SoD5

THE SEPARATION OF DESUTOROIA! Desutoroia X Khandejifer! CHAPTER 5: Hellspawn's mansion

Elsewhere, Khandejifer had returned to his grisly and nightmarish domain. He pulled off his mask and tossed it on the couch. After taking Necromancer: The Book of the Damned Dead out of his bag and placing it on the desk, he picked up his mask again and smiled at it.

"I hope this gets your attention, Comedy and Tragedy!" he said with great hatred, but not near as much as he felt for Desutoroia.

"I know you'll be getting all the publicity for this little stunt!" He looked out the window and could see Desutoroia's and Hellspawn's mansion further up the hill.

"What's this?" he wondered aloud. "Someone is at Hellspawn's place?" Khandejifer looked away, laughing.

*****

Rodan2000, Prince of Space and Yuri Manda had become lost and separated on the top floor/level, wandering around and calling to each other and Rodan's cat before something bad happened.

Yuri didn't like the place at all as it gave her a creepy feeling. She had never met Hellspawn, only Mephistophelian, the evil warrior from Faerun who was reincarnated as him. Even though their soul was the same, they were like two different people. Still, she felt uncomfortable with the thought of Hellspawn after seeing him only for a second before he escaped after Apocalypse was separated. She wasn't going to judge him by what she recalled of Apocalypse and Mephistophelian but the thought of this stranger managed to creep her out. She sensed there was still good within the mighty Hellspawn. She came across a very dark room, darker than it should've been. It was as if some outer force of negativity and evil inhabited it. Yuri entered out of curiosity, knowing no demon could ever truly kill her, even if her body was destroyed. This was also true of Ubergeek, Catbert and her other Guardian companions. As she stepped into the middle of the room, the door closed behind her. It was too dark to see anything but when she closed her eyes, she saw the room exactly as if the bedside candles were lit. It wasn't as bright as she would've liked but enough to see some minor features. She let her senses guide her and walked over to the closet by the bed. It looked to be empty but in reality, blood started to pour into it and maggots and other bugs crawled out. The shape of a dead, rotting corpse appeared with burned skin hanging off it. The dead thing reached out to touch her but her senses told her to back away before any harm could come. She then heard the sound of a man murdering a woman beside her. She could not see but heard the sound of a head being smashed with a hammer. Yuri felt like puking and tripped onto the bed but her senses told her to move away. A ghostly dead hand of a skeleton of someone who had lived there long before Hellspawn grabbed her. Yuri escaped from its grip and moved to the center of the room again. She saw nothing but could hear chanting around her. Ghostly forms of men in black cloaks and long robes appeared, their faces hidden by their hoods. They were all chanting different phrases at different speeds.

Five of them kept chanting, "Death Robes," a term Yuri remembered the Orcs using to refer to the Council of Death.

Others were chanting, "Nightmare Realm" over and over again at speeds so fast a normal human would not be able to understand.

One of them, perhaps their leader who had the deepest and darkest voice, was chanting, "War of the Cosmos," over and over again. Each time he said it, it was either too fast or too slow for most people to comprehend. He lunged at Yuri and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her into the air. His hood fell back and revealed a skull.

"Gnimoc si Somsoc eht fo Raw eht," he yelled at her and vanished, along with his fellow Council members as Yuri fell to the floor.

"The War of the Cosmos is coming!" she said to herself but what did it mean, she wondered? Opening her eyes, she found the dead corpse laying lifeless on the bed and candles surrounded her, placed in a circle where the Death Robes had sat and chanted. She looked at her arm and found a maggot biting it. Yuri flicked it off and stepped on it.

There was a portrait of a bearded man from the '50s or earlier on the wall. She looked at it and the face soon changed to match the corpse on the bed. The portrait morphed into the face of death - Hellspawn. She ran from the room, no longer wishing to see what evil lurked in the house, afraid it would convert her from her Utopian ways. She ran down the hall and fell to the floor. Looking back, she saw the frightening shape of something walk into one of the rooms. It was like living a re-enactment of a ghost or alien encounter on TLC. She could only see a shadowy shape but it didn't walk like a human but almost freakishly, like a cartoon or something. There was an evil, demonic and maniacal laughter, or chanting or noise of some sort coming from all over the house...

The sound was starting to scare Yuri. Wherever Rodan and Prince of Space were, they could hear it also and it was scaring them far worse than it was her.

She got up and looked into the room beside her. It was pitch black and she could see nothing until two red glowing eyes appeared. She was creeped out and feared for her life but entered the malevolent room. There was nothing she could see, only hear the muffled voices of the dead and dying. A skeletal hand grabbed her and the hideous mouth of the monster forced its lips to hers. She tried to pull away but couldn't as the ghostly figure tried to remove her clothing. She would have screamed but was helpless. There was a tug on her arm and she came tumbling back into the hallway where she saw Rodan2000.

"R2K! Oh! I'm so glad to see you!" she cried as she held on to him tightly.

