Trapped [in the scary box]

[thisducks]

So, maybe he'd messed up a little in his desire to make up with his daughter and now, he's paying for it. Everything's gone quiet in this big empty warehouse of a space, the room impossible to see into as dark as it is, and it's left him utterly alone with his thoughts. Around his limbs that are slowly going numb as time ticks on he can feel the warmth of the holy steel, faintly echoing the throb of his heart, making a prisoner of his body while the silence does the same to his mind. The latter, for someone like him, is infinitely worse.

It leaves him there to feel like an utter fool, of course it does, and worse that not only does Vox know the ugly truth of his punishment, but so does everyone. The sinners that he only kept in any kind of line through that great deception now can make everything just that much worse. How is he supposed to protect Charlie from their filth now when they know not only can he do nothing for her, there's damn little he can do for himself?

Every time he tries to help the ones he loves, he just makes it... worse. Charlie screaming at him, anger and tears in her eyes, it just keeps playing on repeat in his mind, only as the night goes on to be replaced by her mother. Just how angry will Charlie be with him when she finds out he's gotten himself stuck like this? The abuse his own mind forces upon him drags him further and further down that spiral until his head sags, body slumping as much as it's able in his imprisonment.

Comments

[thisducks]

The curve of the glass and the light playing through it make for a dizzying multiplication of Vox's screen, making Lucifer blink several times as he tries to bring them all back into focus but it fails each time. He's only half-listening to Vox's rambling, but he doesn't need the exact details to know what he's saying when the tone makes it clear. There's an irony that nothing Vox could ever possibly say to him is going to be more insulting or punishing than what he has already said to himself for thousands of years.

The final line makes Lucifer try to focus again, fail again, before he shakes his head. "The only lie is what all of you choose to do with it." The greatest irony of them all, the greatest insult to everything that he and really all of humanity has had to suffer, lies in the ancient allegory of the long spoons - two rooms full of people with spoons too long to feed themselves and a pot of stew in each. In one, they starve and in the other, they are happy and full. In the latter, they learned to not be selfish and feed each other. Hell, Heaven.

Humanity chooses to do the terrible things it does and thus, punishes itself.

But those thoughts he's had in many late, bitter nights are driven from his head when searing pain starts at his hands and zigzags through his body in a white rush, causing his every muscle to lock up. His teeth grit together, unable to even part to make a sound with his jaw muscles clenched. What the hell is this...?! No tickles here but just the crushing, cramping pain that goes through his entire body. Even if it relents for seconds, his body continues to twitch as the electricity sporadically dissipates.

[tvdemon]

Fuck, that was satisfying. Vox made sure to take in every aspect of it: the sight of Lucifer's agonized face, the cracking sounds, the distinct smell of ozone in the air, the sterile blue glow of electricity dancing along the restraints... Just a beautiful symphony of what would be lethal, were a mere mortal exposed to it. Vox would know.

He's caused harm to fellow Sinners numerous times and always kind of taken delight in it, but this? Putting the Lucifer Morningstar through agony? That's on a whole other level. It really solidifies the notion that nobody can stop him. Sure, Lucifer couldn't have fought back even if he were free, but there isn't even an option for self defense at this point. The King of Hell is entirely at his mercy. Soon, every single pitiful angel in Heaven will be too.

He gives Lucifer a brief moment to regain his composure before speaking, just to be sure he's heard. "How's that feel? Shitty, right? But not gonna lie, from this side of things... Kinda looks like art. A glorious masterpiece that I could probably package and sell to all of Hell. It'd be a hot item! Just about everybody hates your guts right now!"

[thisducks]

If he were free, he'd just vanish! Fighting back doesn't necessarily mean optionless completely. Right now though, the steel wrapped around him is enough to keep him trapped as he hangs there in his restraints, panting slightly with narrowed eyes and bared teeth. It isn't enough to shut his mouth though, not wanting to give Vox the win. "And here I thought your partner in crime was the one who sold porn, but I guess you get off on the kinds of kinks he doesn't even bother with. Not surprised, really."

Is he supposed to taste something metallic in his mouth? He knows the taste of his own blood far too well, but this is something else entirely. Must have something to do with the electricity.

"What, is that supposed to upset me? Oh no no no, sad little sinner. Been hated for all of human history as it is, so basically, nothing's changed." With his last two words going completely flat, hiding down that old bitterness that comes with this particular topic.

