The Grace of Greed Part I
Notes:
Well, it's way too late to ring in 2023 but this chapter is a few weeks early for St. Patrick's Day! And what does that have to do with demons grabbing up angelic artifacts? Let's just say someone's going to deserve a pint by the end of this leg..
As the gathering at the hot springs winded down, Lucifer pulled Maria aside and told her it was time to get down to business. She was given time in one of the springs by herself to meditate and find the third relic. All of the skin-ship from today seemed to help her relax as the golden glow came in no time at all. She quickly saw a pristine town spaced out across mountains and crystalline waters before zooming in to a building across an elaborate church. Her vision actually went fuzzy for a moment before she could see a literal mountain of treasure with an elaborate crown perched on the highest peak of doubloons.
"The Crown of Caritas is in the Vault of New Zealand in Dunedin!"
"Sounds… vague," Salem summed up, "Did we miss something?"
"Not quite," Mammon thought aloud, "I have a pretty solid idea of where that is. I have properties in that neighborhood."
"Well then, we have no time to waste," Lucifer commanded, snapping her fingers and magically having everyone dry and fully dressed in an instant. Salem in particular was thinking that he's been on more planes in a week than the rest of his life put together. They were soon driven back to Nadi Airport and soon booked a flight to Dunedin, again strolling through security and onto a private jet.
As they were once again spread out either relaxing or focusing on their business, Salem's eyes drifted to a quiet Mammon tapping away on her tablet. His mind thought back to some of the stories Maria told him about her globetrotting with the Sins and something seriously didn't sit with him. After touching up his sketch, he strode over to the busty blonde.
"Yes, dearie?"
"Okay, I know this isn't the kind of thing you usually just ask a woman upfront but… Are you really a mother?"
The demoness's blue eyes swiveled a bit, landing on Lucifer at the jet's minibar. The leader just rolled her hand to say "get on with it" while she resumed sipping her pinot noir.
"Yes, I am, actually," Mammon answered, "What exactly did Maria tell you?"
"That you have half a million kids, that's the part that's got me questioning things."
The blonde tittered at him. "Salem, is that really the most unbelievable thing you've encountered?"
He crossed his arms and looked down at her. "It might be, if you weren't dodging the question."
Her eyes narrowed, setting her tablet aside now focusing all her attention on the young man. "Why are you so keen to know my past?"
"Because I wanted to meet one of your kids," he shrugged, catching her by complete surprise.
"W-What? You… aren't angry?"
"I mean, the whole 'enslaving women to be your nannies' thing was kind of disturbing but I'm kind of a sucker for playing devil's advocate, remember? I literally draw portraits in honor of anti-christs."
"And he's actually talented at it!" Beelzebub pointed out before going back to her Caesar salad and Satan looking utterly baffled at her.
"Eheh, yes, thank you," Salem waved off before turning back to Mammon, "So, yeah, I don't hate you just because of the whole real estate/baby scam. You could easily have been a hundred times worse like literally turning innocent people into gold and then melting them into bullion or running a blood diamond mine on slave labor."
"Or selling child porn online."
"Or that, Belphegor's right, that's just despicable."
Everyone shuddered at that, Satan in particular putting a hand on her axe, before Mammon looked up with a new respect in her eyes… and unshed tears.
"Hey, what's the matter?"
"I just… Even when you put it that way… I can't help but feel like I was blinded. Thinking I was giving them a 'win-win situation…'"
"Mammon, don't be too hard on yourself," Maria consoled her, sitting down next to her with a kind hand to hold, "You were at least trying to care for your kids."
"Wait, who's caring for them now?" Leviathan asked, "You let all the chicks go, right?"
"Yes, but I discussed with Lucifer for a new arrangement. She's having some of the least violent souls in Hell, those sentenced for the most minor offences, look after them in exchange for being reincarnated into a better life."
"And being my personal training dummies if they hurt them in any way," Satan added, "Trust me, they won't do so much as slack off during naptime."
"Wow, that's really smart…"
And that unwitting comment finally made Mammon break, the blonde collapsing on herself in a sobbing mess. Salem immediately tried to make up for eating his own foot but Mammon was the first to stop him.