"I was worried about you too, baby," he said with deep concern. They then heard the sound of a monstrous laugh coming from the room he had pulled her from...

*****

Sheriff Jaguar did not like what Earth Baragon and Cam had to say about the latest victim. The promising young actor had landed a plum role in the next story arc of ROOSTVILLE: THE SOAP OPERA and now he was dead. There had also been the car bomb attempt on Darkside Reject; as if the unsuccessful first attack on his life was going to be completed. The robot was going over the list of names the Arts Center custodian had provided and wondered where to begin when his top-dog detective came bursting into his office. The Sheriff looked up at some folders and files he had.

"What do you have to report, EB?" he asked, scanning through the material.

"I've had another talk with Darkside and managed to speak with Jangofett, Rodan70 and Mecha-Kumonga."

"Well, what did you find out?"

"I've been able to link the victims to ROOSTVILLE: THE SOAP OPERA," James replied. "First, there were the four couples killed." He handed the Sheriff their files. "They were killed February first. I've checked with the families of the females and it seems they were all hard core fans of Desutoroia and the soap show." He paused and opened the folder on the Sheriff's desk, revealing photos of one of the girls murdered that night. "She was at the Roostville Soap Convention hosted by Desutoroia." The pictures had been taken before Desutoroia's murder. "The same goes for the girl murdered the following day."

"What about the four guys, their boyfriends?"

"I checked out some soap magazines." He handed some to the Sheriff. "Apparently, where the female fans of ROOSTVILLE: THE SOAP OPERA are into the more romantic stuff, the guy fans find Desutoroia to be a sort of role model. Most teenage guys want to be like him. Check the surveys in those magazines."

"So," Jet wondered. "The four girls killed were fans of the show and the males were also?"

"For the girls, it's definite. I checked with their families and their rooms had Roostville soap posters all over them. And shelves and shelves with these magazines."

"Oh," the Sheriff said as he caught on. "And the males represented the populace wanting to be like Desutoroia?"

"Precisely," EB said as he took out another file. "The next victim was C-R-V, head of Curtis Robert Video Productions Limited. He was the head producer of ROOSTVILLE: THE SOAP OPERA. Another link to the show."

"But... what about..." The Sheriff asked sadly. Phish's upgrades to his CPU allowed him to feel sympathy, unlike before.

"Ah, yes. Jangofett's daughter. She was cast as an extra on the famous soap."

"Now, have you figured out anything about Freek Wallace's bizarre murder?"

"Well, as we all know," he began, "Wallace had been supplying the Roostville News Network with confidential information on our killer and the crime scenes that only we need to know. And after a rather unpleasant interrogation with the boss there, I discovered he had given the station some of our files shortly before Wallace kicked the bucket... which later disappeared..."

"The Comedy and Tragedy Killer strikes again!" Jet said as though he were pissed off.

"Robert Ranting and his forensic team examined Space Varen's place. As I suspected, there was nothing that would indicate the killer had been there. No trace of paint and/or blood on the walls. Mass hysteria and delusions."

"Or nightmares maybe?" Jet asked.

"Maybe. Now the cable guy's murder. He worked at the station that broadcast ROOSTVILLE: THE SOAP OPERA but he doesn't seem to have a bigger connection like the previous victims. And Darkside, ho ho... Now HIS attempted murder sure was something."

"What did you find?"

"He directed many of the episodes of ROOSTVILLE: THE SOAP OPERA..." EB sat down opposite the Sheriff. "Now, something doesn't feel right about Chris Glinski's murder."

"Why not?" Jet asked nervously.

"Glinski was found holding a mask representing a sad face. Up to this point, it was customary for the women to have the sad expressions and the men, happy ones." This did not satisfy the Sheriff's logic circuits.

"So what are you implying?" Jet hoped what he thought James thought was wrong.

"Two killers maybe? But there's no proof of two yet."

"That's it!" the Sheriff shouted. "We have got to get cracking and catch this maniac before he kills again!"

"If only it were that simple," EB thought. "If only it were that simple..." Jet took a different tack, profiling the VICTIMS rather than the killer.

"And here we were thinking it was a FAN of the show. How wrong we were!" The robot was about ready to shut down as his artificial intelligence tried to deal with this conflict. Luckily, James was as familiar with computer operations as he was with human sociology. He had to get the Sheriff to reformat his data on the case, and quick.

"TARGETS, Sheriff, targets. That's what we're looking at now. The killer is NOT a fan of ROOSTVILLE: THE SOAP OPERA." Jet sharply snapped his head to the side and refocused his optics on the detective. His data banks settled down in this new line a "reasoning" and he was soon his fully functional self again.

"OK. Where were we..." Within seconds, he rattled off a new list. "The first victims were fans, then a merchant. No apparent relationship between Kaiju-O Gojira and the show. Next, Lord Desutoroia, who appears to be at the center of all this, is attacked but escapes with a minor gunshot wound. C-R-V, the PRODUCER, was next. The killer tangles with Rodan2000 and then delivers a 'clue' to his club that is later determined to be Desu's home address. Oh, and while you were checking those victims, I spoke to Sauron and he said the complaint that got the cable guy out to Desu Hill also supposedly came from that address. He himself took the call and wrote it down but didn't think to check it at the time."

