[Archive] With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Story Only)

15th November
21:16 GMT -5

Wait… Wait… Dimly coming back to me. They could make bright lights and… Just sort of appear anywhere one of them already was. Can't remember what they're called…

And they picked a fight with Shadowpact, right after they rescued most of the population of a town from criminals who were ritually sacrificing them. That made newspapers. And Mr Cassidy had been in the news before that for his work as a superhero plenty of times.

…

Okay, on page 2, but he was still in there. It was a matter of public record that he was a good guy. He's got an Encarta Populi page. And that's here, where he hasn't ever worked directly with the Justice League.

Oh. No, not the angel thing. They're not going to try to fight me, are they? I've got things to do that don't involve thousands of Gotham's citizens getting permanently blinded.

Empathic vision showing a sort of cream blur. This must be how Kal-El feels when he looks at a lead-lined building. Try and keep things civil… I swap my heavy armour for the lighter model, leaving off the helmet. Then I turn my environmental shield down so that they can see my face clearly and I smile warmly at them. "Something I can do for you?"

They hesitate, and the one in the middle looks at the one on the left for a moment. "Ah… Ah yeah. Is.. that.. the guy who was sending rats to attack the restaurants in Otisburg?"

"Among other things. I'm expecting a visit from the constabulary and if I'm very lucky Batman as well. So while I'm not exactly super busy, if there was something you wanted to talk about, I'd appreciate it if you'd get on with it."

"I wasn't-. Ah, we weren't really expecting to meet you.. here. Um, I just… You're the reason why I joined the Congregation. This is-" He smiles a little nervously. "-kind of a big deal for me."

"I'm not known for having a positive relationship with religious organisations." The woman on his left snorts. "Which congregation was that?"

"No, like, the Congregation." I slowly shake my head. "The.. superhero team. I mean, we're not, like, huge yet or anything, but we've been active for a few months-" And that's what happens when I don't have full access to the League's database. Things like this slip past me. "-and I think we're doing okay."

"Oh, right. Sorry, normally I actually read up on people I'm planning to meet. I haven't actually heard of you, but there are a lot of people I haven't heard of. Gotham's a.. pretty tough place to be a vigilante." I take a few steps closer, careful to keep my body language friendly. "What sort of training and equipment do you people get?"

"This stuff-." He pulls at his loose-fitting outfit with his right hand. "I know it looks like pyjamas, but it's actually stab resistant. And we've got a couple of members who're ex-military, or do boxing or martial arts or whatever."

"How long have you been training for?"

"Well… I guess.. I've been training since I was a kid, but I-." He shuffles uncomfortably. "I only joined the Congregation last month. After you had that.. meeting with an angel."

"With Zauriel." The female Congregationalist walks over to Mr Flannegan and checks him for injuries.

"Yeah, well, I'd-. It just made it seem more real, y'know? That was the first day I'd been to church since I was a kid, and I stayed afterwards to talk to Father Chris, and… Now I'm.. doing this."

"And.. you work in Gotham? Bit of a risky place to set up, isn't it?"

He shrugs. "I grew up here. And, well… There's plenty of stuff to do here. Batman's great and all, but he can't be everywhere."

"I realise that, but you're unarmed and wearing bright red costumes facing criminals with guns. I'm a little worried about what's going to happen to you."

"Nah, see, when we're near other people in the Congregation, we get stronger and tougher. Not that I wanna get shot or anything, but we can do more together than we could apart."

"And how does that work?"

"I dunno, man. I just wanted to do some good, y'know?"

"Good for you. Can anyone join up?"

"Kinda? They wouldn't a' let me in if they were doing background checks, but-." The man on his left coughs theatrically. "You gotta believe in God. It doesn't matter how, Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, whatever. But you gotta believe."

"Believe God exists, or actively worship it?" He shakes his head and shrugs. "For example, I know that the Source exists, but I neither worship it nor accept it as the highest moral authority."

"Dude, that's like…" He waves his right hand over his head. "I think you gotta worship Him, but there was this course and I wanted to get on the streets as fast as possible-."

"You didn't do the course?" The other Congregationalist gives him a decidedly put out look. "Everyone takes the course."

"It's not like I don't know how to pray, man."

"It's not just about prayer, it's the whole operational philosophy-."

"Look, dude. I pray to God, not to whatever TV preacher thinks I gotta go on some 'course' before I can start doing good work." He holds up his right hand, which starts glowing. "And if that's good enough for God-"

I slip a rune stone out of one of my pouches. Definitely a reaction, though I can't tell what sort. I'm not hearing the sound which I heard when Zauriel used theurgy.

"-then that's it." He closes his hand and the light goes out.

"Enhanced physiology, light generation… Anything else?"

He turns back towards me. "Yeah, yeah, you can always talk to each other, so if you need help or advice you can always get it."

"Like.. a.. telephone..?"

"Like a free telephone that always works, and gets through right away. And if someone else in the Congregation needs help and you can help them, bang! You're right there!"

"Instantly? Any distance?"

He shrugs. "Yeah?"

Gosh. "That's amazing. Have you got any idea how hard point to point teleportation like that is?"

"I.. didn't.. go to college."

"They don't teach that in college. Look, I'd-" I spot a pair of police officers getting out of their car at the end of the road, torches in hand. "-really like to talk to you about the whole thing, now's just not a good time. If you give me a phone number-?"

"No need." Left Congregationalist looks a little smug. "We're having a meeting tomorrow evening in the Burnley mosque. Why don't you come along?"

"As.. I said, I'm not-."

"No, no man." Middle Congregationalist shakes his head. "It's not a service or anything. Sort of a cross-community outreach thing. Getting to know your neighbours rather than puttin' up walls. I thought it'd be weird too, but it's actually okay."

"Alright, in that case… I'll see you there."

 

15th November
21:35 GMT -5

Richard nods. "I had wondered why Missus Harrison said we were the third people she'd explained it to."

Batman himself looks more thoughtful. "I was aware of the Congregation, but I was not aware of the full extent of their abilities. That is.. concerning."

Richard smirks. "That they can teleport, or that you didn't know they could teleport?"

"Both."

He's not wrong. "Should I go, or would it be better for someone else to speak to them?"

"You should go. I will arrange to have other operatives-" The team, then. "-investigate as well. Hopefully, the 'Congregation' will be just as harmless as the Alliance."

Richard looks out across the Newtown rooftops in the direction of the Knights Stadium. "The Alliance is mostly doing networking between existing heroes. From the sounds of it, the Congregation is encouraging people who weren't heroes before to become heroes."

"To become vigilantes, yes." He looks back around. "We won't know whether they're being encouraged to be heroes or not until we get a better idea of how they're operating."

"You said one of them checked the Ratcatcher was okay?" I nod. "I don't think a group who were dishing out punishment beatings would bother doing that."

"Unless they were seeing what I was doing. I don't have the best reputation among monotheistic communities."

Batman bows his head slightly. "It's baseless conjecture at this point. Report back to me after you meet them on Wednesday."

"Certainly."

Richard waves, getting his grappling gun out to continue their patrol as he heads to the far side of the roof. Batman steps back as if to follow him, then stops when I don’t move. "Was there something else?"

Ring, precautions.

Compliance.

An orange hemisphere appears around us, opaque enough to make lip reading impossible.

"Why has no one arrested Collin Thornton?"

"Because we have no direct evidence of criminal wrongdoing. As you were successful in changing the law so that a demon can be an American citizen, we have to use the same standards of evidence as we would for anyone else."

"Satanus openly attacked the Hall of Justice."

"True, but we do not have good evidence linking Collin Thornton to Satanus, or to DMN production."

"And we need that, do we?"

He watches me for a moment. "What do you suggest instead?"

"Have Angelica ritually sanctify Metropolis. If anyone queries it, tell them it's a form of city-wide arcane protection. Wait until he moves, then do the same wherever he moves to. Keep doing that, keep watching him, until he slips up."

"I find that it's easier to gather information from people who are overconfident, rather than people who feel that they're under attack."

"What do you want to know? I mean, I'm sure that you've debriefed Angelica by now. You know what he is, what he does. Given his particular skill set -and that it can't be replaced if we removed him from control of his organisation- I can't think of anything that could be gained from leaving him in place that's proportional to what he gains from being left in place."

"To choose one example that I've been drafting contingency plans around, he doesn't summon a huge army of demons into Metropolis and kill millions of people."

"Sanctify the ground. Also, I have a Lantern Corps."

"Vril Dox has a Lantern Corps."

"I have at-will recruitment authority. I suspect that I can find a hundred people who really want to kill demons, especially after Fawcett City. Even if I have to take all of the rings back afterwards."

"It would still wreck central Metropolis."

"Do you think he's holding off on doing that because he's a nice fellow? Because he's decided to take advantage of the opportunity being an American citizen gives him and become an upstanding member of society?"

His jaw hardens. "Mind. Your. Tone."

"Someone's using the Anti-Life Equation. That says Apokolips. There are only two groups we know of on Earth who have had contact with Apokolips: Bialya and Intergang. Intergang appears to have disappeared and the factions in Bialya have only agreed a ceasefire because they were running out of bullets. Neither Adom nor I have been able to find any evidence of Apokoliptian technology in the country. Queen Bee was a member of the Light, and I would assume that the rest of them were intelligent enough to keep a copy of her address book."

"The g-oni acquired knowledge of demonic magic they shouldn't have been able to get. While there are plenty of cunning demons, there aren't many who are capable of keeping up with modern technological developments. Satanus already demonstrated remarkably similar capacities when he used my Lazarus Pit as a hell portal. And he's only going to get more dangerous."

"Are you planning to attack him?"

"Of course I'm planning to attack him. And this time I'm talking to you about it first so that we don't end up working at cross purposes."

"When?"

"That depends on the outcome of this conversation. What are you doing? What are you waiting for? Are those things more important than getting rid of him as quickly as possible?"

Batman stares into me for a moment.

And another moment.

"My principle concern is my lack of intelligence on what is happening in Hell itself. The man I would usually consult-."

"Is still recovering from being possessed by a Lord of Order."

"Jason Blood, has disappeared."

"Do you want me to find him, or do you want me to investigate Hell myself?"

"I would prefer him to be found alive and well. However, if you believe that you can perform an investigation without him, you are free to do so."

"I'll need my access to the Justice League database restored." The Alliance's database -combined with what I am still able to pillage from police and intelligence services- is alright for some things, but what the League has is far better. "Including everything you have on Etrigan's precise capabilities. I do not want to get blindsided by that thing."

"Acceptable."

"Okay then." I dismiss the hemisphere. "I'll speak to you again when I have more news."

 

16th November
09:57 GMT -5

"…can talk now, but none of them are exactly chatty."

I nod as Ambrose and I stroll towards the Tower of Fate for our appointment with John Fate. Since he's inhabiting the Tower full time, he's opted to keep it visible while he's actually at home. As a result, it has rapidly become a moderately popular tourist attraction and there's already a decent crowd in the general area when we arrive.

"You've made it clear that they're allowed to ask to go home, right?"

"I told them. And at least some of them speak English enough to explain it to the ones who don't."

"And an imam?"

"Might be a bit of a security issue there."

"You.. think your local imam might decide to send them back to Hell personally?"

"I don't know. There're three mosques in Indiana and I don't know the men who run them." I frown at him and he rolls his eyes. "I'm not John Constantine, and Indiana's a bit bigger than London. So it could be they're all fanatical magic-haters for all I know. Or they could be reasonable about it -which is not to say they'd be polite to someone like me- but I doubt people coming back from Hell gets covered in their training."

"No, but pastoral care would. Okay, how about… The man who's working as Adom's advisor on Islamic affairs, Mister Khalil. He's flexible enough to have politely dealt with a short-tempered pagan demigod for nearly a year."

He breathes in and then huffs out as we thread our way through the crowd. "Alright. Yeah. I could do with getting rid of them, to be honest."

"Learn anything useful from them?"

"Some Indonesian prison slang." He shrugs. "A bit. I'm not a thaumaturgist or anything, but I've got a better idea about how Hell's magic interfaces with new souls. I wouldn't want to write up it for an Atlantean journal, but…" An amused snort. "Next time you do something like that, I should be able to straighten them out faster."

"Could you shield a damned soul from Hell's magic?"

Another deep breath and a huffed exhalation as he considers. "De-pends. If they were just a bad person, yes. If they were doing demon magic themselves, no."

"And could you intentionally bind demon magic to a soul?"

He looks away for a moment. "That's not exactly hard. Do you want to bind it because you want to damn someone who might go somewhere else?"

"No. To hide an honest soul so that it looks like it's local."

"It would probably end up-."

"Ah, excuse me?" Ambrose and I stop about two metres from the door as a short blonde woman waves at us. "Excuse me? We're not supposed to get closer than this."

I smile at her politely. "It's okay, we've got an appointment." I keep walking until I reach the door, grasp the handle and then firmly turn it. The door swings open easily, leading into what looks like the foyer of a hotel from the nineteen forties. I hear a slight increase in the volume behind us, and as I turn back to usher Ambrose through I'm greeted with a hundred or so cameras-

"…cake guy…"

-taking pictures and recording video. Fortunately, none of them do anything silly like charging the door, but this does feel a little odd. Shadowcrest at least has a garden and exterior wall dividing public space from private space, as well as any number of wards designed to quickly and efficiently deal with those who breach propriety. The arrangement here appears to be 'public space right up to the exterior wall'. Oh, I'll mention it to him.

I follow Ambrose inside, closing the door as he takes in the interior. "Classy. And none of that non-Euclidean nonsense."

"No, I found that made it rather hard to navigate." John -helmet on head- walks down a curving staircase which… Actually, that should take anyone walking up it outside the tower. "Quite aside from the headaches. You must be Ambrose Bierce."

"And you're John." Ambrose looks John over, his eyes lingering on his biceps. "Don't think I have to worry about mistaking you for the other one."

John reaches ground level and approaches us. "On the other hand, you gave me a bit of a start. I don't suppose you're related-?"

"No. And I think that if you went through enough people in any profession you'd find people who look a bit alike."

"Hm. Alright." The helmet turns in my direction. "Why are we gathered here today?"

"To perform a feasibility study on invading Hell."

Ambrose's eyebrows shoot upward, while John merely inclines his head slightly. "I.. see. And what brought this on?"

"Satanus's building infrastructure. I don't like giving my enemies time to organise themselves. And I also don't want a repeat of two months ago when I ended up in Hell grotesquely under prepared for it." I tilt my head to the right for a moment. "Also, my general rejection of 'villains act, heroes react'."

The helmet nods. "Are we talking about a true invasion with a large body of soldiers, or more in the way of a strike team?"

"Whatever we think we can get in and out safely."

Ambrose squints. "There isn't really any such thing when you're talking about Hell. Is that why you wanted to know if I could make it look like someone was local?"

"Yes. I could alter someone to physically resemble a demon, then you could bind enough magic to them in order to pass-." He's shaking his head. "What?"

"Wouldn't work. Yes, I could make someone pass casual examination, but they won't. Anyone doing anything for a Duke of Hell like Satanus would be bound to him. The Exegesis Guild have a slightly different system, but no demon outside those pacts would get anywhere important without being detected and annihilated."

"But they could pass in other, less secure places."

"Depends. If the Arch-Dukes are following his lead and binding everyone in their domains, we're out of luck."

"Is that actually likely? I always got the impression that demonic nobles valued their independence highly. Would they really just copy someone of a lower rank, someone who hadn't made them bend their knees and accept an oath?"

"Usually, I'd say 'no'. But after Satanus' decapitation strike in Fawcett this year, they might have become a bit more open minded."

"Unless he has."

Ambrose frowns. "Satanus is clever, but some of the demons still around are far more powerful. Arch-Duke Neron wouldn't accept someone like that as his leader, not in either sense."

"While I realise that it would be a 'Constantine' solution, I'm not making a deal with Neron."

"Wasn't going to suggest it. And not just because he would. Never summon up what you can't put down."

John nods. "Sound advice. Shall we continue this in the study? I've got a feeling that we'll need the reference material."

 

16th November
20:33 GMT -5

"Orange Lantern!" The person I recognise as 'middle Congregationalist' waves as I approach the entrance of the Burnley mosque. A slow but steady stream of people are heading in the same direction, a variety of ethnicities represented amongst them. Gotham doesn't have a large Muslim population, certainly not a large enough one for them to be considered largely from anywhere in particular. "I didn't think you'd actually come!" His eyes move to the woman on my arm. "And… Ah..?"

"Jade. Jade Nguyen."

I shrug. "Jade actually lives in Gotham, so I thought that asking her to come made sense."

She'd be a pretty good fit with the Congregation, actually. Perhaps not as a member, but certainly as a trainer and intelligence officer. Though it wouldn't exactly be a bad idea for her to join as an active member. They seem to give out safe and reliable super powers, and I only promised to leave it a while before giving her super powers myself.

"Hey, Jade." He extends his right hand, and she detaches herself from me to shake it. "Den Petersen."

"Hello Den."

Jade's not exactly enthusiastic about this whole thing, but agreed that her information gathering abilities were much better than mine. Also, I like us being able to do work-stuff together. The differences in our skill sets usually preclude that, without her looking massively outclassed or me being superfluous.

Reminds me of the organisation structure that Stormwatch had when I started reading those, actually. Recognising that the organisation had several roles and that their empowered operatives weren't necessarily particularly good at all of them, the fellow in charge split them into three groups. In the event of a sudden high-end attack like an alien invasion or a powerful supervillain acting openly, one team… Can't remember what they were called, would be dispatched to directly engage it. There was a second team for covert investigations, because the skill set required was different. The problem the Justice League have is that they're set up to use all League members as team one and all of my former team mates as team two. And any setup which requires that Batman be sent to the front lines while Canis is used for intelligence gathering is a poor one.

And I think I may have volunteered for team three.

"Den, I did.. some checking earlier today, and it seems that the Quran is rather against polytheists like me coming inside mosques." For a split second he looks like I just kicked his puppy. Without his mask on his youth is far more apparent; I doubt that he's much older than my apparent physical age. "I'd still like to, but I don't want to offend anyone."

"Oh. Ah, I didn't know that." He backs off slightly. "If you wait here, I can go and check with Mister Kathia, see if it's alright."

I nod. "Thank you, I'd appreciate that."

He dodges past two headscarf wearing women in loose flowing robes as he hurries inside.

"Is that true?"

"Oh yes, completely." Jade isn't wearing a head scarf so much as an unusually broad hair band, but is generally conservatively dressed. "I imagine it was due to early Islam considering their faith an 'update' of the region's other two monotheistic faiths, while wanting to paint the local pagans as being entirely beyond the bounds of acceptability. Or maybe not; I wasn't there. But you can go in."

"I know you think that choosing a religion would be a good idea, but I doubt they'll let me do comparison shopping."

"They said it was all monotheistic anyway. Not a good match for you."

"You know, some people might be offended by the insinuation that they're going to Hell."

"Probably."

She watches the flow of people for a moment, no doubt picking up all sorts of details that I haven't realised are significant. Only one so far has the obscuring cream glow which the Congregationalists have, so I presume that the rest are just here for the outreach program.

"Though, I suppose… If I'm having to invade Hell anyway..."

That gets a quiet snort of amusement. "What about Valhalla? Odin's supposed to be very supportive to killers of all kinds."

"You can ask Prince Jon about it. Odin's supposed to be a bit of an arse, but I haven't had any direct contact with the Aesir. That might just be due to Jon marrying a valkyrie. Though, from my point of view…"

"That wouldn't be a problem because I'm not a valkyrie."

"No, I was going to say that with the einherjar on Earth, invading Asgard would be a lot easier than invading Hell."

She turns to face me. "Were you always this keen on invading places?"

I walk up to her, take both of her hands in mine and raise them to my lips, looking straight into her eyes as I do so. "Only for you."

Her eyes close as she lets out a mildly pained exhalation.

"Orange Lantern? Mister-." I glance away from Jade as an Indian-. No, probably Pakistani man puts his right hand on Den's left shoulder and gives his head a small shake. "Oh. Ah, sorry?"

"It's fine." I reluctantly release Jade's hands and we turn to face them. I extend my right hand towards Mr Kathia. "Orange Lantern."

"Yeah, I heard." British accent. Couldn't place it precisely. He takes my hand. "What's this about you not being allowed in?"

"I'm a Hellenist. Multiple gods." He nods in understanding. "So I wanted to check that I was allowed in."

He shrugs. "You can't come in the prayer hall, but we're not 'aving the meeting in there, mate."

"Glad to hear it. Does that mean we get to keep our shoes as well?"

"Long as they're not covered in mud."

"Thank you."

He shrugs, then turns to Den. "Den, would you mind introducing them around? I need to try and get hold of Amil real quick."

"Yeah, no problem." Den smiles at us. "This way."

Jade and I follow him inside, her eyes moving to take in everything while I rely on my rings. Looks like.. this place was a gymnasium that got converted. It's in reasonably good repair, compared to what I'm used to from Gotham-. "Den, were you around for that thing with Swamp Thing?"

He shivers. "Yes. I was pretty close to where you killed that giant rotting demon thing."

"Oh. Were you alright?"

"Had to shoot a couple of giant cockroaches, but yeah, basically." He glances back, smiling. "Selling the footage to Fox covered my rent for a few months."

