Chapter IV - Part II

*** Roughly half an hour later. Sarah Mayberry is taking her time, so is the conversation going in the living room. ***

"Okay, I don't think I can, because this all sounds like madness, but let's try and summarize because I really think I am losing it."

Jack had his face hidden behind his hands. He wasn't sure if this was to make it look like the headache that had suddenly developed wasn't there, because he was damn sure his left eye was twitching with every throb of his head, or if he didn't want to look like he was lost beyond any hope. Either worked, really.

Everyone else was fine just waiting. The suburban home was nice, at least now that Jack had cleaned it up. It never got TOO filthy, he made sure of it, more so his mom's room, but there were a few stains here or there that the guests could easily see if they looked hard enough. Jack would not lie and say she took the death of his mom well, or anything that came after. Those stains, and a few patches of newer paint, were the result of anger before the depression hit hard enough for it to encompass most of what Jack felt at all times.

Thank fuck Jack was driven enough to keep up with games and his work. He was sure he would've done something as stupid as what he tried today far sooner if he didn't have that form of escapism.

At least the dining room was mostly spared from his outburst. Everyone was sitting somewhere around the nicely furnished room as Jack was informed of what was going on, the changes he had obviously noticed and whatever else he had questions about.

Blitzo was sitting on a reclining chair, largely ignoring the discussion. He had to give next to zero input beyond asking if he could check the perimeter and start formulating some kind of security plan in his mind. Very proactive and professional on his part, but both Jack and Lucifer asked/ordered him not to. No one should be around now, but a few lights and figures had been seen shortly after the group got into the house.

Sarah had been more than loud enough in the end.

Alastor didn't seem to mind, in fact he had opted to sit next to one of the windows. Dark magic coated every glass in the house at the present, making it impossible for anyone outside (without arcane powers of their own that is) to see what was going on. It was decidedly more bothersome to do this on Earth than in Hell, but Alastor hadn't looked miffed about the task. If Jack had to guess, the Radio Demon seemed intrigued to see the difficulties and differences his powers found now that he was back in the land of the living.

The Morningstars were both seated on the couch directly in front of Jack's own chair, with Emily sitting next to the young man, a few other seats still vacant. The three had been the ones to speak most of the time, beyond introductions and a few details Alastor himself had contributed to, with Blitzo lazing on his own seat and checking his phone the moment he was told his plan to do his damn job was a no go.

Right now Jack wished there were less seats to go around. His mom always hated the idea of such a small family. Considering how she grew up, and how she wanted to do better than her own mother (not exactly a high bar there), having a dozen odd seats for dinner was overkill, but understandable.

Inviting friends and coworkers over? Jack understood.

Having some of the neighbors come for lunch here and there? It was fine. Jack was used to them.

Inviting her shitty ex-husband's own contacts? Now that had always rubbed him the wrong way, and being able to say 'I told you so' was anything but gratifying now.

But all that was meaningless right now.

So, at last, Jack took a deep breath and faced Lucifer. "Let's rewind: You are Lucifer Morningstar; King of Hell."

"Correct." Lucifer nodded as he drank some apple juice he had been offered, because of course. "Surprised you didn't call me 'Prince of Lies'. That is still a thing, right?"

"I guess?" Jack shrugged. He wasn't much for theology except in fantasy. Ironically enough, the Bible was now at last partially proven to be true, so him ignoring the book was somewhat justified. "In any case, I wasn't going to call you that. Sets a bit of a precedent and I don't know if you are one going about spouting falsehoods or not."

"Suppose that is the best I can hope for, so thanks." Lucifer was mighty chill, though it probably helped that he was enjoying the juice. Jack didn't know it but Lucifer was thinking to himself 'I can do much better than this' despite his enjoyment.

"You are welcome." Jack turned ever so slightly to face charlie. "And you are Charlotte Morningstar; Princess of Hell."

"I prefer Charlie, but yes." Charlie offered a wide smile. Despite everything the hellborn princess was giddy at finally meeting a living human. She couldn't show it, the moment was far too important and serious, but she was. "I am sorry if we are making this a bit overwhelming."

Almost every pair of eyes landed on Charlie.

'They' were making this overwhelming? The lone mortal thought otherwise.

"Having my whole being altered by magic in ways whose, FOR NOW, only lasting effect is me seeing the world all technicolor like, is overwhelming."

Jack said this, not noticing Emily's embarrassed blush. He would've still said as much even if he had, though. This was not exactly a negative, and the fact that his mind seemed to accept the change without any backlash or side effects was fine. Almost anyone today would likely take such a change in stride… though not everyone would like it.

"Knowing that my house, or well, my mom's house for as long (hopefully very long) as she is staying here, will be some kind of headquarters for this redemption program on Earth, is overwhelming."

This time it was Charlie's turn to look bashful. She would've gladly admitted that yes, this was a lot to ask for. But she was equally happy that Jack seemed (and indeed was) on board with this. He hadn't said much about the whole idea itself, then again Charlie would hardly fault a man that just learned Hell was real for not thinking about redemption as a plausible thing. In fact Jack didn't really know where he sat on that topic. Did he believe it was possible or not? Right now he wasn't going to swear by either yay or nay.

"Being told that Hell, or at least the Pride Ring, is more like Los Angeles, New York and probably California is… Well, that is somewhat expected, really. To be honest I'd prefer brimstone, torture and general damnation. I went to L.A once and, let me tell you, never again."

"Amen to that, brother! Fuck L.A forever!"

Blitzo couldn't help but say that and then laugh. No one would ask why, but the Imp was more than happy with this human right now. He at least seemed to have a sense of humor and, after his own stint in that fucking city, Blitzo would gladly take the side of whoever wished nothing more than pox and fire on that hive of scum and acidic sewer water.

Even the fucking water in Greed was probably less lethal than L.A's.

… again, probably.

Blitzo would still bet money on it.

