Disclaimer: I do NOT own gargoyles; they belong to Buinavista. Jericho
and Damien belong to Christine Morgan even though I have used them in a
different setting. Doom belongs to ID, and everyone else belongs to me.
Unknown (Demona)
Demona awoke to a horrible smell close to rotten eggs mixed with raw sewage. The next sense to return to her was touch, and gave her the benefit of the slightly warm air running over her. Then came hearing. This did not please Demona since she heard what sounded like large animals around the building somewhere. The last thing to come was sight. As Demona looked around she saw that she was in what looked like a dimly lit corridor. And what was coming up the corridor appeared to be a shaved gorilla with horns, hooves, a HUGE mouth full of sharp fangs, and a very pissed attitude. It was growling and charging her like it was going to kill her. Demona was put in such a state of shock that she could not move a muscle. The beast was almost to her when she heard what sounded like a double barrel shotgun go off. The monster suddenly careened and fell over due to the fact that it was missing most of its innards. Demona whipped around and saw a man in green armor and reloading what appeared to be an assault shotgun. He had not only the look of a seasoned warrior but he was incredibly quick. Demona could only help but admire this man who even put MacBeth's skill to shame. Behind him was another shape she would know anywhere. "Jericho" Demona cried out as she stumbled toward him. Jericho whipped around cried her name out as he hurried towards her. He caught her just as she began to fall and embraced her. This only served to confuse her more since the last thing she remembered was being thrown into the pit by the hunter. She pulled back to question him more but he simply soothed her and told the man that we should go back to base camp. The man simply smirked and led the way with his shotgun at ready.
* * * * * * * * * * * * Base Camp
"Where are we?" asked Demona after dinner and a nap. "Hell" was Jericho's only response. "WHAT?!" "You remember Damien and how I went into the pit." "Yes, but ..." was the only response Demona's reeling mind could come up with. "We both came through that portal" continued Jericho "and that portal lead to Hell. This IS Hell. But only not the way we thought. First off we are not only in the future but we are also in another universe." This only got a shocked stare from Demona. "In this universe scientists unlocked a gate to Hell and Hell decided to invade." At this point the man came back into the room. "He" Jericho waved at the man "is a space marine who was a part of the team sent to investigate the disturbance on Phobos. Upon arriving he was assigned to patrol while the rest of the team made the assault. His whole team was massacred and left him with only a pistol. He fought by talent and skill all the way to Hell's portal and closed it. There he took on the name of 'Doom' and returned to Earth in a stolen ship. On earth Doom found Hell had made its presence known. He led a team of the world's elite warriors into a spaceport to capture a spaceship so humanity could leave Earth. His team was scattered and smashed, but Doom once again fought a solo action and smashed through to their portal saving humanity. After humanity left Doom went through the portal to Hell. He wanted to settle the score." At this point Doom took up the story noticing both Jericho's exhaustion and Demona's look of awe. "I was fighting through the legions of Hell when I suddenly saw Jericho and another gargoyle come through what looked like a portal. Jericho was knocked unconscious and the other one flew away. I was just about to blow away Jericho when he awoke and mumbled something about Demona. Seeing how none of the other hostile I fought could speak and I was busy with a couple Barons of Hell at the moment I spared him. I simply camped right there and when Jericho awoke again I dragged him back to my base camp." Suddenly the alarms went off and both Jericho and Doom shot out of their chairs and raced for the doorway grabbing whatever weapons came to hand. Demona too got up, albeit much more slowly, and hurried to the door snatching what looked like a plasma cannon from a rack. As I reached the roof I heard Doom curse and whirled to gaze over the edge of the building. Coming at the building was what looked like an army of monsters. In the front were about ten brown humanoids that had razor spikes coming from their joints. Behind them were about five of what appeared to be a creature that had goat legs, horns, and a pink chest that would have matched Goliaths buff ness. And in the very back was a creature about twice the size of a human and looked half like the pink monsters and half like a robot with its huge rocket launcher. While all this sank in the brown creatures suddenly launched fireballs, the pink ones green plasma balls, and the cyborg rockets. These projectiles flew everywhere and the surrounding area turned into a wasteland. Doom instantly called Jericho to fly over and get the monsters to shoot each other then muttered to himself about never having a quiet night. Then he let loose with a rocket into the middle while Jericho glided over the army through incoming fire and sprayed them with his chain gun. The monsters immediately erupted into chaos as they fought each other to the death, spraying gore all over the place. Doom and Jericho's shots suddenly became much more precise as they picked off the monsters still coming against them. Demona suddenly remembered the gun in her hands and target a pink monster firing green plasma at them. I pulled the trigger and expected a kick. Nothing happened so I pulled the trigger a couple more times and still nothing. Then I heard the low whine and the gun erupted as a ball of near blinding energy at the beast. In the after math the only thing left in the area of the impact was a crater and some red mist. However I did notice Doom's smirk as he finished of the cyborg with another rocket that blew entrails everywhere. With the battle winding down Jericho returned to the battlement and swapped the monstrous gun in my claws with a shotgun. "Saves ammo" was his only comment. We went back to polishing off the rest.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Base Camp - A weak latter
I emerged from my quarters in the armor I had swapped for my regular halter and loincloth and headed for the mess hall. As I passed Doom's quarters I recalled his stony visage. For all my hatred of humanity I had yet to find something to hate about him. Physically he was slightly larger than the regular man but built like a tank with his exterior made from the titanium steal of his armor. His personality was even more shocking. He was the epitome of a warrior, human or gargoyle. I thought I had patience and discipline but even I could not compare to him. Doom's life had drilled so much cold patience into him that he scared me. And that was a pretty hard thing given my millennium long life. Doom's experience in the raw combat of Hell left him with many abilities though. Doom had an ability to withstand anything that crossed his way and not be daunted, be it horror or weirdness. I bet he could take out all of Clan Wyvern with his bare hands. He had only offered me and Jericho sanctuary in exchange for help with his quest. * * * * * * * * * * * *
Five days earlier (flashback)
There was a lull in the carnage that was now my life. The demons of our current room were dead and Doom had locked the doors down, securing ourselves for a time. Jericho was going over the corpses in a detached manner looking for spare ammo. After collecting all the ammo we started going through the other items as needed. Jericho and I started collecting armor plates while Doom patched up his wounds with a medkit. Suddenly he let out a surprised gasp. Jericho turned to see what he found and Doom held up a syringe. "A Berserker Steroid." He said smiling. After carefully putting away all his weapons he got out his brass knuckles. Then he injected himself with the serum. Doom's blood vessels in his eyes burst in size completely filling his eyes with a deep red. His muscles visibly bulged and lengthened. The armor he wore barely fit any more. With more grace than any other human I had ever witnessed he went over to the last door. The door hissed open revealing a sight that made my blood run cold. There stood a massive Baron of Hell. I had the opportunity of coming into close quarters with one once. Doom and Jericho had a damn hard time finding all the pieces of my body after the encounter. And that was all I needed to forever more retreat from this threat. As I backed up snatching for my rocket launcher Doom did something that shocked enough to make me just stare. He smiled evilly and with speed that not even a gargoyle could match smashed his fist into the beasts stomach. As it doubled over in intense pain it tried to swipe at Doom with glowing hands. Doom laughed as he sidestepped easily and brought both fists down into the small of its back knocking the Baron of Hell to its knees. Then he reached down and easily just twisted the stunned demon's head around breaking its neck. Then without even trying he ripped its head right off. I could do nothing but gape. This man had just mutilated a creature any other being would have run in terror from. And come out with out a scratch. It just made me shiver at the thought of what he could do to me if I had tried to attack him. I doubt even my immortality would have helped. Making up my mind I decided that I would make him teach Jericho and me. Even if I had to move hell to do it.
