Unknown Dusk Moon - Temple

Baxter

Baxter wiggled his rump.

There was a new person and that meant more treats and scritches. They went fast, played in the dirt, used really amazing Hind armor stuff, ate food, named the two Exygstuss, and slept in cool places. It was a good day and hopefully, Gideon will be happier.

“What do you mean ‘The Watchers’?”

Yup. Anytime now Gideon will be overflowing with joy. He just needed to give out more ear scratches. However, there was one person Baxter needed to see.

“Who are you, nice lady?” he asked the tall dark-robed being. She wasn’t like those other bad guys, so she was OK.

The Angel knelt down and Baxter tentatively bunny hopped to her before offering his head for scratches. She gently ran her hand through his scalp, which felt like solid alabaster. He sniffed her hand, she smelled of stone and lavender.

“My name is Deborah, Lesser…”

Baxter instantly forgot the rest. Did she expect anyone to remember that?

“That is too long, I will call you Deb!” he chuffed.

He was a clever dog, no one would have ever thought of it. Deb also thought he was smart by belting out a platinum-bell laugh, “very well, Baxter. You may call me Deb.”

Deborah began to explain The Watchers, but Baxter tuned much of it out, opting to climb into the Angel’s arms for cuddles and ear scritches, which she obliged.

“What do you mean ‘they affectionately took to their name The Dusk’?”

It was confusing. The bad guys were called 'The Watchers’, but they also took the name people gave them, ‘The Empire of Dusk’ because they actually liked humanity. It didn’t make any sense, as the Dusk were bad guys. If he saw one, he would definitely bark and bite it, regardless of what it called itself.

After all, he was a good boy.

"Benevolent? Benevolent!? What the hell does malevolent look like!?"

Baxter was confused. The words were too big.

"Yes, they guarded humanity since your ascension to the stars. We do not have time- we must leave now," Deborah explained, moving to the exit. He sniffed, catching a whiff of leftovers. Baxter wiggled with all of his might before Deborah placed him down. He sprinted to the ration, diving headfirst into the plastic bag up to his scruff. He licked furiously, getting the last of the discarded teriyaki chicken.

He heard more arguing and then the echoed shrieking of fire.

He paused, his ears trying to perk alert from inside the bag. He looked up and snorted out from his nose, sending the empty ration bag sailing away. He felt it, his instinct prickling as did his hackles.

Bad guys. Danger.

He ran to the kneeling power armor, scrabbling inside with grunting effort. He scooted in and activated it with a thought, his QSD connecting to the Hind. The lights flashed, his favorite tune jingled, and his Hind came alive, sealing him inside.

Connected to Hind Canis MK A Canine Power Armor

He turned, spotting Deborah working a pulse rifle with Steak, Pat, and Gid.

“Oh, this is like how I dreamed it would feel,” She stated with a soft grin.

“Wait, you’ve never used it before?” Gideon asked, dumbfounded.

That was weird. She looked like she used a gun before.

“Masteries in one area can translate into others. This is a simple tool. Now if I only had my Throne…”

Why does she need a chair? There are bad guys. This is no time for naps!

“Why would you need a chair?” Gideon asked, materializing bulky power armor off to the side.

“A Throne is an angelic artifact of great power, amplifying the user’s abilities. They are a power unto themselves and the Seal allows for you to bind them to you. I was blessed with one… And cursed by that demon, losing it somewhere on the planet,” Deborah began explaining, brushing at her sandy alabaster hair with her broken arm. Baxter spotted the golden veins, like her arm was shattered and put back together with melted gold.

“Deb, is it like that one time I buried my steak bone and couldn’t find it?” Baxter asked. Maybe she could help find it; it was somewhere back on Karmmrak.

Everyone gazed at him.

More chattering fire interrupted the rebuttals. More sphere mines detonated. And more began to go silent.

“Gideon, I had wished to have fled the temple before it caught up to us,” Deborah announced as she hefted her rifle. It looked tiny in her arms.

“You could have led- with- that!” Gideon replied with a grunt, stepping into the power armor. The suit lit up, enclosing him within. It was armored with hard flat angles, sporting two pulse compact shoulder mounts. More orange light flashed and he equipped his own pulse rifle.

"There was no other way, you were hostile from the start," she replied calmly.

Steak and Pat were both surrounded by blue light, materializing dual seven barreled tempest cannons. They sported pulse compacts in their hip swivel arms and what appeared to be explosive launchers on their shoulder mounts.

“Can’t we just- you know- use those portals?” Gideon asked, aiming at the stair entrance.

