Once Enoch had left, Lucifer opened a communication portal to Beelzebub. He didn't want to believe that his best friend was going behind his back, but the evidence didn't look good. Maybe Michael had been right about Beelzebub all along...
"What is it, Lucifer?" Beelzebub laughed with false good humor. "It feels like you just left brunch."
"I'm going to be honest, Beelzebub," Lucifer said sternly. "You have a lot to answer for. Enoch has been investigating the events of the party last night."
"That's your eldest son, right?" Beelzebub asked. "The one who refused the office of Archdiable and heir apparent?"
"The same," said Lucifer.
"You know, I always found it a curious choice to appoint your ninth daughter Miasma as the new Archdiablesse."
"That was actually Lilith's idea," Lucifer smiled. "You know how much she opened my eyes to feminism, and her studies of witchcraft revealed nine as the most magical number to her. Therefore, it was decided that my ninth daughter would be the heiress to all of Hell."
"Former humans come up with the funniest ideas," Beelzebub laughed with calculated amusement.
"We're digressing," Lucifer said. "Enoch discovered that Trebax and Mabeuth (otherwise known as Rev. Jeremiah Mather and Dr. Abdullah Bashir) entered with Lord Adrammelech. Oddly, the two of them never left. Instead, Adrammelech left with Anax and Mutea, who appear to be minor members of my palace staff. Is Lord Adrammelech not a good friend of yours?"
"He has been," Beelzebub said, "but I promise you, he is acting independently. At least, independently from me. I suppose he's so eager for a fight with Heaven that he's willing to work with Kushiel to set off the spark. Politics makes strange bedfellows, as the saying goes."
"Do you wish to see the war resume, old friend?" Lucifer asked pointedly.
"I have no love or trust for Heaven," Beelzebub said, "but I want what you want, my king. If you deem it wisdom to make peace with the treasonous and cruel angels to spare further demonic bloodshed, I will support you until I am nothing but ash."
"Enoch also considers it absurd that Cruciata would send a Chaos entity after Pava," Lucifer said. "By all accounts, she found Pava entertaining from the beginning, and their relationship has showed signs of deepening."
"That is why I do not believe Cruciata is in charge of her own scheme anymore," said Beelzebub. "The magic came from Kushiel, no doubt. He clearly rigged it to perform in ways that Cruciata did not expect. Perhaps she displeased the angel somehow."
"Then how did Kushiel weaken the wards against Chaos in Hell?" asked Lucifer. "And why would he even WANT to weaken the ones on Earth?"
"Not all angels are as fond of humans as God is, Lucifer," Beelzebub reminded the Devil. "Don't forget, many of the angels who became the first demons joined your rebellion because they thought God was giving the newly created humans too many privileges. Even many of those left behind felt like humans should know their place. I wouldn't be surprised if Kushiel were finally fed up with humans. Perhaps his plan is to obliterate Hell, depose Jehovah and crown himself the new God, and erase the old creation to forge his own world."
"That's certainly possible..." Lucifer mused, stroking one of his goat-like horns. "But how did he weaken the wards in Hell?! How would he have access? He's not even much of a sorcerer!"
"He got access to Hell's wards by recruiting anti-treaty demons to do it for him," Beelzebub proposed. "Adrammelech, for instance. As for sorcery, Kushiel is the Director of Heaven't Inquisition. He may not be a magic expert, but he can find angels who are. His Deputy Director Semyaza, for instance, is a sorcerer on just about MY level!"
"I want to believe you," sighed Lucifer, "but it's troubling how you always seem to be in the thick of this. And yet it isn't hard to suspect Kushiel. And what if the ringleader is Adrammelech? He's no slouch in the sorcery department himself. I... I need some time to make sense of this."
"Take all the time you need, old friend," Beelzebub smiled. "You'll soon see who the true culprit is. When you do, I promise that you will have my full support when you deal with him. Goodbye for now. I should really go and comfort Cruciata in this difficult time." With that, the Archduke of the Eighth Circle ended the call.
Lucifer sighed. Beelzebub's counter-arguments all made sense. Kushiel seemed like such a logical villain in this plot. At the same time, Enoch's counsel also made sense. It was hard to know who to trust in these difficult times, but Lucifer knew that he now had to at least consider the possibility that Beelzebub was scheming against his policies and family. He prayed to Darkness that it was not so.