"'Heed My words... Your atonement is to find true love; selfless, guileless and humble in all its aspects. Only then, will you be redeemed and your curse lifted. Only then, will you cease to be Purgatori.'"
In the room of a local house in Gotham's suburban area, a cloaked figure stood in a dark room over an ancient symbol he drew out of blood. Placing candles around the symbol, he began chanting a spell from a language long since abandoned.
"Hear me, oh great demons of the Underworld, hear my cry! Place the seal onto the worthy one, place the seal onto the worthy one! Summon me an army to kill my enemies, to torture them and subjugate them to my will! Answer the call of your summoner! Place upon me the seal if I am to be deemed the worthy one and take my soul should I be not! Hear me, o demons of the underworld and-"
"Tommy! Dinner's ready!"
"Alright, mom! I'll be down in a sec! Geez... Where was I? Oh, yeah! Hear me and answer my plea! If you deem me worthy then answer my summon!"
The young teenage boy waited and waited and waited but nothing happened. He sighed before throwing off his hood. "Yeah, I guess this shit really is stupid..." Tommy threw the hood onto his bed. "Oh well... looks like I'm going to get stuffed in the locker again..."
"Tommy!"
"I'm coming!" He ran out of his room, closing his door behind him. What he didn't see before he left was the glowing of the symbol and the candles mysteriously blow out. A rift in space opened from the seal and from it a being began climbing out. Standing in the darkness, this being smiled devilishly as it sniffed the ear.
"Blood..."
In the kitchen the family sat and ate their dinner whilst taking among themselves. Tommy's mother, father, older sister and little brother all ate dinner in the manner regular of a family. This meant the father was watching the game, the mother was trying to keep the baby from throwing his spoon to the floor, the sister was texting and has yet to touch her food and Tommy was simply staring at his plate in begrudging silence.
"Tommy," His mother asked. "What's wrong?"
The boy glanced up from his plate upon the mention of his name. "Uh, nothing."
"Aren't you hungry?"
"Yeah, no, I'm hungry." He forked his food and quickly ate it, his mind still wandering to the embarrassing things he'll be put through tomorrow. "Maybe it would just be better if I hanged myself... I'm sick of dealing with this every fucking day..."
Before the mother could ask her son anything more, the lights and all appliances shut off.
"Aw, what the hell!" The dad cried. "What happened?!" He got up, tossing his napkin on his plate and began to search for the generator. Tommy jumped up from his chair and ran upstairs.
"Tommy!" His mother called.
Tommy burst into the door of his room and the moonlight from his window allowed him to see the being inside. Standing before him could not be described as anything more than a she-devil. This she-devil was magnificent, standing tall with blood-red skin and soulless white eyes. She had black, curly hair that reached her shoulders and horns protruding from her head. On her back were large wings that resembled a bats and fangs replaced canines on her teeth. This she-devil wore nothing, emphasizing her sinful beauty.
Tommy could do nothing but stare in awe, shocked and at a loss for words.
"Tell me..." She began to say, her succulent, seductive voice immediately piercing through to his attention. "Are you the one who summoned me?"
Tommy gulped and could only manage a nervous nod, still unable to completely believe his eyes.
"Ah, I see now. Your summoning has freed me from a place I grew tired of being. I owe you my gratitude and would gladly wish to express it. Come closer..." She beckoned with a motion of her finger.
The boy was under her spell and simply walked over to her, his eyes unable to look away. With each step he took, the smile on her face grew ever wider, ever more feral. When he was finally in arms length, she reached out with her finger and playfully rubbed it against his cheek.
"Am I..." He stuttered out. "W-worthy?"
"Yes, you are worthy... of being my dinner!" In a flash, she swiftly ripped his neck out. The boy grasped his neck before collapsing to the floor and bleeding out from his wound. The she-devil then put her fingers to her lips and licked her fingers as if she were sampling a meal. She smiled in satisfaction before kneeling down and drinking the blood from the corpse.
Hearing the thud from downstairs, the mother began walking up the steps with a flashlight in hand, intent on checking up on her son. "Tommy?" She walked down the hall, eventually peering into his room. "Are you alri- OH, MY GOD!"
The flashlight shined upon the sight of her son getting sucked dry of his blood by the vampire. The she-devil glanced up from her meal to see the mother staring at her in shock, her hands shaking and her eyes widened with tears in their corners. Her look was one of intense fear and insurmountable amounts of disbelief. The she-devil only grinned evilly before flying speedily towards the woman, covering her mouth before she could scream.