[tvdemon]

The attempted kinkshame just bounces off Vox, like rubber being thrown at more rubber. Val actually does bother with electrocution and tasering in his porn sometimes, it's a pretty lucrative niche. Val also enjoys it when Vox gives him a few zaps mid-fuck, so suffice it to say, there is no shame here. Val gets off on it, Vox gets off on it, everybody wins. Everybody except Lucifer, anyway, but Vox will keep it in his pants right now. Being surrounded by so much porn on a daily basis desensitizes a guy to casual stimuli.

He leaves the cables where they are for now, ready to send another dose Lucifer's way if he so pleases. Maybe he will, maybe he won't. Not even he knows, and the suspense is what makes it more fun for him. His head cocks itself sideways on a light angle again, gaze still taking in all the little details of Lucifer's physique that imply pain.

"Oh wow, it's cute you'd think it's about you. I was just thinking about all the money I'd make! And the admiration!" He laughs again, placing a clawed hand flat against the containment. It's like holding onto a delicate treasure. "You're just a tool made to get me to my rightful place. Once I take over Heaven, you'll finally have served a good use."

[thisducks]

Ugh. Sinners. Every time he thinks he's discovered how low they can go, they find another way to go even lower. It just reaffirms most of his feelings about them, setting in a harsh line against the work Charlie has put in to try and show him that some sinners are better than that. He knows, he knows now at least, that there are exceptions. A few. A very, very small few. The exception just seems to prove the rule however when he's faced with a situation and a sinner like this.

With a couple of slow smacks of his tongue against the roof of his mouth, that disgusting taste is starting to fade. It doesn't get rid of the faint traces of ache still lingering around in his muscles, but both things are overshadowed by the pain of having to listen to this guy. "You'd know all about what being a tool is, after all. You think they'll just bow down to you as soon as you step in the gates? Never mind the fact you don't even have a way out of here to get up there. What, think you'll spew out enough hot air to float on up out of Hell? That'll be fun to watch you try."

[tvdemon]

Vox laughs again; a hearty, maniacal guffaw. Lucifer's barking is so delightfully futile. So pointless. No matter how many quips are sent his way, it won't change the fact that Vox is in control. It won't change that Lucifer is in chains. In fact, nothing will get that to change, because Vox insists on keeping it this way.

The funniest part is that Lucifer is an integral part of the plan for Vox to get up to Heaven. Sinners can absolutely set foot on that sort of holy soil. All it takes is for all of Heaven to allow it and make that special exception. Before long, angels and demons will be one and the same; all people who will have to turn their gazes upwards to see Vox.

"Oh, I'm sure once I apply enough pressure," he begins, and the last word is just about spat out in a threatening tone of voice, "they'll send for me personally. They'll have no choice. Either they let me into Heaven, or I'll make sure there is no more Heaven."

[thisducks]

"...idiot." Lucifer knows how foolish this plan is because Vox has no concept of what lies above. There is still that army of exorcists waiting that had come every Extermination. No angel on high has turned their power down on Hell since Charlie fought back, but if it means defending Heaven itself, he has no doubt they would do what is necessary. Does Vox truly believe their lack of retort is a lack of ability? Likely.

So he decides to apply pressure back, despite the fact he's getting suuuuuuper tired of this conversation already. "Uh huh. You have fun with that pipe dream of yours. There's nothing you could do that'll ever convince them to let a piece of shit like you through those gates, never mind your idea that you'll somehow get rid of it."

Woo boy. He knew Vox had always been a talker with a lot of bullshit coming out of his mouth, but this just solidifies all the reasons he hadn't been listening to him. There were only a few of the Overlords even worth having any kind of conversation with - the few semi-sane ones - and these three aren't them. "If you're done, I'd like to get back to my nap, thanks."

[tvdemon]

Vox would consider this conversation over and done with, but Lucifer's desire to have it end is precisely why he won't let it. He can't reward bad behavior, oh no. In fact, he rather thinks Lucifer should beg and grovel, and admit defeat. That's a much better note to close the conversation on.

He takes a step back from the containment again, the attached cables stretching out a bit more over the larger distance. "Oh, no, not quite done yet, I'm afraid. Far from it. You have an attitude problem, it seems. And there's only one way to rectify that," he proclaims, tilting his head on a light angle.

And then it begins again. The sharp currents, sent through the cables into Lucifer's chains. Longer, this time. More voltage. The King of Hell had already proclaimed that Vox can't kill him, which means there's no danger limit to keep in mind when it comes to torture.

