A World of Feathers and the Island of the Moon

It's now or never.

Usually at this point it would be the time for me to ward off The Mare and switch to Diana's happy memories, but I doubt she has any. None that she'll perceive as happy at least.

If I take her to her joyful childhood she would just focus on the fact that she destroyed it. Past that point in her life is no better, it was just full of cruel solitary survival. Seeing her there, kneeling blankly on the ground. I don't think happy memories could be enough anyways. No, I'll have to improvise. And I know just the way. This... I think I will take pleasure in what comes next. I must have been doing a good job recently; fate must be recognizing my efforts.

I feel like a dog in a slaughterhouse, hungry, eager. I will be sure to savor this. Looking up at the sky I can tell The Mare feels the same, I sometimes forget we are cut from the same cloth. That is good, I'll need it's help for this next step.

If Diana feels regret over killing her people, the simple answer is to let her talk to them. Maybe if they forgive her, she'll forgive herself. If they don't forgive her, then her soul will certainly be dammed forever. Either way it will end this mortal's trip to The Sands. Luckily... to let her talk to those people, we need to take a trip to hell... Apollyon's hell. If I teach the bastard some manners while we're over there, who's to complain?

Well, this bird form is not sufficient anymore. There is no point in hiding things now I suppose. I force my small feathered body to slowly melt, gradually transforming into a pile of red sands. It is more fitting a color for our next destination. My pile rises rapidly, spinning into a red humanoid form with no distinct features.

Oddly enough, this does not catch the girl's eye. Ah... yes... I should dispel my domain. It's more harm than good now.

The village, well the crater now, starts glowing of a golden hue. It is much quicker to dispel a domain then set one up, so in a sudden burst of light the entire oasis become a large glowing golden rock. Tendrils of black, tar like substance extend out of Diana, The Mare really did step up it's game. Finally, the girl processes what is happening around her. She is visibly exhausted, but she jolts up from the floor.

Her eyes glaze over, she pauses a few moments and speaks softly to herself "I was right... Just a dream... It's ok... I'm not there."

She closes her eyes and places her hand on her chest. It's good she knows how to calm down, but I am not very patient. Especially not when I smell a feast up ahead.

I don't often speak in sounds, or pheromones, or writings. My native speaking is the language of this world, it is pure intent.

In my native tongue I declare to her "Be Calm", and suddenly her fears and stress leave. It is temporary, but it has given her the opportunity to open her eyes and view my form. Normally she would see me as a monster, but after hearing my words she surely understands that I am a great entity.

She looks in awe and confusion, and I speak in sounds now. “Hello Diana, you are asleep. This is my realm.”

Coming out as a silent murmur she responds “What... what was that feeling? What are you? Why am I covered in this filth?”

What am I, such a complex question. Too bad there is not time to debate the specifics of my existence. “That feeling was my natural voice. As for what I am, for simplicity’s sake let’s say that I’m a god.”

“A… A God? I’m talking to God?”

”Yes. Not your world’s god of course, a god of this realm. A god of the dreaming.”

“My… My World? I don’t understand, if you’re not my God then why am I here?”

“There are many cosmic and spiritual reasons why one's soul may find its way to this realm, but right now you are here to meet some familiar faces.”

The Night Sky above shudders and a rare occurrence happens; The Mare takes a physical form. It uses Its most favored form, a brilliant dark steed that emit primal fear into the surroundings. It waits in the sky, it’s eyes show the primal hunger that I now feel as well.

“Diana Marsh, you have been barred from entering the gates of hell by your world’s Demonic King. So me and my… associate… here have decided to take you there to visit the people from your youth.”

“I’m what!? Wait… please slow down. So I... I can’t die?” Her face turns pale and she mutters as if she heard a terrible secret “Are you saying my friends and family are in hell, all of them?”

So amusing the assumptions of mortals, how simplistic. "Precisely young Diana, most of them in fact. In your world the afterlife options are either hell or reincarnation, so there are many waiting in hell for new vessels to be born. I can sense there is quite a backlog, so I doubt any of your friends have made it to the top of the queue.”

“This doesn’t make sense, why let me see them? Why put me through any of this!?”

