Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Stone slammed the door to his apartment angrily and whirled away. God! He couldn’t fucking stand Jake and his stupid fucking attitude. Jake was the one who broke up with him, and he had the gall to say they should get back together? No fucking way! And not just once either mind you. He had texted Stone every goddamn day since the breakup, and the lack of boundaries was really starting to grate on his nerves. 

He paced his apartment’s kitchen, ignoring the frantic knocks on his door and Jake’s calls of “Aban! I know you’re in there! Open the door so we can talk! Come on babe! I know you’re in there! Aban open the door!” He shoved his hands over his ears and continued pacing. How could he keep Jake from bugging him? The fucker knew where he lived, and somehow found his new phone number and he didn’t have the money to move or the patience to change his number again. What would it take to keep the fucker away? What did Jake hate? 

Of course, the answer to that question was right in front of him. He had been doing a tarot reading when Jake had arrived - he hadn’t done one in a while - not since before actually. Jake never liked his “creepy satanist shit” and honestly Stone had agreed way too easily to “cut it out” in retrospect. Actually, in retrospect there was a lot of shit he’d agreed to way too easily. But whatever. What’s done was done and he wasn’t getting back with the fucker so it didn’t really matter anyway. He tried to tune out Jake outside and get back into the zone he was in before the disturbance, but it wasn’t working. He needed something to keep Jake away from the apartment. Like. Now. Okay. Plan. So he knew Jake hated anything witchy, satanic, or occult. Cool. What was the most blatantly ungodly thing he could do? He’d already tried turning the dial on his self expression way up - it had come naturally after the breakup actually and it was ridiculously freeing, but Jake kept on pushing anyway. “I know it’s just a phase babe” and “You’re just doing this to spite me babe, I know this isn’t who you really are.” Fuck that bullshit. No. If he wanted Jake to stay away he couldn’t just take up his own space: He had to push the shit into Jakes space too. 

He realised that the noises outside his apartment had stopped. Good. One of his neighbours probably got tired of Jake's fuckery and forced him out. That was one of the benefits of living in an apartment building full of old people. They hated noise - especially the fucking obnoxious geyser of noise that was Jake Perth. He hoped that the lady from 37B had busted out the umbrella again. That was fun to watch. He sighed. Time to hit the internet. 

He sat down, opened up the browser, and then just. Stopped. What the fuck was he even doing. He didn’t even know. He sighed. Why couldn’t he just deal with this the normal way? Well he knew damn well why. Not great neighborhood? Brown dude calling the cops on his white-ass ex? He was about to make a deal with a devil, but he didn’t fuck with that sort of bad decision. Nope! Stupid internet demon summoning it was! 

In about an hour and 10 minutes, he was thoroughly convinced that he knew enough to pull this off. It wasn’t like he was going in blind. He’d done similar stuff before - talked to the dead, travelled in dreams, that kinda thing. He’d just never actually tried to summon something. Plus it wasn’t a big deal. He was just getting a little imp to pester Jake into leaving him alone. No bloodshed! No souls! Just a nice glass of blood in exchange for some minor fuckery! That’s all! Right? 

He stood up from the computer before he could convince himself otherwise. 

An hour and a trip to the woods later, he was sitting on the floor of his RUINED kitchen floor (he was NEVER going to remove the blood and the wax BEFORE he fucked up and carved into the wood itself) regretting every decision he had ever made leading up to this point. 

Fuck. There goes my deposit. Maybe I shoulda put some newspaper down. Or a tarp. Or something. 

Shit. Welp. It was now or never. He lit the candles around his shitty salt circle (do you know how hard it is to freehand a circle with a dollar store salt container?), placed the offerings, and began the chant. 

When he finished, he opened his eyes and looked into the circle. Nothing was there. Fuck. Where did he go wrong? Was it because the circle was wobbly? As he leaned forward to inspect the circle, he was thrown back onto his ass. Looking up, he saw smoke begin to pour out of the circle as the whole area became engulfed in flames. The whole thing emitted a scorching heat - though the fire alarms never went off. From the centre of the inferno, a figure unfurled.. and unfurled… and unfurled. Shit. This wasn’t an imp. Those things were supposed to be like knee-height. This thing was already brushing the ceiling and it was STILL coalescing within the space. Its mass smacked the edges of the salt circle and cracks began to form on the face of a previously invisible barrier. The shitty circle bent and broke under the sheer power of the demon inside, and three huge rotting heads broke through the smoke to stare at Stone who lay on the ground. The first head, a fox’s, just looked around the apartment inquisitively. The second, a crow’s, opened its beak and began to laugh hysterically at the shitty ritual space and the fucked up floors. The middle head, a deer’s skull with strips of skin still hanging off opened its mouth to reveal shockingly sharp teeth before a surprisingly human voice exited the entity. 

