses trigger. "You mean?"

"His magic has been sealed, yes. A Contract is integral to demonkind, so Germaine clearly did not care about that. If this deal went through as he hoped he'd be able to break that curse and still profit greatly." Corax shook his head. The stupidity of that youngster. "No, he protected himself from the most harmful. As such he is still pain resistant, he still needs angelic steel to die, at least, and he still has the capabilities of a Goetia of our House." At last Corax offered a brutal grin. "But many minor curses did land. They were there to debilitate in case anyone protected themselves from the greater dangers. Pain resistant he may be, but constant migraines are now his to bear. Constant muscular lockdowns, momentary blindness and incapability to sleep. After so long he is bound to be a wreck."

A human would be screwed. Most Sinners and Hellborne? No better. A Goetia? Oh, they'd be FUCKED. Unable to feel pain unless it was extreme. Strong beyond mere mortals and most demons. With the greatest qualities any Hellborn could ever dream of.

And this Germaine had been turned into a cripple by Goetia standards. Just with a few minor curses that he had to bear or, knowing Corax' house, the more powerful ones would come back. There was no way to get away from an enchantment that was almost as old as Hell itself. The power all but permeated through the seven Rings, and it was way worse in the nine Circles of Pride. Germaine's only saving grace was that he moved away before things could get worse for him.

That presented a problem, that too was true.

"I cannot go to Lust and put an end to that idiot myself." Lucifer grumbled as he thought about it. Right now the Goetia was weakened to the point that a flick of his finger would be enough, but stepping on Asmodeus' toes would invite shit to come-a-knockin'. "And I gather your people can't do anything either?"

"That is where your other question has a clear answer, my lord Lucifer." And by the sound of his voice, Corax didn't like it. "And the thing is… We are still prohibited from entry by Asmodeus. Only our neophytes, not legally of our house, have been able to spy on Germaine. When one of our more experienced agents tried…"

"Let me guess." Lucifer finally hid his face behind his hands. Of course. He had forgotten. "Asmodeus is still pissed about you guys finding out about the Imp?"

"..." Corax had no answer for a few moments. "Admittedly, I could have worded my message better when we made that report."

"Yeah, no fucking shit." Lucifer let out a tired laugh before he stomped on the ground. The cracks made a web from one end of the room to the other, but Corax was unphased. "... How long do you think he'll take before just dispatching those demons he has tied? He may have reasons not to, but this is going to mess with him enough for it not to matter."

"His mental state is deteriorating, yes, so he may want retribution towards anything he can." Corax all but comfirme. A Goetia could outlast almost anyone else in Hell, but three months without sleep, in pain and with many discomforts never felt in their flesh and mind? Yeah, that was a given. "My grandchildren's agents may be unskilled, but they know that Germaine is getting desperate as he collects more demons. That Asmodeus hasn't caught on is either surprising, or Germaine is going for total nobodies. It doesn't matter, he will surely notice the moment Germaine goes through with his plan. We calculate that one month, perhaps two, will be his breaking point. And that is a generous estimate. I would give him days, perhaps two weeks at most. And if he truly becomes paranoid? He'll hide with all the skills he still has, and our eyes and ears in Lust will not find him before he serves that vile woman as many demon souls as he can muster."

One thing about Goetia? You haven't seen anyone desperate until you catch one of these birds trying to grab onto a crumbling ledge. The shitstorms they can create the moment they feel like their back is against the wall are worthy of legends. And if they aren't exactly sane at the time? Then you get something even worse.

Lucifer let out a thoughtful humm. "That may be so. Unless we give him a more interesting way out, something that surely would get his 'mistress' to look his way."

"Sire?"

"You say Germaine's magic is locked, isn't it?" Lucifer asked just to confirm. He needed to make sure.

"Yes, my lord. He is a Goetia without its connection to the magical realm." Corax promised with gravity in his voice. "If he ever tried to unlock it? I doubt his body would last long, not unless he was truly infused with enough magic to break the ancient enchantment in his blood."

"Then this is doable." Lucifer summoned his cane and snapped his fingers. The damage to the room had been undone in a flash. "We will drag that snake out and make an example out of him."

Corax saw Lucifer's brain working overdrive for a few seconds before he dared ask. "Sire. What have you planned?"

"Well, it has been four weeks since my little pet project started training in magic. Stolas has informed me that while capable, he is unsure that most of the humans will be actually able to freely use magic. Perhaps in a pinch in some cases, or with some focus in others. Maybe things will change with more practice. But that is enough progress for a month." Lucifer made sure his suit was impeccable as he prepared a portal spell. "I planned on allowing the one human in my payroll some more time to prepare, but this is as good a time as any to give him his first mission."

For a moment it looked like Corax would complain about it. Lucifer would've understood, to a point. Despite everything, this particular Goetia was family. Of course it wouldn't mean Corax would think of sparing Germaine. Oh fuck no! The old man would just want to kill the bastard himself!

If this had been Carlos, or Lucifer himself, and a good chunk of the decent families in Hell (as hard as it was to find them sometimes), this desire would've been born of the murder itself. In Corax's case? That burning rage was more bound to the betrayal of one's duty than the one directed at their own blood. The fact that Germaine managed to avoid death by the curse in their own blood was also another stab at Corax's pride and position. To have someone else, someone other than Corax himself, his own children, or perhaps Lucifer if he himself decided to get involved, kill this traitor?

Discontent was the least Lucifer expected Corax to feel. Pure anger and impotence were more likely.

"It is a good plan."

Acceptance wasn't exactly on the list.

"You, uh, sure 'bout that?" And Lucifer, for once, showed his more bumbly side when trying to be all business. "I thought you'd be pissed or something. I mean, I was pretty convinced you would want me to talk with Asmodeus so you could get things done, you know?"

"Oh, I would very much prefer that. You know me too well, sire."

Corax nodded exactly once, but the emphasis on his words was both adamant and had weight. The old crow would mutilate that young Goetia until he resembled… Corax took a deep breath. Pragmatism. He had to think rationally about this.

"A weakened Goetia is far from the mightiest prey a member of The Order has hunted." The Goetia demon looked as if he had grown. His plumage rose as if a shiver ran down his back, because it did. Memories of fights to the death always made him feel young again. "I remember my clashes against their numbers. Mighty mortal souls indeed. Never a match for most of my House, but despite their ties to Heaven I will respect their ruthless nature and willingly to fight dirty and efficiently." He gave another nod. Corax had respect for The Order if nothing else. "But for someone not fully trained? Someone desperate? Germaine may be a good measurement of how far he can go."

Lucifer nodded. Yeah, he had to have expected this. His own fault. "I still thought you'd be a bit more, you know, ready to fight if I didn't allow you a go at him."

"I would very much prefer to teach him a lesson personally, Lucifer." Corax looked at his master with a still twinge of anger in his eyes, but only for a second, and then it was gone. Duty came first, and Lucifer's idea was logical. "But it is likely that Germaine, even diminished and with his mind weakening, would find out about me. Despite my trickery and my family's support, I am very distinct in many ways. Germaine would be waiting for me."

"Not only that. It is likely that lacking a more tempting target, or feeling threatened, would both speed his attempt to get power soon." The crow demon explained further. That very real possibility would become a certainty if Corax, or any other elder member of his House, was seen within Lust if Asmodeus allowed them in. "That would make killing him, or just apprehending him, a much harder endeavor than it should be. That is, of course, if the ritual were to be executed correctly and someone was there to accept his offerings AND return the favor. For all we know he has been told to wait because the failure on that woman's end has made it impossible for her to collect these demon souls she was to use to further empower herself."

Likely, but not enough for Lucifer to consider this. No. That bitch was most certainly searching for the missing souls. A blow to one's pride, power and long lasting plan. Something that had fucked her over in ways that Corax likely did not understand. Three hundred fucking years of plans gone in a single night is not a 'small blow' to one's long term; it is a fucking disaster, unless you correct it.

Demon souls were literally worth nothing in comparison. That bitch was just flat out ignoring Germaine like the vermin he was.

Good, now Lucifer was finding he liked that whore. Fuck. And it would be a long time until she died. Whatever. Corax seemed okay with his plan, so he was going to go ahead and make it happen.

"We will keep all possibilities in mind." Lucifer told his old spymaster. And he wasn't lying. Unlikely didn't mean it wasn't the reason, he just didn't think that woman gave a shit right now. "Speaking of. Did you have an excuse planned for your survival?"

"Broken beak, limping, torn feathers and temporarily blinded, sire. A walking joke and a warning to not tempt your anger." Corax instantly assumed his hunched position, his disguise returning, only with clear changes to match the description given. A sorry sight it is when you see an old demon like him in such a state. "I will return to my vehicle and make it clear you have spared me to face more serious matters on my way out."

"Perfect work, as always." Lucifer gave a happy nod.

The situation was far from good, or enjoyable, but Corax, while stiff, always made him perk up. The guy had stick the size of a football field up his ass most of the time, but someone competent? In his service? It was like finding a four leaf clover in fucking Hell. Lucifer was willing to take every win and good thing that he could find.

"But you aren't exactly lying there. I need to make a few preparations, then visit Asmodeus and tell him to clean at least two or three rooms for guests." Lucifer admitted to his spymaster. Better have him informed. "I don't know how many of Carlos' people may want to go with him. After two months I highly doubt they'll let one of their own go alone, more so the moment they know of the danger. Hopefully I can make it look like it is someone else's plan and not mine."

Corax nodded. Lucifer's precautions had a reason to be. "A properly trained member of The Order would have no problem with such a weakened member of my kind. Someone like young Carlos? I am sure he will be safe, he has a reason to live after all."

"Oh, he has more than that. I'll be telling him in a bit." Lucifer chuckled. The positive of having a group of people tied to you like he did with that Contract? He knew shit before THEY themselves did. "But yes, I know he should be safe. Perhaps hurt, but this should not be a problem."

The old crow nodded, then let out a humm. "Knowing who his master is… I hope he knows what to do with my grandchild's remains. That wretch's corpse deserves to be properly sullied after his death."

Lucifer grinned as he finally snapped the portal he had been preparing into reality. "I am sure he will." His smirk was more teeth than anything. "After all, being cruel and sadistic is in his blood. But more importantly? Throwing him in front of someone that is abusing those weaker than him is going to make him go mental."

Many would think Lucifer an asshole, or a monster. He could be that, true. It took little effort. Being fucked over for all eternity was NOT a fun thing.

It left scars, you see?

But the guy was a nice dude once you got to know him. And if he lifted that mask he offered everyone else? You'd see a bumbling dad that loved his wife and daughter more than anything in the world. A nervous wreck too. Luckily, nothing worse than that. The thought he had a while ago about what could have been if certain things hadn't been as they are made him think of depressing thoughts, but they were quickly shoved away and shelved.

No, Lucifer was an asshole. But he was the nice kind, weird as it may be to think. There were few times for him to show, and he was still going to be somewhat of a dick to the mortals under his care, but that was a 'for now' kinda deal. He needed to make sure they'd survive before he would allow himself to get attached. And he wanted to, if only to annoy Heaven a little more. That, and he respected those that valued family as much as he did. Most of The Order was nowhere near like this, so he'd like to consider his group to be superior, as all things associated with him should be.

That did not mean they weren't fucked up. They were made to be monsters, even if most of them didn't want to. At some point they'd realize that, and it would be then that Lucifer would see whether he could allow them to see him as a friend, or if he'd need to play his act for as long as they lived.

Dreary thoughts aside, Lucifer knew Carlos would make the most gruesome choice he could when disposing of this wretch in Lust. As soon as he learned of what Germaine was likely doing, Carlos would make sure that the bird got cooked.

That put a smile on Lucifer's face before he finally bid Corax goodbye. Now all he needed to do was take a moment back in his studio, focus a bit and see if his assumptions were right. After all, one of the souls bound to Carlos WAS in Lust. That this was the perfect chance to test him in that particular Ring could not be just coincidence.

Lucifer couldn't wait. The more bound the young man became, the more likely his little scheme was to bear fruit. The further along, the more interesting the play. It was all just beginning, but Lucifer truly wanted to see it all develop.

*** Heaven - Isolation Cells ***

How long had it been? Nathaniel didn't know. This place was very humane when compared to many punishments, if only because zero need to eat, drink, sleep or needing to clean and relieve yourself meant you could meditate to pass the time with relative ease.

But loneliness was still cruel to many. Isolation was a mind killer, more so for those in Heaven that weren't used to punishment of any kind after their deaths. They weren't called 'Winners' for nothing. Heaven was depicted as 'perfect' for a good reason after all. In fact it was far more accurate in its depiction when descriptions were given to mortal souls than Hell would ever be, and that was one of the many reasons Nathaniel had a problem with things since he found out far too much.

