4 The Devil's Domain

"Uh, Ben, where the fuck are we?" Jason questioned, his eyes darting around the walls of this Castle. His hand on his forehead, Ben groaned in agony, the more he looked around, the more of a headache he got. This place was no ordinary location in the middle of New York or England, the architecture around the walls was riddled with paintings of the past. Creatures are known as demons that haunted the World for eternity without a material form, only with the Key to Hell would they be granted unlimited power and rule over this planet. That was the legend of the demons in his society, ancient Christian ones are known to the religion like Alastor, the link to Nemesis, though there were multiple demons in the World of Christian demonology holding that name. These paintings were carved in stone, the sole demon of Alastor shown eating on the flesh of a human body. Holding his signature weapons, a sai in the right eye penetrated in the chest neck of whomever he was eating. Another was the Demon General H'xler after Adolf Hitler had committed suicide on April 30th, 1945, he was sent to the underworld of Hell. Where he rose the ranks and became the Demon King's third-in-command, where he would command the armies of the Hellskins and ensure the dominance of the Planet. Only after they had accomplished their goal, the Demons of Hell and The Empress would reach Heaven. H'xler had been carved in bloodied stone at the top of the doorway, holding a cane raising an eyebrow with a devious smirk. The fires of the innocents he had burned all those decades ago still raged on, the hate hadn't dwindled.

"This place is fucked,"

"Yeah, no shit, how the fuck are we supposed to get out of here?" Jason inquired quizically, though he wasn't shivering, his voice held the list of someone scared. Someone like the Justice had been scared, the very same person who had been murdering people to ensure his bloodlust would be satiated. Had been quivering at the thought of demons.

"Uh... I don't- WATCH OUT!" He reacted at breakneck speed, ducking the attack that had been right for the back of his head. It wouldn't matter because he could just take the dagger out of his head and heal, though his healing ability has a time limit. It takes a second before his body realizes he has this ability before he comes back alive. Panting, he reached out his right hand to capture the projectile thrown... it was one of the daggers he was able to make appear. How?

"Get back on your feet, YOU PIECE OF GARBAGE!!" That voice was not his younger brother's, he somehow felt like he had heard it before. Spinning right around, he spotted the one who had screamed at him in hunger. Drool fell from his lower lip, bits, and pieces of brains and blood visible as he opened his damn mouth. Those teeth were razor-sharp, like his own. Though only if all of his teeth were the same as his front teeth. Lucifer, the Demon King, in all of his monstrous glory had slowly snapped his back into place standing up straight. Though his Superior had gotten a description, the Demon King hadn't. Red skill, orange eyes, horns protruding out of both sides of his head, long enough ears. Shirtless over his blood-red body, ripped pants to the point where his knees and other parts of his leg were visible, a pentagram residing over the middle of his chest, and finally, a Trident for the King of Hell. A strap connected across his chest, connecting to his pants where his ripped black cape was held.

"YOUR BREATHING WILL CEASE, NOW BE A GOOD LITTLE BOY AND DIE QUICKLY!" A gateway in space manifested from a pentagram to the left of the King of Hell, where his younger brother stood, left hand sitting in his pocket. The Superior had arrived, gazing upon the duo of brothers, he spoke softly,

"Sorry to reveal this to you right here, but you, students of mine, are about to meet a quick, swift death. This is the truth you must endure, I'm sorry, but this is your fate," Though he was younger, Lucifer was like a puppy that played with his food whenever he was brought a toy. With a simple nod, the Demon King had charged at the Justice, and without hesitation, red lightning thundered. He had run out of the door behind the duo that opposed the Rivera siblings, Morningstar hadn't hesitated. He pounced after at an incredible speed, his tongue extending out to try and grab his meal.

Back in the Castle, just in front of the entrance's door, the Fool reached out, maybe if he could sense Jason's destination, he could help. Before he could warp, his right cheekbone was broken, and Rivera spat out blood, groaning on the floor. Wiping his knuckles on his black suit, he walked around the body of the teenager, even his shoes were fancy.

