GET READY FOR MORE ALASTOR THEORIES PEOPLE!!!

This is a freaking masterpiece. Also, I love Ethan in this style and how you showed events from RE: 7 and RE: 8. So cool!!!!!

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A World Without Him

Chapter 2

Tang stopped mid-step, shoulders tense, looking around himself for any source of that voice.

He waited a couple of moments, then sighed "Of course..." as he continued his walk to his apartment. He's had moments like this before, where he would think he heard some random voice speak in his ear, then hear nothing afterwards.

Tang just thought it was because of his recent bouts of sleep deprivation or maybe it was just his normal amount of exhaustion from the whole LBD situation.

So, he usually just ignored those little hallucinations for his own sanity.

Yet, no one would notice if he started to walk a bit faster down the sidewalk.

After a couple of seconds, Tang started to pass the familiar yellow streetlights of his road, including all the lights from the different storefront signs in the area.

He finally started to relax as his shoulders lowered. The familiar sights helped calm his mind. Yeah, this happens all the time, don't freak out, I don't know what I was-

'I don't even know where to begin with... all of that'

He stopped again; it was a different voice,a bit lower. And two in a row? Seemingly in, well, a conversation? Heh, that's... weird. Weirder than usual.

Just keep going, it's fine. Maybe some sleep will fix whatever's going on with me.

Tang starts to walk again; a bit faster in pace

'Why are we even bothering with keeping him alive again?'

He's now speed walking, and starting to breath a bit heavier.

'You know we shouldn't say that about him. Even if he would be better to us dead'

Just a bit more, and he'll be back at his apartment. Just ignore them like always.

'I know that, we can't even touch him anyways, I just-'

'OH SH-'

Tang startles from the sudden volume of the voice, jumping back a bit.

Just a second after, a car swerves right where he was just standing, whipping Tang' small braid, messanger bag, and clothes from its speed.

Tang' ears were ringing as he takes a few deep breathes, one hand on his chest and the other gripping his bag strap, just standing on the crosswalk, with the sudden realization that he was jailwalking while stuck in his thoughts.

With one final breath and a grimace, he starts to walk again.

Silence followed his final steps to his apartment. With just a small breeze flowing through the alleys, and the occasional flicker and crackle of the streelights.

There weren't any more voices after that.

After a few more minutes, Tang finally reaches the steps towards his door, too tired for any more "excitement" this night.

He pulls his ring up, fumbling through the different keys, looking behind him a few times, as he finally let's his shoulders fall, and unlocks the door.

He closes the door as soon as he's inside and sets down his messenger bag next to a small table close to the door.

Tang' place is a small studio apartment, with only a couch and coffee table in the main space, a small kitchen in the corner, and a twin bed with a lamp and bedside table.

There's not much furniture, and everything seems a bit bare even with almost every inch of his apartment being covered in books.

But this doesn't really matter to Tang right now.

He just goes through the motions after that, put the keys on the tray, hang up the coat, take shoes off, throw them next to the small table, walk to bed, put phone and glasses on bedside table, take out hair, and then he blacks out as soon as his head hits the pillow.

Tang dreams of nothing that night.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'Why did he jump?'

'Stop thinking about it.'

'He couldn't have heard us right? I mean if he were to find out-'

'Hey. Let's just... forget it. Don't say anything.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tang awakes groggy and restless, feeling tired as though he hadn't slept all night.

He never was a morning person anyway, but while he did sleep through his alarm, he still has plans for today: ones that he couldn't really cancel at the last minute.

So with a groan, Tang sat up out of bed, put his glasses on, and started to get ready for the day.

"Of course I have to have some manic episode before sleeping through an alarm today. I really don't know what I did to deserve this." He grumbled as he kept messing up his hair, uncoordinated hands still wrapped in sleep pulling on the knots, so he just did a short, messy low bun.

Good enough for me.

Tang then does his teeth, clothes, and heats up a small thing of Eggos he found laying next the the toaster.

When he finally checks his phone, he finds out it's 10:32 AM. Which is better than expected, but still a bit too late to make it to Sandy's on time.