End Flashback
Doom taught us the skills we needed surprisingly fast. It probably was just all the available targets that helped us target. However the training and subsequent patrols changed my mate and me in another way than just better combat skills. After spending weeks fighting barbaric demons and living with Doom we had picked up some of the human qualities I hated the most. I had learned compassion, honor, and strangely enough forgiveness. This last emotion surprised both Jericho and me. After dealing with beings truly capable of the worst without regret and learning how to combat them we had begun to appreciate what we had shunned. You truly can't appreciate something until it is lost. Jericho also changed. He had become more independent and less passionate in battle. However this did not dampen his emotions, but rather enhanced them. Jericho gained for the first time in his life a sense of honor. To compliment this he also picked up a repulsion to hate, seeing it running through our foes. All this ran through my mind before I got to the mess hall. Upon entering I saw both Doom and Jericho sitting at the table discussing where to strike next. As I went to get my breakfast I gave Doom a mock salute, which caused him to smile, and Jericho a kiss to cause him to smile even more. Then I settled down next to them and review the maps while they argued. Half way through breakfast I spotted something and decided to speak up. "What is this?" I asked pointing to a place on the map circled in red. "That" Doom spat out "is the Citadel I assaulted and almost died over." "Well, maybe we should try it again if you failed." I replied while wondering what could possibly have repulsed Doom's efforts. Doom's only reply was a grunt of approval. "We will go reconnoiter it for possible entrees by air" came Jericho's hasty command. He grabbed my hand and headed for the roof leaving a melancholy Doom. As we were gliding towards the Citadel I hissed a Jericho, eyes blazing "Why did you tear me away like that?" "Because Doom almost lost his humanity along with his life at that place and it shook him to the core." Jericho answered before turning away. I did not know what shocked me more, the fact that Jericho stood up for Doom, how much I was changed in accepting that answer, or the fact that Doom had been shaken to the core. As a result I was locked in such deep turmoil over my change that I did not see the being pop out of the portal before I ran right into him and collapsed knocking both of us out of the sky.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Base Camp -Latter that evening-
I awoke woozy in my quarters not knowing how long I had been asleep. I looked around and immediately spotted Jericho still in his armor. He immediately started for her to help me up. "What happened?" I asked. "You ran into Wraith after he came through a portal." "WHAT?? Whose Wraith." "I'll take you to him." With that Jericho turned and helped me up. Then he supported me since I was still groggy and led me out to the mess hall. There we found Doom and the mysterious Wraith just staring at each other. Wraith was a huge humanoid that looked like he was little bit taller than Goliath and even more buff. But all of this hard to tell because he had on an equally huge blood red cape that covered his entire body and some of the floor. This cape added to his mysterious effect because it seemed to be always moving, almost alive. Extending above his cape was a collar that reached about six inches above his head adding not only to his height but also cast his entire head in shadows. His head was also strange. It was completely covered in a mask like the hunter except that it was completely black. The only thing noticeable was his eyes. They were glowing solid green. I picked all of this up on a matter of seconds. Then he turned and noticed us standing in the doorway. Wraith stood and did not walk but sort of glided like a ghost over to us and stopped a couple of feet away. He extended his arm to clasp my forearm in the warrior's way and I saw that not only that I was right about his size but also that he was covered in a black armor that also looked alive. Then he turned and spoke to Jericho in a low dark voice that told of near unbearable experiences. "Hello, Jericho of Avalon." This statement was met with astonishment on most parts since only Jericho and I knew where he had come from. After this shock resided we all sat down for a long talk.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Base Camp -The next night-
I could still not believe Wraith's story now that he had finished it. It was simply unbelievable even for me. To have myself told my entire reality was simply a cartoon show and stories in his universe. Then to be told I was now in a computer game of his universe. It simply shattered the meaning of life to believe that all life is simply a work of the imagination. But then his story got weirder. Wraith told of how he was a teenager transported to a different Hell by a portal and was transformed by his living armor into a warrior beyond comprehension even in his universe. He told of how since he had not died he became a thing a kin to hybrid of angel and devil resulting in a god. After that he had to fight his way out and nearly died but was transported to a different universe where vampires ruled Earth. There he learned so great a sorcery he could easily beat even Oberon. It was also there that Wraith learned how to go to different dimensions. Wraith then traveled and learned. He went to such places as Dune and Oz. Eventually Wraith had become the ultimate in just about every thing. Then he found his way back to his own universe and life but was outcast by the society. He was still in many ways a teenager and therefore set out on his quest to live his life in all of his favorite stories. However one day when he was roughly nineteen he reentered the Hell where he got his armor. Once there he came to the life shattering decision to become the ultimate guardian and so set out to conquer hell. The next thing he said I refuse to believe. Wraith claimed to have killed a God! He said he slew the devil that ran the place. However the battle not only drained him but also caused a cataclysm. Henceforth he decided to be more careful but still traveled the dimensions. Which then let him wind up here, once again in Hell. After he finished his story we were all in a state of shock. Then the perimeter alarms went off and all of us but Wraith dashed for the weapon bins. He simply rose and floated up to the roof. When we were all on the roof we beheld a site that made even Doom pale. Outstretched before us was an army of Demons, Hell Knights, Barons of Hell, Pain Elementals, Cyberdemons, and worst of all Arch Viles. There was enough power coming at us to steamroll an army. Wraith just shook his head like the enemy was making a futile attempt. That got him looks from the rest of us like he was insane. Wraith simply leapt of the roof and then something really strange happened. His cape billowed around him and looked as if it had extended to a length of fifteen feet and he drifted down to the ground with out so much as a whisper. Then Wraith floated out towards the army alone and we all just stared. All of a sudden the entire army let loose a torrent of fire at him and he simply floated right into it. There was a blinding explosion and we all simply stood there wondering if there was anything left of that fool. When we regained our vision we all slumped with shock. There standing the middle of a fifty-foot crater was Wraith simply shaking his head in a disgusted manner as if nothing had even happened. When Hell's army saw this they did something I thought would never, ever happen. They fled. Wraith simply turned around and floated back to us. We all learned something that day.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Citadel -the next night-