"While I'm glad that worked out for you, getting the heck out of the way really is the most sensible thing you can do in situations like that."

He shakes his head. "By the time I could see it, there wasn't anywhere to run to. And with the vines all over the doors, I don't think I could have got out anyway."

I nod as he pushes open the doors at the end of the corridor, and leads us into the meeting room.

 

16th November
21:07 GMT -5

"I… Have a range of responses? It really depends on how bad things are."

I'm not used to this. Yes, I occasionally go to a party or give a speech for work reasons, but those are far simpler. If I'm at a party then either people are there to do business networking and aren't particularly interested in me except as the half of the Lantern/Kord double act with the reasonable attention span, or I'm there with Diana and she gets the attention.

Was there with Diana. That hasn't.. happened since I.. got back…

And when I give a speech, I'm talking about a particular subject, usually to people involved in that area of business or technology. People who can be trusted to stick to the topic because that affects them directly. I've never been surrounded by… Fans.

"Like how Mighty Adom tore Asim Muhunnad apart with his bare hands and saved Kahndaq from tyranny! So if things are really bad, you just bam!"

Turns out that Gotham has a Kahndaqi expatriate community. The boy questioning me has a Teth Adom toy, and jerks it around to emphasise his words. His mother initially tried to stop him, but when I started answering like this was an actual question and answer session their family and their neighbours started gathering around.

"Tyranny's a bit abstract. I didn't work with Adom to overthrow Asim because he censored newspapers. I did it because of all of the people being-" Children present, and from his accent he grew up here. "-put in prison or killed for no good reason. Adom only killed him because he was very upset about the attack on Shiruta."

"Have you killed other people like him?"

He seems.. a little too happy at the prospect.

"Yes. I have. And I can't say it makes me particularly happy, because by the time things have gotten that bad I would be.. clearing up after a lot of very nasty things had already happened."

"Like what?"

"Omar!" His mother appears to decide that asking me about the most traumatic parts of my career isn't the most polite thing to do. "That's enough." She picks him up and looks at me apologetically. "Thank you for talking to him, and I'm sorry he was bothering you."

I shake my head. "No trouble."

"Moooom."

She carries him away toward the refreshment stand, and I realise that the rest of the family are serious-looking adults. A young man on the cusp of adulthood nods at me. "Like what?"

"Industrialised piracy, rape, mutilation, murder and genocide. I think there were drugs and cannibalism thrown in there as well, but once you've got murder and genocide, what else do you need? Earth is a fundamentally decent place, humans a basically good species. Someone would have.. killed Asim eventually. In other places, that's not the case. And.. I found myself.. the man on the spot."

An older man frowns. "Do you feel bad for the people you killed?"

"No. I don't think much about them at all. I'd rather not have to deal with situations like that, but I'd rather deal with it than have it not dealt with. The point I was trying to make for the benefit of the young man a moment ago is that superheroes are blunt force instruments and generally aren't good at rebuilding societies. Kahndaq took as long as it did because we had to make sure that civil society didn't collapse, that Asim's lieutenants didn't turn it into a war zone as happened in Bialya. Before I decide to use that sort of force I want to be very sure that there isn't a better way to go about it. So while things like that are probably where I've had the biggest impact, I prefer talking about the counselling sessions I've run in Belle Reve to try and help violent criminals reflect on their behaviour. I prefer talking about.. just about any other part of my work." I shrug. "The chocolate company I'm buying to protect it from asset strippers. Because if things get to the point where the least bad thing to do is kill a lot of people, then… Really, things should have been stopped well before that. And that -combined with Gotham's history of inter-community violence- is one of the reasons why I'm so happy that meetings like this exist. Because while I can come in after the shooting's started and cart the survivors off to Blackgate, I'd much rather not have to."

"Batman did a lot of damage to the gangs, but it was Lieutenant -now Commissioner- Gordon and the people in his Major Crimes Unit who turned the police force into a functioning, trustworthy organisation. And it was people in the wider community trusting that reform that allows them to act as a police force should; protecting people and enforcing the law in a fair and even-handed manner, rather than having to use threats and intimidation to get anywhere. I don't think anyone seriously thinks that life in Gotham was better a decade ago than it is today." A few of the members of my audience shake their heads, but most are just staring at me. "It takes a lot of things going badly wrong for Gotham to end up like it did. And anything citizens like yourselves can do to work against that has massive value for everyone."

I come to a halt, not really sure what else there is to say. I get a few approving nods from people who probably think they're older than me, and I try looking around for Jade. Ah, talking to Omar's mother. Good move. "And on a slight tangent, I would very much like to learn more about the Congregation."

The older man regards me somewhat cautiously. "What for?"

"Because while I'm the last person with any grounds for complaining about exotically dressed volunteer police officers, I have concerns about their training and their direction. And I think those concerns would be best addressed by me speaking to someone in a position of authority and offering my help early. Getting into fights with armed criminals is a good way to get yourself killed, but it's also a good way to inadvertently kill someone and get yourself arrested for murder. The top fraction of a percent of vigilantes like me might get a lot of publicity, but the figures on new vigilante survival are not good. And a lot of them get arrested for making a hash of doing the right thing, because keeping the peace requires more than just blasting people with fireballs or punching their heads off."

He nods, then half turns away from me. "I am going to talk to the Orange Lantern for a little while."

There are a few nods, then the crowd breaks apart almost immediately. The suddenness of it causes a few other people to look around, but the only one who actually starts to head my way is politely drawn into a new conversation.

Ah. "Thank you, but you don't look like a member of the Congregation."

Bushy grey eyebrows rise slightly. "You can tell?"

"They get basic wards as part of the package. It stops my ability to see people's emotions, and I can still see yours."

He nods. "My name is Adil Wasem." Oh. "And I see that you have heard of me."

"You basically organised helping Kahndaqis escape to America when Asim took over. Adom's wanted to thank you personally ever since he heard about you."

He shrugs. "I have lived in America for most of my life. I have little to go back to now."

"I apologise for not recognising you, but you're a bit.. older than your pictures."

"It is a side effect of living for as long as I have. But, you wanted to know about the Congregation." I nod. "I have known many excitable youths in my time. As a senior member of the community, I have tried to direct them to do something productive with their excitement, instead of joining criminal gangs. Sometimes I have been successful and sometimes I have not."

He pauses, gathering his thoughts. "A little under three months ago, I had a… A dream."

"A dream?"

"I am not so proud as to believe that I am a prophet, that almighty God would single me out. At the time, I thought perhaps that I was dying... So, yes, a dream. A.. figure instructed me to find certain excitable young people and to pray with them. I did… And a short time later they visited me wearing a red costume."

"Any particular prayer?"

"Yes, but one I have spoken thousands of times before. And not the same as the one spoken by others so visited."

Hm. So that's what it looks like when the Silver City pulls its finger out. "Of course. They said that they accept people from all monotheistic faiths."

He looks away, slightly uncomfortably. "It is hard… Many of the things that are a part of Islam cannot be traced with certainty back to the Prophet, peace be upon him. Some parts are certain, others may be the teachings of his followers, or the invention of later rulers… And Father Christopher tells me that Christianity is much the same. At my age, a man is not supposed to have to have his world view changed so greatly. To know that I have received the same message as devout men of other religions… To know that so much of how we all have lived must be contrary to the will of God."

"Do you.. organise them..?"

He shakes his head. "No. No, I am not in charge. But, many of the Muslims called upon to serve respect me. And you are right; neither they nor I know how to be vigilantes. What do you suggest?"

 

17th November
09:12 GMT -5

Commissioner Gordon stares at me for a little longer than would have been comfortable for me back before I got used to things like this. "Are you telling me that I've got vigilantes in my city who are part of a worldwide team and can come and go whenever they like?"

"No, I'm saying that you've got two: the Justice League and the Congregation."

"The Justice League are authorised by the UN."

"So's the ICC, but America's still going to declare war on the Netherlands if an American gets arrested by them." Behind me, Harvey snorts with amusement, then covers it with a cough when Commissioner Gordon's irate gaze turns his way. "I really think it would help you if you regarded this as an opportunity rather than a problem."

He looks at me extremely sceptically. "Yeah? How'd you work that one out?"

"Because if it's a problem then you can't deal with it anyway. You could probably get the budget for ten police auxiliaries. You won't be able to get the budget for the city-wide wards it would take to prevent them teleporting reinforcements in. And that wouldn't even stop them operating while they were here. They appear to be able to recruit and empower any monotheist. Which in a city like Gotham is about ninety percent of the population."

"Christ."

"On the other hand, I've spoken to several of the local members and one of their recruiters, and they're open to the idea of working very closely with the Gotham City Police Department. Which means you'd end up with police auxiliaries who could teleport, communicate with each other in ways which can't be intercepted and generate flares at will." I don't know if their ability to bring in arbitrarily large quantities of reinforcements very quickly is a selling point or not. Maybe skip that for now. "And you'd get to train them, which means they're less likely to create problems for you and less likely to get their fool selves killed."

"If they're that enthusiastic, why don't they just join the police?"

"Because that's not something people with superpowers do, whereas Gotham has had two significant vigilantes become police auxiliaries in living memories. And we both know that you used the extremely relaxed laws which legitimised Green Lantern to sneak Batman in. And yes, I'd be very much in favour of you subverting that, but they could have applied to join the police before they got super powers."

"What about their religious practices? I'm not prejudiced-."

"But…"

"No. I'm not. I treat anyone who wants to join the force in whatever capacity exactly the same. Religion is actually one of the few things that hasn't divided this city. But after Deacon Black, I've learned to.. take a closer look at newly emerging religious groups." His eyes narrow slightly as he remembers something. "And don't you have an ongoing dispute with… The Resurrection Crusade?"

"They tried to destroy the human capacity for free will. But since the individuals who did it died I don't consider the dispute to be ongoing. Unlike you I have all sorts of prejudices, but in this case I'm willing to contemplate the idea that the Silver City has actually done something right. Members of the Congregation have to spend time with people from other monotheistic communities, and firmly believe that no one Yahweh wasn't okay with could get in. As a result, they're actually less insular or intolerant than the average member of their community." I shrug. "I guess that when you firmly believe that a particular deity is the supreme moral arbiter, having them tell you that a particular group are actually 'okay' settles the theological arguments pretty firmly. Heck, they talked to me."

That gets a very weak smile. Which he swiftly quashes.

"Alright. I'm not promising anything, but I suppose there's no harm in meeting their representative."

"Thank you, Commissioner. Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"No. Thank you."

I nod politely, then turn away and leave him to his paperwork. Harvey follows me out of the corner office and into the Major Crimes Unit's office. "Superpowered guys on the force, huh? Don’t suppose there's any chance of you picking up a badge."

"I'm not a US citizen. Though if Queen Hippolyta calls upon my services, I would be happy to do a term as a guard in Themyscira City."

"Heh. 'Guard'."

I turn my head towards him, smile politely, then pat him gently on the back with my left arm while simultaneously removing tar from his lungs and fatty deposits from his everywhere. He's not in as bad a shape as you might think from looking at him, but tobacco, alcohol and poor nutrition were having a deleterious effect on him. And now they're not.

Can't say I didn't warn him.

Harvey doesn't appear to notice as he escorts me to the door of the Major Crimes offices and waves me goodbye. In the hall-

"…a year now, transferred from Investigation."

A police detective I don't recognise is talking to Jade… Ah, leaning forward, posture confident, voice slightly quieter than expected… If I were less confident in our relationship I'd probably do something confrontational right now. Either that or 'assert our relationship' by embracing or kissing her. She'd tolerate it, but it would earn me a cutting remark or two later. But I'm not that insecure. And I know exactly how she feels about me. Not as strongly as I feel about her, but little strands of violet light have started wriggling their way into her consciousness when she thinks about me. And-

"Really?"

-I'm sure she knows that I know. Not like I kept my abilities -or anything else- secret from her. I wonder if she's consciously realised it herself yet?

"When Gordon became Commissioner, he cleared out a lot of the dead wood." He shrugs. "He goes for people with proven track records, and I like to think my work speaks for itself."

I turn away to examine a notice board while Jade does whatever she's doing. A 'weapon safety is everyone's responsibility' poster, a rota, photos from some sort of social event and a thank you note from a colleague currently convalescing. I wonder if I could talk Alan into coming here as a loan from the City of New York? Given how Gotham's recovering and how Batman has wider responsibilities, he might like swinging by and-.

"Should I be offended that you didn't run Detective Driver off?"

I turn around to face her, check the corridor in either direction and then step forward to wrap my arms around her, lifting her slightly off the floor as I forcibly bring her lips to mine. She makes a token resistance, then pushes her face harder against mine than I was prepared for. I'm actually struggling to prevent both teeth clicking and laughter as we kiss, my head being forced back as she relies on the strength of my grip to support her oral assault.

Okay, not as if I mind-.

From an inch away Jade stares into my eyes, the tip of my tongue held between her teeth.

My environmental shield means this doesn't hurt, but I really need to learn that Jade will attempt to turn anything she regards as a dominance display back against me. I lean towards her, relaxing my grip as her feet return to the floor. She graciously decides to allow my tongue to return to my mouth.

"In answer to your question, I love you and I trust you. And I'm not some sort of lunatic who feels the need to growl at any man who looks at you."

"No." Her lips twitch as she tries to prevent herself from smiling and for once actually fails. "You're some other kind."

"I don't know if you had any.. plans today, but I was rather hoping that you could spare me a little time."

Her eyebrows rise. "What did you have in mind?"

"Planning to attack Hell, naturally."

She tilts her head to the left and gives me a mildly irritated look. "You remember what happened last time we went to Hell?"

"And that's why I want to plan it properly this time. Planning a black operation assault against a hardened target in enemy territory just wouldn't be fun without you."

A minor eye roll. "Who else are we planning this with?"

 

17th November
20:39 GMT -5

Ambrose, Jade, Euanthe and I stare out from the balcony in the general direction of eternity. Ambrose's eyes move from point to point, attempting to identify individual elements in the compressed confusion. I just try to treat it like a magic eye picture, trying not to identify elements but see if there are any patterns. Jade's more interested in the wards inscribed on the balcony's edge, and I suppose I can understand why.

Ambrose nods to himself. "I could get used to this."

Jade turns to face him, careful not to look out at the wider tangled mass more than she has to. "Standing on a balcony on the edge of primordial chaos?"

"The view's part of the charm." He tears his eyes away and gives her a winsome smile. "I got into magic because I like the weird stuff. I'm a sucker for a ridiculous true story." He pulls a packet of tobacco from his coat pocket. "You can't tell me you've never wanted to step away from your own life, Cheshire."

Her face tightens. "Only to make a better one."

I clasp my hands to my chest, smiling with joy. "Oh, darling! You really mean it?"

A flicker of uncertainty as my foolishness distracts her from her darkness-spiral. Her eyes slowly move to me, and I can see that she knows exactly what I just did. I-.

"Why does this view affect you-" Euanthe doesn't turn away, apparently preferring to reconfigure her body so that she's facing away from the vista and towards the people. "-when it is so dull?"

Ambrose raises his eyebrows. "Dull? That's a dreamstorm out there. The literal entry point for the thoughts of the universe as they enter the Dream. We're watching the very idea of ideas gain arcane existence. The underlying power gods grow from. The thing that underpins how souls exist, how magic exists."

"Yes. Dull."

"How is that dull?"

"There are no plants in it."

Ambrose squints. "How can you tell?"

"Simple enough." John strides through the French windows from the library, Helmet under his arm. "Euanthe is connected to the Green, and through it to all plant life. Nothing in the dreamstorm has a firm connection to any stable part of the Earth's magics. Even the parts of that that are plant-like aren't plants. It's all too primal to have any permanence or attachment, and since she doesn't have the curious monkey-brain that the rest of us do she isn't interested in it."

Jade gives me a cautious look. "I'm a little surprised that a Lord of Order can bring his home here."

He shrugs. "I think Nabu could. I found the books explaining how to do it in his library, after all. I think he didn't because he was Nabu." He steps aside, gesturing towards the library's interior. "Mordru's notes explain how to channel order while being of chaos, and vice versa. And the records on Lord T'Charr of Chaos and Lord Terataya of Order seem to imply they managed some kind of synthesis…" He smiles a little smugly. "It's possible. It's just not something he'd do."

"And you're confident that Hell can't eavesdrop on us here?"

He nods. "Dream doesn't like it when demons intrude in his realm, the dreamstorm is pretty lethal to anything that hasn't made extensive preparations -with earthly magic- and it will certainly render remote viewing attempts futile, if not outright sending anyone attempting one into a coma. The Tower itself is well defended, and I checked those protections myself. Short of going to the Silver City, we're as free of demons as we can be."

I nod, and our group follows him back inside the library. This part of the library is an open circular area, with desks in one direction and shelves in another. I suspect that it was at one point meant to be a demonstration space for a class, but at the moment it's serving as the home of a floating orb whose surface shimmers with iridescent colour.

John walks up to it, donning the Helmet as he does so. "A map of Hell." He raises his hands to the orb, and a series of glowing landscapes appear in the air.

Ambrose looks at them uncertainly. "And you're sure they can't detect you doing that?"

"The orb is a product of the purest Order magics. If a demon becomes a Lord of Order as well, maybe. Since that's unlikely, I'm sure."

"Right."

John gestures at the largest image. Spires of dark grey rock pierce a moody-red sky. Some anchored to the ground, while others stand on floating islands or are conveyed on the backs of giant hellish beasts. "Pandemonia. Hell's capital, and until recently the First of the Fallen's home. And before him, Lucifer."

Jade reacts to the information placidly. "Who rules there now?"

The image shifts, showing ranks of demons locked in combat.

"Basically, no one. After the First was killed, the locals fought amongst themselves for a while and then united when Neron tried to walk in."

I nod. "And went right back to it when he left."

Ambrose points to a particular building, the image zooming in on a pair of glowing golden figures surrounded by red barbed wire holding court while clearly separate clusters of demons attempt to curry favour with them.

"Agony and Ecstasy. Since when do they run anything?"

Ambrose shakes his head. "They don't. But the First basically gave them the keys to the place when he made them his enforcers. If someone in Hell wants to move anyone or anything from one area to another, the easiest way to do that is to ask them."

Jade nods. "And they can use the ability as a weapon."

John gestures with his right hand, and a few dozen strands of light link the various images. "Hell isn't a corporeal realm. The Provinces are only loosely associated with each other. Agony and Ecstasy can ease your passage, or they can stop the realm you're in existing in the middle of your body."

"Does that work outside Hell?"

"Not that I've seen. But they can open portals to send you somewhere it will. And they can use other magic perfectly well."

"When did they start working for Satanus?"

"Before I got this helmet. I haven't seen them have much to do with him directly, but they're regularly moving things for him in a way they aren't for anyone else."

"We might need to shield ourselves from them, but they're not our primary targets. If Pandemonia's at war with itself, great. I'll only worry if Satanus takes over."

Jade takes a half-step closer, watching the faces of the lesser demons gathered before them. "He doesn't need to rule openly if his allies are the only source of stability. By restricting their services to the highest bidders, they've become authority without needing to conquer the place."

John gestures again, and the point of view moves away from them and shows us a top-down view. A moment later, coloured patches appear showing the dispositions of the various districts. "None of the other pretenders control significant territory, or have the strength to make any serious pushes."

Jade nods. "And Agony and Ecstasy make sure it stays that way."

"Probably. Also worth noting that aside from his cordial relationship with them, Satanus has no overt presence in the city."

I nod. "Hopefully, the twins having actual duties there will mean that we won't have to fight them at all. What's next?"

"The Odium."

 

17th November
20:44 GMT -5

"Hell's manufacturing centre. What do they make?"

John twists his hands, and a series of images replace those of the vaguely Victorian factories and slum housing that appear to make up the Odium. "Weapons, armour, tools, paper-. Well. Vellum. Bricks, metal girders, furniture… Pretty much anything a normal civilisation would need."

Jade straightens up slightly. "Demons make furniture."

Ambrose grins. "What did you think demons sat on?"

"I'm still not sure that I actually believe in Hell."

"Jade, Hell exists. We literally went there."

"We went to a place. I don't want to assume that everything I've heard about Hell is true just because a place a little like it exists."

John snorts quietly, and brings up an image of a trio of demons sitting on a bench and sharing a bag of eyeballs. "Demons sit, even in Hell."

She frowns slightly. "What do they make it out of? I had assumed that Hell was less… Material than that. Do they have mines? Farmlands?"

Another twist of the hand, and we're shown some sort of unwieldy vehicle guarded by demons who appear to have been cybernetically enhanced as it mows down a busy street. "Not exactly. Demons are good at manipulating the souls of the damned. Before the industrial revolution, they broke them down by hand and substantiated them into other materials. But then Belial had a bit of a brainwave, and they've automated a lot of the work these days."

Ambrose regards the image morosely. "Crafts are dying out all over."

"They probably couldn't cope with the increased population the old way. I mean, there's got to be a lag between the human population increasing and new demons coming into being."

Jade steps closer to examine the things being thrown into the maw of the vehicle. "Are those damned souls?"

John nods. "The damned and weaker demons. Some demon lords use it as an ultimate punishment for underlings who fail them, but those don't get scraped off the street."