Tang curses as he sends Sandy a text that he's going to be a bit late. He then grabs the freshly heated Eggos, his coat, keys, and bag as he walks through his apartment door, shutting and locking it behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tang walked as fast as he could towards the docks where Sandy and his boat were hanging out for the day.

It was decently far from his apartment, and since he didn't have any mode of transportation, he had to trek it himself.

He often took shortcuts through alleys and between market stalls. He's gotten attuned on how to smoothly move between crowds, which is basically just trying not to bump into things. Better than before, at least.

Today he went through the Market Street on his way to Sandy's, passing by many stalls selling different types of food, clothing, and trinkets.

There was one that piqued Tang' interest, a stall centered around Journey to the West, but all it had was knock-off plushes and poorly made hoodies for tourists.

After that, he tried not to lose too much of his focus through all the noise and people.

He swerved behind and in front of stalls, trying to find the alley behind a certain ceramics stall that leads close to the docks.

Tang continued to walk through the stalls for a good while, which wasn't that pleasant considering yesterday nights events.

But someone must have given him a break as he finally spotted the alley behind the ceramics stall, with an orange mark on the visible side of the dumpster helping him to remember.

"Oh thank goodness." Tang huffed as he slowly moved through the alleyway.

"Take a left, then right, then straight forward, then down the black steps..." he mumbles as he navigates the alleys of Metrapolis, having walked through them several times before.

When he finally emerges at the docks, he sees the blue of Sandy's boat right away. Tang takes a small breather before pacing up to Sandy's boat, hopping over the small space between the boat and dock, and lightly knocking on the door.

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A World Without Him

Chapter 22

His dream held nothing memorable. The black void had apparently lost its novelty after being dragged into its depths so many times before. Tang's expression held only annoyance as his body spinned and glided through the never-ending darkness.

He didn't want to deal with what he knew would come next. The hands, the voices, the damned buzzing that came in recently.

What he wanted right now was one of those phantom things to appear in front of him, actually consider him a person worth talking to, and answer his questions.

To tell him what this void was even for, how they had access to his head since he knows the reoccurring nightmares and chatter wasn't formed from his mind alone, no matter how those things try to gaslight him into convincing himself overwise.

However, he also knew nothing would come from screaming at the void or cursing these stupid voices out in every curse word he knew, dead languages included. Maybe some of them would understand; he saw the old style of clothing the two spirits had when they showed up at the infirmary.

But it's not like they would talk to him of their own accord (besides Cian, but that thing comes and goes as it pleases and only talks to him when it's amused or wants something. It's a wildcard he doesn't want to think of the implications of), those two he saw were freaking out when he just looked at them.

From the urgency in their voices, Tang doesn't think he has a good chance at a one on one like that again, especially not here.

So, he chose to do the only thing he could: wait, like almost every time before. He crossed his arms, folded his legs, and sat still, eyes closed as the void suddenly reacted to his choice.

It seemed to come alive as he relaxed into its atmosphere, accepting him into its domain. He swore he could feel tendrils of unseen energy suddenly coil and bend around him, letting themselves be seen for the first time. He could sense it slow and accelerate based on unknown variables, how it had potential, how it could be something more if someone just gave its power shape.

It was overwhelming, yet not unfamiliar, like an overenthusiastic relative hugging you a bit too tight. But when he opened his eyes again, everything suddenly stilled, only pitch black as far as he could see.

It was silent, empty, yet again. Tang didn't know what that could mean, or even what that rush before was, but he wanted to figure at least one thing about this place out.

And because of that, he closed his eyes, ignored the warning signs, and tried to coax the energy back out. He sat in silence for a good while, waiting for the familiar energy to return.

Nothing happened for a good while. No spikes in the atmosphere, no familiar feelings, and there weren't even the usual voices or hands crowding his space. It was just quiet. He didn't move to open his eyes, though, as he liked the peace and wanted to stay a bit longer, even with a small bit of paranoia in the back of his mind saying the nightmare would begin sooner or later.

