"Death… save… guts..."
Words came out of the rambling mouth as eyes soaked up myriad shapes and colors, all mixing together into a blur of information that refused to be processed by the brain.
"Father… light… kill them all..."
Visions of the past collided with the present. Humanoid forms overlapped with one another until they crumbled into dust. Screams of the damned mashed with the unreal, their owners in all states of torture imaginable that were as real as they were a mirage.
"No… not yet..."
More events were shown, pushing the old hallucinations away; welcomed with a scream of horror that made the captive fight against the demonic hands that dragged him across rocks that cut the skin on his back.
"Doom! Doom! Aaaah!"
They tossed him in a cage, cackling as he squeezed himself into a fetal position, unwilling to touch other souls that shared his misery. Before the cage departed, they hit him with their claws, scratching his cheek and sending him into a vegetative state. His cries of madness became whispering prayers of a frightened child that held onto its ring.
"deliver… from evil..."
When the side effects died down enough to give a brief moment of clarity, the awful truth was revealed to Braylon. He was where chaos received a form; so complex and nonsensical that human language would have hard time to put into words. Everything squished into one, glued with lava and endless fire that poured from the depths. The only constant was the ever-present red sky, now soiled with the biggest rift he had seen so far, one that was bringing over a pinkish gas giant, most likely pulled out of its solar system.
The cage came to a halt, levitating above some yellowish rocky terrain. Through strained eyes one could recognize familiar shapes observing the metallic contraption; several Grunt Imps, few Caconoids, one Revenant, a Mancubus and its Cyber variant, a Summoner behind the entire group, and a pair of Prowlers to its left, the most distant of all. A Void-Caller Arch-Vile magicked a black platform into existence for the Mancubus who was eager to reach the cage. There was this particular look in its eyes that made everything clear.
He had to act.
Braylon materialized both the Soul Jar and the Staff of Wicked Sins, hiding them with his body. Hoping that nobody caught him in the act, he pointed the Staff at one of the Prowlers and muttered "possession". All of the ailments that tortured his being dissipated as he felt his essence being ripped out from his body and forcefully stuffed into the chosen host. His black and white vision tripled, gaining the colors back seconds later.
"Crap, this body is so light..."
Regret made him question his choice. The host lacked fingers that he could twist at will, which would make grabbing delicate objects difficult. There was nothing he could feel when he made a slight incision on the wrist, gaining more proof for the validity of the knowledge that came with the Staff. His vision was a bigger issue. Seeing triple was an experience he wasn't prepared for, so one of the eyes had to go.
No demon was bothered enough to notice the strange behavior of their comrade. They observed the cage, willing to participate in the event so carefully prepared for them. The Mancubus hopped on the Arch-Vile's platform, waiting for when the Void-Caller would lift him to the cage. Its cannons glowed ominously.
"Move your ass or you will be fried, Braylon!"
He turned to the second Prowler, shoving the claws through its head.
"Nobody saw it. Good."
His next target was the Summoner. With a silent jump, he landed on the demon and snapped its neck. Unlike the Prowler, the Summoner managed to let out a warning screech for others. Every demon turned around and prepared their respective attacks, not bothering to question why one of "them" just killed a second ally.
"Fuck!"
(Doom Eternal – Slayer Gate)
Braylon jumped on top of the Cyber-Mancubus, using it as a support to reach its non-augmented comrade. The latter roared, trying to shake him off with his cannons. Seeing how black pillars rose from the platform, the Vault Hunter bit down on the Mancubus eye, then hugged the cage, trying to grab the Soul Jar.
"Come on, you piece of shit knife-fingers!"
A Grunt's fireball collided with his left hip right as got a grip on the item. A black brick fell on his head. He fell in front of the enraged Cyber-Mancubus, whose cybernetic cannons clicked repeatedly. Dodging a stream of toxic fluid, he jump-shoved the Soul Jar into the demon's mouth. Two slashes cut off the tubes that were connected to the cannons after he fell on its back, before the Jar was retrieved.
The cage was still untouched by flames, as the blind Mancubus fired at random all around itself. On the other hand, the Caconoids saw this as an opportunity to spill their bile at some of the trapped souls. Should they continue, his body would be in harm's way too.
"Gotta get rid of those tomatoes..."