… He knew he wasn't supposed to spill the beans. Neither he nor anyone else found out about it, or were part of it all. But damn it! He wanted to! The only reason he didn't bite the bullet was the damage he knew it'd cause the good souls here.

Make no mistake. There were assholes in Heaven. People that had perverted the words of God, more so considering how little time the creator invested in His creations as of late. Has anyone truly spoken to Him in centuries? Millenia maybe? Nathaniel did not know. He had already learned far too much for his position. He was lucky Heaven, for what few faults (even if they were big) that it had, was still a very nice place to live.

You still had to adhere to a very strict set of guidelines, though. But that was what safety required: Obedience. Freedom meant risk. Safety meant confinement. It was something humanity forgot and learned time and time again.

Nathaniel missed that freedom. But being safe and 'happy' had its perks. Only an injustice as big as the Guerrero family's debacle made him falter, and he had learned of enough such instances to finally act. Whether it would end well for him or not…

Nathaniel let out a sigh. That wasn't important. But with time working in ways that preyed on his mind here. With doubt gnawing at his thoughts. Nathaniel could not go more than a few hours in peaceful semi consciousness before images of what could be came rolling, ideas of what could be made right popped into his mind, thoughts of-

"Nathaniel. We must talk."

So, talking about how long it had been: Likely a month, or at least long enough to be close to the end of it. Nathaniel knew they'd make him wait as long as possible.

And of course the one to visit him would be the elected leader of the Seraphim.

"Sera."

Human at first glance, or at least that is how Sera looked when making public appearances most of the time, Sera was nonetheless tall in any form. A slender woman with cedar brown skin, white freckles on her face, almond shaped eyes with white irises, grayish, somewhat blue, sclera, deep purple pupils and, to top it all, thick eyelashes that project from them. Magic had a way to make femininity look just 'more', but sometimes Nathaniel thought this was excessive in Heaven more than in Hell.

A white streak went down the woman's nose, probably a hint that this was not her primary form of being, considering you'd likely find more in common with a Goetia demon if you saw her 'au naturale'. Better not say that to her face however. Sera was not one to get angry easily, but her fear of Hell made the otherwise caring and smart woman become a much more authoritative and emotional one.

It was easy to hide however, and few would ever think that of her. Most get lost in that curly hair of hers, hip length and colored like dull silver, something done by design, if you saw the many eyes within. There was a reason that, while the Bible and all angel descriptions weren't fully accurate, the phrase 'Be Not Afraid' had a real meaning behind it. Fear was not the only thing it was meant to dispel, but also the focus, almost hypnotic, many angels (at least high ranked ones) forced upon mortal souls without trying.

Otherwise Sera was modestly dressed with a queen inspired clothing consisting of a two layered dress, grayish in color with a high frilled pale collar, white and gray bouffant sleeves. And all of it was damn periwinkle, because the woman loved periwinkle. Even the bottom and hem were colored in a pale periwinkle, with some normal white to add to it and, thankfully, it had some gray diamonds detailed in.

But some of the more important details were left out. For one? Six wings, as a Seraph should have. In this case they were tucked away. The isolation cells were designed to suppress almost anything, almost. Even a Seraphim's power could be contained, supposedly. At least unless Sera decided to force all she had outwards. It was likely the cells wouldn't hold out against her if she went all out. The other, in this case visible, detail? A white halo, decorated with large crown-like spikes and blue gem circles, with a second halo hovering above the first one.

And make no mistake, those things were no decoration. They were there for a reason. If you thought they were looking at you, you'd be right.

A long time ago Nathaniel had to admit he had been enamored with her appearance and attitude. Sera was a motherly woman that cared for everyone in Heaven to a fault.

Then he found out far too much for his liking. He found out that Sera was the kind of mother that would undo the future of another child in favor of her own.

And we are not talking 'taking their chance away' here.

"... It has been a long time since you last greeted me with any warmth, Nathaniel." Sera had some hurt in her voice, but nonetheless she stood firm. "For the longest time I thought your caring nature would see things my way. You know I don't do any of this simply for pleasure."

"..."

Nathaniel couldn't look at her. He had felt betrayed for a long time now. Many of those that found out felt the same way. It was why so few of them remained in the jobs they had achieved despite being normal human souls. All of those that moved away from it all decided to spend their years in contemplation, or with friends and family. They willed themselves into ignoring what they could not change because they did not want to see if Sera's warning had merit.

That they would fall from grace. In essence? They would die, even if Heaven wasn't the one to carry out the act.

"Am I to fall?" Nathaniel was one of the few that just couldn't stay put. And the only one to have dared do anything in years. But they all tried to help mortals at the very least. "Have I finally crossed the line?"

Sera let out a sigh he couldn't place. Was she angry? Was she tired? Was she just disappointed or remorseful?

"No." Sera finally allowed the words to spill. "You know that is not how it works."

"Do I?" Nathaniel chuckled dejectedly before finally glaring at the woman. It made Sera flinch when she saw the anger behind his eyes. "Do any of us know how this system works, Sera? All we know is that disagreeing 'enough' with Heaven's apparently intrinsic will ends up with you banished. Either when the majority of the ruling individuals cast you out, or when Heaven itself does. Only one of those we have control over." Nathaniel's glare deepened. "And I am sure there are ways to kick someone out of Heaven that I am not aware of. And they are 'man made', not rules of the Holy Realm, Sera."

"Nathaniel. Don't take that tone with me." Sera frowned at the clear accusations, even if she knew the man was right. "There are reasons for these rules. You know it."

Nathaniel didn't want to, it wasn't in his nature, but he sneered at the woman anyway. "I know fear is the mind killer, Sera. It may be a mortal phrasing, but it works as well in Hell and Earth as it does in Heaven."

"Heaven is nothing like Hell! Not in this. Not in ANY way!"

Few things could anger the woman. For a moment Sera's many eyes, even her true form, showed as she lost control of it all. A rare, borderline dangerous, occurrence. Her beak scrunched up the moment she caught the change, reverting to her human form, hiding away all the eyes that dotted her body. It took her a moment to achieve the most neutral expression she could as she adjusted dress and hair alike.

"Don't ever imply that again, Nathaniel." Despite her attempt there was still ice in her voice. "We do all we can for the souls here. We make them happy. We care for them. They have achieved a point where they need not return to life anymore. All of us here have ended our cycle. To keep them safe, to keep them happy and fulfilled. That is our job."

"No, that is YOUR job." Nathaniel corrected. "My job, the one you graciously gave me, is to help people. I am a human made Principality, Sera. YOU made me into this." The ascended human spoke slowly, getting up from his meditative position to face the woman. Tall he could be, but Sera still towered over him. "You knew I wanted to help. You knew I had a sense of justice. All my life all I wanted was to help those that had had a hard life. All I wanted, all I craved, was to be a good person… And you thought it would keep me away from secrets. You thought I'd blindly do what was 'right' without ever thinking that the moment something I thought was WRONG was presented to me. You thought I would ignore it, that I would let what I thought was unjust just… go."

"..." Sera diverted her eyes for a second. It was clear she didn't like that Nathaniel was right. "I expected you to focus on a task you loved, Nathaniel. I expected you to see the big picture." She admitted after the brief silence was over. "Every angel has a singular duty. Only mortal souls are allowed to fully enjoy the afterlife without worries if they ascend to Heaven. Sinners are in Hell to be punished. You know this."

"I know we DON'T know, Sera." Nathaniel countered. "I know Hell is freedom and punishment while Heaven is duty and reward. But we don't know WHY we end in Heaven."

"Nathaniel…"

"I know I did my best in life, Sera." The man went on despite the warning. "But I wasn't perfect. No soul that ascends to Heaven IS perfect. YOU aren't perfect." Sera looked ready to offer a rebuttal. "You just got angry a moment ago, Sera. You have yet to admit things to your own sister, for Heaven's sake. Do you know what will happen if she EVER finds out?"

"Don't bring Emily into this." Sera warned with a voice that gave Nathaniel pause. It was the kind of voice that precluded death on Earth, and in Heaven it would be no different. "Don't. EVER. Bring her into this."

"I don't plan to." Nathaniel was sincere. Emily didn't deserve this mess. Or to be part of it anyway. But she would get dragged in. Oh, she will. "But you know a secret is always revealed, sooner or later. Keeping certain things from people is for their own good, that is true… But Sera, you know Emily will feel like she no longer knows you if she ever finds out. And if the cat ever gets out of the bag? She will be there."

"... We have had this conversation before, Nathaniel. Only this time you have done something about it. And look where it landed you." Sera shook her head. She did not want to think on what'd happen if Emily found out about the Extermination. Angels of vengeance had always been needed, even if Heaven didn't want it to be so. "Again: We do what is needed. Why can't you understand?"

"That is what you don't get, Sera. I do understand." And Nathaniel did. He was genuine enough that it took Sera by surprise. "I know there are horrid souls out there, living or dead. I know, because we have some in Heaven too." The glare was powerful. The question? Damming. "Don't we, Sera?"

The Seraphim didn't answer. Why would she? There was no need after all. Nathaniel knew the answer was 'yes'.

"Some of the worst people in history are in Heaven. And I mean WORST. Those that mortals know? From Hitler to who knows who else is popular in history for their atrocities? They are in Hell. The few that they ignore for whatever reason?" Nathaniel went on, getting closer to the Seraphim. She knew he would try nothing, but the act showed his confidence on this point. "Trapped in cells like this one. Cells with the single purpose was to keep their assigned souls within their own minds, in a 'Heaven' of their own. A place where they can be monsters for all eternity and be happy. All because their souls would rise to be some of the most horrible and powerful Sinners in history while here they are some of the weakest angels to ever exist."

Sera took a second to formulate an answer in her head, then another to force her body to talk. "They could become a danger not only to Heaven, but to Hell and even the living world, Nathaniel. Their punishment is not the freedom of Hell, but the rules of Heaven. Much as I don't like such souls crossing the pearly gates escorted by armed angels."

For once Nathaniel allowed some condescension in him to show. A derisive snort came from him as he sneered at the woman. "Heaven as punishment. Do you understand how little sense that'd make to all who heard it?"

"You said it already: Heaven isn't perfect. But it is a gift. It is a gift for all, even if that gift is for truly dark souls to be kept away from everyone else." Sera felt so tired. These topics always weighed heavily in her mind. "There must be a reason for Heaven to have these rules. All we Seraphim can do, all we can ever hope to do, is uphold them." The woman stood firm nonetheless. "But all of this is nitpicking. You have things to say. Questions? Speak, Nathaniel. I won't be able to talk to you for a long time, so let it out."

Sera looked at the man with pleading eyes. The Seraphim did not want anything to happen to such a good soul. To any of the souls under her charge. Even the most wicked ones. Perhaps, in time, they'd tire of their wickedness and see the light. They were in Heaven for a reason. It shouldn't be a punishment! Sera couldn't believe THAT was the only reason they were in here; to be contained.

She couldn't allow it to be true.

"..." Nathaniel took a moment to ask his first question. Sera wanted him to do the right thing? Then she better convince him. By being fucking honest for once. "Who sent that beam?"

The Seraphim blinked in confusion. "Come again?"

"Who tried to kill the Cambion?" Nathaniel narrowed his eyes. "Who tried to kill Evelinde? She is one of the souls tied to Carlos. As destiny changed and the curse broke, they bonded. She was meant to be with him, Sera."

"Nath-"

"Don't." Nathaniel pointed, uncaring of the ramifications as his finger almost brushed against Sera's face. "Try to brush this off. It is not the first time the Cannibals have been targeted, or other Hellborne for that matter. These are the natives of Pride, Sera. You attacked them in front of the family on top of it all! This showed further hypocrisy and made your case worse if you ever wanted them to listen to your 'reasons'."

"They are also descendants of humans. People that lived in Hell long, long ago." The Seraph countered. "The whole species is part of humanity, natural born Sinners. Humans that grew there, died there and instead of becoming what Sinners are, showed what would have happened to Lilith's own blood, what her lineage would've become if things were to have been… 'normal', for her. Not that Charlotte is anything like either human OR angel." Sera looked as if she was restraining her full judgment on that one. Instead she focused on the Cannibals again. "Whether they choose to forget that fact or not is irrelevant. They are not exempt from the Exterminations, Hellborn or not."

"That is no excuse and you know it." Nathaniel pressed as he gritted his teeth, trying not to curse. This was not him, but a month alone sharpened the edge long hidden under his patience and care. "It is a paper thin excuse that not even you can accept. The Extermination had ended. So tell me." He took another step closer. "Who?"

Sera opened her mouth, then closed it. Thought it over and let out a silent breath. Her answer came as no surprise. "Adam."

