Hazbin Hotel: Sins and Second Chances

Chapter 4

"Do you know how Hell came to be?" Charlie would ask through the brief moment of silence between them.

Zack's understanding of Hell was simplistic. A pit of fire, ruled by a devil with a pitchfork. Where people who were bad went to burn. But Hell was different from person to person. To some, Hell was their life. Hell was where they lived. Hell was the mindset they were in. Hell wasn't just a physical place, but a state of mind as well.

"No." He shook his head.

Charlie nodded. "Let me tell you a story," she said as she leaned back in her chair.

"Once upon a time, there was a glowing city protected by golden gates, known as heaven. It was ruled by beings of pure light. Angels that worshipped goodness and shielded all from evil. Lucifer was one of these angels." She explained, her tone drifting into something almost like a bedtime story. "He was a dreamer, with fantastical ideas for all of creation. But his ideas, well, they weren't well-received. The elders of Heaven thought him dangerous, a threat to the order they had worked so hard to maintain."

Zack would listen, finding himself learning forward slightly as his leg crossed over the other. His usual posture when something grabbed his attention. Charlie would continue.

"So, Lucifer watched as the other angels expanded the universe in their own ways. The earth was made, and from the dust of the Earth came Adam and Lilith."

The mentioning of Lilith puzzled him. He thought it was just Adam and Eve. He never heard of Lilith. Charlie, seeing his slightly puzzlement, would explain further. "Lilith was to be Adam's first wife. Equals, as the first of mankind. But Adam demanded control, and Lilith refused to submit to his will. So, she fled the garden."

Zack blinked; head tilted as he soaked in this information.

"Drawn in by her fierce independence. Lucifer found her. Two rebellious dreamers... and they fell in love."

"Lucifer fell in love?" Zack would mutter, more to himself than to Charlie.

She caught his surprised but didn't pause. "Together, Lucifer and Lilith wished to share the magic of free will with humanity. So they offered the fruit of knowledge of Good and Evil to Adam's new bride, Eve, who they formed from his rib. She accepted it, gladly."

Charlie's eyes darken slightly, her expression shifting as the weight of the story began to settle in.

"But with that one act of disobedience, evil found its way into the world. A curse was born."

"The original sin." Zack would say, familiar with the story of Adam and Eve.

Charlie would nod. "Yes. The original sin. For acting against the rules of Heaven, Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden. The land was cursed and Adam and Eve became mortal beings, fated to grow old and die. For tempting Eve to partake of the fruit, Heaven cast Lucifer and Lilith into the dark pit he had unknowingly created. To remain in the underworld all the days of their life, to only see the cruel and wicked populate their new Kingdom as a consequence for introducing free will to man."

For a moment, silence hung between them. Zack's mind raced as he processed her words. All through his youth he heard the story of Adam and Eve. Eating the apple. Getting kicked out of the Garden. But Lilith? That was new.

Charlie seemed to sense his thoughts and smiled softly. "I can tell you're surprised. But there's a lot left out of your scriptures, Zack. What I just told you, it's the truth. And well—" She paused, letting the weight of her next words settle in. "I'm the Princess of Hell. Daughter of Lucifer, the angel who fell from Heaven."

His eyes widened; jaw slacked. "You're the... daughter of the devil?"

Charlie nodded, a playful smile on her face. "Mmhm."

Questions swarmed his brain. But before he could ask any of them, Charlie would continue.

"Every year," she said, her voice growing solemn, "I watch as Angels from Heaven, Exorcists, descend to Hell. They slaughter countless souls year after year, to control the overpopulation of hell. Souls that... deserve better. It's brutal. Heartless."

For a moment, Zack hesitated. With a shaky voice, he would ask, "Where do the souls go after they're... killed?"

Charlie shook her head. "I don't know." She admits, her voice heavy with evident sorrow. "No one knows. They're just gone. And every year, I have to watch the death and destruction, the chaos. It's.... too much. There has to be a better way."

The revelation of all this information weighted down on Zack like a ton of bricks. He had never imagined Hell like this. It wasn't just a place of suffering for one's choices, but a place where death can come for you. Forever.

It made his stomach twist.

The darkened expression on Charlie's face softened as she turned her gaze back to him. "And that's why I wanted to do something that's never been done before." She would motion around her office.

"Zack, where we're sitting in right now is just one room of a building that I believe can change everything. You see, I believe there's a light inside every demon, every sinner. A rainbow, if you will."

Zack raised a brow. "A rainbow?"

Charlie giggled, nodding. "I know, it sounds a little cheesy. But I believe there's still good in many of the sinners down here. They just need a chance to find it. I don't want these souls to be trapped in their fate forever, nor do I want souls who have a chance to change get extinguished permanently from the Heavenly Armies that come here. I want to help them find that light again. And that's what this place is. The Hazbin Hotel. A slice of Heaven in Hell."

A quote went through Zack's head from an old 80's movie he remembered watching.

'This is heavy, doc.'

It was overwhelming. He had grown up with a rigid, simplistic view of Hell, of sinners, of redemption. But this was something else entirely.

"So... what do you need from me?" Zack asked cautiously, his voice uncertain. "What is this job?"

A look of hope could be seen in Charlie's eyes as she smiled. "You've got something the sinners don't down here, Zack."

He didn't know where she was going with this. "And what's that?"

Charlie would continue. "You've been to rock bottom. You know what it's like to feel lost, to lose everything. But you also know how to pull yourself back up. That's why I want you to help."

Zack stared at her. "Help how?"

"Just like there was someone there for you, I need someone who can be there for these souls." She explained. "Someone who understands them, who can show them they're not alone. You know what it's like to feel as if the whole world is against you, to feel like you're the problem. But you changed. And that makes you the perfect person to help others find that light within themselves."

He blinks, thoughts racing. The idea was rather daunting and terrifying. But at the same time, a part of him couldn't deny the growing curiosity he felt within himself. He exhales slowly, trying to wrap his mind around the enormity of what she was asking.

"So... you want me to help redeem demons?"

Charlie nods, her smile wide and hopeful. "Exactly."

Sitting in silence for a moment, the weight of what she was asking pressed down on his mind. His life had been a constant battle of climbing out of his personal darkness. And now he was ask to do the same for others. In Hell, of all places.

The irony wasn't lost on him.

Looking back at Charlie, Zack would rub his palms against his knees. "I'll... think about it."

Charlie nodded, her eyes warm and understanding. "That's all I can ask."