The day came and went, before night fell upon All-Hell. The Hero Alliance reconvened with J-Hack and Hartwin as they all walked through the Circle of Limbo.
"The amphitheater where the preliminary takes place is not far off." J-Hack said. "I have no right to ask you this, but…I must request that you try not to make a scene. The last thing you want is to get noticed."
"Considering that some demons still give David a bad rap, that's probably good advice." Emo nodded.
"Oh, he's not the one I was talking about." J-Hack said. "It's mainly those guys." he said pointing to the Dimensional Heroes.
"What? That's crazy." Rarity said.
"No, no. He's quite right. In a recent poll, most of the incidents caused were by you guys." Hartwin said.
"Okay, I admit we get into a few fights here and there but it's not like we go around mindlessly causing…" Pit said before they saw a building be sliced apart.
"Damn, you really need to stop moving the buildings." Zoro said, walking through the rubble.
"You were saying?" J-Hack asked with a sweatdrop.
"Uh… Nevermind." the angel of Skyworld said nervously.
"Idiot." Sister said.
"Wait, I'm not gonna be a problem?" David asked.
"Nope! Thanks to all the many events that happened with the Demon Lords and the Crusade, no one here even remembers who you even are anymore." Hartwin said. "What luck, eh?"
"I see… That's a plus, I guess." David said.
"Don't tell me you're actually a little sad about that." Jexi said.
"Hmm… A little bit of both, actually." David said.
"Think of it this way, on one hand, Dave, yes, your reputation here takes a bit of a hit." Mayumi said.
"Like it hasn't anywhere else already…" David said.
"But on the other… This might be a good thing. I mean, your stance towards them is starting to divert a bit, is it?" Mayumi said.
"Hmm… Yeah, I guess you're right. A few things have changed my perspective on them a bit." David said.
"You wanna make peace between all races, right? So consider this a step forward towards that goal." Jexi said.
"Yeah. It's a pity, but in order to accomplish that, I have to bury the hatchet with demonkind at some point." David said.
"Don't worry, J-Hack. We'll play nice." Mark assured.
"Thank you." the potential Demon Lord said in relief.
"Ah-ha! We've arrived!" Hartwin pointed ahead to an amphitheater where scores of demons, devils, and damned souls were gathered. "Do you have your speech memorized, J-Hack?"
"Yes."
"Answers to potential questions?"
"Yes."
"Counterpoints to the other's statements?"
"Yes, yes. I have everything I need, Eugene." J-Hack assured.
"Splendid! Now, put on your confidence face and get up there!" Hartwin patted his friend on the back as J-Hack went up and took his place in the middle of the amphitheater.
Soon after, black smoke drifted onto the left side of the stage as Be'lakor reformed, while Damien Thorne strode onto the right side.
"J-Hack, Be'lakor." Damien greeted his political rivals.
"Spawn of a Lord's Loins, Weakling." Be'lakor greeted back.
"...Gentlemen." J-Hack said third, clearly uncomfortable being in the middle of these two.
"Let's have ourselves a good, fair election, huh?" Damien smiled. "We'll leave the mudslinging for the humans."
"...Whatever you say." J-Hack grounded out as an ancient-looking demon shuffled onto the stage with an ancient tome, the crowd falling silent as he walked in front of the candidates and cracked open the tome.
"Denizens of All-Hells, and all hells beyond it" the demon croaked out. "We are gathered on this date to decide the next Demon Lord of Pride. Lucifer, the previous holder of this title, has abdicated his throne, and has left no successor in his place. Thus, we hold this first election which will decide the next holder. Candidates, state your names and titles."
"Be'lakor. The Dark Master, the First-Damned, First Daemon Prince of the Chaos Warp." The Chaos Daemon Prince announced.
"Damien Thorne. Son of Lucifer, the First Antichrist, Branch Leader of Dark Hell." Damien followed.
"J-Hack. Butcher of Sowers, Demon King of Discord, The Master of Foggy Night Killers." J-Hack finished.
"Well met." the old demon nodded. "You all have reasons for running in this election. State your reasons."
Be'lakor rose up first. "Allow me to share with you my tale." he began. "Once, I was a human warlord, leading wars of conquest across my lands. Then, the Dark Gods saw potential in my power, and elevated me to the first Daemon Prince. For centuries, I blindly followed these gods, believing them to be all-powerful, and all-knowing. But then…I learned the truth. The Dark Gods care not for their creations, merely seeing them as tools, disposable pawns to cater to their every whim. When I attempted to free the daemons from their control…the Dark Gods struck back, and robbed me of my physical form."
