With a sharp hum, the energy bullets suspended in front of Soren and the others, frozen mid-air. But instead of feeling relief, none of them dared to hope they had narrowly escaped death, because they had no idea what was happening. Soren and the others even suspected that Damien was merely toying with them, planning to terrorize them further with the looming threat of death.
"Damn it! Who's there?!" Damien, now visibly shaken, yelled into the void. His earlier composure was gone, replaced by uncertainty. Moments ago, he had been confident, arrogantly revealing his true plan, believing there was no one else around. But now, with his control over the situation slipping, Damien's mind raced.
No one answered Damien's shout, but suddenly, their car began to levitate. Damien's expression shifted as his body flickered, attempting to teleport away, but his escape was abruptly halted. He found himself suspended mid-air, unable to break free.
While his movements were smoother than the others who had crashed into an invisible barrier, Damien still couldn't escape the telekinetic force field. Not only was he unable to flee the vehicle, but he also couldn't lash out at Soren and the others despite the car's rising elevation.
"Who's targeting me? Superman? No, this doesn't feel like Superman's abilities..." Damien pondered, his childlike face twisted in thought. Though he had researched Superman extensively, he hadn't encountered anything suggesting Clark had this kind of power.
Meanwhile, Soren and the others realized they could move again, though they remained cautious, exchanging nervous glances. Despite the newfound freedom of movement, none dared act rashly, unsure of what had just happened.
The driver, who had been obliviously driving the car through all this, finally noticed something was wrong. He hadn't heard the commotion in the soundproofed cabin and was still focused on the road. But when he realized the car was lifting off the ground, panic gripped him.
"What the hell? I didn't know this car could fly! Am I being haunted?" the driver stammered, his voice trembling in fear. He glanced at the controls, desperately trying to regain control of the car's direction, but it was no use. The vehicle rose higher into the air before eventually descending into a desolate area.
The driver, terrified, attempted to open the door. When he realized he could, he wasted no time and fled the car. But after running some distance, he hesitated, glancing back at the vehicle. He gritted his teeth, pulled a modified handgun from his waist, and cautiously made his way back to the car, clearly determined to protect his passengers.
"Huh, he's got guts to come back. I'll give him that," Robert remarked with a hint of admiration as he noticed the driver approaching. However, he didn't allow the man to get too close, instead stepping up to the car door with Diana and opening it himself.
"Who's there?!" The sound of the door opening drew the attention of everyone inside. Apart from Damien, the others had never seen Robert or Diana before. Soren had been unconscious during Robert's earlier encounter with Clark. Only Damien recognized Robert, recalling that he had been with Superman previously.
"You're with Superman, aren't you?!" Damien's pupils narrowed in recognition. He was wary of Clark, knowing he wasn't yet strong enough to face him. Now, seeing Robert's abilities in action, Damien grew even more cautious. While trying to maintain his composure, he subtly activated his powers.
"Allies? Isn't that what villains like you call your accomplices? We're more like a team for justice," Robert replied with a smile, shaking his head. His tone was casual, but his eyes were sharp as he looked at Damien.
"So, you're not going to reveal your true form? Before you started using your powers, I couldn't tell what you were, but your concealment skills are impressive. Even better than many of the Hell Lords I've met, like Mephisto's human form. But no matter how well you act, it's still fake. You've been exposed. Even the temporary ambassador here could see through you, so you've got some work to do!" Robert's voice was light, almost mocking.
"Whoosh!" Unable to hold back any longer, Damien launched an attack. Black energy surged from his small frame, crashing against the telekinetic barrier surrounding them. The force was immense, but it didn't even touch Robert.
"Such dark power. If not for the obvious Hellish energy in it, I'd suspect you were from some other dark dimension rather than Hell itself," Robert mused, watching Damien's attack with mild interest. His tone remained casual, as if Damien's effort posed no threat.
"And yet, you still won't show your true form. You must be very attached to this body. Tell me, when did you arrive on Earth? And how did you take over this child's body?"
