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raisoramizu · 3 months ago

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Chapter 11 - The Symphony of Chaos

Hazbin Hotel Fanfic "New Order" (Radioapple/Radiostatic/Applemedia) Previous Chapter: Intro - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 10

The images for this fanfiction are for illustrative purposes only, and all credits go to their respective artists.

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...

"...She was in Heaven. That's where everything started to change."

Lucifer replied to Charlie, averting his gaze from her, but his daughter's sharp intake of breath at that revelation pulled his attention back.

"In Heaven?! And... how did they let her stay there for so many years?!" she gasped, eyes wide with disbelief. She had promised herself she wouldn't make any sudden moves, but she could no longer hold back—everything she was learning felt overwhelmingly absurd. Lucifer hunched his shoulders, his jaws clenched in guilt, his claws gripping the edge of the bed.

"I don't know... but considering what's been happening these past few weeks, I think... I think it has something to do with Adam. She probably made a deal with him, manipulating him with some lie."

"Adam?!" Charlie shrieked again, clutching her face in her hands. Lucifer recoiled even further.

"..." He didn't need to look at her to understand the expression she wore or her state of mind. He could feel the tension rising, feel her heating up, feel her shock and despair. He was in despair too, a sense of dread tightening his chest, using all his energy to keep from breaking down in panic and hopelessness.

"Is that why Adam was here? Why Mom was here... because of him?"

"Yes, but..." Summoning a surge of courage, Lucifer turned toward her, reaching for her shoulders. Charlie flinched, stiffening. "...Don't... don't get upset. I'll tell you everything, I'll be honest, I promise... I'm sorry, Charlie..." He felt the warmth of tears clouding his vision again, swallowing the lump in his throat. How could he ask her to stay calm when he himself was far from calm? Finally, he met her eyes, locking his gaze with hers.

"..." She was looking at him with a furrowed brow and a frightened expression, her mouth slightly open, but she was listening. Lucifer sighed and continued.

"Adam came here to have me warn his fiancée in Heaven... and to convince me, he blackmailed me, threatening to tell you everything I'm telling you now... to speak ill of your mother." "...I don't know what ties them together, but... she tried to kill him, then charmed him into trying to kill Alastor, as you saw yourself."

"..." Charlie stared at him, mouth agape, before snapping out of her stunned expression and arching her eyebrows, her lips pulling into a tense smile.

"Why kill Alastor?"

"Because... she's... eh-eh," Lucifer let out a nervous laugh, twisting his mouth into an awkward expression. "She's jealous of my relationship with him, but also because... uh... Alastor's soul belongs to her." He lowered his gaze. Speaking of Alastor brought a knot of anxiety to his stomach; he wanted him, he missed him, he felt broken, consumed by worry. It felt like grieving: the distance from the red demon was a kind of mourning. "I'm sorry I kept all of this from you. I didn't want you to suffer."

Charlie was frozen. Her mother had Alastor's soul? She wanted to ask her father why, since when, but nothing came out. All she felt was a deep sense of disappointment, fear, and her father's fingers tightening around her shoulders, though not in a way that hurt.

"Alastor is weak because she took his power, destroyed his staff," Lucifer continued, staring at his daughter's knees. Why was he here talking to her instead of going after him by force? He had the strength. Physically, yes—but not mentally. "And if he's with the Media Demon, it's my fault for demanding without listening to him... but if I tried to take him away now, he'd resist. I'd have to fight him..." His voice broke as hot tears began to stream from his eyes. Just then, he felt Charlie pull him into a tight embrace that knocked the breath out of him. He found himself resting his face on her shoulder, feeling her hands gently run through his hair in comforting strokes.

"It's okay, Dad, we'll just talk to Mom. I'm sure she'll give Alastor his soul back, and you two will find a solution."

But those words of hope felt like daggers to him. "..." "...I'll talk to Lilith, yes, but... I think she's still trying to wake Roo, along with the TV Demon."

...

PINPIN

Valentino's phone rang suddenly, and when he answered, "Voxy?"

The disheveled face of the Moth Demon appeared on the TV Demon's screen. He looked exhausted, like he'd been sleeping, with smeared lipstick and a cloud of reddish smoke swirling around him from his love filter.

