Chapter Text
With the power of his angelic sorcery and what creation magic he had left, the hotel had been rebuilt from the ground up into the shining beacon of hope his daughter deserved. He spared no expense and every detail was meticulously crafted like a work of art. Little additions were made to honour every member of the hotel past and present, gone was the decrepit, rotting building destroyed during his battle with Adam; his little girl finally had a proper foundation for her dreams.
He wasn’t going to allow her dreams to rot away like his dreams did. He wasn't going to leave his little duckie all alone ever again, she was finally back in his life and he was gonna support her and make up for all the lost time in every way he could. In fact he built a tower shaped in the fruit that would become his signature on the side of the hotel and moved his workshop there. His own personal corner of the hotel, a home away from home where he could watch over Charlie and she could call upon him for help within a moment’s notice.
And right at this hour, Lucifer was perched on his workbench, grumbling and making faces as he tinkered with the latest of his hobby pieces. Someone else came back into his life, but unlike his darling daughter, was more how we say, an unwanted source of trouble and an old enemy, Adam.
Just the thought of their last encounter made him curse and grit his teeth. He almost crushed the rubber duckie he was working on for the past few hours and ceased immediately once he realised. The little duckie wasn’t one of his, instead “gifted” to him by one of Adam's uncouth fans, which was why he spent days fixing its imperfections. Between this and the poor excuse of a replica guitar it seemed that art and craftsmanship wasn’t the strong suit of that pack of rambunctious philistines. It was obvious to Lucifer that the kind of people who rallied behind Adam’s boisterous tunes were completely lacking in artistic talent.
Oh those barbaric ruffians, they completely ruined his return to the public and turned him into a laughing stock, in his own house, no less. When he heard that somehow Adam returned from the dead and took up residence in his domain. Knowing him, Lucifer knew he’d cause a ruckus and he wasn’t going to let him ruin what Charlie’s worked for again and so Lucifer decided to deal with him the first chance he got.
That arrogant jerk invited his daughter and her friends along to his performance for Hell knows what and only wishing to protect his little sunshine, Lucifer saw the opportunity and took it. When he saw his pathetic overcompensating face again as one of the many damned souls here, he knew he got it in the bag. As the ruler and mightiest in all the land, he made sure Adam knew whose realm he was stepping around in and was going to usher him in to keep an eye on him and make sure he was far far away from Charlie and couldn’t hurt her ever again.
But then rocks and rotten tomatoes were thrown his way and Lucifer was flabbergasted, he knew what it was like when a crowd didn’t like his show…. too many times when he was in Heaven but this was ridiculous. Sure he was never that great at talking to his people and he was getting rusty, since it had been awhile but surely he wasn’t that bad. But somehow, Adam, their slaughterer, of all people managed to sway them to such an extent that he mobilised them against him.
Not respecting him was one thing but these crazy sinners weren’t even scared of him at all. Adam now had an army of violent fanatics he could command at will and now Charlie was in even more danger. A pit in the fallen king’s stomach grew at the thought that this might have been his fault, but he quickly brushed that ridiculous notion aside, he could never have made things worse for charlie, he was doing everything he could to protect her and besides this was a fluke, Adam doesn’t have that kind of power, surely and if he did, Lucifer was confident he could beat him back yet again.
The smile plastered on the duck in Lucifer’s hand seemed to be jeering at him, made worse by the fact that it was made in homage to Adam, so it felt like he was laughing at him. Why couldn't he have stayed dead, things would have been so much simpler but he had to come back to his life again and put a spanner in the works. In truth, despite his rage at him being inches away at ending his cherished Charlotte’s life, he didn’t actually want him to die, he just wanted to teach him a lesson. And in a time long past there was no animosity between the two of them, that is until the first man, filled with so much potential, turned into a jerk one day.
Lucifer took another look at the rubber duckie and put it back on the table with weary eyes, he sighed as he put a creaking hand to his face. His eyeshadow could no longer hide the many rings around his tired eyes and behind it all he was no longer the bright young angel he once was, a fact he bitterly tried to hide in futility even as centuries went past.
