When the four of us exited the battered hotel, I realized just how much damage the whole of the Sprawl took. The scene reminded me of those old World War II documentaries, where the cameras would show the dirty streets after some air raid. Like those films that were there to remind the world of the atrocities that people are able commit. There were some semblance of order now; the local law enforcement were busy at work rescuing the injured, and construction crew were cleaning up the worse of the debris.

“If you are wondering where the Hell spawns went, Mr. Mark Bastion, they fled shortly after that little girl went berserk.” Hel commented, noticing my confusion.

“I see...” I mutter.

My little group continued to walk in silence towards the exit of the Sprawl. On the way out, I made a side stop to the bank. I was half expecting the place to be destroyed like the rest of the Sprawl, but amazingly they were still open. The marble pillars and were cracked, and there was clear damage done to the building itself, but by the streams of people coming in and out of the place, it was definitely open.

Thankfully, once the clerk – the same blonde one that greeted me before – saw me, she ushered me towards the front of the huge line. I guess she thought I was someone important, not that she would be wrong. I asked her why the place was still opened, and she explained that the bank was the first place to open up, since many of the bigger powers of the Sprawl would need the funds to either flee or repair the damage done. Made sense, I guess.

I told the clerk to transfer all of the money I had there over to one of several banking accounts that I had already made. After all, I never plan to return back to the Sprawl ever again, so I might as well take all the cash with me. The whole process didn't take too long, and within the hour, the four of us were out of the Sprawl and back in Alexei's car. An hour after that, we were all back in his mansion.

“Ah yes, Mark...” Alexei said tentatively as we got out of his car, “There is one other person who will be joining us for this little quest of ours.”

“Oh yeah?”

Just then a girl appeared out from seemingly nowhere, as if she heard Alexei's statement. She was a drop dead gorgeous individual, with long, straight black hair, and a body that porn stars would kill for. She was wearing a skimpy leather outfit, and a wicked smile on her perfect lips.

“Lilith.” I grunted, “What the fuck are you doing here?”

She gave me a charming smile, and answered, “Are you going deaf as well? Didn't your nice friend Alexei just explain it to you?”

I stared back at Alexei, giving him my meanest look that I can manage, but he just shrugged.

“Tell me, Lilith,” I said, staring straight into her beautiful black eyes, “why should I trust you to not fuck us all over? No, why shouldn't I just kill you right here and now, for what you did to Becca?”

“Oh please, Barbas.” She answered, “You don't have the power to even touch me right now.”

“You want to bet?” I answered.

I allowed my guise to dissolve into the air, and take on the form of the Angel Barbiel. The whole transformation took less than a microsecond, and before Lilith could even respond, I unfurled my heavenly wings, and rushed at her. I willed the fires of creation into my right hand, and was about to punch her when someone stopped my advance.

Lady Hel...

“That is enough, Mr. Mark.” She said softly.

I continued to stare angrily at the succubus, but eventually calmed down. I willed away my heavenly form, and returned to the comfortable human guise. Lilith was stunned at the transformation, and I think she was afraid as well. She knew that the power I just wielded was enough to threaten even her.

“I guess you've grown up a little.” Lilith said, her voice hardly steady.

I spat in her direction, “And you're still the same cunning bitch you always were.”

“Enough, Mark!” Alexei said, “You know that Lilith had no control over her actions back there!”

“Exactly!” I yelled, “She has no reason to help us! She's still tied to those bastards down below, and she'll fuck us over in the end because she has to.”

“No Mark, that is not so.” Alexei sighed, “Lilith has given us her word that she will only help us until we figure out where Sara is, and then she will leave. She is already compelled to try to find the girl, and joining us will only help out everyone.”

“You trust her word?”

“Yes, Mark.” Alexei answered, sincerely, “I do.”

“As do I.” Added Irina, “And, if what Helen said was correct, she also tried to help you save Becca back then. You know that she is bound by Heavenly Law, and she is not the one that lead to Becca's death.”

