A/N: Sorry for the delayed update, life been catching up and I was working way more to make due with stuff. Glad to be able to push this chapter before New Year's Eve tbh, also I wanna thank everyone who's been around this far. Next chapter will conclude this first stage of the story, where we will be moving to highlight other characters. The likes of Stola, Stella, Striker, and few others to be appearing with more solidity. Thank you all and Happy New Year!
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"This is a bad idea."
"Well, it wasn't mine! Why we even have to be here?!"
"Because would you rather stay behind and deal with a lot of angry Hounds breathing down your neck with the party queen gone?"
"... fair point. Still doesn't explain why we dragged her ass here."
"Cause Alastor made very clear that we 'screwed up monumentally' somehow. So she's here so that we can 'clear things before they blow Hell apart'. His words, not mine."
"Sure, because falsifying documents is such an apocalyptic event."
"In a way, it might be."
Loona groaned, her attention returning to the unconscious Belle laying on the couch across her own. The group was forcefully teleported back to Hazbin Hotel, alongside their exotic guest. Alastor, without explanation, brought them in a whim. The biggest surprise of all was that Pinklie was also transported with them. The male Hound was astounded, worried, but mostly concerned for Belle. He knows who Alastor is and it didn't really make him any less anxious with the current situation. Charlie was still showering Alastor with complaints and questions about his sudden appearance, her voice loud enough to be heard from the other side of the entrance door of the Hotel.
"Should we wake her up? I dunno what will happen if she does by her own and freaks out again." Loona wondered aloud, giving the unconscious Demon an anxious glance. "Say, maybe you should do it." She said towards Pinklie. The male frowned lightly.
"Well, I'm not sure about that. I rather wait that weird dude to come back in and undo whatever spell he hit Belle with. I'm not messing with that kind of stuff." Pinklie replied with a sigh, his eyes focusing on Belle's figure. "Man, this is going to get messy real quick. No doubt everyone back at Gluttony will start freaking out."
"No shit, what about her fucking dad? That's going to get us fucked really good!"
"Err, actually not really Loona. Belle's father is... kinda, urgh. How do I explain this?" Pinklie scratched his head, struggling to think on how to put into words the current relationship between these two important Demons. "You see, they are kind distant from each other. So even if something goes around with Belle, it's very unlikely that Beelzebub would get involved."
"What? But... that's his daughter!" Loona was perplexed. "Does he care?"
"To be honest? Most of folk around Gluttony don't think he cares much other than how much he can make of lots of things. Guy is close to Lucifer, like, really close. He doesn't care who is doing what at the ring as long it doesn't affect his business."
"Wha...? Isn't Belle a big reason his business is doing well? Last I heard at least." Collin pondered with visible confusion. Pinklie huffed at that.
"As if. Belle is just keeping the entertainment going. While the shifty stuff happens in the back she's the one at front putting the mask on to make sure shit doesn't hit the fan. As in making sure to not give Beelzebub another reason to kill thousands of Hounds."
Collin felt his stomach churn in disgust while Loona was looking completely gobsmacked. They heard weird moans coming from the laying form of Belle, her body shifting slightly but remaining unconscious. Loona turned around, looking even more uncertain than before.
"If I ever had a reason to think why shit is so bad for Hounds." She started towards Collin, crossing her arms as she looked down at him with some sort of distress. "I don't think it would be anything about the one who runs the ring. Sure, there's gonna be shit here and there, but... it's so bad... I can't even..." She sighed heavily and Collin couldn't help but feel sorry for her current predicament. "I still gotta figure things out. I only got that everything about Gluttony is bullshit, and that... things didn't have to be like that, or maybe... they have to cause... this is Hell and what the fuck not." She gave another sideways glance at the wolf, a pondering look so intense on her face that Collin felt antsy about. "I wish to know at times... what it's like to not be in Hell. For more than just a day."
Collin shared a look with Pinklie, the other Hellhound could only offer him a shrug in return.
"I could show you. But I don't really have a spell to get us there." He replied apologetically. Loona nodded quietly, her hands turning into fists as she glared away into nothingness.
"I know a way. Just give me a day or so. I want to just take some time to ourselves, but is seems just fucking impossible around here."
"Loona. We c-
Collin started, but was quickly interrupted as the front doors slammed, revealing the presence of Alastor and Charlie.
"And that will be settle accordingly. No need to get you in a twist with that kind of folk just yet. You wouldn't want their attention, trust me."
"What does it matter? If they cause trouble my father would know right away." Charlie retorted with clear annoyance. The taller Demon chuckled derisively.