No, as much as he denied it, he was an old man now and dreams and ambitions weren’t for him now. His time in the sun was over and all he wanted to do was settle down and focus on his family. He was tired of his “kingdom” , tired of his so-called “people” , tired of dealing with failure after failure after failure. He had long since lost the energy and patience to deal with his infernal realm, an accursed dump of nothing but the worst , where dreams went to die.
And the cruellest joke was that he was the undisputed king of it all, the tsar of a mountain of garbage, he had to escape from it all and so he retreated to the refuge of his workshop, the last vestige of his doomed ambitions. Between the fingers covering his eyes he spotted the shining golden glow of his wedding band and rubbed it as tears began to sting his jaundice eyes, Lilith….
Unlike him, Lilith, his beautiful, wonderful beloved wife thrived after the fall and turned this hellhole, a whole world of evil into a strong budding kingdom. While his spark extinguished, her spark shined brighter than ever before, he was lucky to have such an amazing woman by his side and foster a beautiful family with her. Of course it was no surprise she saw what a pathetic husk of a man he became and slowly slipped away from him, never to be seen again.
The sleeve of Lucifer’s coat became wet as he wept in sorrow, “Please Lilith, come back, I know I messed everything up, but Charlie needs you, I need you” Lucifer said with a warbled voice as he cried in the darkness of his workshop.
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“Thank you, thank you, Ripper Heights you fucking rock!” Adam could feel the electricity in the air as he threw devil horns in the air to the psychotic cheers of his damned fans. Adam swiped the sweat off his brow and basked in the atmosphere, days like this was what he lived for and as a performer by heart, the feeling of being on stage was addicting. It was yet another successful concert, this time in the middle of a public park located right in the middle of a place that was once a haven of depraved killers, that is until he arrived.
In the heat of the moment, Adam took another glance at his supporters, they were still horrific demons but what the heck they might not be that bad for sinners. He managed to direct them into making this dump a somewhat better place to live… in the only way they knew how, wanton violence and destruction, used for good for once. Hell might be getting to him and it sounds kinda crazy but maybe just maybe he could turn these freaks into half decent ehhh okayish people under his lead, pffffft like that’s ever happening.
People don’t change especially in this infernal hellhole, despite everything Hell was still forever and the best he could hope for was to carve his own piece of it and tame the land.
All he needed to do was get rid of those overlord tryhards and turn the smouldering garbage dump Lilith was so proud of into something actually good, a slice of Heaven away from Heaven, that should give these losers some taste for once. But man imagine if he brought these crazy people back with him to Heaven, crowds up there were nowhere near this intense. It could be fun, just imagine…..
Adam’s train of thought was interrupted when another one of those crazy chicks suddenly lunged at him. Adam stepped out of the way and smacked the deranged fangirl with his guitar, sending her flying back to the audience. “They just never learn do they?” Adam mused in annoyance only to have a camera flash in his face, followed by another and another. “Oh my god, quit it!” Adam yelled at the perpetrator, a woman wearing band merch on her blouse with a camera for a head and an eye where the lens was, who ignored him and continued taking pictures every few seconds.
“Never saw you up close before, big fan, gotta keep taking pics” disoriented by the camera flash, Adam stumbled off stage. He landed directly onto a chair, which on closer inspection was another sinner woman that looked like some technicolour animal from some computer game his descendants came up with. “I’ll gladly be your footstool, if you need to get back up” the freaky sinner offered in a perverted tone.
Offput , Adam got on his feet in disgust where more of his freaky admirers greeted him. “Hihi my name is Coalette. It's a huge honour to meet you. I love your teefies!” waved a small blue fire sprite that barely reached his hip in height. She looked up at him with star struck eyes while Adam just looked down at her weirded out. “Ok just stand back, a little more and a bit more” Adam nudged the pint sized flame elemental away from him with his guitar, which only got her closer to another concert goer’s boots, resulting in her getting kicked around by the crowd.