"And I'll go as far as saying, now that I had a second to digest the information, that knowing the afterlife exists IS overwhelming as all get together all on itself." Jack went on as he allowed himself a second to digest that a literal demon had agreed with him about Los Angeles at the very least. "Pair that with being told that, apparently, Heaven doesn't know how souls are filtered, but instead knows how to keep mum about secrets, and you get another little surprise I didn't expect. That almost no one knew that Extermination, a LITERAL GENOCIDE, was being played on the regular to cull down human souls called 'Sinners' so they didn't rise up, is the very definition of overwhelming." Jack took a deep breath. "The people sitting here are probably the least mindblowing part of it all."

Blitzo decided to lift his head from the recliner to give the man an inquisitive look. "You seem to be taking it fairly well."

"I tried to kill myself less than an hour ago after having the most chill mental breakdown I ever thought I could suffer from." Jack said this in the most calm and collected voice he had. It didn't exactly make anyone invested in his survival feel any better about his chances. "I think I am faring fairly nicely."

"Welp, I can say you are less of a mess than most people I come up here to kill." Blitzo shared this with the biggest 'I don't care' snort and grimace he could muster. The Imp seriously couldn't give any less of a shit too. "Usually humans are complete retards before they spend a few months in Hell at least."

Jack glared at the Imp. "You have no filter, do you?"

"Only when I have to go to Sloth for treatment for me or my daughter." Blitzo lazily lifted a claw from his resting position. "Those fucks don't want fights, so no 'problematic language' or actions are allowed…" He thought for a second. "Huh, I probably would've fucked up if I killed that Karen and her bastard spawn, eh?"

No one there knew what Blitzo was talking about and Jack himself opted to ignore it altogether. "Whatever. So, an Imp assassin and his employees will be here, not to kill me, but to keep me safe." Then he nodded at Emily. "Then we have Emily; A 'young' Seraphim that wants to change things… By the way, how old are you?"

Emily pouted almost like a child. "You don't ask a lady her age!"

"I doubt that was in mind for entities that probably live for millenia at the very least." Jack drawled, though he did offer Emily a smirk as the Seraphim's pout grew alongside her cheeks.

At least she had relaxed and was trying to make this 'normal'. Probably normal for her, but it was still a nice gesture. Jack really needed something to latch on at the moment and Emily had done her very best to make him feel calm.

Zero complaints would come from Jack. After these last two years? Emily was almost a literal godsend. Perhaps it was her natural magic or just her demeanor, but the young man couldn't help it: He just felt better with her around. It was a bit like Charlie, as the Princess of Hell was so damn peppy and hyper. Only, with Emily, there was no awkwardness or extra attempts at making sure he was ok with whatever was said.

How could an angel be more chill and fine with messing up than the literal antichrist?

Questions for another day.

This left him with the last person in the room. "Finally, we have Alastor."

"Hmm, left for last?" Alastor made a voice as if offended, but Jack could clearly tell the man didn't really care. "It seems you didn't direct your attention my way much after our… presentation."

"Mostly curiosity, and doubt." Jack explained as he relaxed against his seat. His only hope was that he wouldn't offend the man. More so if he was right. "You are from Louisiana, aren't you?"

Now, that? That made a little bit of radio interference come through for a second. "Oh? How did you deduce that?"

"You unapologetically introduce yourself as an Overlord, mass murderer and cannibal before telling me you have been in Hell for a century before showing a few symbols I recognize with your magic as either showmanship or trying to intimidate me for laughs." Jack enumerated as he lifted finger after finger. "I probably wouldn't have connected the dots if you hadn't done the final two points on that list."

If nothing else this seemed to intrigue Alastor. Jack didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing when the Sinner spoke. "And how was that important, young man?"

Jack didn't know this, but the moment he said his piece Alastor would start preparing for a visit in the future. A very special visit indeed. "There is a videogame about you."

Though the absolute lack of radio sound and Alastor's eyes turning to radio dials should've been a dead giveaway, only not to him.

"Excuse me?"

"They made a game about you." Jack repeated, again unknowingly fanning the flames. "A very old one, true. From when computers were still getting used to 3D graphics. As old as the first Alone in the Dark, though I am not sure if you-."

A crackling sound stopped whatever trivia Jack was trying to share.

"You don't say?" Alastor's voice came far more distorted than Jack had heard yet. "Why, that sounds positively lovely, doesn't it?"

There was a few seconds of silence before Charlie told what Jack thought was either the honest truth, or just her own guessing. Either way, it seemed to calm down the radio static sound that had threatened to engulf the room.

"Alastor is a very private person, and he doesn't particularly enjoy technology that came after his time on Earth." The Princess of Hell explained. "Besides, I doubt a lot of people would like their own private story shared in that kind of way." Charlie made a face. Would she ever want that kind of attention? She wasn't a murderer and cannibal, true. But a game about her?

It sounded kind of weird.

"Well, yeah, I get it." Jack nodded quickly. "More so considering there wasn't much to go about but rumors when the game was made."

Alastor's attention was drawn again, though his anger was not showing this time. "Rumors?"

"Yeah." Jack felt a bit better now that the distortion on Alastor's voice was down to 'normal' levels. "It took time to find out WHO had been the one doing all the killings and stuff. Didn't exactly help that your house, if the records are correct, burned down, including that property you had in the swamplands with most of the evidence the police would've needed." The young man shrugged. The old game had been interesting, the information on the internet was juicy, but mostly rumors and modern myth. Jack would be lying if he said he didn't want to know about Alastor, but he wasn't going to ask the man! He wasn't that level of stupid. "The creator of the game only heard tales from his great grandfather, who also lived in Louisiana at the time. Apparently he was one of the policemen that found… whatever was left, I guess. At least that is what he made public a few years after the game went out."

"Hmmm…" Alastor let out an undistorted humm and a few words under his breath that no one managed to hear. "Well, that is something now, is it? I will… check on this at a later date. Yes."

"That aside." Lucifer decided it was time to steal Alastor's thunder and attention. "Let's get back to it: You know who we are, you know why we are here. We took a little detour but you summarized things correctly."

Jack rested against his seat. "Still feels… impossible." The young man had no other way to describe it. "Not only that the afterlife exists, but that it is this messed up. I am not exactly religious, but I thought it was a bit more straightforward than this." He let out a chuckle. "Now I have hellborn demons and condemned souls at my doorstep! Not complaining about my mom, but… this is a bit too much."

