Armageddon???? (Part Fifty Up)

[kdahm(the same one)]

No, pi itself doesn't change. Mathematics itself doesn't change, so your earlier post is still full of shit. The application of mathematics to a real environment can produce different results than we expect, or (as in my case) one can forget about another possible complication, but since mathematics is a self-defined self-consistent system of thought, it would be the same no matter where you were, or in what universe. Remember that mathematics is not physics; physics applies mathematics to real situations, but mathematics itself is a completely made-up, self-defined system.

You quite clearly misunderstood. I said, "Saying it's mathematical, therefore it can't change is also naive.", not "mathematics changes" In addition, mathematics is only a system of thought, and is subject to GIGO errors. There are good error trapping routines, but it's only as good as the initial assumptions and the person performing the manipulation.

You clearly are not interested in rational debate. From what I have seen, you believe your opinion is infallible, equivalent to papal bulls, and there is no possible chance of error. Hopping on the slightest ambiguity, you interpret what is written in a manner most favorable to permit you to write a 'gotcha'. Capping this off, you resort to four letter insults frequently and without provocation, showing a limted understanding of fine art of insults. Common courtesy seems to have passed you by. In my view, many of your responses are akin to trolling.

Due to this behaviour, I will be ignoring you and your responses until your online persona has grown up. My condolences to your coworkers and those who have to deal with you on a daily basis.

[Darth Wong]

No, pi itself doesn't change. Mathematics itself doesn't change, so your earlier post is still full of shit. The application of mathematics to a real environment can produce different results than we expect, or (as in my case) one can forget about another possible complication, but since mathematics is a self-defined self-consistent system of thought, it would be the same no matter where you were, or in what universe. Remember that mathematics is not physics; physics applies mathematics to real situations, but mathematics itself is a completely made-up, self-defined system.

You quite clearly misunderstood. I said, "Saying it's mathematical, therefore it can't change is also naive.", not "mathematics changes"

Nice hair-splitting. Did you take a special course for that?

In addition, mathematics is only a system of thought, and is subject to GIGO errors. There are good error trapping routines, but it's only as good as the initial assumptions and the person performing the manipulation.

And how is that different from what I just said?

You clearly are not interested in rational debate. From what I have seen, you believe your opinion is infallible, equivalent to papal bulls, and there is no possible chance of error. Hopping on the slightest ambiguity, you interpret what is written in a manner most favorable to permit you to write a 'gotcha'.

So says the imbecile whose retort is the most horribly obvious case of hair-splitting I've ever seen, and whose very first communication with me was to seize upon a fucking joke that I made about a mistake Starglider made with unit symbols (one which he himself took in good stride, but which you tried to make into a debate). You must have a real eye for irony. Either that or you're just too fucking stupid to realize when you're actually describing yourself.

And what "ambiguity" is there in the simple statement that mathematical laws don't change with environment?

Capping this off, you resort to four letter insults frequently and without provocation, showing a limted understanding of fine art of insults.

You actually think that's a logical deduction, don't you? Do you honestly think there is a substantive difference between calling you a fucktard, which you most certainly are, and saying some kind of cloying insult, like "I would try to explain, but it would seem pointless in light of your obvious reading comprehension problems?"

Common courtesy seems to have passed you by. In my view, many of your responses are akin to trolling.

Actually, since this forum was specifically made as a place where idiotic Miss Manners rules of false civility are not required and where it is against the rules to demand such civility, you are trolling. And you will be treated accordingly if you persist.

Due to this behaviour, I will be ignoring you and your responses until your online persona has grown up. My condolences to your coworkers and those who have to deal with you on a daily basis.

Ah, so if I insult you for your worthless contributions to this thread, then I must be rude to everyone I ever meet! Another fine logical deduction from Mr. Pinhead.

[Sidewinder]

probably inscribed with Kanji declaring the weilder of the weapon to be a true bad ass or something.

That would probably be "Tenge Muteki" (invincible on Earth, literally "No enemy under heaven"). It may be revised to "Jigoku Muteki" (invincible in Hell).

[Chris OFarrell]

I'm glad some note has been made of Kitten and what she must be going through, though I'm sure there is a legion of scientists working on the problem to try and artificially duplicate what she can do. Or at least limit her involvement to just directing the portal and not having to go through hell to open it or something.