"N-No, yo-you're right! I was t-taking advantage of them all! And for what?! Be-Because I'm t-too busy to d-do m-my own j-job?! What k-kind of mother a-am I?!"
"Hey, come on now, don't be too upset," Asmodeus tried, "You were just doing your best…"
"Was I?! I-I was being selfish, p-pawning my c-children off like that! I-I ne-never even t-tried to find a b-better wa-aaa-aay!"
While most of the demons were sad at the sight, Lucifer was swishing around her glass with a look of annoyance. She may not have been a mother, but she knew that they didn't need this kind of weakness. She glanced over at a still flustered Salem, her crimson eyes meeting his.
His own expression shifted, before kneeling down to the blonde. "Mammon, look, I didn't mean to upset you but really stop and think about this. You, as a mother, tried to look after your young and run a business. Is that really so wrong?"
"W-Well, no…"
"I got burnt alive by a bunch of psycho Satanists, remember? Satan herself literally deals with the souls of rapists, murderers and human traffickers! And we're fighting a God who wants to LITERALLY wipe out humanity because we're not perfect! At least you care enough for your kids to want the best for them! So maybe you didn't go about right but what's the big deal? You're a strong, determined, gorgeous woman who can develop something better!"
The jet was silent aside from the turbines, eight ladies all gaping at him. He started to wilt, fearing that he had crossed the line and they each knew several ways to teleport him outside the plane.
Then, Mammon stood up and wrapped her arms around the artist's shoulders, making him "eep!" He only calmed down when she spoke up.
"You know you didn't have to say that…"
"Yeah," he swallowed, "But it doesn't make it any less true."
"Oh, just get in her pants already!"
Salem blushed crimson and glowered at Leviathan but the others just laughed with even Maria tittering, happy that something cheered the avaricious mother up. He did mention that his offer still stood and Mammon mentioned that there'd be time for that once she completed her mission.
Once the Sins and co. had touched down in Dunedin International, Lucifer ordered that the group would only be splitting in two this. Mammon would be accompanied by herself, Satan and Beelzebub to find the crown.
"Wait, don't you need Maria to find the crown?" Asmodeus asked.
"The Crown of Caritas is more finnicky than the others. It will only reveal its location to its rightful bearer, being the embodiment of charity. I'm not sure Maria's powers will help or just act as a deterrent."
That left Levi, Asmodeus, Belphegor and the two humans of the group but they were given a very specific order.
"The rest of you are going to be spending the day training in one of Belphegor's pocket dimensions to hone your skills. Maria, your swordsmanship. Salem, your warping abilities. Levi, your hydrokinesis."
"Um, I hate to be that guy," Salem piped up, "But what about Bub? She's even newer to her powers than us."
"Because she could use more practical experience. Her problem isn't control, it's a lack of opportunity to use them."
The glutton just shrugged, going along with it as she eyed several concession stands on their way out of the airport. The unspoken question was why Asmodeus, who was far from a frontline fighter, was assisting with training but the three guinea pigs just knew that they'd get an answer.
"Oh, this will be fun…" Belphegor chuckled before tapping away on her tablet before the group disappeared. That left four demon ladies to navigate through the wide streets and lush neighborhoods of New Zealand.
"Well, guess we need to find the vault…" Lucifer shrugged, never one to be discouraged. She had full confidence that Mammon would succeed even if the path might not be easy to cross.
Belphegor's group, however, had much more on their minds as they all appeared in a vaguely European town with fog hanging in the air and a few other eclectically dressed people roaming around chatting with each other about quests, DPS figures and conventions.
"Alright, here we are!" the tailed demon cheered, "I hope you all are ready for some real fun!"
"I knew you made these types of games," Salem said, the only one new to this whole scene, "I didn't think you could just teleport into them…"
"Dude. We are DEMONS. What part of that don't you get yet?"
"Levi, lay off of him," Asmodeus chided, "Now then, Salem, don't be too weirded out. MMOs like this allow for tons of expressive freedom! You can pretty much be anyone you want here."
Salem looked over to see a small party of four girls all wearing armor so skimpy it would make bikini models call them indecent, turning his head at the thought that those four most likely looked nothing like that in real life.