The attack was on. As we stormed the citadel Hells forces only got worse. I had my life repentance and fury to extract, so who better to kill than Hells minions. Wraith had helped us tremendously. He had given us all a sort of mini-necro armor. I had to hand it to Wraith. The armor was amazing. It provided not only unparalleled protection against many things but also whatever the wearer instinctively needed. This let Doom have a set of wings, and therefore we arrived by air. As we had landed inside the top of the citadel there was quite a welcoming comity but nothing that a couple BFG9000 blasts hadn't taken care of. From our entrance we had to work down to the bottom, which proved to be quite satisfying. Doom had quickly learned that the armor held a stash of medical goodies including a 'berserker'. So now he was running around fighting with a vengeance and a glow in his eyes that would have done any Gargoyle proud. As for Jericho and I, we were taking care of any of the more resilient baddies with our plasma rifles. Wraith was not helping though. He was out in the city exterminating the rest of hell's army. And from the massive explosions shaking the citadel leveling most of the city as well. About half way down we entered a really bizarre room. There were twenty Barons of Hell and five Archviles. But they were all facing a dark cage in the center of the room. And none of them were paying us the slightest heed. So we decided to take care of their over sight and let loose a torrent of energy into their midst. The five Archviles and two Barons were the first to fall. However as the rest of them turned to face us the inside of the cage erupted in a blaze. A fire blast like that of an Archvile incinerated two Barons of Hell. Two rockets terminated the existence of another pair of Barons. Green plasma characteristic of the Barons of Hell and Hell Knights took out three more. A ball of Cacodemon lightning arched between another three. And high caliber chaingun slugs tore apart another five. The remaining five Barons whirled back on the cage hoping to prevent another volley but we quickly taught them that our presence was not best ignored. As their remains splattered against the walls we carefully peered into the cage. The enemy of my enemy is my friend may be true elsewhere but in Hell practically everything is your enemy. Since nothing could be discerned from the dark cage Doom carefully flicked the switch that unlocked the door. The door slowly creaked open and he stepped out. The man that emerged was gorgeous. There was just no other way to describe it, unless you consider insanely handsome an alternative. He could have been anywhere for fifteen to thirty but at first glance one would put his age at early twenties. Dark chestnut hair fell loosely down to his shoulders. His hazelnut eyes took in everything but gave no suggestion as to his thoughts. His perfect lips were quirked into a barely amused smirk. He was wearing a dark cloak over his white tunic that gave him a faintly angelic appearance. His beige pants emerging from under the tunic were tucked into dark leather boots that looked both ancient and futuristic at the same time. Of an immense height with a medium build he still seemed to give off an aurora of shear power. And as he strode with unimaginable grace towards us I could do naught but stare. While barely shorter than Jericho all of us cowered as if a god strode into our midst. "Hello warriors." Were his first words to us. "My thanks to you for freeing me from my confines." "Who are you?" Doom demanded ever the soldier. The stranger chuckled. "I am Lucifer." "And what are you doing here?" "Well that is a truly long story but the short version would be that when Hell was conquered my father, the previous ruler of Hell, implanted his consciousness in these, creatures, computer. Since then he has tried to prevent them from succeeding at anything without letting onto himself. While he was originally successful latter they caught on to him and he knew it. So when they tried to make a composite being with enough intelligence to take out you Doom he covertly changed the programming. He made it ten times more deadly and inserted a version of himself into the creature. Me." He finished. "You mean that you were made to annihilate me. But you have no weapons about you now." Doom inquired. "Quite so." Was all Lucifer said before an inferno burst out where he was standing. When it died down the monster that stood there shocked us all. Taller than a cyberdemon its head was that of a pain elemental and body of a baron of hell. Jutting from its shoulders were a pair of rocket launchers and huge chain guns were mounted in its forearms. Crossing its arms it chuckled in a deep voice. "In this body I have access to the weapons of any demonic for you have ever faced and twice the endurance." It stated in a deep voice. With another inferno he converted back to his human form again. "So, still think I am unarmed?" he asked smirking. We could do not but stare at him. "Well if even half of what you say is true then I would have been dead long ago. Would you care to join us Lucifer?" Doom asked. "Gladly Doom, oh and I do have one other form." A whirlwind suddenly formed around him and a pair of white feathery wings burst from his back. Along with his wings his tunic was replaced by armor and a sword materialized in his right hand. "This" he informed us "is my angelic form and is actually what my father looked like when he was banished. Both the armor and sword are his." Smiling knowingly at our astonishment he just indicated the doorway to remind us of our purpose. Our group charged back into battle with Lucifer and his sword joining us in battle. Then after a room with five Cyberdemons we reached a huge door with a bloody star inscribed on it. We all knew that meant that the king of the dead was beyond. Hence we all got out our BFG9000 and checked to make sure we had full ammo. Then we blew the door open with three simultaneous BFG9000 blasts and walked through. The sight of what was within shall be forever be etched into my mind. We were in a room about the size of a football field. The opposite wall was one entire being with a huge head. The head had horns, fangs, and what looked like a rectangle about three by four feet cut into it's skull. However instead of brains there was a gold lava look. And floating right above him was Damien with his arms stretched upwards in praise of his master. The silence was unbroken for a second then Doom stepped forward, aimed his BFG9000, and fired. The blinding blast sailed right at Damien but was intercepted by Damien's witch blast. All