[thisducks]

There's that moment when it tickles, a tingle that passes through him as if judging the path from his hands to his feet before striking properly. After that, it's all consuming. Unable to move or fight back properly, not even defensively, there is nothing he can do but be forced to take every brutal inch of the electricity driving thousands of blades into his muscles. The power follows his nerves like guiding paths to the places he would want it to go least. It drives the breath from his lungs as it forces those muscles to contract and hold so he doesn't even have the mental release of screaming.

And it doesn't relent.

No, it leaves him struggling to even find a thought in the flood of pain that seems to steal every notion that begins to form in his head and slash it to pieces just like it's doing to the rest of his body. Yet he knows on a level as deep as instinct he can't give in because that gives this sinner victory and once he loses, he'll struggle to regain any ground at all. Eventually, someone will realize he's gone. He has to believe that. Charlie might be angry with him, but she still loves him.

Not that... anyone would have noticed if he had disappeared in most of the last seven years.

No! Whatever game Vox is playing at with all of this, for Charlie's sake, he fights back. Enough to slowly crack open an eye and stare directly at Vox, even if he can't do another damn thing.

[tvdemon]

There is no swift release this time. Vox waits it out, feeling the rapid movement of the currents as they flow. It's the sort of sensation no mortal could ever hope to grasp, but being a demon comes with senses beyond humanity's scope. It's cathartic, the way electricity just goes whenever it wants and takes the quickest route to get there, mowing down most obstacles with ease. Poetic, even. And opportunities to do this sort of thing come rare, because it's not as if Vox can unleash power surges like these without causing collateral damage. The damage is the point, this time.

In that moment, everything that comes into contact with the currents becomes part of a grander whole, Lucifer's frozen muscles included.

Good times have to end sometime, though. So after about half a minute of that, Vox allows the flow to peter out. There's a few more stragglers- some crackles that disturb the air afterwards, but nothing too major. Vox remains where he is, grinning, waiting to see what Lucifer will say or try to do now once he's recovered. It's like watching a particularly interesting piece of media on TV.

[thisducks]

There's a distinct level of feeling utterly violated, knowing that the electricity is a part of Vox's power and it was running through his body, touching every inch of him in ways that no one but a very select few had ever been allowed. It feels as if it lasts infinitely longer than it actually does, making him lose track of time completely until even when it finally ends, his mind doesn't catch up immediately. No, all of it lingers even after Vox stops his assault. It crackles in his muscles, it short circuits his thoughts, it steals the breath from his lungs.

In the aftermath, it leaves Lucifer hanging there in his cuffs, putting his entire body weight on his wrists as his knees refuse to support him. Little twitches happen in random places - an eye, his bicep, his back - again and again. Finally it feels like he can pull in a breath, though it has a huge weight upon his chest that keeps him from taking a full lungful and instead gives him only enough space to pant like an exhausted dog.

His head hangs, unable to pull it up even though he knows the sinner is still watching him. His first proper thought isn't about Vox and it isn't even about himself, just the ugly repeating notion that Charlie is going to be angry at him for messing things up even further.

[tvdemon]

Amazing. Vox had half expected someone on Lucifer's level to recover faster than this. Fallen or not, the man's still a high-ranking angel. But no, even someone this majestic caves to Vox's inherent power. He really is the strongest Sinner demon in Hell, isn't he? Maybe even the strongest demon, period. Other rings and their rulers be damned. Heaven is going to have to beg for his mercy, and if they're lucky, maybe he'll give it to them.

Content, his cables detach from atop the containment and retreat into his back once more. They can stay there for now. He walks right up to the glass again, pressing a hand against it. Now Lucifer's panting, useless form can be regarded up close, albeit somewhat distorted by the rounding of the glass.

"Do you get it yet? This whole thing is a conduit," he says, because he's built up quite enough suspense by now. He might as well just let Lucifer know what the plan is, so he can despair over that too. "Power travels quite nicely in there. So when the time is right... I'll take some of yours and aim it outward. Just imagine how many angels will fall when Heaven's hit with a taste of its own medicine."

[thisducks]

None of them know or understand. The crown that comes with chains... so much of his power held back not just because Heaven knew what he would do to any sinner, but in order to protect those who remained here who didn't deserve any form of punishment. Chains upon chains, crafted in golden blood, so much of it his own. If he draws on it to protect himself-

-his head jerks up despite the protest of muscles, unable to keep the look of horror that begins to crawl up his face and sink down into his bowels. Take some of his power- anything the sinners would have been able to do wouldn't have touched an angel, but his own-?!

