The Love That Remains

I remember that Reis picked me up. There was a dimension gate. I have seen him used it once or twice before but he let me go along with him to wherever he went. As soon as he entered the gate, I fell into unconsciousness. I don"t know why.

When I wake up, I find myself in a freaking boat with a cloaked figure rowing the boat. I can"t see anything else in this mist. Not even the river that we are supposed to cross. I mean, the boat is floating in something, right? It can"t just fly in the sky.

I try to look under his cloak, but the tall man is always out of my reach. I figure that he is a spirit. I sit back down on the cramped boat. It"s wooden and old. I dip my hand in the mist. The water under the mist is freezing. I plunge my hand out. The part of the hand that I dipped into the water turns into a s.h.i.+ny white skeleton. My mouth becomes dry when I see this. I can count the bones.

This is a river of death.

"Am I dead, mister?" I ask the boatman. Reis, you! Let me get my hands on you first. You d.a.m.n G.o.d! Did you just kill me? I die again just like this. This is insane. What did I do to you, Reis?

The boatman shakes his head surprisingly. I am surprised. Why am I crossing the infamous river of death if I am not dead yet? Is it because I already died?

"Why I am here if I am not dead?"

The shadow cloaked boatman looks up and down. Then, he looks to the right and left. Then, he tilts his head in a funny way.

"Do you speak?"

He shakes his head.

"Do you know sign language?"

He shakes his head.

"Did Reis throw me in this boat?"

He nods his head.

"Am I going to the afterlife?"

He shakes his head.

"Am I going to heaven?"

He shakes his head.

"h.e.l.l?"

He nods.

d.a.m.n you, Reis! Let me find you for once. I will show you where is the true h.e.l.l.

"Can I jump in the river and swim to the sh.o.r.e?"

He pauses rowing. His eyes gleam red under the hood. He slowly shakes his head. I gulp down. I guess, swimming in the Styx river is out of the question. I might not have any skin left after I swim to the sh.o.r.e. The skin of my hand didn"t grow back. My right hand is still a skeleton.

"Don"t worry. I won"t jump." I laugh nervously. "I will go to h.e.l.l instead. How bad can it be? Is it worse than my imagination?"

He nods his head.

c.r.a.p!

I look at my clothes. I am still wearing the black dress. I check my pockets in case Reis was being generous. There is nothing except for a big silver coin. I guess, it is the boat man"s payment. Is Reis punis.h.i.+ng me for going against his wishes?

What"s Sung Jun doing? We have to part again like this. I lived, but now I am going to h.e.l.l even though I am not dead. Does it even make sense? I am not a cultivator either. There is not an ounce of spiritual energy inside my body. I check for Sung Jun"s spiritual blanket. I find that Reis has removed it along with Sung Jun"s imprint.

I take a deep breath. If I survive h.e.l.l, I will find Reis and burn him alive. At least now, we do not owe each other anything. He is supposed to keep me alive and well since he is my contracted G.o.d. Instead, he threw me in h.e.l.l. He is unbelievable.

He broke the contract first. I am sure that he is getting struck by the heavenly laws somewhere. He deserves it. Dear supreme one, if you are listening, make sure that he stays in his cat form forever.

***

Somewhere on a beach in California, Reis is sunbathing with sungla.s.ses on. This is heaven. Even in heaven, there are always the messengers of the supreme one who are nagging him. Here, he can easily breathe the freedom and do nothing.

"The weather is good." The slender dark-haired man puts his arms behind his head. "The sun is bright. The air is cool. The sea is refres.h.i.+ng. It is nice to take a vacation."

Reis slowly turns his head and looks at the fellow. His eyes are hidden under his sungla.s.ses. "What are you doing here?"

"Say, Reis, is it really wise to abandon your contractor in h.e.l.l without any preparation?" The man smiles at Reis. "When Fate came to me, I was surprised to hear her. Your Aisa is a part demon. A person like her cannot become a G.o.d."

"We never know." Reis turns back face toward the sea.

"Are you experimenting, my brother?" Death asks with a laugh.

"Are you allowed to wander the mortal world, Arius?"

"Of course, if I don"t cause trouble," Death tells him. "It is really boring down there. But your person is crossing my river right now. I can hear her thoughts, you know. She is cursing you to death."

"She isn"t the first one or the last one," Reis mutters under his breath.

"You are right, Reis." Death closes his aquamarine eyes. "I find her interesting though. You have trained her well in the demonic arts. I wonder if she can use it against the demons. That is like fighting water with water. But her body won"t trouble her anymore because there is no spiritual energy or heavenly law to hurt her there."

Reis doesn"t answer him.

"Have you wonder which path she will choose?"

There is no answer. Reis is already gone. Death chuckles when he finds him gone. It seems that his brother does not like his company much.

"Will she survive or lose to the darkness of the h.e.l.l?" Death asks, n.o.body answers him. "It"s a long path to G.o.dhood for a mortal unlike us. Even as a G.o.d of death, I am not selfish like you, brother. I would rather let her live a short life of happiness than live a lonely life of an immortal."