"Yeah, well, welcome to my life." Lucifer grumbled, clearly annoyed, at least until his daughter landed a supportive hand on his shoulder. "Look, living in Heaven was nice and all, but very boring back in the day. You are right: Things WERE straightforward. Then I decided to try my hand at helping in ways not deemed 'right' and that line took a curve that is still going." For a moment Jack could swear Lucifer looked as old as he really was: As old as life. It was only a moment, though. "Now my home is Hell, literally, with every bad bit from humanity coming to slum it in with the demons born there."

Yeah, Jack could relate. Not to Lucifer's level, but… Well, present company and all.

"But you are trying to change that." Jack quickly corrected this as he nodded to Charlie. "Or, well, you are helping, now. You did say you tried your hand at this before? It was too much at once. What is clear is that our dear Seraphim here is involved now." Then he looked at Emily. "And now that you and all of Heaven are aware of this, you are trying to help too."

Emily and Charlie shared a look. It quickly ended as Emily offered for Charlie to go ahead. She had been the one to start this after all.

"I had plans to try and help for a while. I-my mom. She wanted to make Hell a decent place, a good one, if not great." And Jack had to admit, Charlie sounded passionate about it, but also sad. "But to be honest… I never understood how. I knew she tried to uplift and push everyone with her songs, her personality, everything. She was the main power behind Hell adapting Earth technology and mixing much of the old magic into it. You could even say that Hell became greater than Earth in a way!" For a moment there was much more cheer in Charlie, but the mention of her mother seemed to hurt. It was at this point that sadness did take root, Jack could hear it in her voice. "Then seven years ago she left… I haven't seen her since. I don't know why, but…"

"It isn't exactly easy to spend an eternity with someone like me, Charlie." Lucifer spoke and returned his daughter's past gesture, now that Charlie was the one clearly feeling down. "Being almost literally torn apart and forced to see that what you want to create is just a mistake. And Father had a talk with me before, it was…" Though his gentleness was full of anger as he spoke the words, Lucifer managed to stop himself. There was something there… Jack could only think that, whatever it was, it was for a private talk, with family, not to share here. "It… I suppose that is what broke me for so long. I don't know if I am out of my funk yet. So many eras like that, Charlie… I knew that, sooner or later, your mother would get fed up with me and my problems."

Charlie just looked at her father with sadness in her eyes. It was obvious that Lilith, the real first human woman, had hurt them both in her own ways.

This surprised Jack. Lucifer by flat out admitting to his clear involvement. The man hadn't pegged Jack as an asshole or a monster, as he is usually described, but he was far more 'human' than Jack had ever thought he would be. To speak nothing of how much Charlie was hurting when it came to her mother.

It was also, sadly, far too big a topic to breach right now. Jack felt for the two, but there was more to do and to say. Luckily for him, Emily came to the rescue, because neither Morningstar seemed interested in speaking for the moment.

"That is why Charlie has been preparing for so long, why she made the Hazbin Hotel." The young Seraphim pulled Jack's attention away from the fallen angel and his daughter. "But when she brought it up to Heaven… well… we already told you. I know many thought her idea was good, great even!" And Emily really, really, REALLY wanted to believe there were others that thought like she did, Jack could see (and hear) that much. "The problem is… uh…"

"Her choices suck balls." Blitzo finally chimed in to join the conversation. "A famous pornstar? A wannabe steampunk warlord?" Blitzo made a face. "You went for the throat from the get go."

There were a lot of reactions to choose from the moment Blitzo said that.

On one side Jack could see both Alastor and Lucifer, each clearly unamused, if not downright angry or hostile at Blitzo. Though Jack couldn't fully tell which one it was in both cases, he hoped a fight wouldn't take place in his home of all places.

On the other side of things was Charlie, clearly hurt, and Emily, frowning and obviously not happy with the Imp's statement. Both had a much more obvious look of wonder, or at least questioning interest, a moment afterwards. It was very obvious either of them was going to pop the question.

Charlie was likely just faster when she spoke. "What do you mean by that?"

Blitzo seemed more than happy to answer. "You went full retard."

That… only made everyone, even Jack, look at him like he was an idiot. Blitzo remedied that quick enough, but he was still as crass as he could be.

And while Jack bit his tongue the moment he noticed Blitzo's face, he was one hundred percent sure that the Imp was about to let it rip.

"Look, princess." He began, clearly giving the closest thing to no importance to who he was talking to AND the pair who were murdering him with their eyes. "You went for the rich and powerful first."

"But I didn't-."

"You made a huge hullabaloo on TV." Blitzo cut Charlie's defense before she could speak again. "You aimed for people that have TVs, a luxury in Hell for the MANY Sinners that have to live on the streets. You went for those with time to watch inane news on the fucking 666 channel of all places with that bitch Killjoy always pissing down on everyone. Simply put: You spoke to people that have it 'good enough' in Hell."

And as Blitzo spoke, Jack couldn't help but see his point. Charlie probably had pure intentions, considering how the Princess of Hell was adamant about helping and how downright nice she was, at least in the short time Jack had been around her.

But 'nice', in Hell, probably doesn't earn much. Much less when you aim it at people that likely don't give two shits about it.

"Ya know how 'I' know that you aimed too high?" Blitzo continued the moment he was shown no opposition. Either Lucifer and Alastor were uninterested in killing him after the Imp got basically roped into being security, or they didn't want to make Emily and Charlie mad. Whichever it was, the Imp kept talking. "Because everyone thought I was basically getting on my knees to suck Sinner cock the moment I brought up my business plan: Going to Earth and killing for a paycheck. It was seen as -beneath- even Imps, princess. That is how I knew that I had a market and how I know you fucked up."

Well, Jack hoped Blitzo had been a bit less brutally honest, but the Imp seemed serious enough at least. In a way he was disturbed. I mean, Jack was used to something like this, or worse, or even more of a far reach… IN VIDEO GAMES. He had never hoped to see it in real life.

And sure as fuck he hadn't expected a proper assasin to sit so close to him. The demon part was probably less of a problem. Then again, Blitzo killing people was what helped get his mom back home. So you know what? He'd probably be okay with it sooner rather than later.

