EPOCH: The Hell Wars
LOCATION: Earth
Earth was not in one of its finer moments. Indeed, if a person from the late twentieth century were to look down upon their beloved planet from one of their "space shuttles," they might have difficulty identifying the planet as Earth after all. The entire planet had taken on an orange-red hue, as if trapped in an eternal dusk. Fire glowed from its surface as one metropolis after another burned to the ground. Above, the familiar moon glowed as usual, but the eerie dark form of Deimos also made its presence known.
Zael watch the carnage unfold, a delightful grin shining across his face. He recognized the form of Uriel approaching from behind him.
"The Klesk is learning quite nicely," Uriel began. "His accuracy is beginning to impress the other gladiators."
"Excellent," Zael responded, almost paying no attention. Uriel noticed his brother's fixation on Earth.
"I take it the invasion is proceeding nicely..."
"Yes, of course, of course." Zael replied absentmindedly.
Uriel tried once more. "Are we obtaining some quality gladiators?"
"Not really," Zael said as he turned. His grin was larger than ever. "But then again, that's not really the point, is it?"
Uriel was confused. "I'm afraid you've lost me, dear brother."
Zael's eyes flashed. "Oh, of course, how silly of me. You don't know." He paused to examine the look on Uriel's face, then continued.
"You see, this invasion is far larger than you know about. While you were doing your gladiator-hunting on Earth, we were amassing an army the likes of which the universe has never seen before. Now, that army is on Earth, ravaging whatever they find. We should have the entire population obliterated quite soon."
Uriel was taken aback. "But I thought the purpose of the invasion was to find the most quality gladiators quickly and easily... like sorting the wheat from the chaff."
Zael snorted. "That's all good and fine, but I'm afraid it's merely a secondary objective at best. We wish to crush the pathetic Earth mortals once and for all, to show them that they should not underestimate our intentions."
Uriel's eyes grew. "You mean to challenge... the id?" he asked in a forceful whisper.
"Indeed," Zael responded. "These Earth mortals are the chosen favorites of the id. That's why we've found such quality gladiators there. But the Arena Eternal is merely our recreational activity. Our true goal is to strike back at the id themselves for banishing us to this plane."
Uriel seemed to be truly frightened. "You're a fool if you think you can face the id."
"Alone, you might be right," Zael replied. "But I am most certainly not alone. In fact, I have some powerful backing... someone you might recognize."
A figure stepped out from the shadows. The beast was similar to Zael and Uriel, but much larger and more muscular. Its maroon skin glowed from the fire within its veins. Its chest was adorned with a logo, a broken ring with a large spike driven through it. As it spoke, the essence of terror itself seemed to speak with it.
"Hello, little brother," it said.
Uriel was frozen in place. "Quake," he said quietly.
Generations