"If only that would be certain for all. Trust me when I say not every Demon in this realm is bound to the wills of those above. Now, where were we?" He said while turning around eloquently. The form of Belle immediately came to his attention. A snap of fingers quickly changed that.
Belle's reaction was instantaneous. Coming awake in the spam of a second, she jumped from the couch, hands raising with charging spell, ready to unleash at the first sign of the offender, but she paused momentarily as only Loona, Collin and Pinklie were currently facing her.
"Wha... what the actual fuck!" She shouted at them, turning around quickly as she felt another presence nearby. "YOU!"
"Glad to see you decided to join us in this eventful day. I take that you slept well?" Alastor replied evenly, as if he wasn't the one responsible for abducting her out of nowhere, treating it as a natural occasion.
"What's the big idea asshole?!" Belle shouted at him, hands still tight but not longer shining with malign intent. "I was in the middle of a fucking great party! I didn't even get to lay one yet!" She turned her head back towards the other Hounds. "Alright, which one of you wanna fuck first?"
Collin and Loona gave her deadpanned looks while Pinklie was mostly nervous.
"Miss Belle, you will find your situation to require more attention. I'm certain your body can handle a bit of a 'dry spell' as they say." Alastor suggested with a clear smirk of mischievousness.
Belle only awarded the other Demon with a short glare before looking back at her prey.
"Urgh, you better have something good to say. Wait!... is this about the..." Her angry glare turned into a fearful one. Alastor merely nodded, to which Belle felt her spirits sunk rather quick. "Fuuuuck... I fucking... this is just a shitty day I'm having!" She said more to herself than anything. "Look, I'm very pissed off. Let me blow up a bit a steam and I will be right back at ya."
"If you require." Alastor replied with a shrug, which doomed one of the other canines for certain. "But not the purple one."
"Anything I should be worried about?" Collin asked worriedly as he was singled out, somewhat unfazed by Alastor's creepy factor. At this point the wolf was mostly used with the terrific personalities he found across Hell in his short stay, looks didn't mean much after he bonded with the likes of Loona, Belle, Vortex, Blitz and few others. Granted, they weren't the most horrible to look at, but neither is Alastor. Collin took notice of Charlie's silent distress and was almost certain they were about to learn some really bad things following the recent event. He did not expect what Alastor said next.
"I would like to have a private word with the purple gentleman, if that's possible." He requested formally, eloquently extending a hand towards the wolf's direction. Collin raised an eyebrow while Loona huffed at his side.
"Bad idea." Loona said loud enough for Collin's sensitive hearing to pick it up. "This guy is nasty trouble, we all know it. You can't trust him with absolutely anything." Belle gave them a discreet look as she also listened in.
"I'm aware, yes. Yet, this could be revealing in a way." Collin replied despite Loona's panicked look. She grabbed his arm, livid with his response.
"Are you for real? Didn't you just listen what I said?" She asked a bit louder this time around, ignoring the attention it brought to her. Collin shook his head.
"I did, but I think I need to figure things out, especially if it will help us understand what's going to happen. I don't think he would care about talking with me if it was not important." The wolf replied automatically, which only made the Hellhound even more upset.
"Yeah. The only thing important about you, to them, is your soul. At least to the powerful ones." She muttered angrily before letting go of him fiercily, taking few steps away while grumbling under her breath. Collin winced, aware that he was going to have a really moody Loona to deal with later in the night.
Collin glanced at Alastor, who was observing them with a rather unnerving stare, his smile never faltering.
"I get it Loona, but..."
"Yeah, you need to give it a try. Cause that's what you do." The Hellhound relented with a huge sigh. "Fine, go on. I will see if we can sort things here." She paused as she saw Belle giving them an even stare. "What?"
"Nothing." She replied with surprising calm. Her four arms crossed while watching Collin walk away.
Collin nodded in thanks to Loona's acceptance, slowly making his way to follow Alastor, the Radio Demon was already turning around to lead him towards the elevator. The wolf felt Loona's glare burning the back of his head. He sighed, fully aware that she's in distress with his choice and it was no one else's fault but his own.
"Just you know." Belle started with a little smirk on her muzzle. "I do care more than his soul. That body is something interesting to say the least." Loona could only reply in dismay at that point.
"Why don't you just find a mate and stop fucking around just to pretend you're not some lonely loser?"
Belle snarled, raising both hands, eyes glowing brightly red. But before anything could happen Charlie came in between them.
"Hey! I normally don't do this, but if there's one rule I will not allow to be broken in this establishment is the no-violence one!" She said firmly, giving a pointed glare towards Belle. She growled in frustration.
"Fucking really?! I need to teach this whelp her place!" Loona snorted at that.