"I ask you, do you believe the 'Warpspawn' asked to be the soldiers of these selfish gods? That they willingly throw themselves into battle for their masters? No! Gods are selfish, unfeeling abominations! I intend to free the daemons of the Realm of Chaos from their chains, and lead them to a better life throughout the Demon Universe. Elect me, and you will gain the loyalty of every daemon who is kept in chains! Fight for freedom, and liberate your Warp cousins!"
Silence reigned for every moment, until…
"BOO!" The crowd jeered in unison as some of them threw trash at Be'lakor (being a shadow, of course, said trash just passed right through him).
"Wow. Clearly someone's not a crowd favorite." Catra said.
"I guess we can say he's not getting a lot of votes." Ragna said.
"And there is a reason why." Sheer said. "Chaos Daemons are almost multiversally hated by all who know of them. Other demons are horrified by the acts they have committed against innocent humans. Even Muzan is eclipsed by them in sheer cruelty."
"Guys like him, crueler than Muzan?" Gemini asked.
"Yeah, Sheer, that statement is debatable at best." David said.
"I hope you never get the chance to compare." Sheer remarked with a shiver.
The Preliminary supervisor then raised a hand to quiet the discord. "Thank you, Be'lakor. And now, we will hear from your opposition. First, let us begin with the Antichrist."
"Thank you, supervisor." Damien nodded his head, standing up. "As many of you know, my father, Lucifer, has run his territory for thousands of years. But… we in the Demon Universe suffered the ultimate tragedy, not once, but twice. The first, was when our home was devoured by Yamigedo, one of our own kind, and we were trapped for years inside his stomach. And the second… was when Superbia, Vice-Angel of Pride, and his Prideful Crusade attempted to wipe out all demons in the Multiverse. Worlds destroyed, homes ravaged, and millions of demons, all dead at their hands! And yet…there is an even greater threat to our kind, one that eclipses both of these combined: the Day of Rapture."
"On this day, all demons, whether they fell from the Sky Universe with my father, or came after, will be thrown into a burning lake of sulfur, to be tortured for the rest of eternity. And for what reason? Because we are demons. Because our forefathers dared to question Color God Cream's right to her throne."
"I ask you, does this sound fair? Does this sound right, to be judged for the crimes of others who came before us? No, of course not! We didn't do anything wrong! We didn't rebel against Cream! And yet, because of my father's actions, we are to suffer the same punishment?! Well, I for one will not stand for it! Elect me as Demon Lord of Pride, and I will ensure that this day of reckoning never comes to pass! We will earn our right to live as we choose, and rebel against the fate the angels forced upon us! Who's with me?!"
The audience clapped and cheered at Damien's speech, shouting words of agreement at the Antichrist's stance.
"Yeah, it's not our fault Lucifer rebelled!"
"We don't deserve to share his fate!"
"Let us have a choice, dammit!"
The Hero Alliance looked around and gauged Damien's speech.
"Well, he's certainly got the Pride part down. Takes after his dad." Hope said. "But his campaign isn't gonna end well. Not for the Demon, or Sky Universes."
"Hope, shh! People can hear you." David said.
"Settle down, one and all." the supervisor raised his hand, calming the audience down. "Now, our last candidate. J-Hack, you may speak."
"Thank you, supervisor." J-Hack rose to his feet. "Mr. Thorn does make some good points. The current state of Demonkind isn't fair. But I don't believe violence is the answer to our problems. Lucifer wasn't banished because he disagreed with Cream, he was kicked out because he led a rebellion. If we want things to be different, we have to do things differently."
"I've come to the realization that some damned souls within our borders have become capable of change. However, once they end up here, that's it. They can't move up. If I become the Demon Lord of Pride, I intend to implement a system where these souls can move to Purgatorio and undertake tests to see if they've truly become worthy of entering Heaven. Through this, I believe we can take the first step to forging peace between Angels and Demons. If we're working together, then we'll be less likely to get thrown into the lake, right?"
Several members of the audience nodded and hummed in affirmation of this statement; not the roar of applause that Daimen had, but it was clear several of them saw the wisdom in J-Hack's words.
"It would take time, yes. And of course it wouldn't be easy. But making things better never is." J-Hack said. "As the Demon Lord of Pride, I intend to forge a new era for demons; one where we're the punishers of the guilty we can be, not the monsters everyone sees as us. That is all."
J-Hack received a round of applause for his speech.
"Yeah! Go J-Hack!" Frosta said.
"Shh!" several other members shushed the princess.