"You... asshole,"

"Resistance is futile, every action you take, everything you do, it will be in vain. Relinquish your body to the Kingdom, reach Heaven with the rest of us. Or become useless like the trash you saw running away like the coward he was," That speech pattern... He'd felt like he'd heard it before. Was it from Ryder? He did say useless just a few hours ago in his time, but this was something else, he didn't have Karlo's cheekbones or the birthmark on his right cheek. The fractured bone that the Superior had broken with his right fist had suddenly been put back together.

"I must say, I applaud you making an effort to try and resist, though I just said how pathetic and useless it was. Sorry about this, kid," In the blink of an eye, his fist had already been sunk in the concrete ground that Ben was lying beneath, he had easily flipped out of the way backward. His teleportation powers were somehow 'hacked', looked like he had to stay and fight. The Superior wasted no time throwing more punches, to overwhelm the so-called 'hero', each time, the speed increased, getting harder to dodge. For some reason, no time passed in between one attack, and that was the final punch that let out a shockwave in between the barrage of attacks. His enemy had broken through the block that he had put up, breaking both of his arms and then sending him flying out of the window. His back made a certain Crack! as it hit the edge of the stairs repeatedly, while the Superior watched his doll-like body contort and bleed before reaching the end of the stairway. Like hordes of people angry about a specific thing, these Hellskins hovered around his weak-almost dead body.

"The same... power as... me?" It was the same ability the Fool had used against the Warrior only hours prior and yesterday, no time had passed between him moving closer and then him chipping away at the cement.

"You realized it too, then, this power of mine is not yours only. You are not unique, and you never were. You were merely a tool to be used by the Kingdom, to reach Heaven requires power, time, and sacrifice. All that is left is to sacrifice, the power in the form of Hell gives me the edge I require. To be a worthy fit for Heaven's Gates, time is something only I and I alone will control, and your... selfless sacrifice will be the final Key in our goal. NOW REMAIN STILL, RIVERA!!!!!!"

"I'M NOT DEAD YET!!!" In a final scream, the World around him ground to a halt, and time had ceased to continue its normal cycle. The Universe was in his control now, 2 seconds left, just like before. The Fool looked over to see where his brother was, and then looked on to the giant figure in the sky. They needed to be wary of that guy. Ben barely was able to escape, as time resumed its normal course, his location and whereabouts were unknown to the Superior and his minions. Frantically, he searched around the area, moving the debris and bones of the people they had massacred out of the way. Nowhere.

"Nnnn, Rivera... you're a tricky one, I must give you that. You've only studied your abilities for months, training, and harnessing your powers to save your pathetic pleading mother. AND YET IT WILL ALL BEFORE NOTHING!!" An angry scream followed the Superior's yell and manipulative speech pattern, he figured out that the Fool's limit to use this ability was not a long one. It was the shortest he'd ever seen before. Meaning he couldn't have gone far, and the only alternative is that he was still around here. The Fool came out from the blanketed dimension he had used with the Moon's glistening rays of light, jumping and kicking the Superior right in the jaw. Though it broke his jaw to pieces, he used the remainder of his strength to grab the leg of the young man and slam him to the ground.

"You're not going to be stopping time for quite some time now, Rivera..." The power this Being held was not as easy and simple as you'd thought, when having enemies incapacitated, as in, not moving. With a simple hand gesture, his fingers started to close with their cracking, a red aura of blood and hate surrounding his figure. Along with the malicious red intent his eyes were glowing with, half of Ben's bones broke, and a blood-gurgling scream was released from his mouth. The pain was unbearable, unlike anything he'd felt before, blood dripped out of his mouth, his nostrils,

"Looks like doing things the way you'd wanted as useless, after all. Here's my way," The Fool had fallen into the hands of the enemy; the Kingdom of Hell, his body was picked off of the floor by the Hellskins of the Underworld by the command of the Superior. Cracking his neck, he watched as the young boy was taken up the stairs into the Castle,

"No wonder he managed to defeat Colon, I must say, it's rather impressive he's grown so much in such little time, hopefully, that insolent idiot can capture the other. The Empress should be pleased with our new special subject..."

