Page 63 of An Unexpected Ascension
“Charon,” he offers his name.
“This one, Charon, is evil through and through! Selfish, soulless, bastard!”
My eyes linger on her breasts, the rise and fall with each worked up breath.Yes, all those things and more, Angel. I am depraved, vindictive, and wretched.She hasn’t even seen the worst of it yet and she’s already seething.
Charon’s brow bone stretches up in surprise, the skin still stuck to his cheek wrinkling with the effort.
“You kissed her? In Heaven?” he asks me.
“On neutral grounds between our worlds, but yes.”
“My friend, I think you’ve lost me. I might be on the angel’s side this time.”
The night is quiet, the sea as steady as tinted glass. It would have been a serene ride, slowly coasting under the blood moon, if it wasn’t for the gaining up on.
“Selfish I may be, but have you ever known me to do a thing without good reason?”
He thinks on it, rowing that ore ever so slowly.
“He speaks the truth, Briar. Hermes is driven by duty, by a deep seeded need for justice and perhaps – bear with me – he overlooked some detail while after the bigger picture.”
“Don’t stick up for him!” she growls.
Charon only chuckles. “Already caught between my only two friends.”
There was an intensity sizzling in the air as silence struck our tongues. I had nothing left to say, there was no defending myself. My reasons for damning Briar were purely selfish, but not to eradicate her – what do I call that?
Briar is the last Fentonelli to exist, and should she have had any children while alive, they would’ve endured her curse. Though none ever came. There must be a Freudian explanation as to why I haven’t found it in myself to end this bloodline once and for all because time and time again, I’ve fought for it. Yet, I memorize that scowl on her full, heart-shaped lips, the wrinkle of disgust on her pixielike nose, and the hypnotic color like raw power emanating in her eyes.
No, Briar will be of more use to me existing than not. I’ll be sure of it.
Lost inside the mayhem of my own mind, it misses me that Charon is telling Briar his whole life story. Not something he’s done with anyone other than me.
We only get to the part where the Demon of the Sea meets yours truly when we’re slowing, the bow of the boat nearing the molten shores.
“Well, here we are.” He offers his hand to Briar, helping her disembark.
The angel makes very little waves as she slips into the sea, taking both Charon’s hands in hers.
“It was a pleasure meeting you. I hope we can remain friends, I’m sure I’ll need them.”
“Of course, my dear. Come by any time if you would like a little adventure out at sea.”
Grumbling, I swing my legs over the boat's edge, my landing causing more fuss.
“You’ve never given me that offer.”
“Hermes, you venture these seas often enough. You know you’re always welcome.”
With a solute, Charon departs, leaving us to climb the rocky ledge to the shore. I would warn Briar not to stick a hand in the glowing crevices, but a part of me wouldn’t mind to see it.
Though, the steam bellowing from the cracks might be warning enough.
“Any other creatures I should be aware of?” she asks as we close in on the Portae Inferi.
The shreds of skin decorating the trees do not stop her in her tracks, nor do the screams echoing between their earthly bodies.
“Apart from the Hell Hounds, just the crows. They can be nasty little buggers. Perhaps a straggler that’s never found the gates.”
