Austronesian Empire, Imperial Maharlika, Luzon, Manila, Underground Bunker of Malacanang Palace.

2000, 2, 1st Week, January

The radio chatter and the buzzing of television screens filled the air, creating a tense ambiance. The flashes of light from the television screen lights up the face of the emperor. Upon seeing the things that transpired on the television screen, the emperor Maximo's face turned ashen. Blood, death, and chaos were happening all over his country and his people were suffering. While he, the Emperor of the people, was just sitting ducks at the underground bunker of the Malacanang Palace. Anguish and guilt envelopes the heart of the Emperor Maximo.

But if he were to leave now, he might just as well sacrifice the entire country. After all, his death would mean the downfall of the empire. He hasn't had any heir yet, nor a wife, and his absence would eliminate the only semblance of stability the nation had, leading to the inevitable downfall of the empire.

It would break the country up into multiple warring factions, which were the capitalist, socialist, communist, nationalist, monarchist, national bolsheviks, and numerous other ideologies. These crumbled up and conflicting beliefs, the foundation of the empire, isn't going to last long. The empire was, however, a grand imperial experiment in uniting disparate ideologies, with Emperor Maximo at its core providing stability.

Therefore, it is now the time to establish a grand council of advisors to the emperor. Each seat on the council would be allocated to a leading scholar of the major political and ideological movements. Furthermore, the council would be overseen by representatives of the three major religions of the country.

To appease the three major religions of the country, the emperor would henceforth become a non-sectarian in all forms. Islam, Judaism, and Roman Catholicism would become the national religions, each holding equal status, while the emperor and the future royal family would remain entirely non-sectarian. The government would fund these three major religions, allowing them in their war of intrigue on massing their followers without imperial interference.

Other religions, though not part of the national religious framework, would be closely monitored. Religious freedom would be guaranteed, but practices involving the worship of demons, such as Satanism, would be banned. At first, the punishment of practicing such religion would lead to a month of imprisonment, but with the current situation, the punishment has changed, and anyone caught practicing satanism would be immediately executed by firing squad either by the government or the secret task force from the three major religions.

Anyway, this arrangement was made to be that way so that the dominance of the three national religions will be guaranteed while maintaining a semblance of religious freedom for others.

Meanwhile, the old government system would remain intact. It's just that there will be a grand council of advisors that will be established so that it will appease each political faction without straying too far into one of them. Balance must be maintained towards each warring faction.

Though they may have politically united decades ago, isn't good to say that it's all okay now. After all, there are still those kinds of people who believe that their ideology remains supreme above all.

In these dire times, they must remain united. The country could not afford to be split apart, especially considering the economic fallout that had caused many nations to fall apart. Therefore, Emperor Maximo decided to exercise his monarchical power as the monarch of the nation. Even if he had given much of his civilian executive powers to the people, his voice still reverberates throughout the nation. There are still people who would support him, and he remains the supreme commander of the army, which is why he was able to order the general staff earlier to maintain a semblance of control and stability.

To proceed with the plan's movements, Emperor Maximo now called for the politicians to which they all appeared before him on the television screen.

He gave an impromptu speech to which he stated the fragile stability of the nation from multiple political factions. He proposed the establishment of a Grand Council of Revolutionary Advisors, where each political elite would send their best ideological scholar to advise him. This council would aim to prevent political infighting that would break out and ensure that all ideologies were represented equally and fairly. The emperor also emphasized that any form of fighting or blackmailing would not be tolerated.

Upon hearing the emperor's words, the politicians were surprised, and some even found relief from it. That is because the emperor brought their fears and goals out, suggesting that the fight for supremacy might no longer be necessary.

However, there was still doubt towards the emperor, that was, until he finally brought it out and made a decisive declaration. The monarchy would become non-sectarian in all forms, and the three major religions would oversee the Grand Council and be declared the national religions of the empire. While minor religions would be granted religious liberty, they must acknowledge the dominance of the three major religions and will not conform from practices deemed heretical or satanic considered by the three religions.

Even though there are a lot of things that conflict between Islam, Judaism, and Roman Catholicism, being a non-sectarian monarch is a better solution, that would not provoke the ire of these religions. While religious freedom within the royal family, particularly for the emperor, was assured, projecting this freedom nationwide would be limited.

