Chapter 714: Unexpected Arrival
"Embarrassment is unbecoming of you, father. I understand that you and my mothers have quite the attachment to sexual intimacy. I am prepared to see and hear much worse."
Abaddon grimaced as he scratched his cheek.
Sex wasn\'t really an uncomfortable topic in his home.
It was a natural, healthy part of life for most biological species across the multiverse and he didn\'t shy away from the topic if his kids had questions.
Unless they were still actual kids that is.
Until his kids grew into their adult forms, he absolutely refused to engage in the conversation with them.
Anytime Courtney tried to ask him anything inappropriate, he had to distract her with coffee cake or ice cream.
Gabbrielle was probably the only exception to this, as she routinely entered her young form so that she could receive affection from other members in the house.
"Y-Yes, well your mothers and I will be extra careful to never cross that line around you all. No matter how in love we are, we want to be mindful of you and your siblings."
Abaddon noticed that Bashenga had fallen silent and he turned to check on him.
He turned to find his son staring at him with those uncanny swirling red eyes.
Something was clearly on his mind, but he had yet to voice it.
"…What? Wondering if you\'ll be this handsome one day?"
He attempted to joke, but Bashenga was relatively unamused.
"How can you say things like that? Why do you act this way?" Bashenga inquired.
"I don\'t understand?" Abaddon tilted his head.
"Human. Soft. Full of sentiment and a sense of morality."
"Oh…" Abaddon scratched the back of his head and shrugged. "I suppose the answer is just because I like myself better his way."
"…Come again?"
"Having a cruel personality is… bottomless. I would always be looking for the next person to step on to feed my ego. Being like this is significantly less work, don\'t you think?"
Abaddon smiled like a big idiot and Bashenga was left dumbfounded.
His father had basically just told him that the only reason why he wasn\'t a reality eating conqueror was because he was too lazy.
Absolutely no one in the world would have believed that explanation.
Except for Bash who had been told stories about his father and mothers spending almost thirty hours in bed.
Dragons are creatures of habit after all…
Seeing Bashenga\'s reaction only made Abaddon laugh hard. He patted his son on the head as he stood up.
"Worry not, my boy. You\'ll undergo the same metamorphosis as I did one day."
"I refuse." The newborn denied instantly.
Abaddon smiled wryly and reminded his son of a very crucial fact.
"You\'re part incubus now, Bashenga. You will begin to feel and understand emotion in a way that you were never aware of before. Though it will be up to you what you do with that understanding… I hope you make the right choice."
"… So what would you have me do with it, father?"
"Learn from it. Experience it. Don\'t try to control it, or use your understanding to manipulate others. Just be happy and curious.
Life, especially one that doesn\'t end like ours, is only worth living if you try a bit of everything. Nyx can tell you that better than I can."
Abaddon went to the far side of the room and grabbed two weapons that were hanging on it.
A large greatsword, and a spear. Both comprised of his hate and his scales.
"Here. For you."
Abaddon tossed both of the weapons towards his son and Bash easily caught them despite his small frame. "This..?"
"I\'ll teach you to use them when I get back." Abaddon promised. "Ironically, I think it might help with your anger issues."
Bashenga saw his father start to walk towards the door and he realized he was running out of time to say what he wanted to say.
Tossing aside his pride, he lowered his head and called out to his father.
"There is… something that I wanted to say."
Abaddon paused just shy of exiting the door.
"About everything that I said last night… I wish to apologize if I have said anything that might have brought back unpleasant memories for you. It was not intended."
Abaddon was a bit floored that Bashenga seemed to know everything already.
He could only assume that this had something to do with him showing up with Thea earlier.
"I\'m fine, Bash, I\'m not upset at all. Truthfully, it is my fault for becoming short with you over my own past issues. You have my apology as well."
Bash was instantly frozen up and stunned.
Was this it??
This was the interaction he had been stressing himself over all night long and a few hours into the morning??
This was nothing!
Where was all of the drama he thought was coming his way? He could have done this in his sleep if he knew it was going to be like this!
