Thanks to VEGA, the Slayer was the first to become roused and had already stood over the platform where he would observe a site that's been long ancient for ages ago. He was now in Exultia, taking place on Argent D'Nur. Initially, when shifting into the portal, the Slayer nearly expected landscapes of lava, destruction, and red skies.
Instead, where he was now, it seemed much more conventional.
The skies remained blue, and while there happened to be some storm clouds and lightning in the distance, this place hardly looked like a hellscape.
The Slayer saw that he was inside a chapel tower, carved with stone and metal, followed by large holes where the stained glass windows once stood, judging by the few that endured. The Slayer also noticed that one of the windows had the symbol he had on his helmet. The Slayer went over and peered out the holes in the chapel and stared at what he saw.
Exultia used to be a massive city, seemingly from a long-lost civilization adorned with beautiful stone monuments, domed and rounded rooftops, and concrete bridges.
The Slayer then saw that he stood surrounded by mountains. Judging by the cool breeze, it was probably the mountain range. The Slayer looked out and saw forests of tall green trees and a river leading into a waterfall. And before him, he found three massive stone statues of soldiers dressed in full armor. The two closest to the Slayer were on what used to be an archway.
One had a halberd and the other with a shield, standing at attention like they were guarding their posts. Remotely, the Slayer saw a third on top of the building, a sword in each hand, raised like it expressed triumph.
As beautiful as it was, this place had seen hard times. Everything was old, broken, or both. The archway remained split in two, and the bridge leading to the building had been destroyed, showing a large gap. But the plainest sign of combat was to his right: one of the Titans was nearby, unmistakably dead and its face caught in an expression of pain.
These beings became seen as mighty beasts of Hell, far more than regular classes of demons. The reason why it is dead was apparent after recognizing an enormous bipedal war machine called the Atlan, and it was shoving a spear large enough to walk on like a bridge, stabbing down into the dead Titan, seemingly abandoned.
Aside from two bull-like horns on the side of its head, it was an almost flawless copy of the armor the Slayer was wearing.
The Slayer grunted, having bits of delight with arriving in the section which has his Fortress somewhere. The Slayer also pondered where the Marauder disappeared when the Slayer last saw that demonic knight, searching on his HUD and finding negative results.
The Slayer let out a dark growl, yearning to find that son of a bitch and kill him for good.
Before he could return to the mission, his angry eyes soon caught onto one of the Kingdom's residents that have all accidentally transported themselves here along with him. The Slayer mentally facepalmed himself through a deadpanned look behind his visor, questioning why people always get in his way when doing his business by himself.
VEGA: {It appears that three of the Kingdom's residents have transported themselves with you, Slayer. We will have to recover the Fortress if they desire a way back in their dimension of Earth.}
Carol woke up very groggily, where all of her senses became much nebulous and her thoughts sluggish. She next tried to open her eyes, which seemed to be very heavy and thus only granted her a couple of blurry glimpses at her surroundings, seeing only a bunch of dark splotches around her within such a place.
It took a few minutes for Carol's senses to be able to notice anything around her with clarity, feeling that she became sprawled down on her back on something rather rough and sturdy. Carol sees that the splotches around her look sharp and slightly faded, like in a ruined domain. She managed to hypothesize she was somewhere that is an otherworldly planet full of decayed vistas and ancient castles.
Carol gasped, realizing where she was right now. Carol then moved her limbs to get up and try composing herself. Her next few breaths became interrupted when she heard Morgan awakening with a start. His senses dulled to the point where he could not recognize anything around him.
It was until he spotted a child on the ground nearby, causing Carol to jump back in surprise.
Carol's face became pale when she saw that Henry was one of all the people getting dragged into this mess. The Slayer peeked over to the people behind him and raised a shocked eyebrow. However, he stayed hinted with a bit more curiosity than shock. Morgan was on the same level as Carol.
"What are you doing here?" Carol demanded, pulling Henry to his feet.
"Uh...um...," Henry tried to make a plausible excuse but became unable to think of anything much to respond to the group.
"You shouldn't have gotten yourself into more trouble! Do you know what happens to kids when they go off doing something they shouldn't do? They never get seen again, and if they do, they're monsters." Carol hissed angrily. "Is that what you want?"
"I'm not scared," Henry said eventually.
"Then you're stupid for coming here!" Carol rubbed the bridge of her nose.
Henry frowned. "You need fighters, so I'm fighting."
Carol then scoffs at this kid's stubbornness as he proceeds to talk. "Just before, were you and King Ezekiel going to fight that demon when it was killing good people? Everyone else was scared of what would happen to them, and I did what I had to do for trying to protect my home."
Morgan sat up, only to find he had a massive headache, paining him so much he doubled over and clutched his head with a hand. Morgan soon realized his fight with the Marauder was not a dream, only adding fuel upon the fire of misery and pain he now found himself for the time being.
Morgan began to get up, wincing from the sudden sensations and allowing his senses to slowly sharpen and pain to dull to where he could finally see what was going on at this point.
"Carol, I don't think the fact that Henry getting trapped along with us is the issue here. Where are we?" Morgan asked, caution clear in his voice.
VEGA: {Our current location as of now is called Exultia. The Slayer has come here because he desires to reclaim his Fortress, hidden by the Seraphim after the betrayal. He will need it to resume his conquest against the dangers of Hell's legionary invasion. Hell has already obtained the location of your dimension, which was bound to happen sooner or later.}
The survivors looked at the Slayer as if they were about to erupt in hysterics, which Carol stalked towards him at a fast pace.
"There's a kid here," Carol scowled, "We can't do anything else unless there's someplace that is safe for him to stay inside."
VEGA: {The Slayer knows of your intentions to try and tie him down with your group, but you will only incur his wrath even more. He is the only living being in existence that the demons fear most and could withstand between Hell, alongside the other mortal realms. We will return you all to your Earth and continue the termination of Hell's legions from there.}
"Then let me go with you. We have to get to wherever this Fortress place is somewhere, right?" Henry piped, having the same courage as he looks at the Slayer. "Look, I don't care what it takes. We're putting aside our bullshit and work together to get back to the Kingdom."
"Watch your mouth!" Carol scolded before letting out an exaggerated sigh, then looks back at the Slayer firmly. "So all we need to do is find this place of yours that'll be enough to keep harm away from us?"
VEGA: {Yes. The upper peninsula of Exultia has become pinpointed a couple of miles through the North West section. There's a higher concentration of Sentinel Energy when we get closer. Be advised that the demons are still highly active, which could be using stealth to ambush us. I will be marking our objective now.}
Henry leaned forward a bit. "You okay? You sure don't talk much."
The Slayer shrugged his shoulders, barely keeping eye contact.
VEGA: {You can say that the Praetor Suit communicates for him, seeing that the Slayer has forsaken the knowledge to speak long ago.}
"Okay."
The silence was uncomfortable as the Slayer stayed too busy reloading the extra shells he had for his super shotgun. Henry stood in a pretty hard spot ever since his family was gone, losing his father and older brother thanks to the Saviors. And so far, Henry's been looking to keep the Kingdom safe and learning to deal with extreme losses. Carol was one of the people with whom he can find a mutually beneficial situation. Carol then turns to where Henry stood, waiting for her response as she pursed her lips in frustration.
