Welcome back to The Dark Order. Last time, having just escaped the clutches of Frigidus, Dracia and company continue on their journey to Artisans Plains, but just as they get out of the frozen hellscape, Dracia and Sulfur hear someone familiar and enter a forest teeming with monsters to find the source. But before they can, Phobos and the monsters of the forest capture them, dragging them off to "the Asylum". So, what awaits them? And who's voice did they follow? Read on to discover...
(Our story resumes as Dracia regains consciousness in what appears to be some kind of cell, with only a matress, a toilet, and a sink, hidden behind an iron door with a slot for food and an observation window. As she regains consciousness fully, we hear some sort of banging on the walls next door, ultimately ending with a brick falling loose, revealing a familiar set of eyes, only this time both of them are functional.)
Goldix: (Seeing Dracia) Dracia! Thank the Ancestors you're okay!
Dracia: (Seeing Goldix through the hole) Goldix! I thought I heard you! What are you doing here anyways?
Goldix: Mom, Dad, and I came here to find you and Sulfur.
Dracia: You found more shards of that gem?
Goldix: Apparently there's a whole backstory with it that Dad isn't telling all of. Long story short, we got three fragments working. As far as I know, I'm the first one to find the correct world. I can only hope Mom and Dad get here quicker than I did. I only had five tries, and got here on the fifth.
Dracia: We don't need to worry about that. (Holding up the gem shard around her neck) I've still got the shard that brought Sulfur and I here. Where is Sulfur anyways?
Goldix: He's in here somewhere. And if the screams I've been hearing since I got in here are any indication, we don't want that to be the case.
(As this is going on, another brick is picked loose and falls onto the bed in Dracia's cell, revealing James Sunderland is next door)
James Sunderland: The General's right. We have to get out of here, unless of course you want a terrible end.
Goldix: General? Dude, I don't even know who you are.
Dracia: He's thinks that you're your counterpart on this world.
James Sunderland: Wait, that's not him?
Goldix: Long story bud.
James Sunderland: Not one we have time to hear. We've got to get out of this place before Phobos comes for us.
Goldix: Phobos?
Dracia: If I had to guess, he's Uncle Leroy's counterpart.
Goldix: Why would Leroy run a place like this?
Dracia: First part of the long story, the Element Guard turned evil in this timeline.
Goldix: Yikes.
Dracia: So anybody know a way out of here?
James Sunderland: We shouldn't escape that fast, I saw there's a tower on the grounds.
Dracia: Then we'll take it down as we leave.
Goldix: You two do realize I have no idea what you're talking about, right?
Dracia: I'll fill you in on the way out. Once we find it.
James Sunderland: I've already managed to pick the lock to my cell. I'll unlock yours on the way out and we'll get moving.
(With that, we hear the door to James Sunderland's cell quietly open, and within minutes, he opens the doors for Dracia and Goldix's cells)
James Sunderland: We've got to move quietly, else Phobos' Orderlies find us.
Dracia: I'm guessing that's what he turned Auntie Morisa into.
(But before James Sunderland can answer, we hear the eerie clicking of heels on the cold stone flooring. James Sunderland knows all too well what this is, as he pulls Dracia and Goldix into one of the cells with him, and then we see them: Sindel and Liz Sherman, each clad in a similar clearly designed to be revealing nurse's uniform and shuffling like zombies, pulling a gurney with a dead looking Cyclops on it. As they reach a room, Liz Sherman removes Cyclops from the gurney and throws him into the room, landing in a kneeling position as the door shuts, and the seemingly zombified Liz Sherman and Sindel leave the corridor, allowing James Sunderland, Dracia, and Goldix to leave the room they were hiding in)
James Sunderland: Those were Orderlies. The dragoness who captured you guys is the head of them. And it seems they control the other monsters roaming around this place and in the forest, or rather, can control them.
Goldix: (Having seen Cyclops in detail) What happened to that guy?
James Sunderland: He was... lobotomized. That's what happens to most everyone who comes here. If someone else in the Dark Order finds someone just won't break, no matter what they do, Phobos gets them as guinea pigs for his research.
Dracia: Do I even want to know what he's researching?
James Sunderland: Nobody really knows. We have to get moving. They could be back at any minute.
(But before they can escape, the sound of clicking heels can be heard again, as Punchline shambles into the cell block, and upon seeing Dracia and company out of their cells, lets out an ear-piercing shriek, loud enough to cause everyone locked up in this cell block to start banging on the doors before Punchline starts sprinting at Dracia, head twitching ridiculously)
Dracia: RUN!
