The red light faded from the dimensional transport. A familiar red sky and dusty ground was before him. Not terribly different from the planet he had just come from. The Marine was back in hell. Dr. Samuel Hayden had sent him back after he had completed his mission to save mars. He checked his holster and found all his weapons other than his trusty super shotgun were missing. He checked the chambers, and they were empty. He had no spare shells. He would likely have to use the gun as a club. No matter. He was angry. But he now had focus. He had to find a way back to Mars, to beat Dr Hayden to a bloody pulp. Bastard used him and tossed him aside. He would pay. The Marine looked to his surroundings, and despite his extensive travels in the underworld, he did not know where he was. This part of hell seemed to be a blood red desert with rocky crags every few hundred feet. No cover. No where for any demon scum to hide. Many miles distant he sighted a mountain surrounded by fire. It may be some sort of stronghold. He set off swiftly, his blood beginning to boil at the thought of facing more demons. Even with his incredible record of death against them, he still savored every single kill.

….

A small green spec was visible on the horizon. It was likely several miles away. Delilah looked closer, hoping to see it more closely. She had never seen anything like that in her life. She was not very old, only a few centuries. And in that time, she had not ventured from her home. She was aware of far more savage demons out in the wastelands. She was admittedly scared to venture out.

Demon society was based on brute strength. And any male could do anything he wanted to a female if he could overpower her. It was seen as a sign of strength if the female could put up a good fight, and indicated that their offspring would be powerful and beneficial to the horde for their final conquering of the upper world. Various tribal warlords battled each other to test their strength, capture resources, females, and prestige. The females were important. A large supply of them were needed, because often during the mating process the males would become….overzealous and kill their mate in the process. If a female could survive this process, it indicated that the offspring would be even stronger. Strength and demonic energy were of the utmost importance.

She looked across at the green spec and could not determine what it was. It was approaching rapidly. She descended from her ledge, her small frame allowing her to move easily. She was a member of the Imp race. The lowest of the low that were even completely demons. Some females had managed to ascend to queen status, possessing demonic energy so great they could birth entire armies of her kind. Those queens were almost as physically powerful as the demon lords themselves, and had significant influence. She was nowhere near that level. She was weak, underdeveloped. And knew that she would likely die in mating. It was her fate. So she had avoided it in the name of self preservation. She had become quite skilled at outmaneuvering her "suitors". Females of her race resembled human females, but with red skin and demonic fangs. She had short hair, to make it easy to manage. Sex appeal was not high on her list of priorities. The males didn't care what the females looked like. They cared about strength alone, which in some instances had been her saving grace. No one wanted to bother mating with such a weak female. Of course, there were males that took great pleasure in killing weak females for fun, in the name of strengthening the race.

She moved to a lower ledge and looked out again. She saw the green dot again. Now she saw a golden reflection. She had never seen anything of the sort. It still approached at great speed. Suddenly a booming voice announced in a nearly panicked tone, "HE IS HERE. THE DOOM SLAYER. ALL WARRIORS PREPARE FOR COMBAT. HE MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO ENTER"

The Doom Slayer? HERE?! forget running from her own kind. His savagery was legendary. He never rested, and hunted demon kind for millennium without resting. Faster than even her fleet-footed species, and stronger than a Baron. There was no greater warrior. She weighed her options. She couldn't outrun him. She certainly couldn't outfight him. She would have to do what she did best. Hide. She swiftly moved to her best hidden space. A crack in a wall, in a scarcely used passage. Only she was small enough to fit through the crack.

….

As he approached the large mountain, he could make out holes in the wall. It was a demon fortress cut into a mountain. It was hollow and likely contained many thousands of demons. This thought brought a small smile to his face. IT IS TIME. He approached the large gates and was met with heavy resistance. Plasma guns and cannons fired wildly trying to hit him, to no avail. He deftly dodged their shots and advanced. He ran right up to a warrior using a shotgun, dodged the first blast, ripped the weapon from the demons hands, taking his hands with it. And as the demon screamed in pain as it bled from both arms, the Marine landed a solid kick to the demons chest, likely collapsing a lung. Now he would either die from blood loss or suffocate on his own blood.

He pulled the shells from the weapon tossing it aside and loaded his super shotgun. He got to work, ripping and tearing demons left and right, using their own removed limbs as clubs when he ran low on ammunition. The gate to the fortress was sealed. And he was unsure how to open it. He sighted a slain Mancubus and decided to use its cannon to blow open the door. In mere seconds the mighty door was torn asunder. And inward he went.

…..

Muffled explosions and crashes could be heard from her hiding spot. The Doom Slayer was here. He had made it into the fortress. It was only a matter of time before all within would perish. The queen was likely pumping out as many warriors as she could to fend him off. All it would do is slow him. Had they not heard? The Titan himself could not defeat him. The Titan! Who reached past the sky and that no one had ever even wounded in battle. She knew her only possible chance of survival was to wait until he had left.

