“Mr. Fernandez, all 6 have stopped showing symptoms Of evolution.”

A servant reported to Gustav who was observing his children.

“Any causalities?”

“None, Sir. Also, their vitals have stabilized. We believe it’s only a matter of time before they wake up.”

“Good.”

Gustav clenched his fists tightly.

(Six hours, they endured that hellish pain for six hours. That’s longer than I did.)

He gritted his teeth a bit before letting out a big sigh.

“Raphael, Roxanne, Chul, Ryder, Damini, Gina, that’s the order the symptoms stopped. That’s also the order of strength among them. So the stronger you are the quicker you evolve….”

He turned to a servant.

“I’m going to sort out the equipment we got from Ashton Myers. Call me when they’ve all woken up.”

“Yes, sir.”

Gustav walked away with a frown on his face.

(As I thought, Melissa won’t survive eating the fish. We need to get as many samples from Gehenna as possible to create a less deadly way to cure her sickness.)

His eyes sharpened.

“We’ll find a cure even if we have to sink the island again.”

The next day, everyone who had eaten the demon fish had woken up and was freed from their restraints.

“Any problems?”

Raphael spoke to the others while clenching and opening his fists.

“None, but man do we stink.”

Roxanne covered her nose.

“With all the bad blood we excreted that’s not surprising.”

Chul stood up and did a few stretches.

“I was sure we were going to die. I was certain I saw Yama.”

Damini mumbled while getting off her table.

“Good morning, My children!”

Gustav burst into the room with a loud voice.

“I’m glad that you’ve all survi—”

He was cut off by a few tables being thrown at him. He broke the metal tables with swift kicks.

“Alright, I guess I deserve that.”

He laughed.

“I swear if I had died I would’ve haunted you for all of eternity.”

Damini grumbled.

“I see that you’ve all gained superhuman strength. That’s great. Now nothing can stop us.”

Gustav laughed off their hateful gazes.

“Anyway, get wash up and meet me for breakfast. We need to discuss a few things before we reach the island.”

He evaded another table and left the room. After an hour they were all gathered in a dining room.

“I hope you didn’t put demon meat in these meals.”

Ryder was inspecting his dish with his fork.

“Are you guys gonna make the demon fish thing your whole personality? It’s not like it’s the first time I made you do something that almost kills you.”

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Gustav grumbled while eating his meal.

“More importantly, I need to tell you our military prowess before going on the island.”

“You’re bringing other soldiers?”

Raphael asked.

“Yup, but not humans, droids. I bought them from Ashton Corps.”

“How many?”

Roxanne asked while eating a piece of toast.

“105, 15 for each of us. I also bought 7 Powersuits.”

“Weapons?”

Gina sipped her coffee after asking.

“Anti-tank rifles, High-Frequency Blades, elemental bombs, revolving canons, camouflage cloaks, miniature railguns, and drones armed with lasers.”

“Sounds stacked, but there’s a chance none of those will work considering how heavily armed past exploration parties were when they went to the island, and never return.”

Chul played with the eggs on his plate with a fork while looking at Gustav. Gustav nodded.

“That’s why we had to bulk up with the Powersuits. However, we won’t rely on them. I’ve confirmed since eating the Demon Fish for the second time that I’ve grown even more inhuman.”

“Are you saying we can grow stronger the more specimens we eat from that island?”

Damini was devouring stacks of pancakes and speaking with her mouthful.

“It’s a theory, one we might have to try out when we get there. If it turns out to be true we will grow stronger than the Powersuits limits and any other weapon.”

“So our objective is to eat, grow stronger, survive, and return with enough specimens to create a cure for Melissa.”

“That’s right, Damini.”

Gustav smiled while looking at their faces one by one.

“The best outcome is all of us returning alive, even if we’re no longer humans.”

The smile fell from his face.

“Worst-case scenario, we all die, and Melissa follows us years later.”

“Don’t worry, Father. At least one of us will survive.”

Roxanne grinned.

“And the survivor will walk Melissa down the ale.”