"My place? You ain't fucking nothing to me!"
"WHAT?! I am the one who looks over every single Hellhound over Gluttony! I'm the one who allows you all a better life! Otherwise you would be less than insects if it depended on my father!" Belle shouted, infuriated with Loona's audacity.
"SO?! Whoever those Hellhounds were, they sure weren't me! I own you nothing! I was in a cage most my life! I don't remember seeing you around while I was being constantly rap-
Loona halted, shutting her muzzle firmly. She averted her gaze away, not wanting the see the bewildered looks the other three were giving her. If not, she wouldn't be able to ignore the shock on Charlie's and Pinklie's expressions but, most surprising of all, was the look of dread shifted onto Belle's.
"Whatever, fucking leave me alone."
"Loona! Wai-
Charlie watched as the Hellhound hastily left the room without a second thought. She sighed, crossing her arms with a troubled look on her face. There wasn't much she knew about the Hellhound prior to her stay at the Hotel, but knowing that Loona is Collin's mate gave her enough confidence to trust having the young woman around. She knew about Loona's issues with coming from an orphanage, but finding out that she had been terribly abused certainly put things into a different perspective.
"You ever wondered?" Charlie quietly asked towards a stunned Belle. "Ever thought about what could be happening?"
"I normally make sure there's people of trust at each one. It seems that... bad things slipped through." Belle calmly replied.
Meeting Loona back at Gluttony didn't really gave Belle much to think of about the young Hellhound, learning that she was adopted only made Belle wonder what type of person adopted her and how much they must've suffered through by rising such a tempered Hound. Now? Belle couldn't understand how Loona didn't kill herself before even getting adopted. All the fury she felt towards the other female evaporated, replaced by a feeling of... hopelessness. Things were bad enough once she found out about the fake contracts, the direct interference from her father and what that meant for her future. Yet, to find out that countless pups were probably going through horrible things daily and she wasn't aware... it made her feel useless, tainted, despondent. This was not the life she wanted for the Hellhounds, especially the kids.
"Pinklie, get me a phone. I gotta do some calls to some old friends. About time we do a refresh. At least we have time to do that before he finds out."
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"Why just me? I don't keep things from Loona." Collin asked as he came to a stop by the elevator doors alongside the taller being. Alastor tilted his head slightly, giving him a curious expression with a side-glance.
"Well, I'm sure you two share anything you, heh, feel the need to. But this is a matter of... well, is a really strong matter. I'm certain you won't mind to keep this to yourself. It is quite a thing to keep under the carpet! At least for me." He explained slowy, and most surprisingly, without any distortion in his voice. He sounded so incredibly normal that the wolf was taken aback. "Ah, yes. While I do have a particular way of talking, I can already tell that wasn't really making any impression on you."
"It was supposed to?" Collin replied, puzzled. "I mean... I met some unfortunate Humans that sounded more robotic. Electronic implants so they could talk, despite being paralyzed or mute."
"Really now? Seems I've been missing quite some revolutionary achievements from Human kind. Not that it should be surprising. I haven't seen the world beyond for nearly a century." Alastor's smirk dimmed, he contemplated the doors with a distant look. "A long time indeed... I actually would like to inquire the eccentricities of today's society. I imagine you have been around long enough to get an idea."
"Mostly so, yes, not for every culture. I could only go so many places in such a short lifespan." Collin replied, feeling slightly intrigued by Alastor's behavior. All about him seemed nothing out of the ordinary from a normal Human being. If you could ignore all the weird stuff going on his hair...and behind. The Demon nodded, having expected such response.
"Yes, a short life indeed." Alastor said before the doors opened. He stepped in without care, swiftly turning around to press the floor they would heading at the rusty panel. He waited a second longer as Collin was slower to make inside. "Now, since we are away from that great hearing that Hellhound's possess, I must ask a few things on our way up."
"Huh, is us going up just an excuse to have those questions asked?" Collin couldn't help but wonder. Alastor let out a surprising hearty chuckle.
"Obviously not, my little anxious friend! This is just small talk before the big reveal! Nothing to be truly concerned about, not yet at least."
Collin nodded, his eyes taking into account the poor state of the elevator, the horrible screeching and foul odor didn't make a really good impression. He sighed, wondering how long it would take to get this building actually functional without a proper maintenance team. His mind focused elsewhere, forgetting that Alastor was in for a round of questions of his own.
"Do you know where we can find a team to fix this place? I mean, the equipment mostly, no doubt the pipes are all rusty and leaks must be pretty common." He asked distractedly. "A design could do aswell, the hallways are sort of dark and moody."