Another tiny sinner, tugged at his feet, this time a hamster looking chick, wearing an admittedly very impressive Adam costume. She looked like a miniature version of him, which was kind of sick actually. The little critter did nothing but smile at him, glad to be in his presence. While Adam was preoccupied, a horned avian sinner wearing a salvaged exorcist uniform screeched out “He’s distracted, now’s our chance, drag him to the basement sisters!”
Without any warning a rogues gallery of stalkers and deranged fangirls closed in on Adam. He shook the one clinging to leg off and turned his attention to the wall of freaks surrounding him. With a look of exhaustion and frustration on his face, the type that screamed “Why do I always have to deal with this shit” sighing, he charged his guitar and half heartedly lifted and slashed, sending them all flying away.
“We’ll get him next time” could be heard echoing in the distance as Adam dusted off his hand in a job well done. Amidst all the commotion Adam swore he caught a glimpse of a familiar woman from his past before she quickly disappeared, unfortunately Adam was too tired to pursue this matter further. “Man fuck this shit, I’m going backstage” Adam mumbled to himself as he marched away from the crowd.
He kicked down the door and announced his presence in obnoxious confidence. “What up baby~” Adam yelled in song, only to immediately deflate and collapse on his seat. “Let me guess, big guy, those crazy chicks again?” Labbie asked in concern, receiving a lazy “uh huh” in return.
“It's been a busy week for all of us, the towns just get worse and worse but we’ve managed to make them at least a bit better, say Adam some odd fella just dropped these off, said they were for you” Johnny informed his friend and bandmate in his usual level headed tone.
Johnny pointed towards a bouquet of blood red roses placed on the table. They had an enticing and ominous glow and swayed in the distance with twisting veiny thorns, their unnatural beauty typical of the flora in the infernal abyss. Adam couldn’t help but be drawn to them and slowly made his way to the table, despite his earlier exhaustion. The somehow breathing flowers had a message written on a piece of card “The Dark Mother sends her regards, see you soon.”
There were a handful of women Adam knew who could be called The Dark Mother and he got an idea of who it might be from. “Lilith? The fuck is she doing down here, she should be living it up, up there” Adam bitterly reminisced on his old home and a deal he made seven years ago.
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The shining golden city behind Heaven’s gates was as bright as ever on another joyous day in paradise. The divine megapolis in the sky had the appearance of being both unfathomably ancient with its angelic design and inscriptions but also more futuristic beyond anything imagined in both the mortal realm and the infernal abyss below, a true testament to creation’s beauty.
Heaven’s streets and towering spires were coated in pleasing colours that inspired serenity in all who gazed upon it. Nestled in between the sprawling urban centres were sanctuaries to mother nature, where beasts roamed free, ignorant of pain and strife. The same was true of the blessed souls that made the bulk of the population, peacefully strolling the promenade as there was no need to rush in this heavenly realm.
All except for a singular soldier hurtling through the crowd in rage, desperation and misery. Her wings, like the halo above her head, were pitch black, its feathers in the pattern of a war hawk. She was dressed in uniform as she always did, a dark grey tunic with white elbow length gloves and matching boots with a black horned helmet that covered her face on top. The helmet had a moving electronic display in place of a face, with a crossed out eye and a stitched mouth meant to strike fear in the hearts of Heaven’s enemies.
Once she made it to a desolate alleyway, sure that she was away from prying eyes, the lieutenant took off her exorcist helmet, revealing her snow white hair and yellow eyes, a trait she shared with her late commander. She had a look of pure anger and frustration on her face, she tried to keep her composure even as it hung by a thread but eventually her own emotions betrayed her as she began to cry. Lute, as her now deceased commander, best friend and so much more, Adam had named her, tried her best to suppress the raging emotions inside her but couldn’t help but let tears escape. The events just moments before were vivid in her mind.