"Val, move it! Get to the second floor of Velvette's tower, now!" Vox snarled impatiently, panting as he rushed down a long hallway painted in shades of purple and red, heading toward a neon blue door.

Valentino looked baffled. "But I'm busy—"

"BULLSHIT!" Vox interrupted, his voice suddenly exploding, distorted like he had a problem with his speakers. "Drop all your whores and get here, NOW!" He added, immediately pressing a button on his screen and hanging up the call. His sweaty, aggressive, and frantic expression reappeared on the TV face just before he stormed into Velvette's workspace.

One of the large double doors flew open, slammed by Vox's arm, reverberating loudly through the room and startling the jittery figure of Velvette, who had been hunched over her desk drawing.

The room was spacious and semicircular, lit by endless windows casting red hues behind the Sinner. She was wrapped in her long, striped blue, white, and red tails, the same colors as her top and bell-bottom pants, still seated at her desk, which was cluttered with sketches of all kinds of clothing designs.

"Hey! What the hell's wrong with you barging in like that?!" Velvette's red eyes, with white pupils, bulged as she glared at him, but Vox kept moving toward her.

"No time, you're coming with me!" he growled, completely out of control, reaching her desk.

She barely had time to straighten up and turn toward him, her mouth pulling down in total disapproval. "What the hell are you talking about, I'm wor—ehk! Hey, put me down! What's wrong with your circuits?!"

Vox lifted her effortlessly, grabbing her under her arms and hauling her up by the waist.

"Fucking walking TV, I'll kill you! Put me down, what the hell's gotten into you?!"

Valentino, followed by Angel Dust, caught up with Vox in the hallway, where Velvette's furious curses echoed.

As the Moth Demon finished adjusting his oversized red coat, he spotted the Sinner, hanging from Vox's side, thrashing wildly. Velvette clawed at Vox's immovable arm in a fit of rage and embarrassment, her face flushed crimson from the humiliating position she was in.

"Wh... what's going on, darling?" Valentino asked, eyebrows raised, mouth nearly hitting his chin as he looked up from Velvette to Vox's face, frantically trying to keep up with him as he stormed down the corridor. Vox kept moving toward the elevator, but when he turned to respond to Valentino, he froze, seeing Angel Dust trailing behind, equally confused and concerned, with the same smeared lipstick and messy tuft of hair.

A wave of irritation surged through Vox, causing his antennae to spark.

"And him—!" He cut himself off with a nervous crackle, swallowing hard. "Move! I think something's about to happen!"

...

The sound of the heavy metal door echoed inside the soundproof room, startling the three Sinners, leaving them baffled and afraid. Vox had already rushed ahead, positioning himself at a sleek modern desk equipped with multiple computer screens.

They found themselves in a rectangular room with no windows or exits. The walls were massive screens themselves, attached to soundproofing material that blocked out any external noise. The only sound was the frantic tapping of Vox's blue claws on the keyboard. Tense, his teeth grinding, he scanned the displays showing footage from various cameras: the exterior and entrance of the tower, Hazbin Hotel, a couple of main streets in Pentagram City, and the largest TV studio of all, though the feed was silent.

In that studio was Alastor, still there. He circled the curved desk, dragging his red claws across the back of the velvet armchair Vox had prepared for him. Then he sat in front of the microphone, his red eyes turning toward the cameras, the usual goofy smile plastered on his face, as if he were under the influence of some drug.

There was still time to stop everything, to prevent every TV in the Pride Ring from broadcasting the podcast—it was even set to air on some lower channels. What would happen? Alastor knew, but he hadn't said a word, not even under hypnosis.

Lucifer had said that someone was inside Alastor; was it Lilith? Was she involved in all of this? If it were something concerning her, surely the angel would have sensed it. There was still time, he could stop it, but... would it make things better or worse? He could cancel something whose consequences he didn't understand, or almost certainly collapse along with everything he had built, everything he cared about, everyone he cared about...

Vox stared at Alastor through the screens in the soundproof room, frozen, sweat streaking down his TV face, until... around the Half-Stag's neck, the transparent, violet shape of his pact began to glow.

"..." The TV Demon's eyes shrank.

"Voxy, what's happening...? Vox?!" Valentino's voice cut through the silence.

