Even now, beaten and bloodied, my goal remained clear: eradicate the Hellish invaders from Earth. I was prepared to do whatever it took to accomplish this. I trudged on, past the Hell church and further into the Hellish cavern that housed it. I came to another Blood Keep that extended into a gargantuan Hellish castle.
I entered the Keep and immediately noted the differences from the last one. This Keep was well-lit and decently tidy for a Hellish structure. It was clear that this Keep was primarily used for rituals and worship. If the tidiness wasn't a clear enough indicator of this, pentagrams were neatly drawn on specific tablets.
I was uneasy. I hadn't seen a single demon since my encounter with the Stalker. There was an eerie silence that hung in the air like a fog. In the back of the room was a large, glowing Hell shrine. I walked up to it and touched it. Suddenly, a booming demonic voice broke the silence.
"In the beginning of the Dark Realm, one Damned soul was chosen to birth all of Uncreation. Her wails of pain, sorrow, and dread were etched into the minds of her children: the Doomed. Darkness ingrained itself into her, corrupting her, changing her. Her soul became darker than the blackest night and those that incurred the wrath of this malevolent entity named her… the Mother."
Curious. This demon – this "Mother" – had been chronicled similarly to me. The runes on the shrine translated to "The Mother's Witness." Maybe this is why the word "Witness" was repeatedly used in the previous Blood Keep. Maybe exploration of this Keep-turned-castle could lead me to more of these "Witnesses."
I searched the halls of the Blood Keep. The winding, tunnel-like hallways were easy to get turned around in. At last, I made it to another shrine. I touched the rune in the middle and waited for the voice to begin booming.
"As the Mother's power grew, so did the Armies of Doom. Their power grew, relentless and unrivaled by all but one tainted soul. The Doom Slayer sought to end the Dark Realm's reign of Uncreation, and took it upon himself to eradicate the Armies of Doom. As her children fell, the Mother grew restless. Fueled by hatred and spite, Her Malevolence grew in power, preparing for her inevitable struggle against the Doom Slayer."
These chronicles appeared to take place during the same period as mine. This would indicate that the Mother was playing a role from the start. A mysterious third party, guiding Hell's legions from the shadows. The Mother had been the unseen hand in the creation of Hell's legions. I had one question that stood out amongst my many others: where was the Mother?
Despite my better judgment, I decided to continue exploring the Keep. While I didn't find any more of the Mother's Witnesses, I did find the Keep's central chamber. Floating above the center altar was another pentagram-shaped demonic key. I snagged it and inserted it into the Unmaker. As I did, the weapon's idle hum grew louder and more aggressive.