of a sudden I felt the Necromancy that was permeating the room like pea soup. Then the beast behind Damien opened its eyes. It eyes spotted us and filled with a vengeful gleam. From the rectangle came a square of molten gold. It touched down on the platform and erupted into a three-meter blaze. And from this blaze came an Arch Vile. After that every one went into action. The beast began spewing squares at an amazing rate. Jericho, Doom, and I all let loose blasts on what ever came from the beasts infinite army. Lucifer leapt into the air to challenge Damien. The ensuing battle was gory at best and is still only a vague imprint on my mind. Then it was interrupted by a massive blast. The entire wall opposite the beast exploded in. And standing there was Wraith. But it was not how he had appeared earlier. His cape was gone and around him was a shining black aurora of energy. His hair was spiking strait up as if held there by some force. And in his hands were two Cyberdemons. He just grinned then flexed and before our eyes the Cyberdemons evaporated as massive amounts of energy engulfed them. The only thing left were some ashes. He stared up at Damien and Lucifer smiling evilly. Raising his hand a massive beam swept up towards them. Lucifer barely dogged but Damien was caught in the maelstrom of energy. When the smoke dissipated he was only singed. However the roof did not fare as well since three quarters of it were now gone as well as anything above. Lowering his arm Wraith stared at Damien then disappeared. Not ran away disappear but into thin air disappear. Damien did as well and suddenly dozens of concussions waves washed over the room. Bodies were hurled in random directions as we tried to hang on. The monsters fared worse since they were slower; they smashed into each other and the walls hard enough to rip themselves apart. Suddenly Damien appeared again and slammed into the far wall hard enough to make a three- foot crater when he bounced. He was in horrible shape as he tried to rise. Blood everywhere and even bones thrust into the air in some spots. Wraith appeared in the air above him in much better shape with only some blood trickling out of his mouth. Plus he looked thoroughly pissed. When he leveled his palm with Damien this time every one knew it would be a killing blow. And so it was for when the blast cleared all that was left was a body charred beyond recognition. Then turning his attention to the demonic mastermind he extended both hands towards it. The resulting blast left us all temporarily blinded. And when we regained our sight the view scared us all. Where it had been there was just a huge trench reaching miles outside of the city. Wraith humped and floated back towards base camp through our shell-shocked members. We had finally done it. We had defeated Hell's master. However slumped upon the dais was poor Damien's crumpled body. We all brought the body back to base camp with an air sorrowful exhaustion.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Base Camp -latter that night-
"WHAT??" I screeched at what Wraith just said. He kindly repeated it to Jericho and me. "I can turn Damien back into an egg to live again." This had shocked both my mate and me past words. Our new outlook on life had made us intensely sorry for our past wrongs. The chance to correct even one of them boggled us. "However" Wraith continued "you both must fully wish this for it to happen." "Of course" we both said at once. At this Wraith brought in the unconscious Damien and instructed us to turn our thoughts toward him and his mission. Wraith began to collect his energy and suddenly connected with Jericho's and mine too. After this he spread his arms over Damien and focused. The next thing will also be etched into my mind forever. Damien floated up and was enshrouded in a bubble that grew opaque. Then the bubble shrank to the size on an egg and popped to reveal the egg Jericho had taken from Angela. This caused such joy and happiness to over come me that it scared me. When we were done Wraith left with out a word. I gave the egg to Jericho and ran after Wraith. "Wraith!" I called after him. He turned and simply glanced at me. Then Wraith beckoned to me to follow him. As I fell into step with him he glanced at me. "Yes, Demona." "What are you doing?" "I am going back to the citadel." "WHAT?? Why?" At this he simply and said, "To open the gate back to your world Demona." At this I simply stopped and watched him retreat. Then I turned and saw Jericho right behind me with an eyebrow lifted in query. "Lets go rest." was all I said before turning in for the night. When I awoke in the evening I got dressed and walked out into the hallway. Voices were coming from the mess hall, so that's where I headed after checking in on Jericho's stone form. As I entered the mess hall I saw that Wraith and Doom were in a discussion. "Why not come back with us?" Wraith was saying. "I don't know." Replied Doom indecisively. Wraith decided to push the matter. "There is nothing for you here. You will never be able to return to your life here. But you could come with the Gargoyles and me. I am going to open the portal tonight." At this I instantly spoke up. "You are coming to our world Wraith?" They both looked up. Doom had a look of defeat in his eyes that comes after you have won it all in a do or die situation but are coming back to nothing. Wraith simply looked and nodded to my question before going back to his discussion. "We could use your skills and your friendship." He continued. Doom simply rested his head on his hands and rubbed his eyes. Eventually he looked up and merely nodded his ascent. I caught the man who had become a father and mentor to me up in a crushing hug. As I let Doom go he was wearing such a shocked expression I couldn't help but laugh. This elicited a chuckle from Wraith and a grumble about women in general from Jericho.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Citadel -one hour after midnight-
We were all standing in the chamber of the beast. Is gazed about taking in the looks on my family. My family, clan, those words Jericho said still had not lost their joyful ring. I could not believe I had changed so much. A weak and a half ago I would have ripped any human apart before even considering my new outlook on life. Doom and Jericho were standing of to the side and talking like life long friends. As I sauntered over I realized that they were joking about Jericho's reaction when he awoke. I had heard the story before and it still made me chuckle. Jericho, being the brash young warrior, had struck out at Doom due to his cold self-assured manner. And quickly learned why doom was so self- assured. After recovering from all his injuries Jericho decided to take his lumps in stride. A glance at Wraith showed that he was in deep thought. After a while of familiar banter between Jericho, Doom, and myself Wraith lifted his hands up and a geyser of magma like the one that had started this whole fiasco rose out of the floor in front of him. We all pulled out our BFG9000s not knowing what to expect and sidled closer to Wraith's familiar solitude. When all of us were close he gestured and a silver bubble formed around us. This bubble then entered into the geyser and rose. We were going home.