…

The gunfire and screaming ceased after a few hours. The fortress was often bustling with activity. Brawls, rapes, all manner of normal demon activity. Now, it was deathly silent. And she had a feeling that deathly was exactly the word to describe the silence. She was unsure if she should venture out. But she had not eaten for a few days before this ordeal, and was very hungry.

….

Several hours later, she decided it was safe enough to venture out. She was literally starving. She slid out the crack and looked down the hall. Nothing. She moved to her normal living area. As she approached it, she began to smell blood. It was hardwired into the demon brain. It was strange. It was demon blood, to be sure, but it smelled….rank and putrid. As if the demons were in horrible fear before death. She could smell their emotions before death. It gave her a horrible chill. She got nearer to her destination and saw the bodies.

She had never witnessed such carnage. Demons fought savagely, to be sure. But this...sheer hatred and rage that must possess the Doom Slayer when he fights must be absolutely horrifying. He truly was stronger and more demonic than even the mightiest demons. She continued down the corridor, slowly. She was on her way to the flesh farm, where ancient humans were collected and bred for meat. The process had been automated centuries ago. And she was able to find the machines still working. She ate her fill of the meat, rapidly, not wanting to remain long. As she moved to an adjacent corridor she found ever more bodies and more incredible carnage. Here a Knight was impaled with a broken off Barons horn. Here an Imp, one of her own, had its entire chest cavity caved in by a boot print against a wall, embedding his body into it. Once again, she felt a horrible chill run down her spine.

She decided that her best course of action was to move to the eastern side of the fortress, where she had a small encampment in a broken wall. It would be a good place to hole up. Comfortable bed, water. She had a view of one of the larger courtyards and would be able to see anything coming for a good distance. Hopefully.

She approached cautiously, for she would have to run across some fairly open ground to reach her spot. She looked across the courtyard and saw no movement. She ran as fast as she could to get to her spot. When she approached it however, she found a massive hole in the wall, revealing the passage she had hollowed. It was now big enough for a much larger creature to fit inside, such as a Knight. It looked like a stray rocket had done the damage. She had little choice though, and moved inside slowly. She heard breathing inside. But she couldn't tell what it was. Every demon sounded a bit different. And she had learned to recognize their sounds. She moved in a bit closer. It was dim and her eyes had to adjust to the light. She could make out a massive bipedal figure. It looked the size of a Knight. But the sound was all wrong. Deeper, and less raspy. It was leaning up against the wall. It was...HIM.

…

She was still trying to catch her breath, after fleeing from the hole. It was HIM. The Doom Slayer. Here. IN HER HIDING SPOT TAKING A NAP. What the name of everything unholy was happening? He slaughtered thousands of her kind, and then he takes a nice nap! Though realistically, the less of her kind were around the better her chances of survival. So in a way he had helped her out. She laughed at this notion. And then an idea crossed her mind. A terrible one. So bad. And so ludicrous, that she figured she must be in shock from the days events to even have the thought. What if I hooked up with HIM? If I survived, surely my intelligence and his strength would make the greatest demon babies ever. And seriously, it would probably do wonders for my survival. Demon females gain a portion of their mates demonic energy during the act, and they use that to create the new demon as well as improve their own bodies. Think of the power surge I would get from him!

She continued to think on this incredible thought for another few minutes. And she found herself walking back towards the hiding spot. And HIM. She crept inside. And he was still there. Same position. She looked closer this time and saw that his face was visible, and his helmet off to the side. A strong jawline, short brown hair, and not unlike some humans she had seen captured by other demon warriors. But there was something...odd about it. She looked upon his face and it was..somehow familiar. She had only seen a handful of humans. Mostly being tortured for trying to summon demons to do their bidding. And she was SURE she had never seen the Doom Slayer before. Yet still his face was familiar. She had a strange image flash through her mind, that of the Doom Slayer taking her hand and pulling her along with him. But he was different. Younger. And her hand was different too. White. Not red. And no claws. It was the strangest thing she had ever experienced. It was like a memory, but that was impossible. No way. She was only a few hundred years old.

But she had heard of other demons going to earth and recognizing places they had never been. It was thought that the souls of demons were those of humans who had not gone to heaven for one reason or another. Some sin prevented it. And they were reborn into the horrible life of a demon. Could she be having visions of….a past life? Where she knew the Doom Slayer? He was not wearing armor in her vision. He was smaller. More like most humans. And, dare she say, handsome. She felt a strange attraction to him. She watched him as he slept. And inched closer. Soon she was only a foot away, and studying his facial features. She saw many scars. Some from burns, some from cuts. Battle damage from his countless victories. No living demon had ever faced him and lived. And those that damaged him at all, were killed the most violently in retribution.

She was so lost in her thoughts and visions she did not see him stir. His hand shot up from his side grabbing her neck and pinning her to the wall as he drew his shotgun and placed it against her head. "NO! PLEASE SPARE ME! I KNOW YOUR FACE!" she screamed as he pulled the trigger.