"Fine, but you can't just walk around with that stick." Pulling out a handgun from her jacket, Carol reveals the small firearm to the boy. "You know how to use it?"
"I've watched the guards train with guns," Henry replied with a vigorous nod, clearing his throat. "They always say to know where your finger is all the time. And not to put it on the trigger unless you want to protect yourself or hurt somebody."
He looked at Morgan, who gave Henry a nod, motioning him to agree to practically whatever Carol told him. Henry then takes the handgun while Carol handles the wooden bo-staff and gives it to where Morgan stood. Morgan merely stared at Henry's bo-staff as he then examined his broken one on the ground, never to be used for survival again. Morgan's hands finally grabbed the bo-staff as his eyes moved up towards Carol's exasperated look. Using the time he had left, Morgan unsheathes his knife and proceeds to sharpen one end of Henry's bo-staff. That way, it becomes an effective stabbing weapon to use against the demons in Exultia.
"Stay close," Carol directed, handling her rifle as she towers over Henry. "The safety stays on until I say otherwise."
He nodded precisely at the older woman. "Got it."
"Alright," Carol said with her hands on her rifle, looking over this new place and back at the Slayer. "Now, how do we get down from here-?"
Her other words became cut off by the Slayer's actions, ignoring Carol as he jumped down the ledge. The trio freaked out for a second before Carol looked over the edge to see another one below them, sighing in relief.
The Slayer looked up at Carol and pointed at something, so the rest carefully climbed their way down to check it out. It turned out to be a couple of ascending walls beyond the gap, which had the Slayer gesturing everyone to climb themselves onto him to get across.
Reluctantly, Carol facepalms as she nodded, getting Henry to wrap himself onto the Slayer's torso with both Morgan and her on his back. Without any further thought, the trio felt their bodies rush as the Slayer turned and double-jumped over the gap to clutch onto the cracked wall on one of the pillars, climbing up before springing onto the other pillar, latching onto another climbable wall everyone couldn't see.
Each support was higher to reach the ledge in the distance, even for the rest, which was why the Slayer had to carry them. When they finally got over there, the trio got off to process what was in front of them: a glowing green wolf spirit, for lack of a better term. It howled before turning to run into the building, disappearing in sparks.
"Uh...should I even ask what I just saw?" Henry said to Carol, who was already maddened enough by fairy tales and myths going on around here.
"Look, I don't know, and I don't care." She exhaled, shaking her head in frustration. "We just need to get the hell out of here."
Personally, questions had already run through Carol's head as she saw the Slayer already starting to move forward, making the trio focus again and follow suit. The Slayer dropped down the ledge with some zombies beneath, which he quickly annihilated with his combat shotgun. Soon, after the trio climbed their way down, they walked towards a massive gap in the floor of what was once a hallway, deep enough that the group couldn't see the bottom.
The Slayer wasted no time and jumped, fascinating Henry as he watched him make it to a flag pole that he grabbed and swung to the other side. The others quickly took turns at one of the walls, sidestepping against the wall behind them before jumping off and making it to where the Slayer stayed. He just looked at the trio for a moment before nodding and then turned to a nearby fractured wall and punches it open.
The hole led outside to where the group could see more buildings, and Carol noticed they weren't quite so regular. Some of them had spires on top that were glowing with blue energy. Tracks littered the beach below, knowing that the Slayer had VEGA's coordinates towards the direction he needed to go next. The Slayer turned right and had the group round a corner into what looked like it was once a courtyard, currently covered with sickly vines and other plants. That became the least of their worries, however, as a Blaster suddenly charged at the Slayer.
When the trio prepared to fight the zombified trooper, the Slayer took his time with it as he charged in next. The Blaster started readying its arm-fused cannon with plasma shots when the Slayer came up towards the former human to rip off its limbs and crush its throat. An Imp came out and tried to slice the Slayer while he stood there, towering over the gurgling Blaster, but the Imp's clawed arm broke when the Slayer dodged, twisting the demon's limb swiftly. He raised his combat shotgun and blasted the Imp until blood and gore flowed out.
As a Cacodemon was the next one to attack, the Slayer retaliated by dodging to the side and pulling out his rocket launcher to fire missiles around the Cacodemon viciously. Soon, he used his thruster boots to rush over, bouncing from the broken pillars and walls to latch his grip onto the Cacodemon's eyeball before ripping it out. Kicking the spiky meatball beast until exploding into the ground, the Slayer impacts both his boots onto a nearby Imp, leaving nothing but a fountain of blood and guts showering the demon around.
With both hands, the Slayer instantly charges forward to cave a Blaster's skull through and grabs another one by prying its mouth open. He stuffed the Blaster over the barrel of his energy sidearm right before he fired, the result of which caused an explosion as the Blaster's brain got shredded to nothing. From behind, a Gargoyle rushed him, yet the Slayer whirled in place, grabbing the winged demon by the head. He uses his thumbs to crush its tiny eyes and then proceeds to headbutt the Gargoyle.
The Slayer's helmet bashed through its head, tossing the dead Gargoyle to the side. Using the heavy assault rifle next, the Slayer aims to pull to trigger and quickly turned zombies and Imps into swiss cheese. The Slayer smirked beneath his helmet before turning around to three more Imps climbing from the pillars, which he used the tactical scope to snipe each of them to the ground dead.
The Slayer soon turned around, grabbing a zombie's arms and knocking it down on the ground. When the Slayer was on top of the undead creature, he overrode its body movement by slamming a fist down within the skull, killing the zombie instantly. Morgan was about to charge in as well when a bright green glow caught his eye. He stopped and skipped out of the way of a Gargoyle's liquid projectile. Henry saw the creature jump at Morgan, using its wings for more height before cocking its head back to spit another attack like previously.
"Don't let it shoot at you!" Morgan gritted his teeth as he rolled out of the way.
The Gargoyle landed and tried to slash at Carol, but she weaved under it, backing up to fire her rifle at its face, blasting chunks off. Henry was especially able to shoot the Gargoyle through the skull. Once Carol checked to make sure none of the acid spit got on her, she saw Morgan move to his next target, which just happened to be another of the Gargoyles.
The Gargoyle jumped up into the air and flew, ready to eject again, only for the Slayer to blast it with his combat shotgun. The winged monster lost balance and fell to the ground, where another shotgun blast dealt with it. The Slayer gave Morgan a smoldering gaze, but Morgan saw what was beneath that look: revenge. The trio looked to see the Slayer had already dealt with every other demon in the area, such as Cacodemons, Imps, Gargoyles, and Hell-Soldiers. Each of them either got torn to pieces and ripped to shreds by the Slayer's meaty hands or firearms.
"Sheesh, he's fast," Carol muttered.
Just then, a rumbling came from nearby, and the group turned to see an ornate metallic door starting to open. The Slayer cocked his combat shotgun while the rest became ready for another fight, but they froze when seeing what was coming out: a Hell-Knight. Carol felt her heart pound in her chest, her blood run cold, and her breathing increase rapidly. The demon seemed to sense this and charged right at Carol and Henry, leaping in the air with both arms raised. Just then, the Slayer rushed, pushing the two survivors aside to fight the Hell-Knight.