"Ah, seconds." She twisted the mother's neck before ripping it off her shoulders, the body falling lifeless on the floor. The vampire/she-devil then brought the head over her mouth to allow the dripping blood from her torn head to tastefully satisfy her tongue. She then dropped the head before crushing it beneath her feet.
"Martha, Tommy, where are you guys?" The father called from downstairs. His eyes widened as the last thing he expected was for a vampire demon to start sauntering downstairs with the heads of his wife and son in each of her hand.
"They're right here." She tossed him their heads, the man catching them in his arms. With shivering lips and disbelieving eyes, he slowly looked down at the lifeless eyes of his family before looking up again at the grinning she-devil.
"What... what are you? Is this Hell? Are you... the devil?"
She continued walking down the stairs until she stood in front of him. She reached out and placed the palm of her hands on the left side of his chest. "No... I'm worse. I am fury incarnate... I am Purgatori!" With one swift motion, she instantly killed him by pushing her hand through his chest. In her hand was his heart and the man himself slumped over with the heads of his wife and son falling to the floor.
The daughter jumped upon seeing the scene she saw. She watched Purgatori put her father's heart in her mouth and sucked the blood out of it until it shriveled like a raisin.
"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!" She ran for the door, forgetting about her baby brother completely. She dialed 911 before pressing the phone to her ear.
'911. What's your emergency?'
The answer never came as Purgatori had stopped the girl before she reached the door, covering her mouth with her other hand inside the girl's stomach. Her phone dropped to the floor, the screen cracking upon impact.
'Hello? Hello? Are you there?'
Purgatori pulled out the girl's intestines before letting her slump to the floor, bleeding out of her mouth. Purgatori then stomped on the phone, crushing and destroying it before proceeding to rip out the girl's organs mercilessly. The blood spurted out from her like a sprinkler, raining on Purgatori like a shower. The red vampire held out her tongue while rubbing the blood on her body, enjoying its warm flow.
"Wah! WAAAH!"
Purgatori disdainfully glanced over her shoulder at the baby, who was wailing loudly. She stood up and walked over to the infant, standing in front of him. Her presence only seemed to make his crying louder, something that did not please her. She grabbed the baby's skull and lifted him up in the air.
The baby cried and cried, wailing loudly in fear of this stranger he didn't know but after Purgatori applied enough pressure, the baby cried no more. She dropped the body on the floor, leaving his corpse on the ground along with the rest of his family. Purgatori turned and looked out at the window, seeing the full moon.
"Mm... freedom from Hell. Freedom from Lucifer! I can begin regaining my power, bide my time slowly and take my revenge. Yes... soon, all will fear the name Purgatori!" She spread her wings and burst through the window, leaving the dead family lying in the darkness, lifeless and empty.
"Today's tea is the rare and prestigious Da Hong Pao. Considering the respected and ever so famous Bruce Wayne has ordered this package, the companies that preserve the tea were more than thrilled to send it to us. Legend has it that the mother of a Ming Dynasty emperor was cured of an illness by this tea."
Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne's butler, poured his master tea while Bruce himself sat before his enormous multi-screens. This screen connected to the Batcomputer, which allowed him to do a variety of tasks. As of right now, he was scanning camera footage from a robbery that took place earlier today. Three men robbed Churchill Bank and killed two civilians. For the last hour, Bruce had been combing over all of the evidence he obtained at the scene, all of the footage and witness accounts. Three men, two average height and average frame and one muscular, 6' tall man with balaclavas on their face, took out the sensors, robbed the bank of $651,000 and took a hostage to keep the police from giving chase. Once they were clear, they sent their getaway car into the river with the hostage still inside.
Bruce glared at the screen, his eyes moving back and forth for some clue he could use to identify the suspects. He squeezed the bridge of his nose in frustration, taking hold of the tea that Alfred had just poured and downed it so as to calm his nerves.
"I trust it is to your liking, Master Bruce?"
"It's fine, Alfred." He placed the cup back on the small plate as his eye caught sight of something on the computer screen. He noticed on the opening of the big man's balaclava was a scar he had seen before. Changing the screen to criminal records, Bruce skimmed through the names until he found the one he was looking for and like the child who had finally solved the arduous puzzle, he smirked in satisfaction. "Gotcha. Charles Daly AKA 'Rhino'. He's been arrested on grounds of assault & battery, theft, the like. He got out of jail several months ago but now seems to be running with another crew."
