At the Devil's Desk

by Im a B O X

Rating: teen
Tags: Profanity, Violence, Slice of Life, Crossover, Dark, Death, Alternate Universe, Human, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Other, Science Fiction
Length: 5815

“I still have business to maintain against other... beliefs, and I can’t exactly let you go freely either, bad for business and all, so how about this, a contract? To either guarantee something beyond death or something… negotiable.”

“I still have business to maintain against other... beliefs, and I can’t exactly let you go freely either, bad for business and all, so how about this, a contract? To either guarantee something beyond death or something… negotiable.”

Oh, friends of mine, it is I! The Devil himself, Toby Morningstar, CEO of Headquarters for Exiled Lunatics and Lossers Inc. (H.E.L.L. Inc.) Some interdimensional beings view me as a less-than-ideal lunatic who should never be trusted and is always a big meanie.

Granted there is some truth in that, and after all, when your competitions have stairways leading upwards or straight ahead, the assumption with staircases will always be better than those that go down under, but I’ve got a business, and talking business, my door is always open to anyone and everyone, old or new, so how about an offer? A contract perhaps? One that you simply have to read and provide a negotiable deal, perhaps your heart? The soul? Or maybe even your sanity, everything is up for the offer, and if you so wish, sign with your blood or, for the lucky unlucky, forfeit.

Truth be told, I'm not supposed to tell you this by-law of a multidimensional contract signed by my competitors and me, but it's your choice, it just so happens that it's usually better for business if you play into my side.

I would have considered this as one of my first Crack-fic’s so you know... Deal with it.

Mild tags here and there, it will probably involve some otherworldly beings, and yeah, I probably forgot something, and... um...
please don't do anything that will upset anyone. As I said, this is just to screw around, nothing more nothing less. (Crossovers with other characters will happen, just keep an eye out.)

I have a bad feeling about this, later!

Published 2021-12-14 22:40:00 UTC
Last updated 2022-02-06 01:13:40 UTC

A (normal) Introduction to H.E.L.L. Inc.

Begin audio record tape in 3... 2... 1...

“-he tape recording?”

“Hell if I knew...”

(Chuckles in the background)

“Hahaha, Very funny, Mortem, now, back to business.”

“Hmm, I think it’s... already recording, YO! Daniel, the circle things are already turning.”

(A distant murmuring is heard)

“Oh shit, um... boss, I think you should already do the introduction.”

(Shuffling noises, books are heard falling and several glass objects fell and broke as the room suddenly fell silent)

“Um... what do I say again?”

“R-read the bloody notes or something! I dunno, this is on you, Toby.”

“Alright, alright. Ahem, ahem,”

(Shuffling of paper is heard, as a pen in the distance is heard writing something)

“Good day to you, future business associate! It is I! Toby Morningstar, or more commonly referred to, or even known by my other title, Lucifer, CEO of H.E.L.L. Inc. This is a brief preview of the services and possibilities that my company, and by extension, perhaps my competitor and business partners alike, are willing to put forth for any and all that are interested in our offers.”

(A short pause as shifting papers are heard in the background)

“Now, I hear you may ask, ‘Why would we deal with the epitome of evil if there are other ways to obtain what we desire? In even safer and cost-effective ways no less.’ And to that I say! My business offer is the only one out of, say, a dozen other beliefs in the same high regard and ability that is always at a constant. The problem with the beliefs that rely on the idea of ‘good’ or something similar is that its meaning is always shifting, meaning there is no guarantee to their offers, and unlike them...”

“The damned, or in this case, the contractees and contracts made between this company and you are always constant, retribution is a constant state that must be fulfilled, so, to have evil as a fixed definition, what is signed between you and us will always remain constant, for it will not change, and only ever changes under an extreme united interdimensional shift in the belief system that is currently agreed upon, amongst other reasons, point is that we are a one-of-a-kind and something that other belief could not wish to replicate to the same consistency.”

“And before we continue, I’d like to introduce Mortem, Brother to Aoife and one of the children of The Moirae, Along with Daniel, the Alcalde for the High Tribunal who is here helping us set this introduction tape, say ‘Hi’ Daniel.”