Morgan went to help Carol and Henry, watching the Slayer leap back to dodge the Hell-Knight's fists and the shockwave that came after. The Slayer then quickly switched to the gauss cannon and fires while moving at full speed when zoomed in for everyone to see. A shrilling roar pierces the sky as the Hell-Knight writhed in agony. Next, the Slayer let loose with his combat shotgun as he rapidly fires a power shot, avoiding the Hell-Knight's blows and right hook.
The Slayer smirked when he dug his fist into the Hell-Knight's torso, ripping out its stomach violently in the process, instantly killing the demon with the combat shotgun to the head afterward. Kicking the dead Hell-Knight down, the Slayer turned to look at Carol, and she could swear she saw the disappointment in his eyes for her not being cautious.
VEGA: {Always be advised that these demons are much too eager to take female survivors for bondage. Maybe even worse if Henry had gotten taken along with you.}
Carol looked away in shame. "S-Sorry, I-I didn't...!"
"That's enough," Morgan spoke up as he looked at the Slayer. "We don't know what to expect from these demons or how we're supposed to kill them when they're in different shapes and sizes. They're not like the dead that we usually kill back on our world."
"W-We'll do better next time. We swear." Henry added as he got up, determined to do his best.
The Slayer stared at Henry for a moment, then walked over to Carol. She gulped as the Slayer firmly grabbed her wrist.
"H-Hey! What-?" Carol began, but a harsh glare made her still.
The Slayer put his combat shotgun away for a moment so he could grab her hand and curl it into a fist. He squeezed it hard, strong enough for there to be some pain, causing Carol to clench her fist to resist. Before Carol could ask what the Slayer was doing, the Slayer growled at her, looking her dead in the eyes with a murderous glare. Then he just let go and turned, pulling out the combat shotgun as he walked towards the door.
VEGA: {I understand, and so does the Slayer. But the Slayer also cautions you all not to make that same mistake again. Be careful, or there won't be the next time after that.}
Carol, alongside Morgan and Henry, just stared at him for a moment. The older woman looked at her fist, noticing that she was still gripping it tightly until she relaxed her hand. Carol tries to understand what the Slayer was trying to tell her. She clenched her fist again, hoping that would somehow solve her question.
Baffled, Carol looked back to the Slayer who was waiting by the door. With Carol deciding she would figure it out later and thankful the Slayer was waiting for the trio this time, they all followed.
Out of all the possibilities and outcomes that could happen, Rick wasn't expecting this to happen.
Just a few seconds ago, Daryl had tried to tear Dwight to pieces right until he got bounced off by Hayden's sudden telekinetic force field. After watching the cyborg introduce himself to the group and the idea of wanting them to hear out his purpose of being here, it became quite an unsettling spectacle.
Rick nearly expected that he and his family were under attack by Hayden's towering presence. But he kept his eyes glued on Dwight, who stared on at Daryl's eyes for a long moment in the cell.
Subconsciously, Daryl's fists began to clench as his confusion about Hayden's appearance washed away and became replaced by anger towards Dwight. The memories of how horrible the scarred man treated Daryl were still fresh in his mind.
The Saviors locked him in a dark cell, forced him to eat only dog food sandwiches, and listen to "Easy Street" played through the walls. And more importantly, attempting to convert Daryl into joining Negan's side.
"Look at me," Rick ordered, his voice quiet and low. "Why?"
Dwight turns to look at Rick with a hint of desperation in his eyes, showing no sign of compliance or objection to the Colt Python revolver aimed point-blank at his head, more as he accepted it.
"I came here because I want Negan dead. I want it all stopped. But...!" He answered with his eyes closed, starting to battle his emotions, judging by his agitated breath.
"But what? Why don't you kill him?" Rick asked, having to wonder what Dwight meant when he trailed off.
"Because I wouldn't allow him to do so, Rick," Hayden's mechanical voice spoke up, stepping forth to explain his judgment. "Given the situation that's happening now, and what I'm sure of, time is wasting. My world is desiring energy, and yours is under siege by Hell's legions. I insist we speak only on what's appropriate. It's time I told you all what's causing all this. Then maybe, we can make some progress."
Anyone distanced from Hayden gathered around him, save for Dwight.
"The Hell invasion here is, to an extent, my fault. Therefore, I owe you my help in stopping it." Hayden then takes out a hidden device that pulls up a holographic display, depicting the Crucible as it drew curious eyes and fretful minds in with ease. "This is the Crucible. It's an artifact from Hell capable of extracting tremendous amounts of what is called Argent Energy. I sent our mutual friend, the Doom Slayer, to retrieve it for me. As to where the Crucible originated, only he can tell us. After the Slayer reclaimed the Crucible, he used it to close a portal to Hell one of my employees opened, siphoning the Argent Energy the demons were using to support their invasion."
Tara let words leave her mouth without thinking. "Why was it opened? Why would someone do that?!"
Hayden's irritation became evident. "Well, you'd have to ask her, wouldn't you? The nature of the UAC's work has always been dangerous, and she fell for their words-!"
That sentence sent bells going off in Michonne's head. "And what exactly was the nature of the UAC's work?"
"My world was undergoing an energy crisis. The UAC began extracting Argent Energy from Hell. It opposes everything we once knew about science, and it was the revelation that everyone-!"
Tara spoke up, looking a bit livid right now. "That's horrible! How could you not find any-?"
Hayden loomed over Tara and shoved her words back down her throat with his inanimate, menacing gaze. "I don't believe you were there to help us search for any alternatives, young lady."
"Don't try anything with her." Rick stood up in front of Hayden, with something in his eyes to twinkle a strange, violent glint. "Now, keep talking."
"Very well," Hayden shrugged uncaringly. "As I was saying, the Slayer used the Crucible to shut down that portal. After he returned, I took the liberty of relieving him of the artifact and sent him to the dimensional gap through the inter-dimensional tether. But now, it appears that the Slayer was able to arrive into your world instead."
Rosita could scarcely forget that look on the Slayer's face previously. "So the artifact was his sword. You stole it from him!"
Far from repentant, Hayden's defiance fueled his brazenness. "Why yes, I suppose you can say I did."
"And why?"
"Why, I don't know." Hayden folded his arms, taking both inquisitive and accusatory stares with seeming insolence. "Has that brute told you yet about how he crippled our Argent Energy production?! By destroying our means of collecting humanity's last chance at survival?! Savagely breaking decades and decades of hard work?! Did he tell you any of that?!"
Rick's group took that accusation towards the Slayer almost like a threat to their family. For the time they have spent with the Slayer, he had done nothing more than spending most of his time killing the demons who nearly caught Rick's group off guard. Although they were a tad suspicious of him when he's either suffering massively from PTSD or more able to charge into the fray, Rick's group was still beginning to let themselves grow close and form a new companionship with the Slayer on their side. Tara returned Hayden's advance until the two were up in each other's faces.