“Over my dead body!”

“That’s the plan.”

Everybody started laughing. Gustav looked around a bit and raised his coffee mug.

“May Lady Death’s embrace be warm when she comes for us.”

The others rose their individual glasses.

“And may Life be jealous enough to steal us from her!”

They drank and then started laughing. Like this, they ate together chatting away. For the next weeks, they tested the limits of their new bodies and took time to adjust. They finally entered the Southern Pacific after three weeks.

“Gehenna is near Tahiti and according to the GPS we’re near Samoa; which means we’ll reach in the next couple of days.”

Ryder mumbled while wiping the sweat off his face.

“A couple more days until hell huh?”

Gina was with him. The two had just finished sparring.

“I questioned why Father had us meet in Greece and travel here by boat, but I guess it was so we could properly adjust to our new strength.”

She clenched her fist.

“I think I can send a car flying with a punch.”

“Same. This new strength kinda gives you a rush and makes you feel invincible.”

Ryder pointed at Gina’s face.

“Thanks to our newly superhuman senses you don’t need to wear contacts anymore. Isn’t that great?”

“Yeah, but thanks to my new eyesight I can see how big your pores are. You need to take better care of your skin.”

“Lay off. We’re probably going to die anyway.”

“…Aren’t you afraid to die?”

“What kind of question is that? Of course, I am. I’m sure we all are, but it’s reality. We were taught to embrace reality no matter how harsh it is.”

Ryder frowned.

“What? Are you getting cold feet?”

“No, it’s just that I had a hard time adjusting to life when we were disbanded. Everyone around me lived their life differently. It makes me wonder if we’re the odds ones.”

“Of course, we’re the ones who are sick in the head.”

Damini walked into the room they were in.

“I learned that the hard way when I went back to India. My common sense and theirs didn’t match up, so it was hard to fit in.”

“It was the same for me when I just moved to the states. They’re more used to violence in some parts, but they still feared death and let that fear control them. In fact, they feared a lot of things I don’t.”

Ryder sat on the ground after speaking.

“That’s just proof Gustav fucked with our brains as kids.”

Damini walked up to Gina and helped her dry off the sweat on her back while talking.

“Come on, Damini. We were fucked in the head from the beginning. That’s the only reason why we survived everything we’ve been through.”

“I guess you’re right, Gina.”

The three of them laughed. Outside the door, Gustav stood smiling. Behind him were Roxanne, Chul, and Raphael.

“As the eldest three, it’s your job to make sure they survive no matter what.”

He turned around and faced them.

“And it’s my job as your father to ensure that you three survive.”

Roxanne placed her hand on his shoulder.

“And it’s all six of us job to ensure you survive.”

Gustav nodded.

“None of us will die. We’re gonna walk into hell, bitch slap everything in there, and walk back out.”

After a few more days, the cruise stopped and the anchors were dropped. Less than a kilometer away there was a veil of red fog blocking anyone from seeing what lays ahead. Flashes of light illuminated the fog every couple of seconds, strange silhouettes could be seen dancing in the fog, and incomprehensible wails echoed through the area.

“Looks like the literal pathway to hell.”

Gustav stood on the cruise deck looking into the blood-colored fog. He was wearing a metallic suit with a large rifle on his back.

“Father, the droids are ready.”

He turned around and saw his children with over 100 people behind them. These people were androids he bought from Ashton. Raphael and the others were wearing similar suits to him.

Gustav nodded and spoke.

“My soldiers, what stands before us is the entrance to the most mysterious and terrifying place on this planet. What stands before us is what people call Gehenna, what they call hell.”

He grinned.

“Don’t you think it suits us who are feared as Hell’s Militia?”

Savage grins crawled onto his soldiers’ faces.

“We are demons who are going back to where we belong! It’s just that simple!”

He lifted his rifle in the air.

“My demon spawns, are you ready to go home?!”

“SIR YES SIR!”

He pointed his rifle at the red fog.

“Then let’s go, my children! Let’s go to hell!”