The other Rivera brother was running for dear life, his feet were moving as fast as the Demon King's behind him, running on all fours like a cheetah chasing after its prey. More importantly, he wasn't losing him, this damn demon was merely getting closer. And the more he ran, the closer he seemed to be getting. Like he was absorbing the lightning that threw itself off of his back and shoulders, using it to enhance his speed. Lucky for him, just as he turned back to see the world around him, he was heading for a building. This building, it was very familiar to Lucifer. It was indeed the same one where he had massacred those same insignificant pests only an hour prior. He stopped dead in his tracks, however, the Justice ran right through the side of the skyscraper. It was Rivera Manufacturing. The lobby was ridden with skeletons, some were just skeletal arms that had been crushed by pieces of the broken ceiling. More importantly, there was a new pile of humans who had been slaughtered by the genocidal will of the King of Hell. Their stomachs cut open, bloodied guts hanging out of them, intestines wrapped around their necks. He'd done worse, but these people were innocent, they didn't deserve this, they were just hiding from their evil clutches. Justice needed to be served out quickly, without mercy, without hesitation. No holds barred, but with the current abilities he held, there was no way he would be able to save his younger brother. Then again, he could heal himself, giving the illusion that he was dead for a while, he could use this ability to easily trick the minds of these unsuspecting foes. But, assuming they defeated Ben, they could already know his tricks. Nevertheless, he couldn't stay in here, even if he somehow was murdered, his brother could not be left there. What point would there be to his Justice if it ended this quickly? He readied himself to go right outside, clearing his throat, cracking his knuckles. Two kunai manifested in a blood-red and smoky black smoke around his hands, but, suddenly, there was a voice that reached his ears. It was soft, gentle, yet stern and calling for him to fight.

"Jason..." His head spun at the speed that lightning took to hit the ground after it had fallen from the parted clouds whenever it rained on the Planet. The floorplates separated underneath his boots, unbeknownst to the regular human eye, there were millions of microscopic-like nanobots moving in unison to create the body of a woman. This woman was no ordinary human being, of course, she had the facial structure of someone he knew all too well, the posture of the woman he had loved and admired for decades, and the angelic voice of her. His mother. Yet, something was wrong. Unlike their mother's brown eyes, this woman had pink ones. Not ones made of flesh and vessels like regular humans, but... cold, metal, hollow. Holding no emotion.

"My name is Artemis Rivera, I am the Artificial Intelligence belonging to Ben Rivera of this Universe. However, ever since he had turned to the Empress' influence, I am my independent person. Capable of opposing my father's malevolent will and further fighting for this planet's freedom,"

"You..."

"Ben Rivera is the Superior, that is the identity of that cowardly man, same as how the Lucifer is the future version of you. And the Empress... the Empress is your sister. It was due to the corruption of your powers that led you all down this dark path, but we have the chance to correct it! You just need to trust me," Artemis Rivera's personality and the way she spoke, it all corresponded to someone who could be the correspondent for the Hierophant Arcana. She was their mentor in the ways of this desolate Future. Her arm reached out to the young man, its warmth enveloped him immediately, everything she did, it resembled his dying mother back home. Her smile, the tilt of her head as she gave off that happy hopeful vibe.

"I trust you,"

July 18th, 2013

Back in the original timeline, there were the other members of the Protectors, Henry Colon and Madisyn Rivera. 30 minutes had passed since Jason and Ben had left. The duo had been walking through the cloudy Central Park, the cars outside the walls seemed to be silenced by the peace of the world around them. The flowers were blooming, the water was calm under the bridge they walked over to reach their destination. Everything seemed to be perfect, though the skies were filled with the boring color of grey, it seemed boring was all they needed at the moment. 3 minutes passed, the fishes poking their heads out of the body of water to spot the two. The Chariot and The Empress, walking together in the park created for the people of the city. It was quiet uptown. They reached a grassy seat for them to lay next to each other, where a dancing flame crawled its way in between the skinny knuckles of Colon. The girl watched in awe, a soft smile spread over her lips. How profoundly beautiful.

