Rental's Hazbin fic Archive

"Bound by Blood"

Content warning: Depictions of abuse, graphic injuries, and partial nudity.

Life in the aftermath of the recent extermination had finally been looking up, for the residents of the Hazbin Hotel and beyond. No longer did Sinners have to live in fear of the Angelic legions, quickly becoming popular information these Raven-cloaked soldiers could be killed through means as simple as grabbing an Angelic/Blessed Weapon, fighting back against the inexperienced Angels. The flow of knowledge had shaken the foundation of the City to its very core, making way for a drastic shift in the political climate and vast swathes of territory open for the taking. The Vees took particular interest in this detail, quickly making work on a wide variety of assault plans to claim this territory for themselves and further spread their influence throughout the City.

The Hotel itself had probably endured the largest shift out of everything, being entirely destroyed in the aftermath of the Extermination by the hands of Adam's unexpected powers. But with his death, they both managed to protect the residents of the Hotel and the entirety of Hell from the Exorcists. At least most of them, with both Pentious and Dazzle having perished during the battle while defending this establishment. Both ironically by the hands of the ones in command of the Exterminations. But from the rubble of the Hotel, a collaborative effort between the residents and the King himself allowed for a grander building to be constructed where the previous one stood. A hotel meant to represent both Charlie's Dream and the return of the King to the public eye.

This time around, he didn't intend on letting his dream, their dream be crushed so easily. On the outside, everything had seemed perfect. But once that near-death euphoria faded, the situation found itself quickly regressing back to the situation it had been in prior to the Exterminations. There existed no genuine evidence the Hotel worked, with two of it's residents having been brutally murdered during their 6 month of redemption. The media only viewed it's owner as a badass for staving off the Exorcists, forcing them to retreat and murder their leader. They still lacked an effective method, or any method, of recruiting more Sinners for the Hotel. Despite his phrasing, Lucifer's presence didn't helped much.

Now, the only people showing up on their doorstep were News Reporters and various Sinners of high status, looking to either hear his thoughts on recent events or strike deals with him as a means of gaining power/territory/influence without earning it. In other words, they wanted to use him for their own benefit since his return, underestimating his capabilities. To say it enraged Lucifer was an understatement, to the point they began willingly driving off these Demons through passive aggressive methods. Depending on who's at the door, either Vaggie or Alastor would answer. And on the subject of the Fallen and the Overlord, tensions were anything but low between them in the aftermath of the Extermination.

Even greater so than the tensions between Alastor and Lucifer, she hadn't forgotten the fact he struck an unknown deal with her girlfriend and refused to elaborate on the specifics. With the last attempt at interrogative the answer out of him, he responded and quote 'it'll all be explained in good time, my dear' before quickly dismissing the Fallen Angel. This had been attempted several times, each ending with little success and a progressively more infuriated woman. Sometimes, she asked herself why not tell Lucifer about this. And at the same time, she remembered exactly what could happen if he'd ever find out about this. The Dreamer despised the Overlord, that's no big secret.

They had an entire argument in song form, mere minutes after meeting each other. But telling him that Alastor had been attempting to use his daughter for some unknown agenda, he might just flip a switch and outright murder him. It's not rocket science to understand the damage that might cause, for the inhabitants and the rest of Hell. The only benefits to be gained from his death would be Husk and Nifty finally getting relieved of duty, this mysterious deal between him and Charlie vanishing and Vox's ancient rival finally getting taken out of the picture. But maybe... no no, she's not about to associate herself with the Vees, potentially risking her own soul and more to those tyrannical freaks.

Even if their assistance could help, she especially knew better than that. This was a personal matter, and although Charlie would potentially disagree with her methods, it was all to protect her from that monster. And so today, she had taken it upon herself to take it a step further and cross a line she once swore she'd never step over again. Brandishing her Angelic Spear once more, she donned a Makeshift Exorcist armor and Lute's damaged Mask in an attempt to look intimidating. In the dead of night, Alastor wandered the halls, fully incapable of sleeping like a normal person. And why rest at all? When that time could be much better spent lurking through the halls and enjoying his own Radio broadcasts.

However, that walk had been interrupted by an abrupt this from behind him, accompanied by someone saying ow before picking themselves up. He turned to see his dear associate in quite a bizarre uniform, making sure it wasn't damaged. "Lurking? At this hour? And here I was convinced no one could relate! Tell me, what activities might you partake in the dead of night? Surely none of that wacky noise you refer to as 'anime'." Alastor replied with air quotes, poking at the fact Vaggie was known to sneak into the Main Lobby late at night and slip some of her favorite Anime into the DVD player besides the TV. Until now, she genuinely believed no one but herself was privy to this. Looks like she'll have to be more secretive about it.

But now is not the time for distractions. She held the Spear outwards, taking a step towards the Radio Demon. "Dead air, is it? Then could you be so generous as to explain why you've dressed so poorly, brandishing a Spear towards me?" Alastor's questioning persisted, wondering what might've provoked her to display such strange behavior. "I am sick of your shit, you egotistical piece of yesterday's news! We let you stay here, knowing all you wanted to do was watch us fail to run this place! But the second Lucifer came into the picture, you realized we might not need you anymore. So what do you do? Drag Charlie into your twisted fucking games, like some kind of get out of jail free card!"

Vaggie had thrown together an entire assumption on what could've possibly motivated him. Alastor didn't bother to correct her, moreso curious on where exactly Vaggie was going with the news. "You are going to let Charlie go, now! And never even think about fucking with her or me again!" She demanded, stepping ever so closer to the Radio Demon. She kept some distance, to avoid any traps or tricks the Overlord might spring while seemingly so unfazed by her threats. "Oh! That's what you wanted? Quite the eccentric delivery for such a trivial request, haha! But I'm afraid there's no undoing what is done." Alastor ended off his response almost plainly, a complete contrast to the amused and joyful voice carrying his words prior.

"Bullshit! You made the deal, you can let her go! I've lived long enough to see right through this 'no second chances' bullshit, and all that fake bravado you fancied pricks toss around like Candy to convince your slaves it's hopeless. So drop the act, shitass!" Vaggie wasn't about to just fuck off from Alastor's little manipulative tactics. Every Overlord has them, customizing them to suite their own personalities and ideals. "And what if all that's true? You've not provided even a single attempt at persuasion! And you know I'd be delighted to exchange her contract for something of equal value, now how's that sound?" That was just Alastor's way of saying he'd be more than happy to exchange contracts, if Vaggie was willing to take her place in his schemes.

"Oh persuasion? You want persuasion, asshole?! How about me not shoving my Spear between your eyes?!" Vaggie's threat, while just blurted out of anger on the surface, held more meaning than most would realize. She'd notice that every time he went creepy or something similar, there was a peculiar little red X that formed right between his eyes, close to the forehead. It didn't match up with all the Voodoo symbols Alastor flashed around, giving her the impression its existence held more meaning than it appeared. And despite that, even he didn't catch onto the implications of her comment. "Threatening Hotel Staff? That's not very saintly of you. What happened to kindness?" That was probably the most predictable response Alastor could muster.

It was a genuine shock he didn't pull that card earlier. "Newsflash, jackass! Neither of us will ever be redeemed, and you couldn't give a shit about the whole concept. So I'll ask you again: Let Charlie go, or I'll make you." Vaggie laid out her ultimatum, taking only liberty or death in this showdown. "Well, Gypsy Moth. It would be entertaining to see you try." Alastor had displayed that eerie side of him again, unintentionally revealing that glowing little X on his Forehead. Her rage boiled to the surface, lunging at him with the Spear immediately when spotting it; Before the Radio Demon had completely finished his response. She'd barely miss his head, extending outwards in her attempt to strike at his face.

She anticipated him to evade there, swinging the blade to his head with the stance and currently held. She failed to considered the bizarre characteristics of his neck, easily snapping it backwards to completely evade the second swing. This display of unnatural flexibility unnerved her briefly, shaking it off to plan another attack. If she couldn't strike sideways, then she'll just strike downwards. Her target's figure would be far too wide to effectively evade, and stepping back would only result in getting himself pinned against the wall for a gruesome display. That confidence lead to her failing to consider the presence of Alastor's staff, stopping the Blade in it's tracks to allow himself the opportunity to move.

He stood away from the walls, ensuring not to let himself be cornered like that again. "You'll have to try harder than that, Vags! Just take from Adam's example, I'm sure you have before!" Alastor mocked at her past servitude to the First Man and the Exorcists. His objective was simply to enrage her until she gave up, which worked for a brief moment, judging by her annoyed expression. She'd take a moment to calm herself, opening her wings to block the open spaces around her. It eliminated the chance of Alastor managing to slip through on her attack, approaching him with her Spear. She began to pick up speed, with full intent on piercing his chest with little concern if it outright killed him.

