Within a room, a man could be seen sitting at a desk, his only source of light being a small candle. The room had an almost eerie feel to it, and the shadows cast by the candle made the man's face the only thing in the room that was clearly illuminated. His skin was light, and a pair of blue eyes stared down at the book on the table in front of him. His hair was combed to the side, and the only facial hair present on his face was a dark, well-groomed mustache.
Only the clothes on his upper body were clearly visible due to the lighting. He was dressed neatly, in a white button-down shirt rolled up at the sleeves with a light brown vest on top of it. It was possible to vaguely tell he was wearing a dark pair of pants and either black or brown boots, but the low light made it difficult to distinguish clearly.
Muffled sounds could be heard outside of the room the man was in, but he didn't react to any of them, his entire focus locked on the book in his hands. He would stare at a page for quite a long time before he'd turn to the next one, but his eyes only seemed to glance over the page quickly before they stopped moving, locked on one particular part of the page.
His reverie was broken as the sound of a metal door scraping against the floor sounded throughout the room. From the door emerged another man who carried a candle, his boots audible as he made his way into the room.
"Still staring at that damn book, Richtofen?"
The new man's voice was gruff, and an American accent was clear in his voice.
Edward Richtofen finally looked up from the book in his hands and looked at the other man. The words that emerged from his mouth came out with a noticeable German accent.
"Come now, Dempsey, I have explained the significance of the Kronorium before."
Tank Dempsey stood in the doorway, and the candle he held clearly defined his bulky form, a combination of his build and the bulky leather jacket he wore, which matched the thick boots and army fatigues he wore.
"Even if that book is the so-called 'key to everything,' you could still pull your nose out of it every once in a while."
Richtofen sighed, closed the book, and slipped it into a holster around his waist, which could be seen as he stood up. Following that, he grabbed the candle off the desk and walked towards Dempsey.
"Very well, we'll need to head out soon. I suppose I should get something to eat."
The two men exited the room and made their way through the hall, the walls of which were entirely made of metal. There were no windows present anywhere throughout, and a sturdy clanking noise could be heard with each step the men took.
"This plan of yours better work, Richtofen," Dempsey grumbled as the two continued their way down the hall. "You led us out here to the middle of nowhere, and we can't even get any power in this damn bunker."
"Patience Dempsey, we are exactly where we are supposed to be."
Richtofen's placating voice didn't seem to do any good when it came to easing Dempsey's irritable mood, so the two continued the rest of the way in silence. Eventually, they came upon another door which Richtofen pushed open, which caused the loud scraping metal sliding across metal to echo down the hallway they had just walked through.
Within the room, their attention was drawn to the campfire crackling in the center of the room. It was built atop a pile of bricks, and large planks of wood were stacked atop each other like Jenga pieces to continue fueling it. Around the fire were four benches, two of which were occupied by the last two members of their group: Takeo Masaki and Nikolai Belinksi. Nikolai was dressed similarly to Dempsey, with thick clothing and an armored chest covering, but he notably wore an Aviator hat. Takeo wore thick leather hide clothing, but he had a pair of goggles around his neck and a katana at his side on the bench.
"Richtofen, Dempsey, you must try this," Nikolai called with a Russian accent. "Takeo found some rations in the cupboards."
Said rations were just dehydrated bacon and cheese. Richtofen idly noted that Nikolai had piled up extra bacon on his plate and only had a small amount of cheese.
"Thanks, Tak," Dempsey said as he took the plate Takeo offered him and sat at the second-to-last available bench.
"Yes, thank you, Takeo," Richtofen echoed as he took his seat on the final bench.
The four men ate in silence; the only sound that could be heard throughout the dark room was their muffled chewing. It wasn't until they had all finished eating that Takeo broke the silence.
"You said we are getting close, Richtofen. Are you certain the artifact is here?"
Richtofen nodded calmly and responded. "Yes, the Kronorium details its location. We can head out momentarily and begin the final trek."
"We need this Summoning Key to get us out of this damned universe and over to one that isn't overrun with zombies, right? How confident are you we're not going to end up in a pool of lava or falling from the sky?"
Dempsey's question caused Richtofen to think for a moment before replying. "98% sure. I've been studying the Kronorium extensively to ensure I know how to operate it when the time comes."
"And yet you will not allow the rest of us to read this, Kronorium," Nikolai said, his tone heavy.
"It will all be clear when we find the key as to why that is not a good idea," Richtofen assured, and that was the end of the discussion. The group had argued this point multiple times already, but Richtofen refused to budge on allowing anyone but him to read the book he treasured so dearly.
Their conversation finished, the four gathered up their limited belongings, most of which consisted of firearms and other weapons, and made their way through the halls of the bunker by candelight until they came across a final door at the end of the hall.
Nikolai reached forward and turned the wheel that locked the door shut soundly, and pulled the door open. The group exited the bunker, which turned out to be built into the side of a mountain. In front of them lay an open plain at night, which was littered with zombies.
A German accent marked the start of the group's mission.
"Well then, let's begin."
----
Gunshots could be heard in the open air of the plain, alongside the frantic voices of the group.