Nathaniel should've guessed. A beam of light? Very few angels could do that. And many of them were natural born angels. Only ancient human souls could command that kind of power.

But then…?

"How did Carlos deflect it?"

"The rules of many things in Heaven may be nebulous, but these were passed down by God. The Order is to take care of its own business. Adam may be the origin of it all, but he is no member of The Order, and he is far too removed from any of his current descendants to be considered 'family' as it were." Sera explained in detail. This much she knew. This much she could share. This, she hoped, would be enough.

"So for all intents and purposes, Carlos was immune to Adam's might." Nathaniel nodded to himself. Yes, this made sense. Even in Hell this absolute rule was woven in reality. "But The First Man still disobeyed the annual extermination rule."

"And he has been reprimanded for it." Sera assured Nathaniel. To what extent Adam was 'punished', however, the human Throne did not need to know. For all his faults Adam was doing what needed to be done. "Still, it would have been a better outcome if Carlos hadn't bonded with a demon, of all entities. It was already bad enough that he made a DEAL, Nathaniel. Then he bonded to three demons without any of them knowing. And to make it worse? He forged a Contract with Lucifer. We HAD to do something. Adam was wrong for acting out of line, but he wasn't wrong for *acting*. Had he succeeded perhaps the Contract wouldn't even had taken place."

"And here comes the main event. You are worrying about what happened, not WHY." Nathaniel turned away from the woman. A slight that had Sera balk at the much younger angel. It was as if she had been slapped. "This should not be, Sera. There are so many things unfair in Heaven, whether you want to admit to them or not, that it is a surprise the general public, heavenborn or not, have yet to find out how part of it all is maintained."

"Nathaniel." Sera's tone grew warningly cold. "There is a reason for the Exterminations to be kept under wraps. There are rules and actions we must take that no decent soul should know about. I may not like it, but you cannot admit to them being wrong."

"No, I can't. There are monsters that must be kept locked down. That I understand. And I dislike these rules greatly, I think them horrible, but there is a grain of truth there. Not only that, but I know there are many truly horrible souls in Hell. It is a truth that cannot be denied." The ascended human felt the taste of vile in his mouth. Some of the people down there in Hell… The Extermination was just too kind. But many of them? "Yet so many souls that land in Hell are good people, Sera. Perhaps the Exterminators are fanatical in their devotion to their duty, almost all of them come from The Order. They are predisposed to see demons as filthy, unworthy things, lower beings even. But you and I know not all demons are 'evil'. We know 'evil' is not something that can be truly defined."

"Evil is a concept, yes, but it EXISTS, Nathaniel. And it has a form. Lucifer may want to ignore this, but it IS true. That every living thing sees something different when evil is brought up does not change that fact." Sera corrected, tone firm. "Hell grows year after year. There are tens of billions of souls there, perhaps hundreds at this point. To cull them is a necessity unless we want Heaven to be attacked."

"This is no reason-"

"IT IS *THE* REASON!" Sera forced Nathaniel to turn and look at her. All eyes on the Seraph were glaring at the man as she held him in her grasp. "Lucifer was meant to lose his drive, Nathaniel! He was meant to lose his spark by seeing all his actions brought unto the world! Yet he remains whole. Jaded, yes, but with that spark in him. If he saw a single moment of weakness he could take his revenge on Heaven for casting him out as was his punishment! I watch every year as more and more souls fall to Hell instead of ascending. I see more and more anger, hate and evil in the world, Nathaniel." The Seraphim let Nathaniel go, hands trembling as her eyes retracted. "I do what must be done… There is no other way because EVIL itself may have a hand in our downfall whether Lucifer were to wish for it or not. A single push, the right incentive, and Hell will use ALL it has to bear down on us."

Nathaniel wanted to dispute this point. But how? Even if there was something that could be done, it would not be a solution that could truly take effect in as fast a period as the Exterminations did. A cleansing like that eradicated millions of souls, sent them back to the circle of life, and generated further conflict that made subsequent dents.

But it was still flawed. Nathaniel knew it was easy to point out how. Every attack just generated more resentment. But that would be said later. Sera had to know there was a much greater problem, one that, whether she was aware or not, Nathaniel had to point out. His conscience wouldn't let him live it down if he didn't.

"The weak and the meek are the first to die, Sera." Nathaniel looked at Sera's trembling hands. "The rich in Hell are just the same as the poor. Only strength, cunning, intellect and luck save you from the Extermination. Either that, or that the Exterminators take too long to get you. And you know what? Those souls that shouldn't be in Hell aren't exactly made to have those qualities, not to the extent needed to escape an angel. It doesn't matter how successful they are. Only the Overlords and other wretched entities live truly long lives. And even then I am sure not all Overlords are monsters, at least not like we paint them to be."

"Perhaps." Sera tried her best to ignore the truth in Nathaniel's words. He could be right. But there was something the younger angel hadn't considered. "Yet this is just a repeat. The death of the weak, of the defenseless… is what happened in Purgatory anyway, Nathaniel. You know this. There are no alternatives when certain limits are reached and ready to break. Only those that reach Heaven are meant to be maintained for eternity."

The ascended human grimaced. Yeah. Purgatory was a place for souls too, another 'Ring' of Hell as it were, to be honest. It has not been a thing for a long time. If Hell was overpopulated, but could still grow, like Heaven (although Heaven was much slower and overpopulation likely never to be a concern), you do not want to imagine how Purgatory ended. But you know what? Nathaniel did want to know, and he found out.

And it wasn't pretty.

Because unlike the other two realms, and because it was not 'technically' part of Hell, Purgatory could not grow. It did not help people there were given the choice of when to go back to the circle of life. For all Nathaniel knew, most angels, and practically all demons, did not know what happened to that realm. But the short and most bittersweet answer you could get was, unfortunately, the truth.

It just couldn't be maintained. The people inside were just 'disconnecting' as it were. It went from a place of rest to something worse than Hell. People trapped in their own minds in a cycle of self destruction until their souls just withered. Extermination, in that case, was a blessing.

"We don't have the manpower to do as much as we should." Sera admitted as she regained control of herself. "If more angels were born? If more humans joined us? Then perhaps… But this is the best we can hope for. I truly hope you can understand that none of us wants to put you here. None of us wants good souls to end in… these places." She let out a shaky breath.

That was true. Justice and punishment was a rare sight in Heaven because it rarely needed to be implemented. As Nathaniel had told himself before, if only to remind himself, there were punishments, but it was so rare that people always caught wind of it.

His punishment was unknown to the masses.

"That may be so, Sera. But just like whatever you told those that know me, the Extermination is going to be discovered sooner or later."

Nathaniel prompted the woman to talk. He knew she was itching to speak. Sera was not made to keep secrets, she only did so to do her 'job' and to 'protect' those she cared about.

After all, lying was sinful. Seraphim all but hurt when they did such a thing. And lying by omission was still lying.

"They were told the truth, in a sense." Sera's face scrunched with guilt. 'Truth' was used very loosely here. "You are on a long term job."

Nathaniel couldn't hold back a snort. "Sure am."

"Aren't you?" This time Sera pierced the man with her gaze. "You still tried to contact the mortals in Hell, didn't you?"

The man grimaced. "You noticed."

"Don't toy with me, Nathaniel. Anyone aware of this mess would be watching you." Sera couldn't help the disdain in her voice. "Your good intentions may be pure, but your meddling was a mistake. You know this."

"I know I did exactly what you said I should." Nathaniel countered. "I helped who has to be helped. I helped the INNOCENT, Sera."

"Sadly, much as mortals may think that guilt and innocence are our business, they aren't." And how Sera wished for the contrary. "All we can do is protect the few souls we think have a chance at Heaven. Or ensure the most horrid souls live for as long as we need to prepare a space for them, like those dastardly inventors, Lyle Lipton and Loopty Goopty. They are one of the few well known souls that should NOT get into Hell. Unless something happens they will grow too evil and powerful and we will be forced to house them here in the end."

Sera wanted so badly to erase those two idiotic names from her mind, but those two were NEVER meant to reach Hell. That is, unless they had an untimely demise, but such dark souls always had their futures shrouded enough that no divination worked on them.

"I share the sentiment with this family, Nathaniel. Truly, I do." Sera admitted, a hand on her chest. These people should have never ended in Hell to begin with. Not only because many of them had good qualities they could bring to Heaven, but because those affected by curses were rarely meant to lead the life forced upon them. Sera could be a cold, calculating woman, but she was not heartless. "But they are tainted by Hell. My hands, all of us Seraphim, or any other angel for that matter, are unable to do anything. These rules were passed down by God Himself before…"

"Before He went to do His own thing."

"Nathaniel!"

"I am not saying He did so and left us alone for no reason, Sera." Nathaniel almost took a step back. His words had finally touched a nerve there and Sera looked as if she was about to smite the man. "I trust you on many things, but not all, not anymore. When you say that the Creator is doing something important? That I DO trust you. But it still hurts that He left us with what seems to be little more than incomplete and archaic rules, Sera." And here he put his foot down. "Perhaps Carlos has sold his soul, but what choice did he have here? He was thrown into Hell thanks to a monster of a woman that has cheated Hell itself from its own power. His whole bloodline was cursed, Sera, and no one in Heaven pushed to do anything about it." Nathaniel was this close to losing it. This just couldn't stand. He just could never accept Heaven would let this go. "He and his family mingle with demons because that was the only way to survive. Their very souls are on the line if they die. This was never their first choice, Sera!"

"They are still His words, Nathaniel!" Sera was becoming agitated. The fact that Nathaniel was still standing here was the worst part. It meant he wasn't wrong. It meant Heaven agreed… unless… Sera's mind began to wander to the many things she knew about The Order. "... But you may be right."

Nathaniel thought he had heard wrong for a second. Never had he acted this… incensed, not in Heaven. Sure he may've been much colder to Sera since he found out. Sure he may have had that idea of telling others about this mess for a while. But he never did. He DID believe in Heaven, in what it was trying to do. In what it SHOULD do. But he always thought that, the moment he exploded like today, he'd be done. Sera would do anything for Heaven. Anything. It was frightening, truly. So he never trusted his chances.

So why was Sera agreeing? Why wasn't she chucking him back to Earth, or simply discarding him to Hell? She had every right. Nathaniel knew this, he understood. He was a risk to Heaven's peace, much as he disliked it. He wasn't going to lie. Thus his befuddlement only grew worse.

"Why do you agree with me now?"

"There are many painstakingly detailed accounts of The Order hunting apostates and demon worshipers within their numbers. Rare as they are, every event is chronicled to the last gory detail." Disgusting indeed. More so considering Sera had to read every single last one of them. "But there are those very rare documents that have been marked with The Order's seal and left alone. They are named as 'events', not hunts, and the details are… scarce."

Both angels thought for a few moments. Neither knew what it could mean, but right now Nathaniel was willing to grab whatever he could find.

"What details are there?" Nathaniel asked, his voice hopeful. "There should be something at least."

"Only dates. It is as if the information was erased. Not something The Order does." Sera thought back on the many particularities of those documents, with one clear glaring shared piece of information. "Brutal and sincere as they may be, most hunts for apostates last days, weeks, perhaps months. Never years. Those that have been redacted? All of them have another date set after twelve months."

"Then-."

"Do not let your hopes up, Nathaniel. You roused memories from me, not facts." Sera warned, tone serious once more. "I will search for relics and remains left by God. I will comb our archives to learn of His words in this regard. But you must remember." Sera bent down to face the man, face stern. "He still joined Lucifer. We may find reasons to exonerate his family AT SOME POINT, but he has sealed his fate. As you mentioned with that human saying of yours, I'll do the same: The road to Hell is paved with good intentions." Sera rose again. "And we both know Carlos and many in his family will do horrible things to stay alive, if they survive long enough." This was a sad fact Sera had already accepted. They had no other choice but to adapt. "If this ancient law has an out for their hunt, fine. But they will still be able to be targeted by Exterminators afterwards. They will be Sinners, albeit alive."

Disappointment. Was that a thing to feel here? Not something worse? Anger wasn't it. Despair wasn't a thing either. Nathaniel had expected that, no matter how the conversation went with whoever came to meet him, things would end like this. With Sera? Well, at least she was nicer about it than many others.

Still smarted like a fucking bitch though. And while there was pettiness behind Nathaniel's desire to have the last word, the need to try and help, even if he wasn't going to be gentle about it, far surpassed anything else.

"There is no way to convince you otherwise?" First he needed to know. Before laying things on Sera, Nathaniel had to make sure. Because Sera did not like facing reality, simply because reality did not conform to Heaven.

Heaven, God, may have made reality. But at some point your creation surpasses you. Sera could not comprehend that.