"That's not his fault! You can't go pointing fingers at Doomguy just because of something that makes no sense! There's no reason at all the Earth should be reliant on Argent Energy when you guys can use the FUCKING SUN!" Tara shouted, her eyes filled with tears and rage.
"Solar and wind were not viable sources of energy at that time, let alone in a world where humankind has colonies on other planets. Much of that isn't cost-effective enough to meet global energy needs, let alone for hundreds of years." Hayden's optic was going red, towering over Tara alongside everyone else with her. "How many times do I have to repeat it? The UAC had it under control. We had the answer that saved the world from total collapse overnight. Argent Energy was the key to everything, and it worked. It was perfect. And then that Slayer came along and ruined everything."
Contempt was written all over Tara's glaring eyes and clenching fists, her knife trembling in her hand while Hayden solely beamed down at Tara.
"You honestly think any of you people know better, don't you-?"
"ENOUGH!" Rick snapped, causing the shouting to stop as the cell room went silent. Everyone wasn't used to Rick sounding like that, and even Hayden stopped arguing. "That's enough from both of you! Listen, I don't know the full extent of this dispute of yours with the Slayer, and I won't pretend to, but here's what I do know: there are monsters and demons out somewhere coming to get us. Every moment we waste will bring us closer to them, killing us all. Tara, you can settle your shit once we get done talking here. Is that understood?!"
Tara backed away as Rick let out an exhale, seemingly tired and angry about the awful situation that his family was in right now.
"Right then," Hayden soon became pacified, though it took a while for his optic to go blue again. "After I sent the Slayer away, I then attempted to harvest the energy he had siphoned. That's until I found out it can only become used by its rightful wielder. When it rejected me, it attempted to send a signal to the Slayer. But before it could reach him, Hell soon intercepted it. Despite the destruction of their Argent Energy source, Hell still had enough reserves to track the signal down and open a portal to its destination. After the Slayer had laid waste to their domain for so long, they decided to find him and exact their revenge."
A brief pause ensued before Jesus broke it. "So they're here for this man? The Doom Slayer?"
"They are. But it is not just the Slayer they are after." Hayden replied, his tone somber once he closed the hologram. "The demonic legions are wanting more, to become more. These demons have no restraints. They glorify bloodshed. Relish in the taking of lives and perhaps even produce their offspring off of female victims. When they come, you will not be able to fight it in this current state. There is no parlay nor negotiation with them. All they want to do is kill and corrupt. In the end, age or gender, it will all be inconsequential. They will kill, plunder, violate, and destroy until every human is either dead or bound by their will. And they will not stop here either. They will soon take all communities of this Earth, starting with the ones in this region. Some leaders may try to put up some resistance, but nothing can slow the demons for too long."
"What about the Saviors? Does Negan know this is happening?" Rick asked, his eyes narrowed in concentration, staring at the cyborg.
"Yes, he is aware of their presence on this Earth," Hayden answered in his most serious tone. "During a situation, Negan had with a few people stealing his goods and rations. So he brought along several groups of his finest men and women to track them down. However, faster than any of them could fathom, numbers of Hell's demons spawned in the forest to initiate their long-term plan on eliminating the Saviors in the middle of the road. As I've perceived before, you people know very little about these demonic creatures, but this is what you should know. Hell is an infinite multidimensional plain that consumes realities, so the hordes never cease. And quite frankly, I believe your upcoming fight against his army will have to be put on hold permanently."
"WHAT?!" All of Rick's group, excluding Dwight, exclaimed in unison.
"It means you'll have to work together with Negan," Hayden said while keeping an eye on them. "That means Alexandria, Hilltop, Kingdom, and Sanctuary shall become a formidable fighting force against Hell's legion. Their waves will do horrible, horrible things to most people who have become unprotected from it. Your reality will become assimilated. Your people will be subsumed and exploited for their pleasure. And unless you have a man of rage and destruction blessed by the heavens above and armed by a traitor in Hell, resistance is very much futile."
"No!" Daryl shouted, having a sense of command and dominance. "I don't believe you for a second, motherfucker! Those bastards deserve to die by those things, with or without our help."
"I get that I'm probably the second to last person you'd ever want to see, but you need to understand something. I may have a change of heart, but I assure you, I've never been in support of Negan's ways. You have NO IDEA what we've risked coming here or what those demons are capable of doing to us! Do you think you've got more to lose than we do?! Do you think you've put more on the line?!" Dwight said, watching Daryl glare back at him.
"I've seen you carry out Negan's wishes. You've killed people on Negan's behalf. You're one of his lieutenants. If you're saying you're with us, you're lying."
"And that girl you murdered," Tara steps up, looking close to Dwight's face, her voice full of anger. "She had a name. Her name was Denise. She was a doctor. And she helped people. She didn't deserve to get killed. If I ever cared for Denise, I should slit your throat right here."
Dwight looks down with genuine guilt for a second, then says, "I wasn't aiming for her."
Without warning, Daryl blustered past in an exploded fury. Only this time, nobody holds him back. Tara let out a small gasp of surprise as she got bumped aside so Daryl could grab Dwight and slam him up against the wall. He had his knife ready to plunge into Dwight's eye and skull. Breathing heavily with righteous anger, Daryl glared at Dwight so deep that his eyes might have become daggers as well.
"Do it," Tara urges Daryl. "Do it."
"If you want to end it this way, then you go ahead." Dwight chokes out a whispered garble, trying to appeal to Daryl's better nature. "I'm sorry, I am. I know you want to."
The knife trembles a bit as Daryl holds himself back from killing Dwight as he became tempted to do so. Hayden was also there to activate his force field if he had to, but Dwight gave the cyborg an expression not to budge his problem further. Though Hayden was not there when whatever initially happened between Dwight, Daryl, and Tara, the fact that Dwight has more history with Daryl has made Hayden jaded than he can comprehend.
"They could just be here to see if you were here." Rick addresses, thinking about how the Saviors had been looking for Daryl.
"And Negan knows about you, robot," Daryl growls, causing Hayden to stare at the man with a slow nod.
"We can't trust them." Michonne agrees, echoing most of their thought patterns.
"Negan owned me. I never did anything Negan didn't ask me to. I never disobeyed him, I was a good soldier, and I did as I got told. I was a coward. And I did a lot of terrible things I can't take back. But not anymore," Dwight continued, holding Daryl's death stare. "What I did, I was doing for someone else. My wife Sherry, she just got away. So now I'm here, and so are you, because of her. We thought it'd make our lives easier going back to Negan. And we didn't realize how much we needed each other until we were apart. The thing is: once it's decided, there was no going back."
Daryl continues staring into Dwight's eye, knife still in Dwight's face.
A short silent pause was broken by Tara's barking, "Do it!"
"There's another choice," Dwight said.
"Daryl," Tara tries to argue. "Daryl, you knew her."
"Negan will have no choice but to trust Dr. Hayden and me. We can work together to end Hell's reign of terror, and we can stop all of this," Dwight interrupts, pleading despite the knife still being held right at his face. "You knew me then, and you know me now. You know I'm not lying. I'm not."
"Do it," Tara again urged. "Do it!"