And I'm not entirely sure about this idea of setting up a forward base, especially the idea of having the theater CO present in it, at least not without 40 divisions of troops there. So far it looks like its only a small battalion or brigade sized force. Inside hell, the logistics of gathering a gigantic force to crush the humans is probably simplified a great deal after all. Heck, think how many harpies you could send in.

[Stuart Mackey]

Intersting bit on the accuracy of the tanks. I wonder how this will effect casualty rates and the nature of fighting untill a fix is worked out for the computers?

[Darth Wong]

I'm glad some note has been made of Kitten and what she must be going through, though I'm sure there is a legion of scientists working on the problem to try and artificially duplicate what she can do. Or at least limit her involvement to just directing the portal and not having to go through hell to open it or something.

And I'm not entirely sure about this idea of setting up a forward base, especially the idea of having the theater CO present in it, at least not without 40 divisions of troops there. So far it looks like its only a small battalion or brigade sized force. Inside hell, the logistics of gathering a gigantic force to crush the humans is probably simplified a great deal after all. Heck, think how many harpies you could send in.

The problem is that it's going to take a long time to assemble a large army; Hell doesn't mobilize for war very often, and while they were able to take their time assembling Abigor's army, it's different now. The humans can probably reinforce and fortify their positions much faster than the demons can raise an army capable of overrunning those positions (and that's assuming they know what the humans have done; it sounds like all they have is rumour at this point).

[The Duchess of Zeon]

No, pi itself doesn't change. Mathematics itself doesn't change, so your earlier post is still full of shit. The application of mathematics to a real environment can produce different results than we expect, or (as in my case) one can forget about another possible complication, but since mathematics is a self-defined self-consistent system of thought, it would be the same no matter where you were, or in what universe. Remember that mathematics is not physics; physics applies mathematics to real situations, but mathematics itself is a completely made-up, self-defined system.

You quite clearly misunderstood. I said, "Saying it's mathematical, therefore it can't change is also naive.", not "mathematics changes" In addition, mathematics is only a system of thought, and is subject to GIGO errors. There are good error trapping routines, but it's only as good as the initial assumptions and the person performing the manipulation.

You clearly are not interested in rational debate. From what I have seen, you believe your opinion is infallible, equivalent to papal bulls, and there is no possible chance of error. Hopping on the slightest ambiguity, you interpret what is written in a manner most favorable to permit you to write a 'gotcha'. Capping this off, you resort to four letter insults frequently and without provocation, showing a limted understanding of fine art of insults. Common courtesy seems to have passed you by. In my view, many of your responses are akin to trolling.

Due to this behaviour, I will be ignoring you and your responses until your online persona has grown up. My condolences to your coworkers and those who have to deal with you on a daily basis.

Kdahm, this is our board, our rules. We're quite polite people in real life, I assure you--you damn well know I am, there's many things that may be said about me, but my ability to be infallibly polite has long been proved over at HPCA and many other places--so that, let's put it simply. Grow a spine. The fundamental principle of this website is that all the fucking abuse on the planet (and I wrote that to make a point) does not distract from a rational argument. You can either accept the objective fact of that (it is true, data is data is data and it doesn't matter how many "fucktards" it's surrounded by) or you can run home and behave with incredible immaturity toward a very successful and intelligent man who happens to be one of the best and most suitable fathers I've ever met.

[Shroom Man 777]

I love the fact that Shep loves the Osprey.

and kdahm, GTFO mang. If you're gonna act like a bitch and whine about the owner of the board and tell him to grow up, then just get the fuck out.

[PainRack]

Does the resistance has its own source of transport or communications?

Without any of this, its unbelievable that any cell could offer meaningful resistance across a large swath of hell....... One wonders how Kim was able to pull off the acts of destruction she did across such large distances.

Unless demon patrols have been utterly cutrailed due to the war...........

[KlavoHunter]

Does the resistance has its own source of transport or communications?

Seeing as they were thrown a big pack of stuff including a laptop computer and other goodies, I imagine they also have radios and can communicate effectively amongst one another. As for transport, they have their feet and the inhuman endurance of those who have been reborn in hell.

Without any of this, its unbelievable that any cell could offer meaningful resistance across a large swath of hell....... One wonders how Kim was able to pull off the acts of destruction she did across such large distances.