It appeared as though there was no feasible way to evade this, leaving the Radio Demon to raise his hands in defeat and become engulfed in shadows. He'd sink into the floor, leaving only his hand out to hold the Staff sideways. Vaggie had built up too much speed to stop, with less than half a second to look down. She tripped and fell into this growing void that formed on the floor, just to emerge in an entirely different section of the Hotel. Unfamiliar with this segment, she glanced around and attempted to regain her bearings; Proceeding to get bonked in the head by the very Staff she tripped over. A loud growl followed, facing upwards just to see nothing there. She'd get whacked again, this time from the side of her head.

"Let this be a lesson in experience! You allowed yourself to get dragged into unfamiliar territory, where your opponent now wields the advantage. Neglecting to apply all 5 senses in regaining your footing, you instead opt to act the equivalent of a lost Dog! So much for military training!" Alastor was just fucking with her at this point, consistently mocking her training while hitting the woman in the head with a Radio Staff. Just as he predicted, her form progressively degraded to a messier, disorganized and rabid stance. The only thoughts on her mind was stabbing this freak, no attempt given at analyzing his movements to develop a strategy. It was a fancy way of saying she'd descended back into her Exorcist mindset, wishing only harm onto her enemies.

It made her reckless, but also dangerous, especially considering he'd dragged the Woman to his Radio Tower. In here, they could brawl privately and without the concern of making too much noise and drawing attention. Much like it did with Sir Pentious and Angel Dust. That behavior made her reckless, but also dangerous. And she had almost no qualms against wrecking his Recording Room, if it meant getting back at him. She'd gotten dangerously close to doing so multiple times, prompting the Radio Demon to decide enough was enough and put this little cat fight to rest. Awaiting an opportunity to counter, he struck her Hands with his staff.

The sudden pain forced her to lower it down, where Alastor stepped on the handle and forced it out of her hand. Another strike was given right beneath her chin when she was distracted, causing the Angel to unintentionally bite her Tongue with a muffled hiss of pain. A window of opportunity was created, latching into the Moth's arm with a shadowy tentacle and squeezing until a cracking sound was heard. Before Vaggie could process it, that same tentacle raised her into the air and spun the woman around like she weighed nothing at all, progressively building up momentum for the very moment it let her go. She'd go flying into a wall, fortunately lacking any valuable equipment, hitting the surface with a loud thud which left behind a very obvious crack.

Vaggie had been briefly stunned on impact, battling both the oncoming splitting headache and the pain of an injured arm. Truthfully, Alastor was as gentle as he could about that. "Ready to throw in the towel? That oh so creative costume of yours is looking quite roughed up!" The Radio Demon commented on the tears beginning to form on her Costume, decorations beginning to fall off and expose the shoddy craftsmanship of its owner. A quick trip to the Tailor would correct every error in her design, he thought. The Fallen Angel struggled to rise up again, rattled by the aforementioned Headache and the injury to her arm eliminating all possibility of using it for support. These wounds suppressed her physically, with the worst of it having originated from the inside.

A heavy cloud of self-doubt took form over her, a collection of every fault she had made sun since conceiving this decision. Not once was she capable of landing even one blow on him, despite the several advantages given with close quarters combat and Alastor not taking their fight even a bit serious. She failed to do the one thing she had promised to do, and trained to do. Protect the person she loved from the forces that only wish to exploit her, and harm her. Vaggie simply lacked the strength to achieve that goal, worsened by the fact her opponent was an infamous and powerful Overlord. There was nothing currently in her power she could do to change anything, at least that was apparent to her.

The Angel's rage had boiled at maximum temperature, but lacked an effective means of expressing it. Her violent instincts were out of the question in this wounded state, simply wondering what even could be done in this position. Unwillingly, her body progressively began to respond via crying, a natural, albeit unwanted bodily response to stress that would indeed help with venting her frustration. But it was the fact it had been before Alastor of all people that worsened it. It didn't become apparent until sound of sniffling became audible, conjoined with other noises to further express her strenuous efforts at suppressing these tears before they worsened. To say it annoyed Alastor was an understatement.

The Radio Demon approached the now twice shattered Angel, reaching a hand down to gesture her face upwards and shed light on her vulnerable expression. "Now why the tears, little lady? I absolutely hate it!" Alastor sought nothing more than to bring this pathetic display to an end, knowing this abrupt contact would most certainly do the trick. If by some chance it didn't, there laid another ace in his sleeve. One he fully intended to use regardless. "Tell you what, let's make a soul-free deal! If you can land just three blows on me during any of our future bouts, I'll disclose with you the truth behind my dealing with Charlie and why that card matters to me so. Just look around you, the consequences of chasing fantasies rarely arrives polished!"

Alastor made it clear they would need a more simplified method of settling this dispute, otherwise it would go nowhere and draw unwanted attention. "Or, you could settle for bargaining her freedom. You know which one I would prefer!" Alastor retracted his hand, seeing her display of weakness had mostly faded. It was generally acceptable, deciding to use the opportunity to depart from this place the exact same way he entered, engulfing himself in shadows and phasing directly through the ground. This was done intentionally over the literal hatch to leave the Radio Station, applying further emphasis on how little he made sense sometimes. Vaggie was left alone within the confines of this place, injured and broken. Yet her objective still remained.

It was made apparent she couldn't break Charlie from the deal, but she could get to the bottom of what his intentions were with her girlfriend. But achieving this goal on her own was simply out of the question, knowing Alastor's immense power simply dwarfed her lack of them. She knew exactly who could assist with this dilemma, but she would have to wait until tomorrow before contacting her. The following day was spent recovering from injury sustained to her head and arm, having unfortunately rely on Alastor conceive a lie that would explain her injuries to Charlie without drawing any suspicions. Satan knows she would not hear the end of it, if the truth got out she and Alastor engaged in a violent fight over her deal with him.

Her natural Angel physiology, coupled with accelerated regeneration allowed her to recover from otherwise serious wounds as fast as Demons would. While wanting to head out first thing in the morning the following day, she still had 'duties' to attend to in the morning. Meaning she had to prioritize getting breakfast, organizing the paperwork and writing a list down of the daily activities their residents should engage in today; As per the redemption plan. Once it was all cleared up and prepared, Vaggie collected her things and approached the entrance to leave; But a voice interrupted her. "Vaggie?" Charlie asked softly, displaying a curious expression on her face. "Where you headed off to?" She questioned, having never seen her leave on her own before. Usually there's something accompanying her.

"Oh, I'm just headed to visit Carmilla. Carmilla Carmine. It's nothing serious." Vaggie decided not to lie about her outing, seeing she vowed to place all her trust in this woman after having lied to her for literal years about being an Exorcist. "You're visiting an Overlord? Is it something important? . . . Does it have something to do with the..." Charlie trailed on, extending her index fingers to create the impression of a Halo above her head. "Yes, it does. I want to learn more about myself. And I just... I just feel like Carmilla knows how to help me the most. It's a personal thing-" Vaggie's rambling had been interrupted with a simple and quick kiss on the cheek. A soft golden blush formed on her face, giving her full attention towards the Princess.

"Just come back safe, okay?" That was all Charlie asked of her partner. No pushing to come along or additional questions to dive into the specifics of her outing. Just the confirmation she'll be safe, that's all she needed. That's something Vaggie could agree on, taking the hand of the Princess for a moment. "You know i will. See you later." The Angel made that as a promise, returning a kiss to her cheek before heading outside. The knowledge that her girlfriend wasn't worried about her outing was a relief to see, making it all the more painful knowing she had just lied to her yet again. But it was for the greater good, wasn't it? She was doing all of this for Charlie. Surely she would do the same... right?

Vaggie couldn't be bothered to question her motives now, especially with how far she's come. A clear and focused mind was required when meeting with someone possessing the status of Overlord, especially one as experienced as Carmilla. The walk throughout Pentagram City went without change, having wandered through this City more times than she could remember; Even prior to getting cast out. It was really just shifting from the killer to the victim that changed her outlook on life in the City, still carrying no regrets for her abrupt change of heart. This familiarity ended when reaching Carmine Territory, one of the several sections of Hell she outright refused to step foot in.

It's social functioned on a military regime, with each resident in her territory having undergone extensive training to prepare them for any possible scenario. From Turf Wars to attacks from Overlords, they were taught to prepare and expect the worst at all times. Even their living conditions matched this training, both eating and sleeping as if they were locked in perpetual conflict. That training made them paranoid and ruthless, but carried discipline and situational awareness, making them some of the most rational Demons in Pentagram City. After enduring thorough interrogation at one of the several checkpoints entering this territory, she was allowed inside and approach the Overlord's Penthouse.

The building in question in the heart of her territory, where security was tightest and the most distrustful of outsiders. It was by her faint connection with Carmilla that she'd been granted permission to even approach the Penthouse. Standing at the entrance, a surveillance Camera scanned over her entire figure multiple times over. After receiving verification this was indeed Vaggie, the entrance automatically opened their doors for her. The interior was a drastic change of pace, appearing more higher class and displayed heavily emphasis on the owner's fixation on weaponry. Lining the walls were various weapons, primarily consisting of melee based tools with the occasional ranged weapons.

