In the grim future of mankind, he was unstoppable.
The Demons of Hell were nothing to him.
Clad in his power armor, he would walk alone, facing droves and hordes of those filthy xenos. He would simply eliminate them with everything at his disposal and keep going.
Service is duty, duty is honor, honor is life, life is the Solarium. That is what the Paladins were raised on. All that Solomon Creed wanted, however, was to remain human and to protect that.
To the people of the Solarium, it was they against the entire galaxy. Humanity was endangered in the face of the forces of evil, and no other option remained. Those who embraced the Infernium were condemned to eternal damnation, those who yielded to the Hive sacrificed their sanity and lived in the dark ages of madness, and those who joined the Machina now resided in power plants, dormant in pods that fueled the Rogue A.I. of the Machine.
(A.n: Biblical Hell, Lovecraft, and the Matrix. A blend second only to English Breakfast Tea.)
So when Adam told Creed that he was a figment from a story, not a human who once lived, an imagination from the future, living only in the minds of mortal men from this world, Creed did not pay attention to any of that.
He just heard one thing that made him gently set Adam aside before extending his arms sideways and then ejecting.
PSSS! PSSSSSSSSS!
The power armor opened from its back the same way it did from its mask. Pressurized air left the armor's interior, and the back lifted up, the upper arms slid down over the forearms, and the hips slid down to the forelegs.
Creed's face disappeared from the helmet, which was fixed to the power armor, and footsteps were heard from behind the power armor.
The setting sun cast light on the scene, and a man appeared next to the power armor. He was only slightly shorter than the armor, with platinum hair, ashen skin, and bright, sun-like energy cracks around his bright, glowing eyes. He was wearing a tan-colored Under Armor suit with short sleeves that displayed his superhuman, veiny, and muscular arms.
Before him stood a thin, pale young man in mismatched layers of clothing over baggy pants and sturdy boots. A beanie concealed most of his head, and a cheap, lightweight combat vest, designed more for holding spare magazines than providing actual protection, adorned his waist. He was a walking fashion disaster.
The paladin looked at the much shorter young survivor approvingly and extended his long right arm to pat his shoulder.
"I died at the Pale Gate?" Creed asked.
Adam gulped, but his throat was so dry that it felt like he was swallowing razors. Even with a 50% chance of being doomed by the paladin's rage, he found the courage to nod.
"How?"
Creed asked again, but rather than angry, he seemed serene and calm.
Adam would swear he had not heard as many grunts and war cries from Creed when he was playing that game of "Wartopia: Star Paladin III", and this emotional look in Creed's eyes made him seem so out of character. Somehow, it felt more like a man at peace with the news of his death.
"Your death was… heroic. I mean, the books say that the Solarium has no heroes…"
"… Except those who are dead."
Adam's reply was continued by Creed, who was certainly familiar with the saying. Creed let go of Adam's scrawny shoulder, but his eyes urged the young man to continue.
"You died fighting Asmodeus and bought enough time for the Six Legions to arrive at the Pale Gate. During the battle, you sustained a great energy attack directly from Asmodeus's mouth, but you still broke off one of his greater horns and drove it into his forehead. However, you overheated from the excessive healing process, your life spark faded, and you died on your knees, resting one hand on the horn you had torn off."
"…"
Falling silent to Adam's report, Creed closed his eyes and nodded, this time not confirming its truth or falsehood with his golden, fiery eyes, but with his memories alone as they returned to him piece by piece.
"Not a second after you passed away, Solwoken Orlion the Hammer, Solwoken Helios Lightbringer, and even Valkyrie Superior arrived in Hell on a Stellar Ark. The two Solwoken tore through the remaining heads of Asmodeus as if he were not even there; then the Lightbringer dragged Asmodeus's broken body to Hell and slew him right at its doorstep with the Spear of Sol Imperius, ending a Hell Duke for good. As he returned, the Hammer was lifting your helmet and covering you with his cloak, the Lightbringer chanted your name for the Six Legions, and the Valkyrie Superior whispered the true name of Sol Imperius into your ears."
The scene that played in Creed's head was too great even for him. He would recall other paladins who had done great deeds, but none were as lucky as he was. Two Solwoken, one of whom was his direct commander and the other the most beloved Solwoken of all, was one thing; to be sung the true name of the Sol Imperius by none other than the Queen of Valkyries was another.
He would be the envy of all the Paladins.
Truly, he had it all.
His eyes remained closed, and as he nodded to himself a few times, after a deep breath, he opened them again and smiled, something the developers of the game never even thought of animating.
"I thank you, Adam Clay."
Adam nodded to the paladin and did not say more until Creed spoke again after a minute of silence.
"You spoke as if you were there, Adam," he noted.
Adam was not as scared as before and replied truthfully, but still chose his words:
"Your story was quite visual."
"Is that so? Your truth is accepted, but I want to see it," Creed said as he walked closer to Adam.
"I would love to help with that, but as you see, it's all over for this world. I would rather find us food and shelter before spending the night," Adam replied, urging Creed to start moving as soon as possible.
"Fair enough. Tell me, what ruin has claimed your world?"
For the first time, Creed was interested in this new world he was in. His question was mere curiosity, though. No Paladin is interested in anything other than the Sacred Solar System and Urd, a fictional version of Grimdark Solarpunk Earth where the greater part of Wartopia's events occurred.
"Your guess is as good as mine. I mean, I slept through the day the world fell," Adam said with a self-mocking chuckle. "One day, strange monoliths appeared across the world. People thought it was another monolith prank, but this time they were bigger, harder to remove, and grounded in very public places. The next thing you know is that these monoliths glowed up, and some magic Rifts opened from them and spewed out monsters. You have met the green ones, and from what I know, there are many more."
