GATES OF DIVINITY. TOI BLASIER
Bazathiel looked over his shoulder to see if Pazriel was still watching him and when he realized that he was not, he went ahead and quietly departed. Now, he had to see the evidence Murmus spoke of. He wasted no time and sped off to the bottomless pit in hopes that he could make it back before anyone would notice his absence.
Making his way into Hell made Bazathiel extremely uncomfortable. Upon entering the cavernous bowels, Bazathiel’s guts felt upside down as his skin began to crawl. The bottomless pit was nothing like what he had been accustomed to in Heaven. The rocky interior of Abaddon’s caves were dimly lit by the orange-red glow from the flowing rivers of magma. Pockets of steam sporadically filled the air, obscuring his vision as he walked around the large and sharply pointed stalagmites. Taking a slow yet rushing approach to his traversing, Bazathiel knew that this situation had to be handled quickly, especially if even a fraction of what Murmus told was true. He had to be incredibly careful not to be seen for this was no place for a low-ranking angel. If discovered, the other angels would surely find out about how he had abandoned his post. Murmus did not give him much for instruction but the further he stepped, the closer he knew he was getting. Even before reaching the pit, the clues all began to form in front of him that proved Murmus’ story to be true. Bazathiel’s morale sank as his eyes connected with the arterial lifeblood painting the stony surroundings. “Could this truly be Abaddon’s?” Bazathiel thought to himself. Bazathiel then noticed the landscape before him was filled with mounds of destruction and rubble as well. It was then he found himself approaching Murmus who appeared to have been waiting for him long enough as he made himself comfortable as he could amongst the devastation. "I was wondering when you were going to show up." Murmus commented. "Make haste, Murmus! I do not have much time." Bazathiel promptly explained. Murmus understood the plight he put on the angel and led Bazathiel down what was left of the area where the ambush took place. As they walked past the piles of rock that littered the ground, the open space in front of them revealed the enormous corpse of Abaddon. There was barely a shred of hide left on the bones, surely an oversight by the ravenous Scourge. The bones left behind were not held together anymore and had numerable teeth marks where they had certainly gnawed on for as long as the taste of blood was still prevalent. The skeleton of Abaddon appeared to be dried up and bleached as if exposed to direct sunlight for days. If not for the unmistakable skull that could only be Abaddon, it would be nearly implausible to identify the corpse. The sight of Abaddon's remains stirred a great deal of turmoil within Bazathiel. In his mind, Bazathiel could come to terms that Lucifer and Lilith could possibly take down Abaddon but to ravage and ingest this giant of a being. The unthinkable has happened and Murmus was right. Lucifer has somehow gained the loyalty of The Scourge and their willingness to do his bidding at any command. Viewing what he had hoped was not true, Bazathiel knew they had to act now. If this was only the beginning, what was Lucifer’s grand plan? With The Scourge released and free to roam wherever is instructed, the possibilities are endless. Bazathiel was at a loss of words when all this newly found information crashed into him like a violent tidal wave onto the beach. Bazathiel knows something must be done, but what? What could he possibly do? “Thank you, Murmus. I wish that your words would not have been rejected so swiftly by Sabrael and the rest. I must return with what I have seen here.” Bazathiel bid a farewell to Murmus and left the bottomless pit to return to his post. Murmus reciprocated the sentiment but he knew that despite his failed efforts, he held onto hope upon hope that Bazathiel will be able to speak sense into the Kingdom of Heaven for there is an impending onslaught coming and something must be done soon. Murmus did not want to spend any more time near the bottomless pit as he had extracurricular affairs to attend to in the meantime.