Whether they were fakes created for vanity, or real weapons crafted with Angelic Steel was debated internally by the Angel. Not like she'd ever get the chance to touch them and find out. Vaggie approached an Elevator, enduring another instance of a full body scan to verify her identity before allowing her inside the Elevator. The buttons were various, but the most obvious one stood out first. Displaying an engraving of the Carmine symbol, placed above all the others. She'd press that button with a bored Eyeroll at the lack of creativity, waiting in silence as the Elevator ascended to the top floor. At least she could appreciate the music, taking a drastic shift from the stereotypical Elevator jingles she had grown sick of.

The doors opened to a dimly lit hallway, matching the purple coloring its owner seemed to enjoy. The illumination was done with UV lighting, creating the dim atmosphere and allowing for intricate designs representing the clothing of the overlord to be displayed along the walls. At the very end of the Hall stood two guards, armed with genuine bulletproof uniform and high caliber rifles. She straightened her posture with hands behind her back, appearing as formal as possible before the Guards. They glanced towards the Angel through their visors, discreetly contacting their superior to inform her of the visitor. Upon receiving clarification it was just Vaggie, they stood aside and allowed the entrance to be pushed open.

Carmilla's Living Quarters were unveiled, revealing your typical Elite lifestyle, decorated with her weaponry to act as a Diamond above the Brutalist architecture which the rest of her people were subjected to reside in. Vaggie took multiple steps inside, glancing around at the interior to spot any signs of life. Nothing yet, every inch of the Building was Radio silent. "Hello? Carmilla?" The Angel called out, having typically expected someone to appear and greet her. Or maybe even the Overlord herself, but there was nothing. Asides the awkward silence and room ambience, which quickly elevated her levels of caution. The atmosphere brought an uncomfortable feeling up her spine, practically indistinguishable from her first meeting with Carmilla.

She brandished her Spear, anticipating some form of spontaneous attack from out of the Blue. These suspicions proved true, a figure leaped behind to hit a stance allowing them to perform a rapid sideways kick. Vaggie's high awareness allowed her to face them, but not enough to effectively defend from the attack. The kick struck her head, knocking the Angel onto the ground. She rose up, facing the stranger with a quickly aggravated expression, fully recognizing them from that one time Sir Pentious made a purchase from Carmine; One of her Delivery Girls. "What the Hell was that?! I'm not an Intruder! Went through like a dozen security checks just to get in here." Vaggie rolled her eyes, reflecting on the exhausting task of approaching the building.

"Clearly, otherwise it wouldn't have been that easy." The woman commented on her lack of situational awareness, even when on guard. She failed to pick up on sounds when they happened, only realizing they're there when it's right next to her. She'd grab her arm and pull the Angel back onto her feet. "I'm Clara, one of Carmilla's Daughters. And over there is Odette, her other Daughter." Clara pointed towards the upper platform, where a woman with pale skin and blond hair stood. A clipboard was held in their hand, seemingly documenting that entire scene with her sister and Vaggie. "Great. So where's Carmilla?" Vaggie wasn't entirely fond of getting schooled by the Carmine kids, knowing she was in for considerably worse with the Overlord herself.

The siblings shared a glance, before gesturing the Angel to follow. Clara stood just below the balcony with her arms outstretched, for her sister to jump down and fall into her arms. They approached another door leading into a more formal office-room, where the Overlord conducted all her official business while remaining in the comfort of her own home. Her attention turned to the trio entering her office, setting aside a blueprint to extend her full attention towards her guest. "Vaggie. I hadn't expected to see you here again. Or that you'd even deduct I wouldn't be in the factory. Either you took a lucky guess or have an impressive understanding of my schedule."

The Overlord commended the Angel for her actions. Despite the unamused tone she seemed to carry on her words constantly, she was by no means trying to look down on her. Vaggie possessed untapped potential, which she failed to realize. "Thank you, Carmilla. I came here on important business. Personal business. No relation to the Hotel or my origins as an Exorcist." Vaggie our heavy emphasis on the fact she was here on her own accord. This Overlord made it very clear she wasn't about to run a charity, especially not for an establishment that managed to pick a fight with the very Heavens themselves. It was a gamble with death she refused to bet on, seeking only to defend those she cared about from the fallout of their actions.

"Mhm. Then if you would be so kind?" Carmilla gestured a hand outwards, signaling her to speak. "I want you to train me, Carmilla. I need your help to improve my fighting. It's... important to me." Vaggie trailed on at the end, uncertain if there was any point at applying additional persuasion. They both knew her response would depend solely on the request itself. The Overlord stared for a moment, awaiting some kind of catch or layer to this request. "That's all? I don't see any reason to refuse that, so I'll train you. But you will be paying for it." Carmilla made it clear this wouldn't be done for free, seeing it was her schedule that was being filled to make room for the Angel's request.

"And you won't be undergoing the same training session like before. For as long as you wish to be trained by me, you'll be undergoing the official training program I've created for every Sinner that works underneath me." Carmilla seemed to smile lightly at her own statement. It wasn't far fetched to assume she found entertainment in seeing her subordinates endure long sessions of hardship, all to prove themselves capable of higher ranking positions. That same training, Vaggie will now endure. As long as it meant she could defend the people she cared about. "Whatever it is, I can handle it." The Angel spoke confidently, thinking not about just what she might face and only about overcoming this task to the best of her ability.

"Good. Then follow me." Carmilla stood up from her desk and began to leave the room, with Vaggie following close behind. She'd take the exact same direction from earlier as the ladder, deviating from that path only when they made it outside. It'd be another session of exploring uncharted territory, further expanding upon her knowledge of the Overlord's influence over this section of the Pentagram. She'd become quite familiar to this particular sub-district, arriving at an abandoned Stadium, one of which Vaggie didn't recognize or even know about prior. "How old is this place?" The Angel couldn't help but to ask, closely observing the fortified interior and almost completely exposed construction materials that held the building together.

"Very. One of the oldest structures I have in my possession, built by an Overlord that's long gone. This used to be his territory, until being removed from the question. I absorbed his territory into mines and refashioned what influence of his remained, to my own image." Carmilla explained while traversing the interior of the Stadium, their destination being the entrance to the field. It should be said that every inch of her territory was taken through brutal combat, fighting and slaying neighboring Overlords for their territory. In her earlier days, diplomacy was not in her interest. She sought conquest, and to paint an image to all that the Top Weapons dealer in Hell was as deadly as her weapons. But what brought this phase of her life to an end?

"Very little know, and Carmilla had no interest in sharing that knowledge to those she deemed unfit to hear that story. She approached a set of doors, with the frame heavily implying there was a series of automatic glass doors here. In its place was a steel gate, manually opened by someone operating the corresponding lever. Behind this gate was the Field, revealing to the Angel just what kind of training she was in for. Before her was probably the largest obstacle course she's ever seen, spread apart to several sections throughout the field to make use of as much open space as possible. The other regions focused primarily on movement while under danger, while the interior prioritized general combat training. "If it's overwhelming at first glance, that's the point."

Carmilla commented, leaning towards the Angel with her arms crossed behind her. No Sinner has ever taken one glance at this training arena and didn't feel overwhelmed at just how elaborate it was. She stepped forward, approaching the outer section. "Typically, multiple Sinners would be here alongside you, but due to a lack of new recruits or someone wanting a promotion, it's just you here. Consider or private training lessons, under my guidance. But to start things off..." Carmilla trailed on whilst approaching a bunch of boxes, tossing an outfit towards Vaggie. "Put that on, you'll need it." She stated while standing idle in anticipation for the Angel to return. Vaggie had just navigated back the way she came, paying close attention to the signs listed throughout the interior to locate the Lockers.

Carmilla's absence was intentional, using this as a test to determine her navigation skills. If she could get her quickly and unfazed, there's no question she's capable of navigating the interior of a Stadium. A test the Angel would pass with flying colors, returning to the Training Field in uniform; Which she had come to realize was weighing her down. Specifically around the arms and legs, most likely a restraint to ensure she had been giving it her all with every muscle in her body. "So, when do I start?" Vaggie questioned, seeing the Overlord still in that idle pose. "Right now." Carmilla replied, with the ground beginning to move outwards like mobile platforms. The Angel was caught off guard, almost falling over if it weren't for her reflexes kicking in.

She maintained her balance and glanced around, observing just the situation occurring in the vicinity. Ahead of her was a series of mobile platforms, moving from left to right in that exact order in between each platform. The course seemed easy enough, requiring her to just hop forward between each one until reaching the end. Her confidence shined, failing to acknowledge the danger before her. Upon leaping forward, from the ground arose a rotating cylinder of large spikes; Just barely managing to avoid the danger by pressing her foot against an opening spot and pushing outwards, returning to the first platform. Ahead of her now were the obstacles, rotating cylinders alongside the platforms.

It was the equivalent of a realistic session of a certain Frog game, including potential death if she moved irresponsibly. She'd take a deep breath, taking a moment to plan her movements. It all revolved around timing, hopping from platform to platform with the weights on her limbs providing difficulty with staying in the air between each leap. She'd notice after the first two jumps the platforms began moving faster, preventing her from thinking as much as she wanted and just moving. Yet despite the danger, all it took was maintaining a pattern to quickly leap towards the remaining platforms and reach the end mostly unfazed. Thinking less about her movements helped her succeed.