Hopefully.

"And you know what? Looking back, those assholes had something right. I regularly had to do just that with that birdbra-Stolas." Blitzo coughed after that sharp turn. Jack was so *not* going to ask. "But sexcapades aside, they weren't wrong about something else: I began at the bottom of the barrel with that kind of work. But that barrel was, funny enough, fucking empty and had a lot of hands reaching for what was inside. But you? You went to the top, hoping it would work, attracting every pair of eyes for a second before they looked somewhere else when you proved your little 'guest star' was fucking shit up when he was supposed to go clean."

And again, Blitzo brought up a good point.

If Charlie had aimed for those that could see her, instead of going for the most desperate, then those in Hell would simply not care. Why would they? Those that weren't in the shittiest conditions would be even more selfish, or focused on keeping their 'life' going to the point of not having time to entertain 'what could be', that they would either not trust or not care about a redemption that may just not happen.

Far as Jack had been told in a VERY quick summary, Hell had all nationalities and eras to pick from. You could go many places in Pride where you'd find from SuperHeroes and Villains to Sci-Fi bullshit and caveman era communities basically. In a fucked up way, very fucked up in fact, Hell could be a paradise for nearly anyone that worked to achieve it.

Granted you also had a lot of chances to become someone's bitch for literal eternity, but there were worse ways to go, or so Jack thought.

Blitzo wasn't done, and he took Jack from his musings quick enough. "Sinners may be powerful. Human souls ARE powerful. Overlords are STUPIDLY powerful, just ask deerman here." The Imp pointed at Alastor with a thumb, with the latter clearly unamused. "But far as Hell goes? No one gives a shit about them. They are trapped in Pride, they get murdered yearly and if they do something really stupid, then the Goetia or someone else can give them a lesson just as handily as the Exterminators. So they play to their vices when able. And you tried to get to those that have a way to 'escape' every now and then, not those that don't have the luxury."

Again, Blitzo was being nothing sort of an asshole, but he was speaking facts, at least Jack thought so. One thing was having a community or group that you enjoyed. Another was to have drugs or other means to dull the shit everyday brought. That made Charlie's possible pool of people shrink to a puddle.

And considering how easy it was to get that kind of shit? At least if Blitzo was to be believed anyway. Then Charlie really would've had a hard time finding someone desperate enough.

But she could have. She COULD have. But again, she did not.

"I HAVE been at the bottom of society for years, princess. All Imps have. I know how bad it is there. I know the SHIT you have to get through to live another day. And I know that, at my lowest, I would probably have reached out for anyone offering help." Blitzo spoke those words with clear regret and a good amount of venom coating them. It was obvious the man had gone through a lot of shit. "But you don't. And you didn't aim for those far below you. You used funds and means readily available to you. You throw money around and play games, hoping it will help. You went for a high profile Sinner after literal YEARS of planning, then got lucky enough to have a second, somewhat 'famous' figure to fall on your lap."

And by now it was clear that Blitzo didn't exactly 'like' Charlie. He was looking at her like you do at rooting fruit.

It wasn't a nice feeling. Jack had been on the receiving end of those a few times, more so when he was much younger and far sicker. Even when he grew up to become 'healthy' a lot of people that got told of the many problems he had in the background just reacted with some level of disgust.

Jack couldn't fault them. He was, effectively, never having children. His many problems were genetic and, even with how well he had done, he doubted his body would last more than four decades in total, five tops. His children, if he ever had any, would be slightly better off, unless they were lucky.

His only silver lining was that his biological mother hadn't given him something like HIV as inheritance. That'd been the final fucking nail in the coffin.

But Jack tore away from that line of thinking. Blitzo was talking again.

"You wanted to start with a bang and make everything peachy, like this was a fucking children's cartoon. And you know what? The fact that Heaven is MORE fucked up than Hell in some cases." Blitzo did a quick U turn to face Emily. "Sorry sweet cheeks, it is what it is." At least he apologized to the young angel. Apparently he didn't have any bad blood with the young Seraphim. Emily just tried to take it in stride, but her face betrayed the feelings beneath a flimsy smile. "Is the only reason why you still have a chance after going at it this way. Because let me tell ya: Whether this redemption shit works or not, there are a LOT of people that won't want to do it. You think everyone can be nice and good but that is a motherfucking pipe dream, more so with HOW you try to sell it."

Well, that got a heavy atmosphere to set in. It also made almost everyone look at Blitzo with a mix of surprise and anger. Jack wasn't going to venture why every person was angry, but the surprise likely came from Blitzo being… less than stellar when trying to convey a point.

The Imp had been more like a blunt instrument than one designed for finesse when talking, after all.

Charlie was gracious enough to let a moment go, but no more than one. A few seconds and she spoke again. She did so because she could see, just as clear as Jack and Emily did, that either her father or Alastor would either say, or do, something in her stead.

"You… have been bottling that for a while." Was her response. It wasn't a way to deny what Blitzo had said, just an observation.

"People at the bottom tend to look up, yes. And they usually have words about what they see." Blitzo didn't have much malice in there, Jack could see it. Perhaps it had to do with something else? Because it was clear there was resentment towards the Princess of Hell, that was for sure. "And don't get me wrong here: I openly dislike rich and powerful fucks. Earth or Hell, perhaps even Heaven, it doesn't matter: You guys tend to screw the little guy at all times. When you grow up poor as dirt it is not hard to see all of you guys born with a silver spoon as the biggest fucking assholes, more so in Hell."

Charlie bit her lip before trying to answer. "That is not-."

"I -know- you aren't a dick." Blitzo cut in once more. This time he was less scathing, but no less frank. "You are far too naive and nice. But that doesn't mean you don't fuck up, princess. And I have come to realize that not everyone in power is a piece of shit." The Imp finally stopped reclining and looking down on people, instead going for a normal sitting, if slouched, position. He had a look that spoke 'serious', at least for him. "A lot of things to think about and fuckups I had to fix. Heh, and I don't think I really fixed them either, not fully at least. That is what happens when daddy issues fuck you over."