He looks upwards at the device he's been caught in, though he can't tell much of anything from inside of the damned thing. Could this really do what Vox is saying? Then again, how in the hell did Vox figure out just what angelic steel could be fully capable of? Killing an angel is one thing, but to be able to capture, hold, and steal...?

Lucifer grits his teeth as a muscle violently contracts in his neck with a hint of leftover power, but he forces himself to look back to Vox. "I have no idea what you're messing with. You might think you do, but you don't, and it's going to come back to bite you harder than you've ever dreamed."

[tvdemon]

"Oh, I think I have a pretty good idea, actually."

Vox had been paying extra close attention during the big battle against the exorcists and their leader. He's even watched a lot of it on repeat. Adam in particular caught his interest, not just because of how he kicked Alastor's ass (boy did he rewatch that bit a lot though), but because of the showdown against Lucifer. There was an insane amount of raw strength on display there. Adam blasted Pentious's entire blimp into oblivion and acted like it was only a casual, quick little move. Like lifting a pinkie finger. Archangels and those ranked above them... Vox is sure they could decimate all of Hell in a matter of seconds, if they so wished.

He won't let them. He'll take control of that decimation and turn it right back around towards Heaven.

"But hey, you should be happy," he continues, tapping the sharpened ends of his fingers against the glass again. "You get to play a real important part in freeing your people from Heaven's judgment. Once I take over both realms, I'll make sure to be a much more benevolent god than that fucker upstairs ever was."

... Well. Maybe. Probably. It depends how he feels. Anyone who crosses him gets to suffer forever, of course. But those who play by the rules? He'll get them nice things. Why not?

[thisducks]

Lucifer doesn't want to think about what Vox probably jerked off to, watching that shit on repeat.

That sound is infinitely louder inside of the containment glass, as if designed just to torture the one inside more than it already does. Really, more like the inside curve of the glass amplifies it, but either way, same end result that makes the growing tension headache threatening at Lucifer's temples give tiny spikes of pain. It twitches another muscle by his eye before he snorts, swallowing down the bitterness of metal from his tongue.

"When you're proven wrong, and I know you will be, I'm going to enjoy watching every second of your fall. People won't just stand by and let you do any of this, never mind even get another step further on this stupid plan of yours." No matter what, even if Vox really can manage to do as he threatened and take energy from him, he knows that both Hell and Heaven will have those who stand up against him. Even the tiniest mouse, backed into the corner by a cat ten times its size, will fight back.

Within Charlie lies a strength she doesn't even understand, one that can rise hand in hand with her heart that gathered so many to defend the hotel. Even if she's angry with him, he still believes in her.

[tvdemon]

C'mon Lucifer, give him some credit. He just had feral sex with Valentino while the mental image was still burned into his mind. He's not that much of a loser.

A loud snorting sound escapes Vox. The sort of sound that can't slip out in any genuine way, since he doesn't have a nose. No, he actively has to mimic it. By now, that's second nature to him, along with all other facsimiles of human behavior his body can't quite accomplish through natural feats.

"You know, Alastor has been saying that kinda shit for days already. And so far? It hasn't done a fucking thing to slow down my roll. Makes me wonder when you snowflake naysayers will finally admit that I've won. Maaaybe... When I'm crushing some angel skulls beneath my heel?"

He does expect Heaven might try something. He also knows that if they do, he'll be able to fire back. It'll be justifiable selfdefense at that point, and the people will see it that way too. So really, he welcomes anyone to try coming at him.

[thisducks]

That isn't much better. Except for Val, maybe.

Vox really is excellent at faking it, isn't he? Hopefully also not for Val as well. Just like he has to fake treating his fellow Vees as actual equal partners in their rise to power.

Fuck, it's gotten to the point I'm agreeing with HIM of all people? The thought crosses his mind and makes his nose wrinkle up before he snorts in return. "Because I've seen this kind of shit before, boobtube. You really think you're the first sinner to try and pull off some kind of big flashy uprising against something or other? Not even close. Even humans have tried it, from what I've heard." Well, mostly read, but Vox doesn't need to know that.

When he tries to flex his hands in their metallic prisons, he realizes he can't feel them at all anymore, not even sure if they obey his command to open up. Somehow... he has to get out of here.

Unless no one knows he's gone. No one cares he's gone. Why would they care? He's messed up so much with Charlie and even his fellow Sins, not one of them would think twice about him. Nor... should they, really.

[tvdemon]

The protest really means nothing to Vox. What does he care whether other Sinners or humans have tried it before? Those people weren't him, and he doubts any of them had a secret weapon like Vox's own up their sleeve. The difference between those losers and him is that he'll actually pull it off, so it's wasted effort to even talk to him about this.