But it was only the beginning, letting that moment of excitement at her success distract her from the fact there were still more courses to clear. The sound of a Firecracker popping closeby helped to get her moving, walking up a steep climb to the next course. This one was considerably different from the last one, consisting of multiple tightropes leading upwards to another platform. Given what happened with the previous course, she decided to check for tracks before proceeding forward. Vaggie took one foot and pressed down on a tightrope, forcing it to shake and see the outcome. The result was a series of metal spikes poking up from the ground below, rusted with stains of those that fell before her.

A message to anyone attempting this, failure won't be pretty. There were no additional props nearby, leaving anyone attempting this to fend for themselves. And fortunately, Vaggie already had a substitute. She turned sideways and opened her Wings, spreading them outwards to substitute for a balance. She stepped onto the tightrope, slowly shifting along this thin line towards her goal. The weight of her uniform brought her uncomfortably close to the Spikes, not liking that feeling at all. Although nothing touched her, it felt like tiny needles were stabbing into her feet. She wanted to shake 'em off, but tensed her expression and focused up on traversing the tightrope. The further she walked, the closer the Moth had reached the Spikes.

It reached it's worst at the very middle, where she quite literally walked between then for several minutes. The experience was mentally draining, fighting an overwhelming feeling of ignoring these phantom sensations. Once she felt herself lifting upwards from the ground, a heavy exhale escaped from her noise. Those invisible sensations slowly dissipated, reaching the edge of the tightrope. At this point, she'd realize another challenge presented itself in reaching the end. The weight from her uniform, mixed with her natural body weight, prevented her from shifting towards the top due to the incline being too steep to climb. Given a simple problem, she'd reach a simple solution and just jump to the platform, latching onto the edge.

There was a brief panic when she didn't reach the top completely, quickly recollecting herself to climb onto the Platform and officially clear the that course. She'd waste no time catching her breath, instead taking multiple deep breaths with her nose while approaching the next phase of the course. Now high above the ground, these training segments began to resemble more of a Circus Act than combat training; Especially with the previous one and the current one. To reach the other side, multiple hoops were hanging from a series of support beams. They lead towards another Platform, fully expecting the Sinner to traverse them and display their arm strength. No doubt in her mind, there was a catch with this.

Vaggie reached forward, attempting to grab the next hoop. She'd quickly realize it was put just out of reach, forcing participants to make an attempt and discover the catch likely through trial and error. Not interested in an accident, she latched onto the hoop, lifting off the platform. Her free hand grabbed another to avoid falling, leaving the Angel hanging in the air. One glance downwards revealed there were no cushions at the bottom, meaning failure would be painful. She'd take a deep breath, reaching over to the next hoop to begin her movements. Multiple steps in and a buzzing sound was heard, leading to Buzzsaws shooting outwards from the unassuming pillars besides the course.

She pulled her legs up immediately, avoiding the first set of saws. Waiting a moment for any further saws, they seemingly responded to movement on the chains. Like a countermeasure to prevent new participants from adapting. Vaggie rolled her eyes and moved forward, latching onto the next hoops, triggering more saws on response. They'd shoot out with the intent of cutting into the legs, forcing her to pull them up higher and higher to defend herself. The movement felt simple at first, a thought she'd quickly regret when they started popping out from above and threatened to cut her arms. Repositioning them while simultaneously trying to hold on put a strain on her arms, beginning to exhaust them each time. Her expression put further emphasis on that strain.

A collection of her efforts to endure the training course, and this one requiring the most effort to clear. The Buzzsaws weren't letting up however, expecting Vaggie to put up with them until she reached the end. Their frequency increased to the point her entire body was misshapen, bent into bizarre shapes and once again, putting more emphasis on the whole idea this was the equivalent of a Circus act. The worst of it was at the very end, Buzzsaws positioned in front of her prevented any attempt at just jumping through. The only option here was to literally swing through, positioning herself in a shape that would allow her to just slip right through. And that's exactly what she did, straightening her entire posture and leaped through.

It was an effective course of action, but did not protect her from falling right into the next course. Her momentum prevented any attempt at stopping, flailing her arms towards the edge before landing on a downward slide to the ground. Obstacles began shooting up from the slide, prompting Vaggie to quickly evade these wooden pop-ups while sliding. It wasn't that bad, although somewhat challenging to execute quickly. She'd hit a little ramp on the slide, lifting upwards until gravity pulled her back down. An advantage was quickly identified with them, now exploiting their presence to briefly lift her away from the obstacles. This minimized the need to evade, and made this course mildly entertaining. Again, another intentional feature.

Vaggie reached the bottom by sliding across a bunch of sand, quickly breaking her momentum. She stood up from the little sand pit and glanced around, not seeing anymore obstacle courses for her to traverse. "Okay, Carmine... what's next?" Vaggie asked aloud, coming to realize she hadn't seen the Overlord since she started the obstacle course. As a matter of fact, where exactly was she in the arena? Taking a moment to look around, the scenery suggested she had been around the middle of the field, the inner section of the training arena. It also informed her she had only attempted 40% of the Training Courses, observing the others which she had yet to engage in.

A Metal noise clanged at her feet, interrupting her observation. Upon briefly jumping back, she'd realize it was just her Spear having been tossed at her. She picked it up confused, getting her answer with an abrupt and strong kick to her side. She'd fly a good 2-3 feet away before hitting the floor, processing the sudden attack. Assuming she was under attack, she's grab the Spear again and take a stance towards the attacker; Who had been Carmilla Carmine herself. "Just like before, Vaggie. But I won't be holding back." The Overlord's voice put clear emphasis on the part about not holding back. She wanted to make it clear under this training, she would understand exactly what made her an Overlord to begin with.

Carmilla would not attack first, instead anticipating the Angel to attack first; Just the same as she did. This resulted in an uncomfortable stalemate, both sides anticipating each other to attack, yet neither insisted on going first. It was a battle of patience, one where the Overlord succeeded every single time. Vaggie eventually dropped the waiting game and attacked first, opening her Wings immediately to attack from above. They were training seriously, so she figured to apply every aspect of her abilities into combat. The moth would attempt a dive bomb towards her, rapidly closing the gap to initiate close quarters combat. Carmilla had evaded, striking down at the Angel with her leg.

Vaggie hit the ground with a heavy thud, instant regret at even attempting that attack. She stood on her feet and attempted her usual fighting style, adding her wings to the mix as a method of blocking attack. It proved relatively effective, absorbing the blows to counter attack immediately afterwards. However, sustained blunt force trauma to her wings eventually forced her wings to retract. Each blow became progressively more painful, until they parted for the Overlord to strike. Vaggie felt a kick impact her chin, and her entire perspective of the room suddenly shift. She looked at the ceiling, briefly disoriented until hitting the ground somewhat knocked her senses back into place. She had fallen on her wings, further amplifying the pain from falling on sore limbs.

"Why always the head?" Vaggie placed a hand beneath her chin, quickly retracting it in response to the abrupt stinging sensation. "Hm, perhaps I should dial it back." Carmilla observed just how quickly the Angel had been knocked down and essentially defeated. She stood besides Vaggie, looking down at her. "At you've proven yourself capable of enduring the training courses, but you've still a long way to go before completion of the Combat courses. Return tomorrow and we'll see you try again, and subject you to an easier combat drill." Carmilla snapped her fingers, calling her Daughters to carefully raise Vaggie from the floor for transport to the Infirmary. If she was gonna train her, at the very least she could tend to any injuries sustained.

The last thing she needs is the Princess, or anyone from that Hotel, filing a 'complaint' because one of their residents returned home with bruises and such. Despite the unwelcoming and intimidating nature of her territory, medical care was generally absent of his hostility. Vaggie had remained here for at least an hour at maximum, knowing Angels had the ability to regenerate injuries that weren't severe, like missing limbs for example. They'd still feel a sling sting, but they were fully capable of operating as normal throughout the day. But now, this had became Vaggie's daily routine throughout the next four weeks. Organizing everything at the Hotel for Charlie to take care of, she went out to train with Carmilla.

Every day was around 2-3 hours of enduring harsh training underneath Carmilla, sometimes alone, and other times accompanied by dozens of other Demons; All seeking to gain Carmine's favor. It was a feeling foreign, yet so familiar to her. She had never once undergone any military-like training, even during her time as an Exorcist beneath Adam. Yet fighting alongside many others, sharing generally similar goals, it reminded her all too well of her Exorcists siblings; Seeking nothing but the deaths of every Sinner they laid eyes on. Vaggie didn't know how to feel about that, brushing aside the sensation to prioritize training. It only grew more intense, having to clear additional courses once she'd proven to have mastered the previous ones.

Her stamina above all else was her primary objective, noticing just how fatigued she became when initiating the combat sequence and the adrenaline rush faded. Having little energy left at the most important segment of her training was a pain, once requesting that Carmilla reverse which training segments occur first. The Overlord dismissed the suggestion quickly, explaining how forcing these Sinners to undergo training courses after sustaining multiple injuries would be literal torture. The end results would be no one finishing the courses, alongside and increased fatality rate. It revolved around nothing more than improving herself, thinking less about the task at hand and progressively adapting to fight entirely off of instinct.