Sera was about to tell him how long the punishment would last, then go. A simple way to end the conversation and, hopefully, allow him to reflect. It was made plenty clear that was not Nathaniel's way of seeing things. There was more to say still.

"It all depends on what we find, Nathaniel. There is nothing either of us can do about that." Sera let out a sigh that precluded an oncoming migraine. Perhaps most angels could go without discomfort their whole lives, but Sera's mind was assaulted daily now. "All I can say is that Carlos' family has shown much more… aggravated disposition to the revelation of their family's misfortune. There are still many that can be selected for punishment duty that are mulling their decision, but…" Sera didn't want to admit it, but there was a good chance Carlos and those willing to fight could repel, or even kill, whoever was sent down there. Sera was hoping the plan agreed on would work. "I cannot say anymore on that topic, Nathaniel."

There was a very tense, almost cold, moment of silence. Sera knew right then and there that she hadn't given the correct answer.

She just said what she thought she had to.

"... So that is how it is." Nathaniel let out the breath he had been holding. "Then I think I have a few things to say before you leave, Sera."

Sera takes only a moment. There is little more to say than a simple. "Please, go ahead."

"You are making a mistake." The bluntness is hard enough that Sera, Seraphim or not, could feel it crushing her. "I know these are the rules as written, but you are doing more harm than good. Taking Pilar's offer is going to make this worse and you know it."

"Do you thi-."

"This is not a discussion, Sera." Nathaniel's tone is firmer, harsher and colder than it has ever been. Sera could swear there is the lingering feeling of simmering hate in there, something Nathaniel hadn't shown since those early days after his arrival. "This is not an opinion either. This is a fact. It doesn't matter if all goes 'well' or if everyone survives. This is going to go down as a dark mark in the history of Heaven. And you know what? If it ALL goes according to plan, you will have angels killing not only adults, but children too, babies even. Perhaps those yet to be born. Or do you think Carlos and those girls will not mingle? You know as well as I do that the young man craves love, not just the physical kind, but they will not have a problem sharing that type either. It is impossible no children will come from those couplings."

Nathaniel knew, because Sera's face told him, that such a notion made her sick. No, not *A* notion. It was both the possibility of the act and the fact that something had made it possible.

The idea of a member of The Order, the descendants of the first humans created by God and angelic hands, even if the latter were more an aid than anything else, was at last mingling with demons was… unnerving. Disgusting even. It couldn't be helped. Demons were born of Hell, a realm born of Evil. Whether Lucifer had 'tamed' it or not was irrelevant. Sera could not look at a demon and think happy thoughts.

Much less allow the idea of them breeding to be positive. Light was not good, that was a fact, and Sera would not hide her desire for Hell to cease to exist, no matter how much it would hurt, how MANY it would hurt. And yet she could not make it so simply because it was impossible and because, in the end, it would also destroy Earth, and humanity. That is just how intertwined Evil was with human nature, same as Good.

Thus humanity was the closest to a gray area you'd get. Even if most were dicks.

So then, one of the few humans meant to be 'Good', having children with Evil itself? Vominive, if you were to ask Sera.

But also painful.

Because, as much as she wanted that erasure to take place, Sera was not one to condone all the brutality angels, even God, had taken part of in the past. Doing what was required did not mean she liked it. It was her zeal, her mind being shackled as it was, that pushed her towards doing what 'was right'. However, this time it would be her hand, directly or indirectly, that would kill those still innocent, demon or not.

Guilt was not enough to sway her, Nathaniel knew this. But it was a first step.

"However, we both know, because you admitted to it, that there is a likelihood for them to survive." Nathaniel wished to finish this point. He still had two more to go through. "If they do, I cannot imagine they will survive without harm. However little it is, no matter the price you force on their lives, I hope you understand that it will cost you whatever chance at their loyalty you may have hoped for. The dislike, resentment, or even hate that they may feel? Multiply it. And then stoke it until it becomes an ever burning beacon. I'd say not even Lucifer could keep such a fire going because, unlike Carlos and his kin, Lucifer's own child doesn't hate us. Carlos' own blood? They will."

And Nathaniel could tell, Sera had hoped it would be otherwise. Doubt was clear in her face when she thought of her plan. But zeal won the battle.

"Duty and faith demands sacrifice… even when the price is unfair in life. Eternal or otherwise in this case." Sera has this practiced, but even with her opposition to many of what is going on, it is clear this is painful. Not enough to stop, but it hurts her.

Nathaniel couldn't help but feel horrible. Because this injustice deserves no less than Sera having a hard time. It should have a higher price, but he wasn't willing to be even pettier than he already felt.

"That makes for a good segway in the second thing I need to tell you, Sera." Nathaniel felt all his anger and resentment finally evaporate. He was reaching the point of just being tired. By now he found himself taking a few steps back and sitting down on his previous spot. "You all need to start living, Sera."

The Seraphim took a second to try and understand. "What do you mean?"

"Live, Sera." Nathaniel spoke again after a moment to collect his thoughts. "All of you. All the angels that were born in Heaven. All angels that came from the living world, only to forget what IS to live. All of you just, just… exist." He made a motion with his hand, signaling the room. "Even punishment is a bother at worst. There is basically no crime in Heaven except for the rare brawl or petty act. There is no pain, there is no gain, there is… nothing, Sera."

He let out an unhappy grumble. Nathaniel had come to hate that part of Heaven, the one that was just so good it made everything meaningless. He loved that people could enjoy themselves. But then what? What was there to be happy about when you could have it all? Even on Earth, if you had it all, you could lose it with ease. It gave meaning to the happiness you felt because it could turn to sadness.

Earth was an ordeal, and that is why many people did not end in Heaven. To live, you could not be 'perfect', because the idea of perfection, in Heaven, was almost unattainable. Even then it was so damn random and unknown that people here just seemed to like each other because the place was the dictionary definition of 'nice' and 'wholesome'. If that was ever to end…

Heh. Nathaniel was sure that things would end up differently. Still, the man would protect the place, what it represented, despite his misgivings. Heaven WAS good. It just needed to be better and not have a singular definition of what 'good' really was.

"You all live your lives full of happy thoughts. Only a few, like you, like me, like Adam, show much agency, Sera. Even then it seems like only those that sympathize with me seem to want more than just this 'perpetual happiness' we have. Even Adam being a dick is more than most can do. We want more than just one duty and obliviousness to the problems outside." Nathaniel stared at Sera with as much sympathy as he could muster. She did not know how miserable her life was in his eyes. "All you do is exist in a perpetual cycle, Sera. Most souls here do the same. You became stagnant. You cannot change… And that is why more and more souls end in Hell, Sera. Humanity changes. Reality changes. Heaven, God's words… They do not."

Sera had nothing to say about that. Nathaniel was right. Humans were creatures of chaos, neither good nor evil. They were creatures of change. Whether victory or defeat, glory or oblivion, future yet to come or past memories relegated to the history books, humanity always had something going on. They had their own rules.

They were their creation however, and they had given the guidelines to live by. If they felt they could not follow them… Then that was not for Sera, or Heaven, to solve.

"We are what God meant us to be. I am sorry you feel like that is a mistake, Nathaniel." Sera strained herself by trying to reign her displeasure. Her face contorted as she fought back the urges to, for once, tell someone to shove it.

"Children walk down paths their parents never intended for them to travel, Sera." Nathaniel couldn't help but point out the obvious here. "Sometimes they make mistakes. And, sometimes, those mistakes hurt. Sometimes, when you least expect it, from whom you least expect it, changes arise. And after so long with the wheel stuck, it may just need a single change to start turning again."

"You are making many assumptions here, Nathaniel." Sera narrowed her eyes. "I thought you were speaking 'facts', as you said."

"And who says I am not?" Nathaniel cocked his head in wonder. Sera couldn't be this dense, could she? "You think I am telling you all of this to get a rise out of you? That I am risking sinking, falling into Hell just because I am angry at how things are going? Or perhaps I am telling you how things are going to play out? Remember. All secrets keeping Heaven as it has always been, the foundation of it all, has an expiration date. You may not like it, and I will not tell a soul in any of the three realms, but at some point the seal is going to be broken… And then you'll see how people begin to live again in Heaven, because conflict is going to find us once more."

An uneasiness she couldn't admit to, that she would willingly ignore, invaded Sera for a second. She could not accept that Nathaniel was right when he spoke of this. There would be no event that unveiled it all… Or would it happen, really? Was the young angel right?

"And how will that happen?" Sera had to know. Nathaniel had to have an idea.

"The Exterminations, Sera. I told you I see your point. There are truly rotten souls out there. There IS a reason for a soul to be returned to the cycle, for it to be 'erased'. But this is the third thing I had to let out of my chest." Sera said nothing. Nathaniel said nothing. An uncomfortable period of ten seconds went by before the man took a deep breath. "I believe in what Heaven is doing, whether it is missguided or not in certain areas. There is good within this mess… But this is a bubble in the end, Sera. It keeps growing. It keeps straining. At some point someone is going to do something against it all because this will pop."

"Who would?" Sera's question came out as acidic as it was cold. If Nathaniel had an inkling, he had to share. Sera HAD to protect what they had. "Who is going to try to stop this? It is a necessity. You said so yourself. There ARE horrible souls that need to go. We cannot stop, much as I like the idea of it." She was this close to another outburst. "Tell me, Nathaniel."

"Sera. You know who will. Don't make yourself look like an idiot. You don't need ME for confirmation when you know the one person in all of creation that will stand up to Heaven, even if she doesn't know it yet." Nathaniel was the one to look at Sera with pure disappointment. The Seraphim had the good manners of at least look ashamed. "There were never any more Nephilim, Sera, just Charlie. Or have there been and we don't know? After all, the Bible did 'touch up a few things', didn't it?" Sera did her best not to look away. Whether there were, or not, she wouldn't tell. "There were no more traitors to Heaven, at least none that survived Hell, or even Earth, for long. Considering everyone came from the zealots that go down and kill every year, those in Hell are unsurprising. But we both know an angel without holy power lasts little on Earth when their own brand of fanatics finds them."

Nathaniel felt his breath shake. The thought of such acts… Having mercy, or doubt, was not a sin. It shouldn't be. Yet it was treated as such. "Charlotte Morningstar will, sooner or later, intervene. If she knew how much she was made to be demonized, despite her gentle nature, perhaps she'd go about it with more than words. But once she sees Heaven is unwilling to change? Who do you think will push harder to keep their dream alive? A hopeful dreamer willing to change with the tide? Or an unchanging mass that already has cracks?"

Charlotte would do that and more. Nathaniel knew that, of all souls in Hell, she would be the one to bring change. Sooner or later there would be a snap when it came to the Princess of Hell. Whether it came with the goodwill she seemed to have in abundance, or the moment she lost herself to desperation, Nathaniel knew not.

He only hopped Charlotte would remain as pure as she was whenever changes began. Otherwise… Not all that was said about the Nephilim was a lie, because change was dangerous, at least if brought with ill will. Charlie had to remain hopeful, more so than her dad.

"There is no reason to fear young Charlotte will do anything, Nathaniel. This is something that even she should understand. She has lived all her life in Hell, she has seen the worst Sinners can do, worse than some of the worst demons. Even the Sins themselves are less disgusting than many of the acts human souls take part in Hell." The woman shook her head. "No, her misguided attitude will never reach that point. There is no reason to discuss the impossible." And that, in Sera's eyes, was enough to convince her that, despite her misgivings, there was a duty to be carried out. She wished for it to be different, but duty did not come without motive. "Is there anything else, Nathaniel?"

The once mortal soul couldn't hold it back. He let out a disdainful grunt before shaking his head 'no'. What else was there to say? Sera truly couldn't, or wouldn't, see the truth of things. She willed herself not to.

Her choice. It all bore down to that. One day it would bite her in the ass.

"Then let me inform you and be on my way." Sera would've preferred this go down differently. But she had long accepted that many of those that found out, would not understand. Nathaniel was one of the less open about it when the topic arose, but no less angry. Still, she truly hated doing this. "Your sentence will last four more months. After that, you will be allowed to rejoin Heaven. We hope that, once that time passes, you will have accepted you were out of line and that this shall not happen again. Not, at least, without informing us first."

Nathaniel was surprised at that revelation. "I'll be allowed to counsel with the family?"

Sera nodded. Again, this was part of the rules. Angels existed with a single duty to carry on, and Nathaniel had chosen his. "You bound yourself to that duty. It is likely to end within the year, but if not? You will have to be Heaven's contact with the fallen humans. Their plight is one that won't be done with just a few visits, cryptic words or visions."

Another pause.

"For how long?"

"Until their demise. However long it takes for it to arrive."

Sera didn't like it, but there were more reasons for those in charge to dislike Nathaniel's actions than just his interference with The Order's business. He had made himself a constant visitor of Hell without knowing.

