Blue balls of plasma burned through the flesh of the Barons of Hell, leaving their caracasses burning and boiling as the marine moved through Deimos base. It was evident that the facility around him was changing, becoming one with Hell. The organic matter spread like a virus, covering the walls and devouring the metal it covered. There was no time to focus on the infernal disease though, all that mattered was escape. If the teleporters were still intact, it meant that Blazkowicz stood a chance at returning to Phobos. From there though, he had no idea what he would do.
Blazkowicz couldn't lose to his fury, he had to stay focused and aware at all times. The dozens of Barons he faced were powerful opponents, and any slip up would mean his death. The plasma rifle proved a most useful ally though, and it wasn't long until he was moving forward with confidence. The occasional security corpse provided more weapons for the marine, from pistols to shotguns, and even a chainsaw. The temptation to use the tool was powerful, butBlazkowicz resisted, and kept attacking with caution. When he arrived at an armory, it seemed like an oasis in a desert of fire and brimstone.
The weight of the minigun Blazkowicz now found himself in possession of, mixed with the other weapons and a rocket launcher with four grenades, was enough to lower his speed to a slow jog. With a grin hidden behind his blue visor, the marine moved onwards, opening the doors of the armory to see an approaching Baron of Hell. The whirl of the barrel spinning was music to his ears, played on the most heavenly of instruments. The chorus of tiny explosions as bullets ripped through the Baron's flesh and bones was the most satisfying of drums, and the demon's body hitting the ground with a wet thump was the perfect end to the song. Then he simply continued onwards.
It was nearly an hour before Blazkowicz reached the teleporter hub, and like the rest of the base it was nearly unrecognizable. Computers seemed to be made of wood, while eyes stared out at him from where screens had been, and mouths growing from the walls mashed their jaws in hunger. Several zombies turned as the door opened, but moments later they were nothing more than a heap of lead, cloth, and gore as the marine approached the teleporters. There were six in total, each one unmarked, and only three seemed to still be active.
"Fucking great," he muttered to himself. "Let's go with door number one."
He entered a teleporter at random and took a deep breath as green energy washed over him, before disappearing in a flash of light. The smell of sulphur grew stronger, as Blazkowicz looked out over a sea of demons slaughtering each other indiscriminately. He stood perched in a skeletal hand overlooking them, while the unmistakable sight of human structures rested in the distance. With an exhale, Blazkowicz pulled the trigger of his chaingun. It's whirl caught the attention of the demons closest to him, but by the time they realized what they were looking at, it was too late.
Bullets ripped through infernal flesh as Blazkowicz slowly walked forward, cleaving a path through the seemingly endless horde. The weapon mowed through demons by the dozens, staining the jagged red rocks with blood of crimson and cobalt. When at last the weapon gave no more than its gentle whirl, Blazkowicz forced it through the chest of a pinky demon, knocking it to the ground where it coughed up its own blood. Before the horde could grow close, Blazkowicz revved up his chainsaw and basked in the harmony of its roar, before slicing the head off the beast. What was once blind rage, was now tactical and deliberate. He cut the legs out from beneath the imps, gouged the eyes of the cacodemons, and disemboweled the pinkies. Sixty-two metal teeth tasted demonic blood as The Unchained Predator made his way towards the infernal city of Dis.
Only the eldest of demons fled, for it was they who remembered this fury from ages past. The Hellwalker was a brand upon their minds they could never forget, one who haunted their every waking moment. Now, he had returned, unleashing his vengeance upon the residents of Hell once again, or so they thought. In truth, Blazkowicz's rage was nothing compared to what would soon blossom. The rage of anger and hatred is nothing compared to the rage of sorrow and heartbreak.
The Palace of Many Demons, Pandemonium, grew ever closer as Blazkowicz tore his way from the horde, coating himself in blood and entrails. Suddenly he was beyond them, facing the open thick wooden doors of the stone building. Without wasting time he ran inside, threw his chainsaw aside, and drew the plasma rifle. The approaching demons squealed in pain as plasma ripped through their bodies like a hose through reams of paper. With all of his strength, Blazkowicz pulled each door shut while still firing, just barely managing to keep the infernal horde at bay. By the time each door had been shut, the gun burned his hand as steam rose off its barrel.
Blazkowicz returned the weapon to his back and reclaimed his chainsaw as he took a look around. Pandemonium was a mess of stone corridors and winding staircases, almost like a medieval castle. That was, until it abruptly turned to metal in some places, while pillars of intestines replaced support columns. Skulls decorated the walls, fires burning in their eye sockets to provide light, while some rooms were almost pitch black. It wasn't long until Blazkowicz came across a group of imps, and he treated them like every other demon he had come across. They were left butchered and unrecognizable as he ventured deeper into the palace, looking for any exit he could find.
