Intelligence Gathering

“Welcome, one and all, and thank you for joining today’s discussion. Today, we have a special announcement. Something for those of you who have an eye for new talent. One of my subservient families from Earth has produced a new Blight spawn.”

A “blight” is a person who is extremely adept and competent in the use of their element; this means they can use their given abilities to the fullest extent. On the other hand, most supernatural people are born as banes; they have a specific ability they can use but cannot apply to the same extent a Blight can. It is commonly believed that blights and babes were spawned from Lucifer’s descent to hell. Some religions view the powers they grant as an upfront to God. Gluttony is the first to respond.

“Ahh, where are they now? Are they going to support Satan’s vision? Are they related to that new batch of missing souls? Do you think they’d enjoy my gifts? AH, I simply must meet them!”

Sloth responds faster than Tonnis could even process the onslaught of questions. Usually, she would allow Gluttony to ramble on and rile himself up for her amusement, but seeing a chance to cut past Tonnis’ voice, she steals his thunder.

“Last I checked, he was in Lust’s clutches. He probably won't, considering Tonnis didn’t even attempt to summon him; that leads me to assume Satan failed in branding the blight boy. He did fall early, but not early enough to have to claw out of purgatory to get here. No Gluttony, I don’t think he’d appreciate your gifts.”

Tonnis stands there bewildered by Sloth’s unusually quick and knowledgeable response. Tonnis can gather that Sloth has some sort of investment in this new Pride but is unsure of exactly how much she knows; not wanting to get off track, he continues. With a cough in his hand, he grabs the crowd's attention again.

“Thank you, Sloth.”

He speaks sarcastically, and in turn, Sloth sarcastically motions for him to continue talking with a sly and satisfied look on her face.

“Right, our newest blight and newest Sin are the same person, a boy going by the “Gladiator King” moniker. Our very own master has greeted the Blight after they killed Elizebeth and claimed her position as Pride.”

Greed chimes in with an uninterested tone.

“Good riddance, that pompous bitch got on my nerves. I didn’t think she’d lose her title so soon, though.”

Wrath follows with a tinge of mockery and sarcasm.

“Yeah, what a shock! YOUR boss couldn’t even subdue her successor. Sounds like we’re in for a change of manageme-“

“Quiet……”

A low grumble, a voice no higher than a whisper, emits from the back of the auditorium. Satan has entered, and though his voice was not raised, the venom it holds is just as deadly. The room falls silent, each sin marinating in the tense, fervorous weight of their situation. They sit quietly, waiting for the next word from Satan or Tonnis. Satan approaches the stage with a controlled fury festering in his soul, each step emphasizing his disdain for the topic. Stepping onto the stage, Satan tells Tonnis to continue, which Tonnis does happily.

“As I was saying, our newest Sin, Pride, seems to be the incarnation of the Shadow Blight. The first incarnation of this blight was remembered for his fierce battle with the archangels Azazel and Micheal. Clearly one of the more versatile blights around and the fourth blight out of all the Sins.”

Sloth raises her hand to ask a question and is given room to do so. As she speaks, her voice is a blend of curiosity and subtle mockery. She has multiple assumptions about the situation and knows all of them paint Satan in a bad light. Her aim in this subtle slight is simply to see the reactions of her colleagues.

“So the shadow blight has become Pride, but why are they in the Lust ring? It is my understanding that Sins cannot freely move between rings without express permission from Satan or God.”

A low mumble flows between the sins as they speculate on the reason behind this. Greed and Wrath even talk amongst each other, genuinely confused as to how this happened.

Tonnis is about to provide a false explanation to alleviate the curiosity about the sins but is stopped by Satan. Satan gives his explanation. Delivering his words with the same low rumble, Satan's response is short and sweet.

“We’re unsure of how this situation transpired, but we are in pursuit of an explanation.”

Gluttony shoots out another question born from his speculation with Sloth just as Satan completes his statement.

“That begs the question, was this new Pride susceptible to Lust tricks? I’d assume they’d be in for a rude awakening, barging into someone else’s territory like that.”

Satan rubs his temples as he comes out with the reality of the situation.

“He was until he killed Lust. Our newest Sin has let an archangel loose from her eternal punishment, so if you lot don’t listen and prepare, we may all be in danger!”

A moment of silence passes over the Sins. Wrath and Greed devise plans to protect themselves and their territories; Sloth and Gluttony, on the other hand, have no concern or interest in the new threat. Satan continues.

