Chapter 9 - I Want To Be Buried With You

Phlegyas docked the boat on the shore, glaring at the two passengers without saying a word and just gesturing for them to leave quickly or else he'll hit them with his oar.

They did leave without any thanks, and the redfaced ferryman haughtily rowed away while venting his anger for a certain black magic sorcerer on the poor wrathful souls who were doomed to fight each other forever in the River Styx.

They saw a large, encompassing brick wall and a sign saying 'Dis'. Beyond the city of Dis lies crimson, fiery mosques with towers that pierced through the 'sky' that is just pure darkness.

"Brother, what circle are we in now?" Daniele asked.

"The City of Dis harbors the Lower Circles of Hell. The sixth circle would be Heresy, and it is filled with flaming tombs of the heretics and the unorthodox." 'Leandro' held his hand protectively and squeezed it, scanning the surroundings. "We must advance carefully for these walls are guarded by fallen angels and the Furi—"

"Who dares brings a faithful man in the land of Dis!?"

A woman's shrill, thunderous voice came, along with the flapping of wings. The two stepbrothers looked above and saw three ghastly figures with bat wings and flaming eyes. They swoop down and bared their sharp fangs and hands that stretched out like talons. They were very unpleasant to look at like bone-thin hags.

"W-W-Who are you?" Daniele hid behind 'Leandro' and almost passed out from fright.

'Leandro' calmly answered him while assessing the creatures that surrounded them. "They are the Furies. Alecto, the endless anger. Megaera, the jealous rage. And Tisiphone, the vengeful destruction. They are the guardians of the borders of Dis and the Circle of Wrath, and sometimes they partake in punishing sinners with their whips."

Alekto, the one in the middle, cackled at the description. "It seems we have a scholar in our midst. Do you have no fear, child?"

Megaera joined her in her cold laughter. "If you know us that well, you should be cowering in fear right now. You must have known of our past deeds."

Zhe Chouhen in his head: (I'm actually really scared right now that I'm trying hard not shit my pants from your ugliness and hideousness, but I have a role to play so I have to act cool.)

Tisiphone went closer to observe with her flaming eyes glowing brighter, and singeing 'Leandro's' hair. "He belongs perfectly with us, that's why he has the arrogance. But the one behind him.... not so much. He looks like a meek little lamb."

She showed all her sharp fangs in a gruesome smile. " And thinking about lambs makes me hungry."

"Eeep!" Daniele yelped and avoided Tisiphone's claws.

'Leandro' remained defiant and glared at them. "Do not touch him, old bat."

The Furies found this hilarious and giggled at one another. Megaera swooned, "Awww, he's acting tough like a watchdog for the little lamb. It makes me want to be lenient with him and only whip him to shreds."

"Make the lamb watch," Alecto added. "The opposite is good too. I wonder how many lashes it would take before his soft skin starts to flake and separate from his flesh."

"Let's bury them together in a single flaming tomb!" Tisiphone suggested.

While the Furies were too busy making plans on how to play with these funny little mortals, 'Leandro's' tendrils of evil aura slithered to them and wrapped around them all like three big lassos. The Furies were shocked to have all their limbs covered in these things, and they heard a chilling voice:

"Old bats, if you don't want me to turn you into roasted bats, stop your chatter and let us through. My lord Satan awaits me, I am his guest and so is my companion. Say anything else and I will pull your tongues and use it to strangle your necks."

The Furies went quiet, expressions grim. They nodded begrudgingly and looked at Daniele, the three of them proclaiming at the same time: "A lord of Hell permits you to pass through Dis at your volition. We, the Furies, shall not interfere."

'Leandro' let them go and the three flew off with ugly scowls and they cracked their whips on anyone else they see in contempt.

"A lord of Hell let us through?" Daniele was stunned by this encounter that was quickly resolved. "Who could this be?"

Zhe Chouhen mentally rolled his eyes. (The one you're talking to, duh. Why else do all these creepy monsters let us do whatever the fuck we want?)

But as 'Leandro', he just smiled at him. "Does it matter? Now the mean bats are gone and can no longer taunt us. Let us continue our journey."

[Scum Meter raised to 40%]

[Satisfaction Meter raised to 60%]

They entered an uneven hole in the wall and were immediately greeted by a dramatic rise in temperature. On the ground were open rectangular caskets that were on fire.

It was basically a burning graveyard.

The people inside slowly groaned in pain as their bodies burned eternally, reaching through their flesh, bones, blood, and organs but never turning into ashes, just stuck in constant inflammation.

"The heretics believe that the soul dies with the body. If so, then when their bodies burn, so do their souls." 'Leandro' recalled how this symbolism came to existence because of the heretic's point of view.

"Why are the heretic's sins more extreme than the others?" Daniele tried to avoid looking at any of the tombs and only looks straight at the road ahead.

(I don't think it should be that high either. They're just people with varying beliefs from what religion dictated, but they're still followers of that fate nonetheless.) Zhe Chouhen wanted to say.

'Leandro' answered that question with: "They spread ideologies and practices that are against the Church, and therefore against God. The only thing keeping them from being assigned lower and having a harsher punishment is their capability of having faith."