By this move, the emperor effectively abandoned joining in to the war of intrigue by the three religions, much to the delight of the three religions. The only thing that the three major religions would take into consideration is to amass their followers. Furthermore, it is strictly enforced between the three religions of not forcing other people into their religion and so they would just have to preach for people to join them, and so religious sensitivity was an unspoken rule between these religions.

Most of the politicians and the entire force of representatives of the three major religions accepted the proposed reforms that the emperor wanted, and so it will be implemented.

As the meeting concluded, the telephone of the emperor suddenly rang, to which a disturbing news came out. The people he was having a meeting with, however, noticed his reaction. so the attendees decided to cut the meeting short. Though the main decisions had already been completed and agreed upon, it only needed to be drafted into official policy.

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Austronesian Empire, Imperial Maharlika, Mindanao, General Santos City, City Centre Of General Santos City.

2000, 2, 1st Week, January

"Grenade!" a soldier shouted.

A thunderous explosion shattered the air, splattering splashes of unknown liquid all over the streets. A deafening roar followed on the opposite side of the soldiers. In the far distance, a massive demon resembling a giant lizard was sprinting toward the group of soldiers.

"Bring in the machine guns! The rest of you, unleash hell!" an officer commanded.

In an instant, flashes of light followed by ear-piercing sounds were brightly lit up the streets while also reverberating throughout the city.

Upon being hit hundreds of times on its body, mostly landing on its head, the lizard demon collapsed mid-sprint, effectively throwing its massive body towards the soldiers.

The machine gun emplacement was hit by a flying body of the demon, knocking both the gun and the soldiers manning it to the ground. Nearby soldiers noticed this and rushed to help the knock off soldiers, but as they looked forward, they saw another wave of demons closing in. They quickly returned to their positions to resume firing.

Unfortunately for the soldiers, without the support of the machine gun crew and its firepower, they were unable to hold their ground. Overwhelmed by the sheer number of demons, they were soon overrun.

"Ahh!"

"Urgh!

"Ahhh!"

"H-Help!"

"Go to hell!" a soldier shouted as he fired a rocket from the RPG on his shoulder. The rocket flew straight at a giant demonic wolf, which was about the size of a public bus, and exploded, blowing apart nearby demons and the surroundings.

"Is it dead?" he asked, only to find himself in the jaws of the same giant wolf, which devoured him as he screamed in pain and horror.

A soldier stumbled down while attempting to escape the slaughter of his squad. Before he could stand up, something immediately stabbed him in the back, to which he vomited crimson blood as he stared below his stomach where something that seemed like a blade was protruding. Just earlier, he had tried to flee, because he knew it was a lost cause, but it was also out of cowardice.

Thoughts raced through his mind as he pulled out a grenade and yanked the pin. Nevermind the searing pain he was suffering, he forcefully bent his arms to grab the demon that had stabbed him, successfully preventing it from escaping from him.

"To duty! To death!"

BOOOM!

A thunderous explosion soon followed brightly lighting up the sky and filling it with billowing smoke.

The sun had almost fully risen from its slumber, casting a pale light over the battlefield as dozens of missiles and shells looking like shooting stars rained down from the heavens and into the earth. The squad that had been wiped out earlier was supposed to be the last soldiers to leave the outskirts of the city center. However, they were eradicated before they could even escape.

A deafening blast resounded throughout the battlefield as the missiles and shells hit the ground. The hornet's nest has just been stirred up.

Thankfully, before they retreated to their positions, the soldiers had already fortified their positions with the help of mechanized engineers. Now, all they needed to do was wait.

The explosions rocked the city center, and were soon followed by the angry growls of demons. Dozens, if not hundreds, of demons emerged from the city center, heading toward the outer regions. However, all routes were effectively blocked by the liberation army.

Mechanized forces, ranging from FV-2 Strikers to FV-16 Wolfhounds, stood behind thousands upon thousands of military soldiers, ready to provide fire support at any time.



Soon after the two forces met at a blazing speed, fierce fighting erupted. Chaos, destruction, and despair fill the surroundings. The demons were as violent as never before, while the soldiers fought with the desperation of those facing death's door.

"Fire...! Fire...!"

"These things aren't stopping!"

"And so are we! Keep firing!"

The FV-2 Striker maneuvered to find a position to produce the most effective damage. Once they found a suitable position, they immediately unleashed their firepower while carefully avoiding a direct line of sight on their own troops.

