When You're Evil

[Vinny]

March 28th, Year 1

Vinny was finding it harder to adjust to the mortal world than he ever thought possible. He knew humanity was full of treachery and sin... but he didn't expect quite this much. Then again, he surmised, this was war...

He was still sticking to his guns, however. Vinny knew there was still goodness in this mortal plane... his mother had lived up here several centuries ago, and told him so many stories of the amazing things humanity could do purely because they knew it was right. He knew he would come to learn from humans and their morality. He would, in time, find himself blending among the mortals... he couldn't go back to Hell and keep torturing the corrupted and the damned for the rest of eternity... what was the fun in that?

No, he decided, he would see the good in humanity. He had learned to question the unholy morals that ran the kingdom of Hell, and he could not help but feel something he was doing there was not right. Though he was a demon, directly related to Lord Satan himself, he was learning the basics of what was good, and what was bad.

That, however, did not mean he was immune to falling back to his devilish, sinful ways.

Demon boy was extremely bored. Even though he was part of an army, he hadn't seen anyone out fighting! There was in itch in his hooves, his sharpened claws, to destroy something. Naturally, he assumed he would be able to take out this instinct on the enemy. But he was finding it harder and harder to keep it at bay when there were no constructive outlets for the demon's violent instinct.

Around the palace there was no shortage of luxurious furniture and decor. This place did once house a royal family, just like the palace he lived in back in Hell... though this one was decidedly less full of brimstone and fire and had much less ambient noise of the screams of the damned. He actually kind of missed that. Today especially, Vinny found much too quiet. His glowing yellow eyes darted around curiously as he lay splayed out upon a thick-cushioned chair.

Maybe he would just have to take matters into his own hands. If Vinny couldn't find the fun, he'd make it himself!

A black, sharp claw pierced the cushion with a satisfying pop. He ran it slowly along the line of the seam, hearing the threads pop and rip. His tapered tail flicked happily. He was on the right track. There was a little hole in the fabric, showing thick feather down stuffing. He then got a pang of guilt.

"Maybe I shouldn't..." he whispered to himself, pulling his claw back and biting the tips of his paws. It was an expensive chair. He was sure one of the overseers would probably be mad...

"Hhhrrrmmmph... man, it's so hard to be good. What are we even supposed to do around here if we're not fighting?" he said to nobody in particular, flailing his paws in an over-exaggerated gesture of frustration. "I'm so bored I could just eat the stupid couch stuffing!"

[Alastor]

“What do you mean you haven’t found them yet? We’ve been posing as soldiers for this army long enough, I would have expected you to find at least one of those pathetic fools!” Alastor hissed, his crimson gaze stuck on Corson’s golden eyes. The other duocorn snorted and rolled his eyes, pounding the marble tile with a hoof.

“I didn’t realize that was still the objective.” Corson said, in a deadpan tone. His eyes flashed with a malicious glint, as he turned his head away from Alastor.

“How dare you turn on me, you gargantuan bru-“

“Quiet. I hear something, down the hall.” Corson muttered, nostrils flaring as he attempted to see further down the tunnel-like hall, but ultimately failed.

Alastor snarled, before walking over to stand next to Corson, who towered over his skeletal frame. He’d deal with Corson’s lack of evidence on the unicorns later. The two of them began a silent stalk down the marble hallway, ears pricked and eyes narrowed. They came upon a small figure laying on a cushion in one of the palace’s many rooms, asking no one in particular what there was to do when there wasn’t any fighting to be done.

“You could always...destroy things. Or hunt in the African savannah. Or mess with the townspeople of Agrabah.” Alastor answered with a shrug, as he and Corson approached the yellow eyed demon.

“You’re a demon as well.” Corson commented, gesturing to the demon boy’s horns with a massive hoof.

“We haven’t seen you here before. Where did you come from?” Alastor asked.

[Vinny]

Vinny was halfway into chomping a mouthful of feather down when Alastor and Corson approached. He sat there for a second, the occasional feather floating to the floor before he spat them all out very ungracefully on the floor. "Well, yeah, I was gonna try and destroy some stuff," he countered with a bit of a pout to Alastor's suggestion. "I'm tryin' to quit, though. You know how mortals are."

"You're a demon as well."

"Uh... yeah?" Vinny tapped at his horns with a clawed finger. He wasn't really sure how to take the observation, as he usually expected people to react with distrust or fear. But these two seemed interested in him, and they were also demons! Sweet! He hadn't seem them before either, which gave him a little bit of pause... he was sure his dad or Uncle Belial probably knew them-- it seemed like they knew everyone down in Hell. Alastor then asked where he was from, and he couldn't help but make a "pfffrrrrrt" sound and a couple cackles.

"Where do you think I'm from, moron? Same place every other demon is from, Hell! Duh. I'm part of the Satanic royal family, I'll have you know," he added a bit boastfully, puffing out his fluffy chest and whisking around his tapered tail. "Dad and Uncle Belial wanted me to come to the surface to corrupt some mortal souls all secretly and non-corporeal-y but... eh, that's so boring. I'd rather be right up in the action! Humanity is pretty cool when you're not just observing them from the astral plane."

[Corson]

The two duocorns exchanged an unamused glance, as Corson's mouth spread to reveal teeth that should have been much too large for him. His saber-toothed incisors began to show, as he stared the little demon down with a deep chuckle.

"Oh little one, you are quite the boastful one, aren't you?" Corson said, lowering his head so that he was mostly eye to eye with Vinny.

"What I said was merely an observation. Of course we know all demons come from the same place. But I would suggest watching your tongue, for you are speaking to a King of Hell." Corson said, narrowing his eyes at the young demon.

"Royal family or not."

"I have to agree with you there." Alastor purred, as he wound his own tail around Vinny, and released him just as quickly, trotting to the right side of him.

"Watching humanity from afar isn't fun at all, but trust us when we say that there's still some fun to be had here, especially when it comes to corrupting them." Alastor said, with a mischievous grin.

"Let's play a game."

[Vinny]

Oh.

Vinny, he realized quite suddenly, had definitely messed up.

This demon duocorn was not at all amused by his sass, smiling a huge, fanged, terrifying grin. Vinny's ears drew back as Corson bent down to his level, locking eyes as he addressed the young demon in a low, sarcastic tone.

Woah, woah, wait... did he just say he was a KING of Hell? Sooooo... I just back-talked someone in cahoots with the Big Man himself. Shit. If dad hears about this I am so boned...

Vinny's maw spread in a nervous grin-- though it really ended up looking more like a grimace of pain-- eyeing Alastor nervously as he coiled his tail around him. He was going to be in big trouble if these guys knew Satan-- you don't just call a king a moron and get away with it. He was going to have to find some way to apologize and get himself on good terms with his fellow demons.

"Let's play a game."

Vinny's ears pricked right up at that. Now these guys were talking his business. If he played their game, he was sure he could get them to just forget he had totally disrespected a royal. Though their tone of voice seemed... very unsettling. He had been trying with all his strength to resist committing acts of sin on the surface, but lord, was he just itching to wreak some havoc.

"Keep talkin'..."