Post by Bene Elohim on Feb 8, 2024 14:06:32 GMT -8
The smell of her perfume was still thick on him as he stepped into the elevator and hit the button. Stepping to the back of the elevator, he leaned back on the metal frame with his head bowed and the flashes of the last seventy-two hours flashing through his mind.
It was a blur of skin, a flash of limbs, and the faintest wisp of the sounds of her whimpering. The ghosts of a memory fueled by the sting of the nail-made welts on his back and shoulders. Stolen moments from another person’s life.
Back before he had become Sathanas.
When the doors opened again, he pushed his shoulders off the mirror-like metal and walked through the opened doors. The elevator opened into a bustling lobby as Anthony pulled a phone from his back pocket and powered it on.
He spent a few minutes slowly making his way across the lobby, scrolling through the messages and updates. Reports from Demons about various low profile missions and multiple demands from Lord Apollyon that Anthony responded to.
Twenty minutes of answering messages before he finally slipped the phone back into his back pocket and pushed the doors of the apartment building open.
As the doors opened, the squealing of tires brought his attention to his left as a four-door sedan sped out of the underground garage.
“ANTHONY!”
He knew that voice and his eyes fell on the passenger side rear window. Melissa’s head was slammed into the glass, her nose exploding with blood across the glass.
“...Mel…”
From a dead stop, Anthony drove forward into a sprint, hopping the rail to the street as the car sped past. He pursued the car until it disappeared around a corner. He slowed down, not even panting, and his eyes narrowed.
“...Game on…”
The man known as Lord Apollyon sat behind his desk with his fingers drumming on the desk. His Harbinger, Vanita Thompson, stood beside him with her fingers running gently through his short hair. She knew where her Lord’s mind was.
It had been a week since he had heard from his Right Hand.
A week since the Clown had been taken and Sathanas was suddenly MIA.
She did her best to soothe her Lord as the ding of the elevator announced a visitor, or perhaps a Demon bringing a sinner in the transport them to Hell beneath. The doors opened to reveal the travel-stained and weary Anthony Crawford before he walked out of the elevator.
He never looked over at the desk as he made his way across the hall and hit the button for the elevator leading down into Hell. Valdemar jumped up from his desk and came around it, his eyes narrowed with rage.
Lord Apollyon: “Where in the seven hells have you been?!”
Anthony Crawford: “Busy.”
It was such a simple response and yet it did not please Apollyon.
Lord Apollyon: “Busy...? BUSY?!”
Anthony Crawford: “I don’t have time for this, Valdemar.”
Vanita Thompson: “You will make time, Sathanas! You have been missing for far too long. Answers need to start coming from your lips. Now.”
Anthony froze, his lips curled into an angry snarl, and slowly turned his head to face the pair. Neither Vain nor Valdemar recoiled from that look.
Anthony Crawford: “They took her, Apollyon… and she’s very important to me. I’m taking the Demons to form search parties.”
When Valdemar heard this, he threw his head back and laughed, which only served to further irritate Anthony.
Lord Apollyon: “Like Hell you are. The clown is none of our concern. If she got herself taken by some street thugs? It serves her right.”
Anthony jaw clenched and slowly his right hand closed into a fist. Valdemar, however, either didn’t see this warning sign or didn’t care.
Lord Apollyon: “I warned you, Sathanas. She was nothing but a distraction to our mission. What they do to her now is on her and the other clowns. However, if they are doing what I imagine they are doing? Sooner or later, they will end up here… for their own sins.”
That was the straw that broke the camel's back. The hint that these men may be violating Melissa was enough to make him see red. Anthony lunged forward, snatching Valdemar by the throat. He lifted the man as if he weighed nothing with one arm, pinning him against the wall.
While there was very little Valdemar could do, Anthony found himself with the steel edge of a small knife pressed against the side of his neck, held in the hand of Vain standing behind him.
Vanita Thompson: “Release. Him. Now.”
Anthony’s lips curled up again into a feral snarl, but slowly his fingers released Valdemar. Apollyon fell back to his feet, coughing softly, and straightened his shirt. Vanita kept the knife pressed to the side of Anthony’s neck, while Valdemar coughed again.