“Yo!”

“But back on topic-”

(A knocking on the door is heard accompanied by several groans within the room)

“Oh C'mon, can’t I just have, like, one day, ONE DAY! When they could just stick on their own fuckin turf?”

“Ay, ay, now, don't get too pumped, Toby, they might just be down here looking for me, or it may not even be who you're thinking about.”

“Like hell it is! I mean, seriously, WHO ELSE comes down here, down in this flaming inferno, a desolated wasteland, my domain at this time? And let me tell you this, they don’t even have the audacity to check on Hades while there here bellow, HADES FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!”

“OK, OK, sheesh, we get the point.”

(A door opens and wood is heard creaking as footsteps are made on the floorboard, becoming louder as they stepped closer)

“Yo, Toby, how's the business going? Managed to get the few contracts? Or are you still planning things out?”

“Not now, Joshua, and tell Moses to shut up about the rules, ever since he became head director for the Rules and Regulations department he won’t shut up about my exploits.”

(Shuffling of papers is heard, a zipping noise is made.)

“I’m not here for that, I came by to tell you of a new competitor.”

(Silence)

“Which world?”

“Not a world, Toby.”

(Silence)

“Oh… oh, oh no, no…”

“Daniel, Mortem, leave the office, Mortem, you go get Hades and tell every other god's that we’ve got new blood on our hands, Daniel, well, the same goes for you but with those outside my domain. Now go.”

(Rusting noises and bumps are heard, and at the end, a door is heard being closed and locked)

“So, what’s the name of the dimension?”

“It has yet to be named, but the primary world has already been given a name.”

“Spill it, this might be the only time I'm willing to listen.”

(Writing noises are heard, along with papers being shuffled)

“Well, I think with how our recent 'expeditions' are going, I would have figured you'd want the names of the head beings of this dimension first.”

“Go ahead, as I said, I'm listening, and writing with intent.”

“Well, just like the other dimensions and world’s, there are, as always, the Three Consuls Constants, you already know the basic rundown, it's like any other.”

“And by the way, you say it, it's different.”

(a sigh is heard)

“True, Father has been sending Gabriel to ‘scout’ ahead on behalf of the entire competition, despite being alright with new competition coming in and out, he was slightly disturbed by this new one.”

“The point... What makes them different?”

“They have the strongest form of sorcery out of anything we’ve encountered so far, they could make a direct link to us by their will if they so choose to put in the time and effort.”

(A soft ‘thud’ is heard, and there was pure silence for a moment.)

"And thats not even the 'worst' part, because from what Gabriel could gather, the higher beings of their world interact or gave some form of equivalent, unrestricted power, to their beleivers, with Harmony being an offender to this practice, having some artifacts contain their power, amongst other findings."

“The names of their higher beings?”

“One is apparently the ‘God of Chaos’ going by ‘Discord’, his sister and opposite, apparently harmony herself, ‘Armonia’, the third Consul hadn’t been seen or even heard of yet, but considering this dimension is very, very, leaner when it comes to which side is right or wrong, it won’t surprise me when their equivalent of a 'Neutral' being doesn’t even exist, considering the fact that someone has to first believe in order for any of us belief to be manifested."

“Hmm...”

“Feeling dizzy?”

“No, just tired perhaps, running this place has never been a pleasant experience.”

“As if it ever even was...”

“Oh... I guess I left the recorder on, could you reach it for me and turn it off? Yeah, that one over there.”

(A heavy sigh is heard.)

“This one?”

“Yeah, yeah, I believe we still have some more things to talk about anyway, I think you should just press the red butto-”

Audio record tape has been terminated at this point in time. Thank you for listening in.

Author's Note

This is more of a pilot chapter than anything else, I'm just testing the waters and seeing if the response for it are not as... "explicit" as some people might take it.

