You know who the hell this is, it’s the Necromancer Lord. Even if you are fast enough to get a shot at him, you doubt the arrow is going to connect. He’s probably got all kinds of magical shields to protect him for whatever it is he’s here for. You begin looking for your best route of escape and slowly start backing away.

The Captain on the other hand speaks directly to his son. He doesn’t even show any fear. They speak for a moment and things get very tense, you’re about ready to run, but things take a sudden turn for the very strange.

The Necromancer Lord has proposed a temporary alliance to assassinate Velzix. The Captain is hesitant about this at first, but an agreement is made on payment and he accepts.

The Captain then informs all of you in more detail of what’s going on.

“Alright men, we’re gonna go storm the Gates of Hell and close those fuckers for good. My…son there is going to provide magical support. He’s also going to be providing a shitload of money for this job. The stipulation is we can’t tell ANYBODY about this shit. I’m fucking serious. Word gets out that we were working with the fucking Necromancer Lord, we’ll all be hanged, regardless of so called heroic deeds of killing demons. We’re all in this together and there ain’t no backing out, because this deal is made. And if you think you’re gonna step out on me now, that ain’t in the plan. I’ll just kill you and have my son raise your undead ass to help us anyway!”
“What?! You just decided this for us?” Cal exclaims.
“Yeah? What of it? I’ve ALWAYS made all the decisions for your dumb ass! It’s why YOU’RE still working for me, because it’s lucrative! This ain’t gonna be any different. Plus we get to take fucking credit for killing a damn demon lord. Think of all the pussy you’ll get from that fucking fame eh? Now stop bitching and let’s go!”

You can’t say you’re enthusiastic about this, but it would appear you have little choice in the matter.

As you travel to Velzix’s fortress you overhear some of the conversations the Captain is having with his son. A strained relationship to be sure. They make a lot of cutting barbs to each other, each criticizing the other for various things. It’s obvious that they can’t stand each other, but are a lot more alike than either one wants to admit.

It makes you glad when you encounter the occasional demon skirmish on the way, since it at least it decreases the tension and possibility that the Captain’s son is going to finally lose his temper and kill everyone due to his father’s words. Eventually you arrive without any more problems. You enter Velzix’s fortress through the secret way that was discovered long ago.

“Dumb ass demons, we’ve been using this entrance for like a year now and they still haven’t caught on!” the Captain remarks to his son.

You make good progress in the fortress and then…

“There they are, just like Velzix said they would be!” a demon guard shouts.

“Haven’t caught on yet huh?” the Necromancer Lord says, looking at the Captain.
“Quit yer bitchin’ and start doin that death magic thing!”

You proceed to do battle with the demon and mortal guards that attempt to stop you. The Necromancer Lord starts to raise the mortal guards after they’re killed, but it begins to unnerve you though when the Necromancer Lord starts raising your own fallen dead.

Pretty soon it’s just the Necromancer Lord, the Captain, you, Cal and a bunch of corpses fighting off what seems to be an endless supply of Hell’s own. You begin to wonder if Velzix already got that portal working.

As you get closer to Velzix’s inner sanctum even the undead troops are being decimated at an alarming rate. You’ve been wounded several times and extremely tired. You don’t want to think about any of this, even in the heat of battle you start to take your mind elsewhere with a tune inside your head.

“Fuck man! We’re gonna die here!” Cal screams as he attempts to fight a horned demon which has obviously got the advantage over him. You feel a demon blade in your back causing you to fall to the floor. At this point nothing but music fills your mind; bloodshed and battle surround your prone body.

“Fuckers are without end! Come on! Raise these fuckers and let’s go!” you hear the Captain yell followed by “Hah, no lying down on the job anymore Cal!”

You’re not quite dead yet though, and the Necromancer Lord and his dad aren’t waiting around so they continue on quickly leaving you behind.

As your life force ebbs and more demon guards run past your body, you don’t know if what you did was worth it or even the right thing. All you know is you did what you could and hope your actions may have made some sort of difference and increased the chances of your family’s future well being.

You then smile. You’ll see them again someday.

“Yeah…I believe that…” you allow yourself to think as you die.

Big Red was wrong about your fate. There was no Hell, just peace.