"Before the cable guy was killed, representing the DELIVERY of the show," James picked up the thread, "Jangofett and Rodan70's beautiful little daughter was killed, no doubt for having appeared in the show." The very thought of this particular crime weighed heavily on both robot and human.

"I'm guessing the killer somehow was aware that Freek Wallace was behind all the news on the killings leaking out and decided to put a stop to that particular 'problem' to protect his own hide," Jet continued.

"I have to agree," EB said. "Freek doesn't appear to fit the victim profile whatsoever."

"Then we have Darkside Reject, the director," Jet continued. "The killer didn't get him the first time so a bomb just happens to end up in the car he and I and Raptor were in."

"And as for Chris, he was going to appear in the next story arc. That was his script in the car and the name of the character he would have played, with Darkside's approval, was underlined." James had nothing further to offer but the Sheriff was one step ahead.

"Any idea who might be next?"

The receptionist buzzed the Sheriff and was on another line. "The guy is gone. Missing. He's not here. We have more important things to worry about."

"I know," the manager of the Random Arms apartments said. "But this might help you with the disappearance. At least have someone come look at it."

"Fax it over," she said. Soon the fax came through of a note:

I am in Faerun. Don't send anyone to the place where we fought Mephistophelian or they will be lost here. -RadoGoji

"This is too much for me," the receptionist said. "I don't know of any 'Faerun' or 'Mephistophelian' but if it's so important to you, I'll give it to the Sheriff." After hanging up, she brought it to his office.

"Excuse me, sir. If you have time later, take a look at this. Some crazy apartment manager says he found it in the missing guy's apartment."

"Just leave it on my desk," Jet said. "I have more important things to worry about right now." He and Earth Baragon continued discussing the current situation.

Darkside Reject, not being the kind of person to sit around doing nothing, stopped by and found his way to Jet's office. Curious, he picked up a pile of photos, started to flip through them and soon came to the autopsy shots of one of the victims.

"Ewwww! Oh my god!" They were quite gruesome and he sank into a chair.

"What is it, Darkside?" EB asked, rolling his eyes.

"Don't you get this? All the people that were killed were killed in that order on the show! In the same order!" he yelled, almost ready to jump in the air again.

"What?"

"The latest story arc is a murder mystery, right?"

"Ahhh, right," EB was guessing.

"In the first show was some teens I hired off the street to be in crowd scenes, right?"

"OK..."

"ALL the actors that played a victim, plus actors that lived, were killed in the same order as the show."

"Darkside! This means that we can find out who is going to be killed ahead of time?" James asked, as excited as the director.

"So who's going to get killed next?" Jet looked from one to the other of his visitors. Darkside had to stop and think for a second, pacing back and forth.

"I remember! In the latest episode, 'Abe' Carter, one of the Chief's..." Darkside's voice trailed off but he stared wide eyed at Jet.

"So what happens?"

"A Mod, "Darkside said in a low voice. James also stared as Raptor passed by and peeked in. Seeing the Sheriff had company, she continued on her way.

"Well," Webster said oddly, standing next to Darkside who was watching her. "That's quite an interesting theory... But the cable guy, Kaiju-O Gojira and Chris Glinski don't fit it!"

"Hmm?"

"Kaiju-O Gojira owned a gun shop and had no time for acting. I probably shouldn't be telling you this but he was shot dead at his place of business and several guns are unaccounted for."

"An armed robbery?"

"Something like that," Webster assured him. "His murder has no connection to the COMEDY and TRAGEDY killings..."

"Chris Glinski had just landed a part and wasn't written out. He was going to play a reoccurring role. His murder doesn't fit your theory either, nor does the cable guy who didn't even watch the show." Darkside felt a strange feeling in his gut.

"Freek Wallace, the District Attorney from Mecha City, doesn't fit either. As a matter of fact, I checked with the family and friends of the first eight victims. None of them appeared on the show as actors. If they had, we would've known about it." Darkside gave him a funny look which was returned by the Mod.

"But... I thought..."

"Darkside, you're probably still in shock from the incident with the killer," EB suggested, implying he was undergoing what he thought Space Varen had experienced: a form of mass hysteria and delusions. Most of the things going on were probably still a bit unclear to Darkside.

"Well then," Darkside said, again glancing down the hall at Raptor. "Is she or is she not going to be next?"

"I wouldn't worry about it. Raptor is not a fan of soap operas. Nor am I or most of us at this station," EB informed him with a cold look. "Besides... there's got to be a deeper connection than this show."

"Desutoroia?"

"That may just be the key word," he agreed. "Or perhaps there's something that goes even deeper than all of this, maybe even excluding Desutoroia from the mix. But that's all guess work at this point." EB then picked up a soap magazine and handed it to the famous director.