"Hurry up, Richtofen," Dempsey said through gritted teeth as he continued to fire his MP40 into the crowd of zombies rushing towards them.
"I am working on it, just buy me a little more time."
Takeo, Nikolai, and Dempsey stood in a half circle guarding against the incoming swarm of zombies. They were backed up against a cliff face which had various symbols coating the walls, some of which were illuminated as Richtofen touched them in a specific pattern while consulting the Kronorium occasionally.
"We will soon be overwhelmed," Takeo spoke in a calm voice despite the situation, his katana tearing through any zombie that came near him.
"Who are you, fucking Rasputin? Die already," Nikolai shouted as he stabbed a zombie that got too close to him with a knife before he shoved it away and blew its head off with his Olympia.
Richtofen continued to quickly tap symbols before he finally selected the final one, and a portion of the cliff face began to glow and formed a blue gateway. "Got it, follow me."
Richtofen quickly made his way through the gate, the other three following behind him before it shut itself, blocking the zombies from getting in. Richtofen didn't give the other three time to speak as he took off running through the corridor they found themselves in.
"Damn it, Richtofen, where are you going?" Dempsey said as he took off running after the German, Nikolai, and Takeo, following suit.
When they finally caught up to him, they found Richtofen standing atop a dias. On the platform, a marble pillar was raised, and on top of that pillar sat the Summoning Key. The golden sphere's surface was inlaid with glowing blue symbols that seemed to almost eerily match Richtofen's own blue eyes as he snatched the orb from the pillar.
"You said you knew what you were doing, Richtofen," Nikolai said as he looked at the other man cautiously. "Let us leave this accursed place."
Richtofen didn't seem to hear him as he stared at the Summoning Key in his hand, a smile present on his face that none of the other men had seen before.
"Richtofen," Takeo said sharply, his hand tightly gripping the hilt of his katana.
Dempsey seemed done waiting as he began to walk towards Richtofen, which finally drew a response from the German. He turned, and his fingers slid along the symbols on the Summoning Key with practiced ease as he pressed inward, causing a golden energy to be released from the orb that surrounded the other three men and hoisted them into the air.
"This wasn't how it was supposed to go. I should never have trusted you, Richtofen, never," Dempsey yelled as he struggled to move his body, but it was to no avail.
"You should trust me, Dempsey, you all should," Richtofen said as he stood before the trio, his eyes locked on the Summoning Key. "This artifact has the power to traverse between universes within a multiverse."
"We know that already, that's why the plan was to use it to escape this universe and go to a better one," Nikolai said.
"No, Nikolai, you do not understand. The Summoning Key can only be used to traverse universes within its multiverse of origin."
Takeo voiced the question all three men were thinking. "What are you saying?"
Richtofen sighed and ran his hands through his hair, causing small hairs to stick up before he smoothed them down again.
"The problem, gentleman, is that our universe is not in the regular multiverse. No, unfortunately, we find ourselves in the Dark Multiverse, the multiverse of cast-off realities doomed to die. Even if we used the key, we would only be moving to another universe just as doomed as this one."
Richtofen ran his hands along the summoning key as he continued his explanation.
"Each universe in the Dark Multiverse branches off from a fear or decision made in the main universe. Our world was destroyed due to the developments with Element 115, but regardless, at the moment, we aren't able to escape to the regular multiverse."
They processed that information for a few moments before Takeo spoke. "Then you led us on this journey for nothing; we were always doomed."
"You are a fool, Richtofen," Nikolai said.
"I am no fool; I always knew this would happen, but I am not willing to resign myself to being destroyed." Richtofen pressed down on the Summoning Key, and three portals opened, one behind Takeo, Nikolai, and Dempsey. "What I do, I do only to secure a better tomorrow. Grow strong, we will meet again."
Before any of them could speak, Richtofen gestured with the key, and the three went flying into their respective portals. Left alone, Richtofen stood quietly for a moment, rolling the Summoning Key in his hand. He then pressed down on it again and opened a portal in front of himself.
"I must work quickly; there is so much to do. The vessel, the staffs, the treadmill, the opening of the gateway..."
Without another word, Richtofen stepped through the portal and vanished from Earth -115.
--[Earth -12]--
Dempsey came tumbling out of the portal, the force carrying him several feet as he kicked up dirt and sand where he landed. He coughed as he slowly got to his feet, spitting out a small amount of dirt that had ended up in his mouth.
"Fucking Richtofen," he cursed as he looked around and tried to figure out where he had ended up. Whatever universe he had ended up in, it seemed like he'd been dropped off on an island. Behind him was a beautiful beach with glistening white sand and crystal clear water visible as far as the eye could see. In front of him was a jungle, the dense trees blocking most of the light that could have passed through the canopy.
"No boats in sight, so jungle it is."
Dempsey began to walk aimlessly through the jungle.
"Knowing Richtofen, he'd drop me off on some uninhabited island. At least I can probably fish for food."