He just shrugged. "Eh, like I'm one to judge others based on their appearance…"
"That's the spirit!" Belphegor cheered, pulling out her tablet again, "Now let's get all of you properly equipped."
A few more taps later and all three trainees were consumed by rings of light. Maria was back in her barely concealing armor, Leviathan was back as a water goddess and Salem was… cycling through various outfits like he was at a clothing store.
Both ladies looked at the slothful demon. "What? Might as well let him pick, I don't try to dress up men."
"Okay, how drunk are you?" Leviathan pled, "He can barely comb his hair, let alone coordinate high fantasy armor!"
"Done!"
The Lord of Envy was prepared to cringe only to find that Salem had actually done a decent job. Dressed in a simple gray leather shirt with black trim, white pants with black armored kneepads and brown loafers. The only real standout was the absurdly large blade on his back, being almost five feet long and half a foot wide.
"Wow, that's a really big blade…" Maria noted, pulling out her own broadsword and trying to gauge how much lighter the artist's weapon was.
"I figured I needed to build strength so why not? Besides, it's not like physics are normal here."
Leviathan was about to snark at him only to watch him casually pull the gigantic sword out of its holster and start swinging it about two-handed like it was a fraction of its size. The purplette started fuming.
"Belphegor, that's bullshit and you know it!"
"Oh, what's that, Ms. Fun Police? You want me to put realism in my escapist fantasy? I'm sure that would make players pay the monthly fee. Would you like us all to brush our teeth or get debuffs too?"
"I'm not some old biddy!" Leviathan was about to shoot a geyser to prove her point but Asmodeus grabbed ahold of the demoness's tail with a tut-tut.
"Now, now, let's all get along here. Aren't we ready for some fun?"
"I know I am!" Belphegor nodded before hitting a few buttons in her tablet. The crew then warped away from the quaint hub town and found themselves standing in an eerie bog, bubbling muck and opaque gray fog all around them. The trainees looked around, waiting for something to pop out and ambush them.
"Okay, you guys are a little bit above the standard forest vermin and basic bandits so let me pick out something with a bit more oomph to them…"
More taps on that tablet later and thuds began sounding out around the trio. Salem ended up with his back to Maria, both with blades at the ready while Leviathan's power manifested as frost surrounded her skin. She nimbly leapt away from a glob of sizzling green goo launched out of the mist, noticing the ground bubbling on contact.
"Great, poison," Salem muttered, "At least we just respawn if we lose… Right?"
The slothful demoness remained silent, a coy grin on her face, as the artist jumped back just in time before another acidic missile hit. Maria spun around, her sword gleaming in the dim light, before swinging at and slicing through a massive pink tongue. A pained croak rang out, causing half a dozen angry ribbits to sound off.
The three then had to leap aside as their foes finally arrived, a circle of a half dozen gigantic toads with sickly brown skin mottled with massive warts, dewlaps spewing angry croaks that sounded like nature's truck horns and beady neon green eyes glaring at the intruders in their swamp.
"Giant… frogs?" Leviathan asked.
"Toads, actually. You wouldn't believe how sensitive some people get on forums…"
"Duck!" Salem yelled as another bowling ball of disintegrating liquid was shot at them and started eating away a nearby tree. Leviathan quickly hosed down the offending amphibian with a jet of water only for an angry stomp to alert her.
Thankfully, Salem was focused enough to tap into his instincts, hook an arm around Levi's waist and pull her out of the way of a tongue lashing. Maria charged in and sliced the massive pink appendage, making the toad growl in anger.
And as the battle waged, the three managing to hold their own despite being outnumbered two to one, Belphegor was only half paying attention to their progress. She was more interested in Asmodeus flying into the mist to reach a good vantage point and start the really fun part of the exercise…
Down on the ground, Leviathan quickly became the ranged fighter of the team with her ability to shoot the poison out of the air with water pulses. That left Salem and Maria to cut down the toxic toads, their blades slicing through the creatures and turning them into puddles of green mush. They had cut down four already but more of the croaking creeps kept spawning.