The man closed his eyes. Jack could see someone far older and very troubled than the Blitzo he had seen until now. In fact there was something there…

Jack couldn't really tell what it was, but he instantly saw Lucifer, Alastor and even Charlie change how they looked at the Imp, if only barely. Alastor was the first to go back to his disdainful glare, smile ever present, with Lucifer becoming more neutral. Only Charlie kept her new wondering and expectant expression as Blitzo went back to talking.

"So yes, I think you fucked up. I think you were too big for your own britches. Respect for trying, truly, but it pisses me off that you keep your 'all rainbows and unicorns' bullshit when you have seen things won't be that easy." Blitzo grunted, clearly tired. Whatever had prompted him to open up about his father, if only for a brief moment, had clearly drained him a bit. "Generally I don't give a fuck about my clients; they are all pieces of shit. But in this case? You are far too nice, and not the kind I'd tease and find it fun. So for fuck's sake, woman: Get your act together. You have the perfect chance: A normal person to try your little experiment on, someone that MAY give half a fuck about trying to boot. Make sure it works and perhaps, just perhaps, people will stop taking you as a joke."

Another bout of silence came after that, and this one stretched far longer than Jack thought it would. Then again, who was going to talk after that? At least half the cast had things to think about, and that didn't include Blitzo being clearly spent and unwilling to participate again, most likely.

I mean, Jack didn't expect the Imp to say shit again. It seemed to him that sincerity wasn't Blitzo's forte, and he had used a lot of willpower to let loose for once. Kudos to him, in Jack's opinion, because bottling crap like this usually ends up making things worse the longer it goes.

Though Jack would've asked him to take this drama away from his home. It may be selfish, but Jack would've liked this to be over sooner and enjoy some time with his mom.

Speaking of the devil.

Jack's mom came into the room. He had expected a smile on her lips, but there was none. And he had expected her to be happy because, long before she came in, he could smell it: The scent of lilac.

Sarah had been eavesdropping for a while, and Jack was sure most everyone knew, because only Charlie seemed to have been lost enough in Blitzo's speech to look somewhat surprised. Jack couldn't blame her, but he had expected the Princess of Hell to take notice. Even Emily seemed unsurprised.

Despite the mostly neutral look, Sarah looked truly refreshed; her hair was covered with a towel, she wasn't using her glasses right now and her skin even seemed to be slightly brighter somehow. She had pajama shirt and pants on, Jack's in fact. He was tempted to ask WHY, at least until she noticed his mom's tail sticking from behind. Jack's clothes did not fit her well at all, but clearly her own wouldn't have done the trick either with horns, hooves and the aforementioned tail making it uncomfortable.

It was a bit of a comedic sight, but no one, not even Blitzo (despite his face hinting at the desire to do so), made a comment.

Sarah, however, did.

"You know, he is a dick, but he is right." The Sinner said this as gently as she could before taking a seat to the empty side next to Jack. "Everyone I managed to get friendly with thought you were doing something shady with that commercial. Either that, or they laughed."

Charlie winces at that. "I know everyone probably forgot about it shortly after, but that fight with Killjoy is going to haunt me."

"Don't know why. You kicked her ass." Blitzo piped up, again in his reclining position. He was apparently done. Unless it was time for him to drop one of his pearls.

"And that horrible woman deserves much worse than a few punches." Alastor commented in his own 'supporting' way. "Such a witch. Not as bad as some I know, but still…"

"That woman eats some of the people that go to her show, on air." Sarah growls, though Jack could hear more disgust than anything else in her voice. "Fuck, even some of the cannibals over at Imp City are decent people, beyond the eating their neighbors shenanigans. Usually polite even if they are going to kill you for that day's meal."

Alastor seemed interested to know something in particular. "Did you have the pleasure?"

"I needed to pay rent and Cheel wanted to eat me since I moved to the apartment in front of her." The way Sarah said this, far too calm and boring like, as if this was old news, made Jack's skin crawl. "Not exactly pleasant to get a new body, visit someone that became a surprisingly decent friend, and see she still has your old legs in her fridge."

"But she was kind enough to uphold her side of the deal, I hope." Alastor found the woman's behavior funny enough, Jack could see it. Far too blaze from his point of view, but the Radio Demon was clearly amused.

"Again, she became a decent friend. At least she hasn't asked to eat me again after she got what she wanted." Sarah finally took the towel away from her head, leaving her semi dry hair to rest against her seat before letting out a sigh of contentment. "And, again: Katie Killjoy is a piece of shit."

Jack finds his voice, though his stomach is threatening him with a really bad time at the thoughts in his head. "Mom, that you speak about your body getting eaten like that…"

"It is Hell, hon." Sarah speaks gently, but there is a level of coldness in her voice. "I also got my brains splattered against a wall, among other things. Things I am not proud of or that I'd prefer to forget." And by the way she is looking the moment Jack fixes his eyes on her, with claws dropping again and again against the armchair's arms, it is clear she wants a specific thing to take the edge off. "There are far worse fates you can go through every day. I count myself lucky, even if the experiences were very much unpleasant enough to teach me lessons that will never leave me."

Jack could see Emily on the other side of his seat looking a bit green. "That is still appalling. Despite your actions I do not believe you deserve that kind of fate."

Sarah just offered a rueful smile. "Perhaps, but that is what I got myself into."

"It shouldn't be that way." Emily reaffirmed, now more composed, even hardened if her expression was anything to go by. "I promise I'll do my best to help you out. You just need-."

"I swore I'd do my best. I want to make things right." Sarah was firm and clearly decided on her course of action. Jack could see it. His mom had a very specific tone when she wanted something. Much like she could be, no matter how he wanted to say otherwise, a massive bitch when she was angry, she could be stone cold when something WAS to be done. "I just… Can I ask for a day? Just one. I want… a 'normal' day, like I had before."

The group shared a few looks. Well, mostly Emily and Charlie. Alastor and Lucifer had their own thoughts. Blitzo didn't give a shit and Jack…

Jack just took his hand away from his seat to hold his mom's. The smile Sarah had on her face made Jack feel better than he had in two years, and he knew his mom felt the same.