"Rifts? As in the Void?" Creed asked.
"They don't exactly look the same from what I heard, but I think they are."
"And this scourge swept the entire world?"
"If this country has fallen, there is not much hope elsewhere, I can tell you that."
Creed displayed no reaction, but it was clear that he was thinking. He looked at the sun very intently, and his eyes were never harmed by it. Those with such eyes are never harmed by looking at the sun at all.
"So this is my Eternal Peace," the Paladin mumbled to himself.
Adam wanted to retort, but knowing who Creed was, of course, a ruined world would be his Eternal Peace. That term is the afterlife of any Solarium faithful, for State and Faith were one and the same; patriotism is piety, so to speak. This Eternal Peace can be just about anything, be it an endless, glorious war, a peaceful green paradise, or a heavenly cloudscape. To Creed, it is a ruined world without a hero.
Creed then looked at Adam intently and spoke:
"You have been forthcoming. A reward is owed before we part."
"Part?"
Adam had a chill running through his spine. If his miniature came to life somehow, should they not at least stick together?
Creed's reply, however, made Adam rethink what he desired:
"My objective is to acquire understanding of, and subsequently purge, those elements that pose a threat to humanity."
Adam's guts started to churn from what he heard, and he displayed obvious unwillingness.
"I am totally going the opposite way."
It was obvious how this would play out. One man would run toward monsters, the other would run from them. Adam was not an Action RPG protagonist, nor was he a good fighter at all, and now that he was without a survivor group, he should not take any chances.
Creed could also understand how Adam felt. That pitiful look in his eyes was the same as those of the many citizens he had rescued before, hoping their paths would not part for the sake of their survival. The Paladins were trained to suppress pity since they were Squires; they were the sword of the Solarium, a sword that shows pity is a faulty one. Still…
"Lacking a worthy gift, I offer safe passage as my service."
Hearing that, Adam's eyes lit up.
"Thank you. I know a place not too far! Thank you, sir."
Yet just as Adam was about to feel delighted, a scene unfolded in just a split second.
Creed raised his left arm and caught something that was flying at them faster than a bullet. Once the terrifying sound of the axe's impact shook Adam to his core, he looked at where it came from, and his heart almost stopped.
"GRAAAAH!"
There was a Gobzkin, a small one, but rather well decorated with human skulls and bones. He screamed and pointed at them with anger.
Beside him, a much larger Gobzkin seemed to be fixing his posture after seemingly performing a laborious act.
"Shit! They came back."
Adam immediately tried to pull the charging handle on his rifle, hoping that the jammed casing would eject, but it was not moving.
Meanwhile, Creed turned to the Gobzkins with angry eyes, and without even twisting his body in the right direction, he launched the axe back with such powerful momentum that Adam felt like he had been passed by a speeding truck.
The large crude axe probably broke from the extreme force, but its head still found its way back to its owner's head, blasting it off as it passed through.
Creed used the momentum of his movement and jumped back into his power armor, entering it in one acrobatic move. The armor immediately closed itself and was ready for battle.
Then the horde arrived.
Tens… No! Hundreds of Gobzkins suddenly started to swarm over the destroyed military blockade.
The sight of them was terrifying; their sizes varied, from the small Gobs to the large Brutes, almost reaching the height of a school bus.
"Retreat!"
Creed spoke to Adam, who was hitting the stock of his M16 against the ground after removing the magazine. The bolt was finally freed from the jammed casing, and Adam immediately started running as he inserted a new magazine.
BEW! BEW! BEW!
The Paladin shot down three of the largest Gobzkins with his plasma pistol, dispatching all three in one go before they attempted to throw weapons. As for the rest that swarmed them on the flanks, even Creed decided to retreat behind Adam and cover him instead of engaging in a one-man hack-and-slash frenzy.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Adam finally got his weapon working, and he started shooting, too. In Creed's eyes, it was laughably weak how that frail man, with such a weak weapon, was resisting the horde, but if there were a few hundred more like him, they would offer some resistance at least. It was a sight similar to those desperate and soulless Men-at-Arms.
Adam's aim was all over the place, but with Gobzkins swarming from left and right as he ran, he could shoot in any direction, and at least one out of three bullets would hit a Gobzkin.
He emptied his first magazine, not knowing if he killed any or not, but he still discarded the empty one and inserted another, leaving him with two.
These were the last bullets he had after the good haul he had yesterday at an abandoned police truck. But as he was emptying this magazine as well, something miraculous happened.
≪ You have gained 1 EXP! ≫
Just like the words that appeared when he saw Captain Creed for the first time, he saw words again.
This is happening again, and there seems to be a deeper plot than his just summoning a Star Paladin from a miniature, but there is no time to overthink it.
"COME THIS WAY!"
Before he could even react, Adam was carried by Creed, who moved at the speed of a speeding car on just two legs, and as he held Adam and created distance between them and the horde, Creed took out a yellow-colored object from his side and held it above his head.
"Holy shit! You are going to kill us!"
Adam immediately recognized the object and turned pale instantly. Creed, on the other hand, armed the grenade in his hand and threw it toward a nearby high-rise before turning tail and running away as fast as he could.
FZZZT!
A strange crackling sound started to come from the building where Creed threw his grenade, then a fiery light appeared as an explosion suddenly expanded beyond comprehension, and
BOOOOOOM!
The Plasma Charge exploded!
It was one of the strongest tools in a Star Paladin's arsenal, and the scene it caused next aligned perfectly with every piece of lore Adam had read about Plasma weapons.
The entire building started to collapse as if a pillar that once held the sky were collapsing from the high heavens.
The heat of the explosion and its shock wave arrived next, but Creed absorbed its impact for Adam, and the two stopped watching as the large building came down on the Gobzkin horde.