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Alastor was sitting in the Hazbin Hotel again. He went back voluntarily. Finally free. After all this time. He no longer had anyone above him. He broke all the chains. His hoofs relaxed after the rope let them go. The collar around his neck disappeared. After a long time he was able to breath unstrained again. He can choose his own path now.
And he knew exactly what he wanted to do. The Radio Demon headed towards the V's tower. However he didn't use his teleportation. He took his time and walked elegantly along the heaps of dead bodies and destroyed buildings. It was absolute chaos. Sinners were running and screaming everywhere. Some were searching for their friends, some for their money. Nobody minded Alastor. Which made his grin twitch for a second.
The building wasn't far away, he arrived soon. He stepped into a wide, open room. Garbage everywhere he looked, cleaners trying desperately to clean up the mess, unsuccessfully. Boxes towered over one another, making the place look even more unsettled.
“Ugh it's you?” a sharp call cut through the comforting noises that the employees made. The whole ground floor echoed the question.
After everything, he still went back to him. Why?
“What the fuck are you doing here?” he asked again, not trying to hide in the slightest how irritated he is.
At first Alastor couldn't figure out where the sound came from, but after a quick look-around he found what remained of Vox. He was placed into a rolling chair. He had to hold back a chuckle.
“Don't you have any better fucking thing to do? The big, strong Radio Demon is finally all on its own.” he tried to tease.
“What is it my dear? Aren't you pleased to see me again?” Alastor asked, mockingly grinning.
He bent over so he could be on the same eye-level as Vox.
“Oh my! Isn't it ironic how the role flipped this time?” his grin grew wider. But still unreadable.
Vox kept silent and looked away. He didn't want to face Alastor. He couldn’t look into his eyes. He wasn't sure why. Maybe he was scared? Nah. He swiftly blew this thought away.
Why did he come back?
The TV Demon was terrified of what the reason might be. His memories from that night came back. All kinds of emotions flooded him. Betrayal, anger, pride, confusion. It was rapid and cold like a breezy, icy morning in spring. Before they took control over him, he tried to bury them deeply.
He didn’t want to say or ask anything. He knew Alastor would somehow twist them and use it against him. He would never let it happen again.
Millions of questions were wandering in his mind. It ached his tongue, drowning him. But he didn't say a word. His lungs burned, his saliva turned into dust. He felt his stomach twist into a knot.
“Aw you aren't pissed that your little plan got completely nullified, are you?”
Vox still wasn't willing to talk. He didn’t dare to react. He couldn't let it happen.
“Or is it that you couldn't beat me? Neither now.” his eyes narrowed.
Vox didn't look at him. The more Alastor talked the more memories flooded his mind. Blocking his conduits from thinking straight.
“Val? Vel? Where the fuck is everybody?” He shouted, trying to avoid any confrontation with his nemesis.
His workers already left, recognising the heat of this encounter. No answer.
“Dear there is no point—”
“Don't you ever call me that again you motherfucker! Shut the fuck up and go away Al! I don't care to where, just fucking leave if you don't have anything useful to say.”
“Aw why so mad, old pal?” he kept teasing.
“Mad is nowhere fucking near to how much hate I have for you.”
None of them said a thing. Alastor straightened. Vox kept looking anywhere but him. His vision getting blurrier, his mind fogging even more. He felt everything and nothing. He was at the edge of panicking out.
While the Radio Demon just stared at him, like he didn't know what to say. But that wasn't possible. Alastor, the one and only Radio Demon who always runs his mouth not having a word to say? No chance. He felt numb. Everything started to blur. Except Vox. His light blinded him.
A tree grew behind him in his vision.
They stayed in this silence for a few more minutes.
“Valentino?? Velvette??” Vox tried another time. No response.
“Pft—” Alastor chuckled before bursting out laughing. Echoing through the hallways.
“What is so fucking funny?” Vox yelled at him.
“Oh darling, it's truly entertaining how pathetic you are.” His shadow pulled a chair for him and sat down. “Like you were always.”
“Okay what the fuck Alastor. What on this fucking ring do you want from me?” He shouted.
“Nothing dear.”
“Then leave maybe??”
“Tempting but no, thank you.” He smiled, looking at Vox. Empty.
He didn’t want to.
He couldn’t.
Both of them were quiet, until Shock.wav's shadow passed by and Alastor broke the silence.
“Hm” He started with a little chuckle. “No wonder you couldn't beat me without your little back up. Miserable.”
Vox didn't say a thing. The Radio Demon looked away from him.
