Sentinels of Magic#3: "Pour lutter l'enfant de l'entropie"
(To Battle the Child of Entropy)
by JM de Joya
"Welcome, All, to the Hueco De Inferno...a fitting term for me, after
all."
The Devil sorcerer sat on his chair, as his hostage, the most vulnerable
Constable Jose de Loyola, struggled
free against the grasp of the locusts binding him to the wall. Diablo
sneered, as soon, his minions brought him
his potions, his beakers...and the Orb of Thessaly, the relic that once held
him captive. By the Golden Sorcerer.
"...Loco! What makes you think that I have any relation to what
happened to you? I do not even know you!"
The sorcerer then paused, and turn to the Constable. Instantly, he snapped
his fingers, and the ground began to
quake, the thunder began to roll. De Loyala felt the pain of his burns
growing instense, as Diablo took hold of the
Orb. "That is where you are wrong, constable. You simply exist, that's all
your worth to me. You are the lone speck
of dirt which brings me to remember my past...the man who brought me in my
state of imprisonment. That is
your sin." Diablo then laughed, as unnatural flames burnt through his eyes.
"Prepare your mouth shut, constable, for we will be having guests soon...I
do hope you don't mind to die after,
though. It has been a long time for me, it is past my time to
savor...vengeance..."
Constable de Loyola's eyes grew wide, as the shadow of the Devil began to
dance to the flames of the torches.
Castle De Ablo.
For a long time's past, its light were not made by candles burning from
within, for they have blown past ancients
ago. Instead, it gives credit to the moon, whose melancholy fills the
corridors.
The candles are lit again with unholy flame. Castle De Ablo is alive with
evil.
"...I knew it. The evil is aready spilling forth, even out here," Dr. Occult
uttered, as the band of mystics stood from
a nearby cliff, to savor the unnarturally well-lit view. Zatanna sighed,
grabbing onto the manuscripts, entailing the
legends of the old site. "...Here they sighted the devil...wonderful," she
said, turning to the one beside her, the one
who refused to go, but was insisted. "Do you think your Talisman of
Gilgamesh will work, Zee?" Black Orchid
asked, holding onto the ancient sigil. "Just believe, I told you." Zatanna
then began reciting her spell, and as soon
the last (or more likely the first since she does it backwards) word
disappeared from her lips, a bridge of solid
earth began to form, all the way to the castle.
"Just doing it Merlin-wise really," she muttered, taking one step on the
bridge. "It's pretty much solid, anyway."
Dr.Occult nodded, and soon, all of them began to cross the bridge. Jonah Hex
then paused, as the wind began
to strengthen. "Something's wrong, can you feel it?"
Suddenly, the mist poured out, and began to form. The Sentinels of Magic
prepared themselves, for what
unknown powers await them, none of they have knowledge of.
"Greeetttingssss, nnnnemisssisssesssss
offf tthe one and tttruuuuueeee Diiiaablooo...heed your
tresssssppaaasssesss...."
"A wind elemental," Occult muttered, and the wind hissed at him. "The castle
is situated on a plateau high above
a mountain. Around the mountain, is a wide channel. A river, filled with
water. Being high up in a mountain, one
would naturally feel the cold winds, stronger than below. The trees are
old...and most suspectible of Forest
fires...whoever has beseeched us is no novice in the form of sorcery...he
has set his lair on a topography wherein
he has control over all four elementals."
"...is this Feng Shui?" Zatanna asked, and got a stern look from the
good doctor. "...my bad, sorry."
"Wise one, old mystic. You know well about me," A voice said, as the
fog began to disperse, forming the
shape of the man Diablo. "I presume you already know about my past...I am
Diablo, scourge of the mystical
trail...master of alchemy. Unlike what my pet has told you, you are welcomed
here...I have a friend of mine
captured, and if you have read the manuscripts, I am sure you know his
relations."
"De Loyola. You captured the constable," Occult proclaimed, and Diablo
cackled wickedly.