Daryl hesitated a little longer and then abruptly withdraws the knife from Dwight's face. The branded man exhaled heavily in relief after the blade went down. Rick stepped to the side of both of them to make sure there was no physical retaliation from Dwight against Daryl.
Rosita stood next to Tara from across the room. "Sasha went with the big guy to go to Hilltop. It got attacked by the demons, and if she's even alive-!"
"Sasha's dead..." Jesus moves over to Rosita, seemingly disheartened with her turning to stare in shock at the recent news. "A demon leader overran and killed nearly a lot of the people there. But Doomguy stopped it and killed them all to save Hilltop. Maggie is still alive, thankfully. We only just arrived too late to help everyone else there."
Everyone saw Rosita hold herself in a vulnerable self embrace, trying but failing to contain the tears. Tara turned to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Oceanside before, but I didn't want anyone there hurt," Tara said sadly, and Rosita broke up even more.
"We're already hurt enough, Tara! Sasha and I were this close to planning an assassination on Negan, but those monsters caught us off guard! And now, of all the days you've chosen to spill secrets out on your people, this is the time you pick?!" Rosita said, seething.
"Rosita, all this waiting to strike is going to get us all killed by the time we earn our chance if we continue like this! We needed to stay together, but you just wanted to do your own thing! You didn't care if anyone got in your way."
"Because I have nothing to fucking live for now!" Rosita exploded, her eyes drenched in tears. "After what happened to Abraham, losing someone you care about like that. I got Olivia killed! And then Sasha came with me, and I got her killed! I only wanted one thing: to kill Negan! And now I'm never going to be able to. Do you know how many demons there are?! There's no way we can win. We're all going to die."
The worry on Tara's face was fair as the moon, yet still determined. "You don't know that, Rosita. I get that you're angry. We all are, but we are going to fight back somehow. We're going to have Hilltop, the Kingdom, and Oceanside help us. We're getting ready for something else right now, and we're going to win." Tara said softly, not wanting to push for an answer, but still wanted closure on the problem.
"Not without the Slayer," Hayden cuts in on the dispute. "I have extensive knowledge of his past and legends. All of it has become supported by approved reports and archival records classified within the UAC database."
Much of this complicated the group as Rick raised a brow. "His past? Does he even have a name instead of what we call him?"
"Unfortunately, no," Hayden shook his head. "His name has been lost throughout history with no records as such. Nobody knew who he was, not even his dead allies."
Michonne frowned as murmuring started across the group. "Dead allies? Where did he come from before he came here? Please, tell us."
"Mentionings of the Slayer came from the ancient texts of Argent D'Nur. It was the birthplace of the once-powerful Argenta Empire. Warriors that emanated with immense might and martial prowess. Most of them valued strength and conviction more than any other quality. With their armed forces, called the Night Sentinels, they grew as a prominent population. They perfected the art of victory. However, the Sentinel Empire has been long deceased and became no more."
Hayden's explanation confused Rick's group, seeing that they had not heard about dimensional travel at all. Dwight looked at the crew here, and as he could see them, they continued listening intently to Hayden. Dwight had to admit that he was getting immersed himself. Though, it was a shame that the Sentinels were long gone. If they still existed and came here, this Argenta Empire could've been a valuable ally to help fight against Hell's legions.
"Jeez, the big guy must've been their most badass fighter, right?" Tara said with a smile, nearly excited to ask her giant friend all about it once he comes back.
"Yes," Hayden droned, lightly exasperated. "After gaining celestial power from the Divinity Machine, thanks to the Seraphim's aid, the Slayer lead the remaining Night Sentinels to victoriously protect the Holy City of Taras Nabad from Hell's intrusion and the Dreadnought; an all-powerful Titan. The Night Sentinels then proclaimed the Slayer as their most trusted ally and warrior-king, for he earned the rank of sovereignty."
Jesus' eyes widened in shock, as did everyone. "H-He's a king?!"
Rick joined in, "How did he get this power?"
"It became stated from the Book of Kings that the Slayer got snuck out from the battlefield. The Seraphim, a chancellor who formerly served under the Khan Maykr, gifted the Slayer with unbelievable strength and speed to balance his willpower. By the time the process got finished, the Slayer was no longer a mortal. He was considered worse than just a demigod mixed between Sentinels and Maykr Angels; he became the element of revenge."
Rick's group whispered in awe amongst themselves as Tara's eyes shone with hope and interest. All this time, Doomguy became regarded as a king and a demigod, and it had the might to back up such claims. That was someone worthy of their help against all odds.
"That sounds badass and all," Tara nodded with a smile. "But what caused the Sentinel Empire to fall?"
Everyone else in the room, including Dwight, became curious as well. It seemed like an impossible task to overcome the Slayer's forces and an empire like that.
"What happened?" Michonne frowned.
"It all started when the Night Sentinels waged the Unholy Crusade against Hell." Hayden began to unravel once again. "As their war raged on, the Slayer's army found Nekravol, the City of the Damned, and discovered the truth. Secretly constructed by Argenta slaves, it was all under the command of the Khan Maykr, supreme ruler of a highly advanced ancient race of alien beings called the Maykrs. She made a deal with the Dark Lord of Hell. When the Night Sentinels reported this, backlash soon occurred as Argent D'Nur got itself plunged into civil war."
Those present could only listen in a mixture of awe and horror. Rick's group had even begun looking at each other, dumbfounded.
Tara could feel the sweat rolling down the side of her head as she swallowed a lump in her throat. "W-What was the deal that she made with them?"
"The Dark Realm promised to supply the Maykrs with Argent Energy." Hayden sighed, looking at Rick's group. "Much of it became acquired from the tortured souls of those slain by the demons. And in return, the Khan Maykr sustains unlimited access to every dimension under the control of the Maykrs to utilize."
Everyone began murmuring on with disbelief. There was no way that could be true; they refused to believe it.
"And so...Doomguy lost? How?" Tara felt overwhelmed.
"Because he, along with his comrades, was betrayed." Hayden proceeded, knowing that Rick's group saw where this was going. "Years have passed during the civil war until the Order of the Deag, High Priests of the Elemental Wraiths, deceived them with an opportunity to end the diabolical factories of Nekravol. The Slayer led the surviving loyal soldiers to prepare for a confrontation before treachery struck. The Night Sentinels were all scattered throughout Hell with no hopes of returning nor any reinforcements coming. And just like that, everyone the Slayer knew and admired was either gorged on or ripped apart for pleasure by the demonic swarms."
Everyone in the group was in awe. Rick's eyes were wide as he and his people continued staring. After what had gotten told, it was a story worthy of surrealism and abnormal. The climactic struggle between good and evil. Unwavering even in the face of such devilish and unimaginable odds. Such determination and strength that not even almost everyone could compare.
"What about Doomguy?" Rick asked. "If he and some of his people got trapped, how did he survive while the others fell?"
"When the betrayal arose, and with everyone around him pulverized, the rage that grew within the Slayer was near infinite once he finally succumbed to it. Everywhere those demons ran to hide, the Slayer was already there at an instant. He had slaughtered nearly several demonic legions, and atop mountains of torn corpses, the Slayer declared his pathway through perpetual torment. For eons, that man had carried out cruel desolation to Hell's swarms and hordes, striking fear into their very existence." Hayden finished and stared down at where everyone stood in front of him.