So, he focussed on what he could feel. His hair swayed behind him in the low gravity, stray wisps tickling his neck as the strands went every-which-way. He could feel his clothes do the same, the soft fabric of his sleeves and the ends of his robe billowing away from him…

...My robe?

He slowly opened his eyes once again, looking down at his body. He was no longer in the drab uniform he was given at the sleeping quarters, but instead he was back in his old red, white, and gold outfit.

The fabric seemed brand new as he took a piece between his fingers, nothing like the worn threads of his actual outfit. His shoes, scarf, and gloves were absent, though, while he still had long white socks under his maroon pants.

He calmly unwound his legs, letting them dangle in front of him. Looking closely at the fabric, he could see a small, almost unnoticeable orange sheen over the clothing. Frowning, he lifted his hands to his face seeing the same sheen over his hands, sleeves, and… the bell.

It seems like this piece of shit followed me in here. He thought bitterly, scowling at the bracelet hanging off his wrist. He raised a hand to his hair, running his fingers through the strands.

He still wasn't exactly used to the length, having had short hair for a good decade before it started growing dramatically after LBD. His hand kept trailing through the strands, ending at the middle of his back. And even before then, he'd never had it this long.

He fidgeted with the ends of his hair, lost in thought. He noticed some pieces had become lighter than the others, similar to the highlights he'd seen in Mei's signature hairstyle. However, his were closer to ashy blond than neon green.

Tang wonders if the color was natural. It fits her family’s theme, the whole white, green, and gold palette, so maybe she did it as some self expression while also sticking to her family's rules. She’s also a descendant of the Dragon of the West, so he supposes it's possible to get it naturally from those mythical being genes.

If… when he goes back to Megatropolis, he'll have to ask her himself.

He let go of the strands he was fidgeting with, letting them float in place as he sighed into his palms. Taking his head out of his hands, he glanced around the void once more, trying to see if anything changed while he was stuck in his head. The scholar couldn't see anything different, so he sunk back into himself and crossed his arms with a huff.

He wonders if the voices are gone now, stuck somewhere, unable to interact with him anymore. He saw how panicked they were in the medical tent, and he hasn't been able to hear from any other voices like them afterwards. He wonders if Cian was the person they were talking about, how someone should have blocked the connections from them? The details were fuzzy.

Still, he remembered the clear fear on their faces, how they couldn't let him die just yet. He's supposed to stay away from Cian and the monastery apparently, and Tang is more than happy to avoid both if he could. He could feel it in his gut that interacting with either of those options would not result in something good.

It's not like he can do much else at this point. His bag had most likely been confiscated by those military officials while he was unconscious, so most of that supplies is stuff he's never getting back. He groaned at the thought. All of that work is just gone in the wind now.

He misses his journal the most. All the little notes and scribbles he makes help him to focus, and reading back on them helps keep the memories fresh. Most of the stuff he writes is just about the legends and Monkie Kid's adventures, though, as he likes to portray them on paper the most.

Speaking of the legends, he wonders what is exactly going on with these spirits. The scholar doesn't remember hearing of ghosts matching the descriptions of the spirits he'd seen in any of the myths he's read, and since he is a Certified Scholar Spectacular (name given to him from a 9 year old Mk with a paper badge to match. He kept it in his journal as a bookmark. He really wants that journal back now), he knows that they've never shown up in one.

He thinks they're somehow related to the Golden Cicada and the Great Monk, with the obvious gold and orange colors along with the multiple cicadas popping up in most of his dreams. He just doesn't know how that connects with the rest of the information he’s gotten.

Flickers of memories play in his head as he tries to think of anything tying these things together. Cian had called his visions flares, and that it had his powers before him. If Cian was anything like the other voices, did that mean those two spirits also had powers like his before, too?

How do his powers work in the first place, anyways? How can they be passed down from (most likely) the Great Monk if he had already ascended like in JTTW, and had no possibility of reincarnation?

He rubs the back of his neck, lost in thought. Maybe Cian had lied to him at some point, about anything really, but then how were those voices from the medical tent related?

The truth is, Tang doesn't know.