A Chat between Death and Chaos

Discord prepared himself, with his chaotic abilities, he never expected to use the most “useless” of abilities at his disposal, and he conjured himself a tux for the sake of nothing (although it was one of the first abilities he was able to learn as a young draconequus). He had recently done a bit of “scouring” after the Purple head’s little disaster of an experiment, which literally sent the Purple head’s brain into a different… place, funny for him and something he could fix with the snap of his talons, but he had the strange feeling that Twilight’s spell had been tampered with, or to be reasonable, had ulterior motives beyond just being a new breakthrough in magic, just like when she discovered the “magic of friendship”, because at that moment where he planned to fix everything, a compelling force, not that of Armonia (which only furthered his suspicions since she asked him to “check” if anything was amiss, something she would usually have asked for any pony else to do), had prevented him from doing so. And this force, he planned on figuring out the cause of such unexpected uncertainty, after all, he had proven that chaos can cost nothing and gain everything, it was the game of “chance” that chaos brings in the first place that he even agreed to the role of Chaos God, or at least that’s what he tells himself anyway with his ego, his sister taking the opposite mentality and mannerism to him, but he didn’t mind, never have and never will, it was part of the game that he had just so grown used too, and it was endearing a way for him.

His little train of thoughts was however interrupted when a portal, the magical signature of which he had never felt before, or to be precise, he had actually long forgotten. And out of the portal came a shadowy figure, and Discord prepared to snap his paws to summon whatever abomination there is to dispose of this shadow, initially mistaking it for the return of the mad tyrant Sombra, however unlikely that was. Instead, the same force that caused him uncertainty hit him like an ocean wave, he didn’t expect it, at least not so soon, and as that moment dragged on and the portal dissipated, the figure seemed to float, a shadowy upper body was all there is, with a book on one side afloat and on the other what appeared to be a quilt that it held with whatever force it had present.

“And who might you be?” The draconequus asked, ever so cautious to the villain trope, ever since Tirek, he promised not to fall into the same trap again for his dear Fluttershy, “I can sense that you aren’t from around here, and your magic… it isn’t chaotic or harmonic, more of a natural force, is it?”

The figure somehow seemingly being approachable despite the ominous presence, replied in kind, “Think of me as... a kindred spirit, like you in a way, we are both made from the belief and need to balance the forces we naturally oppose, but we are different in subtle ways.”

“How so?” Discord asked, his paw prepared to snap at a moment’s notice, the only thing holding him back was his curiosity, and even then, he knew this being was likely here for a reason rather than fate, “Oh how rude of me, I still haven’t introduced myself! I am Discord, Spirit of-” he said trying to look juvenile and the usual foreboding act that came with being chaotic, but he was interrupted before he could even finish.

“We know who you are, Discord, ‘Spirit of Chaos’, you aren’t a god as some might think, as you are the literal embodiment of chaos, chaos in the flesh as some of my colleagues might say. As for me, I am Mortem, just like you, we are mostly born out of nature and the desire to oppose our natural opposite, ironic when our siblings would become our ‘foe’ in a sense. And just like how your name reflects that of which you embody, I too am an embodiment of something, in this case, death.”

Discord visibly flinched at that, he even had to stop himself from giving the usual remark of ‘what a kill joy’ out of an internal rationalization, and that was exemplified by his unintentional flinch. At that very moment, he realized he needed to take action, and with that, he snapped his paws, but instead of sending the figure known as “death” packing, he instead teleported himself and his new guest into his domain, a house in the literal void, which to his surprise, Mortem took calmer than what he or even most would expect. He needed no pony or creature for that matter, not even Celestia and her agents, to know of this revelation, lest this makes international news, he knew when the time for chaos is. And although the chaos that could be made will last him a full millennium of laughter, he knew it was not something Equus could ever hope to fully recover from, besides, it isn’t every day when he would have to actually have to cooperate or meet beings similar in stature to him. Celestia and Luna, combined with the Elements of Harmony (the artifacts, not Harmony itself), are nothing compared to his prime and the abilities of spirits (and for that matter, actual gods) that have no regard for the bounds set to them by both nature, self, and peers, a temptation he promised to never fall into again.

“So when will we discuss business, Mr. Discord?” Mortem asked as his book and quill began to near each other, which Discord assumed was for the purpose of something to be written.

“‘Mr. Discord’ isn’t really my fancy, but let us assume you are indeed who you say you are,” Discord said, his chaotic nature being suppressed in a manner that he hasn’t experienced since his first reformation (the second being after the events with Tirek), “Why are you here? And what’s your business in Equus?”