While there wasn't a chance the Angel could perfect every last step, just reaching a point of above average success rate was more than satisfactory. With each passing week, Vaggie would last longer and longer in hand to hand combat against the Overlord, where it transition to a battle of attrition. In her entire history of managing this training regiment, not a soul had ever successfully defeated her in physical combat. None of them sought to do so, knowing that lasting a certain length of time would reward them plenty. The combat segments also featured a variety of tasks, like climbing a Wall while she threw Knives at them. Or preventing the Overlord from reaching the other side of an Ice Rink, while her arms are chained.

Most popular, and most challenging, was the blindfold test. Where the Overlord would surround herself in a field of metal beams with a blindfold, relying entirely on audio cues to navigate and retaliate. And apparently, Carmilla was just as good fighting blind as she would be with her vision completely visible. Just the perks of being a Bat, something very little knew about the Overlord. Very few had the confidence to ask about it. Yet despite her steadily improving success, the Angel wasn't satisfied. Her objective was to challenge and defeat Alastor, using this training to strengthen herself for the task. Yet no matter how much effort she put into practice, the outcome of her challenging the Radio Demon remained the same.

At the end of each week, Vaggie challenged Alastor to another fight and determine if her training had paid off. And each time during the four weeks, there wasn't a visible sign of improvement. He had adapted to her combat patterns within a few minutes of starting the fight, criticizing her lack of originality and wondering just what she expected to do with a simple spear. Throughout the four weeks, she failed multiple times to strike the Demon even once, with their fight usually ending whenever Vaggie decided to give up. It wasn't a battle of attrition like her training with Carmilla, as Alastor almost never attacked her and refused to even get tired. But she definitely did, tired of losing on loop after enduring 7 straight days of training.

She questioned the point of undergoing all this torture, if it failed to assist in taking even one step further. Her mind began to wander, considering alternative methods of strengthening herself enough to stand some semblance of a chance against the Radio Demon. The very demon training her would know more about that than most, it's no great secret amongst the Overlords. She barged right back into her Penthouse, lacking that caution and respect for her property that she carried prior. It was identical to the first time Vaggie matched into her building, demanding an audience. "Carmine! We need to talk!" She exclaimed, glancing around in full anticipation for one of her Daughters to jump her. Or maybe the Overlord will greet her personally.

But neither of those happened, not even so much as the creaking of a Door or subtle footsteps echoing around. It was all... silent, and Vaggie hated it. Brandishing her spear immediately, the Angel first stepped away from the entrance and looked towards the upper floor of the room. If the Daughters wanted to surprise her, that's where they'd be previously. No signs of them there. "Hm... then again, I've never exactly had the living space of an Overlord to myself before." Vaggie lightly smirked, opting to do a bit of exploration to learn a bit more about the Old woman they call Carmilla Carmine. The interior of this room perfectly mirrored its owner, stylized in a manner the Angel actually liked.

Truth be told, she was one of the few overlords Vaggie could actually respect. While sure she's just as corrupt as the others, primarily interested in the preservation of herself and those underneath her. She possessed a more respectable moral compass, as proven when she didn't outright slaughter Vaggie for demanding an audience, teaching her how to kill Exorcists and supplying her with Weapons. She approached a wide flatscreen TV on a stand, taking explicit note of the fact it was custom built and potentially originating from outside the Ring; Judging by the insignia of an unspecified Demon on the back. Between the TV and Couch was a glass table, where an unassuming book lied. Vaggie shrugged and opened it up.

Several pages in, and she came to realize this was a detailed biography about her love life. It discussed every romantic interest she's had since arriving in Hell, specifically during her time as an Overlord. Names included Rosie, Zestial, and... Lucifer Morningstar? The book went into explicit detail about her emotions, explaining it's mental and physical effects on her being whenever these emotions occurred. She'd seen enough, slowly putting the book down with widened eyes. "Well, that's potential blackmail. Probably shouldn't get caught with that..." Vaggie slowly backed away from the table, deciding to look elsewhere for more information on the Overlord. It brought her up the Stairs, approaching the upper level of the room.

Reaching the top of the Stairs, Vaggie had heard a noise. Something that suggested there were people in here, and she didn't have this room to herself. Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea to look through her things, hoping Carmilla lacked a photographic memory. Her footsteps soften treading carefully, approaching a room besides the stairs. Leaning her head through an open door, she had been given front row seats to something she should not have seen. The room in question was the bedroom, where the Overlord seated herself upon the bed. The upper half of her outfit had been undone, exposing only her back towards the entrance with the position she sat in. But this angle revealed a dark secret about her, one not even Vaggie could've predicted.

Along her back were deep scars, spreading slightly outwards as if they were literal fractures on her body. They glowed lightly, resembling an almost... divine light shining from within. Vaggie was all too familiar with these scars, possessing the exact same kind when Lute had severed her Wings and cast her out of Heaven. But this was a case far more severe than her own, suggesting she might've been an even higher ranking Angel than herself. Carmilla's Daughters stepped into view, standing on opposite sides of the Overlord. In their hands were two circular containers, identical to lotion containers used to alleviate sicknesses and such. These were no different, asides from their appearance; Heavily resembling Angelic Blood.

The substance was smeared over the Scars, causing the Overlord to tense up in pain. It felt like cleaning a wound, despite them being long closed and healed. It didn't improve the further they moved on, but the Daughters understood it had to be done to prevent their mother from experiencing unnecessary suffering until the pain went away. With the scars covered, they began wrapping Bandages around Carmilla to cover the Scars and prevent the Remedy from staining her dress. But at this point, Vaggie has looked away. She needed to mentally process exactly what she had seen, staring blankly ahead. Could she have been a Fallen Angel like herself, or was it something else that was obvious at first glance?

It would explain her extensive knowledge on Angelic Steel, and how well she understood how to kill Exorcists. But how does a Fallen Angel just invade the ranking of Overlord for decades, even longer than that, and evade any suspicion? It felt as if she had planned this well in advance. Vaggie turned to get another look, only to be greeted face to face with the Overlord in question. Her expression, though only showing subtle emotions, practically screamed infuriated. To think that someone she respected would have the audacity to willingly violate her privacy, only one other person out there had offended her to this extent. "Oh shit-!" Vaggie immediately jumped back, resulting in herself briefly falling down the Stairs as a result.

The fall definitely hurt, but that was the least of her concerns. She panicked to stand again, scrambling for support while the Woman approached her. "I didn't mean to- see what you were doing! I was just trying to find you-!" Vaggie's fearful explanation was interrupted with Carmilla latching onto her face, raising the Fallen Angel from the ground with little effort. Her grip was tight, intentionally applying pressure to her head. "How much have you seen?" She questioned, staring her dead in the eyes in anticipation for an answer. "Just the book about your love life... and the scars..." Vaggie strained out, trying to pull herself out from the Overlord's grasp through any means. She clutched her arm with both hands, failing to make it budge.

She even attempted to swing her skinny legs outwards and kick at the Overlord, immediately regretting that decision when Carmilla tightened her grip on the Angel's head, holding her against a wall. "C-Carmilla-! Wait, please-! I didn't come to blackmail you! Just- let me explain!" Vaggie pleaded for her live, something she had never found herself doing at any point in her life. The only other time she could ever imagine enduring this much suffering, was being violently kicked from Heaven. Tears began to trail her face, whether they be out of fear or genuine pain and knowing she couldn't do anything about it. The Overlord wanted nothing more than to just shatter her skull for her actions, distracted when hands laid themselves against her back.

She turned her head, the Daughters stood behind her. Although they didn't speak a word, the expressions on their faces said it all. They wanted to give her a chance, at least one. Carmilla stared at them for a long moment, letting out a sigh. She turned back to Vaggie and slightly loosened her grasp on her face, at least to where it wasn't applying constructing pressure to her skull. "You have exactly one chance to explain to me what you're doing here. The TRUTH behind your business with me." The Overlord now believed there was more to her presence than just training, which had been correct. Vaggie took a moment to recollect herself and calm down, enough to explain herself at least.

"I came here for your help. Alastor made some kind of deal with Charlie, and I'm tryin to get to the bottom of what it might be. But... that requires 'beating' him in a fight. And I'm no Overlord..." Vaggie admitted to her blatantly obvious weakness. The answer had only further irritated the Overlord, but she maintained her composure. "Then it's a waste of time. Of your own and mine. No amount of physical training will ever prepare you to face the Radio Demon and expect victory, Angel or not." Carmilla explained simply. She viewed Vaggie as a Student, genuinely interested in her teachings and seeking to learn from the examples she could provide. It hurt somewhere in her old heart, for her beliefs to be false.