(True to her word, Dracia, Goldix and James Sunderland start running just as Punchline is about to grab them, running through a wall instead. After a few minutes of running, Dracia and company think they've found a safe corridor, we see the duo of Liz Sherman and Sindel trying to strap the struggling Sulfur to another gurney. After a few minutes of this, they do manage to strap him down but he is still screaming his head off.)
James Sunderland: Looks like Phobos has chosen to operate on your friend.
Dracia: Not going to happen on my watch. Follow them, quietly.
(And so they do just that, stealthily following behind the shambling Sindel and Liz Sherman. And within a few minutes, we arrive in Phobos' operating theatre, with the Asylum's tower directly at the center of it, where Phobos stands with Morisa still on his leash. While Sulfur is wheeled into position, Dracia and company hide in the stands.)
Phobos: Ah, my next volunteer. (To Sindel and Liz Sherman) Return to your rounds. (To Morisa) Get the patient to the operating table.
(With a hiss, Morisa does as she is commanded, which brings Sulfur face to face with Phobos, causing him immense horror)
Sulfur: Uncle Leroy, what have they done to you!?
Phobos: That weakling is gone. Long gone...
(With that, Phobos starts reminiscing on the day he was turned, the story starting in the headquarters of the Element Guard, where a letter from Darkblood sits on the main conference table. Shade, Blitz, Rokko and Hydrar are arguing about it in the background, but we see that Leroy is still reading it, and it reads in this fashion: "I am willing to offer a truce. Any member of the Element Guard who surrenders will be reunited with their loved ones. You are already outclassed by myself and Wildblaze alone, consider this your last opportunity at having a fighting chance.")
Phobos: The rest of the Guard argued about that note for days. None of them willing to believe Lord Darkblood would actually keep his promises. But having just lost the only family I had left when Toxica came into being, I figured I had nothing to lose. So while my foolish friends argued, I left and found Lord Darkblood's encampment, begging him to restore my sister.
(Now we see the scene he's describing, poor Leroy entering Darkblood's camp, and most of all the smirk on Darkblood's face when he hears Leroy's pleas)
Phobos: It turns out I had misinterpreted what he meant. Best misinterpretation of my life.
(With that, we see Leroy getting infused with Dark Aether, turning into the meathook clawed fear feasting being we know today)
Darkblood: Rise, Phobos.
(With that, we focus back in on the blood-eyed Phobos of the present day, looking fondly back on that day)
Phobos: Not only was I more powerful than ever, but I was blessed for my willing surrender. I was given the virility I had lacked all of my life. (With a perverted smirk towards Morisa) And I've been grateful ever since. But while not doing... any of the Orderlies really, I have been experimenting, trying to find the perfect way to make anyone ready for molding into one of Lord Darkblood's soldiers in a way that he uses the least amount of his great power necessary. And my research is yielding promising results with one thing: the pre-frontal lobotomy.
Sulfur: Are you insane?!
Phobos: Compared to anything else I've tried, it's had the best success rate. Mostly because it's actually had a success rate. (Picking up an ice pick and mallet) And now, you're next. (To Morisa) Hold him down.
(Doing as she's commanded, Morisa grabs Sulfur's limbs from underneath the gurney and peels back Sulfur's eyelids as Phobos takes his place)
Phobos: You may feel a slight pinch. (Thinks about it) Oh, what the hell, you're going to be in massive amounts of pain. But it'll still only last for a second.
(As Phobos prepares to hammer Sulfur's prefrontal cortex apart from his brain, Dracia it seems has had enough and fires a gust of freezing air at Phobos, freezing his hands in useless chunks of ice)
Phobos: What the...?! (Sees as Dracia, Goldix, and James Sunderland emerging) Ah, the girl who has caused my compatriots so much trouble. As much as I want to have you gutted for interrupting my work, I'm afraid I can't do that. (To Morisa) Get them.
(With that, Morisa leaves her position and attacks, actually managing to bite James Sunderland's throat out, killing him instantly. Meanwhile Goldix uses his unique ability to Sight Jack and see from Morisa's position while giving a play-by-play to Dracia, who is able to knockout the lobotomized and brainwashed dragoness easily before Phobos starts slinging his scythe tipped tail around)
Phobos: You may have vanquished my nurse, but now you face the doctor. I will have your brains in jars by the end of this!
(Now Phobos begins his battle against Dracia and Goldix, but during this time, Sulfur is just strapped down seeing Dracia get attacked by this madman. And at that moment, something bubbles forth. He realizes he truly loves her, and seeing her in danger like this is driving him mad, to the point where he suddenly gains a tremendous boost in strength, breaking free from his constraints in seconds)
Sulfur: (In a fit of rage as he picks up the gurney he was seated on) GET AWAY FROM HER!