"I know you've only directed some of the show but if someone wants to catch up a bit on the plot, there's this magazine on ROOSTVILLE: THE SOAP OPERA. It highlights the latest plot twists, including Marlena being revealed to be the Roostville Stalker. There's nothing on the extras you mentioned."

"Thank you, officer." Darkside got up and left the office, again staring in the direction Raptor had taken.

"What was he doing here?" the Sheriff asked.

"Probably thought he could help us on the case," James guessed.

"And did he?"

"His theory came up inclusive. I think he's still in shock from what happened, even if he can't remember the killer's face."

"Did he have anything solid to offer?"

"He thinks Raptor will be the serial killer's next victim. Raptor doesn't fit our victim profile, however."

"But if not Raptor," Jet Jaguar asked, "then who?"

*****

Rodan2000 and Yuri Manda wandered around the upstairs of Hellspawn's mansion for what seemed like forever. The imperishable scent of death could be smelt throughout the house. The evil was absolute and the undying face of death could be seen and heard wherever one stepped. The undead looked as if there was no tomorrow.

The place was deathless in its own way, like a tomb for malice. And just like Hellspawn, it was immoral, corrupted, wicked and wrong. It was a house of sin, something Yuri detested greatly.

"This place is like one long maze!" Rodan shouted, finally breaking the silence between them.

"A labyrinth built by those who are dead..." Yuri muttered as she saw what no one else could see. The place was built long before Hellspawn was even born. Two brothers, both Satanic members of the occult, built the mansion for worship on the land that would one day be known as Desu Hill. In a fight over the land rights, one of them had murdered the other, opening the house to negativity and pure evil. Spirits were welcomed in, along with other demonic entities.

As they walked down another long hallway, evil faces of skinless beings and tortured souls could be seen; smiling, grinning and sadistic faces of messengers of evil. Rodan and Yuri could see them watching from the rooms. They seemed to stay in place, glaring at them but they knew they could attack them at many minute. Just the look of the beasts scared Rodan more than ever. There was evil chanting and maniacal laughter all around. The faces disappeared but the sounds they made remained.

Rodan got even more scared and freaked out when the demons turned invisible and were walking past them, unseen in the hallway.

"Yuri... I..." he started to say, being lifted into the air and thrown back. She screamed his name but Rodan appeared to be lost to her. She heard the sound of a knife clicking open and turned swiftly, grabbing the hand that held it. At first, no shape could be seen but then one appeared.

"Prince of Space?" she asked.

"Yuri?" He put down the knife. "Where's Rodan2000?"

"I'm here," he said, his eyes glowing much different than usual. "And I've brought a friend along." His voice was strange and sounded like two voices talking over each other. A transparent yet brightly shining blue aura appeared: the ghost of Hozay, floating through the air with the body armor that Mephistophelian had worn. Rodan was let go from his control.

"Hellspawn?" Yuri asked, sensing a bit of good within his soul.

"No! I am Hozay, or what remains of him... Before I became Hellspawn. Just as I have helped Desutoroia, I shall help you three escape the evil that lays sleeping here..." Rodan suspected that he was lying.

"Really, now? Why don't you just kill us and be over with it? That's what you want! It's what you always wanted, Mephisto!"

"Shhh! He's not Mephistophelian," Yuri told her husband. The sound of a chainsaw ripping through flesh could be heard coming from one of the mansion's lower levels. Rodan became disgusted by this.

"And what tricks does the Devil play now?" he asked sarcastically.

"I was foolish to think I could not be denied my overall destiny... My soul now wanders this place of the living dead... Let me redeem myself by showing you the way out... but be warned, there are many evils that lurk in this mansion." Hozay looked down at the floorboards which were rotten and full of cracks. He and Yuri could both feel a new presence that had entered the building.

"Let's hurry," she said. "Before it's too late!" Hozay's glowing spirit gave them some light to finally see clearly. As they passed by a room which once belonged to a female slave of the mansion's original owners, two rotting corpses peeked out at the flesh creatures. Two red eyes, larger than a normal man's body, opened up on the walls behind the threesome. As Prince of Space turned back, the eyes were already shut but he could see them. He stared at the spot for a moment before catching up with his friends. As he turned away, the eyes opened and corpses raised up from the floor boards. At least now all Rodan had to do was find his beloved cat, Tigerlily.

Looking at the rooms, he saw a pair of green glowing eyes staring back at them at human level.

"Watch out!" yelled Prince of Space. A meow was heard and the floorboards creaked, giving way to a creature. As the eyes stepped into the light around them, they saw a beautiful sight. A fur covered, tiger striped female body with a cat head appeared with a sword strapped to its back.

"Tigerlily?" Rodan asked, surprised. He and Prince of Space were both in a state of shock and disbelief.

"Yes, that's me," she replied. "There is an evil presence here and I have come to fight it. You three were never supposed to follow me. You must follow him now," she gestured at Hozay. "He will show you out. Do not worry about me, I'll be fine. I have come to fight as it is my destiny. If I fall, that is my destiny also." There was to be no argument as she had come to do a job. They had interfered and must leave as soon as possible.