"Did.. Belial get better from what the First did to him?"

John causes the image to pull out again. "If he has, then I haven't seen him. A demon like him would have had precautions against assassination, but the First is knowledgeable and powerful enough to bypass them. He might have been totally destroyed, he might have been captured and forcibly suborned… Which would explain how the third Sabbac got his power. All I can say for certain is that he isn't running the Odium at the moment."

"Satanus did say that Belial had helped him create the ball demon. But if Belial's not running the place any more, who is?"

"It's split." The image shifts to show a group of nine yellow skinned demons in black robes with red collars. "This is the inner circle of the Exegesis Guild. They started as a trade association of soul smiths in response to Belial's rise to power, now they do everything he did and more. As demons go they're not bad bosses, and they're not interested in directly threatening Earth."

"And who else?"

The image shifts to another building. Unlike the industrial revolution era look of the other buildings, this looks a good deal more like something from science fiction. A dystopian science fiction like Dune or Judge Dredd, but the technology is clearly a little more sophisticated than elsewhere in the Odium. Demonic robots stalk the grounds while cybernetically augmented damned souls guard the buildings' interiors.

And at the centre of it all, on a dais covered in thick cables and pentagrams and sitting surrounded by computer monitors is a figure of pink and white whom I remember quite clearly.

"Richard Simpson. Who worked with Satanus during their attack on the Justice League in June."

"They don't have any apparent connection at the moment. Richie's supplying him with equipment, but he's supplying a lot of other people as well."

Jade nods. "Satanus isn't strong enough to conquer Hell outright. But by setting up his henchmen in each region, he can gradually gain control without anyone realising what he's doing. Once they've all had time to cement their power, their combined resources will be enough to crush anyone left who could oppose them."

Ambrose smiles. "Demons who are used to bartering passage from Agony and Ecstasy, and buying equipment from Simpson. They get cut off unless they swear allegiance. And if they don't, they aren't strong enough to fight the ones who do."

Jade turns her head his way. "I'm surprised that the other demons aren't cunning enough to spot what he's doing."

He shrugs. "Who would be watching? When the First did whatever he did to the demons powering Sabbac, he decapitated Hell's feudal system. Neron, Rosacarnis and whoever else is left are probably spying, watching for any overt cooperation. But as long as they keep things quiet about it, there probably isn't any information to leak."

"In point of fact-" The image of the Odium retreats and another province comes to the fore at John's command. "-I very much expect that she's in on it. This is Gull, Hell's centre of commerce. Neron's power base was here, but after he was forced to retreat from Pandemonia he lost a lot of influence. Rosacarnis on the other hand has gained a lot of friends in a very short period of time."

"Do you know how?"

"She's the one manufacturing 'Devil Jizz'. In Hell, which explains why no police force anywhere in the world has ever found the manufacturing facility."

"Alright, but why does that make other demons like her?"

"I don't know, but if I had to guess, I'd suggest that they receive a tithe of souls from the income it generates. For one of the weaker demons, that would be very much worth their while. And the income would increase their power."

"It's a demon welfare service, funded by blood doning. Straight up demonic pacts aren't bringing in the souls anymore, so they diversify." I huff. "That's rather clever. I'll have to release that information to the public once we're done. Anything else going on in there?"

"Only if you want to make a pact with Neron." John fixes me with his helmet's eye holes. "Knowing what I do about Neron, I suspect that he would accept."

"Would you say he's a better man?"

"No, but he's less cunning and less imaginative. I strongly suspect that he'll be less of a problem a few years down the road. And with Satanus gone, he'll probably be the one taking over anyway."

"Do you think that the inmates would prefer Neron, or prefer no one?"

"I.. couldn't say. No one, probably. That way there's more room for them to fall between the cracks."

"We don’t have the resources to destroy or liberate Hell in its entirety at the moment. But make no mistake: as far as I'm concerned that should be our eventual objective." He nods. "Is this.. pattern repeated?"

He nods, increasing the size of the other images in turn. "With Asmodeus no longer ruling Praetori, a polymorph named Shamma has built up the widest following. She's known to have associated with Satanus in the past, but again, nothing recent. With Aym gone, a damned soul named Mordecai Smyt now leads the largest warband in Internecia… The only thing I don't know is where Remiel and Duma are."

"And Etrigan?"

"Bound in suppression chains and dispatched to the Labyrinth. Should I assume that we're rescuing him?"

I nod. "Yes, I think so. If nothing else, I suspect that he'll make a useful distraction. So what's Satanus himself been up to?"

 

17th November
20:57 GMT -5

Jade stares impassively at the image. "Huh."

"Yeah."

Ambrose rubs his chin with his right hand. "I'm not sure what I was expecting, but that wasn't it."

The grim tower and headless praying torsos are gone. Soldiers in blue/grey power armour now patrol a city that looks like something the Amazons might build. There are.. demons, but they have an icon of flickering black flame flickering on their forehead: the curved horns surrounding a lightning bolt which Satanus appears to have taken as his icon. As I watch, one attempts to lash out at a rag-swathed man being politely escorted by a soldier. It doesn't even manage to draw its fist all of the way back before the icon flares and burns its face down to the skull. The damned man looks around in fear, but a soldier pats him reassuringly on the shoulder and the group continue onwards.

"John..?"

"This is new." A demon knight in full plate stomps up to the one with the skull for a face, picking it up in his right hand and dragging it off. The sigil burns on his forehead as well, but he also wears it on his tabard. "That's Duke Sterocax. Nergal's younger brother and Rosacarnis' uncle."

"I thought that she kept him in a drugged stupor in her basement."

Ambrose frowns at me. "How the fuck do you know that?"

"I've had an interesting life. I suppose that Rosacarnis might have handed him over, but I doubt he'd be a willing participant in any scheme that benefited her."

Jade's watching him closely. "What can he do?"

"He's strong, and his body is supposedly impervious to attack. I'm not sure what sort of muggins would attack a powerful demon with conventional weapons anyway, but they won't do anything to him. Internal attacks like poison and.. presumably whatever Satanus is doing to keep him in line work just fine."

Ambrose shakes his head. "That's not all he can do. He's also really good at possession. That body wasn't his originally."

"I didn't know demons could possess other demons?"

"Neither did the Duke of Lethe. The way I heard it, he invested really heavily to get a perfect lukhavim bodyguard made, and Sterocax just walked off with it."

Jade nods slowly. "Can he possess other things too?"

Ambrose nods. "Of course. All demons can. But as far as I've been able to find out, he hasn't dared leave that body since he got it. Probably because he knows that Duke Malthous commanded it to kill him the second he did."

"How vulnerable are we going to be to getting possessed?"

"Depends. Have you sold your soul to a demon?"

Her jaw tightens. "No."

"Done any demon magic?" She glares. He raises his hands. "I'm just asking. The answer is 'not very easily'. Whatever you've done in life, you still own your soul until you die. Unless you run into one of the demons whose nature matches your vices really well, and they'd have to recognise that and it still wouldn't be immediate."

"And then what happens?"

"Ah…" He glances at me. "It depends. Sometimes they keep your soul around and just use your body for a bit. Sometimes they send your soul straight to hell. Sometimes they eat it or shred it… Nothing good."

"I still want to know how Satanus managed this sort of redecoration. Has he just..? Shipped matter in?"

John's eyes flare golden as he resets the map. "Satanus having a human father always made him something of an outsider in Hell. But when he and his sister began amassing power, it amused Lucifer to grant them Limbo."

"Together? They've always hated each other."

"That's probably why he did it. Not only did he know that they'd never actually rule it together, he knew that demons get barely any power from Limbo."

I nod. "Which is why Blaze created her pocket Hell rather than even try."

"Right. But aside from souls turning up there, Limbo's just a place. Naturally it's a barren wasteland, but aside from the fact that it's infinitely big there's nothing actually stopping someone from bringing matter in."

"Except that it wouldn't have the arcane attachments needed to work properly. Because it's in Limbo rather than on a living planet. Hades had that problem before he connected everyone to Erebos, and the people there still can't quite pass as living."

Ambrose nods. "He's getting a lot of power from somewhere. And he's being clever about how he's using it."

Jade turns towards Ambrose. "Who goes to Limbo?"

"Really minor sinners, usually. Not evil enough to get drawn into Hell-proper, but who don't have anywhere else to go. Sometimes agnostics and atheists from pagan societies who had an idea of 'divinity' but didn't have enough to do with their people's gods to go to their afterlife."

"What's it like?"

"It's-. It was like being half asleep for eternity. Souls there can answer questions, but they didn't have much agency. Not until Satanus did whatever he's done."

Jade nods, then calmly regards the map for a moment. "If Satanus is improving Hell, do we really want to stop him?"

"We don't specifically want to stop him doing that, no. We just want to remove his ability to operate on Earth. If this was all he was doing, I'd offer to help."

She nods. "Could he be getting the power from his allies in the other parts of Hell?"

John shakes his helmet. "No. Not unless entire countries were taking Devil Jizz and he was receiving all of the power. And if that was happening we'd all know about it. Agony and Ecstasy could probably help with a connection, but they couldn't power it directly."

"Is the power invested in the long term, or can he immediately redirect it?"

Another shake. "Unless I could watch him creating the spell, I'd have to go there and see for myself."

"It will probably come to that. I don't want to engage him directly if we haven't got a hope in hell." Ambrose shakes his head sadly. "Now, us. How do we get in and how do we hide?"

Ambrose nods at me. "Your tattoos should still work. Demons won't be able to feel your soul through it, so you could do a convincing damned soul act as long as you don't bleed. I could use magic to hide, but actually using spells in there would set off their alarms."

"John Constantine had the Seal of Solomon tattooed on his skin. I know the woman who did it. Worth doing?"

He shakes his head. "That only works when you're corporeal and on Earth. And it would be really easy for them to detect." I nod. "I could hide Jade as well, but hiding a Lord of Order is way above anything I could do."

John lifts the Helmet from his head, the orb's illusions vanishing as he does so. "Leaving off the Helmet of Fate probably wouldn't work; by now I've had too much exposure. So I can act overtly, or I can act as support."

Jade's eyes narrow slightly. "Put the hologram back on. If that's where we're going, I want to study everything that's happening first."

 

18th November
13:55 GMT -1

I smile as the small cargo plane taxis down the runway, coming to a stop well within the safety margin provided by the LexCorp-laid tarmac. Unloading vehicles are already moving into place to remove the cargo and a mobile stairs vehicle is positioning itself to allow the crew to disembark. Lex, King Orin and Queen Clea will attend a formal opening tomorrow, but I wanted to be here for the actual first flight. I'd be a distraction from the celebratory event, but not putting in an appearance at all was inconceivable.

"What a fascinating device." Lord Cyprian squints slightly, a mildly bemused smile on his lips. "Mechanical engineering isn't a widely studied subject in Venturia, nor in the rest of Atlantis. I can see that I'm going to have to make sure that gets remedied."

"You have seen planes before, have you not?"

"Only far away from Venturia." He glances my way, nodding. "Yes, I realise that sounds ridiculous to a man as cosmopolitan as yourself, but I never thought it would become our problem."

"And now it's your opportunity."

"Just so. I'll be handling the trade negotiators while Queen Clea manages the political discussions." His smile grows. "I'm rather looking forward to it, though I'll try not to be too vindictive toward the cities who have been rude to us in the recent past."

"And Aurania?"

The smile fades. "They're in a somewhat special category. Queen Clea has made her will on the subject known. If they want direct trade, they can recognise her as Proconsul."

"Seems… A little late. Had he lived, Proconsul Philo would almost certainly have retired from the position by now."

"From a practical standpoint, I recognise the truth of what you say. But the Queen has issued her ultimatum, and we are bound by it. In the unlikely event that they acquiesced, I imagine that she'd… Run the full investigation into his death that she was denied at the time, attempt to re-educate cousin Ptra… And then pass the whole mess on to me."

"You?"

He shrugs. "I'm her Prime Minister. I'm perfectly well aware that if her meeting with High King Orin goes well that I'll be declared Heir-Designate. Having me govern another city for a time makes sense. And she knows that I would keep my temper better than she would. But… It's not going to happen."

"You haven't heard anything from them?"

"A few letters. And our spies are detecting a certain degree of concern regarding her new rapprochement with High King Orin amongst their elite. I imagine that our city and theirs will simply ignore one another for a time."

We watch the unloading for a few moments.

"Lord Cyprian… Not out of any desire to undermine your relationship with your sovereign or… Gain access to state secrets… But how does she actually feel about any of this? I ask simply out of an honest desire to help her to the best of my abilities."

"If I had to characterise her mood, I'd say 'grudgingly upbeat'. A problem she railed against for decades is in the process of evaporating, and..." He smiles faintly. "I'm not certain that she knows how to handle it. In a pleasant way, of course. 'Venturia leads the way' is a very pleasing narrative after our prolonged isolation, and the extra political influence and trade will be very nice."

"And her thoughts on our continued cooperation?"

"I imagine that she would look favourably upon any requests. Why? Do you have something in mind?"

"As I stated during our first meeting, my aim is to use the Earth to create the technologies and forces which I need to defeat my father. Any area not contributing to this goal is a problem for me. And I look across Africa, and I see a lot of places that aren't contributing."

"And Britain?"

I look away. "An indulgence, if I'm honest. Yes, they picked a fight with me, but I could probably have settled the matter with more subtlety. I've probably done more harm than good to my own cause."

"If it helps, I know that all of Atlantis approves strongly of your removal of that vile cabal. There are some magics which one should study only to learn to counter them." I nod. "But what about Africa?"

"Corruption, poor infrastructure, pointless internal strife… Have you seen Kahndaq?"

"I made a point of learning about it after meeting Lord Adom. What sort of assistance would you want from us?"

"Transportation and supply, mostly. I envisage targeted removals and polite warnings to those we leave in post rather than open invasions. Oh, and I'd very much appreciate it if you could build warm relations with newly installed governments once they've stabilised."

"I assume that none of these countries have significant oceanic ordnance?"

"You assume correctly."

"Then, while any decision would be taken by Queen Clea on a case by case basis, I am not aware of any of those aims being in contradiction to our own. And ultimately, we certainly have no interest in Venturia being exposed to the Anti-Life Equation."

I smile. "Glad to hear it. Ah, look, I've got another appointment shortly. Is there anything else I can do for either yourself or for Venturia?"

He nods. "One thing. One of my granddaughters will be starting school shortly. In light of recent developments, I feel that it would advantage her if she could be schooled on the surface, much as King Orin was."

"I can arrange that, and if your preferred school is awkwardly far from the coastline I would be happy to house the young lady during term time. But… I warn you that magic plays no part in the standard surface world education. I know of only one school that could even offer basic lessons, and they haven't formally opened yet."

"We can hire tutors for that. Her parents and I are more interested in immersing her in the culture."

"In that case, I will be happy to meet your family at their convenience to discuss specifics."

"Thank you." He turns to me and bows. "Lord Grayven."

I bow in return. "Lord Cyprian." I turn away, trying to put one of the piles of rock they cleared to make way for the runway between myself and the people working on the cargo. My presence here isn't a secret, but it is supposed to be quiet. Right, that should do. Mother Box, hush tube.

Ping.

I stroll through the tube and into King Myand'r's office, and he looks up as I do so. "Sorry I'm late, your majesty. My previous appointment overran slightly."

He shakes his head as the tube shuts down behind me. "I hadn't noticed. What do you want to talk about?"

"Dox.. sent me an update on the reconstruction work, but I thought that I'd check in with you as well. It sounded like everything's going to plan?"

"Yes, most of our larger cities are already hosting specialists from Euphorix. Your lanterns and Admiral Oswin's fleet have exterminated every pirate fleet of any size and purged the Spider Guild's nest. Vril Dox is… An interesting man to work with."

"I know that his social skills aren't the best, but he really is the best person to oversee the project."

He nods. "I know. I originally had in mind for my daughter Koriand'r and her fiancé to oversee the project, but I.. doubt that they would be as efficient as he has been."

"I didn't know she was getting married."

"She's betrothed, but given the lack of interest either of them have in maintaining the relationship it may end up being nullified."

Hm. Have to find out what's going on there. "I did have a request."

"What is it?"

"I'd like you to give me Kysarr."

He frowns. "Why? If you need more land for your Lantern Corps-."

"No, no. This is.. something I want to do for Tamaran. Kysarr has been a scar on the face of Tamarus for too long already. I want to replace the ruins with a memorial garden. A.. park. Grass, flower beds, trees, a.. tasteful memorial to those who died. I think the.. symbolism would be significant. And it would be an open natural space in the middle of the city."

King Myand'r leans back slightly. "I think that's a rather beautiful idea. Though I'm puzzled.. as to…"

"I do have.. sensitivity. When I returned to Earth after leaving Vega I.. discovered that in my absence one of my mentors -a man I respected greatly- had died. I've been.. thinking about an appropriate way to commemorate his life and achievements, and… It reminded me of the situation with Kysarr. I thought that -separate from the main memorial- I would build something to commemorate him as well."

"Oh. What sort of man was he?"

"Gosh, where to start?" I pull up a chair and sit down. "Ah, Alan Scott was born in a place called Metropolis in…"

 

19th November
16:29 GMT -6

I look at the statue of Alan I've built in the centre of a glorified gazebo.

I don't know.

I mean, I'm happy with how the park has turned out. And as far as I can tell, so are the locals. Sombre groups paying their respects, or using the public consoles to either read up the history of attack or -and I'm particularly pleased with this feature- learn what the area was like before it was destroyed. Other visitors are families, coming to get away from the noise and bustle of the city as building work happens everywhere, or just to exercise their legs somewhere a bit prettier. The smaller public terminals explaining the planting choices aren't getting a lot of use, but… Fair enough. I wouldn't read something like that at a park either.

But as far as a testament to Alan's life goes, I'm not sure that this is really the way to go. I mean, I don't have to worry about his secret identity here… Kind of annoying that even after his death he can't openly take credit for all of the things he did. Everyone who would care is dead! Even Vandal Savage, at long last. But… A statue? Okay, but of him in his prime? At his most famous? When he retired? When he started? As I knew him? And what pose?

I once spent two hours staring at the 'enter your name' screen for Morrowind, and this is something that's actually important.

And what pose? Tamaran might know Lanterns, but having a man standing there with his arm outstretched looks a little odd from a distance. And the design of his personal lantern doesn't lend itself to inclusion due to the thin strip that serves as its handle.

Okay… What? Skip the handle and have it resting on his hand? Alan never carried his lantern in combat. I don't remember him ever holding it when he recharged either. There are poses I could use, but they don't really look-

Avarice detected, Lantern Grayven. Look alive.

-right from the outside.

Hm.

I turn away and walk slowly out of the gazebo as Komand'r touches down on the grass just outside. She keeps her face somewhat blank as I watch, the thumb of her left hand idly caressing the material of her ring.

"First Lantern."

I nod politely. "Princess Komand'r."

She takes a few steps closer, a small arc of onlookers forming up behind her. "I think I prefer Lantern Komand'r."

"Very well. Lantern Komand'r. I simply felt that drawing attention to your lower rank might be impolite."

She smirks confidently. "How many Lanterns did you give orders to yesterday?"

I extend my left hand slightly. "Exactly as many as I wanted to."

She walks up to-. She walks past me, entering the shaded area of the gazebo. "I used to come out here to think, sometimes. Before you remodelled it. I don't believe that it would have quite the same effect, now."

I turn, but don't follow her. "I kept a record of how it looked before I cleared it. I could probably put a ruined husk or two back up for you."

She's still facing away from me as she clenches her left fist, ring shining brightly. "For some reason I don't feel the need any more."

I nod. "How have you been occupying yourself?"

She half-turns back towards me. "You don't know?"

I shrug. "I trust your judgement. And Hinon's and Dox's. I keep general tabs, but Lanterns are supposed to be able to handle their own affairs day to day. Nothing about Vega requires further decisions from me other than when it's time to go after the Psions."

"I personally led the strike force that destroyed 'Commodore' Amalak's headquarters. I took the man's head myself."

That report I read. I tilt my head a little to the right. "As an Apokoliptian, I fully understand the drive to engage enemy leaders in single combat and kill them personally. But in actuality, it isn't usually a good idea. Particularly when they aren't a physical threat."

"His electro-surrogate had already killed seven of Admiral Oswin's marines. Attacking him personally not only removed the enemy commander from the field, it also served to cement our alliance with the Crown Imperium."

I raise my right hand, palm towards her. "You were the woman in the field. I don't intend to second guess you. And I'm aware of the strength of Amalak's forces. With them gone… What's left in this region?"

"The smallest pirate groups. Most of whom are fleeing or hiding. The Spiders are dead and the Crown Imperium has retaken control of Jarko's former holdings. The karnans are content with solidifying their grip on their homeworld. The only real threat are the psions." She turns fully to face me, a cruel smile on her lips. "And once they're dead, we should expect… Perhaps a decade of peace, before the Spider Guild muster a fleet to take revenge for their lost nest."

I nod. "I would have guessed a little less. What do you think should be our next move?"

"We should continue to rebuild, with great urgency. The future belongs to that group which can use the peace most effectively. And we should offer leadership to those groups in Vega who are less vigorous; settling accounts with the Psions should happen sooner rather than later."

