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A black shadow shot out of the pillar of red-hot slag. Despite the fact that it'd sustained a head-on attack of overwhelming magnitude, it was nearly unscathed. The only sign of damage could be seen near the smoldering corner of its long, black cloak.
However, it wouldn't be allowed to come and go as it pleased.
In proverbial eye of the storm, a golden figure hovered. No living creature would be able to look directly at it, since it was glowing white-hot, like the surface of the sun. However, if some other means of observation were used, it would be possible to see the outline of a man, about six-feet tall.
Suddenly, a gem-like something flashed in the center of its chest, emitting a solid beam of multi-colored energy. At a speed that was nearly instantaneous, it followed the dark entity's zig-zagging movements with uncanny accuracy, like a laser-guided homing missile.
Within a fraction of a second, it was nearly boring into the creature's back. Abruptly, the thing's sinister, fanged skull turned, looking at the approaching ray. In its empty eye sockets, two pinpricks of green light flared into existence!
Defying all common sense, the incoming attack slowed down, like a hundred-meter Olympic athlete running head-first into a wall of water. Not only that, but the sky itself seemed to become dim and grey, like a shadow cast over the earth. The Keeper took advantage of the opportunity, retreating towards the estate's outskirts, which was still enclosed by an immovable, translucent barrier.
When its escape was near, the golden figure extended a hand and its eyes flashed. New energy beams projected from the tip of each finger. Some of them shot straight ahead while others changed direction, penetrating into the dry crust or flashing into the overcast sky.
The nefarious creature had no choice but to defend itself. Its gleaming, black jaws separated and it breathed out a dark gas that somehow appeared viscous. The stuff quickly coated its body, like some kind of slime. When the beams struck from all directions, much of the energy was dispersed into the environment, like a thunderbolt striking a Faraday cage.
The reflected, shimmering beams cut through the ground like it was made out of jelly. The structural integrity of the mantle underneath them must've been compromised, because it suddenly crumbled and sagged into itself, like a sinking ship.
Despite its defensive measures, The Keeper wasn't able to avoid damage for a second time. Much of the black film had dissolved like chalk in a vial of acid. The exposed bone underneath was damaged, judging by the countless hair-fine cracks running across the surface.
When it attempted to flee for a third time, it suddenly discovered the golden figure had already closed the distance! A shining palm was already approaching its body, faster than a falling star. It would be the coup-de-grace, shattering The Keeper's vessel into a thousand pieces.
However, before the final blow could be delivered, someone intervened. Just as Nabu had appeared behind the monster, another entity had appeared behind him!
It was an old man sitting in a wooden wheelchair. His head limply tilted to one side while his hands flopped loosely over the chair's armrests. He was wearing a set of gray sleeping clothes and a pair of woolen slippers on his feet. An embroidered handkerchief was stuffed into his shirt-pocket. In flowing, red letters, a name was written.
'Johannes Valdemar Grimm.'
Although, if one looked closer, it would become clear he wasn't an old man at all! Rather than age, his sallow, papery skin and his thin, faded hair seemed to be caused by some unknown illness. If he was healthy, he wouldn't have looked a day over thirty!
Suddenly, a spasm wracked his body and he jolted and jittered in his seat. Just as abruptly as it'd started, it stopped. When it did, the mysterious man abruptly cracked open an eye! In an instant, everything changed.
Concepts like good and evil, light and dark, as well as life and death broke down into a homogenous soup. The world stopped making sense, like the rules and regulations that underpinned it and was responsible for its normal function had suddenly vanished.
Not even the Doctor was able to remain unaffected. A mind-rending force descended onto him, like a devil palm, covering the sky and smothering the earth.
For a split second, the glow in his eyes dimmed, but then it flared again, brighter than ever! His metallic, white-hot figure heated to unimaginable temperatures, shifting until he was emitting a pure, ultra-violet hue.
Day turned into night as the sky turned black and countless stars, like a heavenly treasury, appeared above the earth. Time seemed to speed up as they moved, drawing silver arcs across the black expanse. Just as quickly as it started, it stopped, revealing a single, glittering diamond, brighter than all the others, hanging directly above the Doctor's head.
"FATE HAS INTERVENED!"
With that powerful declaration, he called on the power of the star. A bridge of pure light formed between him and it, connecting them instantaneously. The barrier around the estate vanished, as if it was a pricked soap bubble.
The dark, all-encompassing hand collided with the beam.
It was difficult to say what would happen when an unstoppable force met an immovable object, but one thing was for certain, the collateral damage caused by such an event would be unimaginable.
It was a small mercy that the location was remote and that the population of the surrounding area was low, because not a single living creature would survive the blast. Wooler, Belford, North Charlton, Alnwick, Embleton, Bellingham, Haltwhistle, Jedburgh, Kelso and every other township within a fifty-square-mile radius was wiped off the earth forever. Not even Newcastle was left unscathed.
The loss was simply incalculable.
When the rolling tsunami of energy, heat and force swept to where the sky met the horizon, one golden, glowing figure was revealed. It floated alone, looking up at the sky. Thick, black clouds, roiling like the surface of a dark ocean, had already formed. Lighting flashed, striking the glassed, concave earth, which was now as glowing-reflective, like the surface of a red mirror.
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A few moments ago.
When Dr. Fate first attacked the keeper, and the dark dimension that served as their battleground collapsed, Arthur was sent flying by the blast.
It was difficult to say why his trajectory overlapped with Jane's. Maybe it was because the doll shielded her from much of the blast that the boy was able to 'catch up', or maybe it was because his new, alien body was desperately searching for a way replenish itself. Regardless of the reason, it resulted in his timely survival and her untimely demise.
