Hell is an immense realm, existing outside the multiverse.
If each dimension is akin to a universe within the multiverse, then Hell, broadly speaking, is a unique multiverse with slightly altered rules.
In one vast Hell dimension, endless flames roar, and demons tread the crimson earth, bathed in lava, under a sky of unrelenting sheen.
Some toil in grueling labor; others clash in brutal combat.
In Hell, rising above the rest hinges on one thing: power.
Any kind of power, magic, divine energy, bloodline, or mastery of exotic forces, will do. Even a tech-savvy demon, if innovative enough, can earn the respect of their kin.
The multiverse demands basic order, enforced by creation gods and overseen by multiversal and beyond-multiversal entities stabilizing its structure.
Hell, however, lacks such meddling deities dictating its rules.
The mightiest demon, Cytorak, resides in the Crimson Cosmos, also called the Crimson Universe, ignoring disputes among other Hell dimensions.
Cytorak is the strongest demon. If he chose, he could rule all of Hell as Eternity or Death govern the multiverse, with far greater control.
Yet Cytorak doesn't. He stays cloistered in the Crimson Cosmos, indifferent to all, unbothered as long as no one disturbs him.
Demons should be grateful. A more intrusive figure in his place would never tolerate the current state of Hell's myriad dimensions.
Take Mephisto, for example.
The contest for Hell's "Satan" Title has raged for eons, since the Second or Third Multiverse, when Hell birthed its first demons, sparking endless civil wars.
Old generations of demons perished, new ones rose to fight, grew old, fell behind, and died, cycle after cycle.
Through countless multiversal collapses, they fought, yet Hell remained unchanged.
On a throne seemingly forged from blood, a towering figure sat serenely.
Demons cast awestruck glances, quickly lowering their eyes, fearing to disturb him.
Blackheart, or Witchheart, bowed with a scowl of envy.
"The old man's listening to the multiverse again, probably reaping some grand harvest to boost his power." Blackheart muttered.
Leading a cadre of elite demons on a patrol of this Hell dimension, Blackheart, Mephisto's mightiest spawn and crown prince, held high status.
But a demon not plotting to overthrow their sire isn't a true demon. By that measure, Blackheart's blood was pure.
He was already scheming to kill Mephisto.
Mephisto's position was tantalizing.
Being a Hell Lord wasn't just prestige, prestige was worthless. Power was what mattered.
The Hell Lord title granted real authority, wielding the dimension's raw might.
Consider this: when is Mephisto at his peak? Rampaging through the main universe or other key realms?
Wrong. Blackheart knew the strongest Mephisto was the one standing in this Hell dimension.
The longer Mephisto stayed away, the weaker his connection to this power, the feebler his combat strength.
If Blackheart could supplant him, he'd inherit that might.
"If the old man amasses enough premium souls and claims Cytorak's place, there'll be no room for me in all of Hell." Blackheart thought, burying his狂野 ambitions.
As Mephisto's direct creation, Blackheart knew his father likely sensed his treachery.
No demon was truly loyal. Expecting fidelity from one was madness.
The saving grace? Mephisto remained stuck at Cosmic Level. Despite eons, he'd only advanced far within that rank, still worlds away from multiversal status, even with this Hell dimension's boost.
Blackheart believed he could topple Mephisto's reign.
This land was among Hell's larger dimensions, coveted by many demon lords.
Even the infamous Eye Demon reportedly wanted a foothold, aiming to rule as a non-demon lord.
Rumor had it Eye Demon was battered, besieged by multiversal Ancient Ones, with too many avatars slain or sealed, weakening its overall power.
To slaughter all Sorcerers Supreme, Eye Demon would face Vishanti and Eternity, a two-against-one it couldn't win. So, it sent avatars to wear down the Ancient Ones.
Blackheart mulled these scattered tidbits, pondering what he could exploit.
Then, he noticed a subtle shift in Mephisto's eternal stillness. The demon lord raised his head, his expression odd.
Was that… surprise?
"What could rattle the old man? Another great demon invading? Or a multiversal dimension lord attacking Hell's fringe realms?" Blackheart speculated.
Mephisto was genuinely shocked, having received the full data from a slain avatar.
Losing an avatar was negligible, hardly worth his concern.
In one universe, Khonshu and Moon Knight had butchered several of his avatars and were still lying in wait to slaughter more across parallel realms. Even then, Mephisto paid it little mind.
Unlike Eye Demon's approach, Mephisto's avatars carried minimal power, so their loss was no great blow.
This tied to his method: not plundering but deceiving, striking deals with exceptional humans, those tied to a universe's rules, will, or fate, to harvest their souls.
