Chapter 20: IN HIS RAVENOUS HATRED…
Blood. Gore. Limbs. Corpses.
Every sight before her unsettled her mind, filled her head with stress, anxiety and worry. She was the Princess of Hell, and yet the sights before her sickened her to the stomach.
All of these soldiers...dead. None of them had shown back up yet. Maybe it had some relation to do with the portal, but regardless, she only felt more sick from this development. Just when things were starting to die down, when demons were beginning to change…
This must be the curse of Hell, she thought morbidly. To be able to go through so much pain and suffering for a goal, to be given some semblance of hope...only for it to be ripped away by another obstacle.
She had been left by herself as the other patrols flew into the area on their carriers, soldiers filing off the vehicles and combing the area. She looked around, seeing the stygian black surface the carrier was hovering over, then looked back at the ocean of lava, bubbling and emitting steam.
Though she was alarmingly close to it, she and the other demons were extremely resistant to heat (fitting, considering where they were), but the lava would still kill any who fell into it.
Except…
She looked back at the masses of soldiers on the surface, combing the area, and those that were disappearing over the horizon.
And she saw him, standing at the cusp of the horizon, as far as her eye could see.
The Doom Slayer.
He was not idling. He was waiting. Menacingly. Despite how far off he was, Charlie could feel the malice emanating from his mere presence. His aura screamed violence, rage, hatred.
Ba-bump. Ba-bump.
Charlie clutched her chest. Her heart was beginning to pound, a feeling that deeply confused her. This...being was out to exterminate every demon in existence, and that almost included her and everyone in this hell. And yet…and yet…
Why was her heart beating?
She pulled out a photo she had, of her mother. She was still missing, and no one had any idea where she went or could have gone.
As she stared at the photo, Charlie remembered one conversation she had with her mother, when she was very young.
"Mommy!" She remembered crying, running to her mother as tears streamed down her cheeks.
Her mother bent down with a loving smile, tilting her head slightly in curiosity.
"What's wrong, my little princess?"
Charlie cried and sniffled, trying to speak in between sobs.
"I feel weird, Mommy. I saw someone get crushed by a rock and I got excited. Why do I feel excited, mommy?"
Her mother bowed her head for a moment, though she wasn't sure why. She couldn't see the expression on her face. When she did, Charlie saw a mix of sadness and misery on her face. For a moment, she could see the bags under her eyes, the emptiness behind her irises.
"Charlie…" She said, a shallow, positive tone behind her voice. "We are the original Spawn of Hell. And thus...we find sin to be...alluring. Stimulating."
"What does that mean, mommy?"
"It means...we like violence, hatred, suffering. We feel a personal...excitement from seeing and experiencing those things."
Charlie's eyes filled with more tears than before.
"But...but I don't want to be like that, mommy! I want to be like humans! I want to enjoy things that are...are good! Like...birds and..and planes and parks and-"
She felt her mother envelope her into a hug as Charlie broke down crying even more.
"I'm sorry, Charlie. But that's...how it is. But, don't fret, my little princess…"
She released her from the hug momentarily, smiling at Charlie.
"You have humanity in you, you know?"
Charlie's big, bright eyes locked with her mother's.
"...Really?"
"Of course! After all, demons only came from the existence of humans. You could say that...in the end..we are one of the original forms of humans."
Charlie's eyes began to light up even more, a toothy grin widening across her face.
"REALLY?"
"Really."
Charlie giggled joyously.
"Mommy, can I hear more tales about the humans and Earth again?"
"Sure, my little princess." Her mother said soothingly, bringing Charlie into her lap.
From there, she told tales of the humans, how they lived in big, beautiful, bright cities and lush, green lands; How the Earth had mountains and valleys, tundras and deserts, blue skies and beautiful starry nights, where you could see stars twinkle in the darkness of space; She told Charlie of the people, of how they laughed and talked, of how they got angry and how they cried, of how they developed deep bonds with each other, of friendship, and…
Of love.
"Mommy, will I be able to love someone?" Charlie asked.
"Of course you will, my little princess. You have such a big heart, I'm sure you'll find someone to share all that love with! But…"
Suddenly, Charlie locked eyes again with her mother, and this time she saw an expression of grim warning.
"I want you to know, Charlie." She said. "As spawns of Hell, we enjoy sin in all feelings. That includes...love. You will be attracted not just to violence, but to power. You will find yourself being attracted to people with a lot of power to cause violence. That's...actually one of the reasons I fell in love with your father."
Charlie tilted her head curiously.
"You love dad because he can hurt a lot of people?"
"No, it's not like that exactly...in fact, that power was only what got me interested in him...the power that comes from him means so much more. When we got together, I found that the power he had was a result of his determination, his dedication to survival and to achievement. That's...actually why we've been able to work together so well, why we have no problem with each other."