The declaration hurts his soul, but it's true. He can't link these things to anything he's seen before. Everything is too foreign, too unpredictable where he can't wrap his head around all the stuff piling over one another.

He hates the feeling: being in the dark, not knowing what he's really dealing with. He prides himself on his knowledge, his ingenuity, as it's the only thing that really sets him apart from his friends.

So when that gets taken away from him, he's left scrambling, making situations worse than they already were in an attempt to make them better.

His teeth grind together as his hands grow tight on his arms, the unpleasant thought wriggling under his skin. Maybe I shouldn't have stayed here for so long. Nothing good has come out of this place so far, anyways. He thinks, looking out into the unchanging darkness; it's still empty.

He didn't know what he was expecting.

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Hello! I'm sorry for not posting this week. I've had so many ideas just no motivation to go with it. I'll try to post next week or earlier if I can.

Also, I found this amazing Cicada charm yesterday, and I now feel compelled to add it to my Tang designs.

Shadow Trails ~~~~~~~~~~

Charlie looks up at the demon. He's taller than her, with card symbols all over his wings and outfit. He wears a black bowler hat and a white dress shirt with a red and black blazer, one that has the sleeves rolled up and two white J's standing back to back on the left chest pocket.

His gray pants are baggy, but dont bunch around his ankles while having diamonds, spades, hearts, and clubs going down in lines. He looks down at her with almost glowing yellow eyes.

Charlie rubs her eyes, blinks twice, and then gives a big smile. "Hello there! How can I help you? Are you here to stay at the Happy Hotel?"

The sinner tips his hat to her politely. "Heya. And, ah, no, I'm not exactly looking to stay here." The cat sinner ruffles his wings. "The name's Husk, gambling overlord, y'know. I own the casino "Chips and Trades" down on Betters Way. I was wondering if..." Husk had started.

But Charlie stopped listening when he said the casino name. This is the King of Cards. The King of Cards. Outside her door. Seemingly looking for her specifically for whatever reason. She should've noticed sooner with his souls being heavier than a normal sinners. Oh shit.

Husk coughs into his clawed hand before speaking again. "What do ya-" She closes the door in his face. Oh crap she closed the door in his face!

She quickly opens it again. Husk stares back, confused. "Uh, hello-" he tries to speak, but she closes it again. Aw crap. Crap crap crap crap crap crap crap crap-

"Uh, Vaggie?" Charlie yells into the lobby, voice a bit wobbly.

"What is it?"

"The King of Cards is at the door..."

"Wait, what!?!" Vaggie yells, sitting up from the couch.

"What should I do!?" Charlie pulls on her hair, pacing in front of the doorway.

"Well, don't talk to him!"

"Who?" Angel pipes up, seemingly done with his popsicle as he waves the stick around for emphasis.

Charlie bites her nail before looking back at the door. Maybe he wasn't here for any bad reasons? He did seem like he was trying to talk to her civilly. But what if hes trying to ruin or take the hotel? Ugh! This is going nowhere!

'Y'know what? Im gonna do it. This hotel can't have it that much worse anyway.'

She finally takes a deep breath before opening the door again, looking Husk straight in the eyes. Sorry, Vaggie.

He looked down unimpressed. "Can I continue?" He asked in a bored tone. "You can." Charlie responds, trying to remain a bit confident.

Husk just shrugs in response before ducking through the door, almost knocking Charlie over with his wings. "The name's Husk, but I already told you that. I'm here to make a proposal for you and your... lively hotel." He looks around the battered entrance and cringes. "To give a good fix-up in return for something I suddenly need."

"Wait, really!?!" Charlie stopped herself before continuing. "Uh, *ahem* so, what do you need exactly?" She quickly saves, following him to the lobby.

But before Husk can respond, an angelic spear is aimed straight at his throat. "Stop. Right there." Vaggie suddenly snaps. Husk snarls down at the weapon.

Charlie quickly steps between the two. "Vaggie, stop! We don't need violence right now. He's here to make a proposal for the hotel!"