"And so if they weren't unorthodox anymore, they would be considered faithful?" Daniele asked. "If they take back their false proclamations and ask for forgiveness, can they be forgiven?"

"Not everyone can ask for forgiveness. Not everyone is worthy to even ask for one."

This was Zhe Chouhen hinting about Leandro's atrocities, not being in character who only speaks to win Daniele's favor.

(Don't even say that's OOC because that's too vague for Daniele to understand. It's still in-character, okay?) He immediately quipped to Daoist Panda.

[..... That's right.]

(Great, I was going to be hella frustrated if I get an OOC warning again—)

[No, not just that. About what you said. Some people don't deserve forgiveness or even the right to ask for it.]

(Huh. Good to know that you agree with me for once.)

[But if it was you in that position, would you still be able to say what you did now?]

Zhe Chouhen scoffed. (Of course, I would. If I'm a scum enough to not even have the right to apologize, I wouldn't apologize and just ask that person to punish me however they want.)

Daoist Panda did not say anything else, leaving the conversation be in another awkward pause with no resolution.

-------------

Daniele pointed ahead. "Brother, there is a cliff where we are going. Are you sure this is the right way?"

"Yes, there are piles of rocks that we can climb down on from that cliff." 'Leandro' said. "But we still have to be mindful of our steps. The Minotaur—"

Just as he said the name, the creature appeared like magic.

(Great. This is the second time I get interrupted as the creature I'm warning Daniele about appears. Are they really just good at timing here in Dis?)

The Minotaur* charged at them as they first stepped on the jagged piles of rocks, and 'Leandro' immediately carried Daniel on his back. Daniele held tight around his neck as they were again in pursuit of a wild beast in hell. The Minotaur's bull nose ring bobbed up and down as it chased and leaped towards them with its big man arms and feet.

'Leandro' channeled his powers and spoke to the Minotaur in its language and the language of the natives of Hell. "Leave us be, wretched bull. The man on my back is not Theseus*, the champion who defeated you. They merely look alike, but it could never be him. And neither am I. I am a master higher than you in this realm of darkness, you will leave us be before I slice your head off and put it in a stick."

[Scum Meter raised to 45%]

[Satisfaction Meter raised to 65%]

The Minotaur blinked its beady eyes several times, then whimpered as the tendrils latched on to it. The Infamy of Crete as it was known for, —because it was the result of the affair of Minos' queen with a Cretian bull— turned around and run on all fours, disappearing from whence it came.

Daniele watched the creature go with a sigh of relief. "Why did it stop pursuing us, brother?"

"Perhaps another lord of Hell was kind enough to dismiss him for us."

"I see. Now that he has left, you can let me go now." Daniele, started to unclasp his hands around 'Leandro's' neck, but 'Leandro' still held on to his legs.

"You have been walking for hours. I don't want your pretty feet to become soiled and injured from the sharp rocks. Leave it to me." 'Leandro' told him.

"But brother, I—"

"You will never convince me to let go. I'm carrying you, it is final."

Daniele bit his lip, feeling really embarrassed by all the situations they were being put through. His stepbrother really does consider him first among all things. It made his heart flutter a bit.

[Love Meter raised to 60%]

(Just 3% more from carrying? Lame.)

[Daniele still considers you as a brother, it's difficult for him to let go of seeing you with familial ties.]

(That IS hard to let go of. I don't know how to convince him to see me as a regular fellow man and not a brother. And also convince him to be gay, which he considers a sin. Man, life as a scum gong is tough.)

[.....Good luck then.]

(That's the most insincere good luck I've ever received.)

--------------------

"Brother, why is there rubble in this area?" Daniele asked him while gently hugging his arms around him again.

"There was a major earthquake when Christ had died. I'm sure you remember that from the Bible, it also destroyed the temple that was built for 10 years." 'Leandro' explained.

"Though it was destructive, it was also called the Harrowing of Hell. The good people of Limbo at that time had been given the chance to rise from their graves and join angels as they fly to heaven or purgatory. The ones that are in Limbo now will get a chance to go to heaven at the Second Coming on Judgement Day."

"They rose from their graves?" Daniele's eyes widened from curiosity.

"Yes, like Jesus did on the third day. It was said that many pagans choose to be buried in pairs, so they rose with their beloved and flew to heaven hand in hand." 'Leandro' said.

Zhe Chouhen added in his head. (That's not really what happened in the original—)

[Stop comparing it to the original, I had to change things up to be more interesting, okay!?]

(Fine, fine.)

He continued with a sigh. "Oh, I wish we were also buried together in the real life, but I know that is unlikely. Maybe our tombs will be next to each other, but I want people to find our skeletons entangled with each other when they accidentally dig our remains."

"W-Why would you want that? Wouldn't you prefer if it were your lover?" Daniele's cheeks were tinged red.

'Leandro' turned to him, his lips very close to his ear, whispering. "There is no one else I prefer to be buried with than you, Daniele."

[Love Meter raised to 65%! Damn.... That's kinda hot.]

(Because it's romantic?)

[Because that means you would be dead. I prefer you that way.]

Zhe Chouhen: (((;O_O;)))

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