The End?
Unknown (Demona)
Demona awoke to a horrible smell close to rotten eggs mixed with raw sewage. The next sense to return to her was touch, and gave her the benefit of the slightly warm air running over her. Then came hearing. This did not please Demona since she heard what sounded like large animals around the building somewhere. The last thing to come was sight. As Demona looked around she saw that she was in what looked like a dimly lit corridor. And what was coming up the corridor appeared to be a shaved gorilla with horns, hooves, a HUGE mouth full of sharp fangs, and a very pissed attitude. It was growling and charging her like it was going to kill her. Demona was put in such a state of shock that she could not move a muscle. The beast was almost to her when she heard what sounded like a double barrel shotgun go off. The monster suddenly careened and fell over due to the fact that it was missing most of its innards. Demona whipped around and saw a man in green armor and reloading what appeared to be an assault shotgun. He had not only the look of a seasoned warrior but he was incredibly quick. Demona could only help but admire this man who even put MacBeth's skill to shame. Behind him was another shape she would know anywhere. "Jericho" Demona cried out as she stumbled toward him. Jericho whipped around cried her name out as he hurried towards her. He caught her just as she began to fall and embraced her. This only served to confuse her more since the last thing she remembered was being thrown into the pit by the hunter. She pulled back to question him more but he simply soothed her and told the man that we should go back to base camp. The man simply smirked and led the way with his shotgun at ready.
* * * * * * * * * * * * Base Camp
"Where are we?" asked Demona after dinner and a nap. "Hell" was Jericho's only response. "WHAT?!" "You remember Damien and how I went into the pit." "Yes, but ..." was the only response Demona's reeling mind could come up with. "We both came through that portal" continued Jericho "and that portal lead to Hell. This IS Hell. But only not the way we thought. First off we are not only in the future but we are also in another universe." This only got a shocked stare from Demona. "In this universe scientists unlocked a gate to Hell and Hell decided to invade." At this point the man came back into the room. "He" Jericho waved at the man "is a space marine who was a part of the team sent to investigate the disturbance on Phobos. Upon arriving he was assigned to patrol while the rest of the team made the assault. His whole team was massacred and left him with only a pistol. He fought by talent and skill all the way to Hell's portal and closed it. There he took on the name of 'Doom' and returned to Earth in a stolen ship. On earth Doom found Hell had made its presence known. He led a team of the world's elite warriors into a spaceport to capture a spaceship so humanity could leave Earth. His team was scattered and smashed, but Doom once again fought a solo action and smashed through to their portal saving humanity. After humanity left Doom went through the portal to Hell. He wanted to settle the score." At this point Doom took up the story noticing both Jericho's exhaustion and Demona's look of awe. "I was fighting through the legions of Hell when I suddenly saw Jericho and another gargoyle come through what looked like a portal. Jericho was knocked unconscious and the other one flew away. I was just about to blow away Jericho when he awoke and mumbled something about Demona. Seeing how none of the other hostile I fought could speak and I was busy with a couple Barons of Hell at the moment I spared him. I simply camped right there and when Jericho awoke again I dragged him back to my base camp." Suddenly the alarms went off and both Jericho and Doom shot out of their chairs and raced for the doorway grabbing whatever weapons came to hand. Demona too got up, albeit much more slowly, and hurried to the door snatching what looked like a plasma cannon from a rack. As I reached the roof I heard Doom curse and whirled to gaze over the edge of the building. Coming at the building was what looked like an army of monsters. In the front were about ten brown humanoids that had razor spikes coming from their joints. Behind them were about five of what appeared to be a creature that had goat legs, horns, and a pink chest that would have matched Goliaths buff ness. And in the very back was a creature about twice the size of a human and looked half like the pink monsters and half like a robot with its huge rocket launcher. While all this sank in the brown creatures suddenly launched fireballs, the pink ones green plasma balls, and the cyborg rockets. These projectiles flew everywhere and the surrounding area turned into a wasteland. Doom instantly called Jericho to fly over and get the monsters to shoot each other then muttered to himself about never having a quiet night. Then he let loose with a rocket into the middle while Jericho glided over the army through incoming fire and sprayed them with his chain gun. The monsters immediately erupted into chaos as they fought each other to the death, spraying gore all over the place. Doom and Jericho's shots suddenly became much more precise as they picked off the monsters still coming against them. Demona suddenly remembered the gun in her hands and target a pink monster firing green plasma at them. I pulled the trigger and expected a kick. Nothing happened so I pulled the trigger a couple more times and still nothing. Then I heard the low whine and the gun erupted as a ball of near blinding energy at the beast. In the after math the only thing left in the area of the impact was a crater and some red mist. However I did notice Doom's smirk as he finished of the cyborg with another rocket that blew entrails everywhere. With the battle winding down Jericho returned to the battlement and swapped the monstrous gun in my claws with a shotgun. "Saves ammo" was his only comment. We went back to polishing off the rest.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Base Camp - A weak latter
I emerged from my quarters in the armor I had swapped for my regular halter and loincloth and headed for the mess hall. As I passed Doom's quarters I recalled his stony visage. For all my hatred of humanity I had yet to find something to hate about him. Physically he was slightly larger than the regular man but built like a tank with his exterior made from the titanium steal of his armor. His personality was even more shocking. He was the epitome of a warrior, human or gargoyle. I thought I had patience and discipline but even I could not compare to him. Doom's life had drilled so much cold patience into him that he scared me. And that was a pretty hard thing given my millennium long life. Doom's experience in the raw combat of Hell left him with many abilities though. Doom had an ability to withstand anything that crossed his way and not be daunted, be it horror or weirdness. I bet he could take out all of Clan Wyvern with his bare hands. He had only offered me and Jericho sanctuary in exchange for help with his quest. * * * * * * * * * * * *
Five days earlier (flashback)
There was a lull in the carnage that was now my life. The demons of our current room were dead and Doom had locked the doors down, securing ourselves for a time. Jericho was going over the corpses in a detached manner looking for spare ammo. After collecting all the ammo we started going through the other items as needed. Jericho and I started collecting armor plates while Doom patched up his wounds with a medkit. Suddenly he let out a surprised gasp. Jericho turned to see what he found and Doom held up a syringe. "A Berserker Steroid." He said smiling. After carefully putting away all his weapons he got out his brass knuckles. Then he injected himself with the serum. Doom's blood vessels in his eyes burst in size completely filling his eyes with a deep red. His muscles visibly bulged and lengthened. The armor he wore barely fit any more. With more grace than any other human I had ever witnessed he went over to the last door. The door hissed open revealing a sight that made my blood run cold. There stood a massive Baron of Hell. I had the opportunity of coming into close quarters with one once. Doom and Jericho had a damn hard time finding all the pieces of my body after the encounter. And that was all I needed to forever more retreat from this threat. As I backed up snatching for my rocket launcher Doom did something that shocked enough to make me just stare. He smiled evilly and with speed that not even a gargoyle could match smashed his fist into the beasts stomach. As it doubled over in intense pain it tried to swipe at Doom with glowing hands. Doom laughed as he sidestepped easily and brought both fists down into the small of its back knocking the Baron of Hell to its knees. Then he reached down and easily just twisted the stunned demon's head around breaking its neck. Then without even trying he ripped its head right off. I could do nothing but gape. This man had just mutilated a creature any other being would have run in terror from. And come out with out a scratch. It just made me shiver at the thought of what he could do to me if I had tried to attack him. I doubt even my immortality would have helped. Making up my mind I decided that I would make him teach Jericho and me. Even if I had to move hell to do it.