A rocket mangled his left arm, throwing him off the Cyber-Mancubus that was about to explode. The Revenant threw a tantrum, waving its arms like an angry child denied of its favorite toy. Braylon avoided some fireballs, hiding behind a rock. He drank the life essence from the Soul Jar, which restored the arm and healed some minor wounds, but also extended the host's lifespan. A loud explosion signaled the Cyber-Mancubus' defeat. The Caconoids were still occupied with the cage, chewing on the arm of a man who, in his madness, tried to shoo them away.
Braylon threw the Soul Jar at the Imps, then dashed towards the Revenant, avoiding its rockets. The Arch-Vile, after reviving the Cyber-Mancubus, summoned a wall from the ground, stopping the Vault Hunter from closing in on the target. However, as soon as the Revenant was inside the punching distance, the wall went down, allowing it to punch the Prowler's jaws off.
"That fucking anorexic fuck!"
When the Revenant tried to punch him again, Braylon crouched on all fours, jumped and kicked it in the head. It fell with him on top, blinded and angry. He punched it, ripped out the turrets and smashed them against its head.
The Summoner was up again while the Prowler's corpse was in the process of being ressurected. The former brought more two more demons; a Baron of Hell and an Arachnotron. A third demon was on the way.
"This is going nowhere. I better take the Jar and put it back."
Braylon used the Prowler's jumping ability to reach the Imp husks, grabbed the Soul Jar, then used the Cyber-Mancubus to reach the cage as he did before. In order to ward off suspicion, he made it look like he was scratching at a terrified soul while secretly hiding his item under his body's belly. The moment he succeeded in doing so, a green fireball threw him off, melting the tissue on his back. Seconds later, a large hoof crushed the Prowler's spine while a hand tore away its legs. The last thing he saw through the host's eyes was a red fist.
With the Possession spell deactivated, the Vault Hunter's consciousness went back to the appropriate body. His lungs were quickly fed with warm air as he clutched the Staff and the Jar in his shaking hands, dematerializing both before insanity could come back. When it did, he let out a roar that caught the attention of all present demons. All that was left to do was to laugh as the cage started to burn.
(Apocryphos – A Feral Kind)
Discarded were the bodies above a mountain of others, in a dark pit where hellish light was forbidden to the eyes of the damned. The cage that spat them out made space for the next cargo of souls, which would come who knows when. In that abyss they found no peace, their forms intertwined with hundreds of others. Among them lay Braylon, skin charred and mind broken. No amount of physical pain could break him free from stupor in which he sank. But then, in a moment of unadulterated cruelty, his mind was jump-started by outside forces, and that is where the shrieking began, without regard for vocal cords.
Oh, but who was there to hear his cries? There were thousands of others who were far louder. Who was there to give him a warm embrace? There were just arms of cold, undead corpses. Who was there to tell him that everything was going to be okay? There was just loneliness.
Without even realizing how, he untangled himself from the mountain of flesh. Arms hanged to the sides, his naked body flaccid, unresponsive to external stimuli. Unblinking eyes were fixated on an imaginary line in front of him. PDA's screen flashed red, spouting numberless warnings about its owner's condition and how it was unable to solve them. His meandering began.
A skinless xeno knelt in a blood pond inside an alcove. Cracking his head in its direction, he stared transfixed. It would seem that way to an outsider. In reality, he was observing four figures; a young boy with short hair, a seemingly older girl with hair down to the waist, a woman in a tattered dress, and a man in riot gear hidden under a duster. Behind them, a bare-chested man, his smile sadistic, walking back and forth with a gun in his hand. He was talking.
"What'cha gonna do if I pop a bullet in their skulls, eh? These two can fuck right off. I can give 'em front row seats as me and my boys have our way with these young'uns. Would you like that?.. What's with that look?… Hehe… You're 'couple o' years way too young to give me that look, boyo. Keep doing that an I'll feed you to the Skags."
The man vanished, his words hanging in the air as Braylon walked off. From one place to the next, the tunnel turned into a fleshy tube adorned with skulls. His feet smacked against the soft pavement, avoiding zombie-like things who shambled aimlessly and without a care in the world.
He came upon the Y-intersection, in front of a pillar decorated with human skin and dismembered bodies. A female figure emerged from it, face hidden under its curly hair.