...

Meanwhile, all the screens—already on—throughout Pentagram City, and even in Imp City, located in the same ring, continued airing commercials for VoxTek's new products, all made with a special material.

It was hidden everywhere; items were coated with it, embedded in circuits, mixed into ceramics and plastics, even the bristles of house-cleaning brushes. Angelic metal.

It filled store windows and had replaced old railings or trash bins in some parts of the city—not that trash bins got much use in Hell. And the Hellborn kept buying, drawn in by the ads, hypnotized by Vox. They continued filing in and out of stores, getting the latest model of smartphone or those bizarre, sharp new sex toys. They were still doing it, even now, as the broadcast warned that the podcast would air in just a few minutes, so even the last stragglers could tune in.

...

They were still at it, even as Lucifer continued talking to Charlie in that seemingly protective room, where the red light from the infernal sky kept filtering through the windows.

Lucifer hadn't yet faced Lilith; his constant procrastination, his waiting for something external to shake him into action, like when Charlie had pulled him out of the hole his palace had become, hadn't worked this time. Not even Alastor had been enough to snap him out of it. The angel was completely consumed by his emotions, by his passive existence, which would soon lead Hell to ruin. Or worse—bring down all of creation?

"Your mother thinks she can control Roo, but I'm not so sure... Her voice holds power over demons, but it weakens with the Princes, and it's practically nothing to angels..." "...It doesn't even affect you."

Still seated on the bed, hands resting on his bent knees, Lucifer raised his tear-streaked golden eyes to Charlie's incredulous face. She sat beside him, her arms wrapped around his shoulders, gently rubbing them, trying to give him warmth and calm.

"...Mom's song has always soothed me," Charlie attempted to correct him.

"Yes... because you understand its purpose and can let yourself go to it, but it only takes a little willpower for it to have no effect on you." He smiled, the memory pulling a tender expression across his face. "In fact, when you were a baby, it never worked. No matter how much she sang, you drove us crazy."

"..." Charlie blinked in surprise, her eyebrows lifting before she returned his smile with a sweet expression of her own. It lasted only a moment before she recovered herself. "But if Mom can't control Roo, what will happen?" she asked, alarm spreading across her face again.

Lucifer shook his blonde head. "I don't know... I don't know if it still has a conscience, if it'll recognize anyone, if it'll live with us, if it'll want to rule in my place, or if..."

"Conscience?"

"..." At that question, Lucifer felt a sharp pang in his chest. "Eve..."

But just as he uttered that name, the television mounted on the ceiling flickered to life with a burst of light, switching on at an unbearably high volume. Both Lucifer and Charlie jumped at the sudden noise, their eyes snapping upward in sync.

"!!" Lucifer's eyes widened in shock.

"Alastor!" Charlie cried out, leaping to her feet, darting past her father to get closer to the TV.

"My dear listeners, did you miss me? Oh, but of course you did!~"

Alastor's sharp, affable voice, perfect for radio, echoed throughout the room and across the entire Pride Ring, the silence broken only by the occasional sounds of cars or the movements of demons. Every communication system synced to the broadcast of the Demon's voice.

And there he was, sprawled across the armchair, his back against one armrest, his feet dangling over the other, gripping the vintage, round-headed microphone in his claw, his face sporting his trademark grin. His very presence, however, caused faint video interference—fizzling waves rippling across the screen.

"As promised, here's the first episode of the podcast. I'll be hosting it solo—I hope you don't mind! Oh, but of course you don't! After all, I've got much more class and style than that outdated walking TV obsessed with keeping up with the times!"

Lucifer jumped to his feet as well, standing beside Charlie, his face tilted upward toward the television. Terror and panic were already creeping into him, reflected in his golden eyes as they watched Alastor's lively gestures. A dark, suffocating realization hit the Seraph the moment he heard:

"...We'll start with the opening! I know you wanted to hear my voice, but j'ai quelque chose de mieux~ ...Lilith!"

At the mention of her name, Lucifer felt an electric jolt shoot down his spine, and from every speaker, a thunderous, painful blast of music erupted, featuring Lilith's powerful voice. The song had no lyrics, only an aggressive, rock-like tone that resonated with her vocal cords.

