A crack comes from the stratosphere as Aries appears with Dorotea on his back jamming a knife into his neck and shoulders with little effect. With little effort Aries pulls Dorotea from his neck and tosses her away to fall to her death. In this moment Persephone’s long held secret becomes apparent. She has betrayed them, through some unknown mechanizations and ritual, she weakened the Mother Goddesses enough for this intrusion to come at all, much less uncontested.
Dorotea panics as she falls to Earth, barely conscious from lack of air and gravitational forces beyond what is safe for a human being. She cries for help from any of the Goddesses and Gods she met, Demeter, Ashtoreth, Artemis, Persephone, Hermes, Mercury.
Persephone has no time for this insolent little girl, changing into the manifestation of Hecate. She calls forth the infernal name of her true master. The one she called to from the underworld to save her. The slithering unknown, the serpent in the babes cradle, the dragon beside the basement stairs, the Mother of all nightmares and terror. Lamashtu, the Mesopotamian curse upon all mothers and daughters.
The Armor of the Black Knight rattles, engulfed in blue flame. Hearing the call. The bones of Mercury snap together inside his armor and shoots into the air breaking the sound barrier. In an instant Mercury, the Black Knight has caught Dorotea. Dorotea gasps at the Atrocity that has come to the once serene Temple of Ashtoreth.
Where once were meadows and ponds in an eternal dawn light, flowers going on forever. Now there are blackened earth, burning pits of bodies, worshippers burned alive in their center of worship and Ashtoreth holding off a great Army of blasphemous creatures of the grave.
Hermes and Artemis arrive just in time to see Mercury wisk Dorotea down safely. Dorotea on her hands and knees, struggling to not be sick from vertigo tries to smile in greeting but spits up a yellow spew of bile. Hermes offers her a silk napkin, while Artemis begins the work of death. Striking down malevolent Shades of Aries ghostly Army in the sky.
Ashtoreth in a trance is invoking super heated purple gouts of plasma from her finger tips, from her eyes steaming rays of starlight vaporize large swaths of Monsters. It makes little difference as endless hordes of undead Warriors pour from behind the sunrise down dark storm clouds to wage war on the Goddess.
Dorotea remembers her Helmet, Cloak, Sword and Rifle from the first day in the Dead Lands. Retrieving them from her carts, kept safely beside the manger of the Temple. Now Dorotea is able to take shots at the swooping Monstrosities.
Persephone has taken a bizarre form, her head a crown of candles and her hands and feet withered black with gangrene to the point of wrapped black bones resembling hooves. Odd spaced eyes of an owl open on her face and breast. The rifle knocked her down, but undeterred she continues to struggle to hit her targets. Hermes and Mercury take to the sky on angelic wings to rip Ghouls and Ghosts asunder. Mercury welds the Golden Sword of Dorotea, and Hermes a great scythe.
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Aries swings down on a great chariot to plunge directly into Ashtoreth. He is quickly smited on the snout, sending his ghostly steeds into a pile before him. With a high pitched scream comes The mad-child Mithras lunges towards Artemis, who deftly slaps him to the point of tears. Persephone has taken a bizarre form, her head a crown of candles and her feet withered black with gangrene to the point of wrapped black bones resembling hooves. Odd spaced eyes of an owl open on her face and breast. Scratches of incantations bleed in wounds from her arms and stomach.
Artemis snatches Mithras by his cloak as he tries to flee, climbing on his chest and pounding him about the face with punishing blows of fist and elbow. Breaking his nose, swelling his eyes and mouth. Reducing the boy to sniffling tears and choking on his teeth.
Persephone shocks every one and plunges a burning dagger into the back and ribs of Artemis over and over until they are both is consumed in fire. Persephone has betrayed them.
Aries recovering rises to hurl lightning at Ashtoreth, seeing the state of Mithras charges forward to smash Artemis in the side of the head. Freeing Mithras to manifest his mythic form of Ahriman, The Lion headed Angel of Wrath. Aries looks down to see a long piece of wood from his Chariot, going in his lowest rib and coming out the opposite side of his back near the shoulder blade. He gasps to breathe.
Dorotea feeling power inside her say, “Draw from my power, I call on Demeter to come forth.” Dorotea closes her eyes and from her form draws forth the burning fire of Demeter. In the persona of Demeter, Dorotea rises into the sky. Smashing into hordes of Monstrosities. Leaving pieces of broken and burning bodies in her wake.
The evil sorcerer Sorsos has slinked in behind the battle, dashing an Obsidian Dagger into the back of the Goddess Ashtoreth with a fatal blow. With stab after stab the power of Ashtoreth fades, she has over exerted her self. This moment where her attention of elsewhere the Queen of Heaven is spewing blood from a collapsed lung. Gods like mortals have specific weaknesses in their physiology and due to specific weapons. This was the perfect storm to kill a god.
Hermes sees this and rushes to confront Sorsos. Hermes has found his memory of his time manipulated into the terror of these lands. He remembers the purges and massacres. There is a deep debt of vengeance to be settled. The once fabled wise Solomon as Sorsos The Damned, the great corpse King. Nearly eight feet tall, whose skin is the color of burned paper and wears the scarlet robes and crown of an ancient king.
He was once a wise and renowned king. He was a great wizard and using dark arts raised and army of demons to serve him. This darkened his soul, and upon death he became an immortal tyrant. Creating human sacrifice cult after the practice had been outlawed for decades by the Israelites. Sorsos enthralled the “Angel of Death” Hermes into a human form. Making him the “Albino General” Hooded Executioner of the Sanhedrin’s secret police and order of Assassins.
Hermes comes flying from behind with great fiery sword. Sorsos easily turns and with hands conjuring the power of the universe grasps the sword with an ironlike grip. Wrenching it from Hermes grasp. Hermes kicks Solomon in the chest. Pulling his sword back, they lock into a fight like two bulls. Neither stronger or faster they are at an impasse. Sorsos glass eyes glow with a spectral fire, weakening the soul of Hermes who has no eye lids or ability to break the magics sway.
With the great violent uproar of lightning, whirlwinds and firestorm sweeping over the surrounding hills, there is a moment when all eyes were averted and with deft accuracy Persephone as Hecate plunges the killing blow into beautiful “Queen of Heaven,” Ashtoreth. Ending the Reign of one so pure and all knowing, she had watched ice ages end and ages of humanity rise and fall from the Neolithic to today. The oldest fertility Goddess does not even fight or question the logic. She is killed with a knowing smile and confident eyes.
Dorotea slinking behind Hermes picks up a piece of brick masonry, she doesn’t know why she is doing it. This is not the influence of Demeter or any benevolent spirit. She feels an acrid stink in her mouth, as if a malevolent spirit is breathing out as she breathes in. Smelling of sulphur, onions and rotting meat. She raises her arms above her head and in horror smashes the skull of Hermes, who does not die but looks at her questioningly.