Chapter
3 – Lawless Bringers of Justice
The scum run back to their kind and
a place where they think they can be safe. They run deeper and deeper through
abandoned tunnels and old buildings, homes, and stores from a Meridian that
existed during its first hundred years of existence. I keep going through their
memories to gain further information about them and what they know about this
undercity that’s been operating under my nose, a place that most criminals
don’t go into because of how condemned and hostile it is to live. At a moment’s
notice, the ceiling could collapse or a feral animal or human could rip a
person’s throat out, and yet, these people persist like cockroaches. I was a
fool not to look into this place further, but the memories of other criminals
made me think that this place is only home to the most insane lunatics and drug
addicts.
No one knew how far down the
undercity really went, and the kinds of people that lived down here. Now, I do,
and I have a lot of punishing to make up for, especially since they’ve done
something personal to me. The scum are now in the deepest depths of their
undercity, the very end of the line, where no one but those utterly loyal to
them know about. They tell their friends about what happened, who are also
shocked and look as demonically possessed, both at me attacking them and them
coming back.
I laugh at them and say, “Did you
really think the hands of Divine justice would not reach you sooner or later?”
“We thought you were on our side!
You helped cause all that chaos and killed all those people, especially the
heroes and police! What other reason could you have besides turning into one of
us?” one of them says.
“The ways of the Divine are strange
and mysterious. No one can predict what He will do, not even I, a mere conduit
for His will, but now I see that everything that happened was a means to an
end, so I can know about and reach you.”
“The world isn’t going to accept
you! All the heroes and governments of the world will turn on you because of
what you did! Your only chance of survival is to stick with us. What do you
say?”
“Hahaha! That’s my answer! You’ll
all pay for the corruption you’ve poisoned the city with, especially that of my
brother.”
“Brother?”
“Oh, forget I said anything. You
and the legacy you’ve left will be forgotten soon. I know that you’re all part
of or allies with the sixth most secretive family in Meridian, but that entire
bloodline will die tonight! So, repent now, if you can.”
The demonic members of the sixth
family attempt to use their unholy powers to manipulate my mind and those of
Raziel and Kane as I summon them from the darkness, but I leverage my powers to
counter theirs. They endeavor to manifest their demons to assist them; however,
these demons are angels first and obey their original master in Heaven out of
fear, rather than their earthly and Hellish master, ultimately turning against
those who command them and tearing them apart. Dozens upon dozens of them are
slaughtered in gruesome and painful ways, and by the end of the battle, at
least a hundred or so lie dead at our feet. This provokes a hysterical laugh
from me before I steady myself and venture deeper into the depths of this
place, where I discover the remnants of their Satanic rituals and depraved
acts. Here, we uncover individuals they’ve kidnapped and tortured in sexual or
painful ways, along with the remains of those they sacrificed for their
wicked religion.
As we free the captives, Kane and Raziel
ask me what I was talking about in relation to my brother and why I was
laughing more manically than I usually do. I explain that, “These people didn’t
do crime to gain power, wealth, or influence like many of the other criminals I’ve
faced before, but they did it for evil’s sake, to corrupt the city and send as
many souls with them to Hell as possible. Besides influencing my siblings into
abandoning our family to satiate their degenerate behavior, they also
influenced my brother to kill his siblings and expose my secret identity to my
parents, which led to his and their deaths.”
“It’s a good thing we stopped them
then,” Raziel says.
“It is. They are also responsible
for kidnapping your friends from the original orphanage you were at. As for the
location of those friends, I’m uncertain. There’s still much of these tunnels
to uncover.”
“I’ve made my peace with never
seeing them again, but thank you anyway. Let’s get these people to safety first.”
I bring the people, Kane, and
Raziel to the surface with my power and find that the fires in the city have subsided.
We get some distance from it all as I immediately take Kane and Raziel to my
house, where I see Darcy waiting by the door with my two kids. She’s about to
run out to me until she sees Raziel and stops dead in her tracks.
I transform back into my normal
self and say, “It’s okay. He’s my new apprentice now, and what he did helped me
bring justice to an undercity of vile filth that did evil under all our noses.”
“What about Raymond and Ralph, and all
those heroes, cops, and innocent people who died?” she asks.
“Our powers took their lives so
that the evil beneath the city would show itself. It was an unfortunate, but
necessary loss.”
“I…I guess I can accept that,
knowing what your power does and that it’s not completely under your control.”
Darcy goes up to Raziel and says, “Welcome to the family and your new home,
son.”
“Son?” Raziel asks.
“Yeah, Timeo’s wife has an obsession
with getting kids. She calls me the same thing, so try not to be weirded out by
it,” Kane explains.
“I’m fine with it and calling L’Obscurité,
father.”
“You can call me by my normal name
outside of public earshot,” I say.
“Okay, father, Timeo.”
“You don’t need to call me father
either.”
“Yes, he does. It’s appropriate as
your new son,” Darcy says.
“I agree with your wife.”
“You know what? I think I like
Raziel now. He’s worth keeping around.”
“Oh, boy. This is going to be a lot
to deal with,” Kane comments.
A few days pass, and Raymond and the
many people who died during the city-wide fire have a mass funeral that I attend
with Darcy, our kids, Lancetto, Klinge, Mayor Jeph, and his Deputy, Tim. Meanwhile,
Kane and Raziel watch us and pay their respects from a distance. After the funeral,
Jeph and Tim talk to me in private.
“Meridian has to turn its back on L’Obscurité
because of what happened, even though he rescued people and exposed an even
darker criminal underworld under the city,” Jeph explains.
“There’s no way we can support him.
Getting caught doing so will irreparably ruin our reputation and the trust the
public has in us. His identity won’t be exposed, but we can’t work with him in
any capacity anymore,” Tim further clarifies.
“I understand. Thank you for
everything you’ve done,” I say.
They nod to me and leave us. I then
turn to my closest friends and ask, “You don’t have to support L’Obscurité
either since it’ll ruin your lives and businesses as well.”
Lancetto immediately says, “I’ll
never abandon my brother. I’d rather live and die in a disgraceful life first
before doing so.”
Klinge shrugs his shoulders and says,
“He’s a hero of the people, and he still has many supporters in and out of the
city. Besides, I never cared for drama or criticism to begin with.”
“I can’t thank you all enough for
your support and friendship.”
“With that done, you should go back
on the hunt,” Darcy says.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. The public’s attention is on
the surface. Also, I can’t stand the thought of innocents being tortured and
raped beneath the city, especially children.”
“I get it and feel the rage too.
The time of their judgment is at hand.”
My friends tell me to bring justice
to the scum underneath the city on their behalf and I promise them that I will.
Afterward, I tell Kane and Raziel what we’re doing, and they’re eager to do the
same, so we do that and bring fire, nightmares brought to life, and death to
the villains in the undercity who thought themselves invisible and safe from
the hands of Divine justice. When we find them, we stop them just as they are
resuming their depraved rituals. In an instant, their sacrifices and victims completely
disappear from the room.
I laugh at their confusion and say,
“You thought you could blaspheme and spit in the face of the Divine until your
death? Hahaha! If you wanted to go to Hell so badly, here we are to bring you
to it.”
Kane, Raziel, and I then slaughter
the wicked and free the innocent, all in the name of Divine justice.
The End
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