Ace in a Hole (Undertale x Hazbin Hotel)

Chapter 23

Vox went further than Alastor had anticipated. He knew the television-screened man was deranged in the most vile of ways, but he hadn't anticipated for him to try and pull a stunt like this. Desperation must be at the forefront of his mind.

Alastor tapped his shoe against the ground, barely able to revel in the pained groans of the grunt he had all but torn apart. Much like the contract he had torn in the same manner, the paper scattered about on the wooden table.

He breathed in. A deep, hearty breath.

Alastor was a stickler for a lot of things. Always freshened his hair first thing in the morning. Beauty was important in any society, as much as a smile was. He took time to carefully iron out his clothes, to ensure he looked presentable in every aspect of his public appearance. That was who he was, a fundamental of his character he showed to others.

One habit he had picked up, seven years before he appeared at the hotel, was looking over anything people tried to get him to sign.

Alastor never had the need to sign anything when he was starting off in hell, not until he started to amass massive power. However, soul contracts had been so straightforward then that he never needed to. He could always take one glance at a soul contract and know, instinctively, who it was for.

Nowadays, soul contracts are much more complicated. Full of tedious wordplay and elongated sentences. Alastor had learned to read everything given to him with scrutiny when he had nearly signed a contract to harbor his soul away before that woman nearly ripped him apart. Alastor spent seven years licking his wounds and bruised pride, and learned a good few lessons from that incident.

Like fully reading a contract. So when someone had approached him regarding the possibility of expanding his radio show, while he had been interested, Alastor performed his due diligence. Being able to broadcast to the other rings of hell would be a perfect endeavor to focus on so he wasn't twiddling his thumbs waiting for the wedding. It was easy to get lost in his obsessive mental ramblings about the skeleton that broke through his defenses, so he made sure to take time balancing his other hobbies and relationships as well.

Alastor hadn't expected to find content regarding the ownership of his soul in the contract.

Though, he supposed the man who delivered it hadn't expected the violent reaction Alastor had. A very mutual exchange for the both of them.

So now he was torn open like a can of sardines, and Alastor was fuming. Trying to put a cap onto his burning rage would do no good, so instead he set forth to utilize it. Let it simmer, like a slow cooker. Until it would pop open and allow him the best of revenge on the television.

Vox had been quiet. Other than the blackout that continued on for the rest of the day, the man hadn't set foot out into public. Alastor assumed he was doing much of what he had done all those years ago—licking his wounds in solitude, to save himself the embarrassment of roaming outside with a short fuse. Of course, that was under the assumption that Vox was anything within the realm of logical.

Oh, but to be plotting to try and steal away Alastor's soul?

What a devious little idea he had brewed up. It never would have worked, but the sheer gall of trying to pull that off was enough to piss him off. And Alastor knew what Vox would do if he could get his hands on Alastor, too. Knew the gross, sexual acts he'd enact for his little fantasies. Vox was dating the head of the porn industry in hell; of course he had all sorts of ideas and gadgets stored away.

Alastor would have to pay Vox a visit once he got his wits back. This was a step too far, too unacceptable for him to be able to tolerate it.

How unsettling that Vox could have succeeded if Alastor hadn't been thorough. There was no safeguard Alastor could put into place. One single signature on the wrong page, and it was over. There was no undoing a soul contract by anyone other than the contract owner. Alastor would be helpless to their orders, nothing more than a pawn. Absolutely disgusting.