Joshua sat up from his bed, yawning deeply. It was dark, late into the night. He rubbed his eyes a bit before getting up. He walked out into the main room of their hideout, looking around. His friends had gone home, but a new weight on his back reminded him that one of them had permission to still be there.

"Thought you could sneak away?" Katie squeezed Josh from behind. "Not happening. Morning. We going to go recruit more souls for the cause?"

He blushed softly, rubbing behind his head with a big grin. "Nope." He reached up to pat her paws. "We're going to get some help."

She cocked her head curiously. "Who's gonna help us with the angel issue? Other than you know, the people you've been turning into your own little army."

"I heard about another Overlord in town. She sounds pretty cool. Her name's Charlie. I wanted to ask her for help."

Katie laughed nervously. "Heard, or heard of? Cause we don't know much about the person, do we?"

"Nope, except she's not giving up either, and she's trying to set up her own resistance." He grabbed a card sitting on the front table. "Another card. I'm trying for a better hand. I'm gonna have to play what I have, but nothing saying I can't pad it a bit before we get to that. Once we're throwing down, it's a bit late."

"I'll follow you wherever you want to go, boyfriend." She nipped at his ear with an eager grin. "You just tell me who needs their asses kicked, and I'm there. Just, take this seriously."

Josh turned to her to press his nose to hers. "We're not fighting her. Rumors put her as a pretty nice person, almost criminally, according to the random jerks around here. So, please. Don't fight her."

"I'm not gonna fight unless you say so." She offered him a salute. "Come on. Where is this person?"

Together, they left the apartment and wove through the streets of hell. Charlie's hotel wasn't too hard to find, with a big sign and a unique look that stood out from the buildings around it. It was clear that a lot of work was being done to clean up the place. The sign up at the top of the building announced, "Hazbin Hotel" in lights.

Joshua stared up at the building's exterior. "Nice place. Looks like they're putting a lot of work in. Can't wait to see how it looks inside."

They headed to the main lobby, which had an old-timey look with fancy wallpaper and red carpeting everywhere.

"Hm." The voice was neither Joshua or Katie. Josh looked around and saw he was being watched from behind a bar. He was part cat, with wings, and he were giving Josh quite the look. "I don't believe we've been introduced."

He waved the two closer. "Saddle up." He tapped the bar he worked at. "And you can tell me why you're here. We don't get too many new faces too often. Especially not one looking like you." His eyes were on Joshua.

Joshua made sure his girlfriend was right behind him as he approached. He sat at one of the stools. "Looking like me? Is that a problem?"

"No, I think it's adorable." The bartender started putting something together. "And that's a problem. Overlords that look cute are usually twice as bad as the ones that just look scary at a glance. They're hiding something."

"Does he look like he's hiding anything?" Katie sat next to Josh with a grin. "He isn't really that kind of person."

The bartender grunted with a faint smile. "So, what brings you two by? Don't see many imps on this level of hell often."

Joshua glanced away from the bartender to look around the place. It was quiet. He turned his attention back and leaned in to whisper, "I'm looking for Charlie. I wanted to talk to her, if I can. It sounded like she's planning something against the purge?"

His brows went up together. "She might be. What do you plan to do about it?" He hiked a thumb at himself. "Name's Husk, by the way. Just so you have something to use."

Joshua smiled awkwardly, extending a paw. "I'm Joshua. And this is Katie."

Katie reached out to shake Husk's hand. "Yeah. So, uh, we want to help with whatever she's up to. Josh here is gathering more souls so he can fight, to protect them. Idiot plans to take the fight as personally as possible."

Husk let out a snort, but Joshua kept smiling, his gaze fixed on Husk. "I am serious about helping, I just don't know much about how to get involved."

"You and me both," Husk muttered. "But my answer's being given to me, like it or not." He slid a drink towards Josh, and a basic beer for Katie. "You know, being an overlord doesn't mean you'll always win. You could die, or worse."

"Hey, don't get in my boyfriend's face like that!" Katie leaned closer to Husk. "I've seen him fight. He knows what he's doing."

Josh rubbed an arm nervously. "I know I could, but sitting back and doing nothing? Just letting my friends get hurt? I don't want to do that either, so, um, gonna fight." He clenched a fist, fire burning around it in readiness for that battle.

"Huh. Maybe you're not so bad after all." Husk shrugged casually. "I'll get Charlie over here, then. She'll probably be excited to hear about someone else getting involved." He came around the bar and started deeper into the hotel. "Hang out, enjoy your drinks. On me today."

Katie let out a cheer, slapping her tail against the stool with glee. "Now that's what I'm talking about! See, people around here respect you."

"Because of the souls in me." Joshua huffed softly. "You know, I feel weird when I say this, but I think I'm starting to get used to them. It's not a bad thing anymore." He help up a hand, flames still burning around it. "I can see their faces, all hoping I can fix this and keep them all safe."

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

Katie punched him gently on the shoulder. "Don't go getting soft now." She waved a finger in his face. "They're here, but don't feel bad for them. They're helping you. This is a team effort." She waved her fists in a mock fight. "We're all in it, and now you're trying to get someone else involved."

The slender owner of the hotel, Charlie, approached with a guarded smile. She looked at the two of them, giving both a once-over. Her gaze lingered on Joshua longer, then she returned to Katie. She smiled warmly at both as she extended a hand. "Welcome! I don't suppose you're interested in being reformed, are you?"

Katie squinted at the very idea. "I was born down here. There ain't nothing to be reformed." She waved at Josh. "And this cream pie never deserved it in the first place."

Charlie grinned, revealing sharp white teeth behind her smile. "Oh? Not many make that claim, and mean it, around here." She looked at Joshua more pointedly. "I was told you're an overlord, but you have nothing to reform?"