"However, this will depend on Lucifer's allowance of your presence there. Angels are permitted for a day… If he ever wanted to strike down stragglers, he could. That he hasn't ever done that is both comforting and worrying." And if there is one thing Sera couldn't help but do, it was to worry. "We are aware that Lucifer did not do as was his right and strike you down. But his fancy for this situation may change. Carlos may be bound to a particular Overlord, Rosie, but if Lucifer were to ask, the mortal's services would go strictly to him for as long as he desired. You being around may be… a bother, to him."

Not likely. Nathaniel knew Lucifer hadn't been the most pleased to have him around, but the man didn't strike him as the monster humans had portrayed the fallen Seraphim to be. An asshole? Probably. I mean, to be the King of Hell you had to be a dick at times. Nathaniel understood that just as much as he understood Heaven being awful in certain areas. There are things that must BE.

"I do not fear for my safety." Better not say too much however. Nathaniel wasn't about to make it look like Sera could interfere at her leisure. And she would, if she thought it'd aid Heaven first and foremost. "I have no interest in antagonizing Lucifer."

"Good. Despite our differences, despite our… fights, I hope you understand that I do not want you to suffer, Nathaniel." Sera was sincere, but she was also tired. For a moment her visage was that of a woman that hadn't slept in weeks, but it went away as soon as it came. "Now return to your meditation. I will come back when your punishment is through."

Nathaniel didn't say anything. Sera didn't expect him to. This ordeal was done. One message delivered, a question answered, one inquiry formed, and three points made. Far more than Nathaniel had hoped would ever happen.

Now, all he could do was wait. Wait, and think.

He grumbled to himself. There had to be something else he could do. But for right now? That was not an option.

Sometimes having too much time was a curse.

*** Rosie's Emporium ***

The group of four had been enjoying Rosie's company for a while. Five seats around a nicely designed tea table with an equally interesting set Carlos could swear he had seen somewhere. With Evelinde at his right, Leonor at his left, and Rosie in front of him with Zana and Destina mirroring his other two companions, this little get-together had been going nicely.

Rosie had to admit, this was an enjoyable evening. Having a slow day like this was perfect for relaxation, and the Overlord could only enjoy herself in such nice company. It would've been better only if Alastor decided to drop by. Sadly, her dear friend had business to attend to.

"I am glad you are settling in so nicely, darling. I really thought the others were going to tear you up." Rosie chuckled as she took a sip of her tea, watching in amusement as Carlos tried his best to do the same without making a face. "Those marks on Carlos' neck? Why, I thought they'd be the reason for us to have some poultry that night. And now look at you! Beatrice didn't even complain about that medicine of yours. And she has incredibly high standards."

"I admit my approach was unorthodox, but I think it drove the point across and made us reach an understanding." Destina corresponded Rosie's gesture with her own, drinking her tea with an appreciative humm. "And I would've welcomed punishment. It was only fair. Only Carlos was to decide and, I'll admit, I did not expect him to ask them to refrain."

"We cleared things up. You even agreed it was the right thing to leave those marks on until everyone knew. I thought you expected things to go as smoothly as they did." Carlos put his own empty cup down and begged Rosie with his eyes not to give him a refill. The Overlord did it anyway. "Causing you pain had no reason behind it, except making everyone involved feel good. I'd prefer if that kind of mentality was far away from us."

"EJEM."

Carlos rolled his eyes. "From us when it comes to our little family, Eve. Do not make that face. You know I am not going to ask you to stop being you." He chuckled at the Cambion's blushing face. "Besides, roughhousing is a thing that will forever remain. Although I think you ladies have, mostly." As he pointedly looked at Leonor, perhaps even including Zana. "Outgrown that."

"Aww…"

Rosie couldn't contain her giggles. It was so precious, you know? In many other circumstances it would've been worrying, but here it was a sight she loved to see.

Carlos had grown to care for Evelinde so much. Like he had for the others, true, but their relationship was different with each other. It was bound to happen.

For Evelinde? It was romantic. A quick budding little thing where the pair wanted to be with each other at all times. Insanity from Evelinde reined in by her partner's care and concern. A man willing to go along with his lover's ideas just to make her smile. It had gotten much better as of late too, a lot of the worry Rosie saw in Carlos had melted away. There were more little touches, a few more sincere smiles, and Evelinde had grown close enough to finally get him to go around formally, arm in arm. Carlos had told Rosie he found it uncomfortable, but it made Evelinde smile, so he wasn't willing to voice his complaints. He was just happy that she was happy.

Leonor was a more 'professional' form of love, in a sense. There were touches and glances here and there. They hadn't spent as much time together as Evelinde, partly because the Cambion hoarded the human, partly because Rosie had found out that Leonor was a much more professional and meticulous killer than her Cannibals. True they loved to get bloody and murder even when they weren't told, but they had grown bored of getting rid of the ferals. Leonor and Carlos had a similar bond; they worked together, got along well and, as of late, had been trying to talk more. Carlos had admitted that he wanted to take more time with her soon, as he had been doing with Evelinde.

Zana was… more difficult. Friendship, longing and respect for sure, those things Rosie could see. Rosie's attempt at getting her to go along with the others had been a bit more difficult and distant on Zana's side. That first play she sent the woman to hadn't been the best start, but the pair seemed to bond a bit. The Imp was always trying to busy herself with all the machines she was sent her way, and Rosie was thankful for that. That desire she seemed to harbor to try and keep away? It was clearly bothering Carlos. Their work together in the mine was something they seemed to enjoy. And they seemed to be friendly enough. But Rosie could see that Zana had things to say, wants and desires, that she didn't let out. Perhaps with more time.

And now there was another woman. This was great practice for Rosie, but also a damn challenge. The Overlord would love to say she had managed to help this strange group fit in together, a great little addon to her resume as it were, but this new girl was going to be difficult. She had proven herself to be direct, standoffish and impersonal, focused on her potions and uninterested in close contact. Rosie knew the girl was not asexual or aromantic, but she was the kind that would take to such desires with cold detachment. There was a spark there in her short time with everyone else, but it was buried under a desire to wait and see if her expectations could be met.

Still, a challenge was a challenge, and Rosie was nothing if not beyond capable to overcome. You don't get hellborn that reach Overlord status without being exceptional after all.

And, to be honest. Rosie loved these interactions. Rare as they were, thanks to the many duties she had placed on their laps to constantly test them, Rosie was coming to enjoy the family's presence in her little town. Cannibal Colony was a beautiful place, if you knew where to look. It was truly more civilized than most thought. But, in a way, it had also become a bit stagnant. Not that many Cannibals moved here, and quite a few of the young'uns left. The population became stable, somewhat. Nice, but unchanging.

Then a new family joined in, brought even more space to Rosie's land, and delivered so many new opportunities. And most of the mortals were so nice to be around! The Overlord was so glad for this. Her only problem now was the nagging feeling that came whenever she thought about the Extermination day to come.

Rosie flushed those thoughts from her mind as she watched with unrestrained mirth when Carlos finally decided to be done with it and down the second cup of tea.

She was never going to stop tormenting the poor man. This was going to become a good natured joke until he got used to it.

Now, back to rejoin the conversation that had been going on as she planned. "Girls, girls. Stop trying to fight for your man's attention. He'll move mountains to be with all of you. Don't fret."

And it was good too. Because while Destina seemed happy to not be part of the mess, the other three, yes, even Zana, had been growing agitated as they requested things from Carlos. What exactly? Rosie had to admit her mind had wandered enough for her to miss it. But it clearly required the young man's presence, so Rosie was still in the right with her intervention. Mostly because Zana looked ready to jump off her chair and start swinging.

"But Ah need him ta come to ma pa's ranch soon, Rosie!" Zana pointed at Leonor. "She jus' wanna train him with guns. Can do that anytime." Then at Evelinde. "And she keeps pesterin' him about trying bodyparts. Am not about to eat a demon fer no reason."

Oh, perhaps she should've reigned her thoughts a little more. Evelinde HAD been asking Rosie to give her a few more advanced lessons in cooking. Not that the girl didn't know how, but Rosie had a lot of experience. More than either Evelinde's mother or grandmother did. Evelinde's aunt? Well, that woman lived to prepare a good man, literally. But she was a bit too busy most of the time.

Now, being honest. Rosie would love to drag Carlos down with a good, PROPER, meal. It would just bring him closer to everyone else in the Cannibal Colony. A surefire way to cement him as part of the group. There were even bets on WHEN it would happen. A particularly daring chap had bet alongside Rosie on it taking place during the Extermination.

Oh hoh hoh hoh. Alastor you devil. But Rosie would refrain from saying anything, and she would go so far as to try and sabotage her own bid. It would make things more fun! Even Alastor would agree. Though winning the pot would make for a nice chunk of change.

"Well, my dear." Rosie began, a motherly smile on her face. It was her right to try and guide her charge towards a proper cannibal lifestyle after all. "I do think Evelinde is-."

"HELLO EVERYONE~"

Whatever was going to be said was lost to the ether as Rosie's emporium was invaded by the one singular royal in Hell she had managed to meet. Lucifer, the fallen Seraphim, had decided to open a portal on top of her tea table.

Mind you, he kicked nothing out of place, nor did he bring any dirt to wipe off. It was just surprising and somewhat rude. Rosie was thankful for many reasons, no least of all being she loved her place to be CLEAN.

You'd think the Cannibal Colony would be dirty, right? Well, there was blood, remains and such, but it was a nice place. The locals were sadistic, flesh hungry monsters when they let themselves go, but otherwise they were perfect dears to one another, so long as you obeyed the rules.

Rosie's own emporium was a perfect example of the care everyone put in their own little places, only hers was done with a purpose: Full both with vintage clothes from an age now past, cannibalistic treats (from preserved meats and fresh pieces to caramelized body parts, chocolates mixed with various kinds of bloods and more) and general beautiful decor to help calm down visitors and let tongues fly (not literally in this case) so they all could mingle happily and let Rosie help them out with whatever problems they had.

Yeah, Rosie's place, both her emporium and the Colony itself, could look dangerous and gruesome. But it was a well maintained community within Pentagram. A place where respect, manners and the correct dress code would make you live a long, relatively normal life.

So in a way it was very hard for Rosie to force a smile as Lucifer looked at everyone with mild surprise. It was clear the King of Hell hadn't intended to land where he did. Rosie was far too nice (and smart) a woman to lash at him for such a mistake. Although she truly, truly wished that Lucifer wouldn't break anything. This tea set came from the living world, and it was corruption proof so it'd remain as it was for eternity if not broken. It was worth more than the hoard the Tower had delivered this month.

"Oh, sorry about that." Lucifer snapped his fingers and, much to Rosie's relief, blinked from the table to the side of the group, next to Carlos. "I thought I had the perfect spot right there. Probably my mind wandering, heh, it happens." The King of Hell cleared his throat. "I hope I don't arrive at a bad time?"

Once he was on the floor, looking at everyone, the group noticed the changes. The hair, the height… No one made a peep about it. There were questions, but in their minds everyone found reasons not to say a single thing about Lucifer's alterations to his own appearance.

Would he snap at anyone making questions? No one knew. So better make it look like this was normal.

"Not at all." Rosie was quick to amend. At least Lucifer was trying to be somewhat nice about his interruption. "We were just enjoying a work free day after my darlings here attended a local play."

Lucifer looked at them all. Dried blood clung to many of the suits and dresses he could see. "Yep, I can see it was of the Cannibal variety. Mild though. I don't see chunks anywhere."

"Not for lack of trying." Evelinde chuckled under her breath as she drained her cup. She felt very relaxed today for some reason. She wouldn't have addressed Lucifer without any honorifics first otherwise. So as soon as her mind caught up she decided to resolve that problem. "But what brings you here, my liege?"

"Oh, yes! The thing! Well, things really." Lucifer cleared his voice again to put on a more commanding tone instead of the more casual he had been using until now. It was time to give commands after all. "But let me hold that surprise for a while. First, duty. Carlos, my boy. I have a job for you."

Rosie saw everyone's surprise. Even Destina's usually neutral expression turned inquisitive. Rosie was far more discrete, and more worried. Lucifer was once more in good spirits. That meant he had something of interest.

Something of Interest for the King of Hell could mean many bad things.

"You do?" Rosie offered her gentlest and most interested smile and tone that she could. "It is a bit too soon, I think. But I am sure our king has thought of an interesting task for dear Carlos to test him with. So, what is it?"

Lucifer sent a smile Rosie's way. This, to him, was enough endorsement to throw Carlos to the wolves. "I did! In fact, I tested something. So I also have a little gift for you."