"Just make sure you come out alive," Yuri said, the only one who seemed to think of talking cats as normal.

"Do not worry," she purred. "I'll be fine. After all, I have nine lives." She smiled and a warrior glaze filmed over her eyes as she turned at a sound. "Hurry, get out!" she yelled. "The evil has arrived!" She ran into the darkness, sword drawn and ready to battle.

*****

Kiryu Goji and Godzilla Guy were alone at the Jalepino Club, staring at the open door. The others had run out and they had hardly budged, save for running upstairs and creating a pillow barricade at the top of the stairwell. They stared, with potato and squirt guns drawn and plastic helmets guarding their heads. They watched the door with fear, waiting for someone to come in, whether it be Rodan2000 and friends or the killer.

"So when do you think they're coming back?" asked Kiryu, wide eyed.

"What if they don't?" Godzilla Guy wondered. They ducked down behind the barricade and turned toward each other.

"What are we gonna do?! WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO?!?!?" whimpered Kiryu.

"Pull yourself together, man! We're gonna be all right. We're making a big deal out of noth..." He was cut short by a footstep outside. "Shhh..." he whispered and looked over the barricade. The footsteps neared and in walked a cloaked figure with a mask. Half comedy, half tragedy. He closed the door slowly behind him. Kiryu and GG were trapped inside the club with the killer.

Outside, Khandejifer watched as the oh-so-recognizable cloak seemed to float into the building and the door shut.

"So, killer. You've finally shown yourself again..." he whispered to himself, putting on his own fierce and bloody hockey mask. "The hunt has begun..."

Khandejifer loathed the Comedy and Tragedy Killer. No one was going to ruin Desutoroia's life except him. That joy he wanted all to himself. The killer was a threat to him but as much as he loathed the intruder, he loathed Desutoroia even more. Khandejifer lurked outside before sneaking into the Jalepino Club unnoticed through the back door. As he entered, he could smell the odor of death in the cold and misty air. Khandejifer made his way to the killer and could feel the monster's presence but wasn't sure where he was. He removed his switchblade and pushed through stacked boxes as he came to a door, opening it a slight inch or so and peeking through. He saw the treacherous face of evil, the mask of death. As he watched, the Killer pulled a package from his pocket and placed it on one of the tables. Khandejifer, still hiding behind the door, slowly backed up and fell over one the boxes, landing flat on the floor. He immediately got up as the Comedy and Tragedy Killer looked over at the doorway which led to the fire exit. It was opened slightly but had been shut when he entered. He stepped forward but heard something upstairs. He looked up and ran. Meanwhile, Khandejifer had escaped to the outside.

"Beware Comedy and Tragedy," he said in a deep, dark voice. "Desutoroia is my prey and mine alone!" When he had come around the front to face the killer, he was gone. Khandejifer then fled the scene.

Inside, Godzilla Guy and Kiryu Goji came downstairs from their hiding place, holding brooms as weapons, unaware that the danger was over. Kiryu Goji spotted the table where they had been playing cards and noticed something. There was a package on it.

"Wh-what do you think it is, Kiryu?" Godzilla Guy whispered across the room.

"A package," he replied, staring. "Signed by the Comedy and Tragedy Killer." He noticed each letter on the package had been cut from a magazine.

"Let me see!" Godzilla Guy tried to grab it.

"No!" Kiryu pulled his arm away. "We mustn't touch it! We've got to call the Mods."

"Sure thing," he reluctantly agreed.

*****

Rodan2000, his wife and friend seemed to follow Hozay in an endless circle around the top floor of the bizarre mansion.

"Be careful," Hozay warned. "You may become lost. Now hurry up!" Prince of Space glided along cheerfully, yet also feeling scared. He seemed to be the only one to notice the portraits on the wall had been moving and making faces at them, snarling, grinning, mocking and even taunting.

"How did you ever manage to live in this place?" he asked.

"Let's just say I was misguided and unfortunate," Hozay replied. Prince stopped and glanced into a dark and bitterly cold room. The body of young girl fell out, covered in blood as if she had been stabbed to death. He stared in horror as a feminine voice called him into the tainted room. Like with Yuri, as he came in, the door shut behind him. A purple light shined from the ceiling, revealing a woman, badly burnt. Her body was all black and completely unrecognizable.... the image of a frightening ghost. Only half of her face had remained in tact. As she looked at Prince, he felt his life flashing before him and began to sweat uncontrollably. He finally knew what real fear was... He stepped back as the evil entity reached out her hand to him. Her lips were as black as ash but called to him. He fell back but the frightening girl pulled him up towards her and she started to kiss him. Not thinking straight and enjoying it, he kissed her back. The she-devil's hand managed to penetrate through the skin of Prince's chest, causing blood to spill but still arousing the galactic Prince. When she pulled away, his mouth was burning and covered in ash. He screamed in agony as fangs appeared in her cremated mouth and bit into his thick and juicy neck, draining him of blood and his life force. As Prince of Space could feel his life being sucked away, he saw the chanting demons surrounding him as he was dropped to the ground in a burning ring of fire. The beasts that surrounded him were behind anything his imagination could conceive. Demons more frightening than the most graphic horror and slasher films. The most disgusting creatures he had ever seen. He felt a hand drag him free and suddenly, he was back in the hallway with Rodan2000 and Yuri.