"Blood is old, mystic. They run deep. Now, I beckon you, can you save this
man? For once I kill him, use him as
sacrifice to fuel the ancient powers that run within me, you shall not be
saved."
"You dare...?!?!"
"Why, old mystic...you know I do."
The wind died down, as the mystics were left alone. Jonah Hex sighed and
stomped his foot, letting the sand out.
"Well, what are we waiting for anyway? Let's get this over with..."
On his throne, the sorcerer sighed. His diamond pyramid, in which the gates
of mysticism are set in motion, still
stayed in its place, still. Strange sighed, as he held it in his hands, and
placed it on the table.
"Greetings, old friend." The lone pale figure said, cloaked in black.
Strange knew him well, for he was an
entity of unknown limits, the Spectre.
"Natasha...?"
"...maybe. Maybe not. But you know me well, as the Spirit of Vengeance,
the wrath of the holy presence."
Strange couldn't see the face of the Spectre as he or she hovered towards
him, for it was covered in the darkest
green, and shadows of his realm. On his hand, the pyramid began to crack, a
chip falling onto the ground.
"Know it well, Stephen Strange, the once and forever first Sorcerer
Supreme...on this day, your numbers have
been counted. On this day...may you say your penance, and weep your
goodbyes."
Around him, Strange found the glass began to crack as well, as the voice of
the Spectre grew heavy. The sorcerer
couldn't understand its tone...whether it was the fury of the wrath, the
sadness of its host...
or maybe...
even...
both.
"I do not understand, Spirit of Wrath," he yelled, as the pyramid began to
move, set in motion by the powers
in the realm, as Spectre's were unlimited, his powers were enough to fuel
the gates of mysticism.
"What do you mean?"
"I have come for...vengeance, Stephen Strange. For the one you have
forsaken."
The pyramid began spinning faster, channeling both the powers of the
Spectre, as well as the tensions building
up between the two. Strange kept silent, as the glass began to shatter, and
the realm began to quake.
Tim Hunter hid behind the shelves, listening to the conversation.
"Forsaken...one?" He muttered silently.
"Hear my warning, Stephen Strange. One day, I shall come for you...her
pleas for vengeance shall be."
The Spectre's shadow faded into nothingness, as Strange began to
contemplate, on the man he once was,
and changed...to the man that he will always be. Then he noticed that the
pyramid, it has stopped in its track
again. "...The Dusk King..." he muttered, opening the book, the Dark
Chapter, lying on his side, instantly
absolving all of what had transpired.
Tim Hunter disappeared back into the ends of the library. For all of his
knowledge of his mentor, he may never
know the man behind the name.
"Oh, sh.."
Black Orchid managed to hide from behind the column, as the three elementals
began to weaken the others.
She was afraid, she was telling herself. So afraid of the fact, she cannot
defeat these creatures. Even with
the help of Zatanna, or Jonah Hex, or Strange himself, she couldn't
She just couldn't.
And she stayed that way.
"This is a great fight, Occult...my god, can't you do anything else aside
from telling us what to do?!?!" Zatanna
was certainly pissed, as the Earth Elemental grabbed her leg like a rag
doll. "...I'm sorry, Zatanna...I'm too bus...!"
Occult yelled quite angrily, as he was thrown onto the wall by the Wind
Elemental.
"Dooooo you thinnnkkk you cannn sssssstop Lorrrrd Diabbbllllo?"
"We're trying, that's a good sign," Jonah said, as he managed to implode the
Earth Elemental's hand, releasing
Zatanna from it's grip. She fell to the floor, as one of her stockings were
ripped off. "Okay...why was he after my
fishnets?!?!" Zatanna muttered angrily. "Erutaerc luof esrepsid, dnah ym ta
cigam eht yb!"
The Earth Elemental began to waver, as it felt the powers that be splitting
him in half. An explosion, and he was
in a million bits of rocks, scattered on the floor. Dr. Occult grabbed the
talisman in his hands, and opened it
in half. "Ugly wind elemental, I really am annoyed by you..."