Vaggie huffed before rebuffing her statement. "What would a gambling overlord have to gain from our hotel? One that's also specifically known for trickery and manipulation?" She gives a harder glare towards the overlord.

Husk swats the tip away from his neck before speaking. "Just so you know, I only do that to lower level assholes I don't like. I can be civil when I have to, and with the right people." He adds the second bit like an afterthought.

"And what business do you have at our hotel? Do you even believe in our hotel's cause?" Vaggie asks skeptically.

Husk suddenly laughs. " Oh! Yeah, no. I don't really think your whole 'redemption' thing is going to work out in what I think you're hoping for. I'm just here to see if this could be something interesting enough to invest in."

If looks could kill, Husk would be dead where he stood as Vaggie glared holes into the back of the overlords head.

However, Charlie suddenly grabs Husk's arm and leads him towards the staircase, trying to deescalate the situation. "Well then, I think a tour is in order for our future investor!" She laughs nervously before shooting a begging look to Vaggie.

Vaggie stands still for a second. Finally, she glares at Husk's back before lowering her weapon, groaning, and shooing them off. Charlie gives a happy squeak and starts dragging Husk off around the top of the staircase.

Vaggie throws herself back onto the couch and sets her spear within arms reach. She starts to rub her temple violently. This isn't going to end well.

"So, what's with whisker?" Angel suddenly asks, sitting down on the arm of the couch and staring at the pair walking all over the hotel. "Y'know, the big fluff-ball ya got Charlie dragging everywhere?"

Vaggie pipes up, exasperated. "Wait, you don't know the King of Cards? Husk? Husker?"

"I've heard the name 'Husker' used around the studio sometimes, usually in passing." Angel stands up and sits in the armchair across from the couch. "Huh, woulda thought he'd be a bit less, y'know, cuddly. Don't know much 'bout him otherwise."

Vaggie looks even more exasperated than before. "You don't know about his deals with The Legends?" Angel shrugs. "His rise up in ranks over a couple of days? The one who tore down all existing systems and pioneered his own on a straight up gamble?"

Angel gives another shrug before crossing his arms. "I don't really follow politics. I might start if he's front and center, though." He gives a smirk in the overlords direction.

"Ugh, Angel Dust..." Vaggie sighs before continuing. "The King of Cards arrived in hell just before the Overlord Slaughter."

Angel Dust sags. "Oh here we go."

"Shut up. Anyways, he had never shown his face before the overlords started to go missing. People say he organized the whole thing to take advantage of the other overlords, who were called The Legends for surviving the massacre. He preyed on their fear of death from whatever being killed the others, and gave them protection in exchange for parts of their domain, their power, and some even gave away their souls to avoid the next slaughter.

"This sudden surge in power gave him the ability to do almost anything he wanted. He started to tear down the previous influences of the other overlords, things like brands, buildings, and even whole districts, as he rebuilt things to his liking.

"This is how Betters Way was created, with Chips and Trades as the star of the alley. You couldn't walk two feet without seeing an ad for whatever the King of Cards had going at the time. And he never stopped growing.

"He'd take sinners and demons alike to his table, letting them think they even had a chance in besting the head of the gambling district. They would all fail, as the house always wins and have everything taken from them. Their possessions, their achievements, and their own souls would be ripped from them to be added to the ever growing mound.

"This is why we can't get involved in something that runs around him. He lies, he cheats, and he always finds some way to have his interests win over all or tear you down to bits until you can't be anything without what the King of Cards holds in his hands." Vaggie takes a deep breath.

Silence is the only thing between them before Angel speaks up again. " Hah! Well, to me, he looks like an oversized build-a-bear accident."

Vaggie grumbles before glaring back at the Overlord, who was with Charlie and starting to walk back down the stairs. "Well, I don't trust his intentions."

Angel Dust raises a brow but says nothing, looking at the pair now standing at the bottom of the stairs.

Vaggie seemingly has enough as she gets up and drags Charlie away, leaving Husk to his own devices in the lobby.