With a snap of his fingers Lucifer brought up a ring. It was a small thing, not like the overly complicated pieces of trash many Sinners wore because they could take the pain and they wanted to have 'the bling'. It was a simple black ring that resembled crow wings on the sides, with the top having been engraved to represent a crow's eyes and beak. Some kind of diminutive jewels for the eyes, a singular piece of what looked like opal made into a beak. It wouldn't be out of place in a few businesses back on Earth.

"The ring of House Corvus." Lucifer announced as he tossed the black ring at Carlos. The human took it and gave the ring a curious look. "A magical trinket. Rather simple for a Goetia to make, even a hellborn or a Sinner could craft them, if they had the know-how."

Destina was the one to interrupt before anyone could ask Lucifer. "The court nobles still don't know what the house of the crow is about."

Lucifer couldn't help but grin. "Not a damn clue. Nope. None at all." And that grin only widened as he pointed at Destina. "But I am sure smart ones like you probably can see what is going on."

The bird woman rolled her eyes. "Then you don't have much to worry about."

"And what do they do?" This time it was Leonor. Information was power after all, and, whether she liked it or not, SHE was part of a noble house right now. "Just in case it is important and… Are we allowed to know?"

"Weeeell~" Lucifer hummed for a second. "Technically they'd owe you one if you help with this. It is a matter that pertains to their house, but certain… Recent actions on their part have barred them entry from the one place they need to go. A family matter, if you will." Then he nodded. "So yes, I think ALL of you." He said this looking at Rosie. "Are welcome to this information."

"Oh my." Rosie did her best to restrain her giddiness. Something secret that not even the nobles knew? "What is this house of the crow about, my lord?"

"They are Hell's Royal Spy Service." Lucifer made it sound so mundane, yet everyone present, save Destina, thought it was far more than that. "From the first proper Crow Goetia to the current head of the house, Lord Corax, and his many descendants. They all serve the crown and are the most adept at disguise and illusions, despite having far fewer magically capable nobles. Their abilities have grown to the point that magic is a rare gift in exchange for the simple trick of human disguising, dampening of sounds and a natural ability to make all those that look their way notice only what the members of House Corvus wish for them to see."

"Simply put, they are extremely dexterous Goetia that have lost much of their magic, instead acquiring slight psionic powers to befuddle their targets." Destina translated into a quick, simple and easy to digest format. "But they do have passable, if not great, mages when they are able to use magic."

"Huh, curious." Zana looked at the ring Carlos was now very interested in. "So you have some nobles that actually do something. What is the ring for, then?"

"Something the crows make to have an extra edge." Lucifer hummed as he summoned his cane to point at the thing with a lazy wave. "It has part of the essence of someone from that family. So long as the essence lingers, which should be forever, the eyes of the ring will glow for those it allows to use its powers. It helps with reflexes, general reaction time and even aids when trying not to attract attention." Lucifer chuckled. "Of course, the fact that anyone can make this kind of trinket is a bit of a joke on their part. Crafting the vessel is easy. The hard part is getting someone from House Corvus to share their soul. No one would use pricey materials like the ones used on those rings with nothing to gain from it. Even the most stupid magic wise would know it is a scam."

Carlos looked at the ring again and nodded, but he did notice something. "The eyes don't glow, though."

"Oh yeah. That is what you have to help them with." Lucifer gave a shrug. "I need you to kill one of their youngest members."

Every neck nearly snapped as those presented looked at Lucifer.

"What?"

Probably the only question Carlos needed to ask. The only one he COULD make.

"Yes, you need to kill a young Goetia. An adult, mind you. I wouldn't send you to kill a child. You may do that yourself when you are ready." Lucifer said with a shrug. He didn't know if Carlos ever would, but hey. Abusing children was bad, even from the Devil's perspective. But there were some little shits out there that deserved a bullet. "Since they can't do it, I thought you'd be perfect for the task."

"But… a Goetia?"

Evelinde was now facing the Lord of Hell with worry clear in her face.

Everyone, even Destina, looked like they thought Lucifer was sending Carlos to die.

Lucifer let out a chuckle. "Don't you worry. This is a special case. Besides, I am sure Carlos will be willing to go the moment you know why. I'd even bet you all will see it his way."

Carlos shared a look with everyone in the large room. Rosie came first, his soul was HERS after all. It warmed her heart that Carlos seemed to go to HER first, even before any of his girls, Deal or not. It showed once again that there was respect there, and trust. Even some of his older clients and acquaintances would've done otherwise after they were thrown in this minefield. Sadly, this time Rosie was as stupefied as everyone else.

Evelinde, for once in her life, was going against her better and sadistic nature and saying 'no' with her head so fast Rosie thought it would detach. Leonor and Zana both were looking at Lucifer like the man had grown a second head (Could he do that if he wanted?), with at least one of them looking like they wanted to say something, only for the moment to pass for a second or two as the other got ready to do the same song and dance. Only Destina looked pensive about it, but also apprehensive. As a Goetia herself she knew this was not a joke.

Hell, she was one of the weakest specimens and she had lifted Carlos by the throat like it was nothing. And she didn't truly intend harm on the man!

"..." In the end it was Carlos' own decision to make, and the curiosity in him forced Carlos to ask. "What makes you think I'd be up for it?"

"He works for the bitch that sent you here."

That made everyone in the room do a full one eighty.

Carlos gripped the armrests of his seat so hard Rosie thought they'd splinter. Evelinde almost cracked her neck as she looked at Lucifer like this was the first thing he should've said if he didn't want her to claw his eyes out. Leonor instinctively went for her gun, even if she didn't drag it out, a first response she had shown Rosie when anger, fear or stress got to her. Zana's tail began to swish from side to side with anger. Even Destina looked angry, or at least disgusted, as if she knew that this meant something more than it did on the surface. The woman was not one prone to emotional outburst after all, and she had confided with Rosie that she couldn't emphasize with the family on their hate, it wasn't in her nature. As such there was something there that made Rosie wonder.

That wonder was secondary though. Rosie did her best to be detached from the family's vengeance. The completion of such was part of the deal with the young man after all. In a way she should've desired for it to fail so his soul would be hers for eternity. But her time with the group had made the motherly Overlord truly care for many of them. Their quirks and nature were addictic. A breath of fresh air indeed.

The need to make that woman suffer in any way was also a sadistic desire that Rosie thought would bring her a high like no other after all. It had been so long since she had fought someone powerful in any capacity. Be it in person or by proxy. It almost made her droll to think what would come of this.

But she did not want to risk her owned soul like that. Carlos would not end a Sinner if that woman was still alive. There would be almost nothing left of Carlos. Barely any soul to form a body. He would be just… gone. So this order from Lucifer still didn't sit right with her.

"I see." Rosie was the first to speak as she looked at her tea. For once her desire to indulge was gone. "My lord, if I may be so bold… What kind of situation may be so special that sending Carlos is the right call? Killing a Goetia is no small feat… My little hunter is still green."

She didn't intend it as an insult, and Carlos didn't take it as such, but the young man was still clearly tense. How could he not? More so considering what Lucifer shared.

"First. Everyone here knows the rules of how to make a Deal, a Pact or a Contract, right? Just need to make sure we don't need another lengthy explanation." Everyone present nodded at the King's question. "Good. Then all of you are aware of the costs of breaking them?" Again, Lucifer was met with nods. "But do any of you know what happens if you do that and get away with it?" This time there were no nods, only wonder. Only Destina seemed ready to say something, but she read the room well enough this time. "Well, let's make it simple: The offending part that gets away with it STEALS the power. There are many ways to do that, and none of them is cheap in life or pleasant for either party. The end reward is worth it, if you are cruel and cunning enough. That is what the bitch that got Carlos here did. That is how he robbed Hell of its power, and how she keeps on stealing more."

Lucifer didn't stop there. He went on. "Humans like these, or dealbreaking demons, are marked to kill on sight the moment they survive the process." Lucifer clarified for those unaware. Rosie could see that a few of the girls were clearly ignorant of this fact. "To break a deal, a pact or a contract has different consequences. A Contract would likely kill the demon, and that is putting it mildly. But a Deal? Even a Pact? It would likely drain them… if done wrong. If done right? The demon could easily take the soul away from those they deal with. They could even go so far that the rules of Hell don't apply anymore. They could even invade Earth without the proper means to visit there. Heck, maybe they'd even be able to risk it and go to Heaven. Though no one had been retarded enough to try." He grumbled in displeasure. "For a human? They could do as this bitch has for hundreds of years: They would steal power from Hell."

The group now nodded along. Rosie knew this of course. Breaking a deal without a good reason branded you in ways no demon wanted. Lucifer would likely not come in person. And if he did? Then you were lucky. The ones tasked with 'removing problematic individuals' were neither gentle nor quick.

Hell was not a torture show anymore. But the place made exceptions for certain souls that fucked up too badly.

"So that wretch has a lot of power. We knew that already." Carlos was drumming his fingers on the chair's armrest, finally done trying to crack it with his strength alone. Rosie was thankful for that. The young man would've succeeded at some point. "But I guess dealing with her is a big taboo, considering breaking Deals and such is seen as such a huge crime."

"It IS." Lucifer nodded with fervent dislike in his voice. "Demons that deal with the very rare human able to break a Deal, those that steal power from Hell, are the worst criminals there are, and that is saying something. Sinner or hellborn, they can be empowered fast by channeling the stolen powers of the realm. This may be fine at first, but even a demon is not immune to magic poisoning, and Hell's essence, its power, is just that: Raw magic. By forcefully absorbing it, you go mad." The King made a face. "This madness is, admittedly, temporary. But it can last centuries. The ensuing chaos is enough that I allowed it to happen exactly ONCE when I was still in a slump and in a very cruel mood. Never again."

Carlos rubbed his chin. This Goetia couldn't be this stupid, right? Self centered? Sure. Destina and Stolas both told him a lot about their kind. But this seemed a bad deal all around. Goetia were not stupid enough to shoot themselves in the foot. They were far too selfish for that. There had to be more to it, right?

"Why would anyone do that?" He ended up asking. Carlos needed to know. More so if it led to more information. After all, the fire in him was lit. "I don't care about the motives, really. This guy that has joined the bitch that threw me here? I'll murder him. I will do it gladly. I will bring his carcass here for Rosie to devour." That last part was said in a voice that, for a moment, did not sound like Carlos' own. Everyone, even Rosie and Lucifer, looked at the young man in either wonder or a small level of fright. "I just want to know more."

Rosie had to fight her urge to smile instead of putting up a face of surprise and worry, in fact none of the girls seemed to mind Carlos' outburst after a second digesting his anger. The fact that her charge was willing to bring her a Goetia body of all things was heartwarming. She could fully understand why Evelinde was so happy the day Carlos stood up to Stella for her.

"The reason is stupid, honestly." Lucifer recovered first though,and he went on without a problem as the others accepted what had happened. "He wasn't happy with being one of the most powerful mages of his family. A possible jumpstart on a proper magic line for his house. Apparently he wanted to be the BEST, and his two sisters were getting ahead while he was growing closer to the ceiling on his power."

"Unsurprising." Once more it was Destina the one to speak. On this topic she was the most knowledgeable after all. "Women are stronger in the magic field in almost all species. Granted, much like physical strength, a man has a higher limit, but unlike physical attributes, they have a much harder time achieving them. In most cases they never will. And if they do? It always takes much longer than a woman, so they usually die long before that happens." The Goetic woman hummed at some thoughts that crossed her mind, then grimaced. Her mind clearly focused on the stupidity of this particular man she had the dubious honor to share a level of kinship with. "Still, to be so powerful and throw it all away out of envy? Stupid. Very stupid."

"Don't need to tell me that. It pissed me off. I had been having such a good day too" Lucifer sneered. The good mood he had before was almost banished, but he let his anger go quickly. This was all in his favor in the end, after all. "But of all Goetia, the House of the Crow was the most rare for such an event. After all, they have curses tied to their blood."

"Like the ones Carlos and his family use?" Evelinde's own curiosity gnawed at her mind as she toyed with her claws. There was a desire there to rend something now that her man was dangling in front of something she considered too dangerous. "Something to grow in power at a cost?"

"Oh no, no. Nothing like that. They don't need those. No, the array of curses in their blood is designed to punish them if they betray their duty." Lucifer surprised most of those present. Unsurprising. What Goetic demon would do that, right? "The house takes their job and loyalty very seriously. There are personal reasons for that, so I won't go in detail. Suffice to say the curses are meant to kill even Goetia demons. And if the demon in question survives it? Then sealing their magic and forcing afflictions is the least that the curse will allow." Though, just in case, he made something clear. "His natural abilities as a spy will remain though. His strength as a Goetia, his acquired dexterity, his agility and all of House Crow training, will be intact. However, he is afflicted with constant migraines and muscular lockdowns while also having a lack of sleep, as well as momentary bouts of blindness. To top it all off? The woman that tempted him seems to be ignoring his efforts. He will be high strung and drained, but still dangerous."