“This changes nothing! Just because this snake managed to slither his way here doesn’t mean anything, Hell is still a threat, now more than ever” Lute screeched in exacerbation to the head seraphim, this day was getting worse and worse. She couldn’t understand why the angels couldn’t see the problem right before them.
“This means everything, this Sir Pentious has been redeemed, he’s now in our care, you are to stand down, is this understood?” Sera ordered Lute in sad resignation.
“With all due respect, you don’t know what I’ve been through down there, what I've seen, what I've lost. The demons know they can take down an Archangel, they’ve taken down entire units of my sisters, demote me, sure, I’ll do anything for heaven but why couldn’t we send Abaddon to lead us and the host to eradicate them once and for all!” Lute replied with a trembling voice, struggling to control her tone and volume.
Another angel in the court, whose head was like that of a gentle flame spoke up “Abaddon? Whose entire existence is dedicated to death and destruction? He is far too much of a loose cannon, we do not need this to escalate into another Sodom and Gomorrah.”
Lute having lost any and all restraint yelled back “A COMPLETE PURGE IS EXACTLY WHAT WE NEED”
An angel whose head were a set of wheels with eyes dotted on them chimed in as well, shutting down the enraged lieutenant “Abaddon was the one who personally trained Adam himself and turned him into a sadistic bloodthirsty fool exactly like him”
Sera acted quickly to restore order to the court “Calm yourself lieutenant, just because we are ending extermination from this point moving forward, does not mean other methods of dealing with hell do not exist, the decisions is ours to make and it is final, this will not be discussed further”
Sera’s words in that trial echoed in Lutes head as she cried in anger and grief at her injustice. Adam and countless of her fellow exorcists were killed and cannibalised because of the Princess of Hell, and Heaven just didn’t care, all because of a single soul, a single fluke. The worst part is, she lost everything and there wasn’t a goddamn thing she could do about it now.
She was about to strike at the wall in rage until she spotted a familiar figure in the distance. Turning her head she could see a certain someone dressed in iconic robes and an exorcist commander helmet, Adam? It couldn’t be. In confusion and desperation, Lute cut through the crowd and frantically followed the mysterious figure, all the way to Adam’s former apartment, where she finally confronted him.
“Adam, you’re alive?” Lute said in an uncharacteristically vulnerable tone, the figure answered her.
“Oh fuck no, I’m all in your head, guess you missed me that much you crazy bitch” even as the hallucination addressed her in a rude, crass manner, it was comforting to the disgraced exterminator in a familiar way.
Lute stood there motionless, before clenching her trembling fists and smashing everything in sight in reckless abandon. Furniture, instruments, the records hanging on the wall, it didn’t matter the wrath inside her that was building up all day exploded into an inferno that consumed everything around her.
“Woah someone’s on their period, the fuck happened?” the apparition sarcastically commentated on the mindless destruction before him.
“They shut down the exterminations and told me to step down, I don’t even have command of the exorcists anymore” Lute recounted in quiet sorrow.
“Wait, didn't I die?” the spectre asked.
“They don’t care,” Lute answered in defeat.
“Well that’s a bummer” the spectre said in support.
“ You know I never even got to tell how I felt about you” Lute admitted to the spectre in regretful grief.
He immediately replied in a matter of fact tone “You think I didn’t know already?”
“You did?” Lute asked in a small quiet voice like that of a sad little girl.
“If you don’t know, I don’t know, all in your head, remember?” the mirage of Adam replied carelessly, Lute in pure delusion and desperation tried to embrace the figure, only for it to phase through her arms, her face had a look of despair and agony once it did.
“So what are you gonna do about it?” the spectre asked in a sly sinister tone.
The fire in Lute’s eyes reignited, for once today she knew exactly what her next course of action would be. “I am going to contact a certain seraphim who was always sympathetic to our cause and with his help, the princess is going to pay for what she did that day” Lute declared, venom seething through her teeth with every word.