Powerful modern weapons and doctrine, and the fact that Kim's unit is Special Forces; facing off against an enemy whose tactics are buried well over a thousand years in the past, is utterly demoralized at the thought of patrolling outside their fortress walls, and frankly has never developed a doctrine for regular patrols, seeing as there has never been a resistance of any meaningful sort in Hell.

The Hell Resistance Cells have been dealing disproportionate damage for their size and resources, but their resources are dreadfully finite - their only means of supply of human weapons comes from one little girl who is being terribly overtaxed just by supplying 9 separate cells. Those flashy victories expend a massive amount of extremely limited explosives and ammunition

Unless demon patrols have been utterly cutrailed due to the war...........

This compounds the problem - these patrols are now being more and more drawn from 'militia' units that have reportedly "Not held a trident in centuries". Add that to the Baldricks' aforementioned morale problems and lack of doctrine, and you have a situation where these resistance cells have near-total free reign.



The resupply system through kitten opening portals, as has been thus far described, is remarkably wasteful in terms of the potential volume of stuff that could be put through in the brief period of time that she can keep the portal open. Instead of having a few Marines with bulging forearms pitching things through, they need to set up something a bit more mechanized - Perhaps some sort of conveyor belt that shoves through a goodly number of large pallets full of all the materials needed to conduct guerrilla war?

After all, these portals are only being opened when the resistance cells on the other side are in a secure spot - When they are presented with more material than they can carry, they should spend time establishing caches of material that they can later return to, rather than only carrying a backpack's worth of stuff.

[PainRack]

Seeing as they were thrown a big pack of stuff including a laptop computer and other goodies, I imagine they also have radios and can communicate effectively amongst one another. As for transport, they have their feet and the inhuman endurance of those who have been reborn in hell.

Kim definitely has radios, since she was able to coordinate with Madeuce. However, what about the remainding cells?

Battery power would also rapidly become a problem. And that's ignoring how hellish conditions would play havoc on modern day equipment.

Is there any evidence that the dead will be able to walk faster? Furthermore, in guerilla warfare, movement speed is slowed due to the need for secrecy.

Powerful modern weapons and doctrine, and the fact that Kim's unit is Special Forces; facing off against an enemy whose tactics are buried well over a thousand years in the past, is utterly demoralized at the thought of patrolling outside their fortress walls, and frankly has never developed a doctrine for regular patrols, seeing as there has never been a resistance of any meaningful sort in Hell.

Singular acts of violence isn't the issue. Its the sustained campaign that cause the Fifth circle to curtail patrols, inhibit movement and the loss of effective demon control over territory. Without transport,communications. larger numbers or more supplies, its hard to imagine a cell of less than 10 people doing that within the timeframe.......

Of course, unless I'm utterly mixed up over the scale of distances involved here. I'm assuming that the fifth circle is at bare miminium a subcontinent the size of India.

[Vehrec]

I'm sure Japan will soon make an Anime about it as well

Even as we speak Tite Kubo is drawing a two-page spread for Shonen Jump that depicts the main cast of Bleach as a Spec-ops force in Hell. It has also been quickly but well researched by his assistants. The only major inaccuracy is the fact that nobody is wearing respirators.

Despite his popularity, Hitsugaya Toshiro did not make the spread, due to looking way to fucking young to be anywhere near a combat zone.

[Darth Yoshi]

It's not so much that the dead can walk faster, but the regen means that they can walk without rest for a far longer period of time.

[Stuart]

Of course, unless I'm utterly mixed up over the scale of distances involved here. I'm assuming that the fifth circle is at bare miminium a subcontinent the size of India.

The fifth circle is large (not as large as you suggest, there are ten circles to hell), but the PFLH campaign is taking place in a relatively small segment of the Fifth Circle (roughly 100 kilometers wide by 300 long). It would take about 3 days to move from one side to the other.

Demons do walk faster than humans and have to rest less often. On the other hand, they're being educated into believing that every rock and stone holds an enemy. Remember, we know that the PFLH has six dead members plus one or more H-teams of living Special Forces guys, the baldricks don't. All they know is that they're people are disappearing or being found horribly dead at an alarming rate. And they've just lost a castle, something that in their eyes requires a major force commitment.