"That sounds like a weak ass Goetia, true, but Carlos isn't that good a fighter, yet." Zana grumbled as she looked the man over. He was now in 'decent't shape, but still. "He needs a proper trainer. None of us know how to teach. The only one in his family that could guide him properly is a bitch, and those that know aren't adept at hand to hand." No one expected Carlos to react, and other than a click of his tongue, he didn't. "And Alastor is a crazy killer that likes the 'finer touches' of murder than proper combat."

Everyone present, save for Lucifer, had to nod at that. The Imp, whether she was being harsh or not, was right.

"That is true. And a Goetia, weakened or not, is a difficult opponent." Rosie hummed as she sat in a pensive position. "Alastor is a great friend, and a magnificent murderer of great finesse, as well as a great cook. He can teach the art and enjoyment of killing, and the fine arts of many weapons. But he is less of a personal fighter. His skill relies mainly in magic nowadays, even if he is no slouch when it comes to a more personal encounter." The Overlord drummed her sharp claws on the chair for a second. "I could always reach dear Carmilla. She is a sensible woman. She loves her daughters. She understands the value of family. And she is a great fighter too." Rosie nodded to herself. "Yes, the Carmines could work. We could reach an agreement, I am sure."

"I agree with your suggestion. Carmilla Carmine knows her deal. A supplier of holy armaments must know every weapon and as many ways of combat as possible." Lucifer had to admit the guts on that woman were impressive. She even danced around during Extermination day to collect what she could. She was cautious though, with a great head on her shoulders and lethal experience guiding her body. "But I came here because this cannot wait. Otherwise I wouldn't have bothered all of you."

Rosie knew something wasn't right when Lucifer said that. "My king. What could this man be doing for you to wish his demise NOW? And by asking Carlos of all people?" She couldn't help but lose her smile. "It sounds particularly risky for, well, no great gain. More so when he is being constantly punished. Leaving him in pain and suffering for a while longer doesn't sound that bad."

"Usually I'd agree, Rosie. You are not wrong there." That only made Rosie worry more. Lucifer was all but telling her that something was afoot. "In fact the Crow has never acted up like this and avoided the worst case scenario. Hell, if it ever had a problem within the family? They solved it themselves. Never had violence been involved, but they'd still do it. But as I said; now that it happened, they can't." And in a way Lucifer wished they would. This could end up being a headache. "Germaine, the man I want Carlos to kill, has moved to Lust. Due to an altercation with Asmodeus, House Corvus is not allowed to step in. Any member fully integrated in the family, and capable of dealing with Germaine, would bounce off that particular Ring. Either that or Asmodeus would kick them out himself. I could go there myself, true, but it would reflect back on both me and Asmodeus. I could also tell Ozzie, but even without the hit to our PR, the end result would likely be the same."

Carlos found himself willing to interrupt. "You make it sound not like this guy could beat you, but like he could do something you don't want, if he caught on. Something that may not really be that harmful to YOU, but you really don't want it happening."

"And you are right on the money there." Lucifer was quick to confirm. "See, I usually don't care if people get screwed over by deals or whatever. You need two to tango. If you get fucked over, that is your problem. You must make sure you get a deal you want. Will it be shitty otherwise if you do need the help? Will some try to hurt or downright torture you if you don't accept? Sure, there are assholes in Hell and a lot of bad situations. Big surprise. But that is why I like people like you, Carlos." Lucifer pointed his cane towards the man. "You made sure the deals you got were to your liking, or you at least tried to get them to be, and you seem to respect the deals you finally got. So you got a kudos from me. Most people would push for less than you did or try to shirk their obligations."

"I… thanks." Carlos was not caught off guard per se, but it still surprised him. "But that didn't answer my question."

"No, I know. But it does lead to it." Lucifer cleared his throat. "Look, deals and the like are usually done between Sinners, or humans and proper demons. That is usually the gist of it. There is very little to gain for hellborn dealing with hellborn, except making certain arrangements mandatory, or streamline certain processes. The power gained from a demon soul, considering most of its energy goes back to Hell after death, with everything else completing the circle of life, is, to be frank, minuscule."

Carlos snapped his fingers. "Yeah, I learned about that. That is why there are living 'things' in Hell, right? Like all those eyes and stuff."

"Precisely." Lucifer smiled from ear to ear. Everyone did. It was nice to see Carlos learning about, and enjoying, Hell. Although most of those present were happy for different reasons. "But there ARE ways to do much like that bitch that fucked you over and take from a hellborn soul. This way you can almost wipe it clean, like the curse almost did with your family's own souls."

There was an uncomfortable silence shared by everyone in the room. At least until Rosie pointed the obvious out. "But isn't such a thing part of a centuries old curse? How would that do anything like that for a random demon? I doubt anyone would spend that kind of power to make the process FASTER just for a handful of much weaker power sources."

"Well, yes, but not if the process came from the same source." Really, Lucifer thought this was easy to understand. Then again the knowledge of how to mess with Hell was meant to be hard to find for a fucking reason. "It is a complex thing, yeah, but that is the process you need for a human soul. We are talking about a tremendously powerful thing from the start. With hellborn power? With a weaker soul? All that bitch needs to do is what has already happened: Make a Deal with a powerful demon. Have that demon employ other demons, almost exclusively hellborn, although it SHOULDN'T matter, through Contracts. And then? What would you need? Simple." Lucifer made a motion with his thumb under his neck. No one needed to guess. "Abuse them. Torture them. Bring them to the breaking point. Then? Kill the demons. Break the Contracts. Create a kerfuffle that, instead of messing with the deal breaker, sends the souls to this bitch so she converts all she can into raw power. Then, as payment, part of that power should help this idiot break through that barrier to his power."

This incensed every demon in the room, with the lone human growing particularly hateful at the knowledge.

There were very few rules in Hell. The most basic? Deal breakers are scorned, one way or another. It was one of the few things you could call 'sacred' in this place. You could abuse a Deal, Pact or Contract, true. But you were meant to respect them once you had it made.

You got in a bad deal because of wording, slipups or the like? Tough shit. You can do as many things as you want to get out of it. You can even try to murder the one lording your agreement over. You can buy, beg, suck or do whatever the fuck you wanted. Search for loopholes. Blackmail the one pulling your string. Outsmart, outmuscle and outperform your lord if you can. This is Hell. Be superior, be your OWN master.

But do NOT break a deal. Not without a VERY good reason.

"This Germaine wasn't born retarded." Zana snorted the moment Lucifer was done and the gravity of it all finally clicked. There was something in her voice that made it sound like she was about to froth at the mouth despite her accent not showing up. "Oh no. Mentally challenged people ARE smart in their own way. This guy is a trained idiot. Even *I* didn't think a Goetia could be this stupid. We usually give shit to Sinners that are trully horrible, but this is fucked up."

"I'll admit, there are self centered members of my kind. To the point of losing what little brain power they have outside of scheming and the like." Destina herself felt a bad taste in her mouth as she spoke as if this 'Germaine' should have anything to do with her. "But even with that knowledge I didn't think someone would ever make a Deal like this. That woman is not going to honor anything."

"Why would she?" Even Evelinde wasn't up for games on this one. "If she had to break deals to get to where she stands, then she wasn't strong then and she is strong now just by backstabbing others. And not the kind any of us would respect either. She is an opportunistic scum. The moment this bastard is done she'll cut him off or cut him down."

"There is an art when it deals with betrayal." Leonor was no less unimpressed by the situation. "But there are lines one shouldn't cross. Not even my ex-boss broke Deals, much less Pacts. He never made a Contract, to my knowledge at least, but, much as it would've hurt him, he would honor it. This kind of act is vile. And this man? Stupid doesn't begin to describe him."

"Just comes to show how despicable that idiot is. And it speaks volumes of that woman." Carlos' hands whitened as she balled them into fist, knuckles cracking. This could be Hell, true, but the kind of abuse he could see such a man forcing upon what basically translated to slaves? And not the willing kind, like he was. He had no illusions of what his Deal and the Contract marked him to be. Nice as his conditions were, he was bound to serve. "Perhaps ending up as food is too good for him."

"I will admit." Rosie crossed her legs as she watched her little group all but sharpen knives at the revelation. "It is no small feat to get all of us to agree on something so easily." The Overlord chuckled despite the seriousness of the situation. "But I think it has been made clear that every single one of us wants that man dead." She pointed at Carlos with a little wave. "And don't you worry my dear. I'd take it as a compliment if you bring his remains. Not exactly much of a chance to dine on royalty, traitorous as this one may be."

Rosie could feel her heart swell at the cruel smile the man offered her. "If you do wish. It would be a pleasure."

"Oh my dear. I do wish." Rosie let out a short giggle. She had to admit she saw the reasons behind Heaven's conditioning of dears like Carlos. It was such a thrilling pleasure to have such loyal and willing people. It didn't hurt any when Carlos was such a dear. "Just make sure he suffers, my dear. Such a wretch of a man deserves nothing less. If it is what he did to those he employed, then returning it in kind seems like fair play." She let out a content sigh that had some wistfulness to it. "I only wish I could watch, but I won't have the time for it. And even if I did? Perhaps traveling to Lust would make this… 'man' act on his enslaved demons instead of you."

Before Carlos could node, vigorously I might add, Lucifer cut in. "I fear your presence would make it too dangerous for his broken mind, Rosie. A shame, really. But I do agree with the sentiment: Please, do make it hurt. This piece of shit deserves nothing less. Besides." Lucifer levitated the ring from Carlos' iron grip for a second. "This little thing is made to hold his soul away from that bitch's grip. Make sure he is well and utterly fucked up so both he, and that whore, lose grip on it. Assert your dominance and claim the bastard's power." He returned the ring to Carlos before delivering a very important detail. "While none of your family will be ready to travel to Earth for a long while, unless you want to burn a favor from me, having that ring powered up will anchor your soul, young man. By taking the powers of Germaine you'll be guaranteed safe passage long before everyone else. That, and the ring will empower you as it would the Corvus family." Though he lifted a finger in warning. "Just remember Heaven will know when you are topside. House Corvus could shield its members through training and innate abilities. You won't have that. They should do nothing… but if you interfere in something, they may be allowed to act."

Rosie was delighted at the news. There was one particular place she wanted to drag Carlos to, Evelinde too at that. It had been far too long, and her supplies were running low on that end to boot. Oh! Better than that! Rosie got an idea.

"That'd be delightful, my dear! Why, I have an idea. Something that may cleanse our palate after such dreadful talk." The Overlord turned to Zana. "Zana, dear. You said your family owns a ranch, didn't you?"

This caught the Imp by surprise. "Uh… yeah? Why?"

"Well, I have a friend on the surface. His family has had a deal with me for a looong time now." Rosie giggled at the interest everyone seemed to dote her with at her words. "Nothing nefarious, don't worry. Just a special blend of tea that grows with human blood instead of water, a creation of theirs. Sadly, they have a very limited ability to grow it. Such a plant is hard to tend in the mortal world, so I have a limited supply most of the time."

Carlos looked at his cup. "Uh…"

"Not this one, no. I almost have none of the special blend left." Rosie still snickered at Carlos' grimace. "But since you'll be able to go topside soon, how about a visit? Come with me and meet my friend. How does it sound, hmm?"

"I… would be happy to accompany you, my lady." Although Carlos' face said otherwise.

Evelinde was far more eager. "Yes! It has been such a long time, lady Rosie. Could I come too?"

"Splendid. The more the merrier." Rosie clapped, a smile bright as a star on her face. "So, Zana, dear, here is the thing. I'd like to get some of my friend's plants here in Hell. I am sure in a few months we could have a different blend entirely as the dears change the moment the influence gets to them. I fear the quality will decrease, but I am more than willing to pay well for the service."

"Huh… that… could work?" It had been a while, but Zana had lived a long time on that farm. She had learned a lot about how it worked. "I mean, I could ask dad, but she'd be down for it. More money is always nice."

Lucifer cleared his throat. "Just wish to mention that dealing with that kind of thing would need some noble backing you up. I am not going to show favoritism here. It is no business of mine."

Rosie could understand, but she was still disappointed. She had hoped for Lucifer to look the other way and-

"Don't worry. Stolas owes me one after calling for me." Zana didn't seem to find it problematic. In fact Rosie couldn't help but beam at the smaller woman all but solving that possible problem right away. "He also wants to come over and get someone that can work with dangerous plants. I have a particular sister in mind for that. So we can do it all in one go."