"There was something about the Warrior that got me thinking, the way he introduced himself. From what Ben heard in between consciousness, he said, 'I'm sorry.' I know he was a bad person, he probably murdered tons of innocents, but the way he spoke, he truly regretted his turn," The Empress gave her a friend a firm nod, sighing, she rubbed her violet eyes, at the thought of it. Just thinking about it, it made her upset, how they weren't able to protect him. Instead, they were his doom. Though, maybe death was a better fate for him instead of living as a slave for this 'Kingdom.' There had to be something that caused him to live the way he did, under the thumb of someone. Henry knew he would never do so without a fight, deep inside of his heart, he would never be controlled by some type of powerful god. No matter how powerful they were.

"What are you getting at?" The theory went, the Warrior was manipulated by his Superiors to work for them, they used tactics that would be classified as 'dirty' in the standards of the present World. Did they torture him? No, that seemed unlikely, no wounds were visible on his body when he checked before leaving that pocket dimension with the rest of his friends. There was a secret inside of the burning soul of Henry Colon, something that could easily be figured out by the way he acted around other people. And that was the way he felt, his sexuality.

"The Warrior wasn't tortured, he wasn't... controlled, or anything. He was a victim of mental abuse, the Kingdom used the way he felt in the past about other people against him. Because it was a secret, they could do that, because he wasn't comfortable with the way he felt," What was he talking about, she wondered to herself, staring deep into his orange eyes as they glistened with tears. It was horrible to think about, that if he told her now, he would get resented, he wouldn't be accepted. Maybe the Protectors would forget about him if he told them who he was. It hit her like a truck, 'the way he felt', was an easier way of saying... who he loved.

"You're gay... right?"

"Yes... I'm sure that my future self felt the same way I did. That I would be disregarded by society if I told anyone, that if I just kept it to myself, I would keep everyone I loved close to myself. But, he was wrong..! If he had just come to terms with his feelings, then he wouldn't have been manipulated, then he would've been able to oppose those fucking ASSHOLES!" Just the thought that his other self could be so easily manipulated just because of whomever he felt like he was attracted to, it was so disgusting. It pissed him off, so much that a burst of fire emerged out of his body and burnt the grass beside them.

"For the sake of my future, and for my friends, I need to find a way to accept my sexuality. Problem is, heh, I have no fucking idea how to do something like that. I hate myself for the way I feel, but, Madi, you're bisexual, and you're fine with it. So, how did you get to be so comfortable with it?" The question was one that the Empress struggled to find a direct answer to, the girl had taken off her glasses from in front of her eyes, biting at the edges and thoughts wondering. In actuality, it was easy for her to become accustomed to and comfortable with her sexuality. After she had first been kissed by her girlfriend, Abby Romero, she had realized who she was. She had her brothers, her mother, to help her. The only way that the others had found out was through her mother when they had found out at dinner at a sushi place in Manhattan. They were accepting of her, of course, so, it was easy for her to feel the way she did. But telling the Chariot that he should just talk with his family about it, try telling his friends, was out of the question. This was his future they were talking about, and if anything wrong happened, that would mean the end of his free will.

"The way I got comfortable with mine, it was so much easier. But, that can't be done with you, this is your future we're talking about. Considering how I still feel insecure about my sexuality sometimes, my way won't work... we have to ensure you're perfectly comfortable with yourself. To save you. So, I'll help you. Step one, let's go back home!" Thus began the Journey of the Chariot's arc toward acceptance.

