aumemecomm | Underworld

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Underworld

THE UNDERWORLD

There are many names for it, and many purposes. To some, it's simple the land of the dead, good or bad. To others it's a place for sinners. Or the realm of monsters. Be it a firey pit, a barren wasteland, or a series of caves, it's not a place for mortals to tread on their own. Perhaps you're a denizen of this space. Or you've ended up at the gates and you can't quite recall how. Or you're on a quest to save a loved one. Or you're hapless fool who read the wrong latin passage allowed and now you're trapped. No matter how you got there, good luck getting out.

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[ He looked genuinely offended at that. But not for the obvious reasons, because he always anticipated Linda to be sharp. ]

You don't understand. Sending a soul to hell that doesn't belong there has consequences! You're lucky I found her when she did, she was nearly eaten alive! Well, eaten dead. But the concept still applies!

[ Unfortunately the good doctor was distracted by Chloe waving her over and she hurried to her side with the closest thing at hand: a small garbage bin conveniently filled with a bag already. Just in time for the sickly detective to duck her head into it, stomach heaving up her lunch. Linda shot Lucifer a look, knowing Chloe would hold the bin close while she emptied her stomach, moving to make sure her hair was gathered up, hand rubbing her upper back. ]

She’s going to need some water.

[ A very pointed look; don’t argue with her on this, Satan. ]

[ He was about to point out some of the complications that could come out of this, when he heard that awful sound. It made him recoil, as if what came out was about to land on his shoes. He looked horrified by it. He was going to say more when Linda started giving him orders, sort of.

He wanted to demand what she expected him to do about it, but that look cut him off before he could utter a word. He wanted to protest, but it he could feel anything she'd say in response. So in the end, he just deflated.

After casting a helpless glance around the room, he stepped away. A few moments later, he returned, having found a dixie cup and the sink. Mortal danger was one thing. But being sick? He was at a complete loss of what to do. ]

[ Likely he didn’t know what to do with a mortal who’d gone to hell and had come back and was now experiencing some sort of illness. Mortals who enjoyed his club and drank too much, to the point of getting sick, that was something else. An every night adventure. Linda thanked him for the water and helped Chloe take it in sip by sip, ready with the bin. ]

M’fine, [ Chloe began, nudging the bin away and taking the water. The collar of her scrubs and down the back, the blue material was stained dark from the cold sweat that usually accompanied vomiting. Finishing the water, she was moving to the side of the bed to slide her legs over, ignoring Linda’s protests. ] I won’t get in to how I got down there, other than the obvious.

[ Aka Linda. She wouldn’t throw Constantine under the bus. ]

We just need to deal with this.

[ Any mortal vomiting was a problem for someone else, in his book. He had bartenders and other staff for just such reasons. And in the end, he was left standing awkwardly, unsure of what he should do. This was usually the point where he'd pull out his flask or his phone, but he didn't have either at the moment.

So he jumped at the chance to actually do something. Or at least to change the topic. Because he didn't want to be left considering why he felt so uncomfortable with Chloe being ill, especially with his therapist standing right next to him. ]

Yes. We must stop this Constance fellow and whatever demons he's brought here.

[ Okay, maybe he'd made a few assumptions with what little detail Chloe had given him. ]

Constantine, [ she corrected him while somehow managing to muster up an annoyed little look that was sent his way. It was time for her to try testing her legs and if they would accept her weight.

Linda stepped around Lucifer and the bed, picking up on the movement, reaching to catch her should she buckle. And thank the Lord Himself, her legs held, even as she laid a hand in Linda’s. ]

It’s not that he’s brought demons here, they followed him. He has ties to Hell, which surprises me that you’ve never heard of him or even met him down there.

[ At the time, he'd been so wrapped up in the fact that Chloe was in hell that he hadn't stopped to think about the man's name much. Only now that the works of the threat was gone did he actually mull it over. Especially with this new information that he wasn't someone evil, necessarily. Then it clicked.

