of the hundreds of islands that surrounded the city. This was because our father liked to have them at the ready to fight, or at the very least seen as a force of strength.
Yet now they were gone.
“I have no fucking clue, but I know that I don’t like it,” my brother replied.
“It seems my caution wasn’t for nothing, but at the very least it will save time if you create portal and take us closer.” My brother’s reply to this was to warp the space in front of us and create a portal, this time one big enough for us both to step through at the same moment. This meant that I was soon looking up at the imposing entrance that was framed by two round towers you would have expected to see on most castles. Yet the difference was not only the colossal height, but also the battlements at the top that were consumed in flames.
“Fire Demons,” my brother hissed, nodding above to where movement could be seen in the flames. Of course, the name wasn’t exactly original at all seeing as these demons could withstand any amount of heat. Unsurprising, being that they had been born from the river Phlegethon, which literally translates in English to the word ‘flaming’.
They were half beast, half man, standing at nine feet tall, thanks to large flat horns that reminded me of a cross between a scythe and a vechevoral. The vechevoral was a sickle shaped sword from the 19th century that originated from India, and like the Fire Demons’ horns, they were thicker at the very top and curved into a deep concaved arch before ending in long sharp points.
The horns were anchored to a wide flat forehead that looked like a helmet of scorched bone and covered most of its face, other than the two rows of slits for its six eyes. Eyes that even from this distance could be seen glowing hot like the flames they stood in. The body of a man that was bulging with sweat dripping muscles and the moment we moved closer, they used these to raise their mammoth weapons at us. A twin sided scythe that joined in the middle with a straight dagger, glowing hot as though it would soon be at its melting point. However, the demon that wielded it, was also the one who made it from their very essence, meaning that it would continue to glow like lava without ever losing its shape.
A deadly weapon for an even deadlier foe.
“Well, at least we know the bastard hasn’t gone completely insane and left himself defenceless,” Dariush commented dryly, and I grunted an agreement, not daring to take my gaze from those living flames that stood guard. It would only take a handful of those fuckers to take down an entire legion of demons, as they could produce fire as easily as breathing. Hence why they were so rare and why our father had every one of them at his disposal.
There were two giant torches lighting the way at the top of the entrance towers, acting as a beacon for the lost souls that were lucky enough to go free and roamed these lands. After all, not everyone received an eternity being tortured and some were sentenced to remain here for a period of time. However, there were also those that could not cope with life outside their prison walls, just like in the human world. Meaning that in Hell, there were also those who actually craved the torture. Craved a life of servitude, even without the delivering hand of their cruel master. These were usually what were named ‘the condemned’ and became willing servants in one capacity or another.
For if they showed strength and skill, they became one of Lucifer's army. If not, then they would serve in a different way, as Lucifer was many things, but wasteful wasn’t one of them. Which was why the condemned were represented by the two tortured souls either side of the entrance. Two giant horned demons that once breathed life, and reminded all who approached just what happens when you anger a God of Hell, as all that remained now were their skeletons.
They were also the size of skyscrapers which were crouched over as if praying to their Master and had simply died that way. Their flesh had long since withered away from the bone that remained and was decorated with golden cuffs gleaming at the wrists. These were attached to giant chains