Suddenly, the wind began to pick up pace, as Occult unleashed the winds of
the North, South and the East,
ready to collect once again their brother.
"Ahhhh, little brrroootttthhherrr....hoowwww long hasss it
beeeeeennnn?" They said in unison, circling
the wind elemental. "Ittt issssss timee you returrrrneeed with
usssss...."
Hex grabbed the other two as he dodged the swirling winds, as the powers
began to escalate, and pieces of
the Earth Elemental began to fly around. Black Orchid's eyes went wide open,
as she was barely inches away
from being hit by one of the debris.
".....yyyoyyyouuouuu!!!! Myysssssttiiiiccc, I wwwillll
ggegeggegegegegetttttgetetttyoouyoyoyou...."
The wind elemental's voice died down, as the winds ceased, and they all
disappeared. The Fire Elemental
was put out by the winds, and was now ashes in its place.
"Very impressive." The voice was trailing far off, and came from the man
walking down from the stairs. "Diablo,"
Occult said angrily, as the devil sorcerer began laughing. "Your time is
up."
"Contrary to your popular belief, mystics."
Suddenly, water began to seep through the mud that held all the bricks on
the floor together, and the Water
Elemental gushed forth, with the three Sentinels of Magic in its captive.
"Wonderful work, my pet," Diablo said, grinning madly, as the Sentinels
began to suffocate within the elemental's
grasp. The mad sorcerer closed his fist, then in a second, opened it,
revealing the Orb of Thessaly in his
possession. "I do believe it is time to say goodbye to this world, Sentinels
of Magic."
The Orb of Thessaly began to glow brightly, and then the Water Elemental
then realized what his master was
doing. "Master....wwwhat aaaare yyyoou dddooing...!??!"
"...every rite must have a sacrifice, my elemental. And you are but useless
to me now. You will be so delighted to
join your brothers and sister..." The orb grew bright red, and the Elemental
screamed in agony, as she and her
captives where drawn into the Orb, to be trapped by her master.
Diablo.
"...now, to take care of other things," he said, returning to his throne
room from above, with the relic in his hands.
Black Orchid stepped out of her hiding place, tears in her eyes.
"Sacre....Mere..."
Blue Devil eyed his dinner, as the scared waitress placed it slowly on the
table. "...And you're scared of me?" He
said, and the woman screamed and rushed back into the kitchen. "Just great,"
he muttered. He was Danny
Cassidy before, altar boy and soon to be priest. However, he recalled, being
bitten by a vampire one cold night
wasn't exactly priest material. He made a pact with some creature to kill
him, for he was afraid, and did so.
There, in hell, he knew pain. Until the Blackheart changed him...into this.
And now "this" was eating his meal.
In a few minutes, the manager came and decided to take the mask off his
face. Problem was, he had no mask.
In another few minutes, he was alone in the diner, since everyone panicked
and, in an understatement of
descriptions, left uneasily. The Blue Devil sighed, and eyed his dinner
again. "...well, they're better than Hell's
mess hall, I guess."
Black Orchid sat on the ancient floor, and wept silently. "No...I should
have...could have...la bouffon stupide,
that's what I am! La bouffon stupide...the traitor. And they all
trusted me too..."
She took the talisman of Gilgamesh in her hands, and wiped it shine, as her
tears blurred its beauty. She stood
up, and turned her back, staring out into the woodlands. "W...where do I run
now?" She broke the clasp of the
talisman, and readied herself to throw it. Suddenly, in a quick pace, she
motioned her hand to drop it on the floor,
instead of throwing it out the window. "Grande Mère, I...I...don't
know."
She picked up the talisman, and placed it in her pocket. The talisman began
to glow brightly, as her valor
outshined her fears.
Black Orchid sighed, and made her way to Diablo's throne room.
At the spur of the moment, demons rushed into the diner, smashing the glass
wide open. The Blue Devil turned,
only to find certain familiar eyes staring at him with devilish intent.
"Oh...you again."
