The Purge

The Purge is a major crossover event in the Landmark Universe featuring the Chamberlain Knights joining forces with The Patriot Brigade to battle the supernatural forces of The Book Master. The main protagonists include Excelsior, Tachyon, Major Triumph, Victory Girl, Captain Miracle, Selina the Moon Maiden, The Masque and Ms. Miracle, facing off against Imperium, Hekatte, The Nameless One, Countess Siroon, Black Miracle, Grünstraum and Nergal amongst others. Street level crime-fighters Double Devil and The Edgelord also play significant roles in the conflict, along with Ace Brogan, Blue Demon and The Lingerie Legion. As the Book Master's minions threaten to overwhelm Empire City, the heroes realize that this is one struggle they simply cannot win - unless they are willing to sacrifice the innocent along with the guilty.

Premise
The sudden disappearance of The Grim Reaper has led to a power imbalance in The Beyond. Having waited centuries for this moment, The Book Master collaborates with The Nameless One to dethrone The Judges of the Dead from their exalted position. Aware of this plot to seize control of The Netherworld, The Judges prepare for the oncoming war, instructing Kathulos to draw up a list of potential allies.

In the meantime, The National Spirits (Uncle Sam and Columbia) have finally located Victory Girl, launching a preemptive strike against her demonic jailer Grünstraum. While Sam and Columbia battle The Infernal Legions, Victory Girl returns to Earth suffering retrograde amnesia, becoming a homeless wanderer.

Furious over the loss of his prize captive, The Book Master sends his minions through the Hellgate to find her. As each of his servants are subdued by The Knights, The Book Master realizes he will need to eliminate Chamberlain's foremost heroes to achieve his goals. In a final act of vengeance, he opens The Grand Portal and unleashes Hell upon the unsuspecting city.

Book One

 * Prologue: Before the Storm (feat. The Westside Warrior).
 * Chapter One: Grünstraum Rising (feat. Major Triumph & Tachyon)
 * Chapter Two: Excelsior Falls (feat. Black Miracle, Imperium & The Nameless One).
 * Chapter Three: Thunderstruck (the Miracles vs Grünstraum)
 * Chapter Four: Pure of Heart (Selina the Moon Maiden)
 * Chapter Five: De Profundis (Masque vs Nergal)
 * Interlude 1: The Chessboard (feat. The Lords of Judgement, The Revenant).

Book Two

 * Chapter Six: Helltide Rising: The Book Master opens The Grand Portal, Nergal murders The Masque after a titanic struggle, Io Saturnalia arrives in Empire City, The Miracles and Selina join forces in a running battle against The Black Triumvirate. Westside Warrior accompanies the now-comatose Excelsior to Chamberlain Hospital, then sets off to find other street level crime-fighters. Despite his injuries, Major Triumph takes his still-amnesiac niece to the airport, determined to protect her at all costs. This is literally the first time he's run away from a fight in his life.
 * Chapter Seven: Red Zone Nergal marches on Chamberlain with The Army of the Damned, Ace Brogan calls on The Patriot Brigade, Red Garter defends The Red Zone, Westside Warrior spots The Inquisitor, Saturnalia challenges Nergal to single combat. Major Triumph's aircraft is shot down over Empire City, crashing to the streets in a flaming heap. The Black Triumvirate soon appear, tearing through the wreckage to finish off the job.
 * Chapter Eight: Chamberlain Burns: The Lingerie Legion fights its way out of the Red Zone. Ms. Miracle uses Excelsior's teleporter to seek extra-dimensional help after The Army of the Damned crushes The Patriot Brigade. Starion arrives at the crash site and is immediately butchered by The Black Triumvirate. Nergal refuses Saturnalia's challenge, at which point Platinum Ice calls down the tempest. With over half the city in ruins, Ace Brogan resigns from STEED, planning to confront The Book Master alone.
 * Chapter Nine: Darkness Over All: Io Saturalia and Platinum Ice face off against Nergal. A critically wounded Major Triumph is tortured by The Black Triumvirate. Ms. Miracle returns to Earth with reinforcements including Top Notch, Valkyrie, Basilisk, Ishtar, Atomic Roach and Magic Bunny. Ace Brogan spots the Inquisitor and follows him into the Red Hell Zone. Westside Warrior watches both from the rooftops, ready to leap into battle at a moment's notice. Still recovering from his brawl with Grünstraum, Tachyon activates The Quantum Interface in a final, desperate attempt to save the world.
 * Interlude 2: Flashback (feat. Hekatte and the Gambinos).