Bruce stood up and walked over to the case that held his Batsuit, a black kevlar suit with a red symbol, dark yellow belt and red lenses along with various red lines along the boots, ears and blades on his gauntlets.
"I think the Batman should pay him a visit."
"I agree, sir. And shall I keep your tea warm while you are out?"
"Go ahead."
After putting on the Batsuit, Batman jumped into the Batmobile and drove off to Rhino's apartment. In said apartment, the big guy in question sat on his old, torn up couch watching Wheel of Fortune on his new flat screen TV.
"Aw come on! You have H_malayas and you still can't get it? Dumbass! It's Homalayas, c'mon!" Rhino threw back a beer until his power suddenly cut off, his show dying with it. Jumping up from his couch, Rhino reached under his cushions and pulled out a shotgun. "What the hell is goin' on... Who's in here?!"
"Boo."
Startled, Rhino spun around behind him and fired a round at his wall. "What'chu doin' here, Bat? I ain't done nothin'!"
"2:08 P.M. this afternoon, you and two other partners robbed Churchill Bank and killed two people. Right or wrong, Rhino?"
"Screw you, man! You ain't got nothin' me!"
"Wrong answer."
Rhino found himself suddenly disarmed, doubling over from a side kick to the solar plexus and then being flipped to the floor and landing on his back. Batman's boot was then implanted on his face, the Dark Knight being sure to scrunch his face beneath his boot.
"Talk, Rhino! Who hired you? Who planned the heist?"
"Urn... I ain't... tellin' you... shit!"
"Wrong again." Batman grabbed the man's collar, pulling him to his face. Batman headbutted him in face, breaking his nose. As Rhino cringed and grabbed his face, Batman stomped on his ankle, breaking it. "The more resistant you are, the more pain you'll get. Who are you working for?!"
"You better kill me, you sonuva bitch or I swear to Christ, I'll mess you-"
Batman kicked Rhino in the chin with his steeled toes, dislocating the man's jaw. "Empty threats." Batman grabbed Rhino's arm and snapped it at the elbow, the cracking sound loud enough to be heard from the walls.
"Waaaurrgghhh!" Rhino fell to his back, painfully holding his arm. "My arm! My arm! You crazy bastard, you broke it! Aah!"
Batman pulled out a batarang from his belt, looking down at Rhino coldly. "We're just getting started."
"Wait, wait!" Rhino held out his hand and waved it desperately. "I'll talk, I'll talk! They call him Scar-face. He's the new criminal boss that's been taking territory from the mob."
"Where can I find him?"
"I don't know, honest. He has Mugsy tell us where to meet him but I don't know where he lives."
"Where is Mugsy?"
"He lives in an apartment down 45 & 5th, by the river! That's all I know!"
Batman turned around and made his way for the window. "Stay here until the police come."
"W-wait! I told you everything you wanted to know! Don't that get me some kinda payoff?"
Batman glanced over his shoulder with a cold, dark, spine-tingling smile. "Nope."
He jumped out of the window, leaving an injured Rhino for the police.
On the road, Batman drove to his destination, focused on interrogating Mugsy. By now, Batman surmised, the police have apprehended Rhino and were bringing him back to the station.
"He might get out on bail. If he does, I can track the person who posted the bail and question them, perhaps come face to face with 'Scar-face' himself or get closer to him through one of his goons. If Rhino isn't put up for bail then he'll go to trial, where the evidence will be put against him and he'll spend his nights back in Blackgate. Either outcome is fine."
Batman's thought were interrupted by a strange sight he caught in the sky. Flying high and far away, was something he could barely see. He saw wings and nearly dismissed it as a bird. It wasn't until this flying sight flew in front of the full moon did he see a faint tint of red. This aroused his suspicion greatly. Deciding he could always go to Mugsy's apartment, Batman changed directions and rode after the strange red being in the sky.
Purgatori flew through the city of Gotham, peering down at its streets from above. "This is no city I ever remember being here on Earth... I would have definitely built my empire here had I known about it. Which means... am I on a different Earth?" She looked to and fro the buildings and the structures, eyeing its dirtiness. "I can feel it on my skin... the evil that runs through this city. It sends my body tingling with perverted, sinful joy. I can take over the underworld and rebuild an empire on this other Earth before finally regaining my true power!" Purgatori landed on a gargoyle. This gargoyle connected to the Old Clocktower, which she entered. "But before I can regain my power, I must be patient... I have to feed on these lowly creatures until my hunger fades."
