thedukeofhell: (Default)
[personal profile] thedukeofhell
What looks like a speck of black dust on the floor of the mansion starts growing, widening, until there's a large pool of darkness on the ground. It bubbles and roils, as thick and glistening as oil. A low wailing that sounds like a thousand lost souls crying out comes from it -- and a figure slowly climbs its way out of the darkness. The smell of sulphur permeates its way through the room. It's all very stereotypical. A little predictable, some would say.

Hastur, a Duke of Hell, stands in the middle of the room. He is tall, dark, definitely not handsome -- and definitely not a sight for sore eyes. If one had sore eyes and looked at him, one would instead want to use one's own fingers to tear one's own eyes out of the sockets rather than continue looking at him. He's distinctly quite maggoty until he pulls his form together more, at which point he's only mildly maggoty. Mildly maggoty and pissed.

He knows he's here. He can smell him here, the unique scent of gloomy fall evenings, leather jackets, gasoline, and something very... ophidian. After that whole ordeal with the Apocalypse, the stupid demon, the upstart, the fool, the-- flash bastard1 just up and left, saddling Hastur with all of his paperwork! Car parked on the street, abandoned. That was the kicker. The real head-scratcher. Why would Crowley abandon his car? The only explanation is that he's out there getting into some sort of trouble he shouldn't be... Disobeying the Lord and Master's orders, surely.2

"CROWLEY!" He suddenly yells, turning in a small circle. There's no response.

"Crawly," he says, quieter and more sinister. He walks to the door of the room, peering down the hallway. "I know you're here. I know you've abandoned your position. We aren't happy with you. He isn't happy with you. You're in big trouble... and you know what that means. We've done this before and I'm still BLOODY PISSED from last time. I've been sent to fetch you and the sooner you see me, the sooner you come to me... the fewer repercussions you'll have to face." The unhappy smile on his face says otherwise.

Hastur, Duke of Hell, is angry and on the hunt for a particular demon. Apologies to anyone who gets in his way.

1Hastur's insults typically lack swear words, despite being a demon, because (due to being a demon) he is quite uncreative.
2 The concepts of trouble and disobedience are lauded in Hell in thought but not the practice-- and especially not against Hell.
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Date: 2023-12-13 05:45 pm (UTC)

wickedwit: (mm really?)
From: [personal profile] wickedwit
Well, it’s not subtle, that’s for certain. Claudius overhears the monologue — which, he supposes, was meant to be heard, so he can’t fault the man (? demon, definitely demon) for making it obvious. He pours himself a Scotch, because he needs it if he’s going to run interference on an angry demon seeking Crowley.

It doesn’t occur to him for a moment to do anything but interfere. Well, there are a few, fleeting considerations — he could go to one of his infinitely more powerful friends, and let them know what’s going on. But that’s step two. Step one is to assess who they’re dealing with. After that, Claudius’s weapons are obfuscating charm, and maybe pointing in an unlikely direction. He steps into sight, and puts on a smile. “Hello there,” he says. “Can I be of any help to you?”
Date: 2023-12-13 10:22 pm (UTC)

az_fell: (Default)
From: [personal profile] az_fell
Oh. Oh, dear. Aziraphale senses Hastur's presence long before he sees him. It's hard to miss demonic energy this rancid, unfortunately. It feels like something stuck in his esophagus that won't go down right no matter how hard he coughs.

"You really ought to leave," he advises Hastur with mild dismay.
Date: 2023-12-13 10:33 pm (UTC)

wickedwit: (mm really?)
From: [personal profile] wickedwit
"Crowley ... Crowley. That's a hard one." Claudius drinks his scotch like that'll help him remember Really, he's thinking how much more this one looks like a typical demon in a creative etching of Hell. So many maggots. It reminds him of something in Crowley's burn book. "Try something smaller and we'll see if I can work my way up to it. Do you want a drink? An introduction to the mansion? We could even try exchanging names and pleasantries, see where that gets us."
Date: 2023-12-13 11:29 pm (UTC)

wickedwit: (smiling villain)
From: [personal profile] wickedwit
"Oh, don't do that. Don't say I can sense it with confidence. That's very effective, if you're dealing with someone who has any idea what your kind are capable of sensing, but I am woefully ignorant and I can't tell whether you're bluffing." Claudius smiles. It's a charming smile, but with no expectation to charm -- it's just the best one he can call up. "I might know him, if that makes you more inclined to be pleasant. My name is Claudius."
Date: 2023-12-14 12:26 am (UTC)

