"Sir. There is someone here to see you." His assistant said, peeking her head into his office. His office wasn't much of an office but more of a room he went to get some peace and quiet. Overseeing the dead was a tiring thing to do, but being able to clear his head here was pleasant.
"Who is coming down to visit me? I haven't had a visitor in a long ti-" he stopped in his tracks, watching Envy stand in front of them with tears streaming down their face. "Sweetie?"
Envy stood awkwardly, holding both hands behind her back as she whispered a small "Hi."
"I haven't seen you in forever!! Come here."
Envy rushed into their arms, hugging them tightly. "What happened? Is something wrong? You don't come back to hell very often." She nodded, wiping her eyes as a mix of happy and sad tears began to flow. "It's Damian. Something is attacking his mind, and we don't know how to stop it, and I'm worried for him."
"That's your boyfriend, right? Satan's son?"
She nodded again, looking up at him. "Lillith has been messing with all of the sins. And something she did to him has made him...I don't even know. Pride says it's like a Parasite. It's using its insecurities against him. Like a...prison of his mind. It might kill him...and I'm scared."
"A parasite demon...feeds off insecurities...I know of that, yes," he said as he thought back. The years would begin to blend together down here. Sometimes it was hard to tell how recently or how long ago something happened. He just tried to live in the moment and block out any references to time.
But it had to have been years since he had seen Envy. She had already grown so much since the last time he saw her. Her smile had gotten even more beautiful as time passed. The long dark jacket that envy made for him many years ago he wore constantly reminded him of good times together. He remembered when she didn't even have braids. She had a large frizzy afro with which she would have to duck into doorways to stop it from getting hit. He remembered when she used to come to his office and vent to him about how hard it was being here.
He knew that, and he understood it deeply. He remembered how hard his first days here were. But he crafted a spot down here for himself. It was his home, and it was partially Envy's. She was welcome whenever she needed somewhere to be.
Which made it even more concerning why she hadn't been here for so long and how she had only shown up now.
"How can I help?" He asked, rubbing his salt and pepper beard. "You told me to come to you when I needed power. I'm calling it in." He grinned, gesturing to the seats beside him.
"You used to tell me you'd never want it."
"Well, things have changed a bit." She said, sitting down in the chair, playing with her braids. "So, tell me what you're looking for, kid." He asked, reaching down behind the desk beside them and opening a briefcase.
"I want to be able to protect Damian. But I want to be able to understand him too. I know it'll take a lot of work to figure out how to fight, but I want to do it for him. Physically and emotionally, I want to be his protector." Envy said, looking up at the man in the eyes. He looked back silently and then smiled a bit.
"You like this one, eh?"
"A lot. A whole fucking lot."
He smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I think I have just the thing for you. But remember this, Kid. This isn't something you can throw around as much as you'd like. It's a responsibility. Don't abuse it, okay?"
"I won't, Hades."
"Stop being professional. You don't have to call me that. I'm not your boss," Envy sighed, rolling her eyes with a small smile.
"I won't, Dad."
"That's my Girl."
Damian didn't know how much time had passed. Days? Weeks? Months? It had been tortuous setting upon tortuous setting. Every time he got used to the terrible predicament, it would change and contort to make it worse than he could even imagine.
He saw the sins be killed over and over, again and again. He watched the Bar get burned to the ground. Satan stabbed, shot, and ripped his body apart repeatedly, laughing as he screamed for mercy that would never come. He watched the sins live without him. He saw Envy find a new man, who made her even happier than she was with him.
He saw everything.
He saw Wrath and Pride talk behind his back. Talk about how they didn't think he was worthy of being the prince of hell. He heard Lust and Gluttony and Greed laugh at his mannerisms. He watched Sloth and Envy make fun of his past.
He saw everything.
He saw his past. He relived him being attacked relentlessly again and again at school. He relieved the many many times people had robbed the Bar at gunpoint. He relived being beaten to a pulp by the man who had just killed his father, standing over him and breaking every beer bottle he had over his head.
He saw everything.
He even saw his actual body. He was lying lifeless on the bed, screaming out with no one to help him. They abandoned him. They didn't love him. They didn't care for him. No one did. He didn't feel anything anymore. He didn't feel pain. He didn't feel sadness. He didn't feel loneliness.
He wanted revenge.
It burned deep inside of his soul, swallowing everything else in his head whole. It was all his body ached for. All he wanted was for them to feel pain. That's what the darkness had told him. It controlled him, and he was just a vessel for it. They both wanted the exact same thing, and they would both receive it soon.
He would make sure of it.
