Thaddeus (Act IV)

Template:Thaddeus nav We walk together. I never leave, yet

Who is the one walking beside you?

Counting us, I see only you and I

Here on the white road. Ahead of me

There is always another beside you,

Gliding wrapped up in a brown mantle.

I cannot know from where he comes.

Who is that always close by your side?

-- The Book of Haisin, c. 2, v. 1-8

Blackness engulfed Thaddeus, and he found himself in a strange place: a huge hall, with floors of marble and walls of black iron, surmounted by guardian spires of gleaming bronze. Cauldrons of brass, supported by representations of demons, burned with eternal fire, while vague mists drifted in the air. Demonic images are not an encouraging sign, but nothing in the place warned Thaddeus' senses of evil. If anything, all he felt was an overwhelming calm. The mists seemed to sing beautiful calming music.

The strange fortress looked empty. One small wing was empty; another held a waypoint -- the Horadrim had been here, at least. Upstairs, Thaddeus found his footlocker, against one wall of the fortress. As he looked around, he saw a huge fireplace, with weapons of great power mounted on the wall surrounding it. Deckard Cain was there, humbly conversing with an angel... the archangel Tyrael. Thaddeus went into his presence in silence.

"It is good to see you again, hero. I welcome you to the Pandemonium Fortress, the last bastion of Heaven's power before the burning hells."

Of course, Thaddeus thought, how could I not have known? "Hail, noble Tyrael. I have just come from Kurast, where I failed in my pursuit of Diablo and Baal."

"Your quest was far from a failure," Tyrael answered. "The Prime Evils' plan has been upset by the defeat of Mephisto. He remained to guard the Hellgate, awaiting Diablo's return to the mortal world with his army. After you entered it, I closed the Hellgate behind you. The last brother, Baal, travels the mortal world alone."

"Baal did not enter Hell?" Thaddeus asked.

"The brothers are divided," Cain smiled. "You have followed Diablo, and Tyrael tells me Natalya is pursuing Baal. Whatever plan they had will not come to pass."

Somewhat reassured, Thaddeus nodded. "What purpose could Baal have for remaining in the mortal realm?"

"That, even I cannot answer," Tyrael intoned. "If fortune is with us, we will never need to know. With the Hellgate closed, Diablo must not only placate his rebellious underlings and gather them for battle, he must create a new gate. Even if this is possible, I know it will take more time than he has."

Cain smiled. "It seems we have a bit of breathing space, my boy. I suggest we use it wisely."

With immense relief, Thaddeus bowed to the angel. "Great and munificent Tyrael! Your tidings gladden my heart. It is also good to know that the Pandemonium Fortress stands yet; these sanctified halls are rich with legends of heroism. It is an honor --"

"Erm..." Cain interrupted, "you have Mephisto's soulstone with you?"

"Yes! It is here." The stone glowed blue with a tiny, writhing spirit.

"It will not contain Mephisto for long. Unless properly destroyed, he will escape into Hell."

"There are many ways to destroy a soulstone... but the Hellforge is the most convenient," Tyrael said. "The Hellforge is a place where raw chaos is harnessed, and any bond of spirit or sorcery may be broken. The Pandemonium Fortress was built here to stage an assault on it, many ages ago... which brings another thing to mind."

"I have heard of the Hellforge, great Tyrael. Is it not on the River of Flame?"

"You are correct. But before you reach there, you face a long journey through the outer steppes of Hell. There, a tortured soul has been imprisoned: my most trusted lieutenant, Izual. It was he who led the ill-fated assault on the Hellforge. Fallen into the clutches of Hell, he was tortured for eons, and told his captors many of Heaven's most precious secrets. For his transgressions, he was imprisoned in the flesh of an ice demon, summoned from the blackest heart of the abyss. Ever since, he has roamed the outer reaches of Hell, unable to leave this place, or to enter the cities of the damned. I think he has suffered enough."

"The tale of Izual is known to me, noble Tyrael. Bearing the crystalline blade Azurewrath, he led a Heavenly host against Hell's fiery legions --"

"Hero, you must go forth and find Izual. The demon imprisoning him must be broken, and his soul set free. Then, you must proceed to the Hellforge."

"Yes, exalted Tyrael, I shall. Though I wonder if I can succeed, going where angels would fear to tread."

"Hell has been in disorder ever since the Three were exiled," Cain said. "I think you will find no organized resistance awaiting you."

"I can provide you with no assistance, save a few bits of wisdom. This must be mortal man's triumph alone -- your triumph."

My triumph or my death, Thaddeus thought. "My quest is before me. I only hope I can complete it as I intend to. Thank you, grand and glorious angel, for your confidence and the hope you bring me."

Downstairs from the fireplace, Thaddeus met two great heroes of legend. Halbu was a master forger for the church of Zakarum, martyred in a surprise attack from Duriel's forces on Kurast, ages ago. The other was Jamella, an enchantress and court scribe who died long before the church was founded. A virtuous and righteous pagan, her presence was all the proof anyone would need that the church was not the only way to Heaven. Both had goods for sale; the necessity of coin struck Thaddeus as odd. One would think that these elevated souls would have been left such material attachments behind.