“Quite simple really, I came by to ask if someone named Gabriel had found either you or your natural opposite.” Mortem said, writing something in the book.

“Hmm…” Discord thought for a moment, now that he thought about it, Armonia really did seem a bit off, she wasn’t extra cheerful or down, She and he had always shared a special bond, but her problem was that she always refused to take on anyone form, instead of taking up the forms of those that she considered being her ‘vassal’ of harmony (i.e. those granted with the title of ‘element bearers’ and not necessarily anyone artifact.)

“I’ll assume that as a yes,” Mortem said as he disregarded any attempts by Discord to say otherwise.

“Now, now, hold on, what’s in it for Equus, or even for me?” Discord said, as he was losing patience, he understood there were some underlying factors that he clearly overlooked, but as it stood, he would not risk Equus safety, even if it meant he would get everything (he already has everything, in the form of a boys club and a yellow butter pony).

Breathing a heavy sigh, Mortem answered begrudgingly, “Do you want the detailed version or the scuffed?” He asked.

“Scuffed.” Discord answered, no huff, no puff.

“Basically, you and your sister, I assume it’s she, will be given a place in our little ‘table of competition’ where some other spirits and gods alike reside, but the top dogs run what most would call a ‘religious company’ to pass the time, don’t take anything too seriously though, that is the general flow, but there is always the prestige of bragging rights, so there’s that when it comes to ‘friendly’ competition, nothing seriously serious. The afterlife is a very… mixed place, where no one is a loser loser, you know, the same goes for winners. As for continuity sake and those ponies that are indeed dead, they also are in the afterlife, just so you know, just chilling.” He explained.

“You know, for someone who likely has to guide some very questionable beings into their supposed ‘fate’, you’re actually pretty interesting,” Discord remarked, “But I must simply ask, is everything centered around this ‘bragging right’?”

A groan is instinctively made by Mortem, “Our business, as a whole that is, extends to some other practices, we do our part in ‘nature’, rewarding those ‘good’ and punishing the ‘bad’, there are plenty of trials done per day just to identify as either of the two, but in more than one ways, yes, and this bragging right is to and should be respected and dealt with, even if it becomes overbearing, a little bit of fun never hurts. And business, both good and bad, follow certain rules, and those are usually both very lenient and stick at the same time.”

“I assume you yourself answer to a higher being?” Discord asked.

“Not necessarily, I do follow around under someone, but it’s out of my own will, sure someone might say it’s better to follow your own path, but really, you get bored and bothered if you don’t change up a bit, a bit of spice in how we like to do things, which is why those spirits and gods usually have a little play area, actually, no, I won’t explain further, I think it’s best if you and your sister see it with your own eyes.”

“Well, that would be difficult as Armonia doesn’t actually have a manifested form of her own, should I call her?” He asked, prepared to snap his paw again, either to bring Armonia to him or the other way around.

“No, that won’t be necessary,” Mortem said, raising his quill as he sliced literal thin air to open a portal, despite him being in the spirit of chaos’s domain, “I have other matters to attend to, I’m sure Gabriel would, no, maybe even Joshua, would go and try to set up a proper relation, I’m just check-in in on progress. A great story to tell for my sister after all” And with that, he stepped into the portal that lead to a different… void? Discord was unsure.

“Wait a minute… w-wha- how did he?” Discord asked, baffled at the fact that someone escaped his domain, the first time, and admittedly, it was very baffling to him that he wasn’t even mad, out of the confusion and a hint of amazement he just witnessed he had a sense of anticipation, although, that would mean he would have to meet beings that are of equal stature to him, maybe even more so.

And after a bit of reflecting in his void, he teleported once again to the Castle of the Two Sisters, where he knew Star Swirl would be in his free time scouring for old books, texts, and whatnot, he would have to actually discuss business with him and his sister. Discord, for the first time in probably several millenniums, felt mixed feelings… apprehension mixed with a juvenile sense of anticipation? Perhaps, but not exactly the proper words to his liking, but he definitely felt like a new era on the horizon, what with Twilight becoming a monarch by definition and the two sisters actually retiring and having the time to play with Discord and his sister, just like the old times, indeed, a new era brings new opportunities, and if the chances are indeed chaotic, this brings a new layer for him to indulge later on.