Chattering of fire rang out as more turrets came awake. Several blasts rang out as sphere mines detonated. Baxter didn’t like this.

“We can! Now it is only a matter of time to force the demon's focus here and then… not be here,” Deborah explained, pointing to Gideon.

"Bamboozle the bastards, huh?"

Baxter glanced over, seeing black gas beginning to flow down the stairs. He growled on instinct.

Stinky bad guys.

He needed gun weapons or else if he got close to bite them, he'd have to take a bath!

Uh. Yes. Hello. Can you please give me guns? There are bad guys.

Confirmed. Equipping close quarters protocol

Baxter felt the new weapons materialize. Two pulse rifles jutted from the shoulder mounts with a twin-scattergun back mount. Now he was good.

Steak and Pat hunkered down on either side of the entrance, their tempest cannon barrels spinning up.

"Don't breathe in the miasma, it will weaken you!" Deborah ordered, aiming at the stairs.

"What about you?" Gideon replied.

Deborah cocked her head, as if he had asked a silly question.

"We don't need to breathe. This demon's purpose was to destroy humanity."

Baxter felt shocked at the news.

He wasn't just a bad guy, but a really bad guy. Who would hurt the people that gave Baxter treats and scritches? That was mean and he would stop it. The chattering fire of turrets went silent, the last going quiet with a final screech crack swan song.

"Target's spotted," Steak announced.

Baxter saw the running black skeletal figure with yellow glowing eyes. He growled, preparing to fire.

"Uh. Yes. How do I shoot this again?" he asked aloud. He did it before but like many things; he forgot. The Hind spoke up, taking his question as an order.

Running basic combat tutorial

"Please do not," Baxter protested. He already knew what to do, it just... would come back to him eventually. He needed to find the right button.

Gideon glanced back, giving what he thought was a look; the enclosed helmet made it difficult to tell. The demon promptly vanished in a spray black blood from a quick burst of Steak's tempest cannon, leaving behind viscera chunks.

Baxter loved that noise. He always called it the 'brrrt' gun. Another 'brrrt' roared out, reducing a charging demonkin to paste.

Using the targeting system is a simple process…

More began to pile down the hall as Excertius fully opened fire, reducing the charging silent mob to bloody ruins. More of the tutorial echoed in his comms. It was annoying.

And once a target is selected...

Gideon and Deborah opened fire, their own screech cracking rifles adding to the orchestral din. Something surprising happened. More Deborahs stepped out from the one.

"Jesus Christ!" Gideon shouted, startled at the new Angels.

Baxter's ears twitched. There was now more Debs to give him attention. This was a great day. Except for the really bad guys. And the Rumblers. They were scary. And this silly tutorial. But other than that, he was having a good time.

To conclude this tutorial, you have just learned...

“Please stop,” Baxter whined.

More fire rang out in the auditorium, cutting the demonkin to pieces. A blast roared through the hall, sending many to tumbling bit across the floor. Baxter was still in the back, revving to attack, only to be blocked in by the many Debs.

“Gid, I cannot help!” Baxter howled.

An alabaster hand gripped his shoulder, pulling his attention to the right wall. With a smile affixed, Deborah pointed towards the hall and then the auditorium wall. A portal appeared, showing him a side profile of the demonkin as they ran past. Baxter wagged his metal tail, taking a general aim at the rushing silhouettes.

He opened fire just like the tutorial said. He was a good boy. The screech-crack of the rifles rang out as the screech-thump of the scattergun added to the din. The demonkin ran through the salvo, showing a nearly non-sentient reaction to having their cohorts shot to pieces. Several Deborahs supported him, firing into the portal.

"Hey- hey! That's working!" Gideon shouted back.

The miasma had crept into auditorium and Baxter spotted it, demonkin were rising from it.

"Oh shit!" Gideon bellowed, planting a round through the peeking skull of a new demonkin, splattering it across the hall. More formed, a demonic crop sprouting quickly to kill them.

"We will need to fall back," Steak announced.

Deborah rushed to the entrance, stretching a portal from edge to edge, a nebulous wall against the oncoming horde. Everyone cut fire, watching the mob of demonkin rushing through the portal to the outside. Baxter was confused. Where were they going?

"Where are you sending them?" Gideon asked, hefting his rifle.

"Space," Deborah answered solemnly, “better than in here. They keep reproducing from the blood they leave behind. One demonkin could produce a thousand more. And that miasma can sap your strength, so don’t breathe it in. More blood means more demonkin which means more miasma.”