December 8th, 2536

The search for Jason Rivera had ceased, there had been no reason to continue, he served as no use to the Kingdom if they were to capture him. It wasn't like he'd die if they attempted to kill, so they arrived back at the Castle. About 15 minutes had passed, and as the Superior, with his older brother following, entered their home, two people with glowing eyes stalked. The red glowing eyes of the Justice examined them from the edge of the roof, they looked so monstrous, could that psychotic demon be his future self? The android woman grabbed him back, the only reason both of them were able to remain undetected was because of their heat signatures. Artemis' hand remained latched onto the left arm of the Rivera brother, with his right hand pressing against the roof. The duo looked as she projected a holographic screen for them to look at, they were directly above The Lab. An elongated remote-controlled camera had slid its way through the ventilation shafts, poking out to record what they were doing to the Fool. The Superior walked in to see exactly what he wanted to see, his supposed other self sitting down in the chair, strapped down.

"Trying to break free is useless, half of your bones are still broken, you need all of them to utilize your full strength. Brother, my Empress, watch as we bring ourselves closer to Heaven and reach infinite power," The key to turning Ben to their side to reach Heaven was to manifest his pure protecting heart into one full of hatred, of malice, to turn his heart psychotic like the rest of them would ensure their victory against the Protectors. On the roof, both Artemis and Jason formulated a plan to thwart their evil, it would have to be one that required immense concentration and mental control. Artie was artificial intelligence, she was created for these types of situations, to think on the fly, to make sure the people she loved were safe. Though her father had been distorted beyond comprehension, she knew what he would want, and that would be to end this war, once and for all. That was her goal, and the Fool was the key. Jason leaped off the roof, his body diving into a shadow cast by the lights inside of the Castle like he was sucked into the shadow realm. He traveled between the shadow realm, this plan would work.

Meanwhile, in the lab, there stood the Superior, standing to the far right of Ben Rivera while Lucifer pulled a glove over his fingers. Silently, the Empress watched from beside her younger brother as the Demon King readied himself. Turning a heart psychotic was easy, though if it was to work, he would require absolutely no movement.

"Hold this PEST down... brother," The Prince of the Demons did as he was commanded, standing behind the chair that the Fool was trapped to he readied his fingers to slide into the skin of his neck. Fingernails sharpened into claws, demonic sharp bloody wings popped out of his back in a burst of blood, if he was to somehow get free, it would mean a definite setback to their plans.

"Now... LET's... HeEHEHEHAHAAHAHAAHAHAHAAH!" A katana had pierced through the heart of the King of Hell, and Morningstar laughed at the sight of the weapon in his chest. Giggling so psychotically as he set his glowing red palm on his face, he screamed out in anger,

"YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" It was meant to scare he who had stabbed him, but it did nothing, it did not scare him off, it did not cause him to step back and remove the katana and run like a coward. Jason Rivera's eyes, the pupils, even the white eyeball, had been blinded by his bloodlust. In the blink of an eye, Lucifer fell to the ground, blood pouring out of his sliced throat, eyes rolled to the back of his head.

"IMPOSSIBLE!" The Superior's eyes should've seen that piece of shit, he must be somewhere around here, but he wasn't here. Even in the lights that this room had cast, that bastard's red lightning should've been seen by his enhanced vision. He hadn't accounted for the fact that Jason Rivera's shadow manipulation was not as pathetic as he had believed, leading to his torso being sliced in half. The worst thing about it, it wasn't by a sword this time, it was by his fingers, his extended fingernails that were sharp enough to slice through human bone like it was tissue paper. It had cut the Superior in half, leaving him clinging to life, while the Empress in the corner of the room, watched. As the Justice searched because he knew she was here, somewhere. She was closer than she had appeared, the blanket of light had registered her as invisible for the rest of humanity, as she laid in her pocket dimension she whispered,

"How incredibly useless," 10 minutes passed, like a zipper opening to reveal the contents of whatever was inside, a mere tiny wormhole manifested. Ben had been taken back by Jason, and without a doubt, Artemis. That insolent bitch plastic model that her brother had created all those centuries ago proved to continually be such an annoyance to their plans. No matter, though. Her healing touch proved to be quite useful in the end, as she ripped the katana out of Morningstar's chest, it melted in her hands. His body reacted, healing instinctively while the Empress reattached all the severed parts to the Superior, to which his healing factor ensured his safe recovery.