"Why did I have to self-destruct, Braylon? Do you know how painful it was for me to abandon you in that cold, merciless world? All I ever wanted was to be by your side. Only you could make me feel like a human."
Tears welled up as the soft voice was heard. A moment of physical weakness pushed him on his knees.
"My past came back to haunt me… Why now of all times?"
Unable to hold himself back, Braylon lowered his head, sobbing in front of the pillar. Locked memories of past events were downloaded into his mind from the PDA. Unable to stop the rush of information, he witnessed some events related to the figure whose voice he had recognized. His head shot back, screaming at the ceiling, cursing himself and his choices.
"Stand up, Damned One. I command you."
He was not in the tunnel anymore, but in a room made of some material that resembled black metal, illuminated by floating, golden lamps. Towering over his knelt figure, the demon pointed down on him with its ornate mace.
It wore a black robe that almost covered its entire body. Decorated with arcane symbols woven into the cloth with silver threads, its edges blood red, the robe gave off a religious vibe, with a hoodie that concealed most of the demonic visage, leaving visible a reptilian snout and two black horns that seemed to grow from the orbits. Each of its appendages were covered in tiny black scales. In its right hand, the mace. In its left, something akin to silver chains connected to red pearls. He was in the presence of a Hierophant, one that was about to deliver a message.*
"Wretched soul, for your crime of rebellion against the divine will of the Elder Ones, and with the rights given to me by the Heresiarch, I sentence you to a combat against another mortal being."
With a swing of its mace, the Hierophant summoned a cage on the opposite side of the room. It held five girls around his age. They wore white dresses with color-coded symbols, such as hearts or butterflies, plus extra equipment that would make them unique. He was able to spot signs of torture on each of them.
"Upon my command, you shall fight against an opponent picked by my hand. Should you fail, and thus be killed by said opponent, your soul, including the soul you are seeking, will be consumed by the fires of Hell."
A bright yellow orb manifested in its left palm, much to Braylon's shock and confusion. One of his hands shot towards the Hierophant, only to retreat when the orb vanished.
"But, should you emerge victorious, and thus kill your opponent, you will receive your much-needed price."
It flew towards the cage, much to the horror of every girl, even those who tried to put a brave face. The demon announced its choice, before throwing it out and on the floor with a quick swipe of the mace; a brown-haired, purple-eyed individual with metallic boots, chest plate and gauntlets. Despite the jarring contrast with the brown-trimmed dress underneath, Braylon thought it still looked way more feminine than it should have been.
"You who go by the title of "Magical Girl Sword Saint"**. You shall be my choice."
"We believe in you, Leah! You can do this!" her allies cheered.
"Don't worry, girls." Sword Saint replied as she drew out a thick slab of metal that barely passed for a sword, "I know what's... at stake…" Her eyes widened in horror when they saw the Vault Hunter.
"Wait, hold on." Braylon cried out. "I can't fight like this. I'm too messed up!"
"You can't be serious! I should fight against that cripple?"
"You monster! What have you done to him?!" One of the girls yelled.
"His condition is not my concern. I shall ease his mental anguish, but the rest is his burden to bear."
New problems came with his sanity restored. Breathing through teeth, the Vault Hunter's body began to burn with pain everywhere at once. Grunting and squealing like an injured animal, he stared at a fixed spot, his expression as still as a statue's.
"And you want me to kill him?"
"Be reminded that unwillingness in shedding the blood of your opponent will result in utter annihilation of your home world, as is the will of the Elder Ones."
"Curse you…!"
"I will reply no further. Now fight. Or else."
It was with incredible speed that allowed Magical Girl Sword Saint to close the distance between her and Braylon in seconds. The latter, who only saw a shadow at the corner of his left eye, strafed by instinct, which added more salt to the wound that was his body. Unable to hold himself in check, he let out a scream that frightened the Magical Girl, who herself tried not to look angry as tears dropped down her cheeks.
"Nnnnnnnaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh! It fuuuckiing huuuuuurts!"
Braylon materialized the Soul Jar, hastily swallowing its contents. His body was restored to its healthy self.
"...who are you?… gross..."
He did not listen, for his mind was clouded with murderous rage and flashbacks. He needed to release that anger. Sword Saint remained on guard, unwilling to come closer. He swapped the Soul Jar with his Staff of Wicked Sins and, before anyone could react...
