Chapter 75: Binding Vow

"B-Blackheart… how-how could you betray me?"

Chuckling at the sight of a severely injured Sattanish, Blackheart swung the glowing golden spear in his hand and decapitated his fellow Hell Lord. Ending his life, thanks to the newly added property of the spear. Sattanish could never revive again.

"Yes, such power!" Blackheart raised the Longinus spear and looked at it with maniacal glee. "I'm sure now that my goals are within my grasp! I can already taste it!"

Currently, the son of Mephistopheles was inside the realm of Hell. The unending hellish landscape was dark, and inextinguishable fires raged as far as the eye could see. Behind him were hundreds of lesser demons, all dead and torn to pieces. They were Sattanish's servants in their pursuit to defend their lord. They all ended up killed by Blackheart's hands.

"Let's see… yes. Next, I shall eliminate Asmodeus. It won't be long before the others hear of Sattanish's demise and plan their counterattack on me." Blackheart walked away from the hundreds of corpses. "Regardless if they do, they won't hold a candle to my power."

"You're playing a dangerous game." Blackheart stopped mid-step and turned to the familiar voice from behind him. "…son."

"Father." No word has ever been uttered with such putrid disdain. Blackheart glared hatefully at the new arrival. "What are you doing here?"

"Is this how a son should address their dear father?"

A Demon with glowing yellow eyes and a deep red skin said. He had spiky black hair that was pointed upwards, defying gravity. His clothing consisted of a long dark red cloak with an attached popped collar that reached past his hair. Red gloves and boots rested on his hand and feet, The only other piece of clothing was a long red loincloth covering his crotch.

"You're lacking respect, Blackheart." Mephistopheles said. "Perhaps I should punish you, my son."

SLASH

"Wow, there." Looking behind him, Blackheart saw his father land on the ground with a barely audible thud. The Demon was completely unharmed. "Quite the weapon you have there."

"While I would like to have killed the rest of the Hell Lords first before I tore you to pieces, I'll make an exception and kill you right where you stand!" Blackheart crouched down into a battle stance, spear in hand. "With all of you dead, all of Hell will be mine to rule! From there, the mortal realm and then the Heavens will be mine to conquer!"

"Ah, so that's your petty plan." Mephisto said with a hand on his chin. A thoughtful expression marred his face. "Pretty ambitious."

The supreme ruler of Hell turned his head to look at his son with an amused smile. "While I would like to knock some sense into your spiky head, I believe someone else will teach you a lesson in pain and misery. So I'll leave that task to them."

"You speak of that pathetic human, Harvey Miller?" Blackheart glared at his father and tightened the grip on the spear. "He is of no consequence. I've seen the level of his power. While he indeed holds Zarathos's soul, it does not mean he has the same level of power."

"I wouldn't be so sure. Harvey Miller is no human. He's evolving into something never before seen." Mephisto smiled wickedly and looked up at the dark 'sky'. "However, I'll humor you. How about a little wager? Should you manage to eliminate all the remaining Hell Lords and Harvey Miller, I will gladly offer my head on a plater for you and full dominion over Hell."

Blackheart's eyes widened, and slowly, the Demon let out a silent chuckle until it exploded into maniacal laughter. "You truly are losing it, you old fool! Such a task will be child's play!"

"Is that so? Well then, in return, whichever of the remaining Hell Lords manages to kill you in your little quest. They'll receive all of your Demonic powers, abilities, and control over your territory. A fair trade, wouldn't you say?" Mephisto held a finger up and looked at his son with a casual smile.

"You'll come to regret this, old man." Blackheart chuckled. "In my current state, I am unstoppable. The rest of those fools are nothing! Especially Zarathos's container."

Mephisto smiled, held a hand out, and made a one-handed ram seal, as did Blackheart. "Then we are in agreement. With this, our Binding Vow is set."

A Binding Vow is a contract created between two or more individuals bound by negative Demonic or positive Holy energy. Both parties must agree to a particular set of conditions that benefit both parties. The penalty for breaking a Binding Vow with others is punishable by the offending party's death or a life-threatening punishment. In the world of Heaven and Hell, there has only ever been one case in which a Binding Vow has been broken.

Said individual was killed instantly, their heart exploding in their chest. A Binding Vow is a contract not made with the faint of heart. This makes them very powerful and dangerous. However, should one of the parties involved in the contract happen to die before its completion, the contract will become null and void. Ignoring the punishment clause.

"You must be confident, Father. You haven't entered a Binding Vow since your battle with Lucifer Morningstar." Blackheart said. "Sadly for you, I have no intent on losing."

"We shall see, Blackheart." Mephisto turned around and walked away. His physical form disappearing into the empty space. His words echoed out into a whisper. "We shall see…"

Blackheart stared at the space his father once occupied. Today proved to be a wonderful one; everything was coming together. Thanks to the Binding Vow, he needed to kill the last remaining Hell Lords to take complete control over his birthright.

The remaining Hell Lords are Asmodeus, Satana Hellstorm, Pluto, and finally… Zarathos.

He will have his father's head on a pike in a few days while sitting on the throne over Hell as its one true ruler. Blackheart felt like he was on top of the world.

"Now, where are you, Asmodeus?"

•••

"You can't be serious…"

It was a bright and sunny day. The warm California weather bathed its inhabitants in its gentle caress. Birds were singing jubilantly in the tall trees. While there was a perilous situation two days ago, the city returned to its lively state. Rebuilding efforts were already underway in West Hollywood, and things were picking up once again.

Regardless of everything, behind one normal suburban home. Several people stood around while dressed in black suits and dresses. A heavy blanket of sadness and depression lay heavily over all the gathered people. In the back area of the large yard was a tree; below that tree was a small cross with a picture below it. The image was of a smiling blonde young woman; several flowers surrounded the tree and picture.