"Rise, my brothers. It may seem that we had lost for today, but in the end, there is no telling what the future might hold. This marks the beginning of the war against the Protectors, for our Kingdom... for Heaven,"

"For Heaven..." The two brothers drooled with each piece of their intelligence flowing into their brains slowly as the Empress removed her hood from her head. Usually, when evil rulers like these wear hoods over their heads, they'd be covering some sort of scars. But no, she was perfectly fine, her purple eyes glowed brightly as ever, her lips remained in amazing shape. The Empress wore a ripped long black cloak over obvious armor, from the way her legs were always covered in metal, it was clear that they weren't cybernetic replacements. Her rule over this domain would not end yet. Though the two Rivera brothers with the help of the daughter of the Superior had won them the battle, the war was just beginning. And it wouldn't come soon enough.

July 18th, 2013

1 hour had passed since Henry and Madi had arrived from the Park in Manhattan, though she was able to teleport, same as her brother, it was clear they wandered around to get some food together. Now, they were back in Colon's apartment, in his room, the one that Ryder and Matt slept in. Well, Karlo slept more on the floor, so, technically Matt slept in it more. But I digress. Both the Chariot and the Empress of the Protectors sat side by side on his bed, smiling, she put her index finger over his lips,

"Don't ask questions, because I'm going to answer them right now. I want you to talk to me, right here, right now. About everything you're feeling, why you're feeling it, and how you think you can fix it. There is no one here to judge you, the door is locked, and if you want, I can Blanket us so no one listens in. The first step to getting over it and accepting yourself comes from speaking to someone about it, usually, it helps the person get whatever they're feeling sad or depressed about off their chest. So, H., explain to me how you're feeling," It was easy, nothing complicated, right?

"I feel ashamed of myself, pathetic. Like I can't do something so easy, it eats me up from the inside about not being able to do it. I feel this way... because of everyone around me. They're able to fit in, to have happy relationships, not having to feel insecure about who they are, they can love who they love without being judged... Matt has Veronica, Ella has Ryder, and you have your brothers. How I can fix it... to make myself feel better. I don't know, it feels like I'll be tortured this way for eternity, but if I don't do something soon, then I'm as good as dead," There had to be some way to make him feel happy, to make him feel like he was accepted. Her mind wandered between the past and the present, then reminding herself of a french exchange student that had come out as gay during the school year. His name was Jean-Pierre Edmund, an idea formulated inside of her brain, which got her to thinking,

"How about we set you on a date? I'm friends with this guy from school before we went into our comas, he's gay too, I'm sure he'd love to meet you," Deep breaths, the young man took, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, over and over before she nodded. The Empress gave a peck on the cheek for the Chariot reassuring him,

"Don't worry, it'll all be okay," Before receiving her phone out of her pocket, ready to dial the number she had saved almost 10 months ago. But something interrupted her, it was the Priestess yelling,

"HEY GUYS?! YOU SHOULD PROBABLY COME IN HERE!" They did as El suggested, to come out of the room where Artemis had been seated down on the couch. Two bodies on each side of her, the woman sent a pleasant smile to both Ryder and Ellie, informing with a warm voice,

"My name is Artemis Rivera, I'm here to help," A new asset in the Protector's battle against the Kingdom had arrived, in the form of the Riveras' dying mother. How useful would she prove to be in these trying times, and how would she determine the fate of the Future? The story continues in Chapter Five.

A Card Telling You The Future Has Been Flipped

The Awakened Power Within You Will Be Your Guide

Now, Let Us Depart In This World of Madness and Chaos