All of them, however, felt a sense of accomplishment. They were holding their own, all of them proving they could stand up to real threats. Salem, in particular, could scarcely believe he was handling such a massive weapon and had actually used it cut an enemy in half. He idly wondered what Lucifer would think if she could see him now.
"Got you now, lover boy…" a husky voice whispered in the wind, but Salem shook it off. Two more toads were rushing at him, one leaping to slam him from above while the other spewed a glob of acid. He could roll to the side, focus on the ground-bound one and then handle the other once it landed. The ability to fly could really come in handy now… Maybe Lucifer could teach him that?
Suddenly his mind was filled with images of him, soaring behind the queenly blonde at just the right angle to see the sheer panties under that feathered skirt of hers…
"Look out!" Leviathan screeched, literally hosing him away before he could get melted and then squashed into paste. The artist sputtered, both from the water in his lungs and the sudden distraction.
"Salem, what happened?" Maria asked, sticking another toad in the leg to Levi could shoot an aqua bullet through its head.
"I-I don't know! I just, like, suddenly couldn't…"
"Less gabbing, more slashing!" Belphegor ordered, inputting a few commands on her handheld computer. Now the toads seemed to be moving at double speed, leaping into the air like blurs and their acid shots moving like poisonous cannonballs. The trio redoubled their focus, Salem actually appreciating the cold liquid still covering him.
Maria was now having to play defensive as two amphibians zeroed in, both taking venomous potshots while she could inch her way towards them. She might have had the dexterity to block the attacks but she was pinned in place. If only she was stronger like Satan…
Visions of the rugged redhead suddenly filled her mind, promising to "train" her as she magicked away both of their clothes before placing a firm hand between her-
"HEADS UP!"
Maria ducked in the nick of time before Salem's buster sword sliced through her old headspace like a massive sawblade. In an impressive display, he was suddenly between the toads when his blade landed in one of the creature's dewlaps. With a mighty tug, he ripped the blade free and stabbed the other down its throat right when it opened for another attack.
Even Belphegor noticed, nodding in approval. She'd have to add that as a special attack later.
Back in the fray, Maria was a stuttering wreck wondering where the hell that vision came from. Leviathan was above the action, playing air support and sniping the damned toads out of the air before they could literally drop on them.
"Okay, Salem being horny isn't new but what the heck happened with Maria?" she wondered aloud, casually firing a hydro jet to knock a ribbiting nuisance into a tree, "She's pretty much a total prude so she wouldn't get all hot under the collar…"
She was starting to think there was something in the air, only now realizing she hadn't seen Asmodeus in several minutes. If that pink-haired prostitute was pulling something over on them, she'd make her regret it. There was only one demoness who could hold sway over her!
"Wait, where'd that come from?"
"You tell me, gorgeous…"
Leviathan felt a pair of hands wrap around her waist. She gasped to see Lucifer, buck naked at that, nipping at her neck with her red eyes glowing with arousal.
"I've got you under my spell, huh?" she said heavily, "Funny, I could've said the same thing. The only reason I didn't spend the whole first trip screwing your brains out is because I had a job to do…"
"N-No, this isn't real!" Levi groaned, trying to keep her eyes anywhere other than the stupendous bombshell feeling her up through her shirt. Or the E-cups digging into her back. Or that natural scent she had that made her lower lips drool.
"Come on, you horny little devil, stop pussyfooting around. I know you've wanted me since you first met me so let's get to the good part. We're practically girlfriends already…"
"I… I…"
"Oh, I get it, you want first dibs? Fine, sweet cheeks, you get first pick of positions. Would you rather I rip your clothes off or do you wanna start stripping so I can get even thirstier for your sweet ass?"
Levi all but orgasmed then and there right as a toad leapt up into her, sending her spiraling through several branches before thudding back into a deep pool of swamp muck.
"Okay, that fucking tears it, someone is cheating!"
"No shit, really?!" Salem gawked, stabbing his buster sword into a downed toad while Maria just scowled, already having a pretty good idea on what was happening.
None of them had the sense to look up where, on a distant tree branch about fifty feet in the air, Asmodeus was releasing a light breeze of pure pheromones. Just enough to get their minds to wander off topic.