A moment of respite in a sea of horrors, be it from the mortal realm or the afterlife, was priceless.

It also helped him decide on something.

"Redemption is something I don't think I can help with." Jack admitted. Partly because, now that his mom was back, he didn't care about her going away. Heaven could burn and Hell could freeze. His mom was back. "But… I can help bring attention to this afterlife business."

Now that got everyone else's attention. It also kicked the conversation back on.

"Pardon me young man." Lucifer looked at Jack with curiosity. "But how would you help?"

"Well, I don't think that…" Jack made a pause. "What did you ask me for again?"

Charlie was the one to offer an answer. "My dad wanted to have a portal open here, in your house. It would connect to my hotel and make it easy to come and go as needed."

Okay, yeah. That sounded bad at first and it still sounded bad now. Jack didn't exactly enjoy the idea of having a LITERAL PORTAL TO HELL in his basement.

… Forget that. The basement had another function.

"You can do that in the attic." Jack offered. He was going to say more before his mom cut in.

"Why not the basement? There is more space." Sarah asked with a curious look. Then he saw the wry smile on Jack's face. "Oh Jack. Are you still doing that?"

"Doing what?" Emily asked. She was innocent enough to imply nothing, Jack knew.

"Does he have a sex dungeon or some shit?" Blitzo on the other hand…

Jack groaned and let his disgust at the mere idea be heard. "Fuck you very much." Though the disdain came off more as tiredness. Today was just too much. "I have a small studio there."

Alastor knew he was going to be disappointed, Jack saw that on the man's face right away. It was damn easy considering he had been far more than simply forthcoming when he offered knowledge about his appreciation for modern technology.

And by appreciation Jack meant utter and fucking hate.

"And what do you do, young man?" Hell, the question was dripping with disdain already.

"On normal days? Coding, writing and a few other things to help create games. I consider most modern games, especially those made by big companies, to be slop most of the time." Jack could feel his mom take her hand away with a huff. She had never liked his 'work'. She thought far too many young minds became addicted to games.

Let's be honest. She wasn't wrong. It wasn't as bad as Sarah Mayberry thought, but a lot of people just couldn't stop themselves.

"But that is not what is important." Not that Alastor gave a shit. Jack saw the man roll his eyes when he mentioned the first part, so this was not going to be much better. "Look, I know about the video game that has, well, 'you', Alastor, because of my job. Or well, one of the two jobs I work." And again Alastor grimaced. Jack wasn't going to stretch the point. "Not because I make games, or help others to make them too. I know about it because that is one of the games I streamed on my channel."

Lucifer quickly hummed. "So that is the pride I was feeling from you?"

Charlie looked askance at her father. "You can do that?"

To which Lucifer just deadpanned at his daughter. "Dear. I AM the Sin of Pride. Angels may not be able to fully read a living mortal's soul as easily as when the soul itself is dead, but the Sins can perceive specific things. Call it a 'perk' of the job." He frowned. "There are others, but that is for a private talk."

Charlie winced a little bit. "Right, right." And Jack was reminded that, for most of her life, a good two hundred years, she had been estranged from her father if what they had told him was true. "... Would I be able to do that if you ever retire?"

"Interesting thought." Lucifer chuckled, then thought for a second. "I suppose so. The title comes with power after all. And…" Jack could see a glimmer of some kind of thought, an errant idea, on Lucifer's eyes. It died quickly as the King of Hell focused on him once more. "Nevermind. Back to the young man's point. Can you help with spreading the message?"

Alastor let out a very much audible groan. It was part theatrics, but the Radio Demon clearly wasn't happy. "I wish we didn't have to use any modern contraption for this."

"Well, there are still a lot of people that just hear the radio, that is true." Jack's words seemed to perk Alastor back up, but only for a second before Jack went on. "I mean, more people prefer video in all its forms. Humans are visual creatures."

"Pah." Alastor sounded more like an angry child than anything at that. Then again, Jack could understand. Dying in a particular age was likely to leave you set on it forever. Not everyone can change. "Modern humans are far too comfortable with all this technology."

"True." And, surprisingly, Emily agreed. "Technology has made many humans desensitized to most things. It is one of the reasons so many fall to Sin. At least I think so." The young Seraph grimaced. "They can see almost every act in fiction, even in reality. They get too comfortable with resources always at hand. They have it so good that they make new trouble for themselves, like Miss Principal mentioned." Emily shook her head. She was either disappointed or disgusted, Jack couldn't say. "I just hope this will be a wakeup call."

"Not to be a dick, again." Blitzo raised his head ever so slightly. "But you guys think this chump's viewers will believe this is real?"

Charlie made a face, but she agreed. "While Mister Blitzo." Which prompted a 'Call me Blitz!' from the Imp. "May be crass beyond belief, I think he is right." Charlie looked at Jack with a slight hint of worry. "I had thought, I dunno, maybe some proper news network? I mean, at least I hoped it would be less of a shitshow than the one back home."

Sarah tittered, real humor in her voice as she spoke. "Dear. Almost NO ONE believes the news nowadays. Independent journalists and damn bloggers and comedians are more trustworthy." And Jack had to admit, that hadn't changed much from when his mom was alive. "Mainstream media has been so overtly manipulated by politicians and particular interests that no one would believe them any more than they'd believe a rando on the internet. I have been gone for two years and I can assure you that those views haven't changed." That said, Sarah looked at Jack with a small level of disappointment. "Though I would've preferred if SOMEONE had chosen a different career."

Jack just rolled his eyes. "I am an introvert, mom. You are the social butterfly." Jack knew his mom wasn't really disappointed, just… She had always hoped he'd become more sociable, for his own good. "Besides, it may come in handy with this. I doubt it would sit well with anyone to see demons out and about before they knew about this."

Lucifer tapped his chin. "Perhaps. But that is not going to help much here, and what little presence we may have at first WILL be housed in this city."