I nod. "I suppose I should be here for that. Very well, I.. don't have a project on Earth which requires my personal attention immediately. I'll set up a meeting with Oswin and Dox once I've finished here."

"Good." She nods, pleased. "After that, the most important thing will be a show of internal unity. Tamaran must have clear lines of authority."

"I don't intend to interfere in the Tamaranean succession. As I told your father, I don't think an alien-."

"Our soldiers and engineers are trained by euphorians. It will not be an issue. But that is beside the point; when you sent Vril Dox here you imposed your will upon Tamaran."

Ah. "My intent was to send the best mind to oversee-."

"I know, and you were correct to do so. But it undermined my father still further. Someone will need to take over setting the direction of our policy soon, and they must have your support."

Hm. I walk forwards, entering the gazebo and then erecting a privacy screen. "I assume you had a candidate in mind?"

"Ryand'r is too young and foolhardy. Koriand'r would be a… Reasonable ruler. In a time of peace. We are not living in one of those. I've established myself as a capable warrior and war leader. My next step is to establish myself as a capable political leader."

"I'm.. not sure what you think I can do to help with th-."

"You can marry me." I raise my eyebrows slightly. "You're a noted warrior hero, capable of ruthlessness and generosity in equal measure. And apparently-" She glances at Alan's statue. "-sentimentality. These are all things that Tamaran respects."

"Hm." Certainly a direct approach. Maybe I can introduce her to Maxima? "As I said last time you raised the issue-?"

"I assumed that we would come to know each other better during the purge, then you assigned full control to myself and my sister while you attended to business elsewhere. I appreciate the opportunity, but it leaves my other ambitions… Frustrated. Are you still mourning for your previous lover?"

"No. No. It's not that." I pause, right hand going to my chin. "According to you, primary combat operations are now over, yes?"

"True."

"Komand'r, I meant what I said before. I regard a need for political marriage as a sign of weakness, both of an individual's position and a society's social organisation. I would never marry someone simply to shore up someone's position." She grimaces faintly. "But I do like having people around me who can match me. In power, in ambition, in sound sense. Perhaps you are that person. I won't simply marry you. But, if you wish to court me, you are welcome on my world and in my home."

"Acceptable." Her eyes flare with purple light, a somewhat unsettling smile spreading across her face. "I shall court you as no man has ever been courted before. You may wish to prepare yourself, Lord Grayven."

Um.

At least things won't be dull.

 

21st November
10:14 GMT -5

What does it feel like to walk into Hell?

I've been there three times before. The first time was under London, and I'm not completely sure if we actually went to Hell or just got a snapshot of it. I don't remember experiencing any particular unpleasantness when the wave went past us, or when we were trying to close the portal. Had to change my spell eater out a couple of times, but that was about it. For most purposes, it could have been anything on the far side of the portal, and our assailants could have been any sort of enhanced zombie.

The second time was when Adom and I flew in during the Fawcett City fight. I didn't stick around longer than I had to, but other than the visibility issue I didn't encounter any particular difficulty.

The third time, our surroundings merged with the hellscape of the Odium. Probably due to the particular arcane hack Satanus was using to make the portal function in the first place. I didn't feel much then either. I… Didn't think to ask Jade whether or not she did.

I glance at her as Ambrose smears grave dust paste across her forehead.

She'd have said something, wouldn't she? She only complained about the risk-. No, I can… See her not commenting on her personal discomfort in favour of referring to something objective and external. It's just that this is a really crummy time to bring it up.

Ambrose backs off a little to admire his handiwork. Jade glances up, trying to see if anything's about to drip down from her forehead. "This is what being dead feels like?"

Ambrose opens his mouth to respond, then hesitates and closes it again. "You're not dead-dead-. Though, I'll say it again, that would have worked-"

"No." / "No."

Jade and I meet eyes for a moment, and she's doing that not-smile thing again.

"-and we could have kept your body perfectly healthy and stuck you back in it afterwards without any-"

"Bollocks you could."

"-trouble and yes I could."

Jade fixes him with a cold glare. "I'm keeping my body."

"Right. What I've done doesn't kill you, it just makes you count as being dead for most magic purposes. And the reason why this isn't as good as actually killing you is that your body isn't designed to work properly while it's dead."

"I was listening when you explained it. I won't heal properly and I'll get gradually weaker."

He nods. "You can't get pregnant either."

Jade's eyelids fall slightly, her expression implying that that was the most stupid thing he could have said. Then she turns her gaze from Ambrose to me. "Take me. Now."

I mirror her expression. "Necrophilia. Yay."

"Excuse me."

"And this is enough for me to fit in down there?"

"Yes. If you hadn't wanted to fit in in Hell, you shouldn't have murdered all of those people." Jade looks away. "Heck, we'll be using your sins as a compass."

"So in a way we're lucky I killed all those people."

Light flickers around John's helmet. "That would be pushing it. Please try to remember that I'm a traditional superhero. I don't find murder funny." Jade nods, pantomiming a chastisement she doesn't feel. "Ambrose, are your own preparations adequate?"

Having spent so much time around people at their physical peak, seeing Ambrose's gut hanging out of his open-fronted robe was a useful reminder of why I have my rings keep me looking like this. He's painted demonic sigils over all of his visible skin, as well as shaving his head and eyebrows. Though certainly no stranger to using demon magic, he's intentionally channelling it through his runes in order to make himself look like the very model of a demon sorcerer.

All he needs is a familiar demon.

Ambrose looks at me. "You about ready?"

Sigh.

Because while a sorcerer might be able to enter Hell freely, that entry can become permanent if he's not careful. Anyone with any sense doing that would be sure to have a reasonably powerful demon either bound or bought to act as a bodyguard. Something to ward off lower level attackers and make more powerful ones think carefully.

And since I can -technically- shapeshift, and since my rings are instantly recognisable… Guess who volunteered for that role?

The only thing I'm annoyed about is the lack of options when it comes to my new appearance. I'd have liked something a little bit classy. Or maybe just the form of a mini-Ophidian, I'm sure I could make that work. But there's too much chance of that being spotted, and I'm far too powerful to pose as 'just some demon'. Instead, I'm posing as one of Mammon's spawn. But with him being a significant figure in demon society, my form has to somewhat resemble his.

Ambrose's gut is about to be eclipsed.

Literally.

My rings float free from my fingers as my flesh begins to.. swell. Since I'm not actually a demon, they're swelling with added muscle and fat tissue rather than arcane power. Seems to be… Going okay. My forehead feels weird as the horns come through, but due to the placement of nerves it isn't hurting as I thought it would. And… Ugh, if I've got to have a huge gut anyway… I take my personal lantern out of subspace and hold it against my abdomen, the flesh swelling to encompass it. The rings enter next, a small cage of super-tough bone forming around them and anchoring them into place. Since the demon I'm pretending to be would be far more physically powerful than a baseline human I'm drawing on my knowledge of xenophysiology and bioengineering.

Ugh. I feel ugly.

I raise my talon-fingered right hand and take a look at the result of my changes. My fine object control is probably shot and I feel dreadful. But I don't look like me anymore, and my tattoos might conceivably be a spell a demon or his sorcerer might cast. And my mouth feels wrong, my everything is the wrong shape…

"Euanche, are 'oo ready?"

Euanthe grows, human-seeming plant flesh transforming to super-tough bark plates and brambles. Now that I've undergone a similar change, I can appreciate exactly the skill required to maintain control of a form this different from your norm-.

Oh, my distended stomach flops when I walk. That's revolting.

Anyway, she looks like a slightly smaller version of the Beast-killing version of Swamp Thing. One anti-demon minion, one demon minion, one skilled assassin depending on the sorcerer to keep her out of hell full time, and one corrupted sorcerer.

"Rea'y."

Jade checks her improved and enchanted weapons, including the Ace of Winchesters which I obviously can't carry myself. "Ready."

Euanthe checks her range of motion. Not a lot of plant life in Hell, so she'll be limited to what she brings with her. "I am ready."

"Alright then." Ambrose raises his hands, the space around us visibly darkening as the portal forms. "Let's be on our way." He starts chanting… 'Piscis magnus piscis minus carte tabula arca archa.' Really? Well, whatever helps him focus.

Jade sidles up to me as the wind -not an eldritch wind, just the product of a portal forming between two places of differing pressure- blows through the room. "How long do you think these disguises will last?"

"Thech're fine for mosrt purposes and theth teeth are horribowl."

"I guess this way I'll get a taste of Hell ahead of my time. Maybe after this I'll finally get around to choosing a religion."

"I'll take you to visit Ereboth myself."

 

21st November
10:21 GMT -5

Purple-tinted nothingness swirls around us-

"Is this what people see when they die?"

-as Jade leads the way slowly through the aether.

Ambrose strolls after her, hands stroking the sides of his robe as if they're trying to get inside pockets his current clothing doesn't possess. "I don't know. I've never died before." He takes a moment to look around. "If I had to guess, I'd say that most people aren't coherent enough to experience this bit. Can you still feel the tug from-?"

"Yes, I can still feel it." She turns a little to the right and continues on.

"Jade?"

"Get into character, Paul."

"You're the most apparently-vulnerable member of the group. If you're having a problem-."

"Knowing I might be damned and literally feeling the pull of Hell with my soul are two-. Different things."

"If you need to take a break-."

"Ambrose, are Avarice Demons known for being kind to damned souls?"

"Not so's you'd notice. They're not especially cruel and they're usually not very ambitious, so compared to the local competition..."

"I am not enquiring for your own sake. You are an investment, and I intend to see to it that our.. employer gets his money's worth. There are other souls he could call up instead."

"Hm. Better." But she doesn't reply to my enquiry. "How long is this supposed to take?"

"Depends where in Hell you were going. And on a lot of other things that we don't know enough about. Less than an hour, probably longer than a minute."

"Do the provinces have anything to do with the Circles of Hell in Dante's Inferno? Because I… Assume that I'm being guided towards the seventh circle."

"In a word, no. Dante was more about bad-mouthing political figures he didn't like than about accurately reporting what happens to people when they die. I mean, Alexander almost certainly-" He glances my way. "-went to the Elysian Fields rather than Hell."

I shrug. I haven't actually asked about that. There are probably all sorts of famous people down in Erebos. Socrates and Plato almost certainly ended up there. It's a.. little odd that I haven't had to field more requests from historians for visiting rights. Or maybe the embassy is fielding th-.

The purple mist is suddenly gone and tight stone walls-. I raise a kaahuite shield as a hail of screaming arrows spring out from the murder holes surrounding us! Two miss outright as Jade and I move, three clatter off my shield and a sixth thunks into my left side. It… Huh. It barely even penetrates the skin, let alone causing me actual pain.

"Meat! Fresh meat! Freshagh!"

Jade's thrown knife finds the assailant behind the arrowslit easily while I barrel towards the nearest wall, swinging at it with my right arm! The wall shudders and cracks, further attacks immediately ceasing as I get a vague sense of those behind the wall falling back.

Fuck it. I'm a demon now. I hit it again.

Euanthe has already taken several arrows but doesn't seem to be affected, already reaching out with bramble-tentacles towards our attackers' hidey holes. Jade dodges another arrow and throws a small grenade through the slit protecting the archer. It detonates a moment later, the wall protecting whoever it was attacking doing just as well at shielding us from the shrapnel.

"You scum dare attack us!" Ambrose's sigils glow as he raises his hands… No idea what he's doing. My third punch shatters the wall, which is probably made of bits of soul or something but looks a lot like it's made of ill-fired brick. I thrust my left arm through, grabbing some sort of.. emaciated orc-looking thing and dragging it through.

"No! No! Nooooo!"

"Bottom-feeding scum." A punch with my other hand knocks a hole in the wall big enough for me to walk through, and the three other orc-like things there cower back.

"Ekg!"

Ambrose looks down at the arrow sticking into his chest, smiles and pulls it out. No wound on him, but orange blood is dripping from the tip. Sympathetic wound transfer empowered by demonic spite. Clever. One of the demons in front of me draws a short sword, so I throw the one in my hand at it with bone-crunching force.

"Guhk!"

"And part two." Ambrose brings his hands together and… I don't feel anything, but the demons in front of me shudder and shimmer before evaporating, their powdered remains floating through the air and into Ambrose's grasp. "Intelligence gathering. Let's see what this was about."

Jade walks through the debris and picks up a broken short bow. "I was expecting… More."

Euanthe's whole body is distorted, about a third of her torso turned into brambles now sticking through various holes in the wall to the rear of the parts while a stem supports her head in more or less the same place it was in when her body was fully humanoid. "I believe that more is coming."

Ambrose shakes his hands, residual demon evaporating into nothingness as he turns around. "Yeah, you're not wrong. Jade, gun. Mammite, sword."

I pull the sword from my belt and take a stance. The shield is really more buckler than anything for serious shield-walling, but if we actually need a wall then Euanthe can manage that aspect of things. I'm muscle for this operation until we break cover.

"Certainly, oh my fel master,
Gleefully, I charge disaster."

"Wha-?"

The wall Euanthe pierced evaporates as the demons did, revealing a vast open space and letting in the howls and cheers. I blink at the suddenly increased illumination, braziers of blue flames made up of burning pyrophobics attached to sconces around the.. arena walls.

An arena. Great.

"It seems our visitors have proven their mettle!" Euanthe leads the way out, arms swelling as she prepares to grapple. I follow her, taking a moment to look at the crowds… For the most part they put me in mind of slightly larger versions of the demons I fought in Fawcett City. "If not their intelligence! Who just follows a path laid out into Hell?!"

There's some laughter, and I suppose that it's somewhat deserved. Spawn camping. Truly, there's no evil that demons won't celebrate.

"And their opponent, no doubt hoping they'll last longer than the last bunch! Straight from Masak Mavdil, the toughest prison in the Labyrinth! Put your claws together! For!"

"You know." Ambrose looks around, his right toe drawing sigils in the blood-soaked sand. "I think we're in Ament."

"The lady Ran! Va! Daath!"

For a moment, nothing happens. Then the section of the stands opposite us bulges and explodes, broken benches and demons being sent flying into the air! A colossal green head darts out, grasping two demons from the air with its long sword-length fangs and chomping them down. Its head rises further as more of its colossal serpentine body begins to emerge and coil outwards onto the arena floor. A mantle of smaller snakes writhe around its face as its strangely blank green eyes stare all around for a moment before fixing on us.

And that's when Jade shoots it in the face.

 

21st November
10:24 GMT -5

Gold-white fire completely fails to blossom what the heck?

"Did I pull the wrong lever?"

"No, that shot should have burned.
Mage, say what you have learned.
We face a beast
Pray say at least
That you've a fault discerned?"

The creature raises its head up further, a seemingly endless pile of coils flowing from the holding area underneath the stands. That's.. quite big. Its facial.. plate? Is about three metres tall, not counting the strange stag beetle like protrusion from its chin. The skin of the face is pale blue while the lips and markings on its chin horn are ruby red. The eyes are solid emerald green in colour, and the painted on eyebrows are jet black. There's a strange.. dome of some kind -presumably housing its brain- immediately behind the face, while on either side a hood like that of a cobra expands to a considerable distance. Lower down the trunk, as its 'neck section' starts to merge with its main trunk, I see swollen mounds of-.

Those are breasts. Eight of them.

"Ah, yep, that's not technically a demon."

"Does her being a lukhavim
Really affect the shape we're in?"

He squints at me. "Are you doing that on purpose?"

"What is it?"

"It's-. Okay, long story short? Most of Hell is made of soul-stuff. Souls come from material universe. God operates in the material universe. So Hell isn't as outside of God's sphere of influence as it originally was. That thing was spawned from the bit where the First first appeared, the bit totally outside of creation. Theurgy and theurgical weapons won't work. That thing could chomp angels all day and not care."

"Knowing that there are demons of that nature
Might have impacted the plan for this venture."

"There aren't many and they're usually too crazy to-."

"Where. Is. My. Son?"

There go the fangs again. The end of her tail finally becomes visible as it swings through the air and slams into the area of seating directly abutting her emergence point.

"I'd hate to be in the cheap seats right now!"

"To get involved with."

"How do we fight it?"

"Stab it until it stops moving, and try not to die."

The head is approaching us. Only very slowly, and the slight turns to either side seem to indicate that she doesn't find us especially interesting. But the rest of her body is spreading out along the far wall of the arena. Okay, she snapped demons out of the air and lashed out randomly but she isn't attacking the survivors, despite them being in striking range. Why not? I.. do remember that the Cabal in Magic: the Gathering used perception filters to keep arena animals focused on their opponents and away from the crowds. Perhaps they don't extend them to the 'cheap seats'? Or they don't block random attacks.

"Tell. Me. Where. He. Is."

Her head is.. sort of pointing this way. And I've got the largest lung capacity. "Family matters are no game,
Tell us, lady, what's his name?"

That gets me her undivided. "Etrigan!"

And.. now she's heading this way at speed, her head reaching forward as her coils uncoil to thrust her forward. Okay, not seeing natural weapons beyond the tail and teeth. She's.. five metres wide at her fattest point, but this doesn't look like a particularly hard f-.

I glance at my two squishy human colleagues. They've both got kinetic belts, but how certain am I that they work here?

I make eye contact with Euanthe. "The wench is mine,
The warlock thine."

Plant tendrils reach for Ambrose, lashing him to Euanthe's back. I grab Jade with my left arm -not like a buckler is going to do anything here- and start running directly towards the oncoming snake woman. Jade shifts to a better position, putting her hands on my forearm. "Do you have a plan?"

"Futile would be a frontal attack,
We need to stab her in the back.
Her form suggests not much agility,
I'll draw her attention away from thee."

"Why are you rhyming?"

What?

"Etrigan!"

"Looks like they said the magic word, folks! For those of you keeping track, Ran va Daath has killed over two hundred opponents in the arena since her release from the Labyrinth, and about five times that in spectators!"

She's not just slithering, she's using the coils against the far wall to push herself over the sands faster. Fifty miles an hour isn't much for a car but it's a pretty impressive clip for a giant demon snake. Closer, a little-. I alter my direction slightly, turning a little to the right and accelerating. She draws back her head slightly, but she's moving too fast to stop quickly enough to strike at me. Nonetheless, she stops pushing on the far wall and lowers her head slightly, curving her upper torso away from me and spraying sand as she uses friction to decelerate. I dodge back to the left, keeping a careful eye on her head as I move past her front end.

Immediate danger past, I grasp Jade with my left hand and toss her upwards towards Ms Daath's back. Jade sails smoothly through the air, draws enchanted daggers and stabs them into her side. With the flat of the blade facing Ms Daath's direction of travel they should hold on reasonably well.

I angle to the right again, Ms Daath's built-up momentum meaning that the rest of her body is continuing directly forwards even as she tries to turn. Agh, legs too short, I can't get ag! I'm knocked aside, staggering to stay upright as I don't get out of the way quite fast enough. Okay, step back, watch what she's doing before moving again.

Euanthe is running as well, long gangly legs moving her and her passenger far faster than I could mine. She's moving in an arc designed to keep her away from Ms Daath while still making good time across the arena floor. Heading for Ms Daath's holding pen? Ambrose points at the giant snake's head and a swarm of tiny… They're like birds made of shadows, appear around her face and start diving at her. Her eyes don't appear to have lids, but she lifts her head up a little and turns it first left and then right as she tries to give her snake-fringe the opportunity to bite the attackers.

"She doesn't have a spine!" Jade switches to keeping herself stuck in place with one enchanted knife while slashing at Ms Daath with an x-ionised blade. The snake demon now has a four inch deep wedge cut out of her back but doesn't appear to be responding to it at all. "Or.. blood!"

Oh fiddle. I really hope that Ambrose has an idea about that. Jade has the Sword of the Fallen, but it's a fairly distinctive weapon. And we still don't really know how it works. Right, what do I do? Flesh looks thinnest where the hood is, and I did say that I'd hold her attention. I dash towards her, this part of her body at a near stop while her head thrashes around and-. Ah heck, she's sidewinding part of her midsection towards Euanthe and Ambrose. No, I can't help with that, and it's a slow enough process that I'm sure Euanthe can come up with something.

I leap as best my stubby legs will allow, sword point down to anchor me to-.

The kaahuite point is turned aside by her scales and I'm just about to get a decent grip with my left talons before she starts moving again. Sword… Yep, just about kept hold of it, put it in the sheath and bring those claws to bear… Heave my disgusting, bloated belly over onto the top, good.

Jade glances back at me, eyes widening in interrogation. I just about have time to shrug as Ms Daath flips her head upside-down, spots us, and starts to roll.

 

21st November
10:26 GMT -5

Jade snatches up her blades and leaps towards the 'safe' side. I on the other hand instinctively try to dig my toe claws in as soon as she starts to move, lose my balance and fall onto the sand fuck fuck f-agh! The light's blotted out as a giant snake coil flops on top of me and I just about get my arms and legs up enough to hold it somewhat off. I'm just glad this body is so tough.

"Little. Mammite."

Her muscles tense and relax, the weight being lifted off slightly before increasing…. Mrh, I'm okay. She may weight several tonnes but the weight of the bit actually resting on me isn't more than a fraction of that.

"This humble demon, this poor trapped soul
Will help the lady to find her goal."

