|
Post by Soprano on Jun 22, 2011 15:16:13 GMT -6
Mammon reappeared in front of the Pride Castle. He had just left Lilith in the care of the Lord of Hell, but now, he needed to find out what exactly had happened. For his own sanity, as well as his own amusement, he was coming to speak with Natalie. Now with Lucifer gone, he was the most powerful Lord of Sin, so he didn’t anticipate she would attempt to refuse him.
He approached the doors and knocked on them hard. Now that Lucifer was gone, things weren’t going to be such a tight ship around the castle, but he figured he’d at least make a semblance of an attempt to appear polite. That is, until he got into the castle. All niceties would be dropped then, just to make sure Natalie knew where her place was in his mind. That place was firmly beneath him and there it would stay, no matter what title she had.
|
|
|
Post by Magnus on Jun 22, 2011 15:23:34 GMT -6
No one came to the castle doors, although they did open once Mammon knocked. Inside, things weren't exactly how Lucifer had left them. Natalie's first act had been to get rid of all the human furniture- they could be doing something much more productive, she figured- and make the palace look like it wasn't a place where unspeakable horrors took place daily.
After all, Lilith had wanted her to make things better for the victims of Lucifer. Natalie figured the least she could do was make things less traumatizing.
Meanwhile, she was busy. She had an entire circle of Hell to improve, and she had to get Lucifer's power to her. After all, the Pride circle wouldn't be the most powerful anymore now that Lucifer was dead. . Which means Mammon was the most powerful Lord of Sin, and Natalie really didn't want that. In addition, she was trying to find information relevant to freeing Lilith.
|
|
|
Post by Soprano on Jun 22, 2011 18:34:37 GMT -6
Mammon almost smiled when the doors opened of their own volition. This was going to be a fun experience, if he had anything to say about it. He was absolutely sure that Natalie would immediately try to kick him out, but she didn’t have the power to do that quite yet. There was a reason he came so soon after he’d dropped off Lilith. That had been vindicating, to say the least. Now he had a small bit of revenge from the time she had stolen Natalie from him. Now it was time to extract a little bit of that on Natalie.
He searched around the Pride Castle a bit, searching in all the normal places Lucifer might have been, but of course they were empty. He also noted a distinct lack of human furniture and realized that Natalie must have been creeped out by the sheer volume of coffee tables Lucifer had. That was adorable and pathetic.
|
|
|
Post by Magnus on Jun 22, 2011 18:54:50 GMT -6
Natalie was sitting in a study. Her new office, she decided. Lucifer's old one was weird, after all. She hadn't only gotten rid of the human furniture because it was creepy- although it was- but also because she knew that Lilith had sacrificed to make things better for the Pride circle victims, and Natalie knew she should do that much for her former boss, who had ended up ruining herself just for this. . Natalie shook her head and tried to drive thoughts of the incident that had happened earlier away.
She had things to do.
Unfortunately, she'd noted that she hadn't gained cool Lord of Sin powers, at least not yet, anyway. Well, they would come in soon, she figured. Or would they at all? After all, Lucifer was still alive. . But he was also the son of the King of Hell, so maybe it didn't matter? Natalie didn't know.
|
|
|
Post by Soprano on Jun 22, 2011 19:41:11 GMT -6
Mammon strolled around the Pride castle like he owned the place. In his mind, he almost did. He had owned Natalie at one point and that meant anything of hers was indeed his. Even though he didn’t own her anymore; the mindset is what he really wanted.
He opened the door to one of the studies, figuring that he might as well look there, too. Lo and behold, there the new conquering hero was, Mammon though snidely.
“Natalie, I’ve been looking all over for you,” he said in the most surprised voice he felt like faking, “Where exactly have you been keeping yourself? You’re a hard woman to track down.”
He invited himself in and sat down on one of the armchairs, “Noticing any changes yet, King Natalie?” he said, “Or are you simply an imposter, I wonder. Anything’s possible, I guess. Especially since you seemed to have backstabbed your benefactor.”
|
|
|
Post by Magnus on Jun 22, 2011 19:52:32 GMT -6
Natalie dropped the pen she'd been holding when Mammon walking in. Oh dear. "Blyad," she muttered, keeping to her native language for swear words. What. What the fuck was Mammon doing in here? This wasn't his castle. Worse yet, he just sat down in one of her chairs and just spoke to her condescendingly, just how he always had when he felt like she was acting like an actual person instead of property. She grit her teeth and tried to get her face back to its normal, grave expression.