[Darth Wong]

I wonder how much force they would believe it must have taken to storm a castle and level part of it like that, even a relatively small one. In the medieval period, directly assaulting a castle would require a huge force with heavy siege weapons. They'd probably be using harpy patrols to search for an army of several thousand humans.

[Edward Yee]

The humans can probably reinforce and fortify their positions much faster than the demons can raise an army capable of overrunning those positions (and that's assuming they know what the humans have done; it sounds like all they have is rumour at this point).

The way I read the last chapter was that the demons may not even know about the FOB, as I read the guards only knowing that the humans have made incursions into Hell with Iron Chariots performing an equivalent of hit/fade (and not yet getting it into their heads that the human Iron Chariots can go/hit where they choose).

As for force requirements for a siege: the Iron Chariots and fire/seeker lances are advantages not available to the demons and they know that too, so someone like Belial might realize that this offensive advantage is a force-multiplier.

[Stuart]

Randi Institute of Pneumatology, the Pentagon, Arlington, VA

“I guess it’ll be a relief dealing with normal people after having that sick freak around.” There was a stir of anger in the room, kitten’s boyfriend had started to get up but she put her hand on his and stopped him. It was a gesture that did not go unnoticed by most of the people in the room. Martin Chestnut was one who didn’t, he looked around smugly, the angry reaction to the insult aimed at kitten amused and satisfied him. Another thing he didn’t notice was two of the Special Forces troopers exchanging significant glances, they knew what kitten had gone through to keep the link to the teams in Hell open. Chestnut had just scheduled himself for an old military custom, a blanket party, at the first available opportunity.

James Randi cast a very sharp look at Chestnut, he’d spent his life exposing frauds and imposters and he was convinced Chestnut was one although in what sense he wasn’t quite sure yet. There was no doubt in Randi’s mind that the man had skills though, he’d made everybody in the room hate him. Randi had caught a whispered comment from a visiting Marine, something about Chestnut being a candidate for wall-to-wall counseling. Still, business first.

“We have to evaluate your ability to open a link before we can take this matter any further. We have several people now who can speak to various people in Hell, but so far kitten is the only person we have found who can sustain a link and open a portal. She’s worked very hard for the last few weeks and she needs a break. So, we are going to try and open a portal to a team we have on the Seventh Circle, they are desperately short of ammunition and need resupply urgently. So, kitten’s going to talk to them and they we’ll see if you can open a portal.”

“Just keep that pervert away from me.” The Marine and the Special Forces troopers exchanged glances, the blanket party attendance had just grown. On one of the seats, kitten relaxed and opened her mind up.

Tucker? Are you there? Can you speak?

Hey kitten, sure can. We’re having a rest, we’ve just got a new member here. Private Joanna Cassidy, USMC. He rattled the serial number off. She’s in a bad way but she’ll mend, physically anyway.

“Got her, Marine Private Cassidy. Killed in a humvee wreck about six months ago, in Iraq.” The Marine had typed the number into a notepad and the answer was immediate.

Confirmed Tucker. Now, we’re going to try something. We’ve got another guy here who can contact Hell so we’re going to see if he can open a portal. If he can, we’ll be able to get you some stuff, we have a sword for Ori, one he’ll like we think. Its called a Katana, it’s a gift from the Japanese Government. A swordmaster over there made it from modern steel. We have more ammunition and some semtex for you.

That’s fabulous kitten, sure you’re not going to get hurt for this?

Quite sure, I’m not going to hurt. At the other end, Tucker noticed the satisfaction in her thoughts and wondered what was going on back there.

“Link’s set up. Martin, please make the portal.”

“Its Mister Chestnut to you.” He relaxed on the couch and had the wiring set up around him. Meanwhile kitten disconnected and isolated herself from the system. Behind the control bank, the operator started running the power up to portal threshold. Chestnut started writhing and moaning on the couch. “Shit, this hurts, you never told me it would hurt like this.”

Then, the black ellipse started to form in the room and Chestnut’s wailing reached a new level. The sword was the first thing to get thrown through, followed by some packs of Semtex and boxes of rifle ammunition. Then, the ellipse slammed down.

kitten grabbed her head-set and pushed through a contact. Tucker, did you get anything?