Not that I imagine she can hear me. I didn't even see whether or not she had ears. She can hear.. somehow, right?

"He's in the Labyrinth!"

"Eat. Your. Soul. Take. Your. Knowledge."

Okay, sounds like this one isn't going to be solved through rational discussion. Glad we've got that eliminated. Now, while no one can see me there is probably some sort of spell set up to detect orange light use, so… Right, put my back into-.

The body section above me rises up into the sky. For a moment my eyes widen-.

ROLLROLLROLLROLL!

Bang! The fat cylinder of snake flesh slams into the sand next to me, but I don't stop rolling until I'm lying on my front and rise and sprint! I dash along the side of her body in the direction of her head as the part of her body that was on top of me rises up once more and slams down again slightly closer to me. It looks like… Yes, her head is now further off, while the rest of her body blocks my view of the rest of the arena.

Her face is pointing away from me, and unless she turns this way she can't aim any part of herself at me. But I'm supposed to be holding her attention. I halt my headlong rush, plant my feet and stab into her side with both sets of super hard fingernails. Force them in, turn them outwards slightly and then push and lift!

Two scale-covered meaty lumps come free in my hands, and I toss them aside before stabbing in once again. Jade was right; while Ms Daath is sort of oozing purple she isn't really bleeding. Small wounds aren't the way to do here, not unless we inflict enough to completely dismantle her. Which is the best plan I've got that maintains our cover.

My target twitches and then jerks away from me as she sidewinds this part of her body away from me, and for a moment I can look under it and see the rest of the arena. Ms Daath appears to be forming a rough circle two thirds of the way from the arena centre. Euanthe is forming wooden blades and hacking at a point about an eighth of the way from the tail while Ambrose… And her body comes down again before I can spot him. Okay, chance of me being able to keep my feet better if I climb on again? Minimal. Other option?

Ugh. I scurry -careful not to run in case part of her lurches back this way- towards the part of her body in front of me, and-. I glance left and see another coil coming in on my left side. Not.. in danger of grabbing me quite yet, but it will restrict my ability to move in that direction. Fine, can't do anything about that. I stick my claws in again and pull myself hand over hand up the curve of her body.

As I pull my head over the side a brilliant flash of light explodes from the head end as Jade tries a flashbang. Good shot, but Ms Daath doesn't seem affected as her face darts towards Jade! Jade ducks and rolls, narrowly making it through the chin-prongs as Ms Daath's teeth snap down on thin air. I see her arms jerk upwards as she attempts a strike into the bottom of Ms Daath's head with a blade, but the head's already retreating up out of range of her stab.

Okay, go. Like running on ice, grip with the toes, grip with the toes. Ready to grab with the fingers if necessary, but if Jade's got her attention at the moment-

Ms Daath raises a section of her neck and slams it down. Jade evades, but she's running out of room.

-then she won't be focusing on slashing me. I stop digging in my toes and simply sprint along her body, travelling in an arc around the arena. Ms Daath's face darts hither and thither as she tries to get a clean strike at Jade. Then she gives up on managing a mouth strike and tries slamming down on her with her chin spike, while at the same time shifting more of her body into the area to deprive Jade of the ability to evade her strikes. And she does this at the same time as smashing at Euanthe with her tail-spike, forcing her to shift to a more evasive shape to avoid being pounded to kindling.

I'm close enough now. Time to get her attention again.

"Hey, you! Snake tits!
I can see your saggy bits!"

She flips her head upside down, staring at me with expressionless face and writhing snake hair. Jade takes the opportunity to reposition herself on the opposite side to the coil build up while I draw my sword.

"Your display today ain't up to snuff
Come on if you think you're hard enough!"

"Weak. Edible."

I feel her body move under my feet, this part moving forward as she twists to bring her head in my direction in answer to my challenge.

"While in combat we're engaged
Etrigan still lies encaged."

She lunges face first at me, her head only just above the level of her body as she bends double.

"In deep Labyrinth, far from sight
What's the point of this stupid-?"

She rears slightly to bite down at me, and I wait until she begins her downward lunge to dig in my toe claws slightly and throw myself forward and down. Her teeth chomp where I was, while her chin spike -grab it!- passes close enough that I'm able to grab hold of it. And-.

And now we're rising into the air. Quite some way.

Ah.

I shift my hands to get a better hold.

"Go ahead, smash me you dope
You'll never see Etrigan as you hope."

I'll say this for this shape, the arm muscles are certainly strong. I release my right hand and draw my sword once more. Okay. Deep breath. The thin part of her neck is about three metres above and slightly behind me, and extends to eight metres further back. I am not confident of my ability to swing and leap, and it's probably just as immune to kaahuite as her lower body was. Claws? Not a great option, but if she swings me around-.

The world wheels as she flips wahgahagahgahletgo and now I'm falling back towards-. She's moving her head, claws claws and aim! I slide down her neck, claws cutting a visible furrow in the scales and she's twisting around on herself and leap!

"HSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!"

And there's the snakes. I backpedal along her bulbous head and slash with my sword, blade striking the first to dart for me directly on the muzzle-. Agh, these are immune too, the deflection nearly took it out of my hand! I pull my right hand back as the pseudo snake snaps for it, then spin my left around to slice at its trunk with my nails! Flesh parts and dig my feet in and get ready to-!

Her head turns face down, and I drop my sword as I jam both sets of claws into her flesh! No, it's parting it's parting there, something hard! My feet dangle as I hang off… If that part of her skull? Snakes snapping at me as their host swings her head left-.

"My. Boy! I. Hear!"

Demons flee from another section of the arena stalls as Euanthe spikes and hooks everything she can see, while Ms Daath herself-

"Mother! Comes!"

-dives for the sand which isn't sand any more it's a portal and where are we going n-?

 

21st November
10:29 GMT -5

No restful purple void this time. The floor of the arena bends and ripples as if it were a rubber sheet and then the arena's gone and I'm getting a face of bwgf!

I try to pick myself up, but Ms Daath's body smashes me into a rock spire as she continues past. The spire snaps, but the force of the impact tears through my reinforced skin as I tumble to the ground. Ow! Yes, that's what pain feels-

"Yehaha!"

-like… I pick myself up and turn to face the-. The three green-furred demons staring at me from what I suspect they think is a safe distance. They're near-human in shape, but their heads are slightly too short and broad and their mouths too wide. They look a little like a gibbon would if it were dyed green and dosed with smilex. Doubt I'll get much sense out of them, but trying won't hurt.

"Gents, I think I lost that bout
Any chance you'd help a fellow out?"

The one closest to me starts a sort of panting-laugh noise, knuckle walks a few steps closer and then darts back to the hooted approval of his fellows. Okay, what have I got? Shield, kilt and loincloth. Sword… I glance up, but clouds of swirling grey… Ash? Cloud? Gas? Make it impossible to see more than a short distance into the sky. I don't know if my sword came with us or remained in the arena. If I remember the Grimoire Verum correctly, these things are opportunistic predators. Sub-sentient. Dangerous to people on their own or who are injured.

I make a point of standing straight and not showing that I'm hurt. The one on the left responds by sitting back on his haunches and slapping his forearms together.

"Hehahahaha!"

"OOOOOwh! OOOOOwh!"

I risk taking a moment to glance in the direction Ms Daath is hurtling in. In the distance stands a mighty fortified tower wreathed in spikes. Some spikes are clearly defensive in nature, designed to impale flying attackers or fend off scaling ladders. Others are.. architectural, giving the tower the look of the head of a morning star planted in the ground. I can't imagine what practical purpose they're for. Around the base of the tower are lesser curtain walls and fortifications, and it's these that Ms Daath is currently alternately smashing through or snacking on. The guards appear to be in the mould of the orc cosplayers I saw earlier, but considerably more beefy and.. some of them have horns. Standard pattern demon warriors, then. They're certainly standing their ground rather better than the arena fans did, but-.

I hear a quiet sound behind me and spin around, outstretched right hand slapping one of the demon… Imps? To the ground as his comrades caper backwards. I dart forwards, lunging to grab hold of his left leg with my right hand. As my fist closes around his limb I haul him off the ground, pulling him close and biting into his should-.

What the fuck am I doing?

I toss him aside, spluttering and spitting out… Bits of… I think it's mostly blood, but… Ugh. Cannibalism? Okay, it's.. arguable. These aren't humans, and they don't have human-equivalent intelligence. I eat animal meat… I didn't specifically want to do that, but it felt… Natural. I wanted to dominate them so they'd stop attacking me… And it occurred to me that biting one was the best way to do it.

I look around, ignoring the cowering imp. I wouldn't have thought that Hell could get to me, but… I mean, that probably was the best way to-.

Don't worry about it. What next? Aym used to rule here, his fortitude allowing him to survive and prosper. But who rules it now?

"You ignorant, ill-mannered, bottom feeding scum
Into whose domain have I chanced to come?"

"Heah heah heah."

Yes, that was a bit optimistic.

"I need to get to yonder fort"

I point in its direction with my right hand.

"Any chance you can correctly comport?"

The one I bit cringes sycophantically, then glances back at the other two. Another round of gasping pseudo laughs. Ah, heck with it. This time I turn away fully, and start my trek in the direction of the tower. The demon warriors are forming up, lines of pikemen attempting to hold her at bay while wizards and.. some sort of mechanised siege engine get into position to bombard her. Hm. I don't actually know that's exactly where Etrigan -and therefore Jason Blood- actually are, but it does seem like a reasonable bet. Certainly a better one than wandering the wastes pointlessly. I'm not in danger of getting stuck -John's perfectly capable of keeping track of me, and if things go totally to pot he can open a portal himself- but getting separated from the group's magician is going to make things a little awkward.

The demonic defence cannon fires, hitting Ms Daath right in the tits and burning away a layer of skin or two. Her retaliation is-. Her main face and all of her snakes orientate on the gun, and the ghostly blue runes lighting it up turn orange and then red for a moment before the entire assemblage detonates, killing its crew and sending shards of metal scything into the nearby infantry! I had.. wondered why she hadn't used magic against us. Perhaps we didn't inflict enough damage to be worth it? I must have run past the point where Jade attempted her initial incisions, and I don't remember seeing anything.

Three wizards raise their arms, orange and purple lights coalescing in the air above them before leaping towards their target. The hellfire strikes home and tries to splatter off her just as my kaahuite sword did, but purple strands wrap around spell and target both and hold them together. I'm too far away to tell exactly what it's doing to her, but she isn't letting it distract her from smashing into a foolhardy block of soldiers. The lights around the magicians intensify as they redouble their efforts…

And they should have been looking behind them. That way they might have spotted her tail before it smashed them into pulp and their bastion into rubble.

The spell lights fade from her as the casters die, and… I can't see any damage from here. Possibly it fades as soon as the attack stops. Mildly bothersome if true, but killing her isn't an objective. We can leave fighting her until we actually have to.

I lose sight of the fight around the tower as I come to a small clearing containing what's left of a guard post. It looks like she bulldozed it without directly engaging the personnel, but when a few hundred tonnes of snake-themed abomination does that there isn't much difference in the results. Should probably stop and see if I can find a weapon.

"You… You…"

Hm, wounded demon warrior. I do have two of Wallace's healing potions with me, but I think his injuries are a little too severe for that. If it even works on demons. He's basically just got his left arm and the upper left part of his torso left from what looks like a smash injury from a rock.

"Your wound is mortal,
And I'll not chortle,
Even though you don't exactly look your best.
I'm passing through,
Hi, how'd you do?"

I pick up a kaahuite scimitar from near his body and hold it towards him.

"Should I send you to your final rest?"

"Scum-snorting… Rhymers." He shudders, a disturbing gurgling noise coming from what's left of his lung. "Yes, yes! Aghh."

I slam the blade into his neck, severing his head with a brief spurt of blood. Then I step back. None of the others here are still alive, not that I can see anyway. I suppose that any survivors might have run after her. I turn away from the ruin and start once more down Ms Daath's wake towards the distant tower. One way or another, the fight should have resolved itself by the time I arrive. Now, what was that he said about rhym-?

A red skinned demon with two curved horns on his brow and a burning pentagram on his chest leaps from the tower. No wings that I can see, though that doesn't seem to concern him. A moment later he thrusts his hands forward and flames erupt, covering the entirety of Ms Daath's body.

I hear her screech.

William Hayes. I suppose he wasn't going to end up in Detroit, was he?

 

21st November
10:34 GMT -5

Okay. He still shouldn't be able to recognise me. Bit surprised that Satanus put him in charge of something. He never really demonstrated the greatest planning skills. But, maybe becoming a demon encouraged personal-

Ms Daath locks eyes with him and his flames dim and then vanish completely. He flies around behind her, and she responds by pulling more of her body into a defensive coil-pile.

-growth? I'm not sure what the garrison here are supposed to do, but I suppose that he could use the inmates to practice his blood knighting skills. The more powerful demons tend not to simply be better brawlers, but better magicians and plotters. With the added essences of Aym, Belial, Beelzebub, Asmodeus and Craeteis, even a neophyte demon like him can pull his weight. I wonder if he calls himself 'Cabab' or 'Bacab' or 'Babac' now? No, no, for a Dark Kantian like him Satanus would want a choke chain: Satanus' power binding his augmentations together.

I accelerate to a jog, the broken walls of the outer fortification drawing closer. I wasn't really able to see a way into the interior from where I was, but there must be some way of moving materials and new inmates inside. Hm. I wonder: does rendering not work on demons of a certain level of power? I can't see any obvious benefit to keeping Etrigan in existence otherwise. And in Jason Blood mode he should be perfectly killable.

Maybe I'm not thinking about this correctly. Ms Daath was outside of the prison. Would they keep her in the arena until she died, then similarly use Etrigan in that manner? Circuses to go with the Devil Jizz bread? No, that doesn't sound quite right. There aren't enough arenas, or a good enough internal communications system for more than a fraction of the population to view them. Warrior training? A reminder to anyone looking that their overlords could sentence them to the arena-. No, no, they've already got rendering as an ultimate threat. A sudden death at the teeth of an abomination would probably be considered a good death. In their position, why would I-?

Studying the abomination. And Etrigan himself. How he was bound to a human, how the anti-creation abilities of abominations work. Because Satanus knows that he's going to have to fight the Silver City eventually, and if he's only got one thing that can trump their trumps…

Did she already kill Remiel and Duma? It would explain why they're not around, but I would have expected the Silver City to have a slightly stronger response to their people dying. But I suppose they'd have to know about it. There isn't actually a lot of good information on angels available in occult circles, most likely due to the fact that they aren't biddable and can travel to a summoner's location later at no cost to themselves. Particularly after what happened to John Dee, I suppose demons just seem like the safer bet.

The mortar valiantly holding up a chunk of outer battlement loses its fight with whatever does duty as gravity in this place, a sizable lump of masonry falling to the ground as I stroll through Ms Daath's entry point just in time to see the end of her tail disappear into the inner keep.

Hm. On the plus side, a convenient entry point. On the down side, the forces hereabouts are a little less distracted-

"Mammite."

-now. Mr Hayes floats down, long hair billowing from the heat given off by the hellfire-blasted stone. I assume, anyway. He's glowering at me as a sizable chunk of the orcoids charge in through the breach.

"It had best explain why That One has returned."

He's glaring at me, but there's no special fire to it. He doesn't know who I am, even with Belial's Evil Wisdom. Of course, given how Belial died…

I make a shallow bow.

"My lord, your pardon, t'was not my doing,
I'd more fun in mind than beast-pursuing.
She most dearly wants to see her pup,
So she's going to fuck your prison up."

The corners of his mouth turn down further. "You're speaking in rhyme. Harm does not find this amusing."

I shrug.

"I've noted no change in my thinking schema,
What can you tell me of these phenomena?"

"It is ignorant. This disappoints Harm." He lands and walks closer and… He's really quite an attractive demo-.

Wait, what? I can still see his desires. Either Satanus can't mask them or hasn't bothered in Mr Hayes' case. He's still the same loathsome man he was last time we met. Why isn't it.. bothering me more? Something's affecting me.

"A parting curse from the Morningstar. There was a fashion among lesser Its to speak in rhyme. He found it vexing, so when he left he made sure that it would never stop. Those Its who rise above an inconsequential level of power find themselves compelled to speak in verse for a time."

"I hope that soon I will be stopping,
Oh, what sick rhymes will Harm be dropping?"

"Harm is above such things." He looks around at the ruined fortifications and equipment, and sighs faintl-. The ruined fortifications, equipment and demons, and sighs faintly. "Harm had thought the Its would perform better. But Harm can punish them later."

"Will we pursue Ran Va Daath into the interior,
In case your soldiers need a kick up the posterior?"

He smiles. "The interior is filled with failures. The Morningstar's failures at creating life without God. Demons too foolish to be let free but too useful to be passed to the renderers. A few damned souls kept for amusement. Harm finds it restful."

I raise my sword slightly.

"This blade is scavenged, it will not do at all,
If we should perchance need to engage in a brawl."

"Harm does not see why that is Harm's concern." He dips slightly into a dash start and then blurs, flash-like as he runs into the tower.

Well, if he's going to be a dick about it, I don't see why it's mine either. I start forward at a j-.

No. No. I'm in hell, and something is affecting me. I'm pretty much immune to direct magics, but something is still changing the way I think and feel. Why does fighting alongside Har-. With William Hayes feel like just the right thing to do? What are my vulnerabilities? The tattoos don't stop direct, manually aimed attacks, but I haven't been exposed to one of them. I had them checked after that G-Oni damaged it in Argentina and they're still working fine.

But what happened to that G-Oni? Chances are it died with the rest when Angelica burned them, but we knew that we didn't get them all. That… Could mean that there's a fragment of my soul around somewhere. I saw Ambrose bind the essences of those demons. I didn't see the G-Oni do that, but they were rather focused. Any loose fragment of my soul should have either returned to me or gone onto a thematically-appropriate afterlife. Thana hasn't passed on any messages…

Don't know. What elohfuck!

My basic tattoos draw magic energy from my surrounding area at an accelerated rate. They were doing that to build me a soul, but there wasn't a stop mechanism because John said it would trail off naturally as I stabilised. Ignoring the fact that whatever my soul is I'm pretty sure that 'stable' isn't an appropriate descriptor, I'm now surrounded by demonic magic. Were my tattoos set to only absorb earth magic? I don't rememb-. No, it's John, of course they weren't!

I'm a pretend demon actually becoming a demon. And it's already gone far enough that I'm apparently talking in rhyme. Test it.

"Oh, isn't this a dreadful to-do,
And I've no idea where I'm going to."

HOW DID I NOT NOTICE THAT!

No, I remember Mr Cassidy in Shadowpact. He didn't notice either, and got quite defensive when anyone brought it up. Okay, I'm rhyming. Could Angelica fix-

An image of the G-Oni vaporising appears in my head.

-this..? Yeah. Okay, there are a couple of bits of pomegranate left in the Atlanteans' lab. If all else fails I'll eat some of that. Or try consuming the demon magic with the orange light. Worst case, I'll end up like Alan.

But I've still got a job to do. I need to find Mr Blood and undermine Satanus. Which means that I need to follow the hotness-.

Mr Hayes, I need to follow Mr Hayes anyway.

I start jogging.

 

21st November
10:38 GMT -5

"I find myself talking in rhyme
Compelled to do it all the time.
Whatever I might think or feel
It is all really quite surreal."

FUCK! Even when I know it's happening, I can't stop it! All that's happening is that I'm getting funny looks from the demon soldiers I'm hurrying past as I dash after William Hayes who is a psychotic monster and not hot at all except literally due to Beelzebub's fire manipulation powers.

Demon me, you can do better.

And now I'm thinking about my relationship with Jade. Really? Really? But I am-? I mean, am I just thinking about it because of the demon magic, or is that just giving me an excuse? Look, whatever doubt she's having -and she's having more than I am- she was still willing to come to Hell for me. That's loyalty you don't get from demons.

Okay, Zatanna would probably be more loyal-.

Shitshitshitshit.

I actually… Felt that. What it would be like to accept slavish devotion without guilt or hesitation. I accepted that part of my desires before I achieved enlightenment, but since then I've been aware of exactly why it was a minority view. For a moment there it wasn't.

I haven't lived long enough to become the villain yet!

At times like this I am painfully aware of how irrational and relative my particular values are. I'm not sure if that's a weakness of me or of Orange Lanterns in general, but I double down on my attachments because I have attachments.

And Jade finding new strength through me makes her a better mate. Zatanna's still going to be on-side whatever the particulars of our relationship.

…

That's… True, but don't think I didn't hear the difference there.

H-urh. I'm.. tempted to hit the 'Call John' button. Not being myself is one of my major fears. But I'm so close to Mr Blood, and the locals are providing me with an escort! And if the fellow in charge can't stop one abomination, letting a few out should provide enough of a distraction.

The guard parts to allow me out onto a walkway which appears to.. run around the entire interior of the tower around a pit. Mr Hayes is already standing at the edge and gazing downwards, the other guards sensibly giving him his space.

"It thinks to outrun Harm. Harm will teach It that this is quite impossible."

I approach somewhat carefully.

"Your pardon, sir, but my knowledge is incomplete,
Who ruled this place before their rightful defeat?"

