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Past
Hell is a special dimension that contains countless different secrets and anomalies.
Hell was a very unfriendly dimension. It is worth starting with the fact that almost no one knows the exact size of the entire Hell. That is, there were numerous "folds" inside this dimension, by which one could understand the depth, but the "breadth" of Hell has not yet been conquered by any intelligent being.
A lot of people will probably ask, what about magic? Can't we send something like a magical drone to gather information or some scanning charms to scour the dimension? You can't! In Hell, the farther you get from your usual habitat, the more extreme the conditions become. It's more accurate to say "unaccustomed." With every thousand kilometers, the terrain and fauna would change, the density of the magical atmosphere in some individual places would be different, and one shouldn't forget about the magical anomalies that hung everywhere in the Underworld.
Also worth noting is the very "diverse fauna". Hell was a place originally famous for its monsters. Those were born literally out of thin air and could boast some very unpleasant sets of abilities, not to mention pure power. And it was better not to think about all the vegetation that could poison you, eat you, digest you, and in some special cases rape you.
God tried to eradicate this place completely in His time for a reason. But even He could not do it.
Which is why Hell will likely never be fully explored.
Nevertheless, a great number of peoples of the supernatural world have settled in this not the most hospitable place. Among them we should mention long-forgotten races, various Gods of Death from different mythologies and, especially, demons and fallen angels.
The main "living" part of Hell, of course, was divided between the two factions of Biblical Mythology. Especially the demons, who, strangely enough, are the main tenants of this dimension.
In fact, everything is not as bad as it seems. No, if you decide to go on a long expedition, it is better to write a will right before it, but a huge part of the territories was "ennobled". That is, the territories of the Pillars had good cities and industry, monsters were quickly exterminated, and magical anomalies were destroyed, well, almost always. Demons so advanced in "terroforming" that they managed to create illusions of the Earth's luminary, which, as on Earth, determined the time of day. By the way, this was done specifically for reborn demons.
So, Emeric, up until this point, was sure he was ready for just about any landscape of his dimension.
He was wrong.
«What is this? - Valerie's shocked rejoinder completely echoed his thoughts when the two of them, having just teleported, saw the surrounding landscape.
They stood on a hill of gray sand that rose a few dozen meters above the plains. In the distance, a couple of kilometers away, they could see similar hills.
But there was a sight on the plains that simply froze their blood. That sent a herd of goosebumps across their skin. Something that commanded their stomachs to empty themselves.
Instead of the plains familiar in such areas, there were numerous rivers of their boiling water and some kind of liquid sand spread out below. The geometry of their currents was impossible in real life, but the fact was that numerous water channels intertwined with each other, while releasing steam. But that wasn't what made them freeze in horror, it was the numerous silhouettes in these rivers.
Human and disfigured silhouettes that raised their arms in agony, only to be swept away by similar sufferers. They did not cry out, but the mouths on the disfigured skeletons, which kept opening as they floated to the surface, spoke of their intense desire to tell the world of their agony.
Whole rivers of boiling water that contained numerous martyrs. A picture that is even hard to imagine in one's mind.
«Where are you taking us? - His new friend asked, gulping.
«I," Emeric looked around and found a cave nearby. He pointed his finger there, and they went to get away from the horrifying sight for a while. - I don't know, we need to take a break and think about our situation.....
Valerie just followed, glancing up in the meantime.
«No sunshine...
«The sun? - Emeric similarly looked at the sky thoughtfully. - The moon, respectively, too, though there wasn't a cloud in the sky, hmmm....
Emeric cast the usual spells of light that formed into a firefly between them and climbed into his magical subspace. Once again, he thanked his "thing" for not screwing him up on this one.
Pulling out small sets of rainy day soup packs, Emeric opened them up and began to heat up a meal for himself and Valerie.
The general fatigue from the recent battle wasn't exactly pushing for dialog, but Emeric decided to force the issue nonetheless.
«That demon with the silver hair... - Emeric handed Valerie a beef stew. - He's Lucifuge, isn't he?
«His name is Euclid. How did you know he was from that family? - Valerie pounced on the food with great pleasure. It wasn't often on her run that she got to eat properly cooked food. Though half-cooked food fell loosely under that description, but the heir to House Gremory was given the best, even though he was never supposed to use them.
«Greifia Lucifug, have you heard of her?
«Oh, right," Valerie remembered. - She's the queen of the current Lucifer, isn't she?
«Exactly," Emeric stirred the tea he'd just brewed. - "If I'm not mistaken, um, Lucifug always has to be near Lucifer, doesn't he?
Emeric put a lot of meaning into that last sentence, but Valerie was able to grasp the most important one.
«Yes, my name is Valerie Lucifer," Valerie looked up at him warily. - What are you, the heir to the New Lords, going to do about it?
Under Valerie's intense scrutiny, Emeric once more reached into subspace, which was a plain black void in front of his hand, and pulled out a...