A small funeral was held in the back of Harvey Miller's home, a funeral for their lost loved one and friend. The archangel Chamuel, otherwise known as Amy.

"I am." Harvey said as he continued looking down at the picture of Amy; his eyes were dull.

"Harvey, you just came back." Alex said desperately. "You survived a nuclear blast and slept in the Pacific Ocean! Now you're telling me you're going to Hell to fight the Demon that killed Amy! That's insane!"

"Alex is right, Harvey." Wanda said from beside the spectacled girl. "You're not in the right state of mind. This is too dangerous!"

Harvey said nothing but continued to stand still, hands in his pockets. The Dunphys, Pritchetts, and Tuckers all looked on with worried and nervous expressions.

"Pietro, say something!" Wanda turned to her brother. Pietro was sitting on the ground while leaning on the back wall of the house, his expression hard and unfocused.

"Wanda… Amy's gone. She was killed by some bastard for some unknown reason." Pietro stood up and walked over to stand in front of Harvey. "All I have to say is… make that monster suffer. If it weren't for the fact that I would burn alive down there, I'd be right there with you."

"Pietro!" Wanda yelled in disbelief. "Harvey could end up being killed too! Is that what you want?! That's not what I want!"

"Harvey." Phil walked up to the young hero. "Are you sure about this? You've just been through an unimaginable amount of trauma. Don't rush into this. Take some time and think things through."

"Phil's right." Claire said as she laid a hand on Harvey's shoulder. She pulled her hand back in surprise when she felt heat radiate off his body. "Please don't do this, give yourself some time."

"…Amy is dead because I was stuck in my own head. She died because I wasn't there to help her." Harvey lifted his arms and looked down at his limbs. "I found her left in a ditch, cold and alone… We couldn't even bury her because her brother took her back to Heaven."

"So, yes. I've thought this through. I'm leaving tomorrow, and I'm going to make Blackheart pay for what he did to my friend." Harvey turned to them all, eyes glowing red—surprising everyone at the change of eye color. "There's nothing any of you can say that will change that. I've made up my mind. Accept it or not, I don't care."

Everyone watched as Harvey walked inside his home and headed upstairs. The conversation seemingly ended. Alex watched him leave with tears streaming down her face.

"Harvey?" Alex sounded hurt.

"He's hurting, Alex." Jay approached his granddaughter and laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't hold this against him."

"Is there anything we can do to stop him?" Haley asked as she looked up at the house. "There has to be something… right?"

"I don't think so." Luke said in a sad tone. "When Harvey says he'll do something, he'll do it. There's nothing that can change his mind."

"Luke's right." Manny nodded as he loosened his black tie. "We can't stop him."

"I refuse to accept that!" Wanda glared at Manny, causing him to jump in surprise. "I will not lose another friend!"

"Harvey is strong." Pietro said with his hands in his pockets as he looked down at Amy's grave. "The strongest. He's not going to lose. He'll come back. I trust him, so should you."

At that, everyone looked at one another; they stood in silence and mulled over what Pietro said. While the adults who were present disagreed that revenge was the answer, they didn't know what to say in this situation.

•••

"Everyone went home."

Wanda said as she peered inside Harvey's room; he was sitting on his bed. It seemed he changed out of his suit and put on some loose clothes. On his feet were a pair of socks with little angel wings.

"…okay." Harvey said dully.

It hurt Wanda to hear him talk like that; she wasn't used to hearing him like that. She missed his upbeat and joking tone of voice, the way he always tried to make things more positive. It was as if all the life in his soul left, leaving behind a shell of the man she grew to care about.

When she tried to get Pietro to come with her to talk to Harvey, he said he wanted to go for a run. He wanted to clear his head, but Wanda knew he didn't want to talk. Amy's death affected him severely; he was in love with her after all. Wanda promised she would speak to him about it when he returned. It wouldn't be healthy if she let him bottle up those emotions and feelings.

Closing the door behind her, Wanda walked up to Harvey's bed and climbed onto his bed. Crawling up to him, she wrapped her arms around him and leaned into his back. Wanda rested her head on his shoulder. Harvey's body was radiating heat. It reminded her of freshly dried clothes.

"…Wanda?" Harvey turned his head and looked at her; his eyes returned to his regular orange. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing… I'm just helping my hurt friend. He looked like he needed a hug." Wanda squeezed him tightly. A small smile on her lips. "What are you doing?"

"…Wanda, not right now." Harvey looked down and held his head in his hands. "I want to be alone. I have to prepare for tomorrow."

"That's exactly why I can't leave you alone." Wanda whispered and grabbed his face, making him look at her. "I wont leave you alone. I have your back, now and always."

Harvey's eyes grew wide, and his mouth started to tremble. He then turned around and looked into Wanda's eyes; slowly, he raised his hands and held them over hers.

"Thank you."

Wanda smiled and nodded. She wanted to lean in and kiss him. To finally let him know how she felt, show him how she felt. But… it wouldn't be fair to Alex. Wanda didn't like Alex because she was going out with Harvey, but she didn't hate her. The girl was a good person and didn't deserve something like this to happen to her.

Wanda closed her eyes and leaned into his chest; she hugged and comforted him at his lowest moment. "Harvey?"

"…yes?" Harvey whispered as he held her gently.

"You're going to come back… right?" Wanda said as she breathed in his scent.

"I will… I promise." he said with a nod and brushed her hair absently.

The two stayed still and hugged each other throughout the night. They were basking in each other's presence and touch until they fell asleep in one another's arms. Tears running down their faces as they grieved over their lost friend.