“Looks like somebody fucked up” 

Stone fainted. 

Chapter Text

Ivo Robotnik, current King of Hell, was having what was both a rather normal as well as a rather boring day. Things were going smoothly in his domain - things had always been much more uneventful once he had taken over for Lucifer - and he was craving a bit of excitement. Life wasn’t fun anymore now that he was on the top - there was nobody to have petty turf wars with - and because of the way he’d deposed Lucifer nobody even wanted to fuck with him anymore. He hadn’t had an intelligent conversation in years - everyone was just too scared. Sure, he loved grovelling as much as the next megalomaniac, but at this point it was just annoying. Then again. This was hell. He wasn’t exactly supposed to be enjoying himself. But did it really have to be so boring? He stared out the window, his six eyes taking in the entire skyline of the kingdom before turning away again. He began to make his way to his bedroom when he felt a peculiar tugging that seemed to emanate from his very essence. He knew the feeling from his days as a lesser demon - it was a summoning. He grinned. This would be fun. Only really desperate and fucked up people called on higher demons, and he couldn’t wait to have another plaything. Besides, it had been decades since he’d been topside and it would be interesting to see how things had changed. He gave into the tugging feeling and felt himself being pulled from this world to the world of the living. 

Upon manifesting, his eyes took in his surroundings. He was in a modest apartment with what seemed to be new technology but nothing marking it as explicitly upper-class. At his feet was the remains of a ritual circle and beyond that was the shards of the shittiest containment circle he had ever seen. He began to laugh - oh this was going to be FUN. Nothing was better than an incompetent summoner especially one who couldn’t properly contain him. He easily stepped over the broken boundary towards his summoner, his main head making eye contact with the simple looking man sitting on the floor. 

“Looks like somebody fucked up.”

The man fainted dead away. 

Robotnik threw back his heads and cackled until it hurt. 

Chapter Text

Stone woke up in his bed unsure of how he got there. The last thing he remembered was Jake yelling at him through the door. But he hadn’t gone to bed after that… He blinked the sleep from his eyes as he brain played catchup before his eyes snapped open and he lurched forward in the bed. THE DEMON! It had escaped the circle, and he had passed out before he could make any sort of deal! Shit! It could be anywhere by now causing all sorts of devastation. Shit Shit Shit! He made to throw himself out of bed when he froze at the sound of someone clearing their throat. He stopped and whirled towards the sound. The demon he had summoned the other day was sitting across the room on a chair that Stone DEFINITELY had never owned reading a book that Stone was pretty sure he did own. One of its heads was sipping coffee from one of Stone’s mugs, another had its head buried in the book, while the third was staring straight at Stone himself. 

“Good morning.” 

Stone blanched. 

“You know, it’s very rude not to respond when someone greets you.”

Stone pinched himself. 

“You know full well this is not a dream. Good morning.” 

“Good….. morning.” 

“I have taken the liberty of cleaning up your dwelling.” 

“... Thanks.” 

“So. Let’s cut to the chase, shall we. What do you want done? Assassination? Torture? War crimes? Well maybe not war crimes. You look more like a lawyer type than a soldier. Is it power you want? Privilege?” He scans the modest apartment again. “Wealth?” 

“I… Actually. Kinda. Summonedyouonaccident.”

Robotnik cocked one of his heads. 

“I… meant to summon an imp. To. Pester my ex into leaving me alone.” 

Robotnik’s centre head stared hard at him but could sense no untruths. 

“Indeed.” 

Stone wrung his hands together.

“Would it be. Unrealistic? To ask you to um. Maybe go back and send an imp?” 

The crow’s head laughed again and the lion's head bared its teeth. - Wait? Wasn’t it a fox’s head before? 

“I’ll. Take that as a no?” 

“You may, as you say, take that as a no.” 

The demon shifted slightly, putting down the book and the cup, its three heads giving Stone their full attention. 

“The only way I can be sent back is I am either banished, or we reach a deal and it is completed. We both know that you do not have the power to contain me let alone banish me, so let’s get right down to the deal, hm?” 

The demon waved a clawed hand and a glowing parchment appeared. 

“So. You want your ex to leave you alone. I assume from your weak constitution and your wording of ‘pester’ that murder and grevious bodily harm to said ex are off of the table. Is that correct?” 

Stone chewed at his lip. 

“Yeah. Unless it’s in self defense.” 

He doubted that Jake could really do anything to the demon, but he did own a hunting gun from what he remembered. He’d never personally felt in danger from it, but the thing in front of him was part deer. 

“Indeed. And what were you planning on offering this imp?” 