Despite this aggression, Valdemar was eerily calm as he straightened the vest. But when his eyes came up, there was a burning rage in them.
Lord Apollyon: “Sathanas… Touch me again and I’ll lock you in a cell with a hundred of the worst of the worst in Hell and let them have you until you are dead. Understood?”
Anthony said nothing, just stared forward into the man’s eyes. His own burned with the same rage. Vanita, however, pressed the edge of the blade in a little firmer, causing a small trickle of blood to run down Anthony’s throat.
Vanita Thompson: “...Is he understood, Sathanas?”
Slowly, Anthony gave a nod. Vain looked up at her Lord, and Apollyon gave his own tiny nod. Only then did Vanita step back away from Anthony and the blade disappeared back beneath her corset. Anthony touched his hand to his throat, wiping away the blood before looking at Valdemar.
Anthony Crawford: “You’d do the same if it was her…”
Anthony motioned to Vanita as he said this.
Valdemar pursed his lips in thought. For his lady to be in the same scenario… Anthony was right. He would tear the world apart stone by stone for Vanita. After everything they’ve been through, he didn’t want to lose her. Not again; never again.
Lord Apollyon: “...Very well, Sathanas. You have two weeks, but no Demons.”
Anthony said nothing more as he shoved Vanita out of his way. He made his way back across the room to the elevator he had come up in. If he had to do this alone, so be it. Once it arrived and Anthony disappeared inside, Vain looked to her Lord with concern.
Vanita Thompson: “He’s a loose cannon, my love. His mind is clearly not on the mission.”
Valdemar only nodded and made his way back to his desk, coughing again and massaging his throat.
Lord Apollyon: “He’s a rabid dog, but I need him to take down Lucifer and his Children.”
Vanita Thompson: “And after?”
Lord Apollyon: “What happens to dogs when they become rabid…?”
A cold smirk crossed his face.
Lord Apollyon: “You put them down.”
Lord Lucifer stood with the Children gathered around a small table in a small room on the second floor of the house on the Chicago lakeside. On the table was a gathering of reports about the Jesters’ war with the street gang. Everything that William had provided them about the gang that had taken Melissa.
They were trying to find some move they could make that would turn this situation to their advantage. They knew from the King that Melissa was taken from the garage of the apartment complex where she had been visiting Anthony. It was Ashley, however, who broke the silence as she approached the table with Maiko walking a half a step behind her.
Ashley Kenyon: “Taking Melissa was a big blow in this little conflict they are having, right?”
Maiko Adachi: “Considering her closeness to the Jester King? It would be as if one of the Twins was taken.”
Ashley Kenyon: “I’d say that’s a fairly big blow.”
She turned her attention to Lucifer and motioned at them all with her hand.
Ashley Kenyon: “How would Valdemar react if he took one of us? Or you if you were to capture Anthony?”
Zachary Sears: “The celebration would be epic.”
Aerynn Maguire: “Ye best bae belaevin’ it. It would make Shieldmaiden parties look tame.”
Xaria, who stood beside Lucifer, as usual, leaned forward and pulled the picture of Melissa Reed closer to her side of the table. Staring down at it for a moment, Xaria licked her lips in thought.
Xaria Linette: “Elle est belle.”
Maiko Adachi: “Didn’t realize you swung that way, Harbinger.”
Xaria couldn’t help but giggle, shaking her head.
Xaria Linette: “I do not. However, I don’t need to be into women in order to see that Melissa is gorgeous. Men will want her. A lot of the gang will want her.”
Lucifer’s jaw clenched at what she was suggesting, but it was Zachary whose eyes widened at the realization. His attention turned to Aerynn quickly.
Zachary Sears: “Vhere is Shonn?!”
Aerynn Macguire: “In Nola with the children. Why?”
Zachary was motioning with his hand, and Aerynn pulled out her phone. Hitting the speed dial, she set the phone down between the pair. It rang twice before Shonn picked up.
Shonn Maguire: “Hello Alice.”
Aerynn Maguire: “Hey Hatter…”
Before she could even finish, Zachary cut in.