"How nice of you to stop by," Natalie hissed. "Really, insulting your host right off the bat? Then again, you never were known for your etiquette."
Changes. So she had been right, the powers would come soon. She smiled the smug smile that had been plastered on her face the last time she had seen Mammon. "Not an impostor, no," Natalie said, shaking her head. "But really, you're certainly not the authority on morality."
|
|
|
Post by Soprano on Jun 22, 2011 20:17:18 GMT -6
Mammon smiled his predatory smile when she swore. He understood even without speaking her language. She was reacting just the way he wanted her to; this was all proving that she still was afraid of him. He was quite alright with that and was here to make that feeling much, much worse.
“Why thank you,” he replied, “I don’t feel decorum is very necessary for my lesser, of course. And oh, you wound me, Natalie. Haven’t I been a perfect gentleman to you?”
He hadn’t and he knew that, but it was much more amusing to say so. He didn’t mind letting her know some things that she might not have before she got the job, either. It all didn’t matter in the end, she wouldn’t last long. He knew it was less than a century before she got dethroned herself.
“More than you, it appears,” Mammon said with a dark smile.
|
|
|
Post by Magnus on Jun 22, 2011 20:35:50 GMT -6
"You still don't realize it, do you, Mammon? I'm the King of Pride now. I know you're delusional and everything, but really, it shouldn't be too hard to get through your thick skull," Natalie replied, still keeping up her bravado. She was scared as hell, of course, and Mammon knew it, but she couldn't show it. Not to him, never to him, he'd just make it a million and five times worse. "And of course you've been no gentleman, but we both know that," she added, her eyes narrowing.
"Really?" Natalie asked in mock surprise. "Considering everything you've done, I'm a saint in comparison. The worst thing I've done is backstab Lilith. I'm sure you've had more than your share of stabbing your so called allies in the back and taking what they thought was theirs." That was the idea, at least. She didn't want anyone being suspicious, even if they were already. Still, though, she had to stay alive so she could help Lilith.
|
|
|
Post by Soprano on Jun 22, 2011 20:48:54 GMT -6
Mammon made a dramatic show of rolling his eyes, “Ah yes, delusional. Of course. I’ll play along with your little game for as long as it takes, but I don’t think the King of Pride is dead. I’m not an idiot, or even delusional, as you accuse me.”
He was half going for a bluff, but he did find it rather unlikely that Lilith managed to kill him like she said. Her story checked out and everything, though, so he had doubts. He did know that if anyone knew, it’d be the only other two people involved. He was dealing with the best source first; unfortunately that source wasn’t exactly going to pour out all of her information to him.
“Yes, you’re right, we do both know, don’t we?” Mammon said leaning his head on his hand, “And no, it doesn’t really compare, considering I was doing exactly my business. My employees expect it, I don’t think Lilith did… or maybe she did?”
|
|
|
Post by Magnus on Jun 22, 2011 20:57:33 GMT -6
Natalie shrugged. "Believe what you want," she said, before taking a cigarette out of a box on her fancy new desk, placing it inside her cigarette holder, and lighting it. "But it's true. And yes, you're delusional if you refuse to believe it when all the facts are here. Really, if Lucifer were alive, do you honestly think I'd be sitting here right now?" she asked. She took a drag from the cigarette. She'd needed one.
Natalie rolled her eyes when Mammon said he was just doing his business. "Please," she said. "Don't make me laugh. Just doing your business? Really, Mammon, you disappoint. And here I thought that you were a better liar than that." Natalie hardly thought that keeping her as his 'personal slave' was doing business. It was more like doing it for his own pleasure, although one couldn't say the Lords of Sin didn't mix business and pleasure.
She shook her head when Mammon doubted that Natalie's backstabbing had been a shock to Lilith. "Doubtful- At least, she seemed surprised and hurt by it," she answered. "I really don't think she knew about it. She's an empath, not a mind reader, after all."
|
|