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The woman's body, shielded by a thin, flickering film of light, was laying underneath a pile of burning logs, branches and leaves. The sound of the explosion was still hanging in the air when countless silvery tendrils suddenly shot out of the steaming smoke. As it was, the ward protecting her was nearly exhausted. It only managed to resist the assault for a moment before sparking and fizzling out, as if it was a toaster dropped into a tub of water.
Jane didn't even have the opportunity to scream. Like a thousand piercing needles, they embedded themselves into her flesh. Through every translucent, slivery tube, a strange substance was injected into her, liquidizing her organs and killing her instantly. Then, the tendrils pulsed rhythmically, like a heart beating in reverse. With every contraction, her essence was drawn out of her and into the tubes.
Within seconds, she was completely emptied. Nothing but a bag of skin, enclosing a collection of damp, greasy bones remained. When there was nothing left of her, the tentacles abruptly withdrew into the grey smog.
Some distance away, Arthur was laying unconsciously. His appearance was grotesque – aside from his head and the upper half of his torso, his body had fused into something resembling melted plastic. The most disturbing part was his chest – a vertical slit split the skin open and hundreds of wriggling tendrils squeezed through it, like toothpaste out of a tube. They were gradually discoloring, shifting hues from translucent silver to light pink, then to deep crimson.
As Jane's plasma was extracted into his chest-cavity, his state improved. The wax-like substance that constituted his abdomen and limbs was revitalized, sprouting minute appendages like the feelers of a sea-anemone. With every second that passed, they lengthened and thickened. When they reached a certain size, they started to twist and weave, forming new tissues. Before long, his legs, arms and abdomen had regrown, looking none the worse for wear.
It was good that he managed a timely recovery, because the next disaster wasn't far away. At that time, the one-sided battle between the keeper and Dr. Fate already resumed. Despite the explosions going off in the distance and the oven-like temperature around him, the youth didn't wake. It was only when Johannes Grimm finally made his appearance that a reaction was drawn from him. He didn't regain consciousness, but the unprecedentedly malicious aura, emitted by his grandfather, pressed down on him like a demonic hand.
His fight-or-flight response went haywire and his new, grotesque body immediately sprouted more feelers. They sunk into the dirt below him, twisting and turning at high speed, like hundreds of power drills. When the third explosion happened, containing as much power as a fifty-megaton nuclear warhead, he'd already burrowed three hundred meters into the earth's crust.
However, he wasn't completely shielded from the fallout. The force alone, shunted into the soil by the blast, was so enormous that it exceeded that which a natural earthquake could produce. Faster than he could burrow, the earth above him was excavated. It was only through sheer luck that he managed to break through the wall of an enormous cavern. When he did, the tentacles contracted and expanded, like interwoven rubber bands, flinging him into the darkness with a 'snap'!
The cracks, spreading through the rock above him, suddenly expanded. Hundreds of thousands of tons of minerals were hurled into the abyss as a section of the Eurasian plate, on which the British Isles rested, shattered like a porcelain dish. A blooming cloud of fire, hotter than the inside of a furnace, followed afterwards.
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While the golden figure of Dr. Fate hovered above the roiling earth, watching the unprecedented destruction, a voice suddenly spoke inside their shared mind.
'What have you done?'
It was Kent Nelson. His tone was soft and quiet, but his horror and despair were clear.
The outcome of the brief conflict was truly apocalyptic. The simmering earth, broiling air and black, sulphurous clouds rendered the geography unrecognizable. It was like they'd been transported to some far off, ruined planet. Even now, the earth was still trembling and shivering, like an injured beast.
Nabu didn't reply. Instead, he descended until the tip of his right foot touched the glowing-red glass underneath him. When he did, cracks spread across the surface like a spiderweb. It shattered into millions of tiny, dust-like particles before being swept away by the scalding, gale-force winds.
Unbelievably, an enormous sinkhole was revealed, hundreds of yards in diameter. The spirit didn't dally, it immediately descended into the dark portal. Its glowing, resplendent figure contrasted starkly with the blackness underneath, like a god journeying into hell.
'Answer me, Nabu!'
Kent's voice was pained and desperate. His mind was in chaos. Not only was he unable to understand why his companion would commit such an atrocity, but he was also shocked and traumatized by the power it displayed. During their previous battles, Nabu had never used such horrifying means.
Once again, his demands were left unmet. When he attempted to speak again, he found that he was unable to project his thoughts – Nabu had completely sealed him off! Left with no other option, he stewed in impotent rage and ignorance while they headed into the bowls of the earth.
After some time had passed, a golden glow became visible, faintly shining in the distance. As they closed the distance, a dark shape was vaguely outlined. It was truly massive, like an antediluvian structure, from millennia past. Across its surface, endless, gleaming scripts flowed in a style of text that was awe-inspiring despite its indecipherability.
It was a massive black pyramid, so enormous that its size seemed to remain the same, even when the doctor suddenly increased his speed. Miraculously, it was slowly rotating, like a rhomboid-shaped planet. The strange runes were inscribed on its gleaming, obsidian surface, like words written on black glass with a golden pencil.
When ten minutes had passed, one side of the pyramid had turned to face them. Under the light of the runes, many occult, swirling patterns could be seen. Kent was unable to glean any understanding from them, but Nabu was different. Like a message, hidden within the chaos of white noise, a figure revealed itself to the spirit.
It was vaguely humanoid shape, laying upside down with its arms crossed in front of its chest.
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