"Get ready for a real lesson, you all," she tittered, "There's no such thing as a fair fight…"
And as exciting as the virtual training was to them, the real quest continued back in Dunedin. Lucifer simply summoned a limo and told the driver to show them around. On a normal day, four attractive women who wanted to play tourist would be a lucky break for a chauffeur but the roll of cash that Mammon flashed out of her Italian leather pocketbook practically guaranteed they had an escort for the rest of the day.
Said driver also happened to be a local who knew exactly where the enigmatic "Vault of New Zealand" was directly across the street from the First Church of Otago. Lucifer just sighed, figuring it was only a matter of time before coming face to face with an old workspace of hers.
"The sacrifices we make, eh?" Mammon kidded, looking very calm given this was her quest. Satan was simply examining her axe for any nicks or chips, Beelzebub was taking a sniff of the bourbon in the minibar before quickly putting it back and Lucifer was just thinking something was wrong. This was all going waaaay too easily for her liking.
The ex-angel shared a glance with Satan who only nodded. She wasn't prepping her weapon just to occupy her hands.
With nothing else to do, Lucifer gazed outside and had to admit Dunedin was quite a sight. Unlike the last two tropical locales, this was a forested city with direct access to the Pacific via an inlet swarmed with docks and harbors. Luxurious houses and shops lined the finely paved roads until they headed towards the jewel of the town known as the Octagon.
As their limo glided over the asphalt, they took in the wealthy tourists darting from shop to shop or gushing over the natural splendor. All of the Sins took in the sunshine glimmering off of the architecture, the simply joys the people we all taking in, and then getting a slight glower whenever a cathedral passed their sight.
That distaste passed when they arrived at the eight-sided plaza, admitting that whoever was in charge knew how to present a place. A perfectly manicured park sat in between an octagonal roundabout, people reading books or strolling through, with ornate churches and art galleries facing the plaza. The limo went around once before Mammon instructed the driver to let them out in front of the First Church of Otago.
Loathe though she was to admit it, Lucifer had to admit that her old employer knew some good architects. Standing almost two-hundred feet tall, the main tower shone as sparkling white stone and marbled grey brickwork greeted any worshipper with gargantuan spires lining the sides with slanted roofs covered in striking blue shingles.
"Hmm, I wonder where all of those 'donations' went…" Mammon asked as gazed on the cathedral, figuring she at least was honest about pocketing coin for herself. The others were already heading to the much less descriptive bank across the street, literally stopping traffic as Mammon soon took the lead and strolled into the lobby.
The typical marbled floors and cushy couches dotted the space between the glass double doors and the massive teller's window, twenty stations with openings in the plexiglass barrier for people to talk and trade money through.
Mammon, naturally, waltzed right up and told the flustered young man that she needed access to the national vault to retrieve a family heirloom left inside. Between her prodigious chest propped up on the table, her charming smile and that foreign accent that made suitors swoon, she and the others were strolling back into the bank's recesses in no time.
As they went, the blonde and Beelzebub were in high spirits unlike the other half of the team. Lucifer and Satan were now convinced that something nefarious was around the corner. They walked alongside the nervous teller, making sure he wasn't trying anything, before they reached the largest vault of them all. A massive fifteen-foot tall steel riveted door with the man finagling with a keycard before wishing them well.
Lock after lock opened until slowly massive wheel in front of the door spun several times before clicking to a halt. The door slowly opened inward and the demonic foursome entered, their breath being taken away.
Inside was a literal ocean of treasure, massive heaps of gold and gems piled dozens of feet high and all of it glittering as if just polished. Sprinkled amongst them was currency of a hundred places and time periods, wads of bills thicker than chair cushions and rolls of coins several feet long. Mammon could feel her mouth water and her eyes straining to take in everything at once, her mind racing with the sheer amount of opportunity in front of her.
A hand clamped down on her shoulders. Mammon turned to see Lucifer's gaze shooting through her. "Don't take anything. If you try to walt out with anything, the door will seal shut and it takes an angel to open it."