*Knock, Knock!*
Asmodeus suddenly knocked on the doorframe to catch the attention of the two dragons.
"It\'s time."
Abaddon never quite got used to seeing his father act with professionalism.
"It would seem it is." He smiled.
-
Abaddon walked down the steps to his home with Asmodeus at his side.
Already downstairs waiting for him were his wives, his mothers, and Kanami.
And more surprisingly…
"I don\'t recall that you work for me anymore?" Abaddon joked.
Adeline smiled as she lowered her head.
"Luckily, my new boss has given me permission to join the mission at my old posting."
Abaddon glanced at Courtney who stood in the corner behind Lisa.
"…I expect her back in the same condition that you got her in."
"Will do, little miss."
Courtney nodded and showed her father an extremely improper salute.
Against the wall, Sif was continually gripping the shaft of her weapon nervously.
She had referred to her usual nine foot jotunn state, which only made her nervousness stand out even more.
\'!\' She all but jumped out of her skin when she felt a familiar hand suddenly grab her butt from behind.
Looking over her shoulder, she found Lailah making a shushing gesture and smiling at her.
\'I was only trying to loosen you up. You\'re so stiff that it\'s a little bit concerning, you know?\'
Despite Lailah\'s teasing, Sif didn\'t show any signs of relaxing.
\'I\'ve never… fought beside him before. I\'m honestly a bit worried about being able to keep up… isn\'t that something?
I\'ve fought all my life in Jotunheim, but now is the time for me to experience performance anxiety.\'
Lailah chucked quietly to herself as she rested her hand on Sif\'s arm.
\'You don\'t need to worry about fighting to impress him, or about keeping up with him. Just focus on surviving, and getting our daughter back.\'
Sif\'s mind still looked unchanged.
Which honestly bothered Lailah more than she cared to admit.
\'Sister, if you\'re worried then why didn\'t you accept-\'
"Alright. Shall we go?"
Abaddon opened up a swirling portal in the center of the foyer.
Kanami jumped inside first. Followed by Asmodeus.
Seras and Lillian came to Abaddon\'s side.
Just before they all jumped in together, they paused and waited for their one missing piece.
"Cold feet, love?" Seras smiled.
"Is that another of your ice giant puns..?"
"Maybe a bit. Did you enjoy it?"
Sif rolled her eyes as an answer.
Abaddon held out his hand for his wife and waited.
"Together. As one." He smiled softly.
He didn\'t rush Sif to come to him, but instead let her take her time.
And though it did take her a moment to get her bearings, she eventually swallowed her nerves and took her husband\'s outstretched hand.
Together, she, Seras, Lillian, and Abaddon all jumped into hell together.
-
Lucifer was busy reading an ancient text.
Though \'busy\' was a bit of a stretch.
He had read this text nearly 3,000 times already. And counting.
But this variation of hell wasn\'t one that he could so easily escape from. Which made methods of entertainment hard to come by.
He could watch the antics of some of his variants, but really, was there even a point?
He couldn\'t feel the excitement that they did, just knew that they were experiencing it.
Just like they couldn\'t feel what he did whenever he had sex with one of his brides.
Perhaps this was an unfair way to ensure that no one variant grew too envious of what another had.
It didn\'t really work though.
*Rattle.*
"Quiet."
With the silence returned, Lucifer went back to reading with no issues.
The few texts that he had time to take from Heaven weren\'t terribly interesting, but they were a way to preoccupy the mind.
Barely…
"My Lord…"
Lucifer looked up at the servant who had entered his quarters.
A cambion is a low-level kind of demon, usually born between the union of a human and a sex demon.
They aren\'t very well respected in… any part of hell really.
"Your dinner has been prepared for-"
"Quiet."
Lucifer held up his hand and stared into the nothingness in front of him.
A look of actual surprise formed on his face that was swiftly followed by one of amusement.
"…Set a few more plates, dog. It seems the castle will have guests today."
"G-Guests, my lord..?"
"Family wouldn\'t you know it… and it\'s not even thanksgiving." The lightbringer chuckled.