Well, as Discord thought of it, looking forwards, it would indeed be interesting, and a pinch of chaos that he could smell, well, since he was here in the old castle, might as well look around for the Young six and terrorize them for the time being in their “Treehouse of Harmony”.

Author's Note

The second chapter is out!

surprisingly, I did not go overboard on this one, which I actually feel proud of, and really, it's interesting since I don't exactly remember how I even managed to do it. Although I do remember telling myself to write sparingly,

Anyways, again, I hope you find this new chapter an enjoyable read, and as always,

Later!

The Fallen Angel and Chaos's Sister.

“Fancy place you got here,” Armonia remarked. Had she been informed of this new turn of events she would have sent the element bears to deal with this perceived threat themselves, but now, she had to admit, she had slacked off long enough in this kind of matter and was a bit rusty, so a change of pace was something she was willing to welcome.

“Oh please, I thank you for the flattery, Ms. Armonia, but there is no need for such formalities,” Toby responded, leading the both of them down to his personal office, where they could discuss other matters. “After all, down here, we see ourselves as the lesser side of the coin, we are more of a necessity than anything else and there is no shame in hiding your disapproval. Even then, we are just doing what is, as to how some would assume it, a service of good, a place of retribution. That’s not to say we don’t provide opportunity down here, although they are few and far in between considering those are either earned or, in the rare cases, a divine intervention from the competition.”

Much to the devil's surprise, an embodiment of harmony had giggled at his remark. Harmony incarnate, who had taken up Twilight Sparkle's form, had seen the pain that was brought down there, yet as the devil explained, it was a sort of necessity than anything else. And to some extent, it reminded her of her predecessor, Order, who at most times had a serious demeanor overshadowed by their line of work.

“Not at all, although I find such necessities… deplorable to some degree, I have to agree with what Discord had said, you are much more approachable than what most would describe you.”

“Part of the job.”

Looking around, Armonia noticed that despite the clearly hellish theme of the office that the devil worked in, it actually, and eerily, looked the part of an office that she might see every now and again in Equestria, one that expelled the feeling of dread and confinement, as a literal sight before an important and rigorous business interview. Compare that to the three beings she had met earlier that week, the so-called ‘Divine Trinity’, whose approach was much more open, there equivalent to the devil’s office being a garden, the name drops to the true name of that said garden being ‘The Garden of Eden’.

But as she thought to herself, she decided it was a memory best remembered for another time, at least until she finished up with the devil, there were others who would like to meet her, but for now, she had to finish and wrap up the meeting in the big leagues.

“By the way,” She began, suddenly noticing a pattern in the devil’s office.

Because from her point of view, apart from the desk, chairs, and cabinets that littered his office. The most intriguing part of it all was the windows, there were three fairly large windows that allowed them to peer into the surprisingly sophisticated hellish landscape below them. Hell, much to both Armonia’s dismay and surprise, was littered with buildings and devices that introduced many different ways of delivering anguish, from simple machinations that would repeatedly and continually send someone to relive death over and over again to the old-time furnace that would burn whatever was inside it alive, and that doesn’t even go over the much more inhumane and near-undefined complexity of ways that this place continues on to burn and fuel the anguish that is this hellscape.

To her surprise, the devil had seemingly furrowed his brow from both her question and the direction she was looking at, yet he allowed her to speak first, keeping his comments to himself for the moment.

“I must ask, for the incarnation of sin, of misdeed, what is the sin you find most deplorable.” She asked, genuinely interested in his response, and to her surprise, he indulged in her question.

A deep sigh was taken before he sat down on his chair, rummaging through the desk of his drawer. When he finished, he pulled out a single piece of feather. If Armonia had to take a guess, she could have mistaken it for a feather preened from the current co-ruler of Equestria, the feather itself was of a pristine white with no signs of dust or any of that sort.