No anger was harbored over being used, knowing that's how Hell worked. It wouldn't stop her from hurting the Angel though, regardless of what the Princess thought. "I realize that after 4 weeks of failure... but you're an Overlord! You know how to make yourself stronger, and I need to know how." Vaggie asked, taking little consideration to the weight of the question she had just asked. Vaggie had been released without warning, falling onto the floor. "You don't know what you're asking. The act of deal making isn't a skill to be taught, it's learned and perfected. You cannot rush your ascension to Overlord status." It was one of a few reasons provided by the Overlord, turning away from the Angel.

Vaggie picked herself up and felt around her face, the pain of being almost crushed under the strength of the overlord's grasp was something she never wanted to experience again. "I'm not trying to be an Overlord, and I don't have decades or centuries! I have no idea what Alastor plans or when, but I know none of it's good. I need a solution now!" Vaggie emphasized the urgency to make herself more powerful, having extremely limited solutions to a potentially major problem. "Then why didn't you ask Vox? You clearly hate him as much as he does." Carmilla stated bluntly, knowing Vox would be more than happy to collaborate with a resident of the Hotel, if it would further his goal to ridding Hell of the 'Smiling Freak'.

[ci]"I'm not an idiot! Vox would try to come for my soul if I asked him for help." Vaggie dismissed the idea of teaming with the Vees, almost offended she even proposed the idea. Regardless of the fact those two had it our tie each other, there wasn't a chance Vaggie was about to get caught in the crossfire. Or risk anyone else at the Hotel getting put in harm's way. "And you're saying I wouldn't?" Carmilla questioned, coming to a halt. She turned her head, just enough to side eye the Angel from her current position. "This kind of power comes with a price, as do all things in life and the afterlife. How much are you willing to give, for the sake of protecting the person you love?" Carmilla turned to Vaggie once again.

She looked down on her with her usual expression, taking a step towards the Angel. "I would give anything to protect her." Vaggie replied honestly, knowing full well where this conversation would lead. "Then I offer you this: The gift of strength, for your eternal servitude to the Carmine family. Prove that you are willing to give anything to protect her." Carmilla extended her hand out, prompting the Angel to step back. It was a simple gesture, but the experience was identical to having a gun pointed at her head. She had come so far, just barely escaping her possible death at the hand of this Overlord. In her mind, she should've known this outcome was inevitable, but it could've been done so much simpler.

Well, there was no point dwelling on what could've happened. She had a choice, and her answer was clear. Vaggie grabbed the hand of the Overlord, expecting some spectacle of magic and light-shows. But nothing happened, questioning for but a few seconds. Carmilla suddenly clutched her hand and pulled the Angel to stand uncomfortably close, now latching onto her arm with a free hand. A now panicked Angel darted her eyes to meet the Overlord's, staring into narrowed crimson pits providing an ominous glow. She opened her mouth to expose a set of fangs, just seconds before sinking them through her neck. The experience felt akin to little daggers getting stabbed through her skin.

It was an uncomfortable sensation between blades and needles, containing similarities to both. Either or, the pain remained, and Vaggie screamed as a response. The only change her body endured was in her only functioning eye, shifting in color to match the Overlord and her daughters; Implying they both experienced this process to become exactly like their mother. Her mind felt as if the weight of her body had increased, unseen chains binding themselves to her soul. A representation of her freedom being revoked, an action that cannot be undone by her hand. The Overlord released her with the process completing, lightly brushing her mouth to clear the Angelic Blood which now stained her Fangs.

That was a taste she refused to adjust to. Vaggie pressed a hand against the wound on her neck, panicked breaths escaping her mouth whilst she attempting to regain her bearings. "No contracts...?" Vaggie attempted to be humorous, failing miserably from a mix of pain and panic. "Contracts are one form of deal making, but there exists several, created by many overlords as a testament to their creativity and power. This is my own personal method." Carmilla stepped the rest of the way down, leaving Vaggie to be tended to by her Daughters yet again. It went by much quicker since there was only one wound to tend too. During the bandaging process, she looked towards a Mirror fearfully. How the Hell would she explain this to Charlie?

She heavily resembled Carmilla in this state, a smaller and not nearly as impressive replica of Charlie. She sold her soul for this, and it's time to see exactly how she intended to full her end of the agreement. When Vaggie could move without the pain slowing her down, she accompanied the Overlord to another room within the Penthouse. The dim lighting and symbols scattered throughout the building suggested this was where Carmilla utilized her demonic abilities, or something. She couldn't really tell what the point of this room was. In the center stood a Pedestal, where a glass bowl was placed on top. Vaggie and Carmilla stood at opposite ends of the Pedestal, staring into each other's eyes with significantly different expression.

Vaggie emphasized her fear of the unknown, having no idea what she gotten herself into. Carmilla was just her usual serious expression, knowing full well there was no way out of this for her. "So... you're a Seraphim, right? I saw you had six scars on your back." Vaggie asked, believing there was a 90% chance the Overlord would've punched her lights out for even asking such a thing. Fortunately, that 10% just so happened to be the case. "Yes. I am a Seraphim far older than you and the majority of Hell's people. I exiled myself to this realm a long time ago, and never looked back." Carmilla answered while removing her glove, exposing a bare hand. In her other hand was an Angelic Knife, which she'd used to cut open the exposed palm.

She hardly even twitched, maintains the same expression as the wound leaked golden ichor into the Bowl in front of her. She held it out, waiting until it had been filled 75% before withdrawing her hand, allowing the Daughters to tend to her self inflicted injury. She didn't comment any further, expecting Vaggie to assume the next step on her own. And that she did. She was to drink from the Bowl and commit borderline cannibalism, yet it didn't explain just how this would bestow any power onto her. There was only one way to find out, cautiously holding the Bowl in her palm. With an expression that screamed concerned, she pressed the edge of the Bowl to her lips and tilted it forward; Allowing the first drops of blood to enter her mouth.

And it tasted awful, Vaggie's expression immediately gagging in response. Like a thick tree sap that gave off a warmth when touching it. There was no backing down, tensing herself up to suppress the thoughts of the awful taste. She forced herself to drink every last drop, refusing to stop until the sensation of a fluid against her lips faded. At that moment, she pulled the Bowl away and gasped. Clara toon it from her hands, preventive the Angel from unintentionally dropping it. "It's done- what now-?" Vaggie questioned through coughs, leaning against the Pedestal for support in her disoriented state. "Now we wait for the blood to settle inside of you." Carmilla replied vaguely, idly staring towards the Angel.

"Why's that matter- agh!" Vaggie exclaimed, holding onto her throat abruptly. It began to burn, alongside the rest of her body at a rapidly intensifying heat. The experience was identical to lighting a fire inside her body, and watching it rage brighter and brighter with a seemingly endless supply of fuel. Every inch of her body felt this burning sensation, specifically inside her bloodstream. And on the subject, her veins began to pulsate and glow a golden yellow, creating an almost perfect outline of her circulatory system for the Carmine family to observe. Vaggie's body began to shake aggressively, losing it's ability to move while undergoing overwhelming pain. Her last clear thoughts were leaning against the Pedestal, staring towards Carmilla.

Moments afterwards, the pain had caused the Angel to fall unconscious, and onto the floor with a thud. Fortunately, she was still breathing... and twitching. When regaining consciousness, Vaggie found herself staring towards Hell's bright red sky, and the Pentagram above. Her eyes struggled to open themselves, looking through blurry eyes that slowly cleared when she mustered the energy to even move. Rising up from the ground, she slowly panned her head around the surroundings, noticing something familiar about them. Everywhere she looked, it was just the various segments of the Training Courses; Within the Stadium in Carmilla's territory. At least two coherent thoughts appeared in her mind.

"Is this Double Hell? . . . Did I die and Carmilla's Training Arena is my purgatory?" Vaggie sarcastically questioned, although the thought wasn't entirely off the table. "Were it so easy." Carmilla answered her question, revealing herself to have been seated close besides the Angel with a bottle of Alcohol in hand. "I've seen what lies beyond for us Angels, once attempting to take my own life out of guilt for my actions, and what I enabled Heaven to commit for thousands of years. There's nothing but pure white as far as the eye can see. If Zestial hadn't saved me before I bleed out... you can piece it together from there." Carmilla casually dropped a major turning point in her life, revealing where her friendship with the oldest Overlord around began.

"Heh... you two, huh?" Vaggie hinted at Charlie having saved her from death, beginning to relate to the fallen Seraphim just a little bit more. Carmilla only darted an eye towards her, raising an eyebrow. "So, why did you drag my unconscious body all the way out here?" She wanted to get to the bottom of that, having expected to wake up somewhere more... comfortable, to say the least. "You now contain within your body untapped potential. I am here to train you one last time, where we will force this power to unveil itself. It is the only way to bring it to the surface, asides watching your loved ones get hurt." The second option would definitely guarantee results, but it was basically impossible knowing their current standing with each other.