“The shadow blight is currently resting northwest of the main area of the Lust ring. He has eluded my mark, so he could be challenging to locate, but I trust one of you could quell this rebellion before it grows out of proportion.”

Wrath can’t restrain her worries; needing clarification, she speaks up.

“You truly expect one of us to fight an opponent we know little to nothing about. On top of that, you want us to leave our territories unattended for who knows how long just to do so!?”

Satan’s annoyance is plastered over his demeanor as he restrains the rage in his voice. His sharp eyes viscously pierce Wrath’s soul, and he retorts with a thinly veiled venom.

“Yes, I expect this from you all. You all are too experienced to be sacred of a newly dead child! I’m assigning Greed and Gluttony to this particular job. Just get the boy back in the pride ring. Crush his wonderful spirit and see to it that he never wants to leave his ring.”

Greed, in a fit of shock, shoots out of his seat in protest.

“There’s no way in hell I’m abandoning my current projects! I have deadlines, you know! It is simply too last minute. I don’t even- .“

Slow, thunderous footsteps echoing down the hall interrupt Greed’s rant. The high-pitched screeching of metal scraping the cobbled floor assaulted the ears of all in attendance. A distorted voice closes in on the auditorium doors before settling on a feminine voice, similar to the last attendant to be sacrificed. This augmented voice chuckles softly as what looks like a poorly made mechanical puppet barges into the meeting.

“The [shadow blight]; he’s finally in Hell, right? I’ve brought everything I know of the subject!”

The puppet doesn’t bother moving its arms as it moves towards the stage with pure ecstasy. Satan is the first to address the unexpected visitor; though displeased by the delay, his face shifts into a deceitful smile.

“Envy, you’re late….again. Your intel better be relevant.”

“If it were not……I would have stayed home.”

Even with the abundance of wires and cords covering their face, their utter jubilation on the topic is evident. Their piercing red eyes shoot around the room to gauge who is in attendance. Envy clumsily climbs onto the stage with two eye drones emerging from the artificial flesh covering their shoulders. Envy takes a few of their hair-like cords and jams them into the drones. The eye bats begin projecting images of Nanashi and bits of his journey.

“The [shadow blight] made easy work of Elizabeth, though…….she could have lived if not for his late [AWAKENING]. His [AWAKENING] granted me the evidence I needed to realize what I was……searching for. The [shadow blight] has shown early signs of unlocking his [Advanced Demon Mode.]”

Envy speaks with a metallic tone. Their sentences are filled with pauses from taking in vast amounts of information while simultaneously dispersing it, something like dial-up internet being spread too thin. Strategic emphasis is placed on certain words or phrases that Envy wants to draw more attention to; however, it is extremely jarring to hear.

The drones show a detailed close-up hologram of Nanashi and Purity walking to their resting spot. Despite Satan expressing the difficulty of locating Nanash and Purity, Envy has already sent a batch of stealth drones to their location. While the new Pride is moving, Wrath can catch a glimpse of a familiar marking on his face. She gently rubs the back of her neck in recognition. Gluttony seems to notice the mark, too, and without missing a beat, calls attention to it.

“Ah, that boy has the same mark as my newest subject. He must be one of yours, right, Tonnis?”

Sloth chimes in, trying to emphasize her warning to greed earlier, her voice tinged with playful sarcasm.

“Oh, the shark-toothed boy, right? Perhaps they're related.”

Tonnis’ face holds a satisfied smile as he responds. His subordinate families all end up with the same marking plastered somewhere on their bodies. Depending on the enslaved person, they may even be allowed to pick where the brand goes.

“Yes, I have a knack for churning out formidable demons.”

He glances at Wrath, a recent success story in Tonnis’ portfolio. Even though Wrath cannot be tamed the same way as the other sins, her being an ice blight and former slave under Tonnis makes her indispensable to Satan. Wrath, in turn, offers an icy glare towards Tonnis but otherwise remains composed. Envy continues their presentation, showing no care for the nuance in the room.