Only when they're far enough away does Vaggie speak again. "You can't seriously be thinking about trusting that guy, right? He literally gambles peoples souls away for a living. He doesn't believe in what we're trying to do here, and he might even try to take one of our souls or tear down all of our work! "

Charlie glances at Husk before grabbing one of Vaggie's shoulders. "I know, Vaggie. He's definitely not here to be redeemed or to help with the idea of redemption in mind,"

Husk is now looking at the paintings on the walls, walking in front of them all with little to no interest for what's depicted on them.

"But this is what our hotel is about. To give sinners a chance and to have faith that they can be better! Turning someone away isn't something I can do. Just trust me this once, ok? Also, I'll give you full reign to do whatever if he tries anything."

Vaggie seems to think it over before answering. "Ok, just be sure not to make any exchanges, deals, or anything like that with him, got it?"

Charlie giggles before letting go of Vaggie. "Don't worry so much, Vaggie. If there's one thing I learned from my dad, it's that you dont take shit from other demons!"

Vaggie watches as Charlie confidently walks back up to Husk. "So, uh, Husk. I know you probably don't believe in what I'm doing and are just here for personal gain, but I do believe in what we're trying to do here." She says with a serious tone.

"This hotel is about taking chances and having the idea that sinners can be better in the first place, so I accept your offer to help out in our hotel. No strings attached or whatever you do with bets in your casino."

Husk squinted down at Charlie. "Hey now, I never made an offer like that. I made a proposal to help fix up this hotel in exchange for getting my name back into the game. I can give you more in exchange if you desire."

Husk suddenly holds out his hand as their surroundings turn a warm orange hue; soft voices echoed throughout the air.

Charlie immediately backs up from Husk. "Yeah, uh, no. No deals, no hand shaking, no exchanges, ok? Uhm, what about this instead."

Husk pulls his hand back and looks at Charlie expectantly. She coughs into her hand, then looks to Vaggie giving her an approving expression before speaking again.

"I, Princess of Hell, hereby declare that Husk, the gambling overlord, is to help out and fix the hotel to his best abilities for however long he desires in exchange for Husk's, uh, publicity." She finishes before looking back up at Husk.

He squinted down at her, seemingly thinking about her choice of words, then nods. "Good enough for me." Charlie let a breath she didn't know she was holding out in relief.

Husk suddenly walked around the lobby, starting to pick apart all the things that needed fixing. "Where is the rest of your staff anyways?"

Charlie tilts ger head to one side. "Staff?"

"Yeah, staff. Y'know, to help keep this hotel running? Things like maids, customer service people, the front desk runners?"

Charlie shrinks slightly before pointing to Vaggie. She in response just glared back into the overlords eyes.

Husk flinches back a bit. "Ho, yeah. You're going to need more than that to keep this hotel from running into disrepair."

He scans the room before finally acknowledging the resident spider sitting on the arm chair.

"And what exactly can you do?"

Angel Dust smirks before answering. "I can suck your dick!"

Silence falls in the lobby with Husk just staring for a second. Then he sighs, and grumbles something akin to "I'm too sober for this."

Angel laughs in his seat as Husk walks back to the center of the room. "Well, this certainly won't do if you're going to keep this project running. I might as well use a couple of tricks up my sleeve to at least give it a chance."

He then takes a jack of hearts from his sleeve and throws it into the parlor fireplace. It suddenly lights up as the entire parlor becomes free of dust and debris, with a little figure blackened by char stuck in the fireplace.

Everyone just stares as Husk goes up, picks the figure up by the scruff, and shakes the ash right off it. A single eye looks back up at them as he drops her back to the ground.

She's smaller than everyone there, about 3 feet tall if someone were to guess. She has a red poodle skirt on, with a poofy white shirt with three red spots on the chest and a white J surrounded by a red heart embroidered on top of where a human heart would be. There's a small red scarf around her neck, and her hair is short with red and orange highlights. She looks around the room erratically with her yellow eye.

"This little thing is Nifty. She'll make this hotel the cleanest it can be and keep everything in order. Just don't get too close: she can and will stab you." Husk warns before stepping back.

"Hi! I'm Nifty! It's been a while since I've seen other sinners in person." She rambles before looking around the lobby. Her face immediately drops.

