[16th January 2011]

[Estate of Rosacarnis, Lands of Nergal, Hell]

We'd come out just on the edge of the 'Estate' it seemed to me as my blade descended and smashed up the skull of the imp-like creature beneath me. So far, so good, as I felt the power begin to spike and the 'feel' of demonic strength as the small legion of archons swung into action on either side of our mortal force and began the butchery of anything that got in their path. Thankfully that had left only a smattering of creatures alive to charge forward at us mortals...mostly mortals...for the moment, a brief respite that would allow the secondary support to roll forward through the Gate with the roar and rumble of their diesel engines. It wasn't exactly clockwork as I stood back up, flanked either side by my two Nguyen Ninjas in their masks and body armour, but it was faster than the enemies streaming forth from the buildings reaction time.

They weren't exactly used to being attacked at the heart of their power it seemed, the buzzing in my ears informing me, us, that the small drones we'd built were flying outwards and reporting on 'nearby' terrain and enemy forces. It had been a little strange to me that this world had never really made the leap forward in drone tech as...my previous Earth's had, but these were adequate to purpose after a little magic, and mad-tech from Dr. Rocquette. But we had them now, along with several supervillains in what was clearly proto-suicide squad, two magical tanks, and of course the lovely gift from those fine folks in the PSNI in the form of three armoured trucks with their special cargo within.

I stepped aside as the three vehicles rolled forward, speakers upon their hulls coming alive with latin chanting, and took aim at the large cluster of demons and their ilk milling about just ahead of us. Screams rent the air ahead of us as we advanced, fear and terror filling our foes as 'angels' attacked them and now great geysers of liquid acid burned faces and exposed skins as Holy Water blessed by several Christian priests of varying denominations erupted from the water cannons. Guns crackled, then the roar of tank guns as the two ancient Comets spoke in anger and a 'stone building' exploded from the impact their arcane enhanced firepower. The Lord of the Dance raised his hands...hmm...hydro-kinesis of the Holy Water, never thought of that I mused as the liquid surged again and demonic skin smoked and voices screamed in agony.

My mind was ablaze now, the divine power flooding into me as I drew ever more upon my patron and drumbeat of War thundered within my very soul. Battle was engaged; the roar of engines, the shrieks of the dying and damned, the whistle of mortar and missile weapons of support came through the Gate, and squelching sound as yet another foe fell to my blazing blade. All mixed with the stomping footsteps of the great Shield Archons as their giant towering bodies strode forward over hellish earth and bodies of the damned who howled out in hate and pain from their pits of suffering. Irrelevant for now my power, my mind, instructed me as I dug out another potion and downed it; for now there was the path of destruction and bloodshed to walk in this lifetime.

Sean...John, needed to make way for Karguk for a little while as the shield slid my back into hand...and smashed the teeth out of a foe in a one swift motion I'd barely remembered. The Lord of Order Nabu would handle the spellcraft for now, as would the old God-ling, while a half-dozen mages SHIELD and the British had pulled together focused on keeping the Anchor for the Gate in place separate from the Golden one's power. Voices were speaking, and I was answering, but it was background noise as the advance moved forward and the sign our true foes were there, and were emerging to do battle, from where we'd expected them. Now the true danger was emerging, the recently restored Lord and his servants, a roar of true rage and power filling the very air around us. We smiled darkly, time to see how bad an idea this was...

--

[16th January 2011]

[Estate of Rosacarnis, Lands of Nergal, Hell]

'Don't freak out Digger, Don't Freak Out, ya've been in worse spots than this...' he thought to himself as let fly a half-dozen customised explosive boomerangs at the little winged horrors came at them as all around him the Book of Revelations appeared to be taking place in condensed format in the small area he existed '...who're ya kiddin mate! Yer in bleedin' Hell, fightin' the Devil an' all his Legions...and bleedin'ell Hell is bleedin' real, and don't freak out. Where's the bleedin' Flash and Mini-Flash when ya bleedin need'em!'