"I'll take over your m—!" Damien began to curse, his face twisted with rage. But before he could finish his sentence, the telekinetic force surrounding him tightened. His body was immobilized, his powers completely locked down. It was the same technique Damien had used to paralyze Soren and the others earlier, only this time, he was the victim.
"Damn it! What is this? Who are these people? How can they rival Superman's strength?" Damien's mind raced as his body hung helpless in mid-air. He was furious, but no amount of struggling allowed him to break free. Trapped and silenced, Damien could do nothing but plan his next move internally.
"This is odd..." Robert muttered, frowning as he scrutinized Damien's form. While he had initially assumed Damien was a typical demon using a human body, something didn't add up. As Robert sensed the hellish energy surrounding Damien, he realized the boy's body still felt completely human, fragile even—like any other child.
It made Robert hesitant to exert too much pressure, fearing that any extra force might cause Damien's body to collapse entirely.
"You, you're his father, right? Can you tell me when Damien first started acting strange?" Robert asked, turning to Soren for answers after his investigation yielded no clear results.
"Actually, I'm not his biological father..." Soren responded, much calmer now after witnessing Robert's abilities. The terror Damien had instilled in him had faded, and he could speak freely without fear of breaking down.
"What?" Before Robert could react, Catherine, standing nearby, stared at Soren in disbelief. Her face was a mix of confusion and shock.
For years, she had believed Damien was her son, even though he had started exhibiting strange behavior. Now, Soren was telling her that Damien wasn't their child at all. The revelation left her stunned, unable to process it.
"Back when you had complications during childbirth, our child died. You'd already had two miscarriages before that, and I was afraid you wouldn't be able to handle the grief of losing another child. I also feared it might harm your health, so I adopted Damien..." Soren explained softly, his tone filled with regret as he looked at Catherine.
"Damien's mother died of hemorrhaging during childbirth, and there were no other relatives. On the advice of the hospital chaplain, I decided to bring Damien home. At the time, there were already signs of something... unnatural about him."
"Signs? You mean the '666' mark?" Robert asked, glancing at Damien.
"Yes, that's right. But at the time, I didn't think much of it. He was just a child, and he seemed cute enough. Who would have suspected anything so dark? But over time, his behavior became more and more concerning..." Soren nodded, his voice heavy with sadness.
After years of raising Damien, Soren couldn't say he had no feelings for the child, but knowing Damien's true nature had erased any desire to plead for him.
"So, he's a full-fledged demonic being, born into this world like Mamon?" Robert frowned, recalling his past battle with Gabriel, Mamon, and even Lucifer. Unlike Damien, Mamon had taken on his demonic form immediately upon birth, making this situation somewhat different.
"When was Damien born?" Diana, who had been silent, suddenly asked, as if piecing together something important.
"Three years ago. December 13th, 2009," Soren responded quickly.
"The same time the dimensional rift appeared..." Robert and Diana exchanged knowing glances, realizing that Damien's arrival on Earth might be tied to the dimensional breach.
"Alright, we'll take Damien from here. You can leave now. As for Bellock, Superman will deal with her, so you don't have to worry." Robert gestured toward the car. With a wave, the car, Soren, and the others, including the hesitant driver, were sent away, leaving Robert, Diana, and the still-trapped Damien behind. The next part of this encounter was something Soren and his family didn't need to witness.
"Bellock is involved too?!" Soren and Catherine looked at each other in disbelief, shocked at how dangerous their situation had truly been. If Damien hadn't been toying with them, they would've been dead long ago.
"So, Soren, you're free now! No more punishment from the higher-ups!" The temporary ambassador was the first to regain his composure, beaming at Soren.
"But will anyone believe this story?" Soren asked, his brow furrowed with doubt.
"Come on! We all witnessed it! And we have Superman's involvement. Worst case, they can ask him! We have tracking devices on our cars. No one can say we flew ourselves out here!" the
ambassador laughed, clearly confident.
"I hope they believe us," Soren said, nodding in gratitude. "Thank you for your help. But even if they accept our explanation, I can't stay in Britain anymore. I hope we can work together again someday."
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