"Oh my gosh! This place is filthy! It needs a lady's touch, which is weird because all of you are ladies, no offense." She speaks quickly as she takes a duster from... somewhere, and starts to clean every inch of the place, sometimes stabbing roaches with a sewing needle.

Angel scoffs at her comment but says nothing more. After she's apparently done, she skitters back to Husk's side and looks up at him with a begging look.

"So when are you bringing Al?" She asks a bit jittery, but with certainty. Husk rubs his temple. "I just brought you here, Nif. Summoning you guys takes a lot outa' me, believe it or not."

"Who's Al?" Charlie pipes up.

"Ooh, he's the best!" Nifty speaks up before Husk can answer. "He let's me climb all over him and put on roach puppet shows at his poker table without shooing me away!"

Husk speaks up before she can continue rambling. "*ahem* He's my top dealer. Got his soul a couple of years back, and now he works the poker tables and on my schedule. Brings in more souls than the rest per week on floor 13."

Vaggie squinted in suspension. "And what can he do for the hotel?"

Husk shrugs. "You'll see." He grumbles the next part mostly to himself. "I need to get him anyway. He holds all my liquor."

He then takes a deep breath before pulling out an ace of spades card from his left chest pocket. He flicks it onto the open floor as it grows and levitates upright

As if thrown, a figure stumbles from the cards picture, making the card blank for the time being. It shrinks and starts to float down before the figure snatches it and puts it back into his right chest pocket.

A soft hum of static could be heard after his arrival. He's taller than Husk, but not by much. He wears brown dress shoes, black slacks, a long-sleeved white undershirt, a dark red vest, and a black bow tie with a red jewel in the middle. On his right chest is a pocket with an embroidered A on top of a black spade.

He has striking, wavy red hair, with deer ears that stick up on either side of his head and a small tail. The tips of his ears, tail, and hair look like they were dipped in black, with the hair framing yellow eyes with red irises. The only thing blocking them were gold framed glasses that had a beaded chain to hang them around his neck while not in use.

When the figure finally steadied himself, he began to speak to the Overlord. "What fantastical event do you need me for now Husker-" he finally looked to the group as he turned around, eyes widening slightly as he set them on Charlie.

But he quickly took the situation in stride, patting down his uniform and speaking in his radio-like voice. "Why, hello there! My name is Alastor. It is a pleasure to be meeting you." He gives a nod, then a small smile, revealing sharp teeth through the gap.

Vaggie's eyes widen in turn, but she doesn't say anything back. "What exactly am I doing this time?" Alastor asks, now aimed back at Husker.

He huffed before answering. "You're gonna man the front desk at this "Happy Hotel". Making sure people check in, get the right keys and shit. Maybe a card game or two while they're here."

Charlie speaks up. "Wait what-"

Husk is already throwing the cards before she can finish. The cards surround the beaten up front desk, swirling around it and blocking the set up from view before throwing themselves back into Husk's deck, with a brand new poker table in place of the previous desk. The entire thing looks brand new, with fixed key holders to one side and a stock of liquor in the other.

Vaggie seethes. "What is this!? This is a place that discourages sin! We can't have a literal bar as our check-in desk!"

Husk raises a brow. "But it's not a bar. It's a poker table." He gestures to the surprisingly smooth poker table currently displayed as a desk. Angel Dust snorts before adding on. "Yeah, toots. That's obviously a poker table."

"Ugh! I can't with you two." Vaggie walks back over to the couch and flops down. Alastor grins at the scene before heading behind the desk.

Charlie takes this opportunity to go up and lean against the desk to talk to Alastor. "Hi! Welcome to the Happy Hotel! YOU'RE GOING TO LOVE IT HERE!!!!"

Alastor gives a small chuckle in response. "I think I might find this at least a bit entertaining. Haven't been summoned like this since 1997! It does get boring after shuffling so many cards and sitting around the same establishment all day, you know. I'm excited to see where this project will take us, my dear!"

Charlie gives a big smile to him as she turns back to Husk, waiting for him to say something.

