Interlude V
A lone skag treaded its way across the arid rockiness that was Pandora. The imposing beast was on the hunt for food, separated from its pack in the hopes of keeping the spoils of the hunt all to itself. With any luck, the skag hoped to be able to find a nearby rakk's nest, preferably with numerous eggs inside that were ripe for picking, as rakk eggs were a common favorite among the four-legged beasts. The skag's triple-jawed mouth began to water at the thought, and it focused harder on the hunt with the prize in mind.
The skag heard a commotion in the distance, and it raised its head toward the noise, on the alert for possible prey. It immediately recognized the mechanical roaring of an engine, and across the desert land, the skag could see a dust cloud kicking up just over the horizon. Such a sound compared with the raised dust told the skag that it was likely a group of bandits, and that they were undoubtedly out and about for the same reason the skag was.
Food.
Unfortunately, bandits were all too happy to prey upon any lone skag they found, with many even preferring skag meat to any other form of sustenance found on this desolate planet. This made the skag's own hunt much more dangerous, for if it was spotted by those roaming bandits, then it would quickly shift from the hunter to the hunted and would likely not survive.
Quickly, the Skag ducked into a nearby cave as the bandit vehicle drew closer. Darkness welcomed the skag as it trotted deeper in, and once it was satisfied that it was concealed, the skag laid down behind a rock and waited.
The roar of the engine reached a climax, then dropped to a slow idle as the bandits pulled to a stop right at the mouth of the cave. The skag heard the voices of the humans arguing outside, but it didn't dare move from its hiding spot. Had it been with its pack, the skag might have been able to fight and even overpower the small brigade of bandits, as a skag's armored hide was effective against the bullet weaponry the humans utilized. But by itself, the skag stood no chance, so it waited.
The arguing continued for a few more moments, then the roar of the engine crescendoed once more and the bandits drove away, leaving the skag alone in the cave once more.
Almost alone…
From even deeper within the cave, a low rustling sent a chill down the spikes on the skag's back. Something else was in here, and it was much larger than a human.
The skag whipped around and barked at the noise, making itself look bigger to appear more intimidating, but its display proved worthless as a large fist emerged from the darkness and crushed the skag's skull into the dirt, killing it instantly.
Without even pausing to inspect its kill, the owner of the large fist emerged from the shadows and picked up the skag's now lifeless body. Blood dripped from its hand where it had struck its prey, but the large creature did not notice nor care. Blood was a constant sight for a monster such as this.
Unlike the human bandits outside, this monstrosity had no intention of using the skag for food. No, the flesh would be put to far greater use. A use that would soon be made clear to all of Pandora.
Taking the corpse with it, the creature retreated back further into the cave, soon working its way into a large open cavern. The open ceiling stretched high above. And dotted around the edges of the cavern were other tunnel entrances just like the one large beast had come through, connecting much of the underground of Pandora to the surface.
And there, sitting ominously at the center of the large open cavern, a gore nest sat, bathing the rocky walls in its malignant red glow.
Imps scurried back and forth from the nest and into the tunnels and vice versa, adding more and more carrion to the piles surrounding it. All were working to make the gore nest larger and larger, and with it, their presence here on Pandora.
The hell knight surveyed the scene for a moment, then deposited the skag's limp body on top of countless corpses just like it. The bodies were coming in quickly, from both humans and creatures alike, and mounds of flesh almost as tall as the hell knight rose up around the gore nest, soon to be assimilated into the nest's structure.
As if in response to the new corpse, the gore nest pulsed once, its red hue briefly flashing brighter as it summoned more demons to this world. All around the room, flashes of red appeared on their own, leaving more demons in their place when they faded.
The new arrivals were all imps and gargoyles, as the hell knight assumed they would be. As of now, it served as the sole hell knight in this world, directing the hordes of lesser demons to establish a foothold in this dimension. The lords that the hell knight answered to had commanded that this world be seized and assimilated, and so the large demon followed their orders with fierce loyalty, prepping for the arrival of larger and greater demons who would take over command once the gore nest had grown large enough.
Very soon, their presence would be made known to this world, and by then, it would be too late for their denizens to mount a counterattack. This planet, and the resources within, would be absorbed into the Umbral Plains, strengthening their power and expanding Hell's vastness even further. It was only a matter of time at this point.
Far above the planet's surface, Helios Station sat prominently against the sky, unaware of the plot that was unfolding directly below it….