"I warned you," Hozay said.

*****

At the Jalepino Club, Earth Baragon and Enshohma had arrived, among others. EB removed what was in the package: a photograph of a dead girl laying in bed, with Desutoroia apparently unconscious by her side on the floor. While Enshohma talked with Kiryu Goji and Godzilla Guy, James informed the Sheriff of what he had found. Jet told him to bring the photo down to the station and have Robert Ranting and his forensic group analyze it.

*****

"Prince... are you okay?" asked Yuri, holding the man's head up in her hands. Nothing.

"Prince, this is R2K. Can you hear me? Come on, man. It's gonna be all right... come on." Rodan2000 pleaded over the still form.

"I... I... can't go on..." Prince said and collapsed.

"He's dead," said Hozay.

"No he's not" yelled Yuri. "He cant be... dead!" she insisted and began weeping.

Rodan2000 felt himself falling. He was on his knees, eyes hot and burning, tears slipping down his beak as he wept. He raised his head and roared a cry that shook the mansion. It was then he noticed the deadly creature heading towards them and Yuri screamed. He felt his blood boiling and leapt up and ran toward it, pure fury and pain and misery streaking from his eyes as he dashed madly at the oncoming monster. Hot, burning pure light burst from his beak as he ran straight through the beast. The creature disappeared in a burst of flame as the pterodactyl flung himself for his friends. It was enveloped in a ray of light that seemed to come from the sky, burning through the ceiling. The monster burst into a dusty cloud, immersing the scene in a coating of vile dust. Out of the light beam came a golden orb, glowing as it lowered down to float at eye level, then disperse into a golden medallion with the figure of an hourglass engraved on it.

Tears still flowing, he managed to whisper, "Time Flash Rodan." The medallion grew a ribbon and placed itself around his neck as light enveloped him. When he emerged his body was leaner and thinner. His eyes glowed golden and his head sported three horns. His body had faded to a greenish tint and wings had turned a pale golden color.

"Rodan? R2k?" asked Yuri.

"I am now Time Flash Rodan!" he yelled and disappeared with a flash. "Now I have the power to slightly alter time!" His words were heard after he was gone. He arrived directly before Prince of Space had gotten killed. The deadly lips almost locked with the Prince before the monster was blasted away by a blast of Green and Gold streaked atomic breath. Prince of Space returned to normal and looked up, seeing R2K in his new form.

"Thanks, man," he said and joined his friends again. Time Flash Rodan returned to the present to find Prince completely fine.

"Again, thanks man," he said.

"Next time, just be more careful," said TF Rodan, returning to normal mode. "Now this will come in handy" he said, fingering the new medallion.

"Hurry," said Hozay. "We have to get out. NOW." He was urgent and the group kept on their way.

Hozay had led Rodan2000 and the others to the first level of his former mansion. However, the demons and spirits that infested the place had removed all windows and doors. And unlike the upstairs, this part of the house became more of a puzzle. The place was like a massive labyrinth haunted by those who are dead and forgotten. The air around the gang became cold and bitter with the smell of rotting corpses and dead bodies. This floor was darker and created a more scarier feel. Insane, maniacal, evil, malicious, malevolent, sick, psychotic and twisted laughs of hatred could be heard from all around. As Rodan2000 and the others followed, they soon caught on that Hozay hadn't even known the way to freedom. The place had changed since he was sent to jail. It had become a gateway for those who died horrible and miserable deaths to come back and live in contempt. A gateway to bridge the living with the dead. Yuri had worried about something like this but kept quiet about it. Prince of Space was in front of Rodan, lurking behind Hozay to not get tricked by a demon again. Hozay stopped and motioned his fingers oddly to signal for them to halt. A fierce, feminine warrior leapt out and passed through Hozay and she landed on Rodan2000. It was his cat, Tigerlily, in her humanoid form. Prince of Space, even though he had already seen her like this, was still a bit surprised and shocked. Rodan and Yuri were not.

"Tigerlily!" Rodan2000 said as he tried to help her up. The cat leapt to her feet and let loose a meowish cry. Hozay was not the least bit surprised when what little light was around him and the others disappeared and the place became pitch black. When a tiny bit returned, everyone was at the main lobby/entrance but no door or windows were present. A thick, black ooze was floating in the air and two tentacles shot from it and grabbed Rodan by his neck, then dropped him to the floor. An eye opened in the middle of the floating ooze and looked directly at the furious cat. Yuri stared at Tigerlily, then at the one-eyed ooze of eternal blackness. She closed her eyes and could see the Death Robes who had warned her of the War of the Cosmos. Tigerlily roared at the evil thing. Yuri opened her eyes and saw that her worst fears had come true: this mansion really was able to bridge the dead and the demonic with the land of the living. This beast was proof. Whatever "IT" was, Yuri had suspected it must've escaped from some alternate reality or Hell, or even limbo.