"Ice that lot there now Frost, hurry up please!" this Colonel Flag, what a stupid and obviously fake cover name, instructed one of the other Belle Reve crew completely calm, as if this was a walk in the park and not some insane mission where they charged off into Hell. Or the 'Bad Place' as Killer Frost, who was visibly freaking out despite following orders and doing exactly as the camo-clad and rifled equipped US Colonel instructed and encasing a bunch of monstrous horrors in sheets of ice...before moments later an bleedin' Angel descended and shattered them all into little pieces. And weird ass Angels they were...iron like wings, inhuman visage with green-black skin, and seeming rage issues towards evil things...

'Best not end up here Digger, and remember Don't Freak Out in a Fight!'

Because not dying, and being stuck in this ghastly place where what were apparently damned bleedin' souls of sinners were screaming from various positions of torture. First thing when he got back he was gonna find a priest...no a dozen priests...and get all that confession and forgiveness crap outta the bleedin' way. It was one thing to be in this wretched place with an army of freaky angels, some crazy magic people, and a bunch of equally crazy army men, and another to be stuck here without any of that, or any of his bloody boomerangs either. Really, all he could hope now was since Hell was real, then maybe one of those Hippie-Dippie-Forgive-Everyone nonsense groups were as well and he could just sign up and skip this whole 'get tortured forever' demon place.

"Primary Target Emerging; be on guard" echoed out over his earpiece as he let loose two more of the lovely explosive weapons the US government had given him. Wasn't like he'd shell out a couple of quid from the hole in the wall while he was a guest of the US government; Digger Harkness wasn't made of money after all! "...avoid friendly fire, hold positions and support Primary Spell-casters"

"Primary Spell-casters he says..." he muttered as a large explosion took place ahead of them, followed by a roaring noise that caused him to flinch even as the feeling of dread grew from whatever he felt was going to emerge from the smoke "...but he means is the lunatic bleedin' Cheshire and Other Cheshire are guardin' and the big bearded guy whose laughin' way too much an' happily at all this"

Honestly this...felt way worse than he'd ever done as a villain at times; you knew your working for one vicious bastard of a supervillain when he was using water trucks filled with magic whatever water and just burning the faces and skin off fellas. Sure he'd killed fellas, but damned if he'd ever melted their faces off while laughing manically and demanding their boss come out and face him. Apparently the forces of so-called Good were just as messed up as Evil judging by the way the 'Angels' were just killing everything that looked faintly 'bad guy' enemy with creepy happiness on their faces. Flash didn't go around doing messed up crap like this, and Digger Harkness would be so bleedin' glad when he was finished his 'community service', got these nanite bombs outta his head, and could go back to nice sane Central City and the other Rogues...

--

[16th January 2011]

[Estate of Rosacarnis, Lands of Nergal, Hell]

Fear was becoming a serious problem Maria found as she tried to force it down as it threatened to rise up once again within her. Things had seemed so real till yesterday...and then she'd woken up and found how terrifying the REAL world was, and even more-so how terrifying Grandfather Nergal was. It felt so right...and so unnerving as well; then agonising as he and Mother had ordered her to cut lips for being impudent and 'mouthing off' to her. She'd been so sure they be impressed by what she'd done...in her dreams? was anything real?...by killing and tormenting those homeless bastards, but no...weak. They called her Weak. Mother had her loyalty, but Grandfather...she shivered despite the whip scars being long gone, healed by her birthright.

And now, mere hours later after waking up from that dream life...something was coming for them, some murderous, and burning, and filled with vengeance. She could feel it, and feel the power and rage from Grandfather as he dragged them out into the lands of their 'family estate' and what looked to be the End Times in miniature taking place outside. What was worse she got endure it while dressed in this right stupid dress that some evil reject from the Victorian Age must have designed, then given extra frills and whatever-they-weres to make it even more awkward to move about it. How was she supposed to kill people when she looked like some child's ugly little doll?

