Hell Project Headquarters, Earth — 2032
Celeste looks around the room at the remaining scientists before sitting back down. She quickly opens her locket, then snaps it shut and asks, "Give me an update ASAP. How much longer do we have?"
"Roughly thirty seconds until the gate opens, ma'am!" someone yells back.
She motions for Wade to come closer. Go down there and do whatever you can to minimize the damage.
"At once, ma'am." He teleports down into the portal room and begins manifesting a giant magic circle surrounding the gate.
The gate finally stabilizes just as Wade finishes the circle. The crackling of the now-enlarged gate fills the room. It slowly finishes forming into its mold.
The scientist monitoring the battery reads out, "The charge has returned to normal rates. It's currently at eighty percent."
As he finishes his sentence, an ear-piercing tone forces nearly everyone in the room to cover their ears. A few scientists collapse, overwhelmed by the noise.
Down in the gate chamber, multiple wires connected to the frame begin glowing red-hot.
"Ma'am, we have a problem down here," Wade's voice echoes inside Celeste's mind. "The temperature is way higher than it should be."
The gate's white color darkens into a deep purple, nearly black, as more heat floods the area. Plastic on nearby workstations begins to melt and char. The magic circle Wade formed rapidly starts to fade.
Suddenly, a large object shoots out of the gate and crashes into the wall below the control room. Wade whirls around and stares at whatever landed there. Through the dust he can just make out a humanoid silhouette lying in the rubble. As he watches, another figure steps through—this one taller, broader, more dangerous.
"Wade," the figure says in a raspy voice as he places a hand on Wade's shoulder. "Stay low." He pushes Wade to the ground just as a burst of fire erupts from the gate, blasting the figure into a nearby table.
Celeste jumps from her seat and rushes to the window to look at the newcomer. She sees a tall, tanned man standing up from the ruined table.
"Father."
She sweeps away the mist reinforcing the glass and shatters it, leaping out of the control room. Behind her, the scientists are hit by a wave of extreme heat.
As her feet hit the ground, another figure steps through the gate—its body engulfed in flames.
"You can't escape from me this time, Lloyd."
Lloyd looks from the flaming figure to the room around him. He spots Celeste running toward him and warns, "Stay back, Celeste. This isn't something you can handle. Amo'ranth—let's continue this back on the other side."
He instantly appears in front of Amo'ranth and forces her back through the gate. "Celeste, I know I've been out of your life for a while, but now is not the time for me to return." He throws her a weapon. She catches it and locks eyes with him.
"Wade—continue to watch over my little girl while I'm gone," he calls.
Lloyd runs back through the gate and tosses a ring toward Wade. "Use that well."
He disappears into the portal, which immediately begins unleashing arcs of unrestrained energy.
"Father!" Celeste cries, just as Wade appears in front of her.
"I'm sorry, my lady, but we must go. Now." He grabs her without waiting for permission and teleports her away.
Wade reappears in the control room alone and begins teleporting the scientists out one by one. As he reaches the last scientist, he glances toward the gate tearing the chamber apart. Arcs of energy lash out like solar flares.
Wade teleports out an instant before one of the arcs strikes the control room, triggering a massive explosion.