He ruffles his wings again before speaking. "So, uh, what do ya' think?" He asks with a lazy tone.

Charlie literally squeals in delight. "This is amazing! Thank you so much, Husk!" Vaggie sits up just to mumble out a quick."I guess I can tolerate it."

"Good, cause I wasn't gonna change nothing anyways." Husk slinks to the front desk and just asks Alastor for the usual thing of alcohol.

Alastor just nods as he wrangles an energetic Nifty from his shoulder and sits her down across from Husk. "Try to stay still for once, Nifty."

Nifty is now bouncing in her seat as Alastor pours out Husk's drink. Setting it in front of him, Alastor exits the desk and picks up a now very jittery Nifty, making sure she doesn't go out on a stabbing rampage again.

Vaggie had already sat up, with Charlie now sitting next her her. They just watch the scene unfold, with Angel surprisingly quiet in the armchair.

The nice silence was suddenly broken as one of the hotels' walls crashed down, causing everything to be covered in a layer of dust, again.

The force caused the pair of girls to fall sideways on the couch, knocked Angel completely off the chair, and hit Husk's drink out of his hands before he could take a second sip. Alastor and Nifty are relatively unphased.

Manic laughter could be heard from outside as the group went and looked out of the crash site.

"It isss I! Sir Pentiousss! I know you're in there, Angel Dussst! Prepare for a rematch and to face my wrath!" The snake sinner declared as he shot up the surrounding area.

Husk stepped outside first, observing the threat level, and then deeply groaned. Alastor came right up to his side. "Want me to take care of it?"

Husk shook his head and started to ready his wings. "Nah, he spilled my drink. Also, I should show these guys what I'm actually made of."

With that, he took off right in front of the blimp. He punched the front, causing glass to shatter everywhere outside and inside the blimp.

Charlie, Vaggie, and Angel just stared as Husk went ham on the poor sinner. He threw cards that cut through the steel like butter, never-ending ribbons that restricted all of the blimps movement, and the bomb that was about to release got poofed into pigeons with a single touch after being completely covered up by the ribbon.

One card finally hit the engine, causing the entire thing to explode, sending the snake flying in the opposite direction.

Husk landed right in front of the group, all of them just staring at the explosion site. "Ugh... I need another drink." Husk finally spoke as he started to head back to the hotel through the smashed wall.

Charlie guided Vaggie back to the hole with a hand on her shoulder. Angel followed right after them, with Nifty skipping close behind. Then finally, Alastor came from the back.

He stopped right inside of the hole, snapped, and watched as the entire wall started to piece itself together again out of everyone else's view.

Once the wall looked good as new, Alastor went back to the front desk/poker table. He huffed to himself as he saw everyone crowded around Husk. The dust was still layered on everything, though. But that could be left to Nifty.

Previous || Next

Tang au Drabbles 2!

Ok, I have more info on what happens before tang crashes into the town!

This will contain spoilers for the upcoming fic

The wind demon Tang encounters on the way to the airport is Heifeng Guai, also known as The Black Wind Demon.

Tangs taxi driver, a teenager that talked his ear off for most of the ride, immediately starts to panic when they start getting chased by the wind demon and started to hyperventilate, causing the taxi to go off-road and towards the edges of the grass plains they were driving through.

Tang, obviously panicked, grabs the teen, opens his door, and jumps into the long grass, hoping to not be noticed in the heat of the chase.

Tang tries tobsilently console the teen as the demon continues towards the taxi as it drives towards the surrounding river as the demon throws their spear through the back of the taxi.

The taxi explodes as shrapnel flies in every direction. Though, none of it hit Tang or the teen that had stopped hyperventilating, for some reason...

The demon stops, seemingly annoyed by no bloodshed, and starts to search the area, hoping to find its prey again.

Tang and the teen freeze on the ground as they hear the wind pick up and then relax as they hear a curse, and then tree branches blowing around until silence.

I hope you guys liked that little snipbit of the plot I have coming up for the fic! I now know that I probably get an ao3 account this summer, but idk when.

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