Alastor raised an eyebrow, a smirk on his face as he glanced down at the canine.
"Ah, that's the bright mind she was talking about! Of course, we can arrange such things. I was already giving her a head start on few basics, but I assume you have a better understanding of the whole thing than I do. I wasn't exactly working in an Hotel while within Humanity." He summoned a floating board out of nowhere, a finger writing his suggestions with such ease. Collin didn't bother to question how that made any sense, taken by surprise by the unexpected humbleness from the Demon at his side. "Now, what else you think we need? I'm already familiar with some of the requests you made with Miss Morningstar."
"Well... besides filling the staff, I'm rather worried by the financial matter of this. I would like to know how much can be afforded before investing for something we may not be able to cover."
"Nonsense! Money won't be an issue." Alastor immediately said, looking unbothered by such critical detail. Collin frowned, unsure if he could even allow himself to believe anything Alastor says at face value. Obviously not.
"It will, I'm sure. I don't get why you believe it won't. Unless you have that insane amount of resources to pull."
"I will able to provide the more... unusual of necessities, finances are not exactly a concern. Should this establishment require anything feel free to forward a suggestion! Miss Charlie will take care of it."
Collin paused on his thoughts. The elevator was making a horrible scratching noise, his ears ringing and he winced in pain, feeling absolute dread as it came to a complete stop. Before he could say anything, the sound of something snapping above them sealed the fate of the device as it started plummeting downwards. He felt his feet leave the floor as gravity pulled at him upwards towards the roof, somehow Alastor seemed able to remain still as he kept the wolf from smacking his head by pulling him with an arm.
"Now isn't this quite the predicament! Perhaps you were right about worrying for maintenance. This thing has been getting quite noisy these past few days." He said, unbothered by the fact they were diving straight into an horrible death, at least one of them could still die. He snapped his fingers and the floating board disappeared. Collin was too shocked to respond, unsure of what to do. Alastor yawned as he gestured with his free hand, a portal opened above their heads, he pushed the wolf upwards.
Collin felt the sudden shift of gravity as he crossed, going from flying up to faceplanting on a wooden floor really quick. He groaned as he felt his bruised muzzle, slowly pulling himself up, his head turning back to see Alastor easily make the transition into the room without any hassle. The portal closed a second later, followed by the entire floor shaking as a booming sound echoed across the entire building.
"Oh, hoho, that will leave quite the mess down there! Hopefully no one was waiting for a ride at the bottom." He said with unexpected cheerfulness. Collin have him a deadpanned glance before shaking the dust from his fur.
Glancing around the wolf was able to make what the room was mostly about; an office of sorts, but with old fashioned radio equipment, several glowing things he was not able to identify, and... odd pictures here and there. The place smelled like oak wood but, unlike most rooms of the Hotel, it didn't have the same dark morbid design, seemingly way more comfy than the rest.
"So, is this your room?" Collin asked distractedly, looking around with meek curiosity as he saw a fair amount of Human objects. Alastor merely nodded, fully aware that Collin wasn't looking at him. He made his way around the huge desk standing by huge window. The wolf could see most of the peaks of the buildings nearby, but certainly it's possible to see a lot more considering the height at which Alastor's room is located at.
"This became a rather privying, and reassuring, place to spend time when I'm not feeling like making my day more... productive." He replied with a chuckle, moving to take a seat behind his work desk, his focus settling on tuning the old radio for few seconds before addressing the wolf again. "Now, take a seat my young man, we have a lot to discuss." He offered towards one of the two chairs across his desk. "Normally I do not have anyone here unless Miss Charlie is frantic about something. It would be a fine change to have another option to break the boredom. As much I expect from the amount of enjoyment the Hotel shall bring, we are still ways to get to that point. With your added help we may get there quicker. Anything for drinks?" He offered with a suggestive smile.
"No, thanks. I also have a lot to ask about." Collin said respectfully enough, slowly taking a seat once he felt certain the chair wouldn't tie him with magic chains or anything of the sort. "How long you've been helping Charlie?"
"Just a couple months since we met. I've been looking to bring this Hotel some visibility. Propaganda is a potent ally to any who seeks attention after all. Communication! Publicity! Fine tools that will be your best friend in this matter. And I'm the one to make sure it goes smoothly. Dare say I have a certain talent for it." He snorted, giving the wolf a curious glance. "I must say... I was not expecting to find an Angel in these parts." Collin's expression dulled considerably. "Ah, do not worry. I have no ill intent towards you. You proved yourself resourceful enough and with no second intent, it means you're the most trustworthy being in the entirety of this Hellhole."
"Me?"