"Its name was Abaddon. It felt a surprising degree of loyalty to the First of the Fallen, and would not accept the change of things."

"Of the First's fall I'm sure I'd heard,
But who defeated the loyal bird?"

He slowly turns his head my way, a relaxed smile on his lips. "Harm had that pleasure. And now that Ran Va Daath has returned, the prohibitions against Harm slaying her son have lapsed. You will bear witness to Harm slaying Etrigan. Come."

I frown, as best my horns allow.

"You might well be perfectly alright
But Mammites were not designed for flight.
I'd love to watch you slay that clown
But I've no idea how to get-."

He picks me up in one hand and throws me over the balcony.

Ah. I'm falling quite fast. Not as afraid as I thought I'd be, but that's probably due to all the experience I have of being safe while airborne. Try angling for the walls? I think they're too far away, but a frame this strong might be able to maintain a grip at terminal velocity. What else? Using my rings to fly is an option, but a giveaway if anyone is paying attention.

Aaaaahh… Super strong organic wing design. Eidetic memory, don't fail me now. That'll do. Ring, go.

OWOWFUCKINGFUCK! IF I EVER DECIDE TO BECOME A DEMON AGAIN, I'M HAVING WINGS FROM THE START!

I don't open them wide. Rather, I use them to gradually turn downward momentum into lateral movement, spiralling in increasingly flat circles around the pit. Little bit wider, little bit wider… And I.. still don't know where I'm supposed to be heading-.

"It will follow Harm."

Mister Hayes flies past me, clearly under his own control and entirely unaffected by gravity. I.. close my wings a little, diving after him. For a demon and a murderer he's making surprising allowances for my apparent weakness. Which is somewhat suspicious. Harm always worked alone, and didn't appear to have any particular need for an audience.

"We’re diving rather deeply into this well,
You are aware I don't have a scrying spell?"

"Harm does not see how that is a problem. It merely needs to follow Harm's lead."

"And not record your valorous deeds?
Demon Lords usually have certain needs."

"Harm does not care for the opinion of the 'Its'. It is simply convenient for Harm to send a messenger rather than go himself. You will bear witness to Harm and inform Harm's ally."

"To hear is to obey,
By your side I will stay.
But if I may ask and you aren't getting bored,
Who, pray tell, is this illustrious Lord?"

"Lord Satanus of Limbo. Here."

He stops suddenly, and I'm forced to spread my wings suddenly to turn my dive into upward motion. No, not enough simply to glide. I'm going to have to flap as well. Mr Hayes has already landed on a lower balcony and very pointedly isn't waiting for me. Flap, flap, oh this is.. not fun. If I do this again I'm going to be sure to work some Nth metal into the mix. No, not working. But the wall looks like regular rock, so if I grab on… Yep, got a grip, now I can claw my way up.

"Harm will inform It that this level is inhabited by Scabbies. They may eat you. It would displease Harm were that to occur."

Shield and sword at the ready, then.

"It's been a while since I've seen these climes.
Who -or what- are these Scabbies of thine?"

"Prisoners captured during the War in Heaven and now broken. They are beneath Harm's contempt but may be dangerous to lesser 'Its'."

"While I will endeavour to keep myself alive,
If they're using theurgy I'm not going to thrive."

"We are beyond God here. His miracles do not function."

Explains what might have happened to Remiel and Duma. How hard would it be to convince them to check in on their former comrades?

"A dangerous place,
For those denied grace."

"Harm finds it… Restful. Ah. They come." He stops walking and gestures for me to keep going. "Amuse Harm."

 

21st November
10:41 GMT -5

I see the first one, and I'm suddenly less worried about the overwhelming power of the Silver City. The first one I see is emaciated, trembling and is quietly mumbling to itself. It reminds me a little of that poor creature from that.. horror program. How physically strong are they? Not sure, and-.

It looks up, and… Yeah. It's making-

"Tch-tch-tch-tch-tch…"

-a sort of clicking, sucking noise, its eyes blank and staring. The wings are there, but the one on the left looks like someone's been gnawing on it.

"Pathetic creature, gaunt and weak,
Is it truly the end you-?"

"HAEHHH!"

It pulls in its arms and snarls, sharp rotting teeth on display.

"Or mayhap that's too great a boon?
To help you leave here so soon."

No recoverable parts I'd want. I mean, look at it. Even Cranius would hesitate before sticking bits of this thing in his lab. Really, the question is what helps me get into a useful position with regard to Satanus. I mean, there's no mind left here and if the Silver City wanted it back then Remiel and Duma would have done something about it. Since there's no mind there to suffer, I'm not going to worry about what it thinks.

That's what the Silver City would want, right?

I sheathe my sword and reach out for it. It lunges for me, but those arms are about as strong as they look. Holding it presents no real challenge. But what would Harm find funny? The investigation into his murders showed that he wasn't particularly sadistic. He'd kill someone -including his sister- when there was a material benefit from doing so, but he didn't go out of his way to make them suffer. I don't remember anything about his sense of humour…

Broken angel in hand, I turn around and walk past Harm back onto the balcony. Careful not to let it look down, I turn its head upwards. The light here is.. okay. You can't see details for any distance, but it's certainly possible to see that there are other balconies from down here.

"You know, not all that long ago, Lucifer quit Hell. The Silver City sent Remiel and Duma to rule here in his place. Now, they probably couldn't hear you all the way down here… But maybe if you got a little higher. Yes?"

Something… A dim forgotten longing appears on its confused countenance. Nothing beyond the level of a mangy dog not immediately biting someone it remembers having fed it, but it's certainly a change. I walk over to the left extremity of the balcony, where it meets the wall of the shaft. Carefully, I lift the angel so that it can grip the rock face.

"Best of luck."

I step back as its eyes widen, and it takes its left hand away to reach upward to the next handhold.

And loses its grip and plummets downward.

I watch it fall for a moment, then shrug and turn back towards the entrance. Harm frowns beautifully. "That was not quite what Harm had in mind. Nonetheless, Harm appreciates its effort."

"Oh, come now. What's not funny about that? The first remotely positive thing it's felt since it got stuck down here, and it results directly in its death. It will feel despair that it thought it had become accustomed to with new bitterness as the last thing it ever feels."

"And then it will feel nothing. One of the few truly free creatures in the universe will eat its remains, and it will cease to be."

"Your pardon, my lord. I didn't bring my custard pies with me." Still, that's an interesting point of view. I stroll back towards the entrance, keeping a cautious watch on him at all times. "Free in what sense?"

"Almost everything that is, is created by God. Even this place, the souls in it and the capacity for the suffering they experience. Evil itself is defined by God. Harm always sought freedom from the chains of morality, and is now close to Its who cannot exist within that framework. Who can scarce understand it. Harm cannot help but feel jealous."

I lead the way back inside, keeping an eye out for any stronger inmates.

"There must be some way to graft that capacity onto a demon. Ran va Daath claimed to have dammed Etrigan, after all."

"That is why Harm has learned to tolerate lesser Its."

Tunnels, the layout… Deliberately confusing. And the width is such that a single being couldn't block it and that an army couldn't bring its full strength to bear. A few rags, a few well-gnawed bones… It seems a bit of a waste, leaving them here.

"Is there a Missus Harm?"

"Yes. She did not come here upon her death. At the time, Harm did not know the appropriate rituals."

I nod. "It's sad when families are broken up like that."

Somewhere in the distance I hear a whimpering.

"Harm notes that It has stopped compulsively rhyming."

"So it has. So either I've bored Lucifer's spell or… What, my power growth has halted?"

"Harm is surprised that It is not more familiar with the process."

"I didn't fancy paying Mammon's fees. I've gained a lot of power lately, but as I said, I've been away from Hell."

Hm-? He hangs back sl-.

I'm already crouched as the first Scabbie throws itself at me from the side passage. This one is notably stronger, only the skin visibly worried while the muscle beneath remains strong. One wing's shorn away at the shoulder, but the other seems reasonably healthy.

"Hellspawn."

I feint at his head with my sword but he doesn't seem concerned. I edge forward, feinting again while just close enough that inactivity could see it turn into a stab-. He slaps the flat of my blade aside with more strength than any human of his proportions would have, nearly knocking it from my hand! I step back and raise my shield as he steps forward, whipping his wing out in a feint of his own-.

Why am I wasting time with this scum? I've trained with Kon often enough to know what super strength feels like.

I push forward, grinning at the sting from his wing strike and from his attempt to reverse his advance to avoid my sword. I cut a shallow slash across his chest and narrowly miss chomping down on the tip of his wing with my fangs. The fact he's backing up is a fairly clear indication that he knows he's not strong enough to do much to me. It's a front.

Bringing my shield back up I push rapidly forward. One punch is blocked by my shield, my sword getting a decent cut on his arm in retaliation. He's still backing up so I charge, smacking into him and using my bulk to pin him against a wall. He punches me in the face with his left fist but I barely feel it. Harm-honey wanted amusing?

I bite, his fingers crunching as I mutilate his hand. Another bite gets me a chunk of palm and now my sword's in position. Slicing a wing off would be hard but for the unyielding stone behind us. I drop the sword and grab it by the bleeding end, pulling back just far enough to shove it into his mouth. The impact knocks his head back into the stone, stunning him, and I let the ridiculous failure of an angel fall to the ground.

"I remember something about the worst torture in Hell being one that gave the victims a view of Heaven, so that they would always know what they had failed to achieve. I don't know how to do that to this one, but perhaps propping him up on the balcony sans arms and legs would achieve a similar result? Mm?"

Harm smiles.

 

21st November
10:47 GMT -5

"…Harm is not merely a capable warrior." Harm generously condescends to allow me to open the door for him. "Harm has been blessed with knowledge and intellectual ferocity to match Harm's physical abilities."

I nod. "The Evil Wisdom of Belial and the Evil Courage of Asmodeus."

"The Evil Wisdom and Courage of Harm." He walks down the corridor a short way, then turns back to indicate a cell door. "Harm's curiosity is most aroused by the interactions of contradictory and conflicting magics. Observe one of the Its Harm has studied."

I walk up to the door and move the slide away from the viewing slot. Can't see all that much on the far side. A trio of dull braziers take the other cardinal points of the room, and a double layer magic circle surrounds the man in its centre. He's suspended in the air by chains wrapped around his wrists and fixed to the ground by chains wrapped around his ankles. His head is tilted down and ragged blonde hair obscures his face…

But not the ragged ends of his wing stumps where someone took a chainsaw to them. Or the ragged hole in his chest from which someone tore his heart.

"They gave you Gabriel."

"Harm has observed that It tries to face away from the door." Harm's.. right next to me. I can feel his breath on my neck as he speaks. "It finds the existence of other Its shameful."

Former colleagues, reduced to feral beasts. Who wouldn't? But I always assumed that he was supposed to be allowed to repent. Was getting tricked into having sex with one succubus really that big a deal?

"I suppose that freshly fallen angels are somewhat thin on the ground. But wouldn't Remiel and Duma have been in control when he first arrived?"

"Harm has been informed that They oversaw Its initial punishment themselves." Oh, why did I give this body a penis? Things could get awkward if he looks down. "If It was not supposed to be punished, It would not be down here."

What could I say that would ingratiate myself with the Harmness further?

I lean a little closer to the hatch. "Hey, ponce. You may be pleased to know that John Constantine is alive and well. Actually… A little birdie told me that he's more powerful than ever, and Chantinelle has become an elemental of love."

There's a quiet groan from the fallen angel. Ah well, they can't all be winners.

And if the existence of Hell doesn't prove that…

…M.. n.. yeehh… Might be worth trying to get him out. Maybe? He was kind of a dick. But having him and the Silver City owe me a favour… Would they even want him back? Or maybe..? If his wings grant theurgy, what would his other organs do? Can't really tell Harm about that, not until I know more about what he's learned-.

Satanus is partially human. Able to move back and forth between Hell and Earth at will, without the huge expenditure of power it usually takes Demon Lords. I doubt that he's supplying Harm with research materials without the expectation of some sort of return. I.. don't know if Etrigan finds moving between Earth and Hell similarly easy thanks to Blood, though their pairing is demonstrably superior to most instances of possession. And Etrigan hasn't ever been banished…

"I would be fascinated to watch you work, and to discover what you have learned. But there is a rather large snake abomination heading this way."

"She will have to go to Harm's holding pen if she wishes to recover Harm's prisoner. Her mass will not allow her to use the central shaft. While Harm does not expect the Its who defend this place to stop her, her lack of self control will cause her to slow to fight them."

He moves away and -quick readjust of the loincloth- and I head after him.

"Are we trying to kill her, contain her… What?"

"Harm's experience suggests that the abominations cannot be killed by conventional means. Harm means to enjoy himself. When Harm kills Etrigan before her eyes, Harm is confident that she will focus her attention on Harm."

"Have you learned all you can from him? It would be unfortunate if you were to lose your only subject with his particular characteristics."

"Harm has performed as much research upon the demon as he can. Despite Its considerable suffering It refused to return to Its human form. As such, it has no ongoing value other than to instigate Harm's next fight."

The walk is somewhat circuitous, the corridors winding down and around. Glancing down side passages I occasionally catch glances of more Scabbies, though they shrink back as they meet my gaze. Plenty of potential bargaining chips here.

"You hold Etrigan deeper than Gabriel?"

"The angel lost its capacity for theurgy when it fell. It has little to teach Harm. The demon was more useful, and far more capable-" He pushes open a reinforced door. "-of escape."

"Weak mortal soul, stolen-power clad
Oh how your return, it makes me glad!"

Naked Etrigan chained to a rack, his muscles straining against his bonds. There are burns and cuts all over his body, but they're fading even as the small demonic creatures surrounding him cut and stab and brand.

"And you've got a new friend, too!
Both your guts will make my stew!"

"Harm has heard It before. Harm is no more impressed now than he was then." Harm walks closer, the imps scrambling back as he does so. "But Harm must inform It that our time is at an end. Its mother is returning and Harm no longer cares to be distracted."

"Mother would eat ten of you for lunch!
You'll not even land a single punch!"

"Forgive me for interrupting Lord Harm, but would you have an easy way to access Limbo?"

"Given Its inability to fly effectively, Harm intends to teleport It."

"Flee for your life, feeble boy!
Lest you become my mother's toy!"

"Could you send two?"

"Harm is aware that It has become attached, but Harm has work to do."

Shame. "I wouldn't expect you to blow off work for a first date, but have you really extracted all of the value from Etrigan here that you could?"

"Without the ability to study Its better half, Its utility is not great."

"Naturally." I walk past him and crouch slightly near the still rhyme-cursing demon. "Fall, fall, O Etrigan
And rise once more in form of man."

And he doesn't even have time to gasp, his body shrinking in on itself and naked demon being replaced by naked and.. bleeding man. Because Jason Blood doesn't have enhanced regeneration. Ugh. I take a vial of healing potion from my belt, remove the seal and pour about half of it onto one of the larger wounds on his chest. The rest I shove down his throat.

I look up to see Harm staring at me. "Harm is curious. How did It know the trigger phrase?"

"'It' knows all manner of things. Including that it is unwise to reduce Its value. Harm does have something of a-"

There's a tremendous crash, and the room shakes.

"-reputation. I can remove Mister Blood here to Limbo, and you can study him again once this prison is secure. And if you need a lab assistant… My calendar's looking reasonably empty."

His eyes narrow and his face hardens. "Harm dislikes It concealing information. Harm also dislikes his hand being forced." He raises his hands, purple fire flickering from his fingertips. "It will be disciplined later."

The fire roars, and engulfs both me and Mister Blood.

 

21st November
10:47 GMT -5

Ow! Ow!

No… No, I mean, it hurts, but that fact isn't bothering me as much as it should. It's not as if I have a power ring available to use at the moment. Injuries will stick with me until I heal, and while this body heals quickly it does so using biological processes. Maybe… Having a ring available for so long has just altered the way I think about becoming damaged?

A.. nd the flame's gone and.. we're standing on a stone platform in a… A stone gazebo. Mr Blood drops the metre or so from where his bench was to the new floor level, cracking his head-.

I crouch down next to him, pull him into a sitting position and pour my last potion between his lips. "Try to stay alive, Mister Blood. Batman wants your counsel."

He splutters weakly for a moment, as if trying not to breathe the potion in. I toss the vial and then hold his mouth closed with my right hand until I feel him swallow, then remove my hand and pull him upright.

"Can you stand unaided?"

"What-?" He weakly pulls away from me, and I cautiously allow him. Seems… Fairly stable… "What do you want? Who are you?"

"Remind me: do you and Etrigan share memories, or do you not know where you are?"

"Some.. some things. Are you a friend of his?"

"He wants to make stew with my guts."

"That's a lot of stew. You've got-."

"Huge guts, yes yes."

"What did you-" He sways slightly. "-give me?"

"Etrigan was being tortured by Harm, new Demon Lord of Labyrinth. It seems that you retained his injuries, so I gave you a healing unguent."

"Why? You said.. Batman…"

"Did I? Oh, silly me. I mean Harm wanted a look at you, but Etrigan's mother took priority. Anyway, you dropping dead because you're not as tough as a demonic abomination would be awkward, so I'm keeping you alive." I take a moment to look around. "Though I should warn you: we're in Limbo at the moment, and there's a demon around here by the name of Sterocax who just can't help himself when it comes to eating living humans, so… Maybe try and look less alive?"

"If you wanted me to look less alive, then you probably shouldn't have given me a healing potion."

"Then I'd have to carry you. But, just so we're clear? If you start chanting 'fall, fall, the form of man', I'm pretty sure I can kill you before you can finish."

"Yes, I… Imagine that you can. I'm not.. entirely clear why it's in my interest to help you on that front."

"You're in Hell. If you want to get out, you have to stay alive. I'm not sure what happens if you die here, but I'm not liking your chances of actually getting away. There was this priest John Constantine used to know who shot himself right before the First of the Fallen got to him…" I shrug. "Guess how well that worked."

"Alright. My.. options for escape are.. almost nonexistent. What are we doing now?"

What indeed? Following the original plan would involve getting information on what Satanus is doing here… Ah. Yes, there's nice stonework and some vines climbing up it, but I'm not hearing birds or insects. And the stonework is free of moss and lichen. It's new, designed to look old. "Any thoughts on how Satanus could have transformed Limbo to look like this?"

"Are you going to tear my head off if I use magic to investigate?"

"Probably not."

"I.. suppose that's the best I can hope for." He walks over to the closest pillar and lays both hands on it, closing his eyes as he does so. "It's… Not Satanus' own power. It feels like… Creation, the Earth."

"Are you saying he opened a portal and brought stuff in?"

"No." He steps back. "The depth, the.. connection to the Dream, it isn't there. It's simplified, but… It's like someone has tried to.. mimic the material universe..?"

"An improvement on what was here before?"

"That would depend on what you mean by 'improvement'. For those who existed here, quite possibly. But I'm concerned about the level of power it would take."

"Didn't I hear about Hades doing something similar with Erebos?"

"I-. You may have done. Who.. are you?"

"'Mammite' will do, I think. But if it's similar to that, where is Satanus getting the power from?"

"I have no idea."

"We'd best try and find out, then." I wave my right hand in the direction of one of the paths away from here. "After you."

He looks at me, looks around for a moment and then with a sigh starts walking slowly in the direction indicated. "Why do you care?"

"That's a rather curious question. In theory, I should want to depose Satanus, but looking around at everything he's achieved… I'm not sure that it's wise."

"Because you don't think you could win. If you're going to try and persuade Etrigan to team up with you-."

"Hah! No. I mean, this looks like the best thing to happen to Hell since God told the First to 'get out of my sight'. This is the sort of thing more death gods should do. Even if it's just an attempt to build up support -and it almost certainly is- it looks like the sort of thing that all right-thinking people should encourage. Even if he's being a shit on Earth."

"Satanus is active on Earth? But he's a Demon Lord. The energy it would take for him to move between Earth and Hell is colossal."

"Satanus is only as demon as he is human. I'm a.. little surprised that you didn't know that."

"For some reason I'm not on Orange Lantern's mailing list. Ah, Orange Lantern is a human superhero who's been organising a lot of work in the field of arcane research on Earth."

"I know who Orange Lantern is. But I thought that you had a working relationship with Batman? Surely he would be able to provide you with information?"

"Batman only comes to me when he needs information. I don't think he's once shared something that might interest me."

"You might want to talk to him about that."

He glances back with a frown. "What.. are you?"

I suppose he might be able to help, there. "I'm a big believer in enlightened self interest. I don't make people miserable for fun or for misery's own sake. I do it because I profit from it. If Satanus has squared the hellish circle, then I may need to… Reconsider things. But, returning to Hell, I find that how I'm.. thinking about certain things has… Altered. I'm no longer sure that my conclusions… My desires, are my own."

"Had you been on Earth for long?"

"Yes, quite some time."

"That would explain it. Demons are essentially a highly specialised form of elemental. If you were drawing on magic from Earth for a prolonged period of time, that may well alter the way you think about things."

I nod. "And the Scabbies are the result when the inverse happens. Has Etrigan been so affected?"

"No, but he's got me to filter for him." His eyes widen. "If this is Satanus' doing, he could alter the nature of demons all across Hell."

"To say the least. I need to be at my best, but I can't trust my own intuition-."