Jesus began to sigh as he said. "I know seeing someone getting treated like this is hard. Especially with what the big guy went through. But he had to do what he had to do to protect people like us from those monsters."
"Jeez," Tara said, her eyes seemingly confounded by such things. "He's been doing this to save us and all the other dimensions. Doomguy's the only one who can help us end those demons."
Right now, Rick's eyes were thankfully sharp as ever, and he glanced back at his group. Some looked on in alarm, some in disgust, and some in just genuine curiosity. Much of this had not gone according to plan at all in getting rid of Negan for good. But Rick now understood why the Slayer didn't speak, seeing that he became mentally scarred from all the cycles of fighting those infernal monsters. Rick knew what the Slayer had endured was more than any war his grandfather could have fought through at that time. He killed some, but he had to. Rick took a deep breath, attempting to calm himself a little with so much knowledge to follow through.
"I trusted him," Rick buried a hand in his glaring face, scratching his beard. "I knew he was hiding something from me, but I didn't think it was going to be something like this. All of this is insane. Demons, aliens, angels, and other worlds? And now, you want us to team up with the bastard who enslaved us and killed some of our people weeks ago? Negan has terrorized other communities. We thought if we killed him, then everyone else would be free and not have to live under his boot."
"We can't trust Negan," Michonne furrowed her eyebrows, tears on the brim of her eyes full of disbelief. "He has killed people from the other communities for no valid reason. He lined our people up, playing some sick game to determine which one of us he was going to beat to death. He murdered Abraham, Glenn, and many more while he laughed."
"And yet, you've killed multiple people in their sleep." Hayden sighed and shook his head. "Thus, you have created unnecessary conflict and put both groups on more equal levels. But of course, the Saviors genuinely are a threat to all surrounding groups, so that alone invalidates any comparisons of who did right or wrong than the other."
Daryl bawled his fists, flames burning in his eyes with a growl. "You don't know anything!"
"Look, the point is that Negan's coming soon." Dwight finally spoke up, his eyes flitted over to Rick. "It'll most likely be tomorrow to come here and demand information from you about this Hell issue or even finding out more about the Slayer. Three trucks probably, along with twenty Saviors and himself included. Hayden's got a strategy for all of this when he told the Slayer that he has to find his Fortress somewhere in Exultia. We'll buy a little time for you guys to get ready in case things get worse. If the Slayer comes back, that's where Hayden's plan starts. You make it seem like you agree, then I'll radio back to the Sanctuary."
Rick interrupts him, "The Sanctuary? And what Fortress?"
"Where Negan lives. That's what they call it," Dwight answers, looking between Rick, Daryl, and Hayden. "As for the Slayer, his Fortress that Dr. Hayden told me all about is a home base of some kind. It's reckoned to be massive and contains over a dozen rooms, plenty of weaponry and protection, secrets, and more to discover soon. Most of the things and upgrades that the Fortress has are sets of armor we can use against Hell's invasion. And with the right plan, we can wipe out the rest of those demons. Tell them, Hayden."
"It's true," The cyborg allowed himself to speak further. "One of the projects that I've worked on back in the UAC is called Project Triple-S. It was during an operation that I've conducted with giving volunteers distinctive body suits of their choice. Some of them contained cybernetic augmentations, doubling their strength, speed, and stamina. And that which you could probably tell what the Triple-S stands for."
Dwight continues, "Dr. Hayden and I need to use one of your moving trucks for something he needs to check on first. It's someplace around an old building he found before Negan met him. He told me it's a lab full of other tech and computers. Hayden wants to make a teleporter machine at the Sanctuary."
A few gasps got heard throughout the room. "Y-You're going to do what?!" Tara stammered, nearly disbelieving Hayden's sincerity.
"I don't believe I stuttered," Hayden replied quite coldly to the girl's confusion.
Rick also became taken aback by the notion. "That sounds like quite a tall order. Just how are you going to do that, Hayden?"
"I know that the stakes are high here, but that's why I've already planned," Hayden told them with a clenched fist. "I have not been able to pinpoint the different locations of the energy source the demons used to transport themselves here, but I do have a frame of reference back on my world. I'm going to lead the Saviors back to the UAC and destroy the sources ourselves."
"I'll tell you Negan's secrets, his weaknesses, and we can convince that asshole somehow if I have to put his head on a silver platter," Dwight added in a short pause. "I can radio back to them that everything's okay. It won't matter if you trust me because that motherfucker will have no choice. Then we get the workers on our side. We'll build the numbers up and end those demons. And this nightmare will, at long last, be over."
Michonne turned slightly and stared over at Rick, who suddenly felt her eyes upon him. Daryl's eyes seemed to avert somewhat towards her as well, though not as blatantly as Rick or even Dwight was.
"I don't like this, even if this plan of theirs seems doable so far," Michonne commented as if Dwight and Hayden aren't there. "But if they're telling the truth, this could be our only possible chance. How many chances are we going to get?"
With a deep and long sigh, Rick closed his eyes for a moment. He opens them back up as his focus soon returned fully upon Hayden. "Keep talking."
Later that night, both Dwight and Hayden walked freely out the front gate and climbed into one of the moving trucks they decided to borrow for Hayden's plan. Daryl was standing at the top of the road, staring after them with his fists clenching as Rick and Michonne approached, their gazes following the same way. Rosita and Jesus soon followed and joined them as well, standing a couple of paces behind them. Tara, meanwhile, was resting on the porch of the nearest house and seemed not too happy for obvious reasons.
"We just started it, the whole thing," Rick announced to everyone, wanting them to stay prepared. "I know we're relieved to come back safe and sound, but there's a lot of work to be done. I've already gotten some Oceanside women to work with us to have all eyes in every direction. Those demons are coming for us. We might not know how or when, but they are. We'll do just the same with Negan when Dwight gives us a warning."
"If he's lying, I'm going to kill him real slow," Daryl warned as Dwight and Hayden started the big vehicle up. "When this gets done, I don't give a damn if he's sorry or that robot tries anything with us. I will kill those sons of bitches."
Watching as Dwight and Hayden drove away, Michonne turned to focus on both men as Rick says, "Much of this will be tough on us moving forward, but it can be worth it in the end. And if they're lying, this is already over from the start."
As Rick began to turn and walk away, Daryl looks over to his right and sees Tara staring hard at him before he wanders off too.
Jesus then stepped forward. "I should leave now, Rick. I'll take Enid too. We could pack a bag for Judith, and we'll bring her with us back to Hilltop. I will also let Maggie and everyone else there know what's going to happen. The Hilltop will be needed here."
"No," Rick stopped in his tracks and shook his head. "I need you guys to stay at the Hilltop. It's just in case things go wrong, so we have another card to play. And another safe place the Saviors think they can control. We'll have Jadis and her people help fight with us. Including Oceanside."
With a hint of hesitation, Jesus accepted this and nodded. "Okay. We'll get going. If we find any sight of Doomguy, we'll let you know."
As Jesus walked off, Rick turned to Michonne. "How tired are you, on a scale from one to ten?"