Pinky demons and spectres alike chased the marine through the palace, each earning its death with pride at the hands of his chainsaw. As he grew deeper into Pandemonium, lost souls began to attack from above, doing little more than burn his skin beneath his armor. Blazkowicz pushed onwards, cutting through every enemy in his path, until at last the chainsaw ran out of gas. Now nearly useless, he tossed it aside, and began to take on his enemies with his trusty combat shotgun.
That was, until deep into the building, he uncovered a weapon that seemed to be a gift from the gods. It rested clutched tight in the claws of a rotting corpse, belonging to what Blazkowicz assumed to be a scientist. Just how the man managed to get this far into Hell, he had no idea. The weapon was made of white steel, with a number of red lights on it, and strange sliders. Of course, he slid them all to what he assumed to be max settings, and looked for an ammo tank. He was pleasantly surprised to find it was still half loaded, and used the same energy cells as his plasma rifle. With a smile, Blazkowicz looked over the inscription on the side of the weapon's chassis.
"The BFG 9000," he whistled. "The Big Fucking Gun."
Not just any devilish nemesis would be a target for Blazkowicz's new toy. As he pumped buckshot into the zombies and imps that inhabited Pandemonium, he kept his eyes out for any sign of a Baron of Hell. as luck would have it, only a few minutes later he stumbled upon two at the bottom of a staircase overlooking a pool of lava. With a gleeful smile Blazkowicz pulled the trigger of the BFG, which sent a vibration and wave of warmth up his spine as it charged up. Before either Baron could even raise its palm to conjure fire, the weapon fired. A massive ball of green energy filled with flickering white lights burst out from the barrel, and let nothing stand in the way. In the blink of an eye it left nothing where it touched, burning through the flesh and bones of the Barons as though they were made of paper. The ball hit a metal wall behind them and let off a blast of kinetic energy as it dyed out, while the Barons both slumped over dead with what little remained of their torsos.
"God damn beautiful," Blazkowicz purred as he slung the BFG over his shoulder.
He continued onwards, deeper into the palace, until metal became stone once more, and it became evident that he was now traveling upwards once again. Undeterred by the forces of Hell, the marine fought through the doors of The House of Pain, leaving it littered with corpses and bullet holes. He broke down the doors of The Unholy Cathedral of Kaliban, and flayed the Hell Priests who prayed to their devil even as he blew them away with his shotgun. Whether it was the red of pain and violence or Hell itself, Blazkowicz had no idea what coated his vision. All he knew were the enemies he gunned down, and the need to continue onwards, killing everything that got in his way.
As his plasma rifle stopped firing, Blazkowicz wasted no time in bashing an imp's head in with it, before jamming it down the throat of a pinky demon. He tore out one of the beast's tusks and slit its throat, before ramming the tooth through the eye of a cacodemon. As the demon fell from the air, the marine turned and threw the tusk into the chest of an approaching imp, knocking it to the ground where it gasped for air through its punctured lung. Each and every demon that came for him was slain, every single body left bloody and broken, there was nothing the lesser demons could do to stop his assault upon the city of Dis.
Claws broke themselves against the metal of his armor in an attempt to stop him. Fireballs burned his skin. Electricity fried his muscles. Blazkowicz felt his hands breaking as he beat down his enemies, each small crack sending a jolt of pain through his body that only amplified with each subsequent strike. Despite how hard he fought, Blazkowicz could feel himself weakening. His armor breaking. His guns running low on ammo. But he continued, because it was all he could do. He would never give Hell the satisfaction of claiming his soul. Not again.
By the time Blazkowicz reached the center of Dis, his left pauldron had been torn off and a bite wound bled profusely. His visor was cracked open, and several small shards of glass had embedded above his nose. A number of cracks and cuts rested across his armor, while the environmental suit beneath had been ripped open and burned, with scorched lacerations riddling his abdomen. In his right hand, he held the severed head of an imp, its jaw dislocated and left eye missing.
Blazkowicz walked forward, his eyes unblinking as he took in the sights around him. On either side of the X shaped area near him were two cacodemons. In the middle of the area was a circular tower, blocking his view of the other two corners. As he stepped towards the right, the whirl of a chaingun filled his ears. Blazkowicz barely managed to hide behind the tower as bullets ripped through the stone, several hitting a cacodemon in its face. The demon let out a squeal of pain before flying overhead, while the other three began to conjure their electrical blasts. Once more he heard the chaingun firing, before something heavy and wet hit the ground nearby. It didn't take a genius to deduce what this was.
