"You're not all that bad."

I slurped up some Lucky Charms as Nya came to sit next to me, a look of calmness filling her features. "Is that supposed to be a compliment?" I raised a brow, looking into her blue eyes as she nodded. "Yes," She replied and I took the moment to analyze her. She was Nya, true, but something about her seemed off.

"I'm sorry for slapping you that day," I chewed on my cereal as she spoke hollowly, placing the journal that I found on the table. "It's good. It's not like I find my face attractive or anything," I snorted in disbelief and she smiled, flashing her blue eyes at me. The area fell silent before I looked to her, ready to rip off the bandaid of whatever this situation was. "So..." I trailed off, pushing my empty bowl away from me as I turned to face her entirely. "You're gonna tell me what is that has you all bent out of shape?" 

I wasn't trying to get into her business, but I was trying to help her cope with whatever it was that was weighing her down. She seemed to be completely valuable to Maddox, so in turn, she was valuable to me. 

Nya took a deep breath and slid the journal over to me, watching me carefully. "Open it," She demanded in a soft tone and I complied, turning back the cover to see the same name written there. The handwriting seemed to be old from the blurred lines, and it made me think back to what Maddox was telling me about who he was. "Nicola," I muttered and Nya sighed. "Know anything about that?" I raised a brow and she leered at me as if she was contemplating whether or not she should tell me. She should, evidently because Maddox was only going to tell her what she had no business knowing. I was going to be real with her because not only would it help her in finding solace, it would help Maddox because he would see that he wasn't alone in this situation.

She let out a low breath and shook her head. "...no. I just have bits and pieces of where I was on this white land and instead of these black wings," She pointed to the appendages that were peeking out of her back. "They were white, shining like the brightest diamonds ever picked. I didn't have black hair, but it was white too. I didn't look like I do now," Nya chuckled pathetically. "I remember that I was a lot happier then. I don't remember this place in my memories," I flipped the next page to see that it was dated almost four centuries ago. 

"Nicola Ferarri, September 5th, Eighteen Eighteen," I read out loud, unable to decipher the text written beneath. It used some ancient characters that made me feel illiterate. "Can you," I stuttered. "Can you read this?" I slid the journal back to her and she slowly nodded, allowing something to dawn on me. "It says, Lord Tion came and requested of me that I be a Royal Guard to the throne. I too would've accepted the request had I not have sinned." I blinked rapidly, things in mind piecing together like a puzzle.

The room fell silent once again.

"Nya," She flinched when I said her name and her eyes started to darken, which let me know that things were starting to come back to her. Whatever Maddox did to make her forget, it was wearing off. "What did you do?" 

Every single sin that landed these people in Hell were based off of the Seven Deadly Sins. I could only imagine what she had done. "You know, Emily's father was the younger brother of Tion," She spoke hollowly, gritting her teeth, the sound ricocheting into my ears like the crumbling of paper. "He didn't want her after I told them I fell with child. He forced me to lie and say that the father was someone else because he didn't want to be tied to me," Nya took a deep breath, clicking her teeth. There was something sinister in her mind, I knew. "In a bout of rage, I poisoned him." 

"I—

I started to cough because I forgot to breathe for a second. She really did what now? "Tion wasn't supposed to find out, but I guess I wasn't as slick as I liked to think I was," She smirked as if she was pleased with herself and I made a mental check to applaud Maddox for picking someone so crazy as his right-hand. "I guess that makes it a viable reason," I mumbled, allowing it to settle in my mind.

"I know Sir Alistair didn't want anyone to find out who they really were, but with things happening now, he's losing his grip on that control," Her words sounded so vague and I felt as if she was hinting at me, though it couldn't be true.

"They can't remember who they are."

I raised a brow, recalling Maddox's voice. Nya snorted and I tilted my head, wondering why she looked so appeased. "They tell you that you broke all these rules and here you are, sitting in the same boat as us. The only difference is," She stood up, grabbing her journal to walk out. "You now have a reason to fight for the rest of us." 