End Flashback
Doom taught us the skills we needed surprisingly fast. It probably was just all the available targets that helped us target. However the training and subsequent patrols changed my mate and me in another way than just better combat skills. After spending weeks fighting barbaric demons and living with Doom we had picked up some of the human qualities I hated the most. I had learned compassion, honor, and strangely enough forgiveness. This last emotion surprised both Jericho and me. After dealing with beings truly capable of the worst without regret and learning how to combat them we had begun to appreciate what we had shunned. You truly can't appreciate something until it is lost. Jericho also changed. He had become more independent and less passionate in battle. However this did not dampen his emotions, but rather enhanced them. Jericho gained for the first time in his life a sense of honor. To compliment this he also picked up a repulsion to hate, seeing it running through our foes. All this ran through my mind before I got to the mess hall. Upon entering I saw both Doom and Jericho sitting at the table discussing where to strike next. As I went to get my breakfast I gave Doom a mock salute, which caused him to smile, and Jericho a kiss to cause him to smile even more. Then I settled down next to them and review the maps while they argued. Half way through breakfast I spotted something and decided to speak up. "What is this?" I asked pointing to a place on the map circled in red. "That" Doom spat out "is the Citadel I assaulted and almost died over." "Well, maybe we should try it again if you failed." I replied while wondering what could possibly have repulsed Doom's efforts. Doom's only reply was a grunt of approval. "We will go reconnoiter it for possible entrees by air" came Jericho's hasty command. He grabbed my hand and headed for the roof leaving a melancholy Doom. As we were gliding towards the Citadel I hissed a Jericho, eyes blazing "Why did you tear me away like that?" "Because Doom almost lost his humanity along with his life at that place and it shook him to the core." Jericho answered before turning away. I did not know what shocked me more, the fact that Jericho stood up for Doom, how much I was changed in accepting that answer, or the fact that Doom had been shaken to the core. As a result I was locked in such deep turmoil over my change that I did not see the being pop out of the portal before I ran right into him and collapsed knocking both of us out of the sky.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Base Camp -Latter that evening-
I awoke woozy in my quarters not knowing how long I had been asleep. I looked around and immediately spotted Jericho still in his armor. He immediately started for her to help me up. "What happened?" I asked. "You ran into Wraith after he came through a portal." "WHAT?? Whose Wraith." "I'll take you to him." With that Jericho turned and helped me up. Then he supported me since I was still groggy and led me out to the mess hall. There we found Doom and the mysterious Wraith just staring at each other. Wraith was a huge humanoid that looked like he was little bit taller than Goliath and even more buff. But all of this hard to tell because he had on an equally huge blood red cape that covered his entire body and some of the floor. This cape added to his mysterious effect because it seemed to be always moving, almost alive. Extending above his cape was a collar that reached about six inches above his head adding not only to his height but also cast his entire head in shadows. His head was also strange. It was completely covered in a mask like the hunter except that it was completely black. The only thing noticeable was his eyes. They were glowing solid green. I picked all of this up on a matter of seconds. Then he turned and noticed us standing in the doorway. Wraith stood and did not walk but sort of glided like a ghost over to us and stopped a couple of feet away. He extended his arm to clasp my forearm in the warrior's way and I saw that not only that I was right about his size but also that he was covered in a black armor that also looked alive. Then he turned and spoke to Jericho in a low dark voice that told of near unbearable experiences. "Hello, Jericho of Avalon." This statement was met with astonishment on most parts since only Jericho and I knew where he had come from. After this shock resided we all sat down for a long talk.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Base Camp -The next night-
I could still not believe Wraith's story now that he had finished it. It was simply unbelievable even for me. To have myself told my entire reality was simply a cartoon show and stories in his universe. Then to be told I was now in a computer game of his universe. It simply shattered the meaning of life to believe that all life is simply a work of the imagination. But then his story got weirder. Wraith told of how he was a teenager transported to a different Hell by a portal and was transformed by his living armor into a warrior beyond comprehension even in his universe. He told of how since he had not died he became a thing a kin to hybrid of angel and devil resulting in a god. After that he had to fight his way out and nearly died but was transported to a different universe where vampires ruled Earth. There he learned so great a sorcery he could easily beat even Oberon. It was also there that Wraith learned how to go to different dimensions. Wraith then traveled and learned. He went to such places as Dune and Oz. Eventually Wraith had become the ultimate in just about every thing. Then he found his way back to his own universe and life but was outcast by the society. He was still in many ways a teenager and therefore set out on his quest to live his life in all of his favorite stories. However one day when he was roughly nineteen he reentered the Hell where he got his armor. Once there he came to the life shattering decision to become the ultimate guardian and so set out to conquer hell. The next thing he said I refuse to believe. Wraith claimed to have killed a God! He said he slew the devil that ran the place. However the battle not only drained him but also caused a cataclysm. Henceforth he decided to be more careful but still traveled the dimensions. Which then let him wind up here, once again in Hell. After he finished his story we were all in a state of shock. Then the perimeter alarms went off and all of us but Wraith dashed for the weapon bins. He simply rose and floated up to the roof. When we were all on the roof we beheld a site that made even Doom pale. Outstretched before us was an army of Demons, Hell Knights, Barons of Hell, Pain Elementals, Cyberdemons, and worst of all Arch Viles. There was enough power coming at us to steamroll an army. Wraith just shook his head like the enemy was making a futile attempt. That got him looks from the rest of us like he was insane. Wraith simply leapt of the roof and then something really strange happened. His cape billowed around him and looked as if it had extended to a length of fifteen feet and he drifted down to the ground with out so much as a whisper. Then Wraith floated out towards the army alone and we all just stared. All of a sudden the entire army let loose a torrent of fire at him and he simply floated right into it. There was a blinding explosion and we all simply stood there wondering if there was anything left of that fool. When we regained our vision we all slumped with shock. There standing the middle of a fifty-foot crater was Wraith simply shaking his head in a disgusted manner as if nothing had even happened. When Hell's army saw this they did something I thought would never, ever happen. They fled. Wraith simply turned around and floated back to us. We all learned something that day.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Citadel -the next night-