Zachary Sears: “Shonn, it’s Zach. Do you have any contacts on the east coast? Specifically in ze fighting circles?”
Lucifer lifted a brow as he watched Zachary, but the young man only lifted a finger for him to hold on while waiting for Shonn to answer.
Shonn Maguire: “Aye, many. Why?”
Zachary Sears: “Can you start making some phone calls for us? Find out if any of them have been approached about a fight.”
Shonn Maguire: “...Aye. Ye’ll bae naedin’ tae give me a few hours.”
Shonn’s line immediately went dead, and Zachary looked back at the curious Lucifer and Xaria.
Zachary Sears: “These men are not like us. A woman vith a background like Melissa’s? There is bound to be men from various groups all vanting a piece.”
Ashley glanced over, her eyes narrowed.
Ashley Kenyon: “You think they are gonna arrange some kind of entertainment to decide who actually gets her?!”
Maiko looked down and began to chew her lip, but Ashley and Aerynn immediately began to speak quietly to her. They both knew why she withdrew. Lucifer looked at Zachary and gave the smallest nod.
Lord Lucifer: “Wait for Shonn’s call. If you are right? Get a location and tell Shonn to call in however many favors it takes to get someone into this ‘entertainment’.”
Ashley glanced up from where she was speaking quietly to the blue-haired woman and looked at Lucifer.
Ashley Kenyon: “What are you thinking?”
Lord Lucifer: “That if we can find this out…so can Sathanas. And like I told William, we can kill two birds with one stone.”
The group all broke apart as Aerynn’s phone began to ring again. She glanced down at the display briefly before handing it off to Zach. Zach spoke briefly with Shonn and gave Lucifer a thumbs up. His hunch had been correct, there was some kind of underground fight being held by criminal groups.
Lucifer let Zachary work out all the details with Shonn for pulling whatever strings were necessary and let his eyes fall on the massive figure in the corner.
Cronos and Lucifer locked eyes and the big man gave the faintest nod. He knew what Lucifer wanted from him and he’d give it.
Sathanas would find out about this fight and get in by any means necessary to help Melissa and when he did?
He’d find Cronos waiting for him.
It was a blur of skin, a flash of limbs, and the faintest wisp of the sounds of her whimpering. The ghosts of a memory fueled by the sting of the nail-made welts on his back and shoulders. Stolen moments from another person’s life.
Back before he had become Sathanas.
When the doors opened again, he pushed his shoulders off the mirror-like metal and walked through the opened doors. The elevator opened into a bustling lobby as Anthony pulled a phone from his back pocket and powered it on.
He spent a few minutes slowly making his way across the lobby, scrolling through the messages and updates. Reports from Demons about various low profile missions and multiple demands from Lord Apollyon that Anthony responded to.
Twenty minutes of answering messages before he finally slipped the phone back into his back pocket and pushed the doors of the apartment building open.
As the doors opened, the squealing of tires brought his attention to his left as a four-door sedan sped out of the underground garage.
“ANTHONY!”
He knew that voice and his eyes fell on the passenger side rear window. Melissa’s head was slammed into the glass, her nose exploding with blood across the glass.
“...Mel…”
From a dead stop, Anthony drove forward into a sprint, hopping the rail to the street as the car sped past. He pursued the car until it disappeared around a corner. He slowed down, not even panting, and his eyes narrowed.
“...Game on…”
~{Lord Apollyon’s Hell}~
~{One Week Later}~
~{One Week Later}~
The man known as Lord Apollyon sat behind his desk with his fingers drumming on the desk. His Harbinger, Vanita Thompson, stood beside him with her fingers running gently through his short hair. She knew where her Lord’s mind was.
It had been a week since he had heard from his Right Hand.
A week since the Clown had been taken and Sathanas was suddenly MIA.
She did her best to soothe her Lord as the ding of the elevator announced a visitor, or perhaps a Demon bringing a sinner in the transport them to Hell beneath. The doors opened to reveal the travel-stained and weary Anthony Crawford before he walked out of the elevator.
He never looked over at the desk as he made his way across the hall and hit the button for the elevator leading down into Hell. Valdemar jumped up from his desk and came around it, his eyes narrowed with rage.
