As Queen—beaming ear to ear—beat the bear to a pulp, the beast was trying to figure out why its legs weren’t moving. The more it tried to get away from the psycho hammer witch, the heavier they became. “My legs!” it howled, pain oozing in every breath.
“Don’t tell me you’re trying to run already. Just shut the fuck up while I beat you to death.” Like a curse, the words pinned the bear where it lay. The confusion and agony threatened to drive it insane.
“Why...? Why can’t I move...?! Somebody help!”
The being that was once Zane the Satanist felt regret for the first time in his life. He seemed to be paying for his sins—defying Queen, joining the Satanist cult, committing countless crimes—a hundredfold with each of the hammer’s blows.
Bored of her opponent doing nothing but squealing pathetically, Queen leaped onto the gut of the bear and raised Sigma high. “What a shitstain. Have fun in hell, bitch!” Upon impact, the bear’s head exploded into brain matter and blood.
Covered in gore herself, Queen tilted her head back and laughed into the dawning sky. “Grind up every fucking Satanist here!”
Her postapocalyptic squad thrust their fists into the air, relishing Queen’s ecstasy as if it were their own. “Thank you, my Queen!” they chanted. After this fight, she looked more like a bloodthirsty monster than a Holy Maiden.
While Queen’s forces slaughtered their way through the majority of the Satanists in the city, an enormous shadow darkened the streets. Queen’s jaw tightened when she saw the hovering monster slowly descending towards the city.
Fuji, having cleared the immediate vicinity, took his place next to her. “I’m sorry, cleaning up the streets took longer than expected. Do you recognize that monster—or Hellbeast, rather?”
“Never even read about one like that,” Queen answered. “It could be a species of old.”
In her scouring of the Holy Castle’s library and its vast collection of documents on angels, devils, and Hellions, Queen had never come across any mention of this particular Hellbeast...because it was a man-made creation.
While Queen and Fuji warily watched the sky, Warlkin stepped around a nearby corner. “Long time no see, Holy Berserker...”
“Huh? Who the fuck are you?” Queen asked. She didn’t make a habit of remembering those who did not interest her.
Fuji, however, recognized him immediately. “My Queen, he’s the guy that brought in Tartarus last time!”
Queen’s eyes narrowed as she readied her hammer, recalling how the Satanist had gotten the drop on her in Yahooo. Both Queen and Luna had nearly drowned in Tartarus that day. In contrast, Warlkin was eerily calm. “You didn’t bring me a present this time?” she taunted.
“Darkness like that is a great treasure to the Satanists. In other words, it’s on back order,” Warlkin said, deadpan, then cut to the chase. “Fall back for now, Berserker. Not that I expect you to heed my warning...”
Queen answered him with a proud display of her middle finger. “Dream on, you Satanist shitbucket.”
Almost like he’d expected such an answer from Queen, Warlkin simply added, “That Hellbeast was once a man named Jack who ruled over Euritheis.”
“You’re telling me that is Jack?” Queen had heard of Jack, of course, and his story of rising from slavery to become king of the Colosseum and then kingpin of an entire country. He was rather famous even in Holylight, far South of Euritheis.
“Right now, it’s as powerful as the King of Devils in the days of old,” Warlkin said. “But it’s almost out of time.”
“What the fuck are you on about?” Queen snarled.
“Allow me to spell it out. You don’t have a chance of defeating it, so run.”
Queen moved to slug Warlkin, but Fuji held her back with all of his strength. He saw no animosity or sign of dishonesty in the Satanist. Calmly, Fuji asked, “Why warn our Queen when you unleashed Tartarus on her before?”
“Soon, that thing’s time will come and this chaos will end. Even a berserker may serve as a beacon for the people to rally around. Become the reason people want to rebuild. As ridiculous as she is, the people need her.”
“I see... Sounds like you won’t be a Satanist for long,” Fuji said. He, too, had lived a violent criminal life as a bandit until he decided to serve Queen. He felt a sense of camaraderie with Warlkin.
“I’m tired. Tired of everything...” Warlkin said. “Once this war is over, I’ll—”
Before Warlkin could finish, the terrible Hellbeast landed. The being that was once the tyrant Jack now looked like the half-human, half-Hellbeast embodiment of Pride. Most disturbingly, a row of Satanic Crosses lined his back like a half-exposed spinal column.
Jack opened his eyes and growled. “Head...hurt... Where am...I?” His voice was full of anguish as he scratched his head.
“Why’s it in pain already?” Queen asked, finally deigning to engage Warlkin in conversation.
“He was on the brink of death when he was transformed. The violent metamorphosis by the series of Satanic Crosses is merely delaying the inevitable. That’s what I mean when I say its time is almost up.”
As Jack flailed in agony, a swing of his arm decimated a house, and a stomp of his foot sent cracks through the earth, crumbling a nearby fountain.
“Kill... I’ll kill everyone...in my way...!” Still delirious, Jack charged headfirst into a church, leveling it to the ground, along with the neighboring apothecary and inn.
Queen sighed and slung Sigma over her shoulder. “The whole city’s gonna be rubble before its time runs out.”
“Don’t,” Warlkin warned. “A city can be rebuilt. The dead cannot.”
Queen scoffed. “A Satanist that gives a sermon... Fucking hilarious!”
“I mean it! No human can deal with that thing!”
Ignoring Warlkin, Queen turned to Fuji. “Grab the others and finish cleaning up the trash in the city.” She had no intention of waiting for Jack to die on his own.
“My Queen... I agree with him. That Hellbeast is dangerous.”
“I’m not gonna tell you twice. Go.”
“Yes, my Queen!”
As Fuji left the scene, Queen casually approached Jack, still wreaking havoc. “Sup, loser? How’s it feel to go from king to dog shit?”
Apparently, her words could still reach him. “Who do you think I am...?” the half Hellbeast grunted. “You bitch!” He charged, almost too fast for his enormous size.
Queen evaded him, slamming her hammer hard into Jack’s shin. Sigma had shattered the bones of many Hellbeasts before, but Jack seemed less affected by the blow than if a mosquito had bit him instead. “Guess you got thick skin...” Queen muttered.
“I will retake...my throne. No one...will stop me!” Jack shouted.
Queen unleashed her hammer again, hitting Jack twice more. He then leaped over the third swing and simply leaned out of the way of the fourth. He seemed to be rapidly regaining his human memory and dexterity.
“Stop moving like you’re human, you talking pile of shit,” Queen spat.
Jack growled again. “Is that the Holy Castle? Who are you? Why am I here?”
“How the hell should I know why you’re here? If you’ve sobered up, get lost.”
“I can’t do that. Just seeing that castle makes me so pissed it’s like my head’s splitting...!” Even after his rebirth in Hellbeast form, Jack must have inherited his frustration and disgust for the Holy Castle. With unsteady feet, he began stalking towards it. “That can’t stand... If nothing else, I will bring down that castle...”
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?!” Queen slammed Sigma into Jack’s back, using it to run up Jack’s spine and ready a lethal blow to his head.