az_fell: (dubious)
From: [personal profile] az_fell
"He can be as far as he likes," Aziraphale objects, attempting to maintain an understatedly pleasant demeanor. He's not particularly succeeding. "Aren't you -- you know, no longer in existence? Surely Crowley, who is in existence, is allowed to be anyplace he likes, in comparison."
Date: 2023-12-14 04:33 am (UTC)

az_fell: (hmm)
From: [personal profile] az_fell
There are two of them?! Aziraphale must have known that at some point. Whoops-a-daisy. "Are you entirely sure you want to find out precisely how Crowley may have had access to holy water, demon?"
Date: 2023-12-14 04:46 am (UTC)

wickedwit: (mm really?)
From: [personal profile] wickedwit
“Are you proposing a one by one situation, or all at once?” That matters. For one, he’d better finish his Scotch now, because portioning it out between dismemberments would be inconvenient.

Here’s another inconvenient thing. Claudius loves to lie, and could lie all day. Truthfully, he says, “As it happens, I’m quite fond of Crowley. You’ll have to provide a more convincing reason for me to tell you anything about him.”
Date: 2023-12-14 03:52 pm (UTC)

az_fell: (a.z. fell)
From: [personal profile] az_fell
"Oh?" Aziraphale puts his hands into the pockets of his waistcoat, with the expression of someone surveying a recent purchase and experiencing a twinge of buyer's remorse. "So much might that you won't mind if you do get a little sprinkle of holy water after all, is that right?"
Date: 2023-12-14 04:06 pm (UTC)

sporesprouter: (Default)
From: [personal profile] sporesprouter
That was... quite the rant. Tress peers cautiously into the room. "Um. Hello. Are you all right?"
Date: 2023-12-14 04:22 pm (UTC)

wickedwit: (smiling villain)
From: [personal profile] wickedwit
"I've a shocking lack of frail, human friends," Claudius says, in his most pleasant and conversational tones. "One or two, I suppose. Everyone else seems to have cultivated a vast well of spiritual energy, or to have studied magic to conjure elemental forces with their hands, or to be blessed by God to win every battle. That particular friend can also emanate holy fire, if that's a problem for you. Oh, but I'm being too coy with my information, aren't I?" Claudius interrupts himself, with a rueful shake of his head. "He's more than a friend."
Date: 2023-12-14 05:36 pm (UTC)

az_fell: (hmm)
From: [personal profile] az_fell
"Are you quite sure?" Aziraphale tilts his head a little. "Angels don't lie," he lies.
Date: 2023-12-14 05:36 pm (UTC)

sporesprouter: (Default)
From: [personal profile] sporesprouter
She blinks. "Crowley? I haven't seen him today, but he's probably around somewhere." The overheard rant is still fresh in her mind, though, so she's fairly confident that there are no good intentions here. "I mean, I have some ideas of where he might be, but I can't guarantee any of them."
Date: 2023-12-14 05:46 pm (UTC)

wickedwit: (mm really?)
From: [personal profile] wickedwit
Buy me a drink first would be Claudius's go-to response, but the maggots are too disquieting for that kind of taunting-by-flirting. He holds up his hands in a gesture of harmlessness -- because he is harmless. "All right, all right. But I have, if anything, an excess of information," he says, unable to resist some sort of taunting1. "And it tells me you won't have much luck."

1 And bluffing. Wild, overconfident bluffing.
Date: 2023-12-14 09:29 pm (UTC)

protagonisthalo: (you fool......)
From: [personal profile] protagonisthalo
Luo Binghe was drawn by the yelling. When he arrives at the source, he is dismayed to see this sinister being facing down with the man who is apparently Crowley's Aziraphale. Aziraphale doesn't seem worried—he seems quite cheerful, but, well, Luo Binghe saw his performance at the talent show. The man is useless, yet the heart wants what it wants. In the words of the ancients that Crowley shared with him—the ancestral wisdom of their line—"love is love." Luo Binghe will not fail his family.

He leaps forward and places himself firmly between Aziraphale and the newcomer, radiating demonic qi and killing intent. "Leave this man in peace, villain, or face my wrath!"
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