Joshua rubbed behind his head awkwardly. "The first set of souls I got entirely by accident. The ones after that, to protect them. I plan to fight the angels. And if you are too, I want us to join up. Two overlords are better than one, right?"

Charlie's eyes widened at the prospect of Joshua being serious. "Wow, well, that's a surprise. Most of the others I asked about that were less eager. Still, hello!" She took Joshua's burning hand and shook it eagerly between her own. "It's nice to meet someone thinking about this problem. We can't let it happen anymore."

Joshua returned the handshake with a grin. "That's exactly my point." He reached up to pat Charlie on the shoulder. "Now, we can't do much yet. We'll be facing down actual angels. I've learned how to use my souls to attack, and defend, but I'm still one person against a whole horde of angels. I figured it might be time to get help."

Charlie considered Joshua's words. "Interesting. Yes. We'll have to discuss things in depth. This is great!" She gestured to the side. "We have rooms. If you're interested, stay here until the fighting starts."

Josh held up his hands wardingly. "Thanks for the offer, but I already have a room, and I want to stick close to my friends. I fought some angels once, uh, and beat them up real good."

Charlie shook her head. "They'll get better."

Josh looked surprised. "I thought I beat them up really really good. Like, um, dead good."

Charlie leaned in with a nervous laugh. "If you don't kill an angel with angelic steel, they will come back. Goes for sinners too, actually. They will be wielding it. I don't suppose you have any?" His expression was answer enough for that. "Well, we can show you sometime."

Josh blinked. "Oh, wow, I did not know that. I'm glad you told me." He held out his hand again, which Charlie took eagerly. "I made the right call, coming here."

Katie snickered gently. "Don't get too big of a head. So, where do we get some of this steel? You got some?"

"Not yet!" Charlie shook her head. "We'll get it though." She waved the pair along. "Come on, there are rooms we can sit at and just talk about what we want to do."

They headed deeper into the hotel, just to run into a small one-eyed maid with a huge smile. That eye was on Joshua. "You gonna punch something with that?" she asked, sounding all too eager for the idea. "That sounds fun! I've never seen fire like yours!"

"Thanks?" Josh looked confused, but she was already scampering away. He glanced back to Charlie. "Was that your daughter?"

"Nope, that was Niffty!" Charlie laughed tensely. "She has peculiar tastes, but she just gave you a stamp of approval." She led them into a side room and settled at a table. There were only two other seats. "Katie, do you want a room to yourself? Maybe a place to relax while we work out details?"

Katie leaned in, eyes narrowing. "Hey, he's my boy. I'm not leaving. This is our fight, both of ours." She crossed her arms as if challenging Charlie to try getting rid of her.

Charlie looked surprised a moment. "Huh. Imps are usually more eager to get away from boring things. You two must be close."

Katie grinned. "Bound by the hips, I think the saying goes? Now, you were saying?"

***

The sun was up when Joshua and Katie left the hotel. They'd been there a while. Charlie was friendly, and so excited to meet someone else who wasn't content to just let things go on the way they always did. Ultimately, they didn't merge their forces, but both sides agreed they liked the look of the other, and to help as they could. Joshua's spirits were higher than ever.

Katie grinned at him. "Feeling good about that?"

"I feel like I can take on angels and win. If we all fight together, we can stop this from happening." He dug into a pocket and pulled out a slender length of silverish metal. "And I have a shiv that works on angels. That's progress."

Katie bounced in place, clapping her hands together. "This is great! And you've been practicing with the souls inside you. I think this might actually work." She leaned into him, rubbing her cheek against his. "Let's get through this and win so we can spend more time just doing sappy love stuff and less preparing for war stuff. I am really excited about the idea."

Joshua laughed softly. "Yeah, me too. We're going to be okay. All of us."

As Joshua and Katie walked down the streets, they were surprised to find a small group waiting for them, staring with wide eyes. One of the group, looking human if not for their oversized arms that made for crazy gestures as he talked, "Are you the angel fighter?"

Joshua looked confused. "Angel fighter?"

Katie grinned. "He is! You wanna join him? He's always looking for more people who are willing to make sure they have a safe place in hell." She gestured, waving over Joshua. "The more souls he has, the more of a fight he can put up, for the rest of you sinners."

Joshua gave a thumbs up. "If you want somewhere safe, I'll offer it. Just give me your soul, and—"

A hand came out of the crowd and grabbed Joshua's shoulder. "Can you really keep us safe?" An older man was staring at Joshua with wide eyes, a slight quiver in his lip. He looked around, then whispered. "The angels aren't going to find us if we join you, are they?"

Josh took a harsh breath at that. "The angels are going to find you even if you don't join me. They're coming, and they're angry. They plan to slice a bloody, god, path through as many of us as they put their eyes on." He held out his hand, and it burst into flames around his fingers and palm. "But, you've heard about my fight with the angels, right? Well, this time it's going to be different. I know how to fight them." He flipped out the angelic steel shiv. "I know how to finish them. I won't let them get past me."

The man looked up, staring into Joshua's eyes. A moment later, he was holding out a soul to the otter.

Joshua smiled. "Thank you for giving me your trust, and your soul. When the fight's over, you can come take it back." He accepted the soul, making him shudder faintly. "It always feels so weird. But, thank you." He bowed politely.

Katie clapped loudly. "Anyone else?" The crowd parted, and she threw her arms out in grandiose beckons. "Once those angels are here, it'll be a little late."

Joshua glanced over his shoulder at her. "Don't get their hopes up too much, or I'm going to have a hard time living up to them."

"I don't plan on that." A new voice, deep and rasping. The crowd parted to show a large, serpentine demon, his body covered in spines and with an oversized jaw and a wide mouth. He flicked a forked tongue. "Nice little scheme you have going on here."