The attack was on. As we stormed the citadel Hells forces only got worse. I had my life repentance and fury to extract, so who better to kill than Hells minions. Wraith had helped us tremendously. He had given us all a sort of mini-necro armor. I had to hand it to Wraith. The armor was amazing. It provided not only unparalleled protection against many things but also whatever the wearer instinctively needed. This let Doom have a set of wings, and therefore we arrived by air. As we had landed inside the top of the citadel there was quite a welcoming comity but nothing that a couple BFG9000 blasts hadn't taken care of. From our entrance we had to work down to the bottom, which proved to be quite satisfying. Doom had quickly learned that the armor held a stash of medical goodies including a 'berserker'. So now he was running around fighting with a vengeance and a glow in his eyes that would have done any Gargoyle proud. As for Jericho and I, we were taking care of any of the more resilient baddies with our plasma rifles. Wraith was not helping though. He was out in the city exterminating the rest of hell's army. And from the massive explosions shaking the citadel leveling most of the city as well. About half way down we entered a really bizarre room. There were twenty Barons of Hell and five Archviles. But they were all facing a dark cage in the center of the room. And none of them were paying us the slightest heed. So we decided to take care of their over sight and let loose a torrent of energy into their midst. The five Archviles and two Barons were the first to fall. However as the rest of them turned to face us the inside of the cage erupted in a blaze. A fire blast like that of an Archvile incinerated two Barons of Hell. Two rockets terminated the existence of another pair of Barons. Green plasma characteristic of the Barons of Hell and Hell Knights took out three more. A ball of Cacodemon lightning arched between another three. And high caliber chaingun slugs tore apart another five. The remaining five Barons whirled back on the cage hoping to prevent another volley but we quickly taught them that our presence was not best ignored. As their remains splattered against the walls we carefully peered into the cage. The enemy of my enemy is my friend may be true elsewhere but in Hell practically everything is your enemy. Since nothing could be discerned from the dark cage Doom carefully flicked the switch that unlocked the door. The door slowly creaked open and he stepped out. The man that emerged was gorgeous. There was just no other way to describe it, unless you consider insanely handsome an alternative. He could have been anywhere for fifteen to thirty but at first glance one would put his age at early twenties. Dark chestnut hair fell loosely down to his shoulders. His hazelnut eyes took in everything but gave no suggestion as to his thoughts. His perfect lips were quirked into a barely amused smirk. He was wearing a dark cloak over his white tunic that gave him a faintly angelic appearance. His beige pants emerging from under the tunic were tucked into dark leather boots that looked both ancient and futuristic at the same time. Of an immense height with a medium build he still seemed to give off an aurora of shear power. And as he strode with unimaginable grace towards us I could do naught but stare. While barely shorter than Jericho all of us cowered as if a god strode into our midst. "Hello warriors." Were his first words to us. "My thanks to you for freeing me from my confines." "Who are you?" Doom demanded ever the soldier. The stranger chuckled. "I am Lucifer." "And what are you doing here?" "Well that is a truly long story but the short version would be that when Hell was conquered my father, the previous ruler of Hell, implanted his consciousness in these, creatures, computer. Since then he has tried to prevent them from succeeding at anything without letting onto himself. While he was originally successful latter they caught on to him and he knew it. So when they tried to make a composite being with enough intelligence to take out you Doom he covertly changed the programming. He made it ten times more deadly and inserted a version of himself into the creature. Me." He finished. "You mean that you were made to annihilate me. But you have no weapons about you now." Doom inquired. "Quite so." Was all Lucifer said before an inferno burst out where he was standing. When it died down the monster that stood there shocked us all. Taller than a cyberdemon its head was that of a pain elemental and body of a baron of hell. Jutting from its shoulders were a pair of rocket launchers and huge chain guns were mounted in its forearms. Crossing its arms it chuckled in a deep voice. "In this body I have access to the weapons of any demonic for you have ever faced and twice the endurance." It stated in a deep voice. With another inferno he converted back to his human form again. "So, still think I am unarmed?" he asked smirking. We could do not but stare at him. "Well if even half of what you say is true then I would have been dead long ago. Would you care to join us Lucifer?" Doom asked. "Gladly Doom, oh and I do have one other form." A whirlwind suddenly formed around him and a pair of white feathery wings burst from his back. Along with his wings his tunic was replaced by armor and a sword materialized in his right hand. "This" he informed us "is my angelic form and is actually what my father looked like when he was banished. Both the armor and sword are his." Smiling knowingly at our astonishment he just indicated the doorway to remind us of our purpose. Our group charged back into battle with Lucifer and his sword joining us in battle. Then after a room with five Cyberdemons we reached a huge door with a bloody star inscribed on it. We all knew that meant that the king of the dead was beyond. Hence we all got out our BFG9000 and checked to make sure we had full ammo. Then we blew the door open with three simultaneous BFG9000 blasts and walked through. The sight of what was within shall be forever be etched into my mind. We were in a room about the size of a football field. The opposite wall was one entire being with a huge head. The head had horns, fangs, and what looked like a rectangle about three by four feet cut into it's skull. However instead of brains there was a gold lava look. And floating right above him was Damien with his arms stretched upwards in praise of his master. The silence was unbroken for a second then Doom stepped forward, aimed his BFG9000, and fired. The blinding blast sailed right at Damien but was intercepted by Damien's witch blast. All of a