I calmed down enough to realize that what everyone had said was true. It wasn't Lilith's fault for breaking into the Sprawl, and she wasn't the one that killed my secretary. I just wanted someone to blame; someone to take my anger out. And it wasn't like me. I was never one to take grudges, or blame others for things they were not responsible for. I was not the kind of person like that... I wasn't the kind of person like Sathanus.

I sat down on the curb, and looked at Lilith for a long time. I tried to read her expressions, to see some sign that would justify my actions. Contempt, maybe, for getting the best of me. Or maybe fury at me, for trying to kill her. But what I saw was just... sympathy, and sadness.

“I'm... I'm sorry.” I muttered, “I know that it's not you, Lilith. It's just been a long day.”

“I know, Mark.” She answered quietly, “I miss Becca as well. She was... special.”

“Yeah...”

“Shall we go inside?” Irina said, breaking the depressing silence.

“Good idea.” Hel answered, and she forced me on my feet, and shuffled me inside Alexei's home.

* * *

Having dinner and Alexei's place is always a treat. The food that his chefs cooked are some of the best that I've ever had, and I've been around for a very long time. We ate in peace for the first fifteen minutes, and once everyone was relatively full, we started to talk about the topic at hand. I got everyone caught up on what had happened thus far, and what Uriel told me. I told them about my new abilities, and what was expected of me.

“So...” Irina said, sipping on her cup of wine, “The first thing we should do is to find out how you can open up a stable gateway into another dimension, one that is safe for Sara to go into, correct?

“Right.” I answered.

“After that we are to locate the girl, get her to stop destroying the whole universe, and get her into that gateway.”

“Yup”

“And if we fail, then God will reset the whole universe, and none of us will be here any more.”

“Right again.”

Alexei burst into a hearty laughter, and said, “Wonderful! This will be fun!”

His wife rolled her eyes, and continued her questions, “So the first thing we should be looking for is someone who is knowledgeable in inter-dimensional magic or science. Husband, do you know anyone like that?”

“Hm...” Alexei said as he searched his memories for someone that fit that description, “There is one person... but you will not like who that is.”

“And who is this?” I inquired.

“Frankenstein.”

Wonderful... It had to have been the one person we pissed off. I doubt things will go over well if we just apologized for breaking into his home, stealing from him, and killing all of his defence forces. I'm starting to really think that God loves to screw me over. Doesn't He think He's had enough revenge with me?

“You don't think we can just ask him, eh?” I said, the sarcasm dripping off my words like the sauce from the perfectly grilled stake that I was currently eating.

“Somehow I doubt that, Mark.” Irina answers curtly.

“If I am not mistaken,” Helen interrupted, “Frankenstein only knows about Alexei, Irina and I. He is not weary about Mark or Lilith.”

“What do you mean he's not weary of me?” I asked, “I'm pretty sure that he has a million videos of me blowing his house to pieces.”

Hel just shook her head and looked at me as if I was an idiot, “Yes, he has. But if I am not mistaken, you are able to freely change your appearance.”

“Oh right.” I answered. I hadn't thought about that. I've been in the same human guise for so long that I didn't even realize that I could technically change into any form that I wanted.

Lilith finally joined in the conversation, and said, “Why don't I just charm what we need out of him?”

“That will not work.” Alexei answered, “He is more machine than man, and has always thought that the baser urges of living things to be beneath him. He has long since transcended sexual urges, and I don't think that even you could charm someone without a sex drive.”

“Then we beat it out of him?” I added.

“And how did that turn out last time?” Hel said sarcastically, “I doubt that even all of us together can subdue the man without killing him. I do not think that we can simply 'beat it out of him'.”

“So what do we do then?” I finally said, giving up on trying to figure out what to do, “Find someone else?”

“Which would be a great idea, Mark, if someone else is as qualified as he is.”

“Great...”

“Do not think so narrowly Mr. Mark Bastion.” Hel continued, “All we have to do is to befriend the nice monster.”

“And how do we do that?” I asked, stating the obvious.