"So...it's not the power that is good, but the person that uses it?"
"...Yes. I'd say it like that." Her mother said, that smile spreading across her face once more. "But that doesn't mean you should find someone based on how powerful they are. You should find someone that makes you happy, Charlie."
Someone that makes me happy...
"Miss Charlotte?"
"Huh- w-what?"
Charlie was suddenly wrenched from her flashback, and looked down to see a soldier standing at attention.
"Y-Yes?"
"Miss Charlotte, we went searching far across this new landscape, and we decided to establish an outpost further inland. If you'd like to come over with us…"
"Of course." Charlie said, nodding her head fervently. "Let me just...get my things together."
"Yes, Miss Charlotte. Also, Commander VEGA and Commander Hayden are holding a meeting, and they asked that you be present for it. If you wish to."
"I...shall be there. For the meeting. Yes." Charlie asserted, attempting to crack a smile. The soldier seemed to notice her mood, however.
"Is...everything alright, Miss Charlotte? You seem...not as spritely and...tired."
"Well...this is a bad situation we're in, I suppose. And...I haven't seen any of the demons that died show back up yet."
The soldier's demeanor faltered for a moment, then reasserted, though his eyes were cast downwards.
"That's...worrying me, as well. Hopefully, they are just lost somewhere. We should be able to find them soon, I'm sure."
"Of course." Charlie muttered.
As the soldier began hurrying back to the established outpost, Charlie looked down once more at the carnage of blood and gore that had been splattered across the ground during the fight. Despite what her mother had said, about loving violence, hatred and gore...it was the opposite for her now, it seemed. At least, from what she could tell. Her feelings were so mixed up she couldn't actually tell what she wanted or felt.
"I hope we do find them…" She muttered.
"To be frank, Hayden, I was more surprised that you weren't surprised upon hearing my automated voice." VEGA beeped as the Doom Slayer sat on a bench, doing maintenance on his chainsaw.
"Your sudden return from the dead is not deserving of my surprise." Hayden articulated.
"Pardon my language, but that was extremely fucking rude." VEGA responded.
"We are beings of science, VEGA, not of charisma."
"I don't even know what the hell you two are made of." Benny muttered as he sat in the corner, chewing on salted jerky.
As Charlie entered the abode, all of the heads in the room turned towards her, save for the Doom Slayer.
"Where's Angel, and Husk, and the others?"
"Separate quarters." Benny responded, a hint of a smile tugging at his mouth. "Good to see you, Charlie."
Despite the dire situation, she couldn't help but crack a smile at seeing Benny.
"You too-"
"Now that the essentials are here," Hayden interrupted, laying a device on the round table. "It is crucial that we begin planning for-"
"Hold on." Benny interrupted. "I still was never told why Miss Charl-...why Charlie was needed for this expedition."
Hayden made a sound that was similar to a sigh.
"VEGA and I thought this over, and came to a very simple conclusion: If this portal was opened in this Hell, that very likely means there are only a few solutions for closing it. There is also the theory that only something from THIS hell can close the portal. Seeing as Charlie is the only member we have of the 'royal' family of this dimension, she may be a key in closing that portal."
"How did you come up with that theory?" Benny inquired.
"To quote an ancient insurance company's slogan," VEGA beeped. "'We know a thing or two because we've seen a thing or two."
"...I see." Benny muttered. "Carry on, then."
"Thank you for the permission." Hayden said sardonically. "Back to the point:"
He pressed something on the small device lying on the round table, and a large, holographic 3D display came up, with a large mapping of the landscape they were on. It was moving in real-time, so Charlie could see all of the soldiers moving around, all the equipment being used and the construction being done on the outpost. Hayden pressed down on the map and began swiping in a different direction, further inland.
"Currently, the UAC drones are mapping the environment ahead of us and scanning for anomalies. If we find anything of interest, things we may need to interact with, we will send an expedition forward to map it out. Of course, that includes the Doom Slayer at the helm."
The entire group within the abode turned their eyes towards the Doom Slayer, who had kept his focus on the chainsaw the entire time.
"From there," VEGA beeped. "We intend to track the movements of any demons from our dimension and see if we can find out where they are originating from. Once we start seeing high volumes of those demons, we'll be sure that we are near the portal."
The Doom Slayer had suddenly stopped, looking up towards the group staring back at him. Everyone's eyes suddenly averted in different directions.
"Well, Doom Slayer," Hayden vocalized. "It would seem that it's about time for you to continue this expedition."
The Doom Slayer put the chainsaw away, standing up at the same time. He wrapped one hand around the other, cracking his knuckles and neck. He headed for exit, pushing aside the loose flaps.
"What a terrifying entity." Hayden muttered. "If we manage to bring down this threat before us, I fear what may become of myself and others he initially fought against."