Yeah, thanks, the sword’s here and we got a box of ammo and five of Semtex. Guess your guy wasn’t too hot huh?

Very noisy. Bye Tucker, talk to you soon.

Bye Kitten

“They got a little stuff, the sword, 5 kilos of Semtex and 250 rounds of ammunition.” kitten relaxed a little.

“And that’s all anybody will get until you agree to my terms.” Chestnut had a predatory grin on his face.

“What terms?” Randi spoke cautiously.

“I want a million a year retainer. A hundred thou bonus every time I have to open a portal up for you. You’ll buy an apartment for me wherever I choose to live and I want a Ferrari. I’ll tell you which kind later.”

“That all?” Randi was beginning to lose his temper.

“No, but I’ll add the rest later. You might as well agree now though, you haven’t got any choice.”

“Actually we do.” The voice from the door was contralto and silky. For those who knew the General, this meant trouble was coming for somebody. Nobody had ever heard her swear, she’d never had to. “We have three more candidates coming in today. An Indian and a Chinese lady and a Chinese man. All have passed the initial tests you laid down James, they’re looking very good. The Indian Lady speaks very good English so I’m told, she worked in a bank customer service center before she went mad.” The General was staring at Chestnut expressionlessly. It occurred to Randi that the lack of feeling was more terrifying than any display of dislike could have been. “General Schatten? A useful recruit this one? For the field test?”

“Yes indeed Ma’am. Mister Chestnut.” Schatten loaded the ‘Mister’ with irony. “Here’s our counter-offer. We give you a nice green suit with a red-brown one for work-wear. We will pay you one thousand two hundred and forty five dollars and ninety cents per month, before deductions. We’ll also provide you with a comfortable pair of boots for walking around in. They may even fit. We’ll even feed you and give you a bed to sleep in.”

“Forget it. No way.”

“You don’t have any choice, Private Chestnut. You’re in the Army now. We have reinstated the draft you know.” Schatten’s voice was richly amused by the sudden change on the man’s face.

“You can’t make me do the portal thing. Or anything else. And I won’t. Not unless I get my money.”

“It’s Sir to you. No, we can’t. But I must advise you that you’re being assigned to a field test program. We know that sensitives can contact Hell, but what happens if we put a sensitive in hell and try to contact out? We need to know that but kitten was much, much too valuable to use that way. Still is. But you’re not. So, we’re assigning you to Camp Hell-Alpha and you’ll stay there until the program is complete. Of course, if you don’t co-operate that may take a very long time. You two.” Schatten gestured at the two Special Forces men. “Take Private Chestnut away and show him how the Army works.”

“It’ll be a pleasure Sir.”

“I thought it might be.” The two Special Forces men led Chestnut out and closed the door behind them. A few seconds later there was a muffled thud and the door shook, followed by an apologetic “oops”. The Marine in the room suddenly developed a satisfied expression in his face,

Major General Asanee had sat down beside kitten. “How are you doing?”

“Well, thank you ma’am.”

“Good, for I have some news for you. If our three new recruits work out a bit better than Mis…. than Private Chestnut…. did, you’ll get some leave soon. My Learjet is waiting to take you to Bangkok for your operation, as I promised, my government will pay the account. Until then, I’d like you to meet somebody, one who has already been through the procedure. She’ll tell you what to expect and how to do things afterwards. She’s waiting outside, as soon as you’re done here, you two can get together.”

Deep Tunnel Stygia ('The Slime Pit'), Shaft 14, Slocum Mine, Tartarus

Captain James Shanklin stood knee-deep in the stagnant water, listlessly hacking away at an exposed copper vein. It had been something like a century now that he'd been in this literally God-forsaken place, give or take a decade. It was all so unfair. Hadn't he died for King and Country, like you were supposed to? He'd gone to church... mostly. He'd been a faithful husband... almost. There had been that one time, a year before the German shell ended his life, just after that fresh-faced young private had joined the squad. In the earthly hell of the Somme they all thought they had only weeks to live, surely God could forgive a man for seeking whatever companionship and release he could under such conditions?