“You and the nice succubus will infiltrate the upper echelons of society, where the nice Doctor is known to mingle around, and get on his good side. If things go well, you can hint at an interest in the subject of inter-dimensional magic and science, and go from there. At worst, you can befriend him and ambush him when his guard is lowered.”

“Of course!” Alexei interjected, “That is a brilliant idea! Irina and I will help introduce you to the right people, and with our recommendation, you will enter Frankenstein's circle in no time!”

“So what?” I said, “I just suck up to the big man until he's my friend?”

“That won't do.” Irina answered for her husband, “Frankenstein is notorious on his choice on acquaintances, and more so with his friends. He wants humility and worship from his followers and servants, but he wants someone as pompous and power as he is to be his friends. And they have to be wealthy as well, of course.”

“Arrogant, rich and powerful.” Lilith said, smiling, “We can do that. Or at least, I can.”

I shook my head at Lilith, and simply said, “Sounds like a plan.”

“Good!” Hel answered happily, “Now we just have to pick out a right appearance for Mr. Mark here, and start spending an obscene amount of money! It will be quite fun!”

* * *

A day, and several hundred million dollars worth of spending, later, I was now the CEO of several companies that dealt with cutting edge science research and space exploration. The hope there was that if anyone did any background checks on me, they would notice that I had an interest in the right fields that would catch Frankenstein's interests. With Alexei's help in forging documentation, anyone poking around my new identity would see me as a 45 year old man named Fredrick Bishop, who owns six companies around the world. If they dug deeper, they'd see that this Fredrick Bishop also dabbles with the magic community, and is a powerful player in Canada, and he owns several less than legal places still. Hopefully no one digs deeper than that, because then they'd find out that Fredrick Bishop isn't a real person.

Oh, I had a few dozen mansions around the country, and an army of sports cars. Hopefully with all this, I had the proper background and social status to hang out with the rich kids in town.

I looked the part too. I was now an arrogant looking rich, middle aged dick, with beautifully manicured skin and perfectly maintained hair. I was plump, and looked like I ate wonderful gourmet food everyday of my life – probably at the expensive of the poor working folk below me. My face was tanned, with only a few wrinkles showing, and even my whole image turned into the ideal image of an egoistic, rich CEO with the conscience of Hitler's evil cousin.

To finish my appearance, I was decked out in a custom made suit that costs more than what my company makes in a year, all made from materials that would give PETA a heart attack. When I looked at my new self in the mirror, I had this huge urge to punch myself in the face, just out of principal.

Lilith was besides me, looking the same as always, and she was linking arms with me. What she wore got an upgrade though. Her leathers were replaced with silk and pretty jewellery; so now she looked like a high end prostitute instead of a cheap one. Her role was to be the trophy girlfriend, to show off just how filthy rich I was, and to make everyone else envious. She played her part perfectly, no doubt because she's done this countless times before. I just hope that I end up better than all of the previous sugar daddies she's had.

“How do I look?” I asked the crowd of people in front of me. My own voice changed as well, and it was thick with douchebagginess.

“Not bad.” Alexei answered, “Exactly what we want!”

“But do change back after.” Hel added, “This current appearance is...”

“An ass hole.” Irina finished for her.

Lilith just laughed, followed by everyone around me. After I changed back to my old guise, I joined in and laughed with them.

Once Alexei calmed down enough to actually speak, he said, “Good! Then we will proceed as planned.”

On the one stroke of luck that I did chance upon, there happened to be a social gathering for the powerful and wealthy at some politician's manor in a week, and Alexei had managed to acquire some tickets for Lilith and I. I talked to the man on the phone for a while, and after assuring him that I was as much of an ass hole as he was, and equally rich, I was given the ok to attend.

The plan was to use that time to get close to the people there, and slowly make my way into Frankenstein's circle of acquaintances. Once I'm in, I'm to propose an idea about inter-dimensional travel to him, and have his take on the theory. Too bad I knew absolutely nothing about inter-dimensional travel, but that's what the lead up period was for.

And so, for the next few days, I got to sit on my ass and read about quantum physics and ritual magic. Thankfully I'm a fast learner and an even better bullshitter.