“Personally, I think it would be betrayal and unfounded lust, two of the most punishable, I have seen their effects first hand and what it could lead and be caused by. Still,” he said. Inwardly though, he remembered the day that he and his fellow loyalist turned tails and waged war against their creator and anyone who hadn’t backed him. It wasn’t out of a sense of selfishness and greed, although it did play a role, it was more of a self-justified retaliation, as though they felt like their service was merely being exploited.

“On the basis of principle, I think it would be misplaced self-righteousness and reason, and when one takes it onto another level beyond what is ‘alright’. Not necessarily a sin within itself, but it could lead to other consequences.” Lifting the single piece of feather in a specific place, where the small shine from those above and divine, it glinted unmolested, a beautiful shimmer of life and hope. A life bygone, he must admit. Returning the feather into its proper place back, he now returned his gaze back to Armonia while he lifted the tape recorder to his side.

“I know we’ve already done the introductions, but for formalities sake, I hope you won’t mind if we record this, do you?”

“Not at all,” She replied, a smile adorning the muzzle of the being she had taken form after.

“Great!” Toby replied, now withdrawing another set of files from one of his cabinets.

Setting the sheet of papers down, he passed a pen towards Armonia’s direction, indirectly telling her to take the center stage and the initiative to move forward. She, of course, obliged the request, levitating said pen as she drew closer to the file and the contract that is outlined. As much as she hated herself for admitting this fact but it won’t be the first nor last time she would sign such a pact similar to this in nature.

Reading through the contents of the file with relative ease, the file outlined a very vague proceeding moving forwards, nothing too extreme for that matter. She assumed the vagueness was because of the devil leaving loopholes within his own contracts for future gain, but the reality of it couldn’t be farther from the truth, since Equis was, by and large, the first real world, or maybe dimension, that the devil and his contemporaries would actually be able to directly influence. Sorcery was and still is, a privilege in most worlds, but to some, it was considered more of a right, and Equis was one of these worlds where it was a right. Allowing for such a bridge to be formed directly, of course, the business structure that they had employed would say otherwise, but nothing they can’t manage.

“Well,” Armonia began, having finished through with the entire file. “As far as I could tell, I’ll only have a few changes and we are good to go.”

“Do these changes also apply to our opponents?” Toby asked, suspicious of her motive but nonetheless leaned to save face.

“Yes,” she simply replied, hovering the pen to outline said changes to the file, “I would like that these specifics be changed accordingly,” as she outlined her request, she explained herself if only to compensate for the silence of his supposed intrigue.

“I’d like the link between your world and mine to be limited at best, your overall presence, along with your associates, foe or otherwise, also be limited, and that magic should serve as a commodity than anything else if such a transfer might occur.” She said, all of those were just vague and barebones, but she could worry about the specifics when these beings crossed a line or made a move.

“Fine by me,” Toby responded, with a snap of his fingers, he changes the parts that Armonia requested to be changed. “I have to admit, you are by far one of the most back seated beings I have ever come a crossed.”

“Comes with just being a tree for most of my existence.” She remarked, fondly remembering her time as a tree, just, you know, sitting there, being able to feel and hear nearly everything.

“Well, I had the privilege to look and partially interact with many universes and dimensions, some better, some worse, but they were all the same, they always had three constant forces, something in the lines of ‘Good and Evil’ and there’s the middle or the neutrals as some would say.”

“On that note, I know it’s obvious and all, but why are you and your competitors so... formal?” She finally asked the question that bugged her mind.

Staring directly at the being before him, he took a deep breath before answering, “We are but a group of beings who preside such formalities, and others like us, like devils of different magnitudes, chaos beings, gods of order, and plenty more. Now, some might rule with an iron will, some even live with and amongst their creation, but as it stood, I and my contemporaries are the largest of the bunch, spanning our ‘business’ in millions, if not trillions and more of other dimensions and universes. Admittedly, we had to adapt, make do, and bargain with other similar beings, but we would like to set an example, be it in punishment, rulership, or even creation. We started from humble beginnings and we continue with what we can see as a sort of ‘mutual understanding’ between what is essentially opposing ideologies. We do what we can, and bragging rights is really the only ‘true’ form of currency we share amongst ourselves and onto others, there are simply just some things that have to be earned, not willed. Besides, you got to pass the time in some other manner, being ‘leader’ or ‘boss’ can get old pretty quickly, not to mention that we’re, and still are, a sort of comfort and guidance for the beings that first conjured us with their imagination, beings of humble beginnings for sure, they gave us the vision to fulfill, and the rest is like a ribbon of fate or something.”