Beelzebub quickly put back a massive sapphire she was examining, whistling a tune as she headed back towards the group. Satan, visibly disappointed, decided to accompany her to make sure the youngling didn't try anything.
That left the two blondes strolling through the heaps of treasure, Lucifer making absolutely sure that Mammon's hands stayed right where she could see them. That proved very difficult, the greedy demon hauling wads of cash or hunks of platinum the size of an infant and needing her leader to literally slap her back to sense.
"Mammon, you need to focus! It's said that the Crown of Caritas calls out to its wielder, but you can't find it if you keep pilfering all of this. You need to think of something to keep you grounded, alright?"
Mammon nodded, wondering how she could possibly ignore the billions all around her, but she refused to back down. She tried to turn her mind onto any other topic, trying to shun any thoughts that involved business or profits but all that did was make her hands itch and her eyes dart around. Even just a few pieces of gold could become millions if invested right…!
"NO! Focus!"
Mammon smacked her own cheeks, driving down her need to enterprise. She tried thinking about the other Sins, the people that needed her… And that brought her back to Salem and the conversation they had on the way here.
His words about being a good mother, even in spite of her very underhanded methods, gave her a slightly shamed smile. If only that young man knew how she got here… He wouldn't be so understanding then.
Then, as she dwelled on that, a tiny ping hit the back of her mind. She could swear the faintest breeze hit her face, despite the vault looking airtight from the outside. Mammon started heading deeper into the treasure trove, now much more interested in the trail. Lucifer watched her head onwards and smiled. Now it was only a matter of time.
While Beelzebub and Satan stayed back, simply taking in the sight and trying to keep their sticky fingers to themselves, Mammon was now only focused on trying to follow the faint sense of magic. She skirted past treasures without a second thought, thinking only about keeping the world safe for her children.
Soon she took the air, Lucifer doing the same behind her, to soar above the scrapyard of riches. Now literally above the influence, that tiny ping grew into a much stronger sign and Mammon took off after the scent. The further back she went, the higher the piles became until they were multi-story apartment buildings made of cash and coin but she still flew past them all.
Lucifer, however, had no such mission and thus could think back to what she knew about this place. The Crown of Caritas had been donated from church to church, its magic spreading into the community and bolstering the charitability of its attendees. Legend had it that anyone who tried to keep the crown for themselves met a horrible fate, much like the infamous Hope Diamond.
Having intimate knowledge of the man upstairs, Lucifer knew this was entirely fact. God had even sent her to personally punish wannabe thieves several times and return the crown to its "rightful" place. Eventually, it was deemed no longer useful and locked away in here for safekeeping like the other artifacts.
"God loves you all, my foot…" she sneered, looking around and seeing all of the wealth. If God was so benevolent, why was all of this money just sitting here instead of being spent on feeding the hungry, curing child cancer, rebuilding homes after natural disasters, suicide hotlines, etc?
"There it is!"
Lucifer snapped back to the present as Mammon had stopped in front of a wall. Mammon was pointing up making Lucifer gape. It was a literal mountain of change, thousands of feet tall, and perched at the very top was an ornate bowl-shaped crown that looked like it was made of solid gold, adorned with gems of every color and topped with a platinum cross embedded with a blood-red ruby.
"Yep, that's it…" Lucifer answered, "But keep your eyes peeled. This has all been way too simple."
"Yes, yes, no touching anything else or else we need the magic carpet to get out, understood…" Mammon droned, soaring up past the untouched millions until she was face to face with bedazzled diadem. She was about to wrap her hands around it, its holy power tingling her fingers, when something grabbed her neck from behind!
"Ah-ah-ah… You should really ask permission before just taking things, you know."
Mammon bared her teeth at that voice. "Metatron, the Lively Virtue of Charity… I should have known you guarded this place."
"I knew this was all too easy," Lucifer added, pointing her spear in the nape of the angel's back, "But now that you're here, you can do something useful."
"Oh? And what's that, traitor?"
"Tell Michael she better plan on a rematch. With her licking my boots afterwards."
Notes:
So, we have distracted combat training on one end and an angel attacking on the other. Enjoy that to stew on!
Thank you all so much for reading! Feel free to leave questions or comments below.