Lord Apollyon: “Where in the seven hells have you been?!”
Anthony Crawford: “Busy.”
It was such a simple response and yet it did not please Apollyon.
Lord Apollyon: “Busy...? BUSY?!”
Anthony Crawford: “I don’t have time for this, Valdemar.”
Vanita Thompson: “You will make time, Sathanas! You have been missing for far too long. Answers need to start coming from your lips. Now.”
Anthony froze, his lips curled into an angry snarl, and slowly turned his head to face the pair. Neither Vain nor Valdemar recoiled from that look.
Anthony Crawford: “They took her, Apollyon… and she’s very important to me. I’m taking the Demons to form search parties.”
When Valdemar heard this, he threw his head back and laughed, which only served to further irritate Anthony.
Lord Apollyon: “Like Hell you are. The clown is none of our concern. If she got herself taken by some street thugs? It serves her right.”
Anthony jaw clenched and slowly his right hand closed into a fist. Valdemar, however, either didn’t see this warning sign or didn’t care.
Lord Apollyon: “I warned you, Sathanas. She was nothing but a distraction to our mission. What they do to her now is on her and the other clowns. However, if they are doing what I imagine they are doing? Sooner or later, they will end up here… for their own sins.”
That was the straw that broke the camel's back. The hint that these men may be violating Melissa was enough to make him see red. Anthony lunged forward, snatching Valdemar by the throat. He lifted the man as if he weighed nothing with one arm, pinning him against the wall.
While there was very little Valdemar could do, Anthony found himself with the steel edge of a small knife pressed against the side of his neck, held in the hand of Vain standing behind him.
Vanita Thompson: “Release. Him. Now.”
Anthony’s lips curled up again into a feral snarl, but slowly his fingers released Valdemar. Apollyon fell back to his feet, coughing softly, and straightened his shirt. Vanita kept the knife pressed to the side of Anthony’s neck, while Valdemar coughed again.
Despite this aggression, Valdemar was eerily calm as he straightened the vest. But when his eyes came up, there was a burning rage in them.
Lord Apollyon: “Sathanas… Touch me again and I’ll lock you in a cell with a hundred of the worst of the worst in Hell and let them have you until you are dead. Understood?”
Anthony said nothing, just stared forward into the man’s eyes. His own burned with the same rage. Vanita, however, pressed the edge of the blade in a little firmer, causing a small trickle of blood to run down Anthony’s throat.
Vanita Thompson: “...Is he understood, Sathanas?”
Slowly, Anthony gave a nod. Vain looked up at her Lord, and Apollyon gave his own tiny nod. Only then did Vanita step back away from Anthony and the blade disappeared back beneath her corset. Anthony touched his hand to his throat, wiping away the blood before looking at Valdemar.
Anthony Crawford: “You’d do the same if it was her…”
Anthony motioned to Vanita as he said this.
Valdemar pursed his lips in thought. For his lady to be in the same scenario… Anthony was right. He would tear the world apart stone by stone for Vanita. After everything they’ve been through, he didn’t want to lose her. Not again; never again.
Lord Apollyon: “...Very well, Sathanas. You have two weeks, but no Demons.”
Anthony said nothing more as he shoved Vanita out of his way. He made his way back across the room to the elevator he had come up in. If he had to do this alone, so be it. Once it arrived and Anthony disappeared inside, Vain looked to her Lord with concern.
Vanita Thompson: “He’s a loose cannon, my love. His mind is clearly not on the mission.”
Valdemar only nodded and made his way back to his desk, coughing again and massaging his throat.
Lord Apollyon: “He’s a rabid dog, but I need him to take down Lucifer and his Children.”
Vanita Thompson: “And after?”
Lord Apollyon: “What happens to dogs when they become rabid…?”
A cold smirk crossed his face.
Lord Apollyon: “You put them down.”
~{Unknown Location}~
~{That same afternoon}~
~{That same afternoon}~
Lord Lucifer stood with the Children gathered around a small table in a small room on the second floor of the house on the Chicago lakeside. On the table was a gathering of reports about the Jesters’ war with the street gang. Everything that William had provided them about the gang that had taken Melissa.