"The great eye!" Yuri muttered.

"Stay back," Tigerlily purred. "This is my destiny."

Rodan2000 and Prince of Space watched as the evil thing loomed and kept its eye on the two girls. A light, almost faint yet evil, twisted and dark voice came from all over the room chanting, "Theos Gaia... Theos Gaia... Theos Gaia..." Over and over again.

"Theos Gaia?!" Yuri said in astonishment. "Where have I heard of that before?" The voice, or voices, continued chanting the name over and over again. Hozay didn't seem to care much for the oozing menace. To him, it was just another anomaly, like every other creature that infested his house. But Yuri had heard that name before somewhere and it didn't sit right with her.

"Run!" Tigerlily roared. "I'll protect you from that... it!"

Rodan2000 nodded. Prince of Space grabbed Yuri Manda and the three quickly started to follow Hozay again. As he looked back, he got to see the true face of horror... A face that managed to frighten him. He watched Tigerlily as she began to battle the entity. He shed a tear...

*****

The Sheriff, with his highly advanced robotic sensors, analyzed the photograph James Webster had handed him. Jet Jaguar scanned the back and some of the background of the photograph.

"This picture definitely isn't a fraud or computer generated. It's real."

"How old is it? Can you tell?" Webster asked.

"Few years at the most. Judging from these small, micro-sized symbols on the back that Kodak used, around five years ago. I'd say around the year 2011 or 2010."

"When Desutoroia was becoming really successful with that show," Webster pointed out.

"Desutoroia was already famous near the end of 2007, early 2008," the Sheriff said. "Also, check the background in the picture... look familiar?"

"Yeah. That's the hotel over in Kong Town."

"Precisely."

"As Bato-Goji would say," Webster began. "This all adds up to a sinister riddle." Webster looked at the picture and held it close to his face.

"You want to call Desutoroia over here for questioning?" he asked.

"No, not yet, at least. Give him some time to get over some of the recent events."

"Right. How about I call Sheriff Young in Kong Town? Perhaps he could provide us with the answers."

"Good thinking, Webster," Jet said. "Go do it immediately." Leaving him alone to finish up his paperwork on the case, the Sheriff was jotting something down and dropped his pen on the floor. He bent down to pick it up and found a small piece of paper on the floor. It was a faxed message that read:

I am in Faerun. Don't send anyone to the place where we fought Mephistophelian, or they will be lost here. -RadoGoji

"How did this get here? I'll have to check it out with the receptionist." Webster then re-entered the office.

"What did you find?"

"In late 2010, a young girl was murdered in Kong Town. The Mods came to her apartment and found Desutoroia unconscious at the scene. The case has since gone cold and the killer was never caught..."

"Do you think..?"

"That it's our guy, I'll bet my life on it."

"Do you have anything else on the unsolved murder case?"

"Sheriff Young said he'd fax us the details as quickly as possible. Hopefully, they'll be arriving shortly." The Sheriff stood and walked past Webster, ready to leave.

"Now shall I call Desu?"

"Not yet... Not yet."

*****

Hozay watched the cycloptic ooze-creature as it attacked Tigerlily. Launching its tentacles at her and wrapping her up and draining her energy, thousands of voices at different speeds chanted the name, "Theos Gaia," as if to taunt her. Hozay just gazed at them while Rodan2000 looked at him, then at his cat. Hozay stared deep into the eye of the beast and muttered under his breath.

"What dimension did you come from?"

Rodan and Prince of Space looked up at him with confused expressions on their faces. Yuri never took her concentration off Tigerlily or the wretched beast. Slowly, it was draining the life out of Tigerlily as she leaned against the wall, struggling to remove the tentacles that engulfed her body. The demon's eye split in half and started to slowly extract. It was separated across the middle, opening as if it were a mouth. Sharp knife-like teeth appeared where a human would have lips and a small demonic head come out of the mouth, attached to a long neck, similar to what happened in ALIEN but much more frightening. Hozay remembered that when Mephistophelian was controlling his body and Princess of Space had destroyed the Universal Bridge, he was catapulted into an oblivion. In what felt like two seconds for us felt like years for him as he was shot through dimensions. From alternate universes, the ancient past, distant future and even through limbo and hell he was sent. His journey had felt like centuries. Buried within his subconscious, Hozay knew this "thing" looked familiar to him as if he had encountered it, or one just like it, before. But he couldn't remember where it was... He then slowly pieced together a memory of his journey and recalled being trapped within a small twisted and demonic dimension; a hellish, malicious, fiendish and devilish place. Hozay didn't remember what, but something about the place didn't feel right. His mind was lost from reality but when he came to, he took one final look at the beast and remembered what he had feared about that dimension. He was still Mephistophelian at the time and was weak and weary. He recalled floating for days, years even, into the nothingness of space until he was attacked by gigantic, parasitic amoeba creatures. They were different shapes and sizes and part of a bigger, much more powerful entity. A great being whose very presence had filled him with fear. Hozay had come across thousands, mighty legions, of whatever was attacking Tigerlily.