Stone chuckled nervously. 

“Um. I just the chance to wreck some havoc topside and a bit of blood to sustain it. I’m. Assuming your rates will be a bit higher?” 

The end of the sentence finished with a squeak as the demon dug a claw into its own flesh and began to write on the parchment using its own ichorous blood. 

“You assume correctly.” 

Good. Maybe there was a shred of intelligence in there after all. 

Stone quaked though he tried to hide it. 

“What… sort of thing… do you want?”

The lion’s head smiled. 

“I usually work with more high stakes deals - usually culminating in world-changing consequences for the individual during their lifetime and eternal enslavement during their afterlife. The usual for a proper demon really - though it has been quite a while since I’ve done a deal and I really should charge higher rates now given my… career advancements.” 

Stone gulped. 

“Do you only accept souls?” 

The crow’s head laughed again. The lion kept speaking, 

“My dear little fool. If you think that you even have a change at going to heaven after summoning a demon, you are more idiotic than I thought. You may as well do yourself a favor and join up with my court from the beginning. I assure you there are worse people to be shackled to for eternity than the king.” 

Stone looked as if he was about to pass out again. He fumbled for breath, and finally managed to squeak out, 

“The KING?!”

Stone wished the demon would stop laughing at him. 

Chapter Text

Stone collected himself as the demon’s laughter died down again. 

“So you’re saying. I’m going to hell just for summoning you?” 

The demon nodded. 

“You did summon the king of hell.” 

“But I didn’t mean to!”

“It matters not. Actions have consequences whether you mean them or not.” 

“Can. I ask that you don’t… Torture me? For eternity? When I die and go to hell?” 

“You may ask for anything you like in a deal as long as the payment is equal. At what price do you value your afterlife?” 

Stone drew a blank. 

“I’ve never had to really think about that. I didn’t anticipate this. Can I get some time to think about it?” 

“You have until tomorrow.” 

“That’s not. A lot of time.” 

“I care not.”

“..Okay. I’m gonna go shower now. Don’t do anything weird while I’m there.” 

The demon gave him an odd look that Stone ignored and went back to his book. 

Standing in the shower, Stone realised that this deal was no longer about his ex. This deal was now about the fate of his immortal soul. The moment he summoned a demon, he was damned. But if he played his cards right, maybe he could have a comfortable existence in hell. Being in the King’s court as the demon had said gave him an inherent place of privilege even as someone enslaved, and if he really could barter himself immunity to the worst of damnation he would be theoretically set for all eternity. But what did the demon want? What did Stone himself value his own soul at? He was getting nowhere and his fingers were pruning. He’d think about this more later. 

He exited the shower, quickly drying and dressing himself before stepping back into his bedroom where the demon had finished his book and seemed to be taking a nap. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

“Um. Hey.”

Six eyes opened and pinned him under their stare. 

“I. Have to go to work. And um. I can’t just leave you here free to roam around.” 

He said this despite having previously left the demon alone twice now, but pushed past that thought. 

“I can’t really take a day off. We’re in the middle of a big project and they really need me there. They won’t notice an extra person there. They don’t really care who it is as long as they get their coffee on time.” 

He chuckled nervously. 

“I’m an intern at Sonic Speed Enterprises. We um. Do you know what spaceflight is?” 

Robotnik nodded. 

“I was last on earth after humans achieved spaceflight.” 

“Okay good um. We - I mean the scientists - build engines. For spacecraft. Really fast ones.” 

“I. See.” 

“They think they’re on the verge of a really big breakthrough. I don’t really understand it, but it’s really exciting everyone. So I need to go in and make sure everything goes smoothly so the scientists aren’t worried. So. I need you to come with. You won’t need to do intern stuff. Just follow me around and look like you know what you’re doing. I’m assuming you have a less? Noticeable form?” 

“You assumed correctly.” 

Stone’s ears popped as the pressure in the room changed, and he was forced to blink. When his eyes opened again, a man sat opposite to him instead of the half-rotting demon from before. The man was middle-aged, his dark brown hair speckled with a bit of grey. He was abnormally pale and looked almost ill. When he stood, he was tall though he bent forward a bit, leaning his weight on an artfully crafted cane. He wore a black button up and slacks under a slightly antiquated black evening coat with a red lining on the tails, and his eyes were hidden by black shades. He smiled at Stone from under a well groomed moustache, baring sharp teeth, and held out a gloved hand.

“Lead the way.” 

Stone gulped and took the hand. The phantom feeling of claws against his skin made his arms tingle. 

“No problem.” 