"Well, wasn't that solved like it was nothing?" Lucifer chuckled as his good mood returned in full. He made sure to give Rosie a pointed look though, just to make sure the Overlord kept it in mind. "Just give him a call and tell him to look a few things up about bringing plantlife from Earth. He'll have a field day with that. Then make sure he sends me the details so I can put my stamp on it. No one will raise a fuss about Rosie's little business after that is said and done."

Rosie was quick to nod. This did look like it was a done deal. "We will make sure, your highness." But there was something else to ask. "But back to more important matters. What about Carlos' little job before that? I don't wish to be rude, but… Is there a plan?"

"Yes, of course. Sadly, that is not going to be a short 'go in, kill thing, go out' kind of plan." Lucifer began with a bit of annoyance returning. He let it go quickly. The harder part was not having anyone here pissed and he had succeeded. He could be the King of Hell, but he didn't want any animosity if possible, so that was the harder part done with. "I contacted Asmodeus to have a few rooms free at his place because this is going to be a week long, perhaps weeks if unlucky, plan. All Carlos has to do is walk around lust and act unaware of the danger you are putting yourself in. Perhaps ask anyone working for Asmodeus about the Goetia around the place. Make yourself a target. Make it clear you are seeking the bastard. Give him a reason to change his goals and turn his focus from murdering demons that would offer him little, to giving his shitty mistress a real prize: You."

Lucifer thought that Carlos or his group would be miffed at the plan. Using him as bait was risky. But most were either contemplating the simple but perfectly serviceable idea, or nodding along Lucifer's words.

"It is a very simple hunting strategy." Rosie mulled for a second. It shouldn't be hard to do. "Temptation seems to be a weakness for this particular Goetia. The promise of power and an easy way to get it. And if this Germaine hasn't been having any rest…"

"He won't think clearly. A weak mind is easy to fool." Evelinde sounded more than pleased. To her it looked like the only hard part would be killing the bastard. But it was clear she believed in Carlos ending on top. "All my dear has to do is beat that bastard afterwards."

"Carlos can do it." Destina didn't seem to doubt the outcome either. "He cracked my beak when I pulled that stunt on him." She patted her face. No marks remained on her beak, and it healed during their conversation, but the feeling remained. Destina learned that humans with a hint of holy blood could be dangerous even if unarmed. Despite the almost negative outcome, and a small deal of scorn, she considered it a win. "If he can exert that much power with his bare hands, then with his weapon it should be enough. And he is determined enough to go through with it all."

"That you got your face done in, at least partially, after that stunt is nice and all." Zana pointed, a grin on her lips. "But killing this piece of shit would be different. He may be fucked up, true, but that also means he may act on instinct, like an animal." The Imp thought for a second. "Someone should go with him."

"I…" Evelinde almost jumped at the chance, then sat down with a grimace. "I refuse to go to Lust. Sorry. I cannot stand the place."

"I understand, honey, I do." Rosie was quick to offer the poor girl a comforting smile. "You dislike the ambiance. A place where lust overpowers love always makes you fidgety… or aggressive. That one time you tried a club didn't end well, did it?"

"I don't want to cause a scene." The Cambion looked away, embarrassed. "And please, my lady." She stared at Rosie as the older Cannibal gave her a teasing smile. "NEVER tell them about that night."

Carlos took Evelinde's hand, prompting the Cambion to send a blush his way when she looked at him, obvious shame forgotten. "Don't worry, Eve. I thank you anyway. You were sincere at least." He then looked at Destina. "How about you? Want to hunt this idiot with me?"

"Much as I'd like to see how you fare? No." Destina shook her head. "Lust utterly disgusts me. If prompted I'll go, but I will not make this a pleasant experience for anyone involved."

Zana was very quick to tell Carlos what for the moment he looked her way. "No fucking way. I won't take a step in that Ring AGAIN even if it gets us to kick Heaven in the balls."

"I wasn't going to suggest you did." Carlos tried to placate the woman. "I was just going to say I understand you won't come either."

The Imp opened her mouth, a growl clear in her throat. It died down as Zana grew a blush. "Sorry about the outburst."

"Understandable. Most of us know you don't have the best history with those that reside there." As Zana nodded Carlos looked at Leonor. "So, Leonor, that leaves you. Considering you are mostly all business I didn't think you'd like to, but…"

"You aren't wrong there." Leonor gave a barely perceptible nod. "But it is not Greed, so I am not opposed."

Carlos blinked a few times. Did that mean she was on board? "You want to come then?"

"Hmm… It would be the first time I get you all to myself for real." The loan shark gave a wide, toothy grin. This was HER win. "I'd be delighted to."

Lucifer snapped his fingers to gather everyone's attention. He got someone else to suggest this, so he could be bolder and no one would think anything of it. "Good enough! But I'd also ask you, Carlos, to tell your family about this. It would help to get at least another person involved. Give me a call once you know who may want to come over." Another snap and Carlos got a piece of paper with a number on it. "I'd like to have a talk with everyone at the Tower, but we are a bit pressed for time. Not to put pressure on you all, but I wouldn't like for this to take more than a few days to decide. Before the next month rolls over if at all possible."

"Of course, my king. Besides, we can use this as an excuse." Rosie spoke before anyone else could. Not like it was a bad idea. Having more of Carlos' family in Lust could help sweeten the deal so the traitorous Goetia went for them instead of executing his enslaved demons. "The Tower's little mine bore fruit only Asmodeus can work with. The raw Asmodean crystals are all but useless otherwise. So that may serve as a cover if nothing else, and can bring us all some goodwill on the side. But speaking of 'on the side'." Although Rosie was now full of wonder. Lucifer was smirking so wide it looked like his face hurt. "Didn't you have another topic to discuss? Something else to say? I mean, you did mention you had 'things' after all."

"Oh, dear Rosie, you saw right through me." Lucifer chuckled. There was a childlike malice there. Not real evil. More like someone wanting to be a stinker and perfectly able to deliver one right this very moment. "But yes, you are right. There is something I want to give someone here."

There were many shared glances, questioning looks and wonder. This 'thing' didn't seem to be bad at all. Lucifer seemed exceptionally happy too. Was it good news? It had to be, right?

"What is it?" Evelinde, the most curious of all, was the one to prompt the Lord of Hell.

"My congratulations, of course!" Lucifer said in as exuberant a manner as he could. "It was one of the reasons I was so happy today. I could barely hold court considering I wanted to come by and wish you well after all. Besides! I wanted to see your reaction."

The Cambion looked at the others before giving Lucifer a questioning look. "Congratulate? Me?" Evelinde looked at the others, only to be met with faces full of surprise and confusion. "Why? What… reaction should I have?"

"Well, surprise of course. I mean, I knew you wouldn't know, of course. It is too early. But for the one that holds a certain level of ownership on your soul with that Contract of ours? I get to be privy to many things you may not notice." Lucifer's impossible grin tried to widen again. "So yeah. Congratulations my dear! You are pregnant!"

You could hear a pin drop.

"Huh?"

"You are with child."

"H-huh?"

"You got knocked up."

"W-w-wha-?"

"Birds and the bees, dear, birds and the bees." Lucifer finally spoke in a babying tone. He was having far too much fun.

The light in Evelinde's eyes dimmed. They were now as black as any other Cannibal.

Carlos had to jump from his seat to grab her. The poor woman passed out.

"Welp! That is it! Job done. Let me know when you guys are ready. And do tell me if you decide on a name by then! I'd like to be informed about this little noble house I helped create." Lucifer let out a laugh that spoke volumes about how fun he found this little bout of chaos. Then, trying to pass as a bit more formal, if a bit too late, he gave the group a bow and a wave before making it clear it was time to leave. "Toodles!"

A bright red light, flowing like water, enveloped Lucifer as he left. A little show of power and his high spirits as the group was left behind, speechless.

Not for long, though.

"Well, all that fucking did amount to something."

"ZANA!"

"What? It is true. You can't tell me they have spent a day apart since they began boinkin'. These two have been going at it every time they could, including every night, for the last two fucking weeks!" Zana crossed her arms, uncaring of Leonor's glare. "With how much they were trying, you'd think this wouldn't catch her by surprise."

Destina shook her head. "Human and demon breeding is not that simple. Then again, Carlos has a lot of vitality, and Evelinde is plenty receptive of his attention." The bird woman went to serve some more tea as if such a scene was the most normal part of this mess. It probably was, actually. She had gotten used to the pair's excursions to embrace each other. She even found it endearing if… mildly disgusting. "Surprisingly quick. But I bet Carlos could do the same with everyone else here. If given the chance."

"Could you not talk like I am not here?" Carlos winced, a huge blush covering most of his face.

"Don't mind them, dear." Rosie recovered almost as fast as everyone else, her own smile almost mimicking Lucifer now. "Now, tell me, I am dying to know." And she was dying to tease. "Have you talked with dear Evelinde about names? Or have you two been too busy to think it over?"

As Carlos groaned and the three girls began talking about this development, Rosie could only smile. And this time her smile tried to grow into a genuine and hopeful one. She truly wished for there to be no malice, planning or otherwise scheming in there. She wasn't even trying to tease the poor young man either. Rosie really wanted to be just happy with this.

A new family was now fully in development. Her little town was truly growing.

It brought thoughts to Rosie's head, though. A bit of longing. For as much as Rosie had managed to help many of her Cannibals, a good number of Sinners under her command, and many other hellborn, with finding a perfect pair, or to coach couples, or groups, into making it work, Rosie's own love life was…

It was shit. She joked about it. Made sure it didn't look like it was her fault, but Rosie knew what she hid from everyone. She was able to help others, not herself. Evelinde knew about it by now, but unless she had told the others, that was it.

Some problems and heartache came from her own actions, her own decisions and mistakes. You couldn't be perfect in any realm, much less Hell. She was anything but proud about her own mistakes. Some of those came from her own faults as a person. Overlord or not, demon or not, powerful or not, Rosie knew she had fucked up a lot in life. But she wasn't alone on that. You need two to tango, and some of those problems came from those she had professed love to; their own mistakes, vices and faults. All of it converged into a disastrous love life. And this scene? This made her feel like a green eyed monster.

She needed to talk with Evelinde again. She wished her grandmother was here to help her out. Anastasia's experience as a mind doctor was the only one she trusted, but she wasn't back, not yet. At least talking with Evelinde about this topic had been helping Rosie calm down a little bit.

But, and this was important, it also filled her with joy. One of her 'little girls' was growing up, and she found someone. Many someones. And the group would only get larger. Rosie was happy despite those selfish thoughts. Those small hopes that were growing as the days went by and she ingrained herself more into the family. Perhaps, in the future, there would be no more envy there.

Little by little her smile turned more genuine as she saw Carlos caring for Evelinde while the group let go of their desire to tease, or mention Carlos' upcoming 'job', and helped Evelinde get back to the waking realm, only to then encourage and congratulate. Well, each of them in their own way at least.

Rosie felt warm inside despite everything. But there were still desires there, desires that didn't want to be contained. Perhaps… Perhaps Evelinde wouldn't mind if she asked to be the child's godmother? Yes. That was a good way to curb down all of this. A way to make more time. She knew it would please some of her needs just enough for the more selfish side to lie dormant a while longer.

And let's not mince words here, Rosie was always happy to have little ones to spoil. She loved to act like a nice aunt to many of the children of those closer to her. It was a need she hadn't been able to fulfill on her own. For now at least. Sadly, leader or not, few of those in the Cannibal Colony were as close as Evelinde herself, and Rosie knew Carlos' family had her in good graces in such a short time. It had been at least a century since she had felt this close to a 'normal' family. So Rosie would abuse this privilege all she could before she did something stupid.

It had to do with being an Overlord after all. The power, the position. It was nice, yes, but it made having someone at your side a gamble. Many wanted the perks, but Rosie wasn't up for having ANOTHER leech and not a lover. She was a monster, yes, but so was Evelinde, and the girl had found happiness. They had talked about this many times by now. Rosie wouldn't mind some of that, even if it was second hand. Hell, Evelinde was sure she could get that, in time. And, to be honest, the family had been willing to provide.

As days went by Rosie had to admit this to herself: It could happen. She could, if things kept going like this, have her damn cake and eat it too. For once, she could.

Yes. She could see that working. Rosie closed her eyes and let out a sigh as she rested on her chair. Despite Lucifer's little scare, today had been a good day, and there were hopes for a better future than expected. A child would for sure make Carlos fight harder to uphold his end of the deal, to survive. And this was only the first bundle of joy, Rosie knew it.

And to top it all and make Rosie's smile predatory and hungry? She was soon to enjoy the first of many special meals delivered by her new little hunter.

So many good events in so little time. So many good tidings. A rarity in Hell. Rosie could hardly wait.

*** Chapter End ***