Charlie felt a piercing ring pressing into her head. She immediately clapped her hands over her ears, groaning in pain as her vision blurred and everything turned red. "Ahh, what...?"

She growled, bending forward rigidly, her body trembling as her hair and eyes began to ignite in an instinctual transformation. Lucifer, though not transforming himself, stumbled back until he collided with the bed, letting out a low groan. The song was everywhere, reverberating through every single communication device, from small electronic watches to the massive screens in the central crossroads of Pentagram City. The volume was so loud that the walls shook, the ground rumbled like a war drum, and Charlie's room trembled.

Lucifer lunged toward his daughter, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her with the most desperate expression he'd ever worn. "Wake up! Don't let the song take over, it's your mot—"

But once again, Lucifer's words were violently cut off by a sudden explosion from the floors below the hotel. The ground shook, but even more so when numerous explosions of varying intensities began booming outside, throughout the city.

The shockwave from one blast shattered a window, sending shards flying toward Charlie, but she was promptly shielded by one of the Seraph's wings. The Princess barely had time to process what was happening when even more explosions opened a large crack in the floor.

"What the hell is going on?! Dad, the others! Vaggie and Niffty are downstairs!"

Charlie screamed, panicked, and bolted toward the door as the explosions continued. Sirens wailed in the distance, and dust rising from the ground had darkened the sky, once visible through the windows. Dust, plaster, and chunks of stone fell from the ceiling with each tremor as Lucifer opened a golden portal in front of the room's entrance. In her frantic rush, Charlie tumbled into the portal without even realizing it.

The Princess was spat out right in front of the bar counter, now covered in dust and the red smoke of Cherri Bomb's explosives—yes, she was there too, though her location wasn't immediately clear. Charlie's ears immediately picked up the sharp voice of Vaggie yelling, "Niffty, stop it! What's gotten into you?!"

"Vaggie!" the blonde cried out, pushing her way through the chaos.

Husk lay face-down on the ground. Above him, Niffty, her eye filled with dark substance, had stabbed a brush between the cat demon's shoulder blades. The Half-Cat was bleeding profusely but still thrashing, his large, casino-light-colored wings flapping wildly, his eyes fully blackened. Black, tar-like substance dripped from his mouth as well. Seeing that dark matter made Charlie's chest tighten, her breathing become irregular as a grim realization hit her. The chaos around her seemed to close in: every noise grew louder, every movement more frantic. It was the same substance Adam had oozed when he tried to kill Alastor.

"Charlie!" Vaggie screamed. "It's angelic metal! Niffty's brush is made of angelic metal!" She added with the same panic, grabbing Niffty by the waist in an attempt to pull her away, only to provoke her further. With a sharp growl and her black eye bulging toward her, Niffty raised the bloodied brush and swung it toward Vaggie's face.

"VAGGIE!" Charlie shouted, her blonde hair bursting into flames as her horns curved into place. With crimson eyes, she lunged toward her partner, but a golden rope shot out, wrapping tightly around Niffty's small body. The cockroach-girl found herself bound in multiple loops of the glowing rope, causing her to drop the brush before being dragged toward one of the semi-destroyed columns of Alastor's bar.

Panting and transformed, Charlie reached Vaggie, wrapping her arms around her shoulders while still casting a frightened glance toward Lucifer. "Dad!"

Lucifer, stepping through the portal, moved swiftly along the bar, heading for the entrance. He too had assumed his demonic form, with six white and red wings filling most of the space, brushing against the tables. His blonde hair was twisted with burning, curved horns, and a snake-shaped halo circled his head. A ghostly red eye with a vertical pupil had appeared on his bow tie, matching the glowing red eyes on the inner lining of his vest, as he wasn't wearing his jacket or hat. His tail, ending in a spearhead, whipped through the air as his bright red eyes flashed toward Charlie. "Keep yourselves safe. I'm going to get Alastor!"

He growled, his sharp teeth clenched as he tried to shout over the still-blaring music. He was definitely furious, but more than that—he was terrified. In that form, though, he appeared more dangerous than anything, and Charlie seemed reassured by the sight of him. "Yes!" she exclaimed, nodding firmly.