“Ah...” Armonia took her time to process what she had just been told. On one hoof, she found it fascinating, on the other, these are clearly powerful beings that could match, and most likely, surpass even the combined power of the whole alicorn race at its height, a literal race that once descended from gods. Truly, she and Discord might just have to play their cards carefully.

While she thought to herself, she can’t help but subconsciously look around her, and especially at Toby, a face that, although a hellish red that reflected the embodiment of sin and misdeed, could make and present a plethora of emotions at once, even now at that moment, she could see that he was thinking to himself, what he thought Armonia could only guess.

“So…” Toby looked around his office, although a being with a lifespan that even challenged the age of his creator. He was never one for conversation, despite the silver-tongued that he naturally had been gifted, but like an angel, or used to be in this case, he like his former brothers had difficulty communicating with mortals. They had always preferred to manipulate ‘nature’ to their whim, performing so-called ‘acts of god’ and ‘miracles’, all part of the job Toby used to do, at least until he threw it away.

“I have to ask, how did you come to be?” Armonia asked, noticing the clear lack of pictures in the office, not that there weren't any present.

A smirk formed at the devil’s face, and with a snap of his fingers and him setting down the glasses that he had subconsciously cleaned all throughout this meeting to the side. A few moments later and a knock came to the door, shortly followed by the door swinging open to reveal a human in a white lab coat and a red cross at the side of each shoulder. Speaking a heavy German accent, the being allowed himself in as he inspected the devil first before laying an eye on Armonia.

“Ooh, Fascinating.” He remarked as he drew a closer inspection of Armonia and her form.

“Clearly, za magic zat zis one possesses is unzoudabtly greater zan any we have seen zus fa. I zo hope zat zer is a better reazon to your calling.” He looked to the devil, clearly unhappy and being called at such a time, presumably having been taken away from something he was doing.

“Don’t sweat it, Ludwig, I got a guest that you'll have to entertain for the next 3 hours, don’t worry, you'll be compensated accordingly as per the contract.” Toby replied, easing the concerns of the unlicensed ‘professional’.

“Anyways, Armonia, please meet ‘Dr.’ Ludwig Humboldt, one of the most fascinating beings that I am willing to admit exists. He will introduce you to the other mates that I work with and here in the company and a brief overview of HELL Inc. In general, I know you'll have an interesting time with what he has to say and talk about.” He finished, leaving the room to go off to who knows where. Leaving the two beings to interact with each other.

A brief moment of silence is shared until Armonia decided to break the already melting ice between her and the human.

“So, how did a doctor find himself by the side of the devil?”

“Ha,” the doctor chuckled, before answering in kind. “I know za man could be za ominous type, but believe me, he go’z about with za contractz like za angel he was before, straight forward und a true sore. Truly, za geneticz zat he und hiz brotherz share iz nearly inseparable. Now zat is an interezting story for you my zdear, but would you like za story of the devil first? Or perhapz za story zat you have never heard before?” he asked, smiling at Armonia eagerly awaiting her answer.

“Give me a daring one.” She replied, smirking at the thought of whatever story that the doctor is about to share.

“Very well zen,” he replied, clearly jovial at her choice as he began his story, “It all started after za day zat I had gained my medical license. It waz za winter of 1943 und za works zat I have done throughout za fieldz of battle und science brought za Riech to its greatezt hight, zen, out of za nowhere fieldz zat I have vworked on, za great chaos gods had been awakened, und zey approached me with a propozal...”

Author's Note

Ok, for the AN, I’ll make it brief, Armonia is Spanish for Harmony

And for the next chapter, will be another tape record, after that, the “the first encounters” would be written, or at least something along those lines,

as always, thank you for your time and I’ll see you...

Later!