Michonne smirked back at him sarcastically. "Seven and a half. Why?"
"I want to see if you're up for a trip back to the junkyard. We got to get those guns we promised to Jadis and bring them back here by morning." Rick replied. "We don't know how soon the Saviors will get here before any demons would. And we both know it's tomorrow right now, but we don't know when that'll be. So the sooner we get our numbers up, the better we can get ready for whatever comes next."
"You know I'm with you for it all, Rick," Michonne affirmed with a nod. "Let's go pack that bag quick for Judith and see her off with Jesus and Enid first. Then you and I will head out after."
"Okay," Rick replied, seemingly showing a flicker of doubt and worry in his eyes.
Reaching her hand out to his own, the uninjured one, Michonne grabbed onto it and gave it a firm squeeze.
"Hey," Michonne muttered with a knowing look. "You've protected our family throughout our time with everyone else. We'll figure things out about searching for Doomguy or fighting off monsters soon. Right now, let's get this done and finish it before things get out of our control."
Sliding his hand free of Michonne's, Rick moved it up her arm and snaked it around the back of her head. Casually, he drew her forehead against his own, letting their warm breaths mingle with one another.
Tomorrow there would be war.
Tomorrow people would die.
Tomorrow would hopefully be the end.
But right now, Rick and Michonne had tonight.
It was what they had.
The night was still young when Dwight and Hayden rolled out in their borrowed moving truck. Having made good time and heading in a direction close by the Sanctuary and any potential demonic interference on the road, Dwight and Hayden eventually pulled off the road and into where the abandoned laboratory remains.
Neither of them had spoken yet, so they both got out and began their investigation inside the building. Once the two got caught into some trouble with a few zombies, Hayden waves a telekinetic hand and crushes the creatures to the wall in a mushy gore mess. Due to the longevity and having a lifetime of immensely advanced scientific research, Hayden was impatient enough to take down any undead creature that stands in his way, with or without the Crucible.
Hayden notices and crosses his arms at Dwight, who shifted his fearful eyes towards him, thinking that the cyborg will do something next.
But Dwight quickly turns and looks ahead before clearing his throat. "Uh, sorry."
"You don't need to worry, Dwight," Hayden turned and marched forward. "I'm not going to let Negan do anything with you once we get back to the Sanctuary."
"Yet," Dwight mutters under his breath.
"Listen, it will not matter if any of you people kill Negan because he still has the numbers overall." Hayden insisted, not wanting to hear more excuses.
"Not if he's dead," Dwight argues back. "Everyone there is terrified of the consequences of betraying Negan, rather than follow him on their own."
"Yes. But if you kill that man now, the Saviors will see him as a martyr, and you'll still have to fight them harder too. The people continued to stay with Negan because he's established much promise for them, offering power to those he sees as valuable. If you give these people what they want in a world like this, they will follow just about anyone. And the only reason you're still here is that you came begging Negan to take you back in."
As Dwight sighed in defeat by so much history there, Hayden soon picked that up and continues. "Dwight, I understand your resentment towards Negan, but what was discussed back at Alexandria is all part of my plan. From what transpired beforehand, it isn't how I wanted to do things with Negan, but neither of us had a choice. And now, the other communities aren't the only problem on his shoulders. It'll be a long and difficult process, but in the end, it's worth it. Now, come on. Let's grab whatever I need for my plan to work."
Dwight grips his hands on the crossbow. He can't help but feel nervous around this cyborg after noting how tense he has become after the demonic incident with Negan. Dwight only followed behind Hayden while handling the crossbow to make sure nobody was following them. Soon, the two of them began looting around to find scientific technology and computer stations for the teleportation pod.
Hayden figured places in these solitude areas would have such production of goods stored away somewhere. In the first room they approached, Hayden forces the door open while Dwight waited behind him with his crossbow raised. Leaning against the door frame, Hayden let him head inside first, and then they both began to turn the place over. Dwight was lucking out that no demons were lurking around inside, considering how dark it was now.
They found some mechanical equipment with much value there, and the next room proved a bit more fruitful. After going through cabinets and partitions, they began filling a few plastic containers they'd found with many apparatuses, wirework, appliances, power cords, blueprints for coordinates of the pod Hayden can make, and more contrivances needed for Hayden's particular inventiveness. The rest of the other rooms became very conducive. They continued for new places to scavenge, eventually finding a pressure plate usable as a testing ground.
Inside was in disarray, and two more walkers that had gotten trapped inside are now alert due to Dwight's living presence and stepped forward. Their state of decay and sluggishness made it easy for Dwight and Hayden to take care of both walkers readily. As soon as the bodies dropped, they turned their attention to scouring the nearly vacant metal shelving and the wall of lockers of any supplies that would be worthwhile, filling up more containers and acquiring more items.
"Back away," Hayden warned, causing Dwight to stumble back slightly.
"What are you going to do?" Dwight asked, still not used to this.
"It won't take long, I promise. Again, I will suggest you better step back farther." Hayden spoke sharply, not a trace of emotion appearing in his mechanicalized voice.
Hayden focused on his telekinesis to the task at hand. He was proficient in his mechanical body, so moving his materials back to the moving van should not be too hard of doing. The more tedious part would be hovering it across long distances and inside the back of the large vehicle, no less. The size and weight of an object made little difference whether someone could move it.
Once Hayden does not pay attention to how much something was, he can move each object regardless of its size. At first, nothing was amiss, but then it happened. Ever so slowly, each container and material started levitating, inches turning to feet as Hayden lifted them in the air. Hayden smiled within his brain in a relaxed manner, mentally gloating and preparing for departure.
Dwight had disbelief painted on his face while in shocked silence, watching each object float in the air with the aura surrounding them. During the entire spectacle, Hayden and Dwight decided to waste no more time and get a move on back towards the moving truck. Taking the collected technology and parts with them, Hayden gently directed his hands to the inside of the moving van as Dwight observed him place every single packed mechanism within the big vehicle.
After a few moments of stillness, Dwight was the first to speak. "You weren't kidding about the stand-back part. Good job."
"Thank you, Dwight," Hayden says.
The deep, resonant sound of wheels and rustling of branches stopped them in their tracks. Shelving their calm moods for a bit, they both grew serious as Dwight drew his crossbow and prepared for whatever and whoever they might find. Slowly and quietly, Dwight maneuvered through the trees and came to a stop when he saw a Cacodemon floating in the air, belching balls of purple plasma at him.
"SHIT! Hayden, it's a demon!" Dwight cursed, sprinting to the side, and tried to aim for the eyeball.
But the scarred man didn't get the chance when an Imp or two jumped in and kicked him away. Dwight tried to hurry back to his feet and aim to shoot a bolt through one of the Imps. That caused the other one to growl after him. Hayden made enough effort to run nearby and viciously forces the Imp's head to the ground, crushing it completely.
Shots of plasma came from about as Blasters were spawning their way into the field, snarling grumpily. Soaring high in the air came a few Gargoyles that dove right down to surround Dwight and Hayden. There was also a Pain Elemental hovering nearby with another Cacodemon, ejecting out Lost Souls from its mouth.