Two grey-armoured soldiers step out from behind a buttress, guns levelled at us.

"Halt and identify yourselves."

 

21st November
10:59 GMT -5

Satanus looks down at the two of us from his… Contrary to my expectations it's actually not a throne. In fact, this whole room puts me more in mind of Themyscira's throne room than anything else. Hippolyta's seat is made of wood and cloth, and it isn't decorated to any great degree because having ruled for three thousand years she has absolutely no need to remind anyone who's in charge.

His seat is made of the same grey-blue stone as the rest of the room, and the cloth supporting his arse is rougher than anything the Amazons produce these days. But I can see what he's going for: trying to move as far from the damaging demonic 'brand' as possible. Rather than doing the Disney thing of making Hades like Satan, Satan is trying to become Hades.

Which is a positive step. Still doesn't explain the drugs…

"Ran Va Daath escaping the arena is.. unfortunate. You have no idea how it occurred?"

"The ground rippled, and we were away. I don't think that it was anything that I did. I lost sight of my summoner during the combat… It's not impossible that he disrupted whatever spells were being used."

"Spells which both of you had no prior knowledge of?"

I shrug magnanimously. "Creation is the work of a lifetime. Destruction, a few minutes. And… The warlock in question is not entirely unskilled."

"Indeed." He leans back, fingers steepled. "Still, Harm has the matter in hand… And I'm prepared to accept that it wasn't intentional on your part."

"I'll certainly tell my summoner to avoid Ament for the foreseeable future. If I may ask, where..? Were we supposed to arrive?"

"That would depend upon your summoner. If you can fetch him, I'll give him the runes needed to come here instead."

"I'm sure that he would appreciate that. And when I see him next, I will be certain to bring him here." I make a point of looking around. "The place does look somewhat different now to how I remember it."

"The glory of a realm is the glory of its ruler. My people's strength, my strength."

"I… Suppose."

"You disagree?"

"I think.. Mammon would disagree. For myself, I suppose it would depend on what result I was aiming for."

"To increase your power and strength further."

"I… Am of the opinion that unlimited growth is a rather slippery pole to climb. But I suppose… In Limbo… Not all that many demons around…"

"Once you understand the ecology of Hell, it makes perfect sense. The First of the Fallen was cast out into literal nothingness, his thoughts and power turned to pure malevolence. That malevolence in turn defined its nature. A human dies in the realm above, and unless they have made alternate arrangements their own nature draws their soul here. And like bottom feeding crustaceans, we draw our sustenance from them. We break them down to empower ourselves, our magics and to build our great edifices."

"Yes..?"

"In a state of total dependency. We spend so much of our time attempting to manipulate the Earth. Why? Because without it we descend into a deadly entropic spiral. Everything we need ultimately comes from there. And what can we trade in return?"

"Magic, usually. Sexual favours or other forms of physical labour as well."

He raises his right hand and counts off fingers with his left forefinger. "Magic? They can learn to do that themselves, and theirs is more versatile than ours. Sex? They can engage in sexual congress with one another, or find a nymph or she-satyr if they have broader interests. Labor? They can do such work themselves or in the modern era build mechanical devices to do it for them. They only come to us if it is easier to bargain for our services than to do it themselves."

"Isn't that the way of all trades? And we hardly need to buy all of the souls which come here."

"Don't you find it… Insulting?" I don't immediately respond, and he leans back again. "How old are you?"

"I'd.. find it hard to say."

"I'm thousands of years old. These humans are lucky to live a single century. But they hew resources from their environment while we scavenge for what if they could deny to us, they would."

"Ah, the issue of long term supply."

"The issue of long term dignity, but yes. If you care nothing for that, this issue of supply. Why did you make the pact you did with the warlock who bound you?"

"It was a low-stakes investment. I wanted a better look at the condition of the market than I could get from here. He wanted an assistant who wouldn't feel the need to stab him in the back at the first opportunity. I mean, I can scarcely credit that Triskele still gets custom. Five years' freedom after making the pact? They may as well start a heroin habit."

"Hnm." A quiet cough of amusement. "What do you think of what I've done with Limbo?"

"It's less boring than before. And the guards-" I glance at our escort. "-are better dressed."

"Nothing about it troubles you?"

"Only the total blank I'm drawing on where you got the power from. The best I've come up with is that you've assembled a cabal of cultist-astronauts, sent then to a distant moon, opened a portal and shipped it back in pieces. But that wouldn't explain how the damned are so invigorated. I mean no.. slight upon your power, but…" I shake my head. "This is an order of.. magnitude…"

"My sister used a miniature model of Hell she created with her own magics to create a sympathetic link with Hell itself. Thus, she siphoned power already claimed by the Lords of Hell for her own use. If I told you that I was familiar with the technique, what would that suggest to you?"

I take another moment to look at the damned soldiers. "Siphoning from the Earth by creating a functioning society here? No, chicken and the egg." I look down for a moment. "Using the barely conscious minds of Limbo's inhabitants to connect to the Dream and gain power as the Earth does?"

"I considered it, and may do so in the future. But, no: they did not dream, and those sinners who died in dreams did not continue to dream."

"Then… Some other realm? Olympus? You seem to have a theme…"

"No. Not Olympus."

"Then wh-?" My eyes widen. "No."

He smiles, rising from his chair and walking down his dais. "Yes."

"I had wondered where Remiel and-."

"No, you do me too much credit there. They were simply recalled. We found another way. And I would show it to you; both of you. You, Jason Blood. Your cooperation could do much to aid the cause of the damned."

"I.. haven't understood what I'm seeing. I suppose there's no harm in seeing more."

"Good. And you." He turns to face me. "I think you will learn much as well, Orange Lantern."

 

21st November
11:06 GMT -5

"'Orange Lantern'." Mr Blood sidles up to me as we are marched through the lower corridors of Satanus' palace. "I seem to remember you not being a demon."

"'We do not fall suddenly on Hell, but advance towards it by slight degrees; we damn every day.'"

"A misquote of Seneca that doesn't actually explain anything."

"I don't believe that Satanus has become deaf since he addressed us in his throne room-."

Satanus glances back. "Orange Lantern-. Can I call you 'Paul?"

"Stopping you would require an escalation which I am presently avoiding."

"Paul, then. Paul has a set of rather interesting tattoos, designed to make it impossible to divine his location with magic. Which means -at the simplest level- unless he actually walks into one of my traps, I'd have to confront him directly in order to attack him."

"You managed to retreat in good order the first time."

"You were quicker than I expected. And you managed to retreat in good order last time. No lasting injuries at all amongst your people, and Agony was severely injured. To say nothing of the defense battalion the Exegesis Guild sent after you. You've been most helpful to me."

"Not that I'm surprised, but are you going to tell me how you profited from that?"

"Agony was getting bolshie, and now he's doing what he's told. Your fight demonstrated that regular combat battalions aren't enough when it comes to fighting high level foes, and as a result every hellish faction of any significance is buying augmentations and combat golems supplied by my allies. You also demonstrated that Lazarus Pits could be transformed into portals."

"And that's not even mentioning Fawcett City. How much of that did you actually plan?"

He chuckles quietly to himself. "The actual outcome was a low probability event, but one for which I had accounted. I would have been a fool not to find a potential way to remove five rivals in a single stroke, and John Constantine's relationship with the First is common knowledge. I even made certain that mother's sword was in Ishmael Gregor's hands so that one of you could deal with him."

"Bit of a risk there."

"There were other contingencies. I wasn't certain how long it would take for one of you to strike him with it, but with people as fast as Father's acolytes available it was quite likely that someone would."

Of course.

"You're using Theo."

Mr Blood huffs in irritation. "Would you mind explaining?"

"The First of the Fallen had an ongoing dispute with John Constantine. John prepared to deal with him in a number of ways, one of which involved having Chan-." Ah. "Satanus' mother telling the First how to kill the two immensely powerful demons the Silver City created purely to keep him distracted. She then used their remains to create a sword capable of... Removing his power. He got stabbed, experienced physical death and woke up in Greece as an adult male human. He pretended he didn't know who he was, and the people who found him started calling him 'Theo'."

"Then a demon called Buer picked a fight with Constantine in an attempt to get the First his power back. He was successful, though the First ended up punishing him for getting outmanoeuvred."

"Mother got the Sword back afterwards, then traded it to me for protection. I then passed it on to Ishmael as a -hah!- 'sign of my favor'."

"The League was on the lookout for Theo reappearing after I cut down the First. When we couldn't find him… We don't have eyes everywhere."

"The First stated out loud where he appeared as a mortal man. I had a few employees standing by in case I got very lucky."

Mr Blood nods. "And whatever the First is, he still represents a powerful connection with God, and through Him to the Silver City. And in his weakened state, he can't do anything to resist."

"He's actually quite pathetic." I can hear the amusement in Satanus' voice as he says it. "He has no tolerance for pain at all. We barely even need to threaten him to ensure his obedience."

"And the Silver City hasn't taken any action?"

"Everything I've done here requires less power than what the First used on a day to day basis. I was a little worried when Remiel and Duma disappeared, but nothing's come of it. Now all that remains is to develop weapons that can reliably defeat the hosts of the Silver City-"

"By studying the abominations, and their link to normal demons."

"-and we'll finally be free to define our own future."

Satanus raises his right hand, and two guards ahead of us pull open a large door. On the other side is… It looks like an exploded view of an apartment. Settee, television, bed, bookcase… There's even a desk with a computer.

The muscular form of Theo, dressed only in boxer shorts and a dressing gown, glowers at us from an arm chair. "What? You're giving tours now? Etrigan's ball and chain and some.. fat fuck."

I raise my right arm, middle finger extended. "This fat fuck sliced you to ribbons in Fawcett City. Up yours, Theo." His face falls as he recognises the gesture. "Lord Satanus has been very clever. I think he's earned the right to show off a little."

"Close the door." The guards comply, and Satanus turns away to lead us further down the corridor. "The First was never the cleverest entity in Hell. Outsmarting you on the other hand was far more difficult."

"I'm still not sure how you knew who Jade had killed. Unless Ra's is actually down here."

"No, but several of the League of Shadows' senior people preferred death to dishonor. And repentance. I didn't know everyone Jade murdered… But I strongly suspected that you'd get to one of the ones I'd tracked down sooner or later. And I wasn't talking about that. Have you felt… A strange inclination to rhyme lately?"

…

"That was from you?"

"Indirectly. I suspected that you might be coming here, eventually. Most likely to kill me, or otherwise to be a massive inconvenience. But then I heard about your tattoos, the ones which draw power from your surroundings."

"I haven't exactly kept that fact a secret."

"But I had to know exactly how they worked."

"Bollocks you know that. The only person who knows that is John, and he wouldn't stab a friend in the back like that."

"No… But his demonic alter ego thinks just like him and knows as much as he does. You wouldn't have drawn enough power during a short visit to affect your behaviour, but if I picked up a sufficiently powerful avarice demon and… Made their essence generally available, then it was simply a matter of waiting for something to drain it."

We reach another door, and the guards open it as we approach.

"Why don't you say hello to the actual Mammon?"

 

21st November
11:12 GMT -5

Mammon is a… Big fellow. His current morbidly obese but heavily muscled body is about fifteen metres tall, and is limply hanging from the kaahuite chains holding him upright. The room appears to have been constructed with him in mind; our platform stops a third of the way across the room, and the upper part of his stomach is level with us. Mammon's dull eyes focus on us slightly as Satanus leads us inside. I get a.. slight twitch, but he doesn't otherwise react.

"How much am I draining him?"

"Nothing he can't spare. In fact…" He reaches up and shoves the nails of his right hand into Mammon's left tit, causing demonic ichor to flow from the wound. "From the feel of it you're barely draining him at all. How did you enjoy the rhyming?"

"I didn't even realise I was doing it."

"I honestly thought that you'd absorb more than that. Still, I suppose that I can't draw firm conclusions on such a small sample size." He pulls his hand out and flicks the blood away. "How do you like it?"

"It was a clever way to bypass my defences. And I've noticed… A few slight changes to my outlook. Mister Hayes didn't disgust me in the way he did during our previous meeting. I didn't even register the suffering of the demons Mister Hayes threw at Ran Va Daath, I was instinctively more physically violent. Crueller, less empathic. And I haven't noticed any real advantages."

"Have you tried to use magic yet?"

Mr Blood looks at me with a degree of concern. "No." Why does he..? "Ah. The structure of my soul was too inhuman to use earthly magic, but if I become a demon…"

"You can use demonic magic just as well as any demon. Perhaps better. Given what you've absorbed from Mammon I'm forced to conclude that you aren't top tier… Yet. But you're certainly carrying more power than most, even before I take your rings into consideration."

"Are you..? Really offering me a job?"

"Oh, not just you." He turns to Mr Blood. "Jason Blood, your willing cooperation would be preferable. And once we have everything we need from you, I would be happy to return you to Earth -with or without Etrigan-, or employ you here."

"'Once you have everything you need'?"

"Defending my realm from the Silver City must take priority. But I firmly believe that it will be easier to get what we need with your help. And so I am prepared to be quite generous."

"When… You say… Without Etrigan..?"

"He's powerful, but hardly indestructible. Once we understand exactly what Merlin did to the two of you, I'm confident that we'll be able to unbind the spell."

"Etrigan's wanted that for as long as we've been together. And I don't think he has a mind to benefit you."

"Etrigan is a brute. As the Second of the Fallen and the Third of the Fallen demonstrated well, even the most powerful demon can be bound -or destroyed- by one with the right tools."

He appears to be considering that rather seriously. Surprises me, actually. Not that I know him well, but I'd have thought that after however many centuries of having an adversarial relationship with demons, he'd be a little slower to risk it.

"Would you be prepared to make a binding oath that you would keep to any deal we struck?"

"I'm willing to be bound in some matters. But I have no obvious successor. My work dies with me if I misstep. I will require some room to maneuver."

Oh. No, Mr Blood is not taking it seriously. He's just looking for an exit. Looking a little closer I see that much as he complains about some aspects of Etrigan's behaviour, he's actually grown rather accustomed to his dark passenger. I wonder if Etrigan will keep behaving in the manner to which Blood has become accustomed now that he's had a taste of Hell. And defeat. I do not believe that Etrigan is one to let his grudges go easily.

Satanus returns his attention to me. "And you, Paul?"

"It's… Tricky. I knew that I was being influenced, and you've admitted to being the one behind it. This should make me sceptical, but… The magic is integrated into me now."

"A child would make different decisions to a man."

"I wouldn't be that blunt, but my thoughts weren't too far away. Who is your truer self? Who you were? No. I'm not the same man I was before coming to this universe. That was true after I lived through my first fight, let alone my bond with the Ophidian. Who I am? Today has been a change, yes, but how I now think and feel is less of a change than other changes I've undergone. I could learn to use magic now, opening any number of new options. Who I will become? I've never had a clear end state in mind. True, I didn't imagine… This-." I frown and look at him. "I can still change my physical form, yes?"

"I can think of no reason why not. Mammon might prove an influence in the short term, but if you stop drawing directly from him and instead draw from the same well as him then that should cease to be a problem."

"I laud your objectives… I dislike the Silver City on principle… What are your plans for DMN. The drug?"

"A bribe to gain support, and an outgrowth of my other research. Humans require a slower path to damnation, and it grants me demonic functionaries who are more human in mindset and possess more arcane power. Would you like to meet the caterpillar who assisted Harm during your first meeting? She has adapted rather well."

Do I? No, not really. "Then what does Rosacarnis get out of it?"

"They don't all manage to make the transition. And… Human sensoria can be just as addictive to demons as demonic power can be to humans."

Hm. Doesn't… Particularly bother me. Someone who plays a shell game should know what they're getting into. Actually finding the shell should be a pleasant surprise, not something you expect. "Beyond shoring up your power base, what else do you intend? I can't imagine that your allies will be entirely happy if you pave over their domains as you do your own."

"Once we connect this realm to the Dream, anything is possible. Imagine: being able to define the arcane mechanisms of a blank slate world. Free arcane energy without the restrictions that come with magic use on Earth. And not limited to demonic magic; if it exists in the Dream it can exist here."

"Again, your allies-."

"Will learn to live with it or become obsolete, just as they are obsoleting their competition now. I bear them no ill-will, but they are attempting to apply new techniques to the old paradigm. On a practical level, Richie came up with a fascinating idea for using great arcane arks to travel from one world's Hell to another when he was on his last bender. Bypassing physical space entirely to travel hundreds of light years in an instant."

I nod. "That could work. Only.. between inhabited regions, but there's certainly potential there. Your friends in the Light?"

"Will join us here, in the fullness of time. I maintain ties to them as much to ensure that they don't disrupt my operations here as any other reason. Earth has things I need… But that's not going to be the case forever."

"I'm…" Huh. Carte blanche to do what I want, without having to work around regulators or -frankly- the League. And if something misfires… It's hell. In utilitarian terms, I can undoubtedly do more good here. And Satanus did this without me prompting him at all. Who on Earth does anything like that? "I think-."

Brambles slice outwards from the 'Y' shaped cut on Mammon's stomach as Euanthe burst free, the rest of my team behind her!

 

21st November
11:16 GMT -5

I hold up my hands as Euanthe's stake-on-a-vine punches through Satanus' hastily raised shield spell and slices through the flesh on the left side of his neck.

"Guys, I don't-"

Ambrose sticks out his right arm, grabbing something inside Mammon. The Demon Lord's mouth twitches, and a glop of bile shoots out and hits one member of Satanus' cybernetically enhanced bodyguard right in the visor!

"-think this is-"

A small, magically enhanced EMP grenade hits the other soldier as he brings his gun up to face them, causing him to spasm and drop his weapon!

"-really worth-"

Euanthe's vine twists around Satanus' neck. He responds by grabbing it with his right hand and conjuring hellfire… Which does nothing. He realises after a second and tenses, pulling it apart with brute force instead.

"-doing, because it-"

Euanthe rushes Satanus, thick-barked plates covering her body as her right fist comes around to punch him!

"-turns out that-"

Jade raises the Ace of Winchesters, putting a round through… Something Satanus was trying to summon. It explodes in a short-lived burst of gold-white fire!

"-our objectives-"

Ambrose flicks bile from his right hand, then gestures to the door even as the guards outside point their guns at him. It slams shut.

"-aren't as incompatible-"

Demonic runes flare for a fraction of a second over Euanthe's bark before decaying to nothing. Perhaps I should have mentioned-?

"-as we thought-"

Euanthe's right fist strikes Satanus in the stomach and sends him hurtling across the room and into the far wall!

"-during our planning."

"Euanthe, I can't-" Jade tries to draw a bead on Satanus as Euanthe leaps after him. "-get a clean shot."

I take a step closer, making what I hope is a peaceful gesture. "How about you put the gun down-" Behind me, Mr Blood picks up Euanthe's stake. "-and we discuss matters like civilised-" The damned guard who got hit by the EMP grenade reaches for his gun with his right hand. Jade points the Ace at him and fires, hitting the seam where his gauntlet protects his middle proximal interphalangeal jointand severing the end of the finger. "-people."

"You do not need one." Euanthe uses vines to anchor herself to the wall as she drives vicious wooden spikes through Satanus and into the brick behind him. "I can kill this demon myself."

"We don't need to kill the demon ourselves! Satanus just told me that he's basically on the same page as me!"

"Uh-huh." Jade walks around me, stowing the Ace and taking a shaped charge out of her equipment harness as she heads for the door.

"Listen." Ambrose takes a quick look around the room and then walks up to me. "I had a look at the spells he had set up on Mammon, and-."

"He was funnelling Mammon's essence into me. Yes, I know."

Ambrose nods. "Yes, that might have been what it was. Or he might have been trying to have Mammon possess you."

I fr-. No, I don't frown, but I do try. "I'm sceptical that he would chain a Demon Lord up like this, then let him possess someone. He would have to be able to rely on Mammon doing what he wanted."

Ambrose frowns. "Are you.. serious about this? I thought you were just humoring him to get information."

"Human souls have to go somewhere. Satanus had observably improved the liv-. The existences of more conscious minds than most superheroes by doing this. And his plans for the future-."

Mr Blood gestures, and the stake extends into a staff. "They aren't feasible, I'm afraid. Even if reformatting Limbo was possible -and I'm not convinced that-

"Mister Blood, we walked through it."

"-it can be to more than a limited degree- demons like being demons. All Satanus will do is unite them against him. And that assumes that the Silver City doesn't also like demons being demons."

"A counsel of despair. Euanthe, let him down."

She grows a head in her back. "I came here to kill demons. He is a demon."

"Becoming a demon myself has really given me a new perspective on that. There are any number of demons we could kill; focusing on the one who is actually making himself useful is foolish and wasteful."

Satanus himself stops trying to snap the wooden beams impaling him. "How are you.. immune to..?"

"If it helps, Nergal's brother is around here somewhere, and we certainly don't need him."

Euanthe grudgingly removes her spikes, causing Satanus to fall to the-.

He vanishes before he can reach it. Ah… Darn it.

Ambrose grins. "That went well. He'll walk right into the trap, and then-."

"Will you shut up! " He frowns in confusion. "This is a disaster! What if these spells are tied to him? And he's got an army outside, and don't think for a moment-!"