"That is not a problem." Jack assured the King of Hell. "I have very few friends I see in person, two are from here even. I also have at least fifty or sixty of my viewers being locals; fellows like me that don't do too well outdoors." He made a pause. "Okay, so some of them are much worse than I am. But they still have families and a few friends they talk to. Give me tomorrow to enjoy with my mom and part of that time I'll spend setting up a stream for the day after. It should be enough time to get at least half of my audience to check it out. That should give us at least a couple thousand eyes if most of my viewers just think I am trolling them."

Lucifer thought for a second, then nodded. Jack knew the Devil himself could feel confident in those words. Jack wasn't exactly the most famous person ever. Fuck, he wasn't a celebrity or anything to be honest. But he had tens of thousands of people eyeballing his content.

A lot of people liked retro games before, and their fame only grew with modern shit games. Ironic how that was going to help spread the world that Hell and Heaven really existed.

"Well, I may not like the methods." Alastor got up from his seat next to the window and twirled his cane. Jack could see something going on between the man's ears. That mind of his was clearly cooking something up. "But I can appreciate the dedication and determination. Why, a single day to prepare things is quite the speedy development. I highly doubt we'd get much traction at first, but all things must go at its own pace. Forcing things to go faster in this instance may be…" Alastor's grin widened. Clearly the Sinner had thought of some interesting scenarios that Jack wasn't going to even try to imagine. "Detrimental."

"A day should also help clear a few things too." Charlie nodded, looking at her father. "I need… I need to talk to Vaggie and the others before we do anything. I don't want to rush things, but…"

"No, I understand." Lucifer took his daughter's hand with a small smile. "I'll be there when you talk to your girlfriend." Though Jack saw insecurity and no small amount of pain. "I need to talk with you two about something too. I hoped that wouldn't need to be the case, but you brought up something important before and… I think it is overdue."

"Dad?"

"Later, later." Lucifer clearly didn't want to talk about this in front of anyone else.

"Yeah, not interested in getting mixed into that drama of yours." Blitzo stretched and finally got up from his seat. Every single damn bone in his body seemed to creak. "I'll get back to my people and we'll start spending that money to get a few new toys."

Lucifer glared at the Imp. "Anything else?"

"Send me the location of this home and I'll have my daughter come check the area for a spell." Blitz didn't seem to care that the Devil himself was trying to will his head to explode through a glare alone. Lucifer just didn't seem to care for him after he tore Charlie up verbally. "She can take photos while in disguise or make a video around the immediate area. Probably will spend half the day sampling coffee and lazing around, but it isn't like we have much work to do, I mean, beyond getting new firepower and magic shit, until this shit gets started and I can get out there myself."

The King of Hell took only a moment to nod. That was enough for him, at least. The Imp wasn't going to be wasting his time.

"I will have to get a lot of things in order myself." Lucifer spoke with a humm. He really didn't want to, but he had to. Besides, Jack could see a few other ideas were coming to the man. It was either very easy to read him, or Jack was just a bit too similar to the Devil in some regards. He did not want to know which was which. "Paperwork is going to be murder, and I'll likely be far busier than I have ever been. I doubt I'll be able to come to every single thing we do here considering I'll have to make sure no other idiot tries to jump the border and come to Earth while this is going on."

Alastor took a second to make a dig. "And will you be able to do that?"

"Fuck no." Lucifer just didn't care that Alastor made an attack. Not when the concern was, admittedly, genuine. "I can make ALMOST sure no Sinner is going to fuck this up. But the other Rings? That is out of my control unless I want to fight the other Sins."

The Radio Demon hummed. "A literal fight perhaps?"

"I hope not." Lucifer gritted his teeth. "This is a delicate matter. I'd prefer all of them decide to keep this tame. Any proper fuckup and Heaven will likely take it as a breach of Emily's word and just send everything down to deal with Hell."

At the mention of the young Seraphim, Emily cowed a little bit. She had been silent about this but now she had to speak.

"I… don't know what I will be doing, really." She admitted, much to everyone's apparent surprise. "I'd prefer not going back to Heaven for the time being."

"Emily?" Charlie, of all present, was the first and only one to express concern.

Jack could understand. Everyone, even Alastor and Blitzo, looked at the young angel with a level of worry. There were many reasons, but if you want to be utilitarian and cold, the obvious came first: If something was going on with Emily, then it would affect the whole thing.

"I just… don't feel it is right for me to go back." Emily admitted. "By now Sera will have had time to meet with the other Seraphim and Archangels. She may be the voice of Heaven, but she is not alone and…"

"And you are afraid." Charlie could see it in Emily's eyes, so could everyone for that matter. "You think someone may try to stop you from helping?"

"I have a fear of confirmation." Emily admitted again, this time hugging herself and trying to hide both under her wings and into her seat. Jack couldn't bear the poor thing trembling as she was and most people in the room shared the sentiment. "I am afraid to go back and see that the majority in Heaven doesn't care. I have a fear of being told to stop. I fear so many things now because I can see so many familiar faces thinking I am doing something wrong when all I want is to do as I always have and HELP people."

Well, wasn't that a massive downer? Jack tried to reach for the poor angel, at least until his mom stopped him and offered nothing more than a shake of the head. Right now comfort could feel good, Jack knew, but he was sadly aware, much like his mom, that he wasn't really good at comforting people.

It just… the desire to reach for Emily had been so damn natural and urgent. Perhaps it was because she had brought his mom back? Perhaps it was because Emily was just so darn nice and pure. Whatever the case, it hurt to see her like this.

"As you may have noticed, my dear girl." Alastor, it seemed, was far more eager to point the obvious than everyone else in the room. "Being nice is not always rewarded. We have our dear princess as a perfect example: Virtually mocked by everyone in Hell, if not utterly ignored. Truly a stupid thing to do. After all, much as I tease, I am painfully aware that a Nephilim would trash me handily no matter what I do."

Charlie frowned. "I would never hurt you, Alastor. At least not unless you tried to hurt our friends or my family."

Alastor threw the young Princess of Hell a glance. "Of course… our friends." There was something there. Jack didn't know what it was in this case, but Alastor's composure almost failed for a moment. "Still, that is not the point, my dear. The point is: You could do so many things with just a little support. Naive as you are, you have the power for it. Of course, loathe as I am to admit it, our good Imp here is right; you made poor choices at first. In the same vein he is also right about having a much better chance now… with an even greater chance for entertaining chaos to ensue."