Both seemed mildly amused by Thaddeus, but neither of them spoke to him, apart from Halbu offering to clean and repair his equipment. He was about to refuse, as he should not need it, when Halbu plucked a rotten banana peel off his head. Mud, dung, and rotten bananas were dripping off Thaddeus onto the Pandemonium Fortress's pristine floors. He was so awestruck, he never noticed he was leaving a trail. Deeply embarrassed, he let Halbu do the work; Jamella definitely giggled. Will I ever appear before an angel when I'm not covered with filth, Thaddeus wondered? That might be difficult to arrange in Hell.

A single stairway, floating in a void, led from Pandemonium down onto Hell's outer steppes. Hellish instruments of war lay scattered about in ruins, reminders of past attacks on the fortress. With as few defenders as the fortress had now, Hell could take it easily, if there were any armies to commit to the effort. As Thaddeus entered Hell, the only sound was the granular, ashen soil crunching under his boots. Nothing appeared to notice him. Stopping to look around, Thaddeus noted that not all the structures were war machines; some were the ruins of buildings, their construction similar to the Pandemonium Fortress itself. While looking at a steel archway equipped with chains fit to restrain a giant, Thaddeus heard something approaching -- something that sounded just like the desert Leapers.

They were Leapers, just like the ones from the desert, and from Kurast. As far as he knew, they had never been encountered in Hell before; were these some lingering remnant of those Diablo had taken with him to Kehjistan? They looked like they were starving; perhaps they had escaped during their transferal, and now wandered loose in Hell, trying to find something to eat. Demon flesh was poisonous to natural creatures; Thaddeus was probably the only thing fit to eat in all of Hell, and it looked like they'd guessed it.

Though it was a pity, Leapers are just animals, and Thaddeus killed them without concern. While casting Blessed Hammer, moving about to spread the hammers, some genuine demons caught sight of him: Venom Lords. No one could mistake these creatures for a beast of nature. Tall and powerful, armed with huge scythe-like blades, they looked like everything a demon should look like - but were famously weak in battle. Their bulk made them ponderous, slow to react and easy to block. Though Hell's fires burned within them, it only took a few holes to let the flame out, where it would consume their bodies to the bones instantly.

When the battle was over, Thaddeus found his first damned souls. Melded into a stone column, they stood as he approached and started clawing at the air, trying to reach him. He had heard of these damned ones, those condemned by the sin of Envy. Never satisfied with what they can accomplish, these sinners always compare themselves with others. Vanity and bitterness poison their souls, weighing them down with their own inadequacy until they plummet into the abyss. As their lives were spent anxiously looking and listening, in Hell they are put to use as watchers. Thaddeus moved past; there was nothing to do for these poor souls. Even beating them to pieces would serve no purpose.

Demons were everywhere on the steppes, and undead as well. Skeletal knights attacked in slow-moving but disciplined units; trapped souls screamed within their blades, dripping with foul venom. Blessed Hammer struck them down easily. The souls of sinners lay scattered over the empty plains too, on the ground where the demons trampled them. Some were in pairs: those taken by the sin of Lust. So lost were these souls in pleasures of the flesh, they actually felt that the only way to escape temptation was to give in to it. Others lay face down in the ashes, clutching some minor treasure, usually a sackful of coins. These ones were lost to Avarice, greedily clutching their wealth as if it were the only thing in the world. None of them cared about anyone but themselves, so they lay naked and exposed on the open plains; even the demons didn't care enough to pay attention to them.

Outside the ruins of a cross-shaped mockery of a church, huge braziers held those consumed with the sin of Pride. As blind as they were to the virtues of others, they now provide illumination in the meanest, humblest way -- as kindling. Burning eternally to light the way for others, these prideful souls rail and writhe in pain and shame. As he passed by, Thaddeus could hear a few claiming they were far too good for this. If these demons had any brains, they'd realize their talents for evil merited far better consideration. A desk job, at least. The vanity of it struck Thaddeus as utterly absurd... until he remembered that vanity was exactly why these people were here.

Not all the condemned were so loud. Those doomed by Gluttony hang in cages until they waste away to mere bones. The sin of Sloth is the monk's sin, one priests must especially beware of. Many, disgusted with humanity, turn away from their responsibilities to their fellow human beings and become hermits, striving to maintain their own purity by avoiding temptation. By trying to escape sin, they fall into the sin of pure selfishness; in Hell, the slothful are put to use weapons and instruments of temptation. The less said about the latter, the better; demons love to put former priests to the most depraved uses.

By the time he found the stairway down to the next layer of the abyss, Thaddeus had seen every sin but Anger. Those lay ahead, where they burned forever in the River of Flame, not realizing the river was nothing but their own all-consuming wrath. The Hellforge was on the river, drawing its heat from the destruction of angry souls. Thaddeus would know the river well before he was done in Hell; very few living people had been there. Beyond it, a ring of fortifications surrounded even deeper hells; Diablo would probably take sanctuary in one, to gather his forces and establish a new link with the mortal world.