Ow!

I stumble back as an arcane barrier appears before me. I look down-. A circle, Mr Blood drew a circle on the brick. Now I know how the Second of the Fallen felt.

Ambrose nods to Mr Blood, then stands in front of me with his hands in his pockets. "Can't help but notice that you've been a bit off, buddy."

"It's a change of perspective, certainly." I sigh. "We'll just have to stay here until we can work out how to enable me to control Limbo."

"And your friends back on Earth?"

"I'll visit once things have stabilised. The utilitarian requirement to keep this project going is overwhelming."

"And since when are you a utilitarian?"

"Since I got some perspective."

Jade steps back from the heavily mined door. The guards haven't tried to break in yet, but that's sensible on their part. If we could beat Satanus they'd need far more force than they have available locally.

"And what about me?"

"I'm afraid that I'm going to have to end our relationship. I gave it some thought, and my prediction is that there's almost no chance of a reasonable return on my investment in time and resources. I'm a demon Lantern and you're a baseline human. No hard feelings, but-."

She raises the Ace of Winchesters, points it at my chest and fires.

 

21st November
11:21 GMT -5

UUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHHGHHHHHHHHH…

When I was in Primary School, I had a verruca. Actually, I had several, but one in particular stubbornly refused to die. No matter how much cream I applied or how I savaged it with a pumice stone, it stayed attached to my foot. In the end, Mum took me to the doctor to have it frozen off.

That hurt a lot. But just on my foot.

THIS! HURTS! EVERYWHERE!

I think I fell over, but I didn't put all that many nerves in this body and I think Jade shooting me with a weapon designed to burn demons to annihilation has killed off a lot of them. Eyes are gone, along with the parts of my ear responsible for balance. Honestly, I'm a little surprised that my brain is still working.

AAAAAAGHHH!

Right… First step…

I think something is happening when I try moving my arms, but I've got no way to tell for certain. Okay… Need for subterfuge past. Call my rings, fix myself up…

Or… The guards would have heard Satanus trying to talk me around. Would it be better to try and stay-.

Ow. What? No, of course it would… N't…

Oh. I was… I said…

Rings now.

I don't feel anything with my skin, but eyes are back. Jade's standing over me with the Ace pointed at where my centre of mass should be. Mr Blood is crouching down next to her, right hand on his circle. Can't see any of the others. Jade's mouth is moving, but… No ears yet.

Okay rings, bit of a test for you. How fast can you restore my body when I really really want-.

Task complete.

"…listening now?"

And that pain's gone.

"Up up up." I use the rings' flight function to yank myself upright and-. Ah, clothes. And basic armour-.

Mr Blood grimaces. "And you couldn't offer me any-?" An orange beam leaves him… I think I bought that in Vietnam. It more or less fits. "Thank you."

"What-?" Jade sights along the barrel of the Ace at my head. "Ah. You can shoot me again if you want… "

"Think she's mostly-" Ambrose strolls back around. "-wondering if you're you again."

"I… Think so? Satanus was pumping Mammon into me. I worked it out just as I got to Masak Mavdil, but at that point I'd... Got far enough along that it didn't bother me." I take a half-step forward and push my right arm through the air above the magic circle. No response. Next, I hold out my left hand and float up my personal lantern. "Any other tests that you want to run?"

Mr Blood stands back. "You're certainly not a demon any longer. I'm not entirely sure what you are-."

"Constantine."

"Say no more."

Jade lowers the Ace, then looks pointedly at me with her head tilted slightly to the left. "And is there something you'd like to say to-?"

"Oh goodness me, I tried hitting on Harm." Uruhggh.

"-me?"

I grimace. "What was I thinking?"

Jade frowns. "You hit on Harm? Being a demon… Made you gay."

"No, I'm bisexual all the time. I just… As I became more demonic, certain things… Seemed less significant."

"Like people who can't provide 'a reasonable return on your investment in time and resources'?"

I step forward, delicately place my hands on her sides and gently kiss her on the lips. "Jade, you are not an investment vehicle. I do not do things for you in the expectation that you will do things for me in return, and I do not love you in order to demand that you love me back with equal fervour. I simply do, as a product of me being me and you-."

Her face switches back to neutral. "Okay. He's back."

"-being you. Did Satanus go home?"

A golden ankh appears in the air in front of Mammon, John stepping through a moment later. "He did. Right back to his office in the Newstime building, right in front of two members of the Justice League and five members of the Metropolis police department. Investigating a 'mysterious display of brilliant lights'. Given how you were acting up, I'm a little bit surprised that you didn't warn him."

"I nearly did. And the Congregationalists?"

"Long gone by the time anyone arrived. That part went fine, but there's a small army of Satanus's soldiers coming this way and I don't think they're going to be impressed with their employer vanishing."

Mr Blood shrugs. "I'm sure that Etrigan will enjoy tearing them apart."

"No, no, no, look-." Jade raises the Ace and I neatly turn it aside. "Not demon-me talking, but I'm not going to destroy someone's soul because they don't want to live in a place like Limbo used to be. We just need to offer them someone who can run the spells Satanus used to hijack the First's link to the Silver City. I can't do it." I look at the three magicians. "Any of you feel like volunteering?"

"I don't think that's a good-." / "Fuck no." / "One demon is quite enou-."

"Great. Chantinelle and Blaze can't do it… Mr Cassidy doesn't have the arcane knowledge the post would require… I'm not letting the First go free and Sterocax is a moron." I look up at Mammohgreat. "Is he alive?"

Ambrose shrugs. "Drained to the point that he can't remain conscious. He'll probably recover."

"Jade, can I borrow the Sword please?"

She stows the Ace, then pulls the Sword from its sheath and holds it out to me.

"Thank you."

I float upwards, heading for the chains holding Mammon up. The chains part easily enough, and I create a harness construct to hold his near-carcass up as he slumps forward.

"Wakey wakey." I deposit him against one wall and remove the harness. "Rise and shine." I pass the Sword back to Jade, and hover just in front of Mammon's face. "I've got a deal to offer you."

"HHhhhhhhhrrrrrruuhhhh."

He blinks, and his eyes slowly focus on me.

"Then speak, mortal."

 

21st November
11:24 GMT -5

"We need someone to run Limbo, preferably while pretending to be Satanus. And when we say 'run', we mean-."

"Be your puppet."

"Not.. puppet, no. Like a normal demonic contract, we will agree to certain terms, and nudge each other every so often to make sure that the other party isn't cheating."

"Your soul would be an interesting-."

"Hah!" I shake my head. "You could try fighting the Ophidian for my soul… But I don't think you'd win."

"The Ophid-? Hrh. No. You may be right there."

"And in any case, that's not what I'm offering. You will take the form of Satanus, and appear to drive us off. You will then continue his reforms: remaking Limbo-."

"I know what he was doing. He enjoyed taunting me with the concept."

"And?"

"I prefer high-volume low-risk investments. Trying to take over Hell is high-risk single-unit. I use avarice. I'm not blinded by it myself."

Jade raises the Ace again. "The other option is we destroy you with the Ace of Winchesters."

"Do so. I've made arrangements. It will take time and pain, but I will eventually recover at a remote location far from here."

Jade glances at Ambrose for confirmation and gets a shallow nod. "It's possible. A lot of demons aren't cautious enough to bother. Or they can't spare the power it would take."

Mammon manages a semi-grin. "But I'm the patient sort."

"Nergal has a similar arrangement. A small part of the body left in a remote or concealed location."

"Nergal? Oh, I'll look forward to seeing him again, then. It's always nice when the competition aren't quite as clever as you are."

"I'm not seeing the risk here. Satanus already has everything set up."

"And he was working with allies who know his character and will probably notice if I replace him. And then there's the chance of him coming back. I already lost to him head to head once."

"Our holding facilities are quite good. And we'll certainly be able to warn you in advance of him returning."

"The anticipation won't make me any less fucked."

"It's in our interest that you remain in position. We won't just leave you flapping in the wind; we'd come to assist you."

"And? If he comes back even for a moment I'd lose control of his followers."

"Which would make it an unpleasant fight, but wouldn't stop you carrying on the work after we win. And I doubt that their personal loyalty is particularly strong."

"So I have to take risks to do something you want me to do in order to get something I don't want. Sounds like a bum deal to me." He's.. actually smirking. "Unless you can sweeten the pot."

"Yes, let me think about that for a moment." I stretch out my arms towards him. "No. Last chance."

"Yes, please kill me with something other than the Ace. That will cut down my regeneration time con-"

"Brand."

"-sideraaaaagh!"

Thirty interwoven orange cords erupt from each of my rings, leaping for every part of his body. About a third wind their way into his mutilated chest cavity, plugging themselves into exposed veins, arteries and broken organs. Others connect to the holes Satanus made in his arms and legs, while a couple more thrust themselves into his eyes, ears and mouth.

A couple, I… Try to ignore where they're going.

Jade glances at me. "Do we have time for this?"

As a demon, I don't really have to worry about making alterations. I read about Mammon in the Grimoire Verum and he's certainly no innocent. Really, the best thing you can say about him is that his deals are more or less honest and open and he'll occasionally let the client off if he can use them to trade up.

"John, how long would evacuating us take?"

"I can get myself home in about five seconds. Transporting the rest of you? That would take a few minutes."

"Ambrose, Mister Blood. Do you have anything to contribute at this point?"

"Not a lot." / "Not unless you want to risk asking Etrigan's help."

Orange lights are flickering under Mammon's skin. "John, take them back right away, then return for the rest of us."

"That will reduce the time per journey, but the total time-."

"I know. Go."

A glowing ankh flares behind me as a glowing brand begins to appear on Mammon's forehead. Now, let's see here… Self interest is fine, but I need to alter some of the surroundings so that he's not just interested in… Sticking souls in jars to expand his collection? Really? Yes, switch that out almost entirely in favour of the gradual and safe acquisition of political power, with a side order of believing that a broad base of popular support is the best way to achieve that.

Desire to defy the Silver City… Hm, he barely thinks about them at all. But there are a few memories I can link to create a desire for political defiance. Shame, really: if I hadn't committed to my course Satanus really would have been better for this. Acquisition… Switch away from 'special' souls and towards equipment and technology… Mm, I can't make him trust us, but a few more tweaks and I can… Make the project sufficiently important that he'll usually be prepared to risk asking us for help if things become really unmanageable. Make sure that the whole network isn't so strongly reinforced that it clouds out his rationality.

There. That should do it.

Jade stares as the brand evaporates and the orange tendrils connecting me to Mammon fade. "What have you.. done to him?"

"Reconfigured his desires so that he'll see things our way."

"How long does it last?"

"He's technically capable of reconsidering them, but it would take a massive life-changing experience. So Mammon?! How about it? Interested in ruling Limbo now?"

"Hm. I suppose asking for further concessions would be unrealistic." He tries to rise, and stumbles as he tries to move. "I'm going to need you to patch me up."

"Can do." I knit what's still there back together, and make reasonable guesses about what's been removed. Mmmm… He's probably more than a little drained by his experiences. Ring, transfuse ten percent power into him.

Compliance.

The door rattles and deforms as the soldiers outside begin their assault.

"Alright. Jade, Euanthe, we need to make this look good."

 

21st November
16:18 GMT -6

Oh… Fucking fucking fuck.

"And when did you find out?"

Warden Waller is taking the disappearance of The Demon Constantine surprisingly well, all things considered.

"About two hours ago, when Metropolis called us about taking in another demon. Doctor Mist is trying to work out how he managed it, given how one of the few things we know for certain is that his suppression chains were working properly."

"How do you know that?"

"Because one of the guards was wearing them in his cell." She growls quietly under her breath. "Thinking he was Constantine."

"Please tell me that he's still being held in the suppression chains, because if he actually is Constantine-."

"Yeah, we checked that. And Doctor Mist double checked it. He's not. And now we're supposed to house a demon here who's even more powerful."

My eyes momentarily dip. "I really only did half the equation with the Sophont Recognition Act, didn't I?"

"What?"

"Most laws are designed for humans. This prison exists because people with high-end superpowers need to be handled differently. Demons need to be handled differently from either, but I didn't want to slow down the process of genomorphs becoming legally people to put the knowledge in place."

She frowns. "Do you know how he got out?"

I look over to the cell's toilet. "Were you disposing of his waste properly?"

"Yes."

"All of it?"

"We would have spotted him urinating out of bounds."

"If I was him, and I wanted to get out… It would be a long shot, but every part of his body is far more magical than a normal human body. If he cut the tip of his finger and drew a very basic summoning circle, or-. No, not a summoning, that wouldn't work here. A rune of calling."

"The chains were supposed to stop him doing magic."

"No, they stop him shaping magic or drawing on external power. His blood would have its own magic. The effect would be really weak, but… It would be pretty much unstoppable unless you regularly scoured every single object he had access to."

"And then another demon would sneak in here and bust him out."

"No… I don’t know that's what he did, and given the wards Belle Reve has these days and how weak the effect would be -if that's even what he did- it would take a long time and the demon who arrived wouldn't be obliged to help him. But if he could cut a deal… I don't know, it's possible, and the only thing I can come up with… Until just then."

"What's your new security nightmare?"

"John Constantine isn't just a street magician, he's a street magician. He can do sleight of hand, psychological manipulation, escapology and probably other things that don't require the manipulation of eldritch energies. Plus, his body doesn't work exactly like a human body, so there are… Probably things he could do with that."

"You don't know."

"No, I don't know. Sometimes I'm not failing to tell people things because I'm keeping secrets, I'm doing it because I don't know."

She frowns, more confused than annoyed. "What? Where'd that come from?"

"Last mission.. didn't go as well as I'd hoped. And… A.. bit of an ongoing disagreement I have with the Justice League. Ah… Okay, helpful stuff… What are the rules on adding buildings to Belle Reve?"

"I need to draw up plans, cost it out and explain why the most expensive prison in the country still isn't complete."

"And if it was free, and could guarantee containment on high end magic using inmates?"

"What's the downside?"

"The building in question isn't a prison. It's the Tower of Fate. You'd be transitioning from a normal prison with extras to an extraplanar facility you couldn't own or really control. Honestly, the prison system just needs to be able to directly employ magic users."

"The prison system needs a lot of things." She nods her head at the cell door and I walk out. She takes another moment, ducking her head slightly as she backs up in order to check the underside of the toilet for blood-inscribed runes. "But if we can inspect the Tower we might be able to swing it."

"I'll let John know."

She walks out of the cell and one of the guards locks the door behind her. "'John' as in 'John Constantine'? Because I've heard things about him."

"No, different John. The man who owns the Tower of Fate. I don't know how to persuade him but I also don't know a better way to contain an unusually cunning or powerful demon that complies with current US law than asking him to let you use his basement."

"And killing him isn't an option?"

"Sure, killing him is an option. Just get the relevant laws passed by the House, the Senate, signed by President Horne-"

Her face turns down and she exhales in frustration.

"-and not declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court for treating one subset of people different from another, then get a jury to actually convict him, get the jury hearing the appeal to convict him again… And so on, and I'll happily kill him. And I already said that the Act could have used more work."

"Alright. You get hold of this 'John' guy, I'll put the paperwork together and we can-."

"Ah…" I shake my head. "Sorry, no. Telling him is going to be the last thing I do before I go off duty for several days. My last mission involved me going literally to Hell and turning literally into a demon. I'm getting checked out by specialist magic users and doctors and not doing anything involving the demonic for a little while. So I'm afraid that you'll have to use regular contractors or talk to the Justice League."

"If he says yes. And if Metropolis agree to send him here after our only demon prisoner escaped."

"He might still be here, actually. I imagine that Doctor Balewa is checking that, but you should probably have at least two guards with you at all times."

"For a demon?"

"He isn't actually much stronger than a normal man. A couple of burly guards should be able to take him. Alternatively, phone the Atlantean embassy and offer some green cards." I raise my right hand to my forehead. "Good day, Warden."

21st November
17:22 GMT -5

"Hey."

I look around to see Jade sitting on her settee. She sounds a little.. out of sorts.

"The Demon Constantine escaped, so Satanus's intelligence might well have been more recent than I was assuming."

"I was surprised it held him this long." She looks down for a moment, then appears to come to a decision. "Tell me about the Darkstars."

 

23rd November
11:06 GMT -5

"Mammon. How are you doing?"

On the other side of the blood stained mirror, the Demon Lord waves his right hand negligently. "They accept me. Though how convinced they are remains to be seen." He's currently wearing Satanus's form, and even I can tell that his body language isn't quite right. Though he might just be relaxing away from the minions. "The hard test will come during my next face to face meeting with Ritchie Simpson."

"Angelica has offered to tutor you."

"I suppose that I should take every opportunity to learn how to ape the man I have replaced." His eyes narrow slightly as he leans forward. "What exactly did you do to me in order to make me accept this?"

I glance sideways at John, who shrugs diffidently. "People strive to seize the things they want. I altered your priorities a little, caused you to reweigh certain things."

"That does still worry me, so I assume that I'm not completely under your power. Can you do it again?"

"Only by coming down there and binding you again. And I'm fairly sure that I caught you at your lowest ebb. I doubt that doing it again would be that easy."

"Then again, avarice is one of my core traits. I can't imagine that makes me resistant."

"And mine. That's why what Satanus did worked. And hey: if you're still worried, completing Satanus' modernisation project should make it far harder for me to affect you. This isn't about one of us getting one over on the other. Ultimately, both our lives will be easier if we cooperate… Or at least respect one another's boundaries. I wouldn't have bothered keeping you around if I didn't want you doing what you want to."

"What you made me want to do."

"How much of a problem is that going to be for you?"

"That's the strange thing: it's not. I should be enraged. You altered my mind. If another demon did something like that -and I somehow survived- they would have earned my undying enmity. And yet, you've brought me closer to attaining the thing I now most want. I feel…"

"Grateful?"

"Indebted."

"My favourite author once wrote that if you want to make a witch really angry at you, do her a favour she can't repay. Because the obligation will just keep nagging."

"I'm a Duke. If that were all it was I could stand it in the certain knowledge that you would ask me for something eventually. As it is I have a strange impulse to build a… 'Working relationship'. How long will you live?"

"I don't age, but I'm in a dangerous profession."

"Aren't we all." He leans back. "What would you like? Partner."

"If the Light get in contact, I'd like their current roster. I'm not sure whether your witness testimony is admissible in court, but it would be very useful to know."

"Bah! Organisational intelligence sharing. What do you want? What can Hell do for you?"

"I… Don't suppose you know where Amon Tomaz is, do you?"

"I don't know who that is. He's not in Limbo, I'd know if he were. Should he be down here somewhere?"

"I don't know. Someone has found a very reliable way to disguise people and places from my rings. He could be dead and he could be alive. If he's in Hell, I'll pay his soul's ransom. If he's on Earth, I want to know where."

Mammon smiles. "Why do I get the feeling that the latter answer will result in us gaining a substantial number of new guests?"

"Because you're actually quite intelligent."

"You know, I once did consider commissioning a mortal to hunt down sinners and kill them before they could repent. A little demon magic to toughen them up, the odd favour paid for in advance…"

"Sounds like a good idea to me. And after the initial investment it would be self-funding. Why didn't you go for it?"

"While the return for Hell would have been good, when I worked out what my personal slice of it would have been… And now I.. see that that is the problem with the whole system." His shoulders droop a little. "Huh."

"So..?"

"I'll make enquiries."

"Thank you. Anything else?"

"What do I have to do to get a power ring?"

John makes a coughing/spluttering noise.

"Weirdly, you're a pretty good fit for the sort of person I'm trying to recruit. But I think I'm going to want to give it a few decades before I'm ready to trust you with something like that. And I'll want my Corps to gain a lot more expertise with magic. Besides, there's no way I'd give one to Satanus."

"I suppose. Well, best be getting back to it. Some old friends of the First's are coming around to piss on him, and I could use a good chuckle."

"I'll caution you against that sort of thing. We still don't know quite how he was re-empowered last time. It could happen again."

He shrugs. "I'd be fucked either way, and I'd give him your name to get out of the line of fire either way. As I see it, I might as well milk him for all he's worth." He smiles. "And you really can't dictate policy to me, can you?"

"I really can't. Good day."

The mirror clouds over until the image vanishes completely. Then John steps around the side and throws a rune woven cloth over the top of it.

"That went about as well as we could have hoped."

"I thought so too. Any guess on his long term behaviour?"

"None at all. I'll keep an eye on him." He checks the mirror over, then stands well back. "Now, what's this I hear about the Tower becoming part of Belle Reve?"

"The Demon Constantine somehow got away. This is the best magic containment site I know of. Heck, as far as I know Mister Zard and Mister Faust are still in here somewhere."

"Yeah. They are."

"If we're going to have any hope of keeping Satanus in one place, they need the best, and an expert who can afford to spend lots of time on site."

"Glad you value my time so highly."

"It was the best idea I had. If you can do better, please do."

"What about that place under the Tower of London?"

"No one knows how John Dee made it, and the British government is highly resistant to the idea of anyone interfering with it. Atlanteans have great magic prisons, but they aren't prepared to take demons for any purpose other than destruction. And we can't replicate what they have because America doesn't have the magic users."

John stares into space for a moment, then sighs.

"Fine. I'll have a chat with Waller."