The angel extended another hand, wrapping Husk up like a mummy with the same golden rope, just as the Half-Cat was aggressively trying to get back up. With a swift motion of his other arm, Lucifer created a transparent barrier that contained one of Cherri Bomb's explosives, binding the Sinner with the same golden ropes.

As Charlie and Vaggie rushed to help the frenzied demons of the hotel, Lucifer headed outside.

...

The moment he stepped outside the hotel, he could see the chaos engulfing the city. From the hilltop where the building stood, he watched as Pentagram City burned. The city was a blazing inferno; flames coiled around buildings like red smoke serpents, and explosions rocked the ground beneath him. Normally chaotic and noisy, the city now resembled an apocalyptic battlefield. Distant screams mixed with the sound of gunfire, and the air was thick with the acrid stench of ash and blood. For a moment, he froze. That familiar sense of panic gripped his muscles, leaving them numb, and his teeth clattered together. With a surge of anger, he dug his claws into his blonde hair, shaking his head—he had to save Alastor. He had to take down that damned TV Demon and... Lilith. His wide, pupil-less red eyes flared. Did he want to kill her? He could feel the desire rising within him. Seriously. What right did he even have to think that? After ten thousand years by her side, just because he had now found hope, joy, love...? He wanted to kill her.

He looked up at the pale sphere of Heaven fixed in the sky and spat fire from his mouth, his expression hardening. Then he leapt into the air. There was no time to waste. Every second lost could mean Alastor's death and the awakening of Roo. Was there really angelic metal in those strange products Vox had been obsessively advertising?

In the silence of the soundproofed room, the TV Demon was watching everything unfold on his screens. He sat frozen, claws poised over the keyboard, shoulders hunched forward, his face locked onto the televisions streaming the chaos. One by one, some of the projections fizzled and went dark as cameras were destroyed. He had seen what happened in the hotel bar, a drone tracked Lucifer's flight over the city, and the others—those that still functioned—showed flames, blood, and demons tearing each other apart. Every demon in the city, from Imps to Succubi, even lesser demons, and of course the Sinners, were brutally slaughtering each other with whatever they could find. They all oozed a black substance from their eyes and mouths, falling in droves—gutted, burned. He couldn't see into the districts controlled by the other Overlords, and had no idea what was happening in the industrial district ruled by Carmilla. From a distance, he could faintly make out demons devouring each other in Cannibal Town.

Almost by chance, Vox noticed a small screen projecting the image of the massive elevator used to access the other Circles of Hell; the doors slammed shut, crushing a swarm of demons trying to escape, and a red "Alert" signal began flashing at the top. The Princes had sealed off their Circles to contain the damage caused by the rampaging demons.

His gaze shifted to the TV studio: Alastor was there, sitting motionless in his chair while demons in the room butchered each other savagely. He was hunched forward, his antlers spread wide, his head lowered so that his face was hidden beneath his hair. Voodoo symbols, broken and fractured, swirled around him, trying to reassemble themselves. More than anything, the Crossroads of Kalfu spun behind him, and the Half Stag... he was swelling, larger than usual. Alastor's body trembled, and sickly green seams, pulsating and unnatural, had formed along his shoulders. They stretched his flesh, as though something inside him was writhing, desperate to escape. From the cracks, only darkness seeped out, an abyss so deep it seemed alive. As though something was trapped within his body.

"Vox! What the hell is going on out there?!" Valentino's voice boomed so loud it snapped the TV Demon back to reality. The Mothman darted to the console beside him, staring at the screens in disbelief, while Vox flinched as a tremor shook the building, sending Angel Dust and Velvette crashing to the floor with startled yelps.

"Don't even think about leaving this place!" the Shark snarled, drooling, gripping the desk to steady himself as the earthquake subsided. "It's Lilith! That bitch's voice is driving all the demons insane!" ... "They're seriously killing each other because I..." he swallowed hard, feeling himself sink, his gaze drifting back to Alastor on the screen, "...I filled every single item with angelic metal..." he whispered, stunned by the realization.

On that same screen, Lucifer's panting figure appeared at the entrance of the TV studios...

Meanwhile, in Heaven, Emily and Sera, safely protected in their golden fortress, stared in horror at everything happening in Hell through a large, glowing magic orb.

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