“As I was saying…..our newest BLIGHT has shown the capacity for such power, which led to my….. internal research. I have compiled the likeliness of the SINS and people of interest unlocking an [Advanced Demon Mode]. Unfortunately…..Satan and Myself do not have the capacity for such a transformation. Greed, Sloth, and the [angel] Purity……do not have the capacity either, each for vastly different and intriguing reasons. Gluttony….has a surprisingly fair chance of accessing his transformation; both Wrath and Tonnis have the best chance of transforming if pushed enough. That leads me to the [shadow blight] in the Lust ring and the [shadow bane] in Gluttony’s possession. They both have the highest chance to unlock this new form given their nature and their current objectives.”

Greed is the first to notice the lack of disappointment in Envy’s screech of a voice. Though mostly inhuman, Envy is known for its expressive tone when excited or disappointed. Greed points out the lack of inflection, given the importance of these ADM awakenings.

“You’re not all that torn up about this, mi amor. Does your lack of disappointment mean you found other means to transform?”

Even behind the steel cords Envy called hair, everyone could spy the gleam of gold as a wide, ecstatic grin appeared on their disfigured face.

“I have! For now, though, I will keep the [process]…..close to my chest.”

This statement upsets Satan and Tonnis, both of whom would like to get this advancement before Nanashi even has the chance to learn of it. Even with their frustration, Tonnis and Satan understand three important details. Firstly, attacking or threatening Envy will ensure they never transform. Second, the protective prayer wore off thirty seconds ago, meaning if they show too much hostility, the Sins have the option to use their abilities. Third, it was probably best that this was discussed in private as they would not want the wrong sins knowing how to transform. Despite his frustration, Satan displays a convincing smile.

“Thank you for your continued assistance, Envy. Were it not for your knowledge, I may have made a critical error.”

Envy’s robotic body creaks as they turn their head to look at satan, studying every feature for a crack in his composure. Satan doesn’t give gratitude to his underlings; even when they perform their tasks perfectly, there is always something to critique.

Envy always viewed themselves as equal to or above Satan, but Satan never acknowledged this or even showed an inkling of subservience to Envy. This slight gesture from satan is enough for Envy to believe they are getting close to piercing his master’s veil of power, but they are wrong.

“Gratitude acknowledged……further praise is encouraged.”

Envy may view themself as equal to Satan, but even so, they enjoy being seen and appreciated, a feeling satan doesn't require. What seems like a rare moment of kindness on Satan’s part, however, is nothing more than a ploy. Envy knows how to unlock the full potential of Hell’s strongest and most cunning personalities; Satan will do and say anything to obtain such power.

Satan’s fury has been tempered slightly, but he still has a pressing issue to tend to. Simply, the thought of his failure to bend the newest Pride to his whim boils his blood. The more he thinks about this, the more he blames Tonnis. Their agreement has yet to be fulfilled even after multiple centuries of cooperation; now is not the time to dwell on such a folly, but Satan can’t elude the thought.

To continue the meeting and take his mind off of recent events, Satan steps to the pentagram and slams his fist in the center with a loud and abrupt thud. Blood leaks from his knuckles and into the ritual area; the blood circles the inner part of the pentagram, creating a portal through the ether. The room falls silent as attention is drawn to Satan.

“As discussed earlier, I am sending Greed and Gluttony to deal with Tonnis’ failed Pride. This is not a discussion; I am not asking. You two will see to it that the boy returns to the Pride ring and the girl is turned over to me. Do. Not. Fail.”

Gluttony, who was only half listening, picks at his sharp teeth with his finger. His toothy grin hasn't faltered throughout the entire ordeal. In direct contrast to Gluttony’s carefree attitude, Greed stands in both fear and dissatisfaction. He slowly approaches the stage, Gluttony scurrying close behind. The small mushroom man eagerly waves goodbye to the others as Greed nervously meanders past Satan. The two sins stand inside the blood portal and receive a parting gift from Envy.

“This [device] will……assist you in tracking [divine energies]. I developed it from studying [Luciferian blood]…..happy…hunting.”

Envy attempts to imitate emotion in their voice as they hand over the aforementioned device. A small talisman covered in carved flesh and eyes is tied around Greed’s belt buckle; this trinket emits a dim light from one of its eyes, indicating the distance from a holy source. Tonnis begins an incantation to transport the Gluttony and Greed to the Lust ring. Both Gluttony and Greed prepare for transport and say their goodbyes. Gluttony waves goodbye to everyone while Greed thanks Envy for the talisman before the two are instantly transported to the pink overgrowth of Lust. Now begins their pursuit of the shadow blight Nanashi and the heavenly virtue Purity.