A young man that had shown up in hell, very briefly. A suicide, it seemed. But that brief visit was hardly remarkable. They had temporary visitors all the time. It was some of the higher ranking demons that made it remarkable. Complaining so much about what the man had been doing that he'd barred it from being discussed. As far as he was concerned, the man was doing him a great service, sending demons who disobeyed him back to hell. But it had become an out-of-sight-out-of-mind situation. ]

You mean the exorcist? I would hardly say he has ties to hell, no more than that bastard Malcom did. It's what he did with it after. Finally got in over his head, did he?

Shouldn’t you be thankful?

[ All Chloe had been told was that Constantine was an exorcist and delivered demons back to hell. If there was any other side story in all of that, she had no idea. Either way she was thanking Linda and moving on her own, heading slowly over to where her backpack sat that held her clothes and gun and badge. She needed to change, splash some water on her face. Fix her hair. ]

Anyway. New York. The explosion. Whoever did it is still being possessed.

[ Thankful for what, exactly? That she'd put herself in absolute peril? That she risked being trapped in an eternal nightmare, or worse? He was still working out what to say about that when she changed the topic. Which presented a whole new set of problems. ]

We don't exactly get CNN down in hell. You're going to need to be a bit more specific. Starting with what explosion?

[ They needed to be out of there, fast. This meant that she had no time to go off into the bathroom and change. Chloe went with turning her back to them as she began to tug off the scrubs. She wore only her bra. Her shirt came down over her head, answering him over a shoulder, redoing her hair back into a loose bun. ]

The Archbishop was holding some kind of a ceremony. Hundreds of civilians were there attending, children included.

[ Wiggling out of the pants, Chloe turned and kicked them off, replacing them with tugging on her jeans. She didn’t care that this was like a little show for him. ]

Constantine was headed there to intercept any further demonic possessions. And to locate the Archbishop’s body, as it never turned up in the search.

[ Normally, such a show would have been enough to distract Lucifer from whatever the issue was. There would have been several comments, too, except she just had to drop that big mood ruiner. The implication that children and other innocents were harmed. That changed everything. It took a special kind of evil to put that many innocent people in harms way. ]

You're still leaving out a few vital details, Detective. If this all happened in New York, how did it land in your lap?

[ But then he cast another glance around the hospital room, remembering how much the all tended to look alike. He'd followed her soul rather than aiming for anywhere on Earth of his own accord. ]

We are still in LA, aren't we?

Edited 2019-08-03 01:23 (UTC)

[ Linda excused herself then to go change, leaving them alone to talk. Chloe got her jeans done up, scrubs shucked aside as she went to grab her bag. ]

Besides not having CNN in hell, are phones also out of range? C’mon.

[ Standing around wouldn’t get them anywhere. She began to head for the door, straps of her pack on her shoulder. Linda would meet up with them later; they had a plan, if they were successful in getting to Lucifer. ]

[ He followed after her, not at all appreciating this whole situation. He was supposed to be the one rattling off vague details while expecting her to keep up. Being on the other side of the situation was just plain unfair. ]

You're missing a vital detail on how he got to you. Or how he expected you to hell on the other side of the bloody country!

[ There was the logical leap that the demon was heading here. Or that the exorcist had called Lux and someone there put him in touch with Chloe. But he didn't like those answers, because he didn't think that Constantine was even aware that he'd been on earth in the first place. ]

He was here, in LA. We bumped into each other, literally. He... [ This will make her seem like she hadn’t been careful. Careless. ] He overheard me. On the phone.

[ How stupid she’d been. Ugh. Anyway, she shook her head and nodded to the security guard in passing, still moving through the front lobby of the hospital. ]

Doesn’t matter, we need to get up in the air and meet up with him.

[ Book flights, pack, get Trixie to Dan. ]

[ Lucifer had about a thousand questions about all of that, but sometimes he had enough presence of mind to not just blurt out things about demons and exorcists in broad daylight. He also needed to mull it over for a moment. If this were bad enough that they needed to risk Chloe's life to pull him out of hell, it was going to be far too dangerous for her to go. Or for him to go in with her anywhere nearby. He at least waited until they'd cleared the doors to speak up. ]

You are staying right here. Thousands of miles away from the TNT loving demon and the exorcist that practically generates chaos.

