World at War

After 72 sleepless hours Emma reveals her discovery: seventeen demon engagements follow a geometric acceleration pattern that is Belphegor's deliberate strategy—a self-sustaining feedback loop where each fight pushes Abigail's corruption higher, brightening the beacon, drawing more demons.

Haatim conducts a brutally honest sustainability assessment: the team averages 4.3 hours of sleep, has ten days of ammunition and seven engagements of holy water remaining, and faces geometrically escalating demon attacks.

Arthur post-Hell deterioration. Studies Belphegor patterns from his room in Haatim's facility. Frieda brings intelligence on the vampire-demon alliance. Dominick confronts Arthur about reducing Abigail to a tactical notation. Arthur crosses out the letter A and writes her name.

Petrillo and Dominick run perimeter sweeps around the safe house, killing five demons including a teenage boy in a school uniform. Petrillo struggles with emotional numbness after months of killing.

Three escalating demon attacks in twenty hours push Abigail's corruption to new thresholds: one low-tier demon at dawn, three mid-tier at noon, and four mid-tier at midnight. The midnight fight forces an uncontrolled wave of golden power that destroys all four at once.

Petrillo's backstory — grandmother killed by possessed neighbor, fought with fire axe. Raw talent, no discipline. Dominick sees potential and mentors him. Late-night training session.

Abigail experiences the corruption from inside—the constant golden glow, demonic speech in her sleep, corruption-enhanced speed and strength, and a tooth falling out painlessly. Arthur confronts her about worsening episodes and she admits the truth.

Haatim and Dominick investigate a small town where Nida was recently sighted. Three witnesses describe Nida struggling against her possession, whispering a repeated mantra, and surfacing briefly to say "help" and beg them to tell her brother she was sorry.

Haatim trains recruits in Philadelphia. Petrillo challenges his cautious approach. Dominick runs combat training. Frieda calls with intelligence: Belphegor's binding is destabilizing.