4
Lucifer exits the tunnel he used to travel to the Circle of Tears, the environment was as gloomy as a dark and stormy day. It felt as though it was constantly night-time, with the only illumination brought on from flashes of lightning that would streak across the sky. The darkness around him was not enough to bar his sight from the visage of the Great Worm awaiting him. This monstrosity of an annelid laid around this landscape, guarding all it surveyed, from any unwanted beings. The calvaria of cartilage of its three heads maintained the shape of a canine, except it is devoid of any orifices besides its gaping maw. Each of its mouths contained a pair of upper and lower mandibles that it would use to sweep in any victims into certain oblivion as its acidic saliva would immediately begin the digestive process. Its dog-like upper body was made of a musculature only held up by legs, as large as tree trunks, with pachyderm-like feet. Their feet were just as deadly as it’s mouths, the four front toes were retractable tentacles that would extend to grasp any trespassers into its paw and awaiting them would be its dewclaw that would strike as such as a scorpion’s tail. With that puncture, a poison would disable anyone in the Great Worm’s grips, making any number of foes virtually unable to overcome this gigantic guard. And supporting its massive body is a seemingly endless worm body, with numerous pores that appeared to breathe like gills but were the Great Worm’s means of sight and smell. And from each of its heads were rows of spines, like a caterpillar, running the entire length of its body. The three parallel lines of hair began at the top of its heads, the middle down the center of its body and the two others lined the opposite sides. Climbing over the worm’s body would also be improbable as the numerable pores would detect anyone nearby and the spines natural defense mechanism would release a toxic vapor, eliminating the attempt to enter the Circle of Tears. If by chance all these pernicious opposition were avoided, the Great Worm’s enormous tail would thrash about causing massive tremors, throwing anyone off-balance. Its heads would swing back and forth, crushing whoever is in its path. The Great Worm is in its place, not to stop just anyone from getting in or out but is in servitude to the archangel Samael to keep Beelzebub confined to the third circle.
As Lucifer closed in on the Great Worm, it instinctively begins to execute an assault on the oncoming visitor. A loud roar in trifecta filled the air as its body moved like a fleshy tidal wave, darting like a serpent to strike, rearing its three heads back and its legs up to lunge forward to slam down with all its might. Lucifer knew he must react quickly and raised his hand to halt the beast. He followed that up with a stern command, “CEASE, CREATURE! AND RECOGNIZE THE ONE MORNINGSTAR!” The Great Worm stops its movement towards Lucifer as his booming voice was unmistakable as the Lord of Hell. Using its feet to slow down the impending confrontation, digging them into the ground beneath it. Dust and debris flew up around Lucifer as he stood unaffected by the much larger adversary in front of him. The Great Worm settled its three heads calmly, bowed and surrendered itself to Lucifer. The worm moves aside, allowing Lucifer passage into the third circle. Passing it by, Lucifer gives a disgusted sneer to the Great Worm, repulsed that this thing would deny him entry into his own domain. Leaving the demoralized hell beast in his wake, Lucifer followed the Acheron River where he saw endless bodies of souls lying in the slush being rained upon. He was heading towards Oblurott Estates, but Hell’s Kitchen was his destination. It was there that he felt he would get his answers.
As he continued forward, he felt exhilarated and excited. He was certain that this time, despite all the prophecies, he would come out victorious in his endgame. He had already sent Lilith to find Asteroth.
Lucifer travelled through the Oblurott Estates, the muddy fields that were used for burying of souls to strengthen their hellish vegetation, used to feed the herds of spawn and livestock that would end up on the tables to devour. Lucifer could smell the burning of a thousand ovens and slaughterhouses, the crackling flesh and breaking bone. Lucifer passed by a group of “Weepheads”, a special type of damned in this circle, that were crying fountains of tears to refill The Sea of Tears, which would feed into the Grand Canals when boat travel was required. Lucifer arrived at Hell’s Kitchen, Oblurott’s grandest and most prestigious of banquet halls. Thousands of demons would often clamor for scraps whilst the Oblurott elite gather to feast, glutting themselves on the creations and products of torturers. The interior of the halls was decorated with several tables to serve the highest of regard from the third circle. Chandeliers adorned the ceiling, at some time in the distant past were lit up and beautiful but over the time in Hell’s Kitchen, being unused and untended, they hung like sinners from a bridge. In drastic difference, the preparation rooms of the kitchen appeared like a violent torture chamber than a room that a meal would be prepared. Aged, crusted blood stained the walls and floors and attracted flies and their