I raise my arms and gesture to The Mare, then The Sands around us “WE put you through this because it is what reality demands. Your soul is important enough to the cosmic balance that you deserve a chance for a better life, and deserve the ability to squander that chance if you should choose. It is not your mind’s decision now child, your essence will reveal your path.”

The Mare trots down next to me from the sky. Our figures both shine with hostile, yet for now cooperative powers. Emanating with a swirling mist of sand and shadows, my rock starts to change. A tear in space-time erupts from the fabric of reality, its edges covered in piled rocks and dense mist. One can slightly see hellfire coming out of the tear, along with the sound of screams.

Diana gasps and steps back, her eyes dilating.

”Don’t worry, your soul can not be harmed by those flames. Not until your body is dead at least.”

Diana does not react to this. I always forget how fragile humans are. The Mare seems bored now, neighing with impatience. That sound only seems to worsen Diana's state.

”Be Calm” I repeat in my true voice.

My 'words' snap her out of her trance. Then The Mare neighs again, and she falls back into fear.

“CALM!” I say while giving The Mare a warning gaze. My scream has cut off most of the tendrils emanating from Diana. I quickly cover her in some of the sands from my current form. It should be enough to protect her from the horrors of hell and The Mare's voice.

"Miss Diana... I know this may be sudden for you but we are giving you the best chance at closure you will ever receive. You can not go to that hell without our aid, your loved ones will eventually become different people and you will never have the chance to see them even if you somehow reach the afterlife. Swallow your hesitance now, steel yourself, and walk though the portal."

Diana, clearly overwhelmed by this entire situation, swallows the bile in her throat and hesitantly walks through the portal. As she goes through flashing golden light and freezing darkness burst out of the edges of the rift.

"After you" I say to The Mare. It wastes no time to gallop though the portal, it should draw the attention of Apollyon rather quickly. The Mare is all but subtle in its actions.

I follow after it, my form drifting over my rock and approaching the rift in space-time. As I go through I can feel... well sense due to my lack of nerves... every molecule of sand deconstruct to their base units and reform in an instant. Suddenly, I am in a land of sulfur and flames. The Mare is nowhere to be seen, but Diana is standing close enough.

It is an odd thing to see hell while still living. It is also not allowed by the lower council, but why would I follow such restrictions? Technically even letting a creature travel through space-time in a method beyond their mental parameters is against regulation, but my sands protected her so those stuck up fate addicts can shut it. Now, where is the waiting area for the cycle of Samsara? Lets see, Burning Lakes... Eternal Vivisections... Reverse Bear Traps... Bees with Teeth... ah here we are the Wheel of Life.

"Diana brace yourself." I warn as my form starts floating and the sand partially covering Diana lifts her though the burning air. We fly quickly to the Wheel of Life and view upon the queue spanning beyond this circle of hell. Whoever is running the administrative tasks for Apollyon is truly horrible at their work. Or maybe from another perspective it is the fault of the mortals, they could always try their luck at attaining Nirvana whilst waiting. Patience is a key virtue after all.

I look through Diana's memories one last time to see what faces I should be looking for in the crowd. Simultaneously I share my vision with her, I am horrendously bad at recognizing faces. No one from my realm has one so I never properly learned it. We fly down the line for hours at breakneck speeds. Diana seems fine... well relatively fine considering the situation, at least until she suddenly stopped breathing for a minute straight.

"Diana, everything ok?" I say while scanning her for supernatural manipulation.

Her whole body is sharking heavily against the sands that keep her above the ghostly crowds below.

"I... I see him." she says in a fearful tone.

"Diana, it is ok. No matter what happens when you talk to them, I'm sure your friends will understand your perspective when you explain it."

"No... they wouldn't... and its... its not... just look." she says while pointing into the crowd.

It takes me a moment to find what she is pointing at, I don't have eyes at the moment so it is particularly difficult. Eventually I do find what she is motioning too. It is a creature with a ghostly appearance, like all the others in the line. This individual has a tint of red on their visage, two horns, and a hole in its neck in the shape of the dagger's blade. It was a devil by the looks of it. It seems familiar, where have I? Oh yes I remember now. Ohhh noooo. This is less fun than expected, can't that Mare anger a Demon King faster?

"Are you sure that he is..." I start as Diana interrupts me as her trembles grow in intensity.

"I am... I... I could never forget... that's... that's Sam."