By claiming key humans, he gained fragments of a universe's power, integrating them into his Hell dimension to bolster his might.
Only if negotiations collapsed and significant gains justified force would Mephisto deploy a potent avatar to resolve matters violently.
"An obscure universe birthed a unique species? Fascinating. This race is so young it hasn't been etched into the multiverse's rules or replicated." Mephisto mused, his interest piqued.
Any nascent race could be a stepping stone to greater power.
Though only Cosmic Level, far from multiversal or beyond, Mephisto's knowledge was vast.
He knew the multiverse, in its infancy, was far weaker, growing only by absorbing diverse concepts over eons.
These concepts varied, artifacts, objective entities, or unique divine beings.
Each cosmic catastrophe was a chance to integrate new concepts, spurring a new wave of multiversal prosperity and expansion.
Thus, Mephisto fixated on Adam.
Perhaps Adam and his Xenomorphs were insignificant, but what if they could aid him, even slightly?
"This reminds me of those so-called zombies… nonexistent before the last multiversal collapse." Mephisto thought, his blood-red eyes blazing with fervor that could devour worlds.
He knew a bit about zombies, aware their universe was a chaotic mess, with native zombies plotting to invade others for flesh.
Mephisto cared little for their fate, uninterested in their corrupted souls.
Could those trash zombies storm Hell for meat? He'd let them taste Hellfire's burn, far worse than hunger.
But Adam? Mephisto was enthralled.
By any measure, Adam's Xenomorphs outshone zombies, potentially offering greater aid.
What truly captivated Mephisto was Adam's absolute dominion over them.
"My avatar tasted a Xenomorph's soul and found it incomplete without Adam. All Xenomorphs, body and soul, naturally shield him, like a pyramid." Mephisto noted, delighted, his terrifying laugh echoing through Hell.
He unleashed his power, freezing time, enveloping the tangible, a raw, undeniable force.
His voice morphed into demonic script above Hell, as if part of the dimension itself, translating to: Hahahahaha.
Countless demons gazed in awe.
The entire dimension quaked faintly.
Mephisto realized that claiming Adam's soul would indirectly grant him all Xenomorph souls.
More enticingly, it meant an army of elite enforcers, proxies to infiltrate universes, exponentially boosting his soul-harvesting efficiency.
Each great demon had a unique growth path, some fed on multiversal emotions, others expanded dream realms. Yet none spurned human souls, which always aided their power.
Mephisto's path was simpler, unwavering through eons and multiversal collapses: harvesting premium souls, recruiting top human talent.
Xenomorphs, fast-breeding, capable of parasitizing natives and surpassing their potential, would save him the hassle of cultivating proxies through angel pacts or prayer rituals. Those, like Ghost Rider, often betrayed him after serving, a tiresome nuisance.
"My avatar laid groundwork in that obscure universe. It's not yet worth my personal intervention. I'll see how it plays out." Mephisto decided, tempering his glee.
He scrutinized this unremarkable universe, noting not just Adam and the Xenomorphs but also native gods like Dormammu fixating on Adam. At Cosmic Level, certain insights were universal.
What baffled Mephisto was this universe's Ancient One.
He'd dealt with countless Ancient Ones, but this one left him stumped.
This wasn't about losing avatars, her filching a chunk of his power and refusing to return it was one thing, but her blocking his reclamation with other gods' energies was a jaw-dropping maneuver.
"I sensed seven or eight distinct powers… Are that universe's Cosmic Beings insane? And Vishanti, tolerating this ugly method to nurture her?" Mephisto wondered.
It was a scandalous approach.
He couldn't fathom it. Eye Demon's clashes with Ancient Ones had stabilized, typically, a universe's Ancient One sacrificed her life and soul to seal an Eye Demon avatar, a standard exchange.
No recent buzz about Eye Demon's major moves.
Mephisto returned to his throne, casting a fleeting, predatory glance below. Blackheart felt it aimed at him.
The pressure soon lifted as Mephisto looked away, leaving Blackheart seething, his fury deepening.
…
Adam was unaware of Hell's events; his reach didn't yet extend that far.
In his mind, he weighed invading Hell. With his current power, seizing a small, remote Hell dimension was feasible, but facing named great demons was another matter.
Empowered by Hell, they were far stronger there, beyond his ability to defeat in their domain.
"The Hell invasion plan is scrapped for now but shelved for later. For now, I need to predict Mephisto's next move. He's not one for simple violence, he's already laid traps somewhere… Strange…" Adam mused.
He lounged, basking in sunlight, exuding calm. Even if the universe collapsed, he seemed unshakable, his mere presence inspiring confidence.
In truth, his mind was a storm, countless clues and data colliding and converging.
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