sudden I felt the Necromancy that was permeating the room like pea soup. Then the beast behind Damien opened its eyes. It eyes spotted us and filled with a vengeful gleam. From the rectangle came a square of molten gold. It touched down on the platform and erupted into a three-meter blaze. And from this blaze came an Arch Vile. After that every one went into action. The beast began spewing squares at an amazing rate. Jericho, Doom, and I all let loose blasts on what ever came from the beasts infinite army. Lucifer leapt into the air to challenge Damien. The ensuing battle was gory at best and is still only a vague imprint on my mind. Then it was interrupted by a massive blast. The entire wall opposite the beast exploded in. And standing there was Wraith. But it was not how he had appeared earlier. His cape was gone and around him was a shining black aurora of energy. His hair was spiking strait up as if held there by some force. And in his hands were two Cyberdemons. He just grinned then flexed and before our eyes the Cyberdemons evaporated as massive amounts of energy engulfed them. The only thing left were some ashes. He stared up at Damien and Lucifer smiling evilly. Raising his hand a massive beam swept up towards them. Lucifer barely dogged but Damien was caught in the maelstrom of energy. When the smoke dissipated he was only singed. However the roof did not fare as well since three quarters of it were now gone as well as anything above. Lowering his arm Wraith stared at Damien then disappeared. Not ran away disappear but into thin air disappear. Damien did as well and suddenly dozens of concussions waves washed over the room. Bodies were hurled in random directions as we tried to hang on. The monsters fared worse since they were slower; they smashed into each other and the walls hard enough to rip themselves apart. Suddenly Damien appeared again and slammed into the far wall hard enough to make a three- foot crater when he bounced. He was in horrible shape as he tried to rise. Blood everywhere and even bones thrust into the air in some spots. Wraith appeared in the air above him in much better shape with only some blood trickling out of his mouth. Plus he looked thoroughly pissed. When he leveled his palm with Damien this time every one knew it would be a killing blow. And so it was for when the blast cleared all that was left was a body charred beyond recognition. Then turning his attention to the demonic mastermind he extended both hands towards it. The resulting blast left us all temporarily blinded. And when we regained our sight the view scared us all. Where it had been there was just a huge trench reaching miles outside of the city. Wraith humped and floated back towards base camp through our shell-shocked members. We had finally done it. We had defeated Hell's master. However slumped upon the dais was poor Damien's crumpled body. We all brought the body back to base camp with an air sorrowful exhaustion.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Base Camp -latter that night-
"WHAT??" I screeched at what Wraith just said. He kindly repeated it to Jericho and me. "I can turn Damien back into an egg to live again." This had shocked both my mate and me past words. Our new outlook on life had made us intensely sorry for our past wrongs. The chance to correct even one of them boggled us. "However" Wraith continued "you both must fully wish this for it to happen." "Of course" we both said at once. At this Wraith brought in the unconscious Damien and instructed us to turn our thoughts toward him and his mission. Wraith began to collect his energy and suddenly connected with Jericho's and mine too. After this he spread his arms over Damien and focused. The next thing will also be etched into my mind forever. Damien floated up and was enshrouded in a bubble that grew opaque. Then the bubble shrank to the size on an egg and popped to reveal the egg Jericho had taken from Angela. This caused such joy and happiness to over come me that it scared me. When we were done Wraith left with out a word. I gave the egg to Jericho and ran after Wraith. "Wraith!" I called after him. He turned and simply glanced at me. Then Wraith beckoned to me to follow him. As I fell into step with him he glanced at me. "Yes, Demona." "What are you doing?" "I am going back to the citadel." "WHAT?? Why?" At this he simply and said, "To open the gate back to your world Demona." At this I simply stopped and watched him retreat. Then I turned and saw Jericho right behind me with an eyebrow lifted in query. "Lets go rest." was all I said before turning in for the night. When I awoke in the evening I got dressed and walked out into the hallway. Voices were coming from the mess hall, so that's where I headed after checking in on Jericho's stone form. As I entered the mess hall I saw that Wraith and Doom were in a discussion. "Why not come back with us?" Wraith was saying. "I don't know." Replied Doom indecisively. Wraith decided to push the matter. "There is nothing for you here. You will never be able to return to your life here. But you could come with the Gargoyles and me. I am going to open the portal tonight." At this I instantly spoke up. "You are coming to our world Wraith?" They both looked up. Doom had a look of defeat in his eyes that comes after you have won it all in a do or die situation but are coming back to nothing. Wraith simply looked and nodded to my question before going back to his discussion. "We could use your skills and your friendship." He continued. Doom simply rested his head on his hands and rubbed his eyes. Eventually he looked up and merely nodded his ascent. I caught the man who had become a father and mentor to me up in a crushing hug. As I let Doom go he was wearing such a shocked expression I couldn't help but laugh. This elicited a chuckle from Wraith and a grumble about women in general from Jericho.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Citadel -one hour after midnight-
We were all standing in the chamber of the beast. Is gazed about taking in the looks on my family. My family, clan, those words Jericho said still had not lost their joyful ring. I could not believe I had changed so much. A weak and a half ago I would have ripped any human apart before even considering my new outlook on life. Doom and Jericho were standing of to the side and talking like life long friends. As I sauntered over I realized that they were joking about Jericho's reaction when he awoke. I had heard the story before and it still made me chuckle. Jericho, being the brash young warrior, had struck out at Doom due to his cold self-assured manner. And quickly learned why doom was so self- assured. After recovering from all his injuries Jericho decided to take his lumps in stride. A glance at Wraith showed that he was in deep thought. After a while of familiar banter between Jericho, Doom, and myself Wraith lifted his hands up and a geyser of magma like the one that had started this whole fiasco rose out of the floor in front of him. We all pulled out our BFG9000s not knowing what to expect and sidled closer to Wraith's familiar solitude. When all of us were close he gestured and a silver bubble formed around us. This bubble then entered into the geyser and rose. We were going home.
The End?