Vaggie looked down at herself, seeing Carmilla had already gotten her outfitted for training while she was unconscious. Effective, albeit a little weird. She shuddered lightly and stood onto her feet, still needing to get used to that. "Fine by me. But I'm clearing this entire Training Course. And when I get to you, don't even think about holding back! If what you did back there worked, I want to see it." Vaggie clarified to the Overlord, wanting to be pushed to her absolute limits today if it meant she'll be able to return home and kick Alastor's outdated ass to the curb singlehandedly. Carmilla was surprised, but admired her audacity. "Very well, no holding back. Now begin." She directed Vaggie to begin the Training Course, starting from the very beginning.

The Angel, without question or hesitation, began the first segment, displaying no difficulty in clearing it quickly. Whether it be from having truly mastered it or a boost to her physical capabilities is undecided. However, progressing through the segments, it became apparent her reflexes had suddenly improved drastically. She could respond to danger and evade almost immediately, contorting her body to an extent initially thought as impossible with her average flexibility. Moving like fluid through the training courses, a combination of memory and enhanced reflexes created an almost angelic sight; Impressing even the old warlord herself. It took record breaking time to near the end of the course, where the Angel abruptly vanished after taking a leap.

Carmilla had no idea where she vanished to, glancing around curiously. This had given Vaggie her first ever opportunity to land a surprise attack on the Overlord, executing by side-tackling her down and pressing the handle of the Spear against her neck; Seemingly attempting to choke her. This newfound strength was impressive, but that alone would not bring victory against the Radio Demon, as proven multiple times already. She kicked the smaller Angel off of her, launching her into the air, using her wings to stop herself and fly back down. The Overlord would be lying if attempting to plead not jealous, finding a beauty in her movements during their training. While not meeting Carmilla in strength, she could manage to land several hits on her and keep up speed.

It provided a worthy challenge, something she had not had for over 80 years. And from one of her own disciples, a unique occurrence. This fight lasted at a time similar to challenging an entire battalion of her subordinates. The Stadium being completely empty added a dramatic flair to this fight, not a soul soul would know of their accomplishments; Much to their preferences. Neither side displayed any signs of holding back, disregarding the bruises and wounds that accumulated across their bodies with each minute their training raged on. And yet despite the sheer violence displayed on the field, neither duelists held any signs of anger. Wide smiles stretched across their faces, truly enjoying themselves for the first time in weeks. The fighting would've usually stopped at this point.

But the duo continued onward, displaying Vaggie's progressively discovering her newfound capabilities, using the fight as practice to conceive a strategy for later. Everything learned about herself here would be used to defeat the Radio Demon. Carmilla had finally found an adversary worthy enough to unveil her hidden talent, progressively displaying glimpses into her tainted angelic form; Which resembled a Bat in multiple aspects. The only thing that managed to interrupt their fighting was intervention from the Daughters, informing them it had been over 2 hours since they began fighting. By then, the two of them appeared heavily bruised and bloodied, with Vaggie on the verge of passing out.

A moment of laughter was shared between them, just before the Angel fell against Carmilla from a loss of consciousness. The both of them had been taken to the Infirmary, tending to the obscene amount of wounds both parties had sustained in the aftermath of Training. The Overlord's higher status as an Angel resulted in accelerated regeneration, restored to full functionality well before Vaggie had gained consciousness again. The Fallen Seraphim stood before the unconscious Angel, watching over her akin to the role of a guardian. She had never stood in the presence of another Angel before, one that did not follow Adam's ways. Perhaps one day, she might gather the confidence to face her fellow Fallen.

Until then, she could shelter an Exorcist, a hand was placed against their cheek, remaining almost entirely idle the entire time. By the time Vaggie had regained consciousness, the room had been emptied from life asides from Odette, the other Daughter of the Carmine Family. "You're finally awake." She turned her attention to the Angel, displaying little change in her expression. "Hey... where's Carmilla?" That was the first thing on her mind, knowing her last clear memories were alongside the Overlord. "She returned to her duties eventually, requesting that I leave you with this. Welcome to the Carmine Family." Odette explained with a monotone voice, extending a package towards the Fallen Angel. At first touch, she could easily tell it was clothing.

And although difficult to notice, she could see some segments of the Carmine insignia designed onto it. She chose this path, might as well walk it to the very end. "Well, thank you. I should be on my way now." Vaggie had stood back onto her feet, passing by the Daughter on her way to the door. Just before they had crossed paths, Odette had slipped a pair of sunglasses for her to wear upon returning to the Hotel. She understood well enough the sudden change of her eye would draw suspicion, giving her the chance to cover it up until she's ready to confront the truth. Vaggie had returned to the Hotel with the package in hand and Sunglasses on, having to first play a quick game of 20 questions with the love of her life.

As expected, there wasn't a chance she'd just let her walk away after being absent hours longer than usual. Charlie even contemplated on multiple occasions contacting Carmilla directly, refraining only out of respect for the trust she placed in Vaggie. And here she was, Burton even more secrets under the rug than ever before; All in the name of protecting her, right? That's what it was all about. By day, it was business as usual, despite all the remarks on the subject of her new glasses; Which she could've swore she made up at least three separate lies in her head to explain it, but ended up using none of them, just saying they looked cool instead. And it worked, going with her answer and leaving the subject at that. Vaggie came to accept these glasses are now a part of her daily life, for now.

At night, she donned her new uniform and Spear; Leaving the glasses behind to ensure Alastor had known exactly what she did to have a chance at victory. And just to ensure that she'd get his attention, Vaggie decided not to look for him this time. Instead barging into his Radio Tower uninvited, clutching her Spear with a faint smirk. She immediately set out to make a mess of the Room, breaking his materials and trashing as much as possible until he arrived; Starting withering the obvious metallic control panels. Multiple bursts of static could be heard, crackling outwards with each thrust of the Spear through the machinery. Her enhanced strength made repeating the same motion less strenuous on her arms.

She'd finalize her sabotage of the control panel by dragging two straight lines through it, intersecting them to creative her best attempt at an X shape. This would've been more than satisfactory had she stopped here, but Vaggie knew he possessed the 'talents' to repair it instantly. Any damage done would be brief, although the Demon's anger would not say the same. His arrival was heralded by the abrupt flickering of the lights, which she initially paid little mind to and simply assumed it was a result of the damage she caused. What gave it away this was Alastor's doing is the ominous green glow from beneath the floorboards, accompanied with subtle Radio static. She halted her carnage, widening her smirk. "Took him long enough."

Vaggie went idle, waiting in anticipation for the Radio Demon's arrival. Much like when threatening Husk, a slightly more monstrous depiction of Alastor burst through the hatch; Progressively rising through. "Now who's the disrespect ruffian that dared to trespass on my chambers, and make a mess of MY-" His enraged ranting had been interrupted, looking down at a sudden pain in his chest. Vaggie stabbed the Radio Demon with her Spear, having fully expected an entire monologue from him. "That's one, edgelord." She yanked the Spear out, taking the opportunity to make space from him in his surprised state. He'd been genuinely perplexed, taking a moment to disregard his confusion and concentrate on what laid in front of him.

His facial expression reverted to a normal look, unlike the rest of them. "My apologies, you just looked so different in that outfit. And then your only functioning eye? Why, I simply mistook you for an intruder!" Alastor concluded his statement while lunging towards her, slamming his hands into the ground in a failed attempt at striking her. "Yeah, I gave up my soul just to kick your fucking ass. What about it? Gonna try and blackmail me with that? Prove you're the piece of shit I've known you were since day fucking one!" Vaggie challenged him, gesturing the Overlord to attack with her spear at the ready. An example she had taken from Carmilla, getting out to good use. "You're wiser than most! A shame you fail to put that wisdom to good use, and simply cut your losses!"

Alastor hadn't moved from his position, ignoring the obvious gestures whenever he spoke. An attempted distraction from the shadowy mass approaching the Angel from below, which she'd come to realize with the sudden cold feeling beneath her feet. A brief gasp was heard, quickly taking her spear to sever the void tentacles arising from the mass beneath her. With more power funneled into their presence, Vaggie had begun rapidly spinning the Spear in hand to counteract the swarm of tentacles around her. She managed to keep pace, essentially creating a standstill between them. "You think these cheap spells will work on me?! Vaggie exclaimed while maintaining her current fighting pattern.

It left her ignorant of Alastor's sudden emergence behind her. "Maybe!" That's all he said, before whacking he with his Radio Staff; Having clutched it in both hands and wrapped in void tentacles to further amplify the strength of the impact. The impact sent Vaggie through a Window of the Radio Tower, exposing Alastor's disregard for her safety. She was more than capable of handling it now, after all. The momentum disoriented her, opening her wings to rapidly flap them until control of her flight had been regained. "So that's how it's gonna be." Vaggie narrowed her eyes towards the Radio Tower. The gloves were coming off, darting right back to the structure poking out from the Hotel. However, a last moment thought occurred. She'd tilt upwards, perching atop the Tower.

That last shift ensured Alastor would no doubt follow, climbing through the now shattered window in his still monstrous state to investigate. This curiosity was rewarded with a stab to his forehead, specifically where the X symbol always appeared. "That's two, shitass." Vaggie mocked, ripping the Spear from his head and taking flight immediately. This dodge avoided his attempt at latching onto and biting the Angel, growing internally more aggravated at her intentional efforts at offending him. "And by the way, this isn't YOUR Tower. The rest of us built it, while you ran away like a bitch and left us to die at Adam's hand! You should be thankful we even considered-!" Vaggie's enraged outburst had been interrupted by the void tentacles from before, latching onto her to the point of constricting.