(With his rage clear, Sulfur actually throws the gurney at Phobos, knocking him square into Morisa, stirring her from her unconscious state and sending her directly into attack mode. But as she nears Sulfur, he's only getting angrier, and somehow getting stronger, as evidenced by how after grabbing Morisa by the neck as she pounces on him, Sulfur punches her into the obelisk, leaving a massive dent and turning her into a bloody stain, and causing the entire room to start collapsing as he starts calming down)
Goldix: Whoa.
Dracia: You go, Sulfur!
Sulfur: (Trying to remember what he just did) Okay, what just happened?
Goldix: No time to explain, jolly green, we've got to get out of here before we're buried under rubble!
(With that Dracia, Goldix, and Sulfur flee the scene just as the rubble comes down, as we cut to black. Upon resuming the scene, we find ourselves on the outskirts of the Silent Forest. As the three of them catch their breath, we hear something rustling from the brush back in the forest, and within a few minutes the source is revealed, it's the rest of the Gilded Resistance)
General Goldix: (Seeing Dracia and company) There you are! You can't just dash into a place like this without... (Sees his double) What the heck?
Goldix: I'm guessing you're this "General"
General Goldix: Okay, this week has just gotten weirder and weirder.
Goldix: You and me both.
Dracia: Now that we've made introductions, we should really get moving. Didn't you say Artisans Plains is south of here?
General Goldix: It is, but... (Thinking about it) Wait, where's James?
Sulfur: He... didn't make it out of that Asylum.
General Goldix: First Adrian, then Vilgax, then Ravager, now this?!
Dracia: Wait what? Why the heck are we heading north? Your resistance's headquarters is to the south!
General Goldix: As true as that is, there's only seven or eight people there. And now that Darkblood's got the old Grublin army back out with recent events, we're going to need more help. And just north of here is Clockwork Swamp, where Vermillion is.
Goldix: Vermillion? Are you crazy?! That snake was Darkblood's second in command! He can't be trusted!
General Goldix: I know you're not from around here, but when the entire Element Guard became the Dark Order, Vermillion fell far down the pecking order, getting less and less power. If anyone's likely to turn, it's surprisingly him.
Goldix: I trust him about as much as I trust a Shadow Ape.
General Goldix: Look, you haven't lived the hell we have. If there's anything we can do to improve our chances against Darkblood, we need to take the chance!
Goldix: Vermillion is too much of a risk, even if that's the case!
Dracia: Guys, we can do both. There are 18 of us here, and if we don't get moving soon, someone's going to find us. So we'll split up. Some of us will go north to Clockwork Swamp, while the rest will go south towards Artisans Plains.
General Goldix: Too much of a risk. We'll be able to fight off any attack better if we stay together.
Goldix: For a General you really lack strategy. All of us together are a larger target.
General Goldix: (Sighs) Fine then. (To the Fugitoid) Can I borrow part of your equipment? I need to call base and let them know of the change of plan.
Fugitoid: Gladly. (Pulls what looks like a phone out of his arm) It's already set to the frequency of Abe Sapien's BPRD communication device.
General Goldix: (Grabbing the device) Thanks.
(As General Goldix walks off, the rest of the team tries to figure out how to divide up)
Dracia: Okay, here's a rough plan. Mysterio, Cyrax, Lenny, Jasper, Sulfur, Goldix, and the General will go with me. The rest of you head to Artisans Plains, we'll catch up with you once we're done negotiating with Vermillion.
(Just as Dracia makes the plan, General Goldix returns and hands the Fugitoid his device back)
General Goldix: Sounds like a good division, since you keep high rankers together. Splinter being my second in command. Alright everyone, get to it. And maintain radio silence from this point forward. We don't want to risk the Dark Order getting onto us any more than we already have.
(And just like that, the group splits up, Dracia and company heading north, while Splinter and the rest head south towards Artisans Plains as our tale concludes.)
Well that was absolutely nuts. Now a few things: Given how Sulfur conquered the literal horror realm of Silent Hill, I figured I'd just give him the full horror aesthetic, down to frequently using the most horrifying medical mistake in history, the lobotomy, on his victims. This story is M rated, I'm thinking I can get away with talking about it and not actually showing one. Secondly, Sulfur's little "Hulk Smash" moment was based on details I had from Yami. Sulfur has a crush on Dracia, he's just never admitted it. Anyways, another tower is down, and now Goldix has actually made it to this dark world. Wonder what's going to happen when he meets his counterpart here. Well for that, you'll have to tune in next time! Same time... same channel!