"Very compelling speeches, from all three of you." the supervisor said. "And now that we know why you are here…we shall go over what you must do." he said, flipping the pages of his book until he stopped.
"By the order of the first Demon Lord Council, in the first year of Demonkind, the requirements to become a Demon Lord of Pride are twofold: first, one must command the demons of an entire world. Whether through loyalty or fear, the methods may be of one's own choosing. Second, one must have the blessing of a being aligned with order. Order is required to keep us in check, lest we become foolish. So says the first Demon Council." the supervisor read.
"A fool's errand. I already control an entire territory in my homeworld, and of course, Ursun, God Bear of Kislev, has already agreed to sponsor me." Be'lakor said.
"YEAH RIGHT!" the audience yelled, with one even saying 'Get off the stage, ya jackass!'"
"There's a bear god? Hmm…" Yang said, imagining a golden bearskin rug in front of a fireplace with her and Blake cuddled in front of it.
"I find it hard to believe Ursun would give a blessing to his own Captor." Sheer spoke.
"Then that guy's lying through his sharp, pointy teeth." Carmine said. "Shouldn't we tell everyone?"
"They're only rumors. If we start saying that without evidence, then we could get in trouble for slander." Penny pointed out.
"Uh, guys? Don't look now, but J-Hack's sweating bullets." Bow said.
Bow was right, as upon hearing the conditions, J-Hack started to look nervous.
"Oh, Ten Hells below…" Hartwin swore.
"What's wrong, Hartwin?" Noel asked.
"J-Hack has no worlds under his control." Hartwin explained. "He's far too kind and passive to be a conqueror."
"Well, that makes sense. What about the blessing?" Jexi asked.
"Well, I'm sure some order-aligned god would be willing…but alas, J-Hack has had no time to seek out such a sponsor." Hartwin said. "I have tried reaching out, but no gods I spoke to would hear me out. The nerve of such people."
"Hmm…yeah. This is bad." Pit said as the people looked at him. "Why…is everyone looking at me?"
"Don't you serve a goddess?" Carmine asked.
"Of course. Lady Palutena is the best that…wait…why do you…Oh please don't." Pit said in a panic.
"Pit, J-Hack's flying blind here! If there was ever a time for Palutena to help us out, she could at least back him up."
"Uh…Lady Palutena doesn't like getting involved in politics." Pit said. "Plus she had this bad time when it came to a party at Poseidon's place and…I won't get into it."
"Of all the rotten luck…" Mark grumbled.
"Well, I suppose we'll just have to find a god." Double D said.
"Wait, what about Mastemon?" Al asked.
"Eh, she could work…but something tells me it would be a bad idea for some reason." Eddy said.
"One of them being she's not technically a god, just a guardian." Sheer said.
"And it wouldn't work even if she was. Isn't Mastemon half angel and half demon? The condition states we have to find an order-alinged being. If they're half angel, J-Hack might be accused of getting support from Heaven." Sachiko said.
"Oh…yeah." Al realized.
"Look. We'll circle around the order angle later. For now, we should get the guy a world to subjugate." Dan said.
"Not exactly easy. It would have to be somewhere out of the way, that would benefit with him in charge, someplace with lots of demons….oh god! That's it! I know just the world." Izuku said. "Devilman's world!"
"Oh yeah! The world Akira comes from!" Eddy remembered.
"It's true. The world is on a constant loop since Indigo would kill himself if he ever saw it destroyed again." Madoka said. "But if the events can be changed so the world is not destroyed, the loop would break and it would continue to exist!"
"Then that's just what we have to do. We owe it to Akira, anyway." David said.
"Why is it in a loop in the first place?" Klonoa asked.
"We'll explain once we meet up with Akira. C'mon! We gotta go find him and tell him the plan!" Hope said.
"Uh…shouldn't we pick our candidate up first?" Kieran pointed out.
"Oh yeah. If he's not there, it kinda blows the whole thing." Nemona said. "Don't worry. I'll make it a super low-key pick-up."
A few seconds later…
"And the thing with my campaign…well…" J-Hack said before Nemona swooped down on a Kilowattrel as it picked him off and flew off with him. "What the?! What're you doing?!"
"It's okay, amigo. We found a world for you to subjugate!" Nemona said.
The audience watched J-Hack get carried away by Nemona. "...Well…anyone for dinner?"
"That was the opposite of low-key!" Arven said as they headed off.
"At least it worked!" Nemona replied.
"What're you all doing?! You did realize this could be considered an abduction!" J-Hack said.
"No. We're just taking you somewhere by surprise in a very fun way." Nemona said.