"NO!" Hozay yelled out as he pushed through Prince of Space and Rodan2000 to the cat's aid. He leapt at the parasite and pulled it away just before it bit off a part of her head. Mighty snake-like limbs crawled out from Hozay's palms, battling the thing's vast tentacles. As they clashed, sparks were sent flying from the metal ooze of the parasite. Tigerlily stood up but she was weak from battle and collapsed again. Rodan2000 ran to her but Yuri pulled him back. Meanwhile, the giant behemoth, Hozay and the parasitic creature clashed like Godzilla and his mighty foes. Their limbs and tentacles swung at each like fierce knives but failed to hurt each other. Hozay then pushed through the oozing tentacles and grabbed the parasite demon. His hands passed through the body and got stuck inside. The tongue-mouth then lashed at Hozay but failed to take a bite at him. Hozay shook it loose and threw it down the hall. Simultaneously, Tigerlily transformed back into her original cat form.

"I hope that's the last one I encounter," Hozay muttered.

He could hear the sound of a thousand men chanting, "Theos Gaia." For what significance it had, he did not know.

"Quickly," Hozay demanded. "Let's get out of here." He floated ahead and the gang followed with Tigerlily being held in Rodan2000's arms. As they left the room and proceeded down the hall, many of the parasitic demons loomed out and gazed at the passing intruders.

*****

Desutoroia was laying in the middle of the street as a massive fire blazed around him. The flames, a great inferno, flared around him. As he lay there, weak, sweating and bleeding, the flames rose higher. Emerging from a large fuel truck, the cause of the burning fire, was Khandejifer, half of his face missing and the left side of his head was a badly burnt skull. His entire body was drenched in blood. Khandejifer clenched his fist as his left eye fell from its socket into his coal black hand. He opened the passenger door of the smashed truck and grabbed Jenny by the arm. He pulled her out, ripping her body through the tight seat belt. He dragged her with him into the flames. She was badly beaten and scarred all over. Her face and wrists were cut bad. Khandejifer smiled with delight at the ugly sight. He was pleased to know Desutoroia was watching him and could see Jenny in her horrible state. Khandejifer laughed maniacally and dragged her through the flames. She was weary and weak, near death. Her body scraped along the hard, rough pavement; her leg and arm caught on fire. Jenny was in no condition to be dragged around like that but Khandejifer didn't care, just as long as Desutoroia was the one to suffer the most in the end.

"This is what you get. This is what you asked for, what you wanted. This is the penalty for loving Desutoroia," Khandejifer said, laughing in Jenny's face. But as weak a state as she was was in, she was strong inside. "Maybe if you hadn't loved him like you do, perhaps I would've left you alone! But it's too late for that now... You've already made the mistake! Hopefully, you'll remember not to let this happen again in your next life." Khandejifer threw Jenny's battered body to the ground to be consumed and eaten by the flames. Desutoroia still lay weak on the burning ground, looked up at Khandejifer and reached his arm out.

"No!" he shouted in vain. Khandejifer looked down at his halfling, smiled at him, removed a Walther 38 from his pocket and aimed at Desutoroia.

"Don't worry, brother dearest," Khandejifer said happily with a sinister voice. "I plan to keep you alive for as long as I possibly can." He looked over the torched body of Jenny. "Long enough to endure great suffering by her most tragic death!"

Khandejifer fired at Desutoroia's burning legs. One of the bullets pierced his right leg in the knee and severed it from his body. He then bent down into the fire and grabbed Desutoroia by the collar of his shirt and lifted him high in the air.

"Hope you have fun, brother, as I know I will!" Khandejifer was holding him with his left hand and aimed his Walther with his right. Desutoroia was more afraid and depressed than ever in his life. A bullet passed through Desutoroia's temple, destroying his brain.

"Hahahaha dear halfling! I have won!"

Desutoroia was awakened from his deep slumber by the sound of his phone ringing. It was irritating at first and caught him by surprise. He bashed the phone, knocking it to the floor and causing it to break. After realizing his disturbing death was just a dream or a nightmare, he got back to being his normal self.

"I've got to get out of this house!" He grabbed his coat and walked out the door. There was a Mod outside, assigned to watch over him. Desutoroia explained he had some things to do and walked off. As he was walking down Destroyah Drive, he looked over at Hellspawn's house. There was a strange light coming from within and he thought he saw a cycloptic eye with a shapeless shadow for a body staring at him...

"Must've been my eyes playing tricks on me," he said as the light faded and the eye disappeared. Desutoroia then walked off into town, cautious of everyone who passed by him.

CHAPTER 6: Valentine's Day