Chapter Text

The drive to work was tense as Robotnik took in the sights of twenty first century California and Stone gripped the wheel so tightly his knuckles were white. There were many more screens in this era, he noted, and the use of personal phones was much more prolific. He wondered if Stone would allow him to inspect his phone. He doubted it. He could always steal one. He was brought back from his daydreaming when Stone cleared his throat for what seemed the millionth time. 

“Must you do that?” 

“Clear my throat? It’s not like I can just say ‘hey demon’ when I want your attention.” 

The demon nodded.

“Hm. Robotnik will suffice.” 

“... Robotnik. I usually grab coffee and breakfast on the way to work. Do you want anything? Actually - do you need to eat? I know you can - I saw you drink coffee earlier…” 

“I do not need to eat. I do enjoy eating. Black coffee please.” 

“... Okay…. My name is-“

“Aban Stone. I know already. I did some research while you slept.” 

“So. I didn’t have to explain my job to you.” 

“No.” 

“Oh.” 

The rest of the drive was spent in silence. 

Chapter Text

As they pulled into the parking lot of the facility, Stone gestured to the large building in front of them. It was a sprawling research complex made from grey metal and glass in varying shades of blue. A lush green park sat to the side of the complex, and the edges of a testing field could be seen peeking out from behind the building. Trees peeked out from the centre of the complex as well - likely indicating some sort of outdoor seating or dining area. It was all in all quite impressive. 

“Welcome to Sonic Speed Enterprises. Makers of the fastest spacecraft propulsion systems.” 

Robotnik hummed his acknowledgement as he exited the vehicle. 

As they made their way to the entrance, they were stopped by a pair of security officers: 

“Badges?” 

Stone swore internally. Usually security at the complex was pretty loose - he’d forgotten that the big project meant that the company head Ex-Commander Walters would be there today. The man was former military and always beefed up security when he visited. He had made plenty of enemies during his tenure as commander, and was understandably paranoid. This however, was a problem now. Stone shot a panicked look at his companion as he went through his wallet for his own ID badge. Robotnik showed no sign of panic, but inclined his head slightly at Stone as if to say ‘no worries. I got this.’ 

Stone handed his ID card to the man who scanned it with his hand scanner before giving it back. The guard then turned to Robotnik. 

“Badge?”

Robotnik regarded the man with a cool sense of disdain. 

“I was not informed that I needed one.”

The guard narrowed his eyes. 

“Everyone gets one. Who are you.” 

Robotnik reached into his suitcoat and boredly handed the man a business card. 

“Ivo Robotnik, Phd. CEO of Eggman Enterprises. If you call your superiors I’m sure they’ll be happy to tell you that I am here to discuss rather pressing business today. While our drones usually operate within the orbit of the Earth, we have been watching SSE’s propulsion systems very closely. I will not say more about it to you . I’m sure you’ll hear it in the news.” 

The guard nodded, still suspicious, and brought his walkie up to his face. 

“Hey. Al. Is there um. Supposed to be a visit from EE today? Yeah? Okay. Coulda warned a guy. Thanks Al.” 

He turned back to Robotnik. 

“You’re good to go. Sorry about that. They weren’t expecting the EE rep for another few hours is all. The cafeteria’s at the center of the complex if you’d like to hang out for a bit.” 

Robotnik nodded his head and went past the man without replying, Stone quickly following behind. 

The guard shrugged. Whatever. 

As they went further into the complex, Stone jogged to catch up to Robotnik. 

“Hey. You wanna explain that?” 

Robotnik shrugged. As he made the gesture, Stone noticed that an invisible shroud seemed to fall on the pair - blocking outside noise and presumably keeping their noises in as well. 

“A few decades ago I made a deal with a human which included being named CEO of his company after his death, and I’ve kept some more human-looking imps to take care of things topside and interact with our human employees. There’s not much to explain really. It is weak to be influential in hell without having assets topside as well. The company name is unfortunate, but I did not select it. It was fortunate that an EE representative was supposed to come in later today. I told them to take a day off and came in their stead.” 

“And if an EE rep wasn’t supposed to come in?” 

“I could have fabricated a visit. But it’s less work this way. It’s been a while since I’ve interacted directly with the company anyhow. I can take you to EE HQ later.” 

“Ah… Wait. I thought you hadn’t been ‘topside’ for a while.” 

“There’s more than one way to interact directly. Technology in hell seems comparable to here - if used more infrequently. More people topside have phones for example, and hell has no advertising screens. They’re more classic billboard types. Lots of imps stick to their old ways after they die. It keeps things a little more. Antiquated. But our elite are always cutting-edge. I occasionally attend digital meetings.” 

“Oh. Okay… So. You’re the King of Hell and the CEO of EE. Anything else important I should know?” 

Robotnik tapped his chin with a clawed hand. 

“I have 50 phd’s.” 

“WHAT?!”