"We have a plan to get the first condition fulfilled for you without having to conquer anything." Adora said. "We're heading to talk to Akira Fudo about saving his world."
"Akira Fudo… he's Damian's 4th Division Sub Leader. He's going to…" J-Hack said.
"It's fine. Akira's our friend." Ash K said.
"Plus, like David said, we kind of owe it to him." Sachiko said.
"And you're sure this is okay?" J-Hack asked.
"We're about 80% sure this will totally work out." Ruby said.
"And the other 20?" J-Hack asked in concern.
"It mainly comes from the fact that… well… he and I may have crossed paths while I was looking for Damien and we beat the hell out of each other." Denji said.
"Oh right, you two didn't hit it off so well in New York when we were helping Miles."
"Yeah. I was trying to kill the guy. Totally would have won if he hadn't chickened out." Denji said.
"Yeah, and you two were hating each other even when you guys didn't know each other's identities." Eijiro said.
"Yeah, so if we want Akira to be on board with this… let's just hope he doesn't find out about your secret like we did." Zephyr said. "Any way we can call him, let him know we're on our way?"
"Luckily I still have the information from when they contacted us for the Lyoko mission." Entrapta said.
"Wait, is that really a good idea? He's working for that Damien guy." Kieran said.
"Well, he didn't strike me as someone completely under the Antichrist's thumb." Mark said. "I'm sure we can trust him."
"If that is what you believe, then it is true indeed!" Hartwin said. "You all are not known for being gullible, indeed you are not!"
Entrapta then took out her commlink and started working. "Hermit, I need your assistance. We're gonna open a secure communication line to Akira and make it untraceable by anyone else in Dark Hell."
"So Damien doesn't find out we're asking for help from one of his own." Hermit finished.
"Exactly. Ready to get covert?" Entrapta asked.
"Yes." Hermit said.
Working together, Entrapta and Hermit opened up a secure communication line and opened up a channel to contact Akira.
"Akira, Akira Fudo, come in! This is Entrapta, from the Shining Hope Squad as part of the hero alliance! We uh…worked together on the Lyoko mission a few months ago, do you copy, over." Entrapta sent the message.
Meanwhile, in the World of Ruin…
"So, Thorne's running for Demon Lord?" Kuroshiki asked as he, a girl in a black body suit and a mask, and Akira sat in a bar.
"Yeah." Akira confirmed. "Hopefully that means Mr. Westwood is taking his place. I swear, half of Dark Hell's soldiers are indoctrinated by that guy…"
"Yeah…but at least you don't have to deal with Black Manta." the girl said as she took a drink from her root beer. "I swear, that guy is almost impossible to work with. I had to threaten to have a colony of parasites eat him from the inside out three times during the last assignment we had together!"
"...Taylor, have I ever told you you're horrifying?" Akira asked.
"You wouldn't be the first." Taylor sighed in resignation.
Just then, Akira's comm started to ring.
"Oh, hold on." Akira said as he took the call. "Hello?"
"Akira, Akira Fudo, come in! This is Entrapta, from the Shining Hope Squad as part of the hero alliance! We uh…worked together on the Lyoko mission a few months ago, do you copy, over." Entraptas message got through.
"Entrapta? What the hell are you doin' calling me?" Akira asked. "If you're looking for dirt on Thorne, I'm not the guy you should ask about that."
"Oh, don't worry, we're not looking to take the low road. Listen carefully, we're in support of J-Hack in the Demon Election, and he needs a world to be under his control as part of the requirement, so… Izuku thought it'd be a good idea if we give him yours!" Entrapta explained in the way only she could.
"WHAT?! Why would you…"
"Just trust us. We're going to be able to help your world, Devilman." Izuku said.
"Midoriya…" Akira said.
"Whoa…that's that Deku kid, isn't it?" Taylor asked. "The guy who beat Stain, Muscular, and Overhaul?"
"Yeah, that's him." Akira said, before he got back in the call. "Okay, listen carefully: if you get there before me, do not do anything. I'll be there to meet up with you within five to six hours, tops. Just stay in your ship, and do not try to disrupt anything before I get there. Got it?"
"Okay. We'll respect your wishes, devil with the heart of a human." Izuku said.
"Yeah, yeah, keep calling me that, it might be true again someday." Akira said, ending the call before he stood up. "Sorry, we gotta cut this meeting short. I gotta go task a crew." he said, walking away quickly.
"You make sure you save your world. And do it on your terms. Not his." Kuroshiki said.
"Good luck saving your world. Hope you do a better job than I did." Taylor said.