They were trying to find some move they could make that would turn this situation to their advantage. They knew from the King that Melissa was taken from the garage of the apartment complex where she had been visiting Anthony. It was Ashley, however, who broke the silence as she approached the table with Maiko walking a half a step behind her.
Ashley Kenyon: “Taking Melissa was a big blow in this little conflict they are having, right?”
Maiko Adachi: “Considering her closeness to the Jester King? It would be as if one of the Twins was taken.”
Ashley Kenyon: “I’d say that’s a fairly big blow.”
She turned her attention to Lucifer and motioned at them all with her hand.
Ashley Kenyon: “How would Valdemar react if he took one of us? Or you if you were to capture Anthony?”
Zachary Sears: “The celebration would be epic.”
Aerynn Maguire: “Ye best bae belaevin’ it. It would make Shieldmaiden parties look tame.”
Xaria, who stood beside Lucifer, as usual, leaned forward and pulled the picture of Melissa Reed closer to her side of the table. Staring down at it for a moment, Xaria licked her lips in thought.
Xaria Linette: “Elle est belle.”
Maiko Adachi: “Didn’t realize you swung that way, Harbinger.”
Xaria couldn’t help but giggle, shaking her head.
Xaria Linette: “I do not. However, I don’t need to be into women in order to see that Melissa is gorgeous. Men will want her. A lot of the gang will want her.”
Lucifer’s jaw clenched at what she was suggesting, but it was Zachary whose eyes widened at the realization. His attention turned to Aerynn quickly.
Zachary Sears: “Vhere is Shonn?!”
Aerynn Macguire: “In Nola with the children. Why?”
Zachary was motioning with his hand, and Aerynn pulled out her phone. Hitting the speed dial, she set the phone down between the pair. It rang twice before Shonn picked up.
Shonn Maguire: “Hello Alice.”
Aerynn Maguire: “Hey Hatter…”
Before she could even finish, Zachary cut in.
Zachary Sears: “Shonn, it’s Zach. Do you have any contacts on the east coast? Specifically in ze fighting circles?”
Lucifer lifted a brow as he watched Zachary, but the young man only lifted a finger for him to hold on while waiting for Shonn to answer.
Shonn Maguire: “Aye, many. Why?”
Zachary Sears: “Can you start making some phone calls for us? Find out if any of them have been approached about a fight.”
Shonn Maguire: “...Aye. Ye’ll bae naedin’ tae give me a few hours.”
Shonn’s line immediately went dead, and Zachary looked back at the curious Lucifer and Xaria.
Zachary Sears: “These men are not like us. A woman vith a background like Melissa’s? There is bound to be men from various groups all vanting a piece.”
Ashley glanced over, her eyes narrowed.
Ashley Kenyon: “You think they are gonna arrange some kind of entertainment to decide who actually gets her?!”
Maiko looked down and began to chew her lip, but Ashley and Aerynn immediately began to speak quietly to her. They both knew why she withdrew. Lucifer looked at Zachary and gave the smallest nod.
Lord Lucifer: “Wait for Shonn’s call. If you are right? Get a location and tell Shonn to call in however many favors it takes to get someone into this ‘entertainment’.”
Ashley glanced up from where she was speaking quietly to the blue-haired woman and looked at Lucifer.
Ashley Kenyon: “What are you thinking?”
Lord Lucifer: “That if we can find this out…so can Sathanas. And like I told William, we can kill two birds with one stone.”
The group all broke apart as Aerynn’s phone began to ring again. She glanced down at the display briefly before handing it off to Zach. Zach spoke briefly with Shonn and gave Lucifer a thumbs up. His hunch had been correct, there was some kind of underground fight being held by criminal groups.
Lucifer let Zachary work out all the details with Shonn for pulling whatever strings were necessary and let his eyes fall on the massive figure in the corner.
Cronos and Lucifer locked eyes and the big man gave the faintest nod. He knew what Lucifer wanted from him and he’d give it.
Sathanas would find out about this fight and get in by any means necessary to help Melissa and when he did?
He’d find Cronos waiting for him.