Dempsey's grumblings to himself were clear in the jungle, suspiciously devoid of sound. Despite his seeming laxadaisical nature, Dempsey had kept his hand firmly on his MP40. After the time he'd spent dealing with zombies, he wasn't going to take silence to mean safety. Richtofen had said they could only be teleported to other universes in the Dark Multiverse, so something about wherever he'd ended up had to be bad. At least, compared to the last universe, it didn't seem to be overrun by undead.
"What's the worst that could happen-" Dempsey began to say, only to step on a concealed rope that wrapped around his foot and suddenly yanked him into the air. The MP40 slipped from his hands and fell to the ground as he found himself suspended from a tree by the rope wrapped around his ankle.
"Where the hell did you send me Richtofen?"
"Who is Richtofen?" a voice suddenly asked from above Dempsey. His head whipped around as he looked up towards the source of the voice. He found what was definitely the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, with long black hair and defined arms. She was wearing a white tunic and skirt, with gold bracelets around her wrists and piercing blue eyes that stared at him curiously, yet his eyes were drawn to the bow pointed at his face.
"Fuck."
--[Earth -42]--
Takeo didn't get much time to get his bearings. When he came out of the portal, he found himself staring at what seemed like a monastery with large cliffs bordering all sides. Shortly after his arrival, Takeo found himself beset by people dressed all in black.
"I did not mean to come here," Takeo attempted again, but just like his previous attempts at communication, it was soundly ignored as the individuals continued to attack him. They wielded blades, and while Takeo was doing an adequate job defending himself with his Katana at the moment, he was quickly getting overwhelmed.
He backed up until he had the cliff behind him in an attempt to stop them from encircling him further, but he was still trapped with an array of ninjas in front of him. Through some unspoken command, they moved towards him all at once. Takeo managed to parry the first person's swing, but the next person caught him in the arm with their blade. Forced to grit his teeth, Takeo took another cut, this time much deeper in his side, but in exchange, he stabbed his sword clean through the closest person to him's heart.
That seemed to make the ninjas even more active in their attempts to take him down, and finally, he couldn't defend himself any further as he collapsed, his hand still tightly gripping his katana. He tried to raise himself, but someone kicked him in the stomach, and he collapsed back to the ground. Before he could do anything else, one of them restrained his arms behind his back and put a sack over his head.
They dragged him quite a ways, and he assumed they had brought him into the monastery he had found himself outside of. Eventually, they came to a stop and threw him forward while removing the sack over his head. Takeo slowly raised his head and looked around.
He was in a large chamber, with rows of the same ninjas who attacked him lined up on either side of him, leading up to a staircase that led to a throne. Sitting on the arm of the throne was a woman dressed in an entirely black skintight suit, with the zipper pulled down to showcase a large amount of cleavage. Her olive skin and black hair drew attention to her face, which showcased a calm look.
Behind and to the left of the throne stood another woman. Her positioning suggested she was of lesser standing than the first woman, although her appearance was just as eye-catching. She seemed to be mixed with Chinese and something else, and wore a mask that covered everything below her eyes. Her dark brown hair was visible, and her black body armor with red accents and a quiver of arrows on her back made it clear she was just as trained as the people who'd attacked him.
Takeo only did a once-over of the two women; however, his eyes were drawn to the figure sitting on the throne. He wore a dark green cape around his shoulders, and wore a black body suit under it with a prominent yellow circle on his chest, within which was a black bat. On his head, he wore a black cowl that had pointed ears sticking up on top of it.
"Pay respects to Ra's Al Ghul."
--[Earth -32]--
When Nikolai exited the portal, he found himself in a dingy alleyway. When he exited, his attire drew looks from those around him, but he ignored them while trying to figure out where Richtofen had sent him.
It seemed the place he had ended up was Gotham City. It had existed in his original universe, but it'd ended up as one of the first casualties of the zombies. They'd spent a short time there, but he hadn't set foot in Gotham since.
Without any real direction, Nikolai looked for a newspaper stand to try to figure out the current state of the world. It was only upon reading the front page that he realized this was not like the Gotham City of his world at all.
"Green Lantern drags Penguin into space and throws him into a meteor shower."
Nikolai read the headline while looking at the image shown in the center. On it was a man dressed in a black and green costume, with a black bat on his chest overlain with a glowing green lantern. On his head, he wore a black cowl with two ear-like protrusions. On one of his fingers was a glowing green ring, and his hand was being used to hold out the skeleton of what Nikolai assumed had been the Penguin.
"Where have you sent me Richtofen?"
----
Author's Note:
Richtofen Grand Scheme is set in motion, with many moving parts. The story is going to focus on Richtofen's POV, with the other three showing up later on in the story. I'll probably be writing side stories showing what happens with the others in a lot more depth, so I'm kind of curious which of the three universes you think is the most interesting. Go ahead and vote below; it might help me decide which side story to do first.
1. Dempsey on Themyscira, he's in the world where Batman ends up killing and putting on his helm.
2. Takeo in Nanda Parbat, if it's not obvious, he's in a world where Batman killed Ra's and became Ra's himself.
3. Nikolai in Gotham, he's in Gotham with Bruce Wayne, who got a Green Lantern ring when Joe Chill killed his parents, corrupted it, and used it to massacre villains.