Charlie narrowed her eyes at Alastor. "Of course you'd be down for that."

"Why, of course." Alastor's grin somehow grew bigger. "This will be history's greatest upheaval, no matter what comes after this event runs its full course."

Charlie could feel a headache incoming, it was written all over her face. She fought it back by clapping her hands and making an offer with the most sincere smile she could muster.

"Okay! Dealing with that later." Charlie's smile wavered for a moment the second she heard Alastor's chuckle in the background. "Emily."

The little Seraph managed a weak. "Yes?"

"Would you like to come over to the hotel with us?"

Emily removed her wings enough to show a face full of confusion. "Uh?"

"Come to the hotel with us." Charlie offered again, that smile growing much warmer. "I know inviting you to Hell probably doesn't sound the best, but if you don't want to go back to Heaven, you still need a place to rest." It was clear Charlie hoped for a yes, but she wasn't going to push the topic too much, just reassure her a bit. "I promise no one there will bother you." This, though, was said while glaring at Alastor for a second.

"Perish the thought my dear." The Radio Demon smirked, though there was sincerity, and a lack of static, in his voice. "I would not dream of hurting or harassing dear Emily here. Now, a practical joke or two… that could make the atmosphere ever so lively, if she was willing to play."

Emily had a tentative smile on her lips, for two different reasons. "I… Thank you, both of you. I mean, I wouldn't like to impose…"

"It is not imposing, my dear." Lucifer offered. He was smiling as gently as he could. He KNEW what it could mean if Emily took the offer. "But I think we both know you also have a certain level of fear when it comes to staying in Hell."

Emily grabbed at her dress. Jack could see the young Seraphim biting her lower lip for a second. "I… am afraid I would be stuck there if I go. I want to. I want to see it in person. I want to see what my people have been destroying… But I don't know if I would be allowed out afterwards, even with all of this going on."

Of course she'd be afraid. Jack could understand.

He also could help.

"Then stay with us?"

And his mom nearly broke his hand in the process.

"Jack, dear." Though the word 'dear' came from Sarah's tongue as if laced with fire. "You should ask first."

"Come on mom." Jack faced his mom with an even look. "Look at her." And they both did. Emily had gained a hopeful, misty eyed look full of wonder. In a way it would be an adventure for the young angel. Her first day away from Heaven! But not as daring and with the fearsome consequences of being in Hell. "I am sure you wouldn't mind taking one of the guest rooms."

"One of the guest rooms?" Charlie chimed with an arched eyebrow. "I mean, the house was big, but…"

"We have a huge basement that has my studio, the laundry room and a lot of storage. The ground floor has the kitchen, this living room, a dining room big enough for nearly thirty people and a storage closet under the stairs. Then we have the six rooms above, including two bathrooms, and then the cellar." Jack explained quickly and without pause. "Mom always wanted a huge family, but the unused rooms were fit for guests in the meantime."

Again, his mom nearly crushed his hand.

"Dear, TMI." Sarah offered with the fakest smile she could. It looked like a vein was going to pop on her forehead. Then she tried to calm down as she let out a heated sigh. "Look, I am fine with Emily staying. As you HAVE BEEN JUST TOLD." Sarah sent a reproachful glare at her son, one Jack had the decency to at least respond with a wordless 'sorry'. But that was not the end of it for she did glare at Charlie afterwards. "However: Any Sinner or demon that may want to stay over will have to get my say so. I am unwilling to let anyone I deem dangerous sleep under this roof now that I am back. Jack's safety is one of my priorities."

"Completely understandable." Charlie was quick to nod. She wasn't even going to demand such a thing, though in the future it could come handy. "I will ask beforehand if it ever is necessary."

"Although it would be helpful if at least one of our newly recruited security members could stay here when necessary." Lucifer sent Blitzo a look. The Imp didn't seem happy, but he had his people sleep in worse conditions. Probably not his daughter though, Jack could see the moment Blitzo thought of Loona by how his face changed. "But that'll be discussed later."

Lucifer got up from his seat. "While far too fast for my liking, this little meeting is done. I'd prefer it wasn't so sparse with information and so haphazard a plan came out of it, but we need to get things done back home too."

He sent a pointed look at both Blitzo and Alastor, though the one meant for the Radio Demon had another purpose within. The Sinner just shrugged, and Jack could see a slight level of comfort reach his face. It probably was somewhat reassuring to go back to Hell for him, or at least so he thought.

"Now." Lucifer brought Jack's attention back to him with some kind of green flame, or flash, coming from his snapping fingers. "Could you show us to this cellar of yours? I'd like to get the portal ready and get this done with. I dread the paperwork I am going to have to face, but time waits for no one and I'd prefer to make a stable connection right away before…" He threw a look at Charlie, with Lucifer's daughter clearly worried about what her father may need to share with her. "The more unsavory duties come into play."

Jack was more than glad to do so. He would be lying if he said any of them were bad company… well, partially lying. He liked Charlie and Lucifer the most, surprising when it came to the latter, but enjoyment of someone's company did not equal desire for it.

Mostly because he wanted to spend time with his mom now. Hell, he wanted to cook for her after so long. For some reason he was hungry as if he hadn't had food in days.

Jack didn't know it, but that was the magic finally getting used to his body and staying for good. A quick adaptation after basically being revived, one that took a lot of resources. Not enough to be harmful, but the hunger was there for a very good reason. From now on Jack would see the world as it had been intended.

And he was just the first one. Soon humanity would quickly change alongside him. It would start small, but now magic was going to return to Earth in earnest.

All it needed was a connection, and Lucifer was the one to provide. All the while a little Seraphim was unaware of just how many changes she was helping bring to the world.

Not that Emily had noticed this, or her effects in general. The young Seraphim was just relieved to have a place to call home for a while, at least until everything settled down and she proved things could be better. Even if Sarah was only being cordial and didn't really wand the angel there. It was clear that the Sinner would much prefer to spend time alone with her son and have a somewhat normal day to enjoy what little family she had left and her escape from Hell.

Although, truth be said: The definition of normal was soon going to change.