"Yeah, uhuh. Okay. I'll log that one away," he says in the most impassive tone a person could ever muster. It seems like Lucifer is still not getting it. Still thinking there's some way out of this predicament. Vox considers the issue for a second, then decides that maybe the best course of action is to let Lucifer get just a whiff of freedom, only to snatch it away again. Lift his head up out of the water for a gasp of air, then hold him back under.

His would-be lips press together, but that doesn't stop the corners of his mouth from curling upwards into a mean grin. He steps away from the containment, to the nearest control panel, where his hand lingers near a button. "You know what? I'm feeling generous. So how abooout we discuss this without any of that pesky glass in the way?"

His palm smacks down and the button is hit. Instantly, the glass barrier is raised upward, out of the way. The very top and bottom of the containment remain, leaving Lucifer's feet and hands firmly restrained by the mixture of angelic steel and cables, ready to conduct the angel's power. The air within the rest of the room isn't all that much fresher than inside the dome, though. It reeks of ozone from the earlier electrocution, and that very distinct staticy tang that comes from one too many electronic devices.

[thisducks]

Almost animal like, Lucifer tenses at first when the glass suddenly slides up and away, leaving nothing between him and Vox. The remaining pain vanishes under the brief moment of adrenaline, the action of instincts that shouldn't be a part of a creature that cannot die and really, should never have known pain. His Fall taught his body, mind, and soul all about pain and while Vox's electricity hurts in a unique way, it can't touch the depth of pain the Fall had caused within him. Doesn't mean he wants to experience any of that pain - Fall or being fried - again.

Somehow, he doubts he's going to get that pleasure. Vox wouldn't be doing this if he doesn't mean to fuck with him, he's sure of it, but there's frustratingly little he can do. With the glass gone, he can faintly hear the hum that just barely registers on the range of hearing, the combined sound of many devices working ceaselessly, and one of them is standing in front of him.

"Yep, that sure changed the scenery." The air feels even thicker as it comes up around him, a stench different than his own sweat and the faint traces of apple that cling to him endlessly. Still, he watches Vox closely, trying to figure out what the sinner's planning.

[tvdemon]

Vox doesn't make any real moves right away. He steps right up to Lucifer, leaving about five feet between them, then begins to slowly circle around him. His hands are folded behind his back as he walks, gaze sweeping up and down the fallen angel's restrained body. He chuckles. It may look more sinister than it actually is for now, since the assessment Vox finally voices is: "Wow, I keep forgetting how short you are. Crazy."

In fact, he's pretty sure Val could accidentally step on Lucifer. A hilarious mental image, and maybe something to try out some day. At some point, Vox will get bored with Lucifer and then Val can have him as a toy. Not just yet, though. For now, the king of Hell is all his.

He keeps walking until he's directly behind Lucifer, then comes to a full stop. Two strides is all it takes to close the distance, and his hand moves up to the angel's hat. Is that snake (halo...?) sentient enough to try and fight back, or can Vox snatch the hat away without any trouble? Let's find out.

Vox learning from the bestest boy

[thisducks]

The way Vox moves reminds him of something, he realizes all at once, tracking the sinner as he passes around out of his field of vision, picking him back up as soon as he's back in the corner of his eye. He's prowling like a shark, circling its prey with the same cold eyes. It's unnerving and that's what he imagines that's exactly what Vox is going for.

Then the sinner goes for a fucking short insult. It completely kills the mood entirely and just makes Lucifer roll his eyes, staring forward again.

Followed by two quick steps that makes Lucifer tense up sharply, unable to see what Vox is going for and his imagination supplying plenty of possibilities that use claws or electricity once again, but the asshole manages to catch him completely off guard by going for his hat of all things. There's a flare of crimson in his eyes as he grits his teeth, body briefly pulling at the shackles as the hat parts from his head. If the snake is alive, it doesn't seem to react-

-but the hat itself certainly does. "Hey!" Separated from Lucifer, it disappears within a few seconds, cut off from his will and power. It's a part of him as much as a limb, born from the time of his creation. There's a reason it remains with him regardless of the form he takes on.

Still, he tries to twist and look back at Vox, teeth still gritting in anger. "What was that for??"

[tvdemon]

Vox couldn't not go for a short insult. The myth of height being important lives within him, as many other pointless of prejudices do. Besides, he thinks he's funny.

