Inside, the scene resembled a party, but it was eerie, lacking any trace of the joy one would expect from a human gathering.
The waiters were faceless demons with exposed brains, their bodies devoid of hair but adorned with ridiculous bow ties around their necks.
In their hands, they carried human heads with terrified expressions, the demon covering the skulls removed to reveal the fleshy brains and blood inside, with a few bloody eyeballs as grotesque embellishments.
In the corners, impatient demons gnawed at the tortured remains of humans, their forms beyond recognition. There were even demons engaging in unspeakable acts with the corpses.
On the pillars that flanked the hall, humans were nailed in crucifixion poses, barely clinging to life, too weak to even scream.
Some demons in suits and leather shoes lashed well-dressed humans, forcing them to dance to the dissonant sounds of the stage music.
On the bandstand, strange-looking demons played an assortment of instruments crafted from human bodies, those unfortunate souls still alive, writhing in pain.
Seeing this scene, Batman felt that Dante's depiction of hell had been far too conservative. What he witnessed now was far darker than anything he had imagined. This was Batman's first true encounter with the darkness of Hell.
At that moment, he made a decision in his heart: he couldn't let these demons wreak havoc in the city.
As he observed the grotesque spectacle, the door to the ballroom swung open. A massive, hideous demon entered with Constantine.
Batman immediately spotted them and, without hesitation, placed a small breathing apparatus over his mouth to protect himself from the foul air.
Beroul, the demon, was about to introduce Constantine to his hellish party when suddenly, a grenade exploded on the ground, A thick cloud of smoke quickly spread through the hall.
"Who is so bold!" Beroul, instinctively covering its face, but it reacted. As a demon, it had no reason to fear such trivial gadgets.
With a wave of its hand, the thick smoke was blown away by a gust of wind, but Constantine was nowhere to be seen.
The demon's large yellow eyes narrowed in frustration. The manor was its domain, and it had absolute control over it. It didn't take long for Beroul to locate Constantine—along with a mysterious man cloaked in shadows.
" where do you think you're going?" Beroul sneered, its eyes burning with malicious intent.
Batman grabbed Constantine and made a run for the gate.
"Have you figured out what's going on?" Batman asked.
"Of course. By the way, when did you leave?" Constantine replied, still shaken by the close call.
"It doesn't matter, we have to get out of this hellish place. It's too dangerous for us to fight here," Batman said.
"Wait, you've thought about going to war with them? I don't think escaping is going to be easy," Constantine muttered, wary of what lay ahead.
As the two approached the gate, Beroul suddenly blocked their path.
"Why are you in such a hurry?" Beroul taunted, a wicked grin stretching across its monstrous face.
Beroul's nose twitched, and its gaze shifted to Batman. It took a deep, exaggerated breath.
"Ah~ this charming taste... Your soul is very special... very special," it hissed, its tongue flicking out greedily.
Much like the pig-headed man, Beroul covetously eyed Batman's soul. Batman knew better than to rush into a confrontation, realizing it would be futile. Instead, he coolly assessed the situation.
"Do you have any other tricks?" Constantine asked.
Constantine, thinking quickly, eyed Beroul warily, pondering what magic could possibly be used to combat this beast.
"Yes," Batman said, his voice calm. He then glanced upward.
Constantine was about to ask, "What—" when he suddenly saw the Batplan appear through the glass window. From the Batplane's lower end, a weapons platform with three muzzles emerged.
"Down!" batman shouted, quickly ducking down.
In the next instant, a deafening barrage of bullets erupted from the cannon mounted on the Batplane. The bullets tore through Beroul's body, shredding it into a bloody mess.
Constantine stood in stunned silence, unable to comprehend the brutality of the attack, as Batman effortlessly scooped him up with one hand. While, Batman aimed at the Batplane and shot a small, stringed arrow from his wrist. The hook latched onto the plan's wing, and in moments, the Batplane, now on autopilot, ascended, pulling them away from the manor.
Back in the hall, Beroul's scattered remains—now nothing more than a pool of blood and shredded flesh—began to reassemble. The process resembled a time-lapse as Beroul's grotesque form slowly reformed. Within seconds, it regained its previous, hideous appearance.
Despite its body being destroyed, Beroul wasn't angry. Instead, it looked on with eerie interest as the Batplane flew away, its eyes locked on the direction in which Batman and Constantine had fled.
"Interesting."
...
Inside the Batplane, Constantine was fuming, he roared at Batman.
"Are you crazy?" he shouted. "Tracy's soul is in that demon! If it dies, she dies too!"
Batman remained eerily calm, his expression as cold as ever. "We cannot let the demons of that manor escape, at any cost."
Constantine's gaze shot to Batman. "You know, right? You know Tracy is in it!" he snapped, demanding an answer.
Batman didn't respond, but his silence spoke volumes. He had already placed a bugging device on Constantine before they left, allowing him to overhear all of Constantine's interactions with Beroul.
Batman knew the stakes—though it pained him, the choice was clear. He had to prioritize the city over an individual's life.
Constantine's rage exploded. "You... son of a bitch!" he shouted, his fist flying towards Batman's face.
Batman, stood still, allowing Constantine to land the punch. The Batplane was set to autopilot, so there was no need for Batman to be in control.
Constantine, enraged, continued to pour his fists into Batman, as though trying to punch out his feelings of helplessness. But with the upgrades to Batman's suit, Constantine's efforts were futile. He might as well have been hitting a brick wall.
"Have you had enough?" Batman finally asked, his tone flat. Constantine's hands were battered from the constant pounding, and his breath came in ragged gasps.
"Never enough!" Constantine growled, but before he could continue, the communicator in the Batplane crackled to life.
Batman answered, his attention shifting to the voice of Dane on the other end. "Where are you now?" Dane asked.
"On the plane. Just left the Devil's Manor."
Dane's asked in suspicious. "What's going on?"
"I killed Beroul, we left los angeles," Batman replied, but something in his voice seemed off to Dane.
"Are you sure?" Dane asked,with doubt.
"What do you mean?" Batman frowned, confused. He had seen Beroul shredded into pieces.
Dane continued, "I'd advise you not to rush to conclusions. A demon like that is no easier to kill than Gotham's madmen."
Batman glanced at Constantine, who was rubbing his fists in pain. Constantine, too, seemed to grasp the situation, realizing that Beroul might not be truly defeated.
He fumbled with his nearly broken fingers, trying to grab his phone to contact London, but the pain was too much. He eventually asked Batman to retrieve the phone for him.
"Chas, I need to speak to the Nightmare Nurse. How is Tracy?"
As soon as the call was answered, the gravity of the situation became clear.
"It's not good," the Nightmare Nurse replied. "If you don't retrieve her soul soon, her body will die. The best I can do right now is slow down the process."
Constantine's heart leaped. Tracy wasn't dead yet! She was still alive!
But Batman remained focused, If Beroul could survive that kind of attack, what else might it be capable of?
Without wasting any time, Batman contacted Dane again.
"You were right. It's not over. The demon is still alive. Can't it be killed?"
"It's impossible for any tangible creature to be truly immortal. Even I could die. But this demon... it likely knows some special black magic that allowed it to escape death. Isn't it your specialty to find weaknesses in creatures like this? We need to know how to kill it."
"I don't know much about magic, and I don't kill people," Batman replied bluntly.
"Demons aren't human," Dane pointed out. "Why don't you ask Mr. Constantine? He could be useful to us."
Batman glanced at Constantine, who was still nursing his aching hands, and responded, "I deeply doubt it."
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