“You're—”
“What is wrong with you??” The TV demon finally broke, screaming.
Alastor looked back at him. He slightly tilted his head like he was confused by the question.
“Yes I’m a fucking pathetic failure. Yes you beat me again.” Vox yelled. His voice glitched with anger. “I admitted. Are you fucking happy??”
“Oh Vincent, I should've known how weak you are.” His grin grew sharper, more aggressive.
“Weak? That's rich from you” Vox laughed.
Flowers softly started to bloom.
Alastor didn't respond, his face was unreadable.
“I am the weak and pathetic one while you were, you are too afraid to fucking work with anybody! You are the one who can't trust anybody! You push everyone aside, not realizing that they might actually want to fucking help! You can't work with anyone because you are so full of yourself, you can't imagine your stagelight taken away even for one goddamn second!”
The flowers started to form into apples.
He was sobbing. Some words were unrecognisable, they were so distorted by his rage. It was painful to watch.
“Fuck. I wanted to work next to you. As equals.”
Alastor sat in quiet. He said nothing. Then let out the most gut wrenching laugh Vox has ever heard.
“Holy fuck Vincent you're so miserable.” He laughed, hitting his own thighs with his fist. “I know that this whole thing really got in your head, but I didn't realise it was THIS bad!”
“You really can't understand it, can you?” Vox asked, shivering. Ashamed. Disgusted.
Alastor stopped laughing. His grin weaker and angrier.
“Oh my. If I had as much penny as the lies you ever told”
He plucked an apple.
He stood up, his shadows grabbed Vox and pulled up to his face. The screen was soaked. The TV head trembled in his hand for a second. Alastor didn't know the tears were real. However he didn't seem scared.
“What are you gonna do?” He asked, as another tear rolled down his screen. It fell on Alastor's finger. He felt how hot it was. Filled with rage and regrets. His voice glitched by every breath, every small sound he made. “I already gave you everything and for what? How much more do you want bitch?”
He bit into it.
“You call me selfish? Whose plan was completely destroyed because of wanting more and more? Who wasn't satisfied by what we already had? Who ruined it, Vincent?”
But he choked on it.
Alastor's voice started to sound more radio-like. His smile stayed still. Painfully fake, but fixed. His ears were folded back. Shaking started to take over his pupils. Something visibly flooded him; he just couldn't quite place it.
Vox looked down. He couldn't look into the other demon's eyes. He was looking at the floor for only a few seconds, but for him it felt like decades. Like eternity. He looked up and became completely relaxed. He was too tired to care, too overstimulated by everything around him. He just wanted to lay down and rest. Take a nap maybe. Drink some whisky..
“What the actual fuck is in your head?” he wandered in his thouhts.
“This was quite stimulating dear, but I'm afraid I’m starting to get bored. You have 5 seconds to give me a reason why not crush your head into a million pieces.”
Oxygen started to run thin in his veins.
5…
4…
3…
“It could've been so perfect.”
2…
“But you ruined it.”
1…
Vox closed his eyes, but didn't feel anything. What happened?
Did Al forgive me?
Maybe he doesn’t want anything from me now.
Maybe he realised I was right. Maybe—
Suddenly he felt incredible pain in every inch of his remaining body. He didn't have time to process what happened to him. He opened his eyes and saw Alastor above him. Then everything went dark. The last person he saw was his enemy.
His sweet, disgusting enemy.
Who he would give up on his life.
Alastor dropped him, but he quickly went to same level as the destroyed TV in front of him. He fell to his knees. He picked up Vox's crushed head and gently placed it in his lap, like he was afraid of breaking it. Even more. It almost seemed he regretted what he did. He didn’t. A tear fell on top of it. The screen glitched one last time then the lights cut out.
– It was all your fault.
He couldn't breathe.
He stood up and looked at his old friend in his hand. His vision started to get blurrier. He quickly threw the remains onto the floor like if the metals were overheated. He started to rush. The exit was so close. Leaving all of this behind sounded so good. But he stopped. He couldn't leave.
He was unable to.
He looked back at Vox. His hands were slightly shaking, another tear was starting to run down his face. His smile grew even wider. He felt like if he started to let it go he would never be able to get it back. He hesitated. He didn't know what to do.
He had to choose.
But he couldn't spit it out.
He went back to the TV. He squatted in front of him. It was completely destroyed. Looking at the cracks he made, anger filled him again. He stood up and kicked into it as hard as he could. It started to fly across the room but Alastor already left when it hit the wall. Making its very last sound.
Then everything went quiet.