"Your Father's filthy friends and his pathetic little apprentice..." Grandfather growled, sending phantom pains through her very being, as it did Mother and Maria's two newfound 'brothers' as he seemed to fixate upon the great golden aura in the distance "...they shall suffer for challenging me! I AM RESTORED! COME MY MINIONS! KILL THEM ALL! BUTCHER THE SUMMONER! BREAK THEIR ANCHOR!"

'Okay...that makes sense...' she told herself as she desperately tried to move forward in these heels...God, she'd never worn heels till today, and damn if they were awkward. Mother...was nude, and that tiny part of her that was still thinking as a human was somewhat mortified by that, but it also meant she and Maria's two brothers soon paced ahead of her as she stalked forward '...if we kill the summoners then they'll be all trapped here and Grandfather and Mother can torture them into insanity"

"FOOL! YOU COME FORWARD BOLDLY...AND STUPIDLY!" Grandfather laughed, flying high into the air, as a man in armour currently dragging a flaming blade out of a hellhounds corpse seemed exposed, separated from his guards. Power sang around him, links to something else, something she'd never felt before...just like the big bearded man tearing apart one of Mother's serving-men felt like. Power, dark and terrifying reared up inside Grandfather and lashed out...

...only for the man looking like reject from a renfair to vanish...replaced by a massive hulking being, a towering giant clad in thick golden armour and holding this gigantic, fuck-off-type shield that absorbed Grandfather's attack with only the barest of movements backwards; then...

...Grandfather was consumed in a wave of explosions and magic. Maria dived for cover as weapons and magic tore apart one of the Knight's guarding them. Ducking down, glancing over and seeing that Mother, Saul and Adam were okay her brain tried to take stock of the situation. Good News; the crazy people invading Hell were now concentrating on shooting at Grandfather mostly...Bad News; there were bloody weird Not-Angel Angels running about trying to kill all the demons and...she was a daughter of a demon and John Constantine, whose blood meant he might as well be one.

"Get up you weaklings!" Mother snarled grabbing her by the hair, shoving her out and lashing out with her magic at Saul and Adam to do likewise "...I know that like bastard, your worthless Father's even more worthless little apprentice..."

"Ah, you must be Rosacarnis...excellent, Second Primary Engaged" Renfair Reject muttered loudly as Maria suddenly realised the battle in this little area was very much going against them. How had he gotten from over there to over here?...she wondered as masked guards appeared out of the smoke and flames of the buildings and land behind them. Maria's eyes though were fixed on the wrongness of the burning sword he held in his hand, and the unnatural energies that seemed to cloak his armour clad form "...I couldn't ask for your surrender now could I? That and submitting to binding perhaps? There's so much we'd like you to tell us..." his gold shining eyes narrowed "...wait? Father?"

"Yes, you stupid little brat! These are my children with your Master! We are a family, a Constantine family! However can you do us harm!" Mother replied sweetly, power infusing her words, as Saul joined her power to them "...you should let us go and..."

"Hehehehehe" he laughed, disbelief and amusement in his tone...that was a bad sign Maria found as the shield went over his shoulder and the fiery sword moved into a two handed stance. Magic pressed back, she could feel it as the masked women readied weapons as in the sky above Grandfather fought with the Gold and Blue clad creature and a half dozen of the Not-Angel Angels "...your John Constantine's demonic offspring? That's even more reason to kill you all! Even if just for the Good of everyone else in the world really"

"Children" Mother sneered power growing around her, flames forming around her arms "let us teach this..."

...a lance of power erupted from the mans gauntleted hand as it shot before she could speak further, sending Mother flying backwards with the force "No, No, you're going to get nice pretty chains around your neck, along with some clothes, and tell us everything we want to know. You don't get to attack my friends and apprentice without fucking consequences. Now kids, want to see what you Daddy taught me...I'll warn its gonna fucking hurt you more than it will me"

...those eyes pulsing with strange twisted golden light surveyed Maria and her brothers as Adam, still in his child form, unleashed a fireball that was blocked by a shimmering 'shield' of light erupting from the man's hand. Maria did the logical thing and dived behind the nearest wall and desperately trying to kick off the stupid heels as Mother surged out of the rubble behind her screaming for blood...

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