Lord of Sin - A Hellaverse AUSI

In a newly established bar located at Pentagram City, Stolas sat before Alan, his gaze fixated on the video that was playing before his eyes. He had gone through a roller coaster of emotions and maybe it was the crazy sex he had last night or something else but his mind was calm and his thoughts were serene as he watched his wife get brutally tamed.

"I don't know if I should sympathize with her or not. The things she went through in one night were-"

"Oh trust me, to us what we watched happened in just one night but to her it was an eternity"

Alan's words made Stolas conflicted, he did not really know whether to berate the man for saying such things after what he did to his wife, a member of the Goetia and the mother of his beloved daughter-

Though the most important part for Stolas may be the fact that Stella is Octavia's daughter… the fact remains that what she had gone through was far worse than the suffering he had…

'Was it though?'

The thought came up to Stolas as he recalled the shit Stella had put him through. The daily assault that he had to endure in order for Stella to conceive- 

It may be true that it had led to the birth of Octavia, but that did not excuse the torment he felt whenever Stella would joyfully tell the tale of how "she had to do all the work".

Not only did Stella force herself onto him, she did it purely out of spite and need. The moment Octavia was born, some of that pain was alleviated but Stolas was not free of Stella, instead, the chains that bound him grew even tighter.

He lived his days doing everything for Octavia, even if it meant suffering under the bitch Stella.

As his mind was in a flux, not knowing how to answer, Alan quietly passed a book to him.

The title of the book was "Revelations"-

Stolas took the book and opened it, the moment he did, countless unknown symbols weaved together forming a magical formation. The owl's eyes glowed with a crimson light as his expression darkened.

Alan watched as Stolas was given a vision of a "possible future", a prediction that was made using Cthulu magic to create a realistic vision of his memories.

What Stolas was watching did not "spoil" too much, all he saw was the blatant deception that Stella would do. The manipulations of Andrealphus, the mistakes he would make, the assassination attempt called by his wife, the kangaroo court and his banishment.

What happened next were still unreleased but the few images, the father-daughter relationship that was slowly being fixed shattering with a simple move from Stella-

It should not have caused Stolas any panic or worry, after all he had his own grimoire and he could most likely find a spell to ascertain the truth.

Unfortunately, the poor owl had lost his stability- coupled with the inherent maddening nature of Cthulu brand spells…

"I see"

Stolas closed the book and burned it with green hellfire.

He raised his gaze, meeting Alan's expectant eyes. Stolas tried to ascertain the emotions that were running through the man before him but he could not see anything. Even the obvious show of manipulation may be a lie-

"So long as Octavia isn't hurt…"

In the end, Stolas agreed, he showed reluctance but in his heart he knew- what Stella had gone through was not all bad.

The bitch would even go as far as to send an assassin for him! Not as a joke or as a figure of speech but literally.

With angelic weapons and all, Stolas realized just how stupid he is for letting Stella have free reign.

"I'll use these videos"

Stolas said, to which Alan replied, "Make sure you act scared when she uses my name, give her a sense of urgency and complacency at the same time. She currently fears her relatives, she would use my name- you know what to do"

Stolas nodded as he stored the video recording in a special subspace made with magic before answering.

"I'll handle the Goetia, those stuck up bird brains should feel fear when I attack them with the storm flames of yours"

Alan smirked as he raised the wine glass before him proposing a toast-

"To freedom"

Stolas did not hesitate as he raised his own glass-

"To freedom"

The two did not act boisterous, instead a a calm atmosphere revolved around them.

────୨ৎ────

Meanwhile, in Stolas mansion, Stella watched as Octavia read books in her father's study. Before, Stella did not even care what Octavia wanted to do, after all, she was nothing more than a tool for her own benefit.

But- after what she had experienced, the revelations she had gone through- Stella started to look back on her own life. 

It was then that she realized that Octavia- her daughter was going to end up in the same place as her.

Whether she would end up suffering as much as she did was unknown but her fate was sealed the moment she was born-

"An heir…"

Many of the Goetia criticized Stolas and Stella for only having a worthless daughter, as a true heir could only be a male. The daughters were nothing more than marriage partners for other heirs- this was their tradition and this was their pride.

It was also the reason why some lines in the Goetia nobility had disappeared. Unable to sire a male heir, they could only marry into other families, their wealth distributed amongst those that were able to conceive a proper heir.

Stella watched as Octavia studied the matters revolving around her father's job. 

'What did I do when I was a child…'

Stella recalled her past, all she did was play and ask for whatever she wanted. The only time that she got mad was when she was forced to get engaged to a sissy-

That rage of hers was carried with her well into her adulthood and into their marriage.

When she thought of it that way- Stella felt a pain in her chest, an emotion that she never felt before arose within her.

She looked on at her daughter- the innocent child who wished to help her damned father-

'She won't be like me…'

Thinking of her own position, Stella clenched her fist-

She had lost all her pride, now she was nothing more than a doll being passed around, her fate in the hands of beasts who only desire her pain and suffering.

Alan may have saved her but he did not do so out of a sense of justice- it was all out of necessity. Even the protection he gave her was out of mutual benefit-

'Octavia…'

Watching Octavia read, a bold idea popped up in Stella's mind. With all her protections gone, Stella had learned how to struggle, now, she was boldly making her moves. Childish and obvious, but it was a change-

"Via darling, what is that you are reading?"

Her sudden interest in what she was doing made Octavia pause, her mother, the person who only cared about how she looked was suddenly interested at what she liked…

It was something Octavia never thought would happen but-

As a child who only craved her parents love and attention, Octavia did not see anything but hope in Stella's actions. The interest her mother showed was enough for Via to rush towards Stella, book in hand as she explained to her what it was that she was reading.

Stella did not understand shit, but she knew that her daughter would feel bad if she brushed her off so- despite her reluctance, Stella took Via onto her lap and asked her.

It was an interesting sight to behold, aside from the fact that Stella was actually caring for her daughter, it was also interesting to see the tiny child on her mothers lap be the teacher in this situation-

Back in the bar, Alan watched from the private room he was in, as Stolas disguised himself once more as an imp, going around making small talk with the various guests. 

Turning around, Alan's eyes focused on a magical display on a crystal atop the table.

Stolas had left the room minutes before after their toast. 

When he was sure that the owl would not return, Alan took out the gem to see the progress of Stella's transformation.

This allowed him to be the witness of the moment Stella transformed from a brainless bitch, into a brainless but manipulative bitch.

She was not being manipulative because of the machinations of others- well, she still is but this time, she was not being pushed to manipulate others. She was doing it out of her own accord, all Alan did was push her to make that choice.

Unlike what would have happened in the future where her actions were directed by her brother, this time, Stella was consciously thinking of what to do, she was not a mere puppet, a plot device there to make people hate her-

'Yes… another unstable factor…'

Alan's eyes shone with crimson light, the window blacked out as the room was enveloped by darkness.

Yet, mere moments later, various crystal displays lit up all around. 

Verosika, Blitzo, Velvette, Vox, Stolas, Stella, Octavia, Luna (6 years old)...

Images of various individuals appeared on the crystal displays, their actions being recorded real time. Alan scanned the various images, his smile widening as he turned to the displays that had nothing on them-

"The other circles, the sins, royalty, angels and the earth… all I need are those and then the game will become more fun!"