Baxter thought that was good because the bad guys won't be down here anymore. And the bad guys made more bad guys.

"Now that we have that settled, let's leave!" one of the Deborah's announced.

She opened a portal against the wall and turned, addressing everyone.

"It will feel very strange and you may be dazed once on the other side-"

Baxter spotted the grey hooked clawed hand reaching for Deborah.

"Oh, Jesus look out!" Gideon bellowed.

The demon's hand gripped down against her neck, snapping it in half with a flex of its digits. The copy dropped, vanishing before she hit the floor. The portal vanished alongside the demon's arm.

"Bad guys!" Baxter barked, unable to fire in time.

All of the Deborahs vanished, leaving the true original.

"Adonai’s mercy… It appears it has either grown or shown its true hand..." Deborah announced, her face twisting as she tried to think. The portal along the hallway exit still stood, collecting the packed bodies of demonkin as they rushed towards doom. The hall had slowed, filled completely with demonkin.

“What the hell is that thing!?” Gideon shouted, his shaky voice betraying the fear.

“It is an Elder Demon. An extremely powerful one at that. Each molecule of ash is that fiend.”

Baxter blinked as understanding flooded him.

“That bad guy must really need a bath. And he tracked in so much dirt! When I track in dirt I get told I am a bad dog and so he tracked in dirt to the entire planet so he must be a really really bad dog- I mean guy!”

Everyone halted, slowly turning their countenance to him.

“What?”

Baxter looked back and forth, unaware as to why they were looking at him.

Deborah broke the awkward silence, “It’s not that simple, Baxter. We should have escaped by now. This is unprecedented for this demon. I would know, I fought him to a standstill for ages.”

Baxter trotted to the Angel, sitting by her side, "Deb, it will be just OK! We'll beat them and then have steak!"

The actual Steak interjected, "I am scanning for alternate exits. It does not look promising.”

He didn’t like the sound of that. That meant they would have to push past the overwhelming bodies. He glanced over, seeing many demonkin falling from the ceiling atop the mob, crowd surfing into the portal.

“Why are they dumb?” Baxter asked the relevant question. He was ignored.

Deborah checked ammo, with Gideon handing her several steel spheres.

“In case we get separated. As long as you’re close, my QSD will keep you topped off.”

She nodded, stowing the spheres away into her robe’s pouch. She looked to the corridor, a slight smirk affixed, “well, no way out but forward!”

“Good Deborah, I must advise against it, however, I do see no alternatives,” Pat retorted.

“We have to stop that miasma! Would fire cauterize that shit?” Gideon asked, trying to think of ideas.

“The solar cannon rounds of the Planet Defenders were most effective,” Deborah explained.

"Solar cannons? What?-"

“Good Gideon, we do have plasma blazers. They could be used for cleansing the miasma and preventing recurrence,” Pat announced.

Baxter was confused. Why didn’t guns just work? They seemed to be beating them just fine. He glanced at the hall, seeing the unending mob. Well- maybe beating them was too strong a word. It still didn’t make sense.

Steak and Pat were surrounded by blue light, equipping their plasma blazers. They looked scary, which was good because the dirty smelly bad guys would probably run away then.

Deborah marched to the side of the portal, stopping and turning to address the group, “alright, follow behind me, be ready to attack in case anything happens. I’m going to push that portal through and sweep the hall of filth. We’ll reach the entrance and fight our way out. We only need to escape the temple to the Planet Defenders.”

“Planet Defenders? You mean Rumblers?” Gideon asked, confused by the second use of the name.

Deborah thumbed her chin, perking up a smile, “Rumbler. I like that name better. I’ll have to tell Prosine that.”

Wait.

The room stopped.

“Machine Father…” Excertius both whispered.

Baxter remembered that name. Prambleblap was the big floaty eye guy that used big words and always addressed someone with ‘Good’. He was a father, like Gid’s father, except he was a father to the metal guys. He liked him because he always started with the most correct assumption that he was a good boy. Good Baxter. Propplsnop was always telling him he was a good boy. And also science. He didn’t understand that part, but it usually led to treats so it was OK.

Prismin was great.

What was his name again?

“Did you just say Prosine?” Gideon asked quietly, his voice going low.

Prosine. That’s what his name was. He remembered now. Wait. Prosnip? No, it was Posnope. Poodle? That was it. If Deb said Primblepramble was here, that meant they could and go back to Karmmrak and find his steak bone. Or get new steak bones. Either one was great. Wait. How did PiddlePaddle get here?