«Come join my family! As they say, become my nakama! - Emeric, with a face full of joyful debility, showed Valerie a red crystal queen figure.
«Is that the Figure of Evil? - Valerie exhaled relaxed and ignored the suggestion, staring at the figure with interest. - How does it work?
Valerie lived in the uncharted lands of Hell and didn't have access to such exclusive items as Evil Figures. Her family tended to look down on reborn demons.
«Exactly! - Emeric started pulling out the whole set. - There's the Horse, it gives its master speed," the figure was shown to her. - This is the Rook, it gives brute strength and fortitude. This is the Bishop or Elephant, it gives a boost in magic power, the Pawn is special as the King can upgrade it to other pieces depending on the situation. And this," he showed the first piece in front of her. - This is the Queen or Queen, it has all the bonuses of the Rook, Knight and Elephant. And, most importantly, it's my only mutation piece!
«Mutational? What does that mean?
«High-class demons who were born in this rank get their Evil Figures at ten years old," he removed the other pieces and left only the queen in front of Valerie. - Those who are lucky enough to get one sometimes get pieces with a 'mutation', meaning that the figure has a potential much higher than its normal counterparts. They can rebirth an individual who is even stronger than the king!
«Pfft," Valerie snorted haughtily. - I can see how a weakling like you would want to "rebirth" me!
«Quiet, woman! - He made a menacing face. - It's because of your Longinus! There is no one stronger than me in my retinue!
«Yes?" she said with interest. - So who's in your entourage?
«Well," he scratched his cheek in embarrassment. - Sort of," he fidgeted. - So far it's just me and you...
«I didn't agree! - Grumpily she corrected. - So you've had sixteen figures for a few years now.....
«Fifteen...
«What do you mean fifteen? - Valerie hesitated. - Ah, you absorbed the King yourself?
«No," Emeric shook his head. - The King figure doesn't exist. Only the other fifteen figures are bound to it. Although, there were rumors before... - Emeric shook his head negatively. - It doesn't matter, it's just a rumor....
«Anyway, King," Valerie continued. - Why don't you have anyone in your entourage?
«Well, you know, I just want the people around me to be really close to me," he sipped his still-warm tea. - I want us to live adventures together. Suit yourself," he looked into her eyes trustingly. - Like a family.
A silence settled between them. A kind of intimacy that Valerie shattered when she realized she was beginning to believe him.
«Family," she repeated after him unimpressed. - Family! - more sarcastically. - I don't need a family, you fucking spoiled brat! All I had was my mom! I don't need anyone else! - Valerie picked up the figurine and threw it in his face. - Shove your idiotic suggestions up your ass!
It was obvious that his revelation had made her very angry. Hurt her feelings.
«All you need is my Longinus! - Tears began to slowly build up in her beautiful eyes. - Longin this! Longin this! Only mom didn't need anything from me! Only mom didn't need anything from me! - Valerie began frantically wiping tears from her cheeks. - When will you all leave me alone?!
Valerie turned away from him and sat down, curled up. Emeric realized that her complete distrust of others was dictated by her harsh living conditions. She had most likely been subjected to a harsh upbringing by her relatives. And, recalling the rumors about the descendants of the Old Lords, Emeric berated himself for his past ignorance. He should have treated her more carefully, not prying into her soul. But now there were no other options left....
«Valerie," Emeric walked gently over to Valerie and tried to put his hand on her shoulder. To no avail, she threw it off. - Valerie," he said more softly, but still she didn't make contact. - When I woke up in that cave, I realized right away that you weren't as prickly as you wanted to be," he finally put his hand on her shoulder. - You saved me, a complete stranger. You didn't leave me to be eaten by magical beasts," Valerie looked up at him with eyes full of fading resentment. - When Euclid came, you knew at once that he would want revenge on my family and tried to take me with him, though you would have run away faster alone....
Emeric slowly sat down beside her while keeping his palm on her shoulder.
«You're different, Valerie," he looked into her eyes, trying to convey his sincerity fully. - When I woke up after my first teleportation in my life, you were the first person I saw. A girl who is desperately looking for a home, but can't trust anyone," Emeric smiled slightly at her. - Fate brought us together, and even if you don't become part of my retinue, I want to have a friend like you," Emeric hesitated and tossed the queen figure back into subspace. - Let's forget about the entourage! If you don't want to, all of my undoubtedly great future accomplishments will pass you by. We can just be friends, can't we?
Valerie sniffed her nose and stared at him furtively.
«You're not lying?
«Well, I certainly hope you'll give my offer more thought. I have a cool movie theater and, uh.
«I'm gonna hit you!
«All right, all right! - he held his hands up jokingly. - I promise I won't mention figures again," he winked at her and held out his hand. - What's up, friends?
«Mmm," Valerie mumbled slightly and shook his hand. - Friends! - and smiled shyly, despite her recent tears.
***
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