Before Hayden could do anything to preserve here and now, he heard a man's voice calling out an order until shots got fired, taking down Blasters simple enough. Not sure of what happened, but Dwight reloaded the crossbow and fired another bolt through a Gargoyle's skull.
The Cacodemon descended over to lob another purple plasma ball at whoever was attacking them. Unfortunately for the one-eyed monster, shotgun blasts came and took chunks off to get the Cacodemon down to the ground. Rushing from out of the trees came Arat, carrying a metal rod with her to stand over and pierce it through the Cacodemon's eyeball, earning a dreadful cry until it became lifeless.
Much to Hayden's surprise, another familiar face arrived out of the bushes, revealed as Laura with several other Saviors. Two other Gargoyles remain left as one of them lunged in to attack Laura, only to receive rapid gunshots all over the torso and face by none other than Simon. The winged demon staggered back a bit until a barbed-wire bat suddenly swung up and caved through its head open, killing the Gargoyle.
"Fuck, I'm tired enough of dealing with these annoying winged rats," Negan spoke up and then soon takes out his pistol to shoot the other Gargoyle backward.
Hayden then came up behind the Gargoyle and reached his hands around to twist its neck, ending the Gargoyle instantly. Hayden pushed aside the dead Gargoyle before giving Negan a spare glance, who had a devilish grin tugged on his lips and gave Hayden a wink. Then they spotted other demons attacking the Saviors, knowing they need to concentrate due to the chaos happening all around.
A few seconds later, Savior gunners and demons dodging and attacking each other in the trees, trying to kill one another, and taking every opportunity to connect something to the other one's body. Arat also wasted no time in throwing herself over to shoot down some Imps and walkers nearby. A Prowler roared and reappeared at Simon and discharged a purple fireball from its claws. Simon dodged it and went low and stabbed the Prowler around its torso, tearing through the guts.
The gore fell out of the Prowler, having not expected a human to use such force before getting shot in the face by Simon's gun. The purple fireball bursts through a tree nearby, causing Laura to turn and watch in awe. The tree started toppling forward, heading straight towards the road.
"SHIT, MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!" Laura shouted, horror on her face.
Various Savior members immediately dove themselves out of the way. As the tree bashed the other Cacodemon while missing the Pain Elemental, the tree crashes down to the area, just missing a truck by inches. The ground shook, causing the vehicle to jolt slightly.
"Holy shit," Laura backs away and takes several breaths.
A demonic screech from a Lost Soul startled her as Laura jolts back in fright. The flaming skull began rushing quickly to gore on the blondie, only for Hayden to budge in and smack the Lost Soul to the dirt like it was a basketball.
Gritting her teeth, Laura aimed to shoot her shotgun and destroy the Lost Soul. The two of them looked at one another as Laura nodded in return for Hayden's support. Hayden then released a telekinetic blast by the hand and took out several demons that attacked the gunmen.
"Laura, get everyone to blast around that Pain Elemental's eyeball. It's one of its weak points." Hayden pointed up at the large flying sphere. "Fire at least two shotgun blasts until it staggers to the ground."
Gulping, Laura became hesitant at first but agreed as she soon instructs the other Saviors. "Shoot around the sides and leave the front for me! We'll take it out once we get the rest too!"
Taking that plan to the test, a couple of Saviors soon engaged and opened fire onto the Pain Elemental, who roared in pain and lobbed some Lost Souls to strike after them. One of the Saviors felt a Lost Soul plunge in and explode, killing the gunman. Negan could give less of a fuck about what happened to that unlucky bastard.
Negan grabbed a nearby Savior's automatic rifle and began unloading quick shots upon the Pain Elemental until it wasn't a bullet sponge anymore. Before a couple of Lost Souls could target Negan next, many other Saviors with their rifles shot and took out each one deliberately. Laura then points and fired her shotgun two times onto the Pain Elemental's eye, wounding the demon sphere until it staggered to the ground. Negan grunted and made his way over with Lucille held around his other hand.
Negan gets to position before raising his barbed-wire bat as it pierces through the Pain Elemental's face. He hummed in satisfaction as blood began spurting down the front of the demon sphere's face from its socket. The moment Negan pulled his barbed-wire bat out, each swing came from Lucille in rapid, bludgeoning succession, utterly tearing through the Pain Elemental until he made a mix of blood, skull bone, and brain matter.
The rest of the demons were then taken care of when Negan finished killing the Pain Elemental, turning slightly away from the others. Blood dripped from the end of Lucille, and Dwight found it was easier to stare at the bat than at the carnage. Hayden looked all over his surroundings, inspecting to see no other demon left standing or spawning anywhere else. The Saviors did a decent job dispatching the ones they have injured on the ground.
"Damn, my dirty girl is getting nastier every single night!" Negan chuckled as he held up Lucille, inspecting how much more coated it had become with demon blood. "Pack up now, people! While more of those demons aren't distracting us, let's hit the road before it's too hard to get back to the Sanctuary."
Negan then swings himself around, having his barbed-wire bat point right at Hayden. "And you, Dr. Killjoy, need to tell me what exactly the fuck is going on around here. You and Dwight are lucky enough that Laura initiated her fucking protocol if I were to ever be outside for too long. I hear my men screaming like little piglets. Then I nearly got myself tossed around here and there, and the people from our orange situation either got blown to smithereens or drizzled in demon jizz. So you better tell me everything you can about these demons and their fucking orgies."
Negan then diverted his attention towards Dwight. "Oh, D. You better not think that I've forgotten about you either. We're going to have lots to talk about once we get back home, which includes what Tinman over here has you doing for him at a time like this."
"Hayden has a plan, Negan," Dwight frowned, glaring blankly at the man before gesturing to the moving truck full of machinery. "He wants to build something that could help us as a backup."
"Oh?" Negan bounced, walking his way over to Hayden as all the Savior members began to come forth. "This I got to hear for myself."
"What is it that you're trying to do, doc?" Laura asked next.
"It will be something that Negan and all of his lieutenants have to attend in themselves," Hayden spoke up, spreading his arms out. "We must get back to the Sanctuary so that I can explain to you all my real story. It's time for you to know about the Union Aerospace Corporation. Because after things get resolved here, the Saviors will soon develop as a global military crisis-relief initiative to oppose this Hell invasion. The Armored Response Coalition. Or as I like to call it: The ARC."
A/N: [Now that I've got Hayden to meet up with Rick's group, we'll also see how far the Slayer will go with Morgan, Carol, and Henry alongside him to find the Doom Fortress.]
[I'm taking this time to speak about most people being canon purists out there. I know that some of you have read this story's previous chapter and didn't like how strong the Marauder is towards the Slayer or saying that I made the Slayer look weak.]
[But to defend what I do, I will say that this is MY story, and I'm free to write it however I want, and you are supposed to go off the beaten path when it comes to fanfiction. So whatever rage comment or hurtful criticism you leave me when I make changes, I don't care what you believe.]
[Don't like it? Then go read something else because no one is forcing you to read this. But I am still hopeful of others who have enjoyed the changes, so at least I have something to hope for the time being. Stay tuned and patient! Don't forget to review, but please don't flame.]