Book Three

 * Chapter Ten: Purple Twilight: Empire City has been warped into a parallel dimension. This dying act saves the world from Nergal's Army of the Damned, but drains Tachyon's anti-matter reactor, forcing him into shutdown mode. Out in the Red Zone, Ace Brogan is attacked by The Faceless Minions, prompting Westside Warrior to leap down from the rooftops and join in the fight. The two are dragged off to The Book Master's Antique Store after a ferocious struggle. The Black Triumvirate prepares to execute Major Triumph, who steadfastly refuses to reveal Victory Girl's location ("You'll never find her. But she'll find you when she's ready.") Across town, the surviving heroes regroup at Metropolis Tower to decide their next move. Realizing that there is no turning back, they decide to go down fighting - and send Nergal back to hell in the process.
 * Chapter Eleven: Before the Dawn: The Army of the Damned begin to herd hundreds of terrified children to The Grand Portal, only to find it blocked by The Quantum Interface. Enraged by this delay, Nergal orders his demons to sacrifice the victims on the spot: if he can't rule The Earth, he'll turn The Purple Twilight into his own private hell. Io Saturnalia and Platinum Ice stand between the Arch-Fiend and the helpless children, ready to die in defense of the innocent. Over at the Antique Store, The Book Master entertains his "guests:" hanging by his wrists, Ace is forced to watch as The Faceless Minions mercilessly beat the Warrior with flaming whips. The Book Master taunts Ace with false hope: "I'll be happy let him go, Mister Brogan. All you have to do is promise to serve me for all eternity." Baring his teeth in cold fury, Brogan swears "You'll get yours soon enough, you leering son of a bitch." Four miles across town, Major Triumph is literally moments way from death. Sneering in abject contempt, The Nameless One raises his Trident for the kill - and is practically incinerated by a deafening blast of blue lightning. Imperium stares up to the skies in astonishment; Belial abandons his accomplices without a moment's hesitation. Selina and Captain Miracle have arrived!
 * Chapter Twelve: Let Justice Prevail: Captain Miracle wastes no time beating Imperium into a bloody pulp while Selina skewers The Nameless One on his own trident for good measure. Having dealt with the threat, Captain M. then tends to Major Triumph's injuries, assuring him that help is on the way. "Forget about me," the Major replies, "help the others - Io, Platinum, the children!" Triumph had seen The Grand Portal just before his plane went down and fears the worst. "Stand down, Major," Selina replies with a radiant smile, "the situation is well under control." She is completely correct: at this very moment, Ms. Miracle's Task Force is raining destruction down on the Army of the Damned. Nergal howls in rage as his forces are decimated, then takes to the skies to engage in single combat. Over in the Antique Store, The Book Master puts down his cup of Earl Grey and stares across at Ace Brogan. "What have you done?" he inquires in genuine surprise, sensing that the tide of battle has suddenly turned. Brogan bares his teeth once more, grinning in a kind of savage delight. "Stalled you long enough for the cavalry to arrive - you lying sack of #"$&!" The Book Master glances towards the front door for a few seconds, then walks calmly away into the back corridors, gradually fading into the darkness. He knows precisely what is coming for him, and he has no intention of ever meeting it face-to-face.

Casualties

 * Excelsior (severe internal injuries, slowly recovering from coma).
 * Major Triumph (critically wounded, swiftly recovering from multiple fractures).
 * Tachyon (automated systems offline, currently in self-repair mode).
 * Double Devil (various abrasions; otherwise OK).
 * Power Patriette (extended medical leave).
 * American General (missing in action; status unknown).
 * American Shield (missing in action; status unknown).
 * Starion (deceased; murdered by The Black Triumvirate)
 * Masque (deceased; murdered by Nergal; possibly reanimated by Inquisitor).