It would seem that God could not. James dimly recalled spending decades in an empty wasteland scoured by a constant terrible storm, wandering without ever finding rest or shelter. Then he was brought here, seemingly to mine copper for all eternity. The last few months had been particularly intolerable. He was sure that other prisoners were stealing ore from his crates when he wasn't looking, because he'd been sentenced to work in the slime pit almost every week. Worst of all, the pointless riots meant that all the humans were now kept chained up at all times. The corroded bronze manacle had already rubbed his ankle raw. The formerly lax demon supervisors seemed to have found a new motivation for their calling, as they were more eager than ever to apply their whips.

The rumors had been going around the mine since the demons had first questioned them about human weapons. At first there was nothing but a welter of speculation, but as of late they had taken a decidedly grim turn. New workers were arriving, fresh from earth and bringing tales of their homes falling to an irresistible demonic onslaught. City after city was apparently being raped, pillaged and burned by the fiendish legions. Some refused to believe, harping on about inconsistencies in the stories, but James knew they were just grasping at straws. He had seen what being in the midst of brutal slaughter could do to the mind first hand, at Flanders and Neuve Chapelle; if anything the confused ranting of the new arrivals only confirmed the horror of what they had witnesses. In his mind all of humanity was clearly doomed to suffer, individually and collectively.

Into this uniformly depressing picture had come an unexpected ray of hope. At the start of this shift, they had been assembled in the loading area again and Medusa had a different message for them. Reading from a slate chalked with strange runes, she had implored the workers to reveal the location of the human arsenals. Only then would the demons be able to spare the remaining cities from total destruction. Any human who helped make this possible would be rewarded with dominion over one of the surviving settlements, to rule it in Satan's name for the rest of time.

For Captain Shanklin the struggle with his conscience had been a brief one. He had been loyal to the King and the Empire had sent him to a fair approximation of this place, rendered in stinking trenches and screaming shellfire, only to throw away his life fighting over a patch of worthless French mud. He had been faithful and his God had abandoned him. Even in this place, his fellow men seemed to wish him only further suffering. No, he no longer gave his loyalty to anyone but himself. James resolved to grasp this chance. He was already in hell, he could hardly damn himself a second time by supping with the devil. Besides, if the people of Sheffield saw sense and surrendered, perhaps he would be able to save his home from total destruction. What more noble deed could be expected of him?

A dull pounding echoed down the tunnel, muffled by the standing water. An overseer was coming; at regular intervals the hoof-beats paused and were replaced by screams as another miner was given a taste of the barbed whip. The pounding became splashing as the demon approached. James' hands began to tremble as he waited for it to reach him, sweat beaded on his forehead as he prepared to betray everything he had ever known. At last the monstrous creature came into sight. The demon seemed to combine the worst features of a gorilla and a goat into a vast brutish humanoid. The sight of the human's motionless pick had just registered on its face and it began to raise its great spiked lash.

“Wait!” shouted Captain Shanklin, “I can help! I can tell you where all the Empire's steel comes from! I can lead you to the forges that make Britannia's great guns and railways!”

The demon paused with whip raised, uncomprehending. James shouted desperately. “The weapons that are giving your armies pause! The metal they are made from, you call it 'enchanted iron'. I can show you where most of it is made!”

For a moment it looked like the demon would ignore him, but then it slowly lowered its whip and reached into the water. The chains confining the humans had no locks; if the demons were capable of such craftwork, they did not waste it on lowly human prisoners. Instead there was simply an unwelded bronze link too thick for a human to bend, but which the overseer's supernatural strength could easily open and close. The demon's clawed hands emerged holding the end of the chain, with which it yanked the human forwards.

“Come.” James has no choice but to follow the brute up through the winding tunnels towards the main shaft, the chain pulling him roughly to his feet when he tripped and fell. “I hope you're lying, little human, because I'd love to make a feast of your entrails.”

They turned off the main tunnel into an area James had never entered before. It seemed to be a kind of office, well lit with numerous torches and filled with carved stone tables and stools. Slates filled with chalked runes lay on the tables and hung from the walls, along with thin fired-clay tablets covered in more runes. His eyes only had seconds to take this in before Medusa entered the room, her snake-hair writhing gently. James averted his gaze as quickly as possible, falling to his knees in the manner he'd seen the lesser demons use during the rare visits of the senior overseer.

“This one claims to know where the humans make their enchanted iron.”