"Remember us, traitor, for your treachery has wounded us of the Blackmist!
You and...the witch! Where is she?
She must pay the price to for her treachery has..."
"...wounded us of the Blackmist. I get the picture. Sure you guys didn't
mess your cue cards?" Blue Devil said
cockily, as the demons hissed. Suddenly, a blast of black energy shot
through the Sentinel, and suddenly he
fell. The Blue Devil was out cold, and the demons began to tie him with the
rainbow chains that bound Fenris,
the wolf of Ragnarok. The woman who shot it smiled, and called for her
demons to bring their prisoner.
From her place, Black Orchid saw Diablo, preparing his potions, and an
ancient knife, readying to kill the man
he had as his hostage. Orchid motioned to take a step, but seemed afraid of
the repurcussions, afraid of the
responsibilities she now beared. But then the talisman began to shine again,
and she placed her foot steadily,
a loud tap to the ears of Diablo.
"...Oh? And who might you be, woman?" the demon sorcerer exclaimed, as Black
Orchid managed to stand
straight amidst her fears.
"Ah...you are a mystic as well. Would you like to join them? There's always
enough room in a dimension
of infinite voids...or would you stand by my side, and join me in a
pursuit?" The sorcerer took a step nearer to
her, and her fears began to form stronger than she had expected. "Join
me...and I can give you anything your
soul desires..."
Black Orchid's eyes brought tears once more. "...don't...."
Diablo's eyes lit up, as Black Orchid summoned a blue wave of spirit energy,
as Chakra spilled forth from the
sorcerer's forehead. "Don't seduce me. Only I do that."
She rushed to the altar, and grabbed a candlestick to burn de Loyola loose.
Then she grabbed the orb, and hid
it within her pocket. Diablo roared angrily, and Orchid to him, with a smile
of confidence in her face.
"Oh, qui, monsieur Diablo. Remember what I said on my cajun tongue? I
don't have to seduce you.
I detest you. Tout à fait parfaitement clair?"
Diablo's eyes narrowed, as locusts began to fly across the throne room, as
the floor began to split open,
revealing a pit of fire, seemingly bottomless going down to Hell. Orchid
grabbed onto a wooden handle, as the
crevice began to widen. "Hueco De Inferno...the pit of Hell.
Beautiful, is it not? May you marvel at its beauty,
witch, for there you shall spend an eternity of pain and suffering!"
The madman grabbed Black Orchid, and tried to throw her into the pit.
Suddenly, She pushed them both into
the fiery depths, with her grabbing onto the edge, and Diablo
falling...falling forever in his pit on torment.
"..Au revoir to bad rubbish, non?" She smiled to herself in
approval, before realizing that all the
things that were in her pockets were now falling off. She searched around,
and found that the Orb and the
Talisman were on a ledge. She had only enough time to grab one, yet she
felt she couldn't live without both.
"...Which one...?" She asked herself. The talisman was shining brightly,
tempting her to grab it. She began to
reach for it, prying her hands towards it. Her hands were beginning to
loosen, she couldn't risk the Orb.
Then she remembered.
She swerved, and grabbed onto the Orb of Thessaly, then threw it out of the
pit. The ledge gave way, as the
Talisman of Gilgamesh fell down into the pit, probably never to be seen
again. Black Orchid climbed her way out,
as the crevice began to seal itself, and the spell was no longer.
Constable de Loyola was stunned, as the mystic held onto the Orb, and kissed
its shiny surface.
"...Zee...I'm sorry."
All's well, ends well? What will be of Zatanna, Dr.Occult and Jonah Hex?
Stick around for 30 days, as
all this transpires...while one of Earth's mystics must die for a mysterious
entity...who's it gonna be?
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
In case you've been wondering why the #2 issue's title is in Spanish, while
#3's title is in French, well you haven't
dwelved deep into the fun yet! Since #2 introduces Diablo in Spain, I
decided to use Spanish. And in #3, Black
Orchid is mostly the centered character, and she's cajun, it's in French!
Well, suprise, suprise...