I furrowed my brow, wondering what she was getting at. I shuddered at the thought, getting up to throw my bowl in the sink. I had nothing but time on my hands since Maddox was off doing otherworldly things, so I opted to go to look at the many animals they had in the pen. 

I wiped my hands on my ripped jeans, and I casually strolled out to main part of the castle, making my way past the many demons that stood in the area. Some of them waved and smiled, some bowed—which made me feel pleased yet awkward all at once. I guessed some were a bit wary, seeing that I was wearing the same outfit that landed me in Hell, to begin with.

Oh well.

I shrugged and continued to hightail it to the mysterious pen that was hidden from the main part of the castle. "Fuck with me if you want to, I got hands to throw," I hummed to myself as I neared the glass door to the animal room. I put my hand up to the scanner to allow me access and I stepped across to enter, the smell of animals floating in my nose like a lingering aroma.

"Hi, Walker!" A pink, black, and white panda came up to me, curling its arms around my leg. I reached down to pet his head, enjoying the fact that these animals knew who the real master around here was. I walked over to the cushioned bench, sitting down on it as I watched the various animals run about. I heard the door open and I knew who it was before she said anything. I was just cool like that,

"So," Zero plopped down next to me, watching me pet the multicolored animal. "How does it feel to be the confidant and nurse to our big and scary lord?" I made a face at her, wondering what she was trying to say. "Scary? Where?" I snorted, wondering what was so terrifying about that man. Sure, he was big in the sense that he was extremely tall and muscular, but after seeing him out of his element and coughing and begging for Hot Cheetos like he was, I couldn't take him seriously.

Like at all.

"That must mean you're seeing him in a totally different light," Zero sighed pleased with herself as the animal made a purring noise. "Shut up before I ask Maddox to turn you into this animal," I narrowed my eyes at her and she chuckled, throwing her head back. "I'm thinking that will be a good thing to do because Avery and I are planning to tell him about our relationship," She stated casually and I whistled, unable to tell her how I thought Maddox would react. 

"I can't say for sure, but I think you'll be okay," If things go left, I was going to be there fix it because Maddox cannot be turning people away when we needed them, for the stupidest reasons. "He'll probably be a little irritated, but we can fix that quickly," I petted the panda, not noticing the innuendo that was hidden in my statement, and Zero started to laugh hysterically. I knew I was funny, but I was genuinely concerned because nothing that I had said in the last two minutes was remotely comical. 

Or was it?

"I'm just glad that you're here," She put a hand on my shoulder and I nodded, trying to comprehend the sentimentality behind this moment. I had no clue what these people thought of me and to be quite frank, I didn't give a shit about anyone's opinion other than that shitlord because he was the only one whose say mattered. 

He also had the power to kill me, so it would be generally understandable.

I was going to say something, but a woosh sound scared the daylight out of me as the demon lord of all demons appeared out of thin fucking air. He was dressed in a casual pair of grey sweatpants and a black shirt, his black hair wild and unruly on top of his head and his fangs exposed over his mouth. He seemed to be feeling a bit better since he wasn't looking so blue and ghastly anymore. Even when he was casually dressed and calm, my heart started to pump excessively.

I hoped that he had a doctor around somewhere because this heart injury was not working for me. I ignored Zero's pressing smirk as I watched Maddox stalk over to me, his eyes solely on me and his lips set in a grim line. I hadn't seen him in what felt like days, and I totally forgot how to breathe normally. 

"Can I talk to you for a second?" For someone who was getting over being sick, his voice was extremely hoarse as if he had been crying or something. I didn't see any puffiness around his eyes or any redness, so I dismissed that notion. "Yea," I nodded with no questions asked. Zero didn't say a word as Maddox walked around her to come assist me, which I found to be a sweet action. I took his firm hand that was held out to me and he pulled me up, wrapping an arm around my waist to steady me. 

I could feel my stomach churning in excitement and I hated that I started smiling without realizing that I was. Troy Morelli, get your shit together. 