"Mind Crush!"
Suddenly, the Hierophant howled in terror, giving Braylon an attack attempt. However, before he could tackle it, the Hierophant teleported to the opposite side of the room.
"Rrragh! You dare attacking me! Pitiful soul, by the power given to me by the Heresiarch, I shall deliver your punishment myself!"
It pointed its mace at the Magical Girl, turning into mist that enveloped her body, absorbed through the skin. Her eyes turned bright red, a snarl twisting her facial features. Multiple threats of retribution exclaimed from her friends fell on deaf ears.
"What shall you do now, wretched soul? Are you going to kill this mortal, thus plunging their world into doom?"
"Do I have a choice? My Seal doesn't have enough power to perform an exorcism."
Sword Saint crouched, her posture more belonging more to an animal than a human. Braylon went for a shock tactic with a surprise Devastator rocket. The Former Human jumped away from the explosion, but as it landed, Braylon materialized Pocket Rocket and blew up the hand that held the sword. What he didn't expect was a very girly, very human shriek.
"Leah!"
"Bastard! I'll rip your guts out!"
"No!"
"Fuck."
The Former Human's tone turned demonic again, laughing as loud as it could.
"What a monster you are, crippling a defenseless mortal! Hahaha!"
"I'll beat you out of her body and feed your heart to the first dog I find."
"You don't have to. I shall do it myself."
It picked up the sword with its other hand, decapitating itself. Enraged, the Vault Hunter ran towards the corpse, fists ready to deliver death. The blood formed a large puddle around the corpse, turning into a trapdoor as soon as the desired target was close enough. Braylon fell out of the room, crashing into black sand.
"Mother… fucker!"
He stood up, brushing sand off his nude form. The place he was thrown into was a desert brimming with towers and skyscrapers, each with unique features. Demons and Condemned flew from place to place, their voices mixing into indiscernible background noise. His arrival attracted the attention of many, with three Desolators taking the lead of the hordes.
(Brutal Doom v19 – Doom Metal Volume 4 – Hell Keep 1)
Braylon jumped through a window of a cathedral-looking building, landing on a red carpet that covered the entire floor. Apart from few candelabras and wall paintings, it was entirely devoid of other objects. Explosions could be heard outside.
"I have to run the fuck away from this place!"
Multiple demons began teleporting inside the building as he was reaching a teleporter where the altar should have been. Said teleporter brought him into a spacious cylindrical room, divided into two circles by stone pillars. A Summoner invaded the room as Bull Demons jumped out from holes in the wall.
Braylon tossed the Soul Jar at Bull Demons on his left, dashing towards the Summoner with Orphan Maker in hand. The latter formed an energy wave to ward him off long enough so that it could teleport away.
He blew up a Bull Demon's brain, loaded two more shells, then fired at another. When all of the Bull Demons gathered into one horde, the Vault Hunter strafed right, where there were fewer demons, shot his way through, and returned to the inner circle. A Hell Knight jumped out from the outer circle, courtesy of the Summoner. Braylon grabbed the Soul Jar, then strafed towards the pillars. In an unexpected turn of events, a massive rock fell from the roof and into the inner circle, crushing all demons there. The floor opened, and the rock fell into a pit, along with all of the pillars.
"Ha! Wankers!"
Two Bull Demons remained, along with a Summoner and a Thalamus Arachnotron. Braylon Materialized Devastator, firing a rocket at the Bull Demons and one at the Arachnotron. The former exploded into gore while the latter's chassis lost one of its metallic limbs. The Arachnotron fell over. Didn't stop it from hurling plasma at Braylon, who replied with another rocket, defeating it.
Braylon ducked under an energy wave, jumped away from another, and jumped across the room with Flopper, shooting rockets at the demon. One's explosion stunned the Summoner, preventing it from calling forth reinforcements. Braylon cut it in half with a Karate Chop Overdrive.
Part of the nearby wall faded into nothingness, revealing a set of stairs that led into the depths of whatever that place was.
(Metatron Omega – Mysteriis De Sanguine)
"Hm… a bit drafty…
The stairs led to a great hall crammed with rows of plain sandstone pillars, extending into the infinite void above. Guttural growls and eerie squeals reverberated from the darkness that consumed the place.
