Earth’s crushing defeat to the forces of Hell was many years in the making.
Ever since the first days of human civilisation, demons had been drawn to the misery and despair that humanity inflicted upon itself. Every war, plague and brutal leader’s rule left thousands of lost souls crying out for forgiveness, mercy or salvation. These prayers were usually offered up to various gods and holy figures, but the demons could hear them just as clearly.
Feelings of fear, pain or despair attracted demons like moths to a flame. Devouring just one human soul could provide an intensely sensuous feast to last for all eternity, but several or a dozen could greatly elevate a demon’s powers.
The main obstacle for the demonic forces was the fact that it took a great deal of energy to pierce the barriers between the human and demon worlds. Usually it was only possible during major wars or times of extreme hardship, when the sea of negative emotions was at its height.
Even then, individuals with faith or sufficient willpower could resist possession from even the most powerful of demons. The fact that religion was so wide-spread for much of humanity’s history also helped the species to survive and prosper.
However, as the world progressed into the 21st century, the rise of atheism and the increasingly gruelling routine of modern life started to form cracks in humanity’s invisible shield. More and more individuals were losing their faith and hope, as war, poverty and illness continued to eat away at human civilisation from the inside.
After noticing the steadily-rising tide of negative emotions engulfing humanity, the demon lords decided that Earth would soon be ripe for conquest and subjugation.
To that end, the demon host started to draw-up plans for their long-awaited invasion. The barrier between worlds was beginning to splinter, but it was still preventing a full-scale assault from taking place immediately. Instead, the divide would have to be weakened before it could be torn down.
To this end, the demons laid the groundwork for their invasion by sending forth several-dozen of their number, who would begin infiltrating human society and slowly corrupting it from the inside.
One of the chosen entities was a transformation demon - a powerful creature that harnessed dark magic to twist the flesh of its victims; turning them into grotesque demonic beasts while feasting off their horror, dismay and humiliation.
This particular entity had visited humanity several times in the past, but it currently felt more powerful than ever before. It could sense thousands of delicious, miserable souls that were ripe for the taking. And so, after selecting its target carefully, the entity decided to pay a visit to…