"Come on," Maddox didn't say anything, but I knew if he really wanted to, he could see my thoughts. He held me by the waist as we walked outside to stand on the balcony, the scenery above us perplexing in its nature. "You see that?" Maddox whispered in my ear and I nodded, unable to take my eyes away from the sight. 

Up in the sky, the clouds were swirling unusually fast, no stars or planets in sight. It was now a dark green hue with nothing else. It looked like an upside-down whirlpool that could come crashing down on us at any given moment, and that was the scary part. "Is that normal?" I asked, already knowing my answer. I could feel Maddox's hand shaking around my waist and I turned up to see what was wrong.

"Something is happening above Earth," He confessed, referring to the clouds above No Man's Land. "When something like this happens, we know that he is beginning to move," He whispered, tugging at his dark strands. "I thought it was just a coincidence, but I went down to the basement to assess the condition of Synthella," He took a deep breath and relayed everything to me. 

"As I was walking to her cage, I didn't hear her crying like I normally did, which struck me as odd. I got closer and closer to her, and I realized why she wasn't making any noise," His voice treaded darkly and I gulped, sensing an atmosphere of doom enclosing around us. "She had passed out, it looks like she had been for a while." He stated and I was in an area of confusion. "Why is that bad? Homegirl just got tired after all that crying," I murmured, listening to him chuckle before he denoted that idea.

"No, I kept her loaded on a blue serum that would make sure that she stayed awake, even when she was tired. If she falls asleep, bad things happen. I don't know how or why, but when she sleeps, she has a way of being in contact with Tion and she has the power to destroy things without blinking and I don't know what has been already done," Maddox lamented with a soft growl as his fangs scraped against his lips.

Then, I knew this was a lot bigger than I thought, but I was trying to make the moves so that we didn't get too far behind. Though I was working to do that, Maddox was having his extreme mid-life crisis and it was odd to see him in this way because he was the pillar of strength that everyone needed. Even he needed someone to lay down on.

"I'm only one man, Troy," His voice sounded so broken and I turned him so that he was facing me, and I cupped his cheeks as he clasped my shoulder, looking deeply into those gold eyes of his. "There's only so much that I can do, and that isn't even a lot. I don't even know if I can save everyone," His tone was dripping with desperation and it tugged at my heartstrings to see someone so strong look so defeated.

"Is there nothing we can do?" I asked softly and he quietly shook his head, letting me know the answer. "Do we know when he will come? It would be nice to be prepared," I bit my lip, feeling a sense of impending doom. Tion was coming, that was for sure, but none of us knew what type of storm he was bringing with him. "No," Maddox shook his head, sighing heavily. "I don't know anything and that's what scares me." This man really had the weight of the world on his shoulders and I didn't want him to feel crushed before anything started because he was a lot bigger than that.

"Maddox Kane," I grabbed him by the chin so that he was staring directly into my eyes and listening to every word I had to say. "It doesn't matter that you don't know the answer to all of these questions, because you are who you are for a reason. You will find a fucking way to fix everything," I stated adamantly, looking into each orb of his so that he knew I was playing zero games. "You aren't this shit lord for no reason and we all believe in you. You also got me to rely on," I saw his mouth twitch up happily and my cheeks flushed a bit. "So stop with this shitty moping and put on your big boy smile. Don't make me have to slap some sense into you," I tapped his cheek and turned away from him, slightly concerned if I may or may not have crossed the line. 

Maddox just stared at me, his face empty and dead like always and I huffed, waiting for him to get a move on. "At first," He spoke in his exotic and beautiful voice, turning his gold eyes away from me and I stated, listening with intent. "I thought that you'd be a handful because I heard so much about you," I narrowed my eyes, ready to throw these hands at him, but Maddox shook his head at me, smiling softly. He grabbed me by the waist and pulled me close to him, much to my surprise, and leaned his head against mine so the only thing that I could smell was his intoxicating scent.

"But having you here turned out to be the best thing."