"Thanks guys." Akira smiled as he headed off. "This time…maybe, just maybe…"
Back with the heroes as they made their way to the Galaxy King…
"Way to use your head, Izuku! Akira's totally on board, we're gonna help him save his world, and J-Hack won't have to lift a finger to do anything to subjugate it!" Makoto said.
"Yeah…though don't forget, this is his world. It keeps ending in tragedy because of his friend. That one…will be an obstacle." Sheer said.
"One we beat down before and can do it again." Natsu said.
"Uh, maybe it's time you explained what the hell is going on?" Weisz asked.
"It's like this, Weisz. Akira's world is trapped in a time loop that ends in the destruction of demons and humankind. And the culprit behind it every time is one demon in particular. Satan."
"His real name is Ryo. But he is an incarnation of Satan." Aelita said.
"And he's both a real jerk, and has a crush on Akira." Mark said. "He's…more than a tad possessive."
"Wow, sounds like a real charmer." Carmine said flatly.
"So if we stop him, we break the time loop?" Penny asked.
"Theoretically. But if we fail, and it restarts while we're on that world, we'll be wiped from existence since we aren't from there." Madoka said.
"Which means we only have one shot at this." Sectonia said.
"Just hope Indigo doesn't see. It was hell stopping him the first time it happened." Madoka said.
"Why does he care about that world specifically?" Klonoa asked.
"Cause it was the first one he made for this Universe." Madoka said.
"Ah, yes. It makes sense why he would grow such an attachment to it, then." Kagetsu said.
"So, let me see if I understand this correctly." J-Hack said. "You want to go to a world that's stuck in a destructive time loop, defeat an incarnation of Demon Lord Satan, and have the rest of the demons swear themselves to me. And if we fail, we'll be wiped from existence?"
"That about sums it up, yeah." Catra confirmed.
"...Well, it's the best option we have." J-Hack said. "Lead the way."
"You're okay with this?" Sakura asked.
"There isn't enough time to find alternatives. I only have three months before the deadline expires, and admittedly I was concerned about fulfilling the requirements, regardless of what they were. But.. if your plan will let me obtain a world in the Demon Universe without any means of violence on my part, then I am on board." J-Hack said.
"That's the spirit." Kaminari said.
"Yeah. We'll get you elected, even if I have to battle el diablo myself." Nemona said.
"Let's…hope it doesn't come to that." Arven said.
"We shouldn't waste any more time then. Akira will probably beat us there before long." Jet said.
"Let's go break a loop." Hope said.
(Cue: Devilman no Uta- Kenuske Ushio )
With that, the heroes boarded the Galaxy King and prepared for takeoff.
"Jet, you got the coordinates for Akira's homeworld?" Vashyron asked.
"Yeah. Got them locked in." Jet said.
"This is incredible…we're actually doing this." J-Hack said. "Have you all had any experiences with Time Loops before?"
"I think Spirit Force has. You guys helped Subaru, right?" Bow asked.
"Yes, but it only occurred whenever he died. Plus that was more of a reset than a time loop." Simon said.
"Ahem!" David said.
"Oh right, you were there too." Bow said.
"Bow, maybe you should stop talking." Zelos said.
"Look, we don't need to know how time loops work. We just need to know how to save Akira's world. We already know our villain and hero." Jexi asked.
"We know more than that, actually." Miles said, taking a picture and sticking it to the board.
"Wait…who is this girl?" Aelita asked.
"Miki Makimura. Teenager. Skilled track runner. As it so happens, she's the one Akira falls for." Miles said.
"So she's an important part of his life then." Hartwin stated, nodding his head. "Yes, yes, I see."
"Yeah. Of course…" Miles said before the group looked at the demon in surprise.
"WHAT THE? WHEN DID YOU GET IN HERE?!" they all said.
"Oh, I simply teleported in, of course!" Hartwin stated happily. "You should look into improving your anti-teleporting safeguards. It was quite easy to slip past them, I'm afraid."
"Uh…we don't have any." Franky said. "But nothing I can't improve."
"This guy is as weird as Woz." Happy-2 said.
"But as for why…I am J-Hack's friend and campaign manager, of course! I cannot let him go anywhere without myself tagging along!" Hartwin explained. "I shall do my part to aid you all where I can!"
"Uh, thank you." Shantae said.
"Well, guess we're hosting two demons aboard." Mark said. "In any case, let's go save a world!"
"Yeah!" they all cheered as they headed off to their next destination.
And so, the Hero Alliance began their journey to help J-Hack, starting with saving the world of Devilman. Little do any of them realize that this adventure would be the start of events that would change the Multiverse forever…
To be continued…