"Get over here, bitch!"
"Speaking of lowly creatures..."
From the beams above, Purgatori watched as a large burly, bearded man wearing a black bandana dragged a naked woman into the clocktower room by her hair. He threw her on a bed in the corner before unbuckling his belt.
"Please, no! Stop!"
Purgatori scoffed to herself. "Men..."
In an instant, the vampire demon jumped down behind the man and landed gracefully in a crouch. The man turned around, fist raised.
"Who the fuck are... you?"
Purgatori bore her fangs before spreading her wings and standing to her full height, emphasizing her demonic appearance. "I'm the predator... and you're the prey."
"Fuck you, freak!"
The man swung at her but Purgatori caught his fist easily before twisting it sharply. The man gasped in pain, gripping his injured wrist. The man grabbed a knife from his back pocket and tried to stab her but Purgatori ducked under his strike and impaled him in his stomach. She then bit his neck and began draining him of his blood.
"Pah! Disgusting."
She dropped his corpse to the ground before stalking towards the girl. "S-stay away!" Purgatori reached down and pulled the woman to her feet via her hair. The vampire grinned devilishly before smashing her lips onto the frightened girl's. Once she parted, the girl's face had a mixture of confusion and fear. Purgatori grabbed the girl's neck and began to choke her, pressing her up against the wall. She opened her mouth and prepared her fangs to feed when she felt three sharp objects impale her in the back.
"Step away from the girl."
Purgatori bore her fangs at him. "Worm! You dare attack ME? I have taken down empires and kings, drank the blood of gods! Do you think a mere human such as you can kill me?"
"Let's find out." Batman dropped a smoke pellet as Purgatori flew at him, disappearing as she waved away the smoke.
"Cowardly flee! Using these tricks won't keep you alive for long!"
"If you think you can kill me, then find me, vampire."
She growled in annoyance before spreading her wings and flying to the beams above. As she did, wires touched her body and devices planted on the beams activated a current of electricity, which shocked her and sent her falling back to the ground.
"Damn it all... If something like that can even affect me then that must mean I'm weaker than I thought..."
Batman walked over to her as she pushed herself up. "Don't move."
"But I'm still not so weak that I can't kill you!" In a flash, she spun around and grabbed him by his neck, pushing him against a wall and choking him. "I'll take my time and slowly drain your blood, making sure you suffer for every drop I take."
Using her strength, she ripped a small hole into the cowl on his neck. She bit into him, digging deep. Batman grunted in pain as she sucked his blood, making him feel weaker.
"Such... exquisite blood! Pure, unfiltered, sweet... A nirvana of pleasure greets my tongue upon this warm blood's touch, like a candy dipped in honey... This man's blood is even more delicious than a god's! I must have it all!"
The woman, who had been sitting in the corner, sprang up and ran for the door, past Purgatori, who took notice of her.
"And where do you think you're going, wench?!" Deciding she wanted to savor him a bit longer, she stopped sucking Batman's blood and began flying towards the woman to kill her. She grabbed the girl by the neck, smirking evilly as she raised her hand to kill her.
"Stop!" Batman shouted, holding his hand at her. Just before Purgatori could deliver the final blow, she found herself unable to move. Batman was surprised to see something on the back of his hand glowing. A burning sensation was felt as a symbol imprinted itself on his hand, a symbol he had never seen before.
Purgatori stood up straight, stiffened but struggling and turned to face Batman. She simply stood there with gritted teeth as Batman observed the connection between the symbol on his hand and her behavior.
"What is happening to me? Why is my body listening to that human as if I were a mere slave?! Can it be? Is he the one the Nexus has deemed worthy? Why him of all people?!"
Batman stood up and walked over to the girl, trembling for her life. He helped her up and whispered in her ear some instructions. Tearing off some cloth from the curtains near the clock tower window, he clothed her and nodded.
"Thank you..." She whispered before running off.
Batman then turned his attention to Purgatori, whose lips were pursed but it seemed like she was struggling to speak.
"Speak." Batman commanded.