Lakheenahuknaasi stared at the wretched human cowering before her. Its form was still dripping with rank water. She hoped this one had something useful. Euryale had gambled a lot on this wild scheme, and if it failed she would undoubtedly ensure her handmaidens suffered with her. Lakheenahuknaasi aimed a tentacle at the human and shot a single enthralment dart into the man's shoulder, enough to make it difficult for him to lie to her without robbing him of his wits. He reeled, shook his head and then tried to look at her out of the corner of his eye, in that annoying manner humans seemed to have. Lakheenahuknaasi smiled at him, unaware that her fangs made the gesture more threatening than reassuring. “So, you have something to tell me, yesss?”

Throne Room, Palace of Satan, Dis, Hell

Satan had thrown some temper tantrums in his time but this one exceeded any those present could easily remember. Most of the Orc domestic staff had died one way or another, and the only reason why the massacre had stopped there was that Satan had run out of energy. While his magic built up again, he contented himself with screaming abuse at the gathered nobles. Eventually even that led to an exhausted silence. He looked around at the stunned nobility, his eyes flickering from one to the next, trying to catch even the slightest whiff of treason.

“How many members of my guard were killed?”

“Nine, Sire.”

“And you claim that humans did this.” There was a sly inflexion on the ‘you claim’.

“They did Sire, they were seen by a Greater Herald that flew not far away. He saw the Iron Chariots killing them.” That was a trump call, Satan wouldn’t argue with testimony from one of his own Greater Heralds.

“And after the battle they crossed over the bridge and destroyed the camp the other side of the Phlegethon. Then they retreated back to their side of the river where a Flying Chariot joined them.”

Satan screamed again, and a lightning bolt struck down the speaker where he stood. “Their side of the river? Who else thinks such treason?” His eyes ran around the room, seeking for treason again, or an excuse to kill, there wasn’t much difference really. “The humans are still at the Dysprosium Bridge.”

“They are.” Beelzebub spoke carefully. “But they destroyed it. The Phlegethon is unbridged there now.”

“Then destroy them. Take your legions, all of them, and destroy them. Belial, is your plan ready to carry out? Or will you be seeing your furnaces from the inside?”

“We are ready Your Majesty. We have the information we need and the chorus is set up.” And I can only hope that’s true Belial thought. It wasn’t when I left two days ago, and when I get back, I’ll have little time left.

“Then you will time your attack to match Beelzebub’s assault on the Human Army. How soon can you move your army.”

Beelzebub cast an eye at Belial and thought carefully. “Four days Your Majesty.”

“Then that gives you two more days than I promised Belial. Use them well.”

Behind the scene, Deumos watched carefully, absorbing every nuance, every undercurrent in the great room. And through her mind kept running the phrase “the humans cannot lose.”

Then, the audience was disturbed by a Greater Herald who stumbled in, exhausted from a too-rapid flight. “Your Majesty, terrible news. Asmodeus is dead.”

[JN1]

Oh, no, not poor old Sheffield! Was destruction by a Soviet ICBM in 'Threads' and a British weapon in the TBOverse not enough?

Nice to see another new chapter, Stu.

[Darth Wong]

Great chapter, Stuart!

Is Martin Chestnut based on anybody?

[KlavoHunter]

Oh no! What's happened to Asmodeus? I thought he was going to become an interesting fellow.

[CaptainChewbacca]

I forget, where/what was Asmodeus doing last?

Also, did the Captain tell them to hit Sheffield, or was he giving them another target so that Sheffield could be saved?

[Eulogy]

Tonight, Martin Chestnut dines in HELL!

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

So does this mean that Deumos is ready to defect to the humans, especially since another Duke has been struck down (or blown up, as the case may be)? Does this also mean that James' info ends up being horribly outdated?

[Siege]

Is Sheffield really the target though? Or is Belial going to dump a ton of sulfur on something like ye olde site of the Dominion Iron & Steel Company Ltd. in Sydney Harbor, Nova Scotia?

Of course, hitting either place wouldn't be pleasant at all for the people who live there... Not exactly the greatest strategic target ever, but yeah, very unpleasant.

[CaptainChewbacca]

Could be hitting Newcastle, that wouldn't be good.

[JN1]

Could be hitting Newcastle, that wouldn't be good.

Might cause millions of pounds of improvements.