Eyes adjusting to the lack of light, Braylon tiptoed to the first pillar, Orphan Maker pointing at the unknown. He caught a brief air distortion to the corner of his left eye.
Head turned, shotgun too.
Spectre, to his right, mouth wide open.
Hands flung, feet slipped, barrels flashed. Demonic gore splashed against the pillars and pavement.
"Fuh..."
Braylon reloaded. A second Spectre turned visible to his left. He bit back a scream and shoved the barrels under its jaw. Head turned into a fountain. Meat and gray matter slapped his face and chest.
"Ew, demon bits..."
He stood up and continued to the last row. Something was hiding behind a pillar. He got close. A Vulgar jumped out, attacking. Braylon ducked under its swipe. Holo Sabre cut off its legs, then impaled the falling body. Orphan Maker blew its head off.
Something heavy landed on his back, kicking him down. High-pitched shrieking; Prowler. Claws stabbed him in the back. He kicked and convulsed. It refused to let go.
Chainsaw noise. Not far from him. Sawcubus! It was going for his head!
Heartslayer materialized. Another stab. Through blood and coughs, he howled. Hand twisted backwards. Click. Pop. A shower of warm blood.
Gun turned to Sawcubus. Click. Boom, went the heart.
His hand dropped, his guns vanished. Too much blood lost.
Death could wait. He had to go…
Where?
Body shook, trying to move. Fists clenched tighter. Heartbeat. Breathing. Pain.
...
A Hell Knight emerged from a fake wall, grabbing Braylon mid-sprint. It ran until they smashed into a pillar. His mouth coughed out more blood, staining the Knight's head. A hand grabbed his face and crushed his head against the floor, enough to hurt but not enough to kill.
"You can stop now."
The Hierophant spoke behind the larger demon, appearing in all of his unholy sanctity. Head bent down, it spat with disgust, as if talking to a leper from the streets.
"Have you satisfied your delusions? Did it make you feel better?" Its mace hit his stomach, ripping through the soft skin. "You will never be free, wretched soul. Nothing you ever do can cut the leash that the Elder Ones put around your neck. Now, wake him up. The time has come."
His head was crushed under the Hell Knight's foot.
(Doom Eternal – Exultia Ambient)
Two Tainted quadrupeds dragged a cart across ashen lands, carrying a cage that could barely hold one person. It was inside said cage that Braylon came to his senses, moaning in confusion brought by a headache. He remembered the events that lead to his supposed death, how painless it was, and the last words he heard before that demon made a pancake of his head. He broke them all into pieces, trying to analyze every detail, but only ended up with a mess that was better left untouched.
"Argh, it makes no sense!… sense… sense..."
The Soul Jar he materialized was empty, as was the Staff of Wicked Sins. His body lacked lacerations he acquired from the battles, yet it was still naked, soiled with dried blood and ash that the winds brought over from the wasteland. Grotesque creatures populated the air, frequently landing on black, featureless statues. They reminded him of Gargoyles, so he named them such.***
The cart went through a passage carved into a wall that extended from horizon to horizon. Tainted hooves clopped leisurely in the dark that silenced the Vault Hunter's thoughts. Being unable to see anything made him uneasy, his heart beating faster with each second, foretelling a tragedy should his prison go to whatever awaited for him on the other side.
It happened when the cart bumped into something. The Seraphim's Seal let out a spark of golden light, softening the bars. Braylon cut through them with Holo Sabre and jumped from the cart that kept moving no matter what. The Seal then created a ray of yellow light, urging him to follow it until he met a brick wall. Tapping its surface, Braylon found an exposed brick, pushed it, and went into a secret passage, following green torches until he reached a teleporter.
He was brought into the torture chambers, amid bodies hanging from meat hooks. Being in their sudden presence made him fall over, eyes unable to move away from demonic creativity. He made sure to burn that image into his mind, so that he could fight them with even more hatred than he had before.
At the end of the room; a furnace with a burning xeno. Near it, a door leading to an ossuary. Hundreds of clean skulls stacked on top of each other, shaped into a labyrinth. Another door waited at the end.