"Damn you worm! You think you can control me?! Enslave ME?! I'll rip your heart out, shred your guts to pieces and bathe in your blood! I'll-"
"Silence." At once, her mouth shut and she was no longer making a sound. "As I thought. She is somehow beckoned to do as I say. In fact, she just confirmed it. This seal puts her under my control. I have no idea why... I need to ponder on this further. But first, I need to put her somewhere where she can't harm anyone."
"Follow me."
In the Batcave, Batman put her in a makeshift cell he prepared in case he ever needed to imprison someone. Never permanently, of course, but if never hurts to be prepared. It was made of titanium bars and had an electric current running through it.
He narrowed his eyes at her, as she simply sat there, staring at him with undisguised, unrestrained hatred in her eyes. He glanced down at his hand, inspecting the symbol. He put up for her to see.
"Tell me what this is."
Her mouth twitched in futile resistance as she began to explain. "That mark is a symbol of your being chosen by the Nexus."
"Nexus?"
"The Nexus is a portal based on mystical power. In order to travel through it, certain unpredictable circumstances must be met that will allow one to travel between worlds."
"What were the conditions that brought you here and where do you hail from?"
"Some unknowledgeable child brought me here on the condition that I would serve him. He brought me from Hell."
"If he summoned you, why aren't you serving him?"
"I don't know. The Nexus didn't deem worthy."
Batman stared down at her hard. "What did you do to him when it became apparent he wasn't your master?"
She smirked evilly. "I killed him and his entire family."
Batman clenched his fist, his jaw stiffening. Mentally, Purgatori relished in the small victory of pissing him off. "So... this human is one who holds compassion for his race... how... disgusting."
"Who are you? Tell me your backstory."
She gritted her teeth. "No! I don't want to remember that life!" "Almost 4000 years ago, I was a slave in Alexandria, Egypt. My name then was Sakkara. While working on a statue of the Queen, she took notice of me and made me part of her harem. But I was betrayed – one day, the Queen married her general for political reasons and had the entire harem killed. I escaped but was eventually found and killed. Then... something happened that I can't remember properly... but I woke up with red skin, horns and wings. I eventually met an ancient vampire named Rath and he made me a vampire so I could extract my revenge. After I slaughtered the empire and the ones who betrayed me, I built up my empire, fought gods and eventually became Lucifer's consort. By then, my humanity had been discarded and I had been reborn as Purgatori. When I had finally grown tired of the Lord of Lies, I tried to attack him but he kept me imprisoned in his fortress. It was only through the Nexus that I was freed."
"Her story sounds like that of a myth... But seeing her now and all she had done, could do... It would be foolish to disregard her words." "So, Purgatori, you and I are now bound by a contract... What are the terms of this contract?"
"The terms of this contract are that I cannot do anything without your order and cannot disobey your orders in the slightest. I cannot do anything out of your own accord and I do not have to take initiative if it was not stated in your orders."
"Meaning, if I'm not clear enough in what I say, she'll find some loophole to the order."
"I cannot remain but three feet away from you." She continued. "Basically... I'm a slave to your will for an appointed term."
"How long is the term and what happens when it ends?"
"I don't know."
Batman furrowed his brow in deep thought. There was a lot to absorb in the last few minutes. Luckily, Batman was used to absorbing shocking information. "All right. I understand the situation." He walked over to the cage and opened it. "Come out."
Purgatori stood up and walked out in front of him. "Do you have a human form?"
She held out her arms and a poof of smoke enveloped her. When it cleared, a caramel skinned buxom woman with dark hair and brown eyes. Batman took of his cape and draped it over her body. "I'll get you some clothes. For now, keep this on." Batman took notice of her solemn, raged look. "Speak your mind, Sakkara."
"...You worm... I hope you gain as much satisfaction as you can from this 'contract' but know this... I will neither be your slave nor your plaything. I will break free and the first chance I get, I will kill you. You had better be careful in what you wish for, you lowly human."
Batman removed his mask and turned on his comm-link connection to Alfred, who was in the mansion. "Alfred?"
'Yes, Young Master?'
"Fetch some fresh woman's clothes. We have a guest."
'Understood, sir. Shall I prepare a guest room as well?'
"No, she'll be sleeping in my room." Bruce shut off the connection before walking up to her. "Sakkara, right? I want you understand something. So long as I have this," He raised his hand in front of her face, putting the symbol of her lack of freedom before her eye. "You are under my control. If you are so confident in your ability to kill me then I'd love to see you try, vampire."
Sakkara smirked ferally. "Very well. We'll see who defeats who first then. Let the games begin."