He really just kinda wanted to hold the hat. See what sort of fabric it's made of, and whether the thing tries (and fails) to make Lucifer look taller than he really is. Like platform shoes, but for the head. Toss it aside, maybe step on it... The possibilities are endless. He wasn't expecting much to happen, which is why the sudden disappearance of the object catches him by surprise. He stares down at his empty hand, then further down towards the floor. He looks back up to verify whether the hat reappeared on Lucifer's head, but it didn't do that either. It's just... gone. What the fuck-

The sequence of events was so absurd, an amused chortle escapes him. Now Lucifer is left hatless and there's really no way to undo that. It's funny.

"Ha! That was a neat little magic trick! You really are a fucking circus clown, aren't you?" he asks, smirking. Either way, now that the hat is gone, Vox is free to set a hand down on Lucifer's head. His long, claw-like fingers dig their way into fluffy blond hair to feel the scalp below.

[thisducks]

In many ways, the myth of the importance of height was a prejudice even angels carried. How many times had Emily been looked down upon compared to Sera? And then there had been him as the smallest of all the high angels despite the immense power he held and the importance of his gifts. Now, it's just a cruel irony that leaves the King of Hell smaller than even the vast majority of sinners!

Vox only gets that brief moment of curiosity fulfilled - the hat is significantly lighter than it looks, almost impossibly so. Beneath his fingers, the material of the brim is very strong and there's the brief feeling of something like silk yet thicker. Then gone, just like that, as if it's never been.

Lucifer just looks flat, maybe ever so faintly annoyed. He knows where the hat has gone, though if he had to actually explain it to someone they'd be there for hours. That faint annoyance becomes far more severe when those claws come through his hair, making the immediate need to pull his head back surge up. Only the knowledge that likely as soon as he tried, Vox would tighten his fingers and he'd end up with his hair being pulled in a way that definitely isn't in the fun way, keeps him from jerking back as much as his constraints will let him. The hair tangling around the electric blue claws is silken soft, thicker than it looks, dense.

"Only see one clown here, and I'm looking at him." While his mind actually thinks of Mammon, the only real clown in his circus, and oh how the Sin thought it hilarious because it hid the real truth of what he is beneath his 'fun' exterior. The reason many people thought of clowns as frightening, rather than funny... he knows the pain is coming, but it'd come whether he opened his smart mouth or not.

[tvdemon]

Fuck that's nice hair. It's hard to find anyone else in Hell who has anything like it. Most Sinners either have no hair or something not quite natural, like Velvette does. Or it's matted and disgusting, like they're an animal that just got into a bloodied fight. Something soft and divine is unnatural in a place like this. Vox wonders whether all angels share this trait. He'll find out soon enough. Maybe he'll shave a few angels, just for fun.

Vox's claw strokes downward, from the front of Lucifer's head towards the back, sharp tips of his fingers running along the scalp quite purposely. Not enough pressure to draw blood, because that'd mess up that nice hair of his, but definitely enough to be felt. Meanwhile, his other hand lands on Lucifer's shoulder. Vox is still standing behind the man, which makes it all too easy for him to stand even closer and press himself up against Lucifer's back.

"What is that smell?" he asks, his screen close to the angel's ear. "I know it, I just can't place it."

It's something he hasn't smelled for decades. Not in its true form, anyway. Replicated in its Hell form, sure, but not genuine. It's nostalgic. Smooth. Fruit comes to mind. (It's apple.)

[thisducks]

The drag of claw tips against his sensitive scalp could almost be something sensual in another time and place. Hell, he'd always loved Lilith doing it to him with her nails across his scalp, down his back, along his thighs... here, it just makes his nose wrinkle up in disgust. The last thing he wants is to equate anything of Lilith's doing with what this disgusting sinner is-

-his eyes flash wide, lips fully retracting back over his teeth into a silent snarl as Vox leans into him. From this close, just as Vox is doing to him, he is forced to pick up on the alien combination of scents that are a part of Vox's being - plastic, heat, copper, and things he can't quite put into name that have to compete with some kind of chemical cologne that given the situation all make him want to gag. None of that is helped by the ozone still lingering in the air.

What's all the worse is he knows precisely what Vox is asking about because Lilith had always told him how she loved his scent, before and after their Fall. That nothing in Hell smelled quite like him and that was how she preferred it.

...wait.

How in the hell is Vox smelling anything at all??

"You don't have a nose." Spoken so bluntly on the back of the realization that it actually almost makes him laugh despite the predicament he's in. "How do you smell anything at all? Do you just have smell receptors on that screen or something??"