“Yes. Prosine assisted me until one day he… Stopped. I believe he's stuck waiting for someone,” she herself went quiet, idly brushing back her hair.

“How did he get here? Waiting for someone?”

Gideon’s questions hung as Deborah couched her rifle to the crook of her good elbow, preparing to move.

“Let us survive this so that there will be no more questions!” Deborah retorted with an alabaster grin. Gideon grumbled in response, offering no counter. Two other Deborah's appeared, rifles crooked in their elbows.

They placed their broken hands against the portal, the limb was bent at an angle that made Baxter nervous. It didn’t look right. They pressed against the portal and began to move it forward, taking with it the miasma, demonkin, ash, and sludge; leaving behind a pristine floor. They traveled only inches at a time, with each Deborah coordinating perfectly to keep the portal intact and moving while changing shapes to fit exactly to the hallway and stairs’ dimensions. Baxter felt concerned with just how many bad guys there were.

"Gid, I do not like this. We may never get out and have steak and naps!"

Gideon glanced over, nodding his head.

"I know, we don't need to win; just get outside. Plus we have an Angel on our side. God- saying that without any irony… Jesus, this day has become bizarre…"

Steak interjected, keeping the barrels of his plasma blazer hot and leveled at the oncoming mob as he trundled along, "Good Gideon, you are correct. If I were to calculate the possibilities, Deborah, the Lesser Angel of Multitude's explanations would never have factored."

"You can just call me Deborah!" she laughed a reply as she continued forward. Baxter just realized her body language and mannerisms were that of someone who knew a lot and what Father would also describe as 'confident'. He understood that she felt like someone he could follow. The 'top dog'.

Pat chimed in, interrupting Baxter's thoughts, "good Deborah, where do you come from?"

That was a good question. A home usually meant treats, which was great.

"Good Pat, I am from the Kingdom of Heaven," Deborah replied, using the Anform's common verbal vernacular.

"I would say bullshit, but- you know- being an Angel and all is proof enough- God those demons are creeping me out," Gideon retorted before muttering at the portal wall and onslaught.

"There is no bull or shit. Adonai created me and I am his servant. I have sparred and trained under Emmanuel the Christ and Archangel Chamuel-"

"-Chamuel? Big guy? Made of brass with golden electricity?"

Deborah halted, her head snapping to Gideon. Baxter did not know this Chamuel.

"You've seen him?"

Gideon nodded, lowering his head in thought, "I dreamed of him…"

"You will need to tell me everything when we survive this!"

"If we survive," Gideon muttered back.

The original Deborah halted, placing a hand atop his shoulder, "first rules: do not be a prophet to your own demise. Do not do the enemy's job for them. Do not defeat your own spirit. Do not become your own enemy. We will live to share our stories with each other."

Baxter wagged his tail as Gideon perked up. Deb was great. She was a good Angel and he would make sure she got a treat when they returned to the ship.

"Now, Gideon, you have to tell me the story; so survive- I order it!" Deborah announced as she turned back, pushing against the portal bulwark.

Baxter barked, his energy renewed. He did notice the sparkly bits on everyone's weapons. It was odd.

"Gid, why is everything glittery? I do not like glitter- it gets everywhere!"

Deborah answered for him, her tone of a teacher, "Baxter, that is my holy aura. Just like Gideon's quantum storage, if someone I deem friendly is nearby, they benefit from that blessing. It increases damage against demons. That is…"

Baxter could no longer keep up; that was just too many words! It made him hurt bad guys more, so the gun glitter was OK- for now.

They reached the top of the hall, seeing the rushing mob had halted, standing eerily still.

Baxter spotted him. The bad guy from before. He was grey and stoney, sporting a sad gargoyle face and large wings. It stood tall and proud, its hooked clawed hands flexing with intent. Its blue glowing beady eyes gazed at them with a haughty malevolent stare. And then Baxter saw the exit, blocked by piles of discarded and wrecked Dusk drones. That was bad, the exit was blocked.

He heard rumbling on the other side, something was trying to break through.

This is bad! This is really bad!

Baxter growled on instinct at the mob and sad gargoyle demon, his voice coming out in a digitally distorted bass.

Deborah nodded with a smirk, “You all takedown these demonkin. Leave the vile one to me.”

The demon had the aura of royalty about it. It gazed at them smugly as its tiny blue pits flickered. It stood and waited, snorting out air in sneering derision, giving Baxter the idea that it understood them.

The idea that it didn’t matter what was planned.

The idea that they were trapped.

That they were going to die.