….

CLICK. He heard as the hammers dropped on empty chambers. He was upset now. He took a nap and this demon snuck up on him. And then he must have been so tired that he had forgotten to reload. He decided instead to crush the demons throat, slowly. And then he stopped. And realized that the demon was begging for its life. No. Her life. It was a female. Probably an Imp based on size and coloration. And it was speaking. English. To him. It was trying to talk to him. And he understood it. Then it dawned on him that the demon had said to him that she knew his face. And he looked, through bloodshot eyes filled with rage. And saw something. Saw something ghastly. Something he had not seen in lifetimes of battle. Not since well before the ancient history that was the first demon invasion of Mars, a thousand years ago. The memory was hazy. But he could still see her face. Dead on the ground. Suicide. His wife.

….

Delilah was petrified, struggling to breathe. She managed to choke out a few words, "Please don't kill me! I didn't try to hurt you! I swear! Please spare me!" and she felt his grip relax ever so slightly.

…

It was the reason he was sent to mars in the first place. He was a Marine. He committed a murder. The man who killed his son. That was the reason his wife had killed herself, with his own gun. She couldn't handle the grief. And so in a fit of absolute rage at the utter loss of his family, he tracked down the man who did it and killed him with his bare hands. The judge ruled it a fitting punishment, and dropped the charges. But the military didn't agree. They shipped his ass off to mars as punishment.

But this incredible feeling. In almost a thousand years of combat, not once had he even considered showing mercy to one of these demons. He recognized her face. It wasn't a perfect replica of his wife's, but the lines were right, and the eyes….those beautiful golden eyes that could look right through his troubled soul and calm him no matter what happened. There was no mistaking it. She resembled his wife. Her petite figure, delicate hands, even though they had claws now. He could easily crush her in an instant. That was always the case. With her, and with his young son was the only time he was ever gentle. His strength was significant before his godlike powers were bestowed upon him. And when he held her in his arms she was able to soften his heart, just enough to crack his armor. And he realized that this demon girl kept screaming that she knew him and to not kill her. He had never heard a demon speak anything he could understand. He was, for the first time in a millennium, curious. Not angry. Not raging. Not focused on getting through his current location. He was….curious? Yes. That was the feeling. He had forgotten the word.

…...

Delilah felt his grip loosen and release her, as she fell to the ground panting. She thought she would die any second…...but the sweet embrace of death did not come. She looked up at him from the ground, and saw that he was reloading his shotgun. Well I guess he will just shoot me now. And she closed her eyes in anticipation. And yet again, he did not kill her. She opened her eyes, and saw that he was gone. He had left her there.

…..

Despite his curiosity, he felt it was some sort of trick by the demons. He felt some sort of deception at work. It was his nature to be cautious and skeptical. And despite every rational instinct telling him to kill her, he couldn't do it. He was feeling...something. He thought it might be the memories of his previous life. Back then, before the armies of hell invaded mars. He decided to move on and get away from the situation.

…..

She was still in shock from the experience. She had never been that close to death. Never. She was always too cautious. And too careful. She had completely forgotten about her idea to try to make super demons with him. She was consumed by these visions that swam through her mind. Why do I remember this? It makes no sense. Unless….in my previous life, I was his….lover?

…

He heard a noise behind him. And sighted the imp girl again. He instinctively pointed his gun at her, and she stared at him from a distance. She was truly tiny. Much smaller than any imp he had seen before. It was a wonder how she had survived for any length of time. She must have been very good at running and hiding. He decided she was no possible threat to him, and lowered his weapon. He kept his finger on the trigger though. And she slowly approached him from across the room. She eventually stood before him. Looking into his visor, for he had his helmet on now. He took his helmet off. And carefully looked her over. She was about 5 foot tall. Very petite, even for an imp. And he could not get over the fact that she looked like his wife. He beckoned her closer. And went down to one knee. She offered her hand, claws and all. They were small claws. Not even sharp. Small and probably good for something other than killing innocents. He took her hand, and held it gently. With a tenderness he had not used for a thousand years. And he gently squeezed her hand and smiled.

…

She gazed upon his face as he smiled and was captured by his expression. He was very handsome. And he was looking at her with a...tenderness she had never before witnessed. He gently tugged on her hand and pulled her close to him. He wrapped his arms around her and squeezed gently, affectionately. She was happy. This...man. She had finally found something meaningful. He put his mouth to her ear and cleared his throat.

"Rip, and tear" he whispered.

He squeezed her body so tightly she could feel her ribs snapping, and she yelled out in pain. He pushed her against the wall and formed a fist with his right hand, plunging it straight through her sternum and severing her spine, as well as lungs and heart. Her lower body went slack, with the nerves cut. And she looked into his eyes with tears, as he threw what was left of her body to the ground and left her to bleed out. In her final moments, she thought to herself, we did this to him….