Meanwhile, dozens of Multiple Launch Rocket Systems Titan were spontaneously launching their rockets in rapid succession, and the Self-Propelled Artillery Paragon were firing non-stop. Each shot landed directly at their intended target, which made the hornet's nest to be stirred even further.

Several flying demons finally came out of the city center. Despite these flying demons being only half of its body while the torso and the rest of their lower body was nowhere to be seen, they were still several times larger than an average human.

"Die, you son of a bitch!" shouted a soldier wielding a heavy machine gun, aiming directly at the legless demons. However, the bullets had no effect, and the demons managed to grasp a couple of soldiers, including him.

"SHRIEEEEK!!"

"Ahhhh! Avenge me brothe-!" the soldier screamed in horror, his cry cut short as the demon opened its monstrous jaws and tore him apart.

At that moment, the A-76 Stallion, a Self-Propelled Anti-Air Gun, began to take actio. The vehicle's turret turned skyward, unleashing 240 rounds per minute on the flying demons.



The flying demons were dropping like flies, obliterated as they attempted to took off towards the sky. Seeing their demons decreasin in numbers, the commanding officer ordered the troops to advance.

Thousands of soldiers dashed forward, while IFVs and JLTVs were moving at a rapid pace, carefully avoiding the disembarked soldiers. The soldiers took cover on each side of the streets and shoot any demonic forces on sight. Soon enough, the demons were overwhelmed and were eventually pushed back once again into the city center.

When the liberation army entered the city center, the smell of death immediately assaulted their senses as each of them entered. But their sense of responsibility remained supreme, and they held their ground while firing at the demonic monsters.

It felt alive, with pieces of beating flesh scattered around. Bones and skulls littered the streets, something disturbing must have really transpired here.

As they get nearer and nearer to the pinnacle of the city center, the resistance of the demonic forces grew even more fierce. Casualties were skyrocketing and blood ran in rivers through the streets.

Finally, after they were able to break through the defenses of the demons, what they saw before them was some sort of portal that lightened the surroundings with crimson light. Living flesh were protruding outside of the portal, it was beating as if it had a heart of its own.

In front of the portal was a robe figure standing in the middle of the platform, praying and whispering incomprehensible words.

"Hands where I can see them!"

Ignoring the stench of blood and gore around the platoon, an officer sidestepped to the left while the others spread themselves out to cover the area with their weapons. The hooded figure continued to stand there silencing and unmoving.

"That might be some dark wizard. George, shoot him down!" The Sergeant ordered the soldier beside him.

The soldier quickly raised his combat shotgun onto the target and fired, bursting a hole on the robe figure's chest and staggered him forward. He aimed for a headshot next, firing a second shot that blew off half of the figure's face.

"Target has been... what the?"

Just as the soldier was about to confirm the kill, he and the rest of the platoon noticed that the robe figure hadn't collapsed. They even noticed his gun wounds and were surprised to see there was barely any blood or gore.

Instead, a small cloud of smoke like a wisp of darkness coiled up gently from his chest, same as half of his torn face. Slowly, half of his face reformed back from a wisp of dark smoke, and he reached his face, rubbing the smooth surface as if he hadn't been shot in the first place.

The hooded man then turned around with his hood torn by the gunshot, and to further the surprise of the soldiers, they were met with a familiar face.

"M-Mayor?"

"You... are tOo AlReaDy lAte," the demonized mayor of General Santos said with a creepy smile. "THe bArrIer sHall be shaTtereD, anD the lOrd of tHe aPocAlYpsE and thE maIn aRmy oF the SevEn RiNgs of HelL sHall stEp fOot intO tHis woRld! AHAHAHAHA!!"

Bringing out a dagger in strange design, the mayor, without a moment's hesitation, stabbed himself in the neck, choking on his own blood before collapsing to the ground, dead.

Completely baffled by what they had witnessed, the soldiers suddenly felt the atmosphere froze over and their bodies jolting to a halt. They turned their attention to the portal, watching as cracks slowly formed before shattering like glass.

On the other side of the portal lay the abyss, a void of pure darkness. Moments later, they heard an otherworldly roar emanated from within. Despite their orders, the soldiers were drawn by curiosity, delaying their attempts to destroy the portal which they should've done earlier.

Before they could act, a hoarse voice echoed from beyond the portal, and they saw eyes as red as crimson staring back from the darkness.

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"Ah... The smell of flesh excites me."