Just as the cacodemons fired, Blazkowicz dove out from behind cover and began running as fast as he could. The Spider Mastermind roared at him as she fired, her bullets narrowly missing Blazkowicz. Just as he anticipated, several stray rounds hit the cacodemons, who turned their attention to their master. As he grew close he began to unload his shotgun into the monster, while it was preoccupied with the cacodemons. They only managed to hit the Mastermind a few times before it butchered them with its chaingun, and turned its attention back to Blazkowicz just as he reached his last shell.
The Mastermind swatted Blazkowicz away with one of its bulky metal legs, but in a moment he had recovered and glared at the demon as he plotted out his next attack. Then suddenly he was knocked onto his chest as a surge of pain washed over his back. Blazkowicz quickly rolled over to see a Baron of Hell charging towards him, its claws pulled back as it prepared to strike. Blazkowicz narrowly rolled out of the way, before grabbing hold of its arm to pull himself to his feet. Taking advantage of its confusion, Blazkowicz dove behind the Baron as the Mastermind once more fired at him without considering the consequences. Just like before, the demon was more concerned with the insult of injury than finishing off its prey.
Blazkowicz watched as the Baron marched forward, shrugging off the machine gun rounds. While it ripped chunks of brain off the Spider Mastermind, Blazkowicz drew his rocket launcher. The first rocket missed, and instead hit the ground to the Mastermind's right and blew a portion of its leg off, causing it to fall to its side by a few feet. He quickly reloaded and fired again, this time rupturing its right eye and spilling blue blood onto the stone ground. His final rocket hit the Baron of Hell in the back, causing it to stagger forward. Seizing the moment, the Mastermind bit into the Baron's gut and began to fire as it tore, until at last the Baron fell to the ground dead and the Mastermind spit the flesh out with a smile of triumph.
Without wasting any time, Blazkowicz dropped the rocket launcher and pulled out his BFG, intent on making the most of his final blast. The spiderdemon dragged itself forward as it let out a roar and began to whirl it's chaingun once again, while Blazkowicz pulled the trigger. The massive ball of green energy collided with the Mastermind's steel chassis, melting through it with some resistance, before sending out a shockwave near the middle of the demon's bottom. A shard of metal was sent upwards through the monster's maw from this, and it fell flat against the ground as blood began to trail out of its mouth.
In a garbled voice with surprisingly good english it began to speak while Blazkowicz cautiously approached. It declared, "One day, whether it be months of aeons, I will find you again, be it in Hell or Earth, stars or abyss. I will swallow you whole."
"Swallow this," Blazkowicz replied before jamming his shotgun into the demon's mouth.
As he pulled the trigger the demon cackled, before red hot lead ripped apart its throat. Then, a faint beeping sound filled his ears. Blazkowicz barely had time to run away before the spiderdemon's husk exploded, sending gore and scraps of metal throughout the area. As Blazkowicz looked back to its smoldering corpse, the beast smiled back at him through what was left of its mangled face. Then, there came a strange whooshing sound, and a soft cool breeze washed over Blakowicz's back for the first time in what felt like a lifetime.
He looked over his shoulder to see a crimson red portal, to a beautiful and familiar place. Emerald green fields and hills beneath a blue sky laced with white clouds peered out at him from beyond the portal, beckoning him home. Blazkowicz walked forward, the familiar smell of his family's farm seeping through the cracks in his helmet. He slowly pulled it off with his left hand, expecting the portal to disappear, but still it remained. He entered, and almost immediately fell to his knees as he stepped foot back on Earth. The portal closed behind him, leaving Blazkowicz in peace.
He dropped his helmet to the ground and breathed in as much of the air as he could, basking in the beautiful aroma he had never noticed before. He pulled his gloves off then planted his hands in the ground, taking in the feeling of the grass and dirt beneath his fingers. They felt better than he could have ever realized before. As the realization that he was finally home came to him, Blazkowicz began to cry. He cried from happiness, from pain, from sorrow, from fear, from remorse, he cried just so he could feel something other than anger. Then, at last, the smell of burning wood drifted into his nostrils.
Blazkowicz climbed to his feet, pain washing over his body as he did so. Then, he began to walk forward, climbing the hill to face his childhood home. It rested in the distance, engulfed in flames, burning just like the homes of his ancestors. His was a family that would never know peace. Blazkowicz walked forward, the breeze now taunting him as everything he had ever known burned to a crisp. As he grew closer, he saw that even the most innocent of life wasn't spared. Daisy, his beloved rabbit's head rested impaled upon a wooden spike, a testament to the sick satisfaction they took in death. A tear rolled down Blazkowicz's cheek, as he clenched his fists in eternal hatred.