You act like chaos isn’t part of my day to day life—

[ She didn’t know why it had happened or how, she would assume that it’d had something to do with going down into hell and coming back up. They’d cleared five feet from the entrance when her left knee buckled and she was on her way down for her first spill on earth since being brought back. He was within reach, thankfully, and she was reaching for his arm. ]

[ While he may have acted like he didn't care when she'd first woken up, he was still deeply worried about the toll her trip would have on her. It had been the background noise to their entire conversation, trying desperately to not consider what could happen. Hoping instead for other, more psychological symptoms. Latching on to one of the cardinal sins like it was a life boat, perhaps.

He reacted before he even knew what he was doing. He had an arm under hers, twisting to take her weight before she could hit the ground. ]

Another reason you're staying put...you're in no shape to travel.

[ He tried to make it a joke, but his concern was etched on his face. ]

[ The backpack made things awkward as it slipped down her arm and caught at the crook of her elbow during the fall. What she really needed was proper rest, which she could get on the plane when they went. ]

I’m okay. [ Or maybe Chloe thought she would be if she just let her head rest at his shoulder for a moment or two. Or five. For however long it would take to help with the dizziness. ] It was just a... a change in the air. Dizzy spell.

[ After carefully lowering her to the pavement, he just...held her for a moment. He wanted to just take her back inside and make sure she stayed put. But he also didn't want to leave her alone. Some of the after effects couldn't be solved by medical professionals. ]

Right, as I was saying. There will be no cross country travel for you, if you can't stand on your own two feet.

[ He couldn't even try to make it sound like a joke. He both looked and sounded as if he were the one who'd fallen ill. ]

[ Was this a mistake? She could’ve just as easily left this to Constantine. When Lucifer had made the decision to return to hell, it had been for good reason. Unfortunately she was still hurting. Her head didn’t lift. ]

Dizzy spells pass. I’ll be fine.

[ Things could go her way if she kept her ground. She was stubborn for a reason. ]

[ He just gave her a rather pointed look before adjusting the way he held her. He slid his arm between her and the backpack so it wouldn't fall off, then lifted her off the pavement with his other arm beneath her legs. She may as well have been made of feathers for how easily he moved. ]

Eventually, perhaps. But not yet. Now point me in the direction of your car, and we'll get you home. Where you're going to stay.

Parking lot B. Closest stall to the entrance.

[ Chloe wasn’t going to argue it. Not at this very moment. She would accept the carry to her car and the drive home. But what then after that? That wasn’t something she wanted to think about even if she’d thought about it for so long since he’d left her on the balcony at the penthouse. She was grateful for the short time she would have with him though because she knew that once this was taken care of, he would be returning to Hell and that would be that. ]

[ It took a moment to orient himself, but he'd been her often enough before that he recalled vaguely were to go. His own thoughts were on a similar path to hers. Because while he wanted to keep her out of harm's way, and maintain his own invulnerability in the process, he didn't want to be away from her for that long. Especially since once this threat was over, he would have to return to hell. Making excuses to ensure the threat had been resolved would only last so long. But now that he was back, and had her in his arms...he dreaded the idea of returning.

But that was at least a few days away. He could put off thinking about it until later. Or never. Never was good.

Once he'd found the car, he set her down on her feet, keeping an arm around her shoulders because he very much doubted her ability to stand. ]

Now, are you going to allow me to drive, or do I have to frisk you for your keys?

[ His doubt was well placed. Chloe had to lean into him once her feet were on the ground again. She began patting her front pockets down to locate her keys, pulling on the key ring to tug them loose for him. ]

We can save the frisking for another day.

[ When they didn’t have important matters to tend to. When they weren’t acting like this was just another day on the job, only this time it included demons. ]

Shame. I intended to be very thorough.

[ Some day they would get around to discussing just how many of their former cases involved demons, celestials, powerful artifacts, and other not-so-human elements. Or perhaps how many didn't when he was so sure they did.

He unlocked the car for her, and lingered far longer than necessary to make sure she got into the car without issue. Only once her door was shut did he move around to get behind the driver's seat. Making even more of a fuss than usual about how difficult it was to get behind the wheel after she'd been driving. ]

Between how you drive and how close you sit to the windscreen, I really do wonder if you're secretly an old woman and you've never told me.

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devilsheel - 2019-08-07 04:38 (UTC) - Expand

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