Curses of the Condemned and the wheezing of demonic machinery ensnared his ears in the corridor. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, for the mind began fantasizing about the dark secrets that lay beyond those walls, beyond those gates mottled with all manner of symbols and skulls, even demonic ones. Would he find other souls in eternal suffering, or something more sinister? And more importantly, would Yang be among them? He checked his shotgun.
"Only one way to find out."
Short chapter, I know, but for a reason. This one was meant to be a brief introduction to what can be expected in the third part of the arc: randomness, chaos, unexpected. My aim is to reflect the "unfiltered chaos" part through bullshit encounters and nonsense locations while changing the pace whenever possible. It is through this insanity that the main character must find what he came for.
Now I have to put an obligatory warning. Please keep it in mind.
WARNING: The next chapter will be REALLY graphical in certain descriptions. It will be disturbing, no doubt. If you are grossed out, or find it uncomfortable, feel free to skip the descriptions. I cannot promise how much you will lose out, but it is a thousand times better than having any kind of trouble. After all, if you came this far into the story, it is kinda taken for granted that you can take it. And no, there is no way around this fact. I think you will know what I mean when you see the name of the chapter, especially if you read the Biopedia entries.
Next chapter: Hellspawn Birthing Facility
PDA Biopedia:
*Entry #155: Hierophant
Type: Demon
Faction: Legions of Hell
Description: "Another rank within the demon cults held in high regard. The Hierophants are individuals tasked with interpreting the will of the Firstborn, or Elder Ones as they call them. This is more of a tradition than anything else, as the Firstborn refuse to contact just about every fallen brother, giving the "privilege" to small hand-picked groups they deem worthy. Naturally, not all Hierophants are willing to follow commands, so they will often twist them in the way they see fit. Oddly enough, some will be promoted when others find out about their schemes. I have no idea why that is."
**Entry #156: Magical Girl Sword Saint
Type: Human – Hero
Faction: Unknown
Description: "Just who were those girls I've seen back there? Did they even exist? They seemed real enough. Fuck, no matter the answer, I cannot deny the fact that I had to kill their friend in front of them. And if they were truly real, they failed, and now their world is being consumed, even if that bastard killed her. I know I lack the power necessary to save everybody, but I still can't forgive myself for being unable to do anything. But… I'll be damned if I let Remnant end up like that. Neither Remnant or Pandora will be raped by the demons. I will make sure of that."
***Entry #157: Gargoyle
Type: Demon – Demonic Corruption
Faction: Legions of Hell
Description: "Initially beasts that once lived as animals, these demonic-looking monsters can now be found as more fodder for the front lines. They can fly, allowing them to avoid all kinds of ground-based defenses, such as walls. Equally deadly in the air as on the ground, the Gargoyles carry more tragic memories on their backs that one can hope to count." (Ranged attacks deal Caustic Damage)
1) Imp: Peon, Grunt, Subjugator
2) Demon: Bull, Ravager, Noise
3) Possessed: Corpse, Former Human, Faunus, Huntsman
4) Invisible: Spectre, Phantom
5) Corrupted Animal: Tainted, Haunted, Exalted
6) One-of-a-kind: Sawcubus, Vulgar, Wraith, Hell Razer, Maggot, Ifrit, Returner, Scorched One, Frozen One, Eurynomus, Prowler, Bruiser, Gargoyle
7) Souls: Condemned, Lost Soul, Dark Soul, Forgotten One
8) Revenant: Fury, Revenant, Soul Cage
9) Cult: Harvester, Hierophant
10) Elemental: Pain, War, Sin
11) Arch-Vile: Reanimator, Void-Caller
12) Cacodemon: Caconoid, Rahovart, Malwrath
13) Flesh: Flesh Artist, Fleshmender
14) Mancubus: Mancubus, Behemoth, Druj
15) Nobility: Hell Knight, Hell Paladin, Baron of Hell, Duke of Hell
16) Oni: Burning Mouth, Thunder Fist
17) Fusion: Agent of Apocalypse, Minister of Death
18) Arachnotron: Thalamus
19) Hellspawn: Zombie Pigman, Mourning Wood, Succubus, Lamia, Kumiho, Harpy, Basilisk, Gorgon, Dragon, Demong, Tigerman, Redcap, Dark Elf, Mormo
20) Cyborgs: Cyber-Mancubus
21) Cyberdemons: Desolator