[ci]The Angel was thrown against one of the walls on the rooftop, enough distance from the ground level to avoid alerting the other guests either their fighting. "And I am grateful you kept me in mind, despite the possibility of my death! However, sometimes I live to disappoint." Alastor jabbed at Vaggie's burning desire to just end him. She picked herself up after flopping onto one of the roof segments, taking a massive gamble fighting along the edge of the Roof. But this might work in her advantage, opting to retract her wings and instead maintain a fighting stance against Alastor's approach. His appearance slightly reverted to normal, displaying the dialed eyes and elongated Antlers. They both figured what they were going for with this, intending to knock each other off the Hotel.

Vaggie's advantage was a no-brainer, possessing Wings to simply take flight in the scenario that she fell. Both sides would instead prioritize hand to hand combat with their staffs/spears, trying to force each other down by any means necessary. The improvements on her reflexes showed themselves in this movements, overwhelming the Radio Demon with the speed and force applied to each strike. With every impact, his Staff sustained progressively more damage, creating a distorted audio couplet with static noise. The straw that broke its back was one collision of the Spear around the middle of the Staff, where it was its weakest. Alastor cracked his head back, narrowing avoiding the Angelic Blade hitting his chin.

"If I had a penny for every time an Angel broke this staff, I'd have two. Which frankly isn't much, but the fact it's happened twice is just absurd." Alastor shifted his focus from the fight to his staff, exposing his real voice with the removal of the Radio filter. Vaggie just stood there, flummoxed at the voice that had just slipped out of his voice. "What the fuck? That's your real voice?!" She'd stare in disbelief for a few seconds, bursting out in laughter afterwards. There was something exceptionally funny about the sheer contrast between his theater standard voice and his real one, as if the Radio Demon had been caught with pants down and dropped the Act entirely. This display had been intentionally, betting on the Angel mocking his real voice for a suitable distraction.

Without her wings open, Alastor gave her a good push with a concealed void tentacle, pushing Vaggie right over the edge; But not enough to where she couldn't latch onto it and try to pull herself up. Alastor stood right in front of her, taking the opportunity to do something dramatic yet very amusing in his eyes. "It's been ah honor to spar with you, Vagatha. But I'm afraid you've run out of cards to play." He'd progressively attempt to force her hands off, poking at them with his staff. The lack of distance between the two of them is exactly what Vaggie had anticipated, staring the Radio Demon in the eyes with her rare smirk. "Wanna bet?" She reached forward and latched onto Alastor's arm, allowing herself to fall while dragging him with her.

That'd been step one, with her next step being to plunge her Spear into his stomach during their descent. "That's three!" Vaggie exclaimed right in his face, really rubbing it in that she'd finally won this game after a month of effort. Her wings opened, attempting to flee. "Congratulations, Vaggie! I'm so proud of you! But I just have one simple question..." Alastor trailed on whilst stabbing both segments of the broken staff through Vaggie's wings, poking right out the other end with a brief burst of golden blood. She'd exclaim in pain, a memory sparking through her mind, one of her violent banishment from Heaven "How do you intend to get out of this?" He fully intended to hit the floor, as long as Vaggie would share this fall with him.

Taking the moment to mentally recover from the shock, she'd glare towards the Overlord with an unamused expression. "Just this." Vaggie responded before vanishing away from him, leaving behind a dust cloud that irritated the eyes and left a fowl taste. While not anticipated, it played out in her favor and distracted the Demon from pulling any stunt to save himself. But where had the Angel gone? From that dust cloud, a Moth fell out and hurdled towards the ground; shifting back to her humanoid form before hitting the ground. Alastor had landed moments before. "You were saying?" Vaggie questioned, moreso annoyed she now had to deal with this injury and explain how she got it to Charlie.

An uncomfortable silence followed, staring towards each other with still expression and no movements. Alastor reached his arm up, forcing his limbs back into place as if they'd just spontaneously regenerated. This applied to every part of his body, breaking his limbs just to correct them seconds later until he'd been standing properly again. Still bleeding from multiple places, but that wouldn't bring a frown to his face. "I suppose you did fulfill the terms of our agreement, so I'll disclose to you my true intentions with your girlfriend!" Alastor clapped his hands together, prompting the Angel to straighten up in curiosity. "It may come off as a shock, but you are the only one whose soul is chained to a higher being. But who, you're wondering, could possibly be the master of me?"

Alastor spoke dramatically, showing no signs of spite towards Vaggie for beating his game. "Well, just a delightful gal known as Lilith!" The name had been spoken with an almost deafening radio gargle, as if censored by his own voice. Vaggie briefly plugged her ears to block the static. "Known as who?" She asked again, wondering if that was intentional or involuntary. "Lucifer's wife!" He stated, again muffled with radio garble and a brief shift of his eyes to dials. Judging by the look in his eyes, this definitely wasn't voluntary. He'd take a moment to think about this, devising how to phrase it in a way he could evade the censors. "The Sinner that of which is half responsible for the existence of a realm where bad people like me go!"

Alastor finally stated, managing to word his statement in such an indirect phrasing so it counts evade this involuntary censor. "Lilith-? Like- Charlie's Mother Lilith? The Queen of Hell, you gave your soul to her?!" Vaggie was just perplexed at this whole revelation. She didn't expect him to have sold her soul, and she definitely didn't expect that he'd sell it to the Queen of Hell. "This is gonna be a stupid question, but... Alastor? Why did you sell your soul to Lilith? Is that why you were gone for 7 years?" She questioned further, receiving only a nod in confirmation to the second question. "Use that bright and shiny head of yours! Why do you think I'm here? You actually think I'd be cleaning bottles and listening to you fucks bitch and moan all the time if he wasn't forcing me?"

Alastor played a recording of Husk's explanation to staying at the Hotel, coupled with faint Radio static to further represent the whole broadcast joke. "That- actually explains a lot. And you need her daughter to get out of this deal?" Vaggie assumed that's the whole point behind striking a deal with Charlie. Other than a quick power grab, she couldn't imagine any other reason for doing this. "Bingo! While I haven't devised a plan just yet, my instincts tell me roping the Princess into my scheme will make all the difference! But now that you know my darkest secret, riddle me this! Will you still oppose me and everything I do? Or will you give me even a shred of faith, and trust in that the soul of your beloved will remain unharmed?"

Alastor questioned, hands folded behind his back. Vaggie had now been caught within a moral dilemma, between the Radio Demon and the Princess. She had no idea what he planned in the name of liberating his soul, other than the outcome. But what could she do to stop him? Charlie would be furious if she up and decided to kill him, no matter how evil or dangerous he was. A long silence followed, enduring an internal debate within himself before finally responding. "Alastor. You are an egotistical piece of shit, that I know will do anything to achieve a goal as significant as this. But Charlie believes that some how, in some sudden and unexpected change of heart, you'll do the right thing. Also Charlie would be sad if I killed you, so know the only reason you live is because I let you!"

Vaggie declared, knowing full well she only had the strength to hold her ground against him. Knowing the fact he voluntarily sold his soul to the Queen, and could only imagine what power he kept under wraps. She'd barely even seen the surface of his potential. "I'll tell you one thing, I'm nowhere near as powerful as neither her parents or the Princess herself! My objective as of now is to guide that potential, knowing that I'll be on the winning side if I stick with her! Consider that a lesson in entrepreneurship, and goodnight!" Alastor had announced his departure before fading into shadows, most likely emerging back inside the Hotel to tend to the obvious wounds without drawing attention.

Vaggie didn't have that luxury, stuck walking back inside and to the bathrooms on foot to deal with the wounds sustained to her wings. They'd have to stay out for tonight, changing back into her night clothes and returning to her girlfriend's side without a word. Fortunately, her injuries should recover by morning. The same could not be said to the damage sustained to her mind. Vaggie had soul her soul to Carmilla Carmine, Alastor was tied to the sudden disappearance of the Queen and Charlie had this untapped potential he wanted to guide. The Angel turned towards her partner, seeing her sleeping soundly as usual. Despite everything she and everyone else had been through, she refused to let it hold her down. Vaggie slowly wrapped her arms around her, pulling the Princess into a hug.

If only she could put as much faith in people as her. Within the Radio Tower, Alastor had similarly been tending to his injuries. Having been sustained by an Angelic Weapon, they wouldn't be going away so easily. He'd also been stuck cleaning up the mess left behind by the Angel. "I must say, it took quite the effort to drown out the answer in Radio Static. She's truly convinced I sold my soul to Lilith! But is there a difference between those two Sinners?!" Alastor chuckled at his own joke, accompanied with a faint laugh track. His eyes would narrow afterwards, expressing a more serious look. "You may have owned my soul, but you traded your biggest secret to me in exchange. A decision you will come to regret soon enough, ꍟꃴꍟ."