"Yes, why, there's no such thing as a pure soul in Hell! Which makes you case even more... fascinating. Despite the crafty disguise, it's telling that someone like you should not be in Hell. I can easily tell who is a sinner and who's not. Well, not by Heavens standards clearly, not sure what you could've possibly done to be sent down here." He inquired with a tilt of his head, expecting to have answers in that regard. Collin sighed wearily.
"I shouldn't be. I was sent here by an Imp. He wanted us to take revenge on the group of Imps that interfered with my duty as a Cherub. Me and two others were tasked with preventing a man from killing himself, for it would carry him straight to Hell. They wanted... us to find a redeeming quality on him." Collin paused, just unable to understand the absurdity of what they were supposed to do. "That man... he was all sorts of awful, the things he did... but... Heaven wanted him. I don't know why."
"Hmm, now that's a really strange notion." Alastor said slowly. "Sending Cherubs to redeem a lost cause seems shifty at best. Although my concern shifts to the fact a bunch of Imps is roaming around the Human world? Care to explain that?"
Collin hesitated. He wasn't sure if it was a good idea to reveal about I.M.P to someone that clearly is in a position of power, not to mention what kind of stance Hell has regarding Human realm incursions.
"I faced against a group of murderers, Imps that were paid to-"
"Kill Humans in an act of revenge. Paid by folk who went to Hell." Alastor finished with a knowing smile. Collin blinked. It seems Alastor was already aware of the Imps roaming around the Human realm, but still decided to test Collin's truthfulness. "Oh, don't be surprised. Especially since that particular group has a fair amount of picture screens displayed across the entirety of Hell. It's a wonder they haven't been destroyed by one of the Sins, especially Beelzebub. He would certainly have slaughtered them if Lucifer took them as a potential issue."
Collin felt himself freeze on the spot. He did not like the idea of such Demons giving any sort of attention towards Blitzo, Millie and Moxxie, not to mention Loona would also be involved in that mess of a company.
"Well, so it seems it's a good thing they decided for a change in career. I'm sure Miss Charlie will find a proper use of their time." Alastor continued with something akin to mirth. "Ah, the young and their perilous adventures, never satiated enough to challenge the unknown. It will do them well to settle down for few months at least. Won't see themselves dismembered on a near future." Collin grimaced. That mental image was not something he needed, he's pretty sure Alastor is just saying it to mess him up a bit. Expected coming from a Demon after all. "Now, let's discuss potential staff recruits before we move into more personal matters."
"Huh, I think we managed to cover the kitchen staff. Charlie and Pinklie will talk about it later on, after this whole thing with Belle is settled." Collin said while wondering what personal even meant for someone like Alastor. "I'm looking at maintenance at the moment, but still unclear on wh-
Collin paused, a sudden thought popping into his mind that made him bleak at his own audacity. "Say, who's a notable crafty individual around these parts? Good will all sorts of material. Has some mastering of engineering, also a crew of his own?"
Alastor raised an eyebrow, his smile dimmed for a second before he composed himself on the spot.
"I can only think of very few, the closest one... heh, now ain't that something..." He regarded Collin more thoroughly. "I'm not sure what I expected from the likes of Heaven, but you certainly are not of what I expected." Seeing Collin's confusion he resumed with a more detailed explanation. "We have a notion that folk from Heaven are awfully naive, deceptive in a different way, stubborn and insufferable in a sense. So far... I'm yet to see any of that on you. Somehow, you are different, and it's... strange." Alastor's words dragged, being hit with a bolt of uncertainty. "When I was Human, my notion of what Heaven could be was much similar to who you seem to be. Yet, in Hell I've learned to see them for what they truly are. Of course, before Hell I've never interacted with an Angel, or Cherub for that matter. I have no reason to believe I would've been swayed in any sense by their heavenly nonsense. I must say young man, talking to you have been no different than talking with some old friends I had back then. It's... somewhat refreshing."
Collin blinked, befuddled by such words coming from the likes of Alastor. Then again, it wasn't the first time someone told him he's not what they expected.
"I'm not any different from who I was back at Heaven. It's just... I'm just like this."
"Oh, certainly, and that is what makes you a very potential being. I look forward to see how much you will develop for these next few weeks. A new star in this gigantic theater, about to shine brighter than any other!"
Before anything else could be said the old looking phone over Alastor's desk ringed, he glanced back at it with curiosity before raising a hand, the device detached from the base, floating few inches above on the air, enveloped by a mist of red and dark energy.
"Who is this?" Alastor asked with touch of sardonic irony. From the phone came the shout of the unmistakable voice of Vaggie.
"ALASTOR, WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED WITH THE ELEVATOR?!"