Til Death Do Us Part Ch. 5
By Vicky

Fire. It can be conceived as so many different things: a giver of life, of warmth and of security. It can guide those who are lost either in the vastness that is Earth, or those who are lost inside the depths of their own mind. It brings light. It fades away the shadows. A metaphor of hope, no doubt.

Fire has its own potential in evil as well. In fact, it is feared by many. Its burning desire to destroy has frightened generation after generation, all of them respecting the power nature has bestowed upon its crimson flames.

It is not supposed to be evil. Nature creates everything with a purpose and such is the purpose of fire. In these last few spans of time though, I have experienced the most torturous forms that not only this fiery element can take, but also the fury of earth, wind, water and ice, all capable of painful damage.

Only through my eyes I have experienced this, for I myself have not been exposed to its torment. My eyes gaze deeply at a steady flame, one of the few I've seen that has not been causing wails of despair.

"So what do you think of Hell so far, Ryu?"

I raise my eyes to meet the empty hollows of my cloaked companion.

"Just as I expected it to be," I answer.

"Yes, it seems mortals have quite a good image of this place, after all, it is where I will bring them after they face death"

"Innocent souls suffer here," I remark with disgust in my voice.

"No soul that resides here is innocent. Have you learnt nothing from our journey?"

Indeed I had learned something, even if I did not want to admit it. For what seemed like days I have been traveling though the pits of Hell…circle after circle, sin after sin, and punishment after punishment. From the very entrance, my nostrils inhaled the stench of evil. Things that I found insignificant are treated here like major crimes. No matter what sin my companion claimed a soul committed, the punishment seemed ten times more severe. It was truly breaking my heart.

"No one deserves this, no matter what their crime was," I broke out of a certain trance and whispered back at my traveling companion.

"Then where will these souls be sent? Heaven? I think not," the figure laughed through his cloak. I frowned. Death having a sense of humor, no matter how bad it is, is very, very disturbing.

"Learn to love these pits, Ryu. Learn to love them. You will be spending eternity, and who knows how much longer, here," again, he chuckled.

Yes, I was surprised myself when I first discovered I am to wander in Hell for eternity. The shock has passed now and I have come to understand my sin.

Violence against your fellow men is a sin. Pain and death can result of violence. Now I have been a fighter all my life, and yet, violence against others is not my sin.

Violence against yourself or your property is also a sin. There is a pit in h*ll especially for those who have taken their own lives. Although I signed my own death by choosing to fight the demon Akuma, suicide is not my sin. It is a different kind of pain inflicted upon oneself, which I am guilty of committing. I neglected love. I denied happiness to myself. You see, I have learned that we are all born into the mortal world for a reason. Though following your different paths in life and searching for your destiny is part of this, the true goal of us being on Earth is to achieve true happiness. And why is ignoring this call to be happy a sin? Simple. Because God, or whichever is the force of creation, gave us life, not to waste our time with useless passions, but to instead live life to the fullest and use time to our advantage.

My sin, I regret. I regret it dearly because I did not feel its consequences until now, but those I loved suffered because of it. I not only neglected happiness to myself, but also to the woman I love. I could and will never forgive myself for this.

No one here will forgive me either…

A few flames burst out from the fiery lava river that slowly flows scarce meters from me. I see more souls in the distance, submerged in the blood-red waves. I watch with revulsion as the hot liquid tears the flesh from their pale bodies. Some of them are screaming in pain. Others are quiet and semi-conscious, obviously numb from the continuous burning.

I turn my face in the other direction right into Death's inexistent features.

"Are you ready to continue this little trek?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"No, not really" I imagined him grinning under the darkness of his cloak.

I followed my ghastly companion through more roads of intense suffering. I feared the worst for those I had left behind in my previous life, and yet I hope they will not be enslaved in this fire hole as I have been.

******

I kicked a small stone out of my way. I tried my hardest to keep myself busy and to ignore the unlucky souls around me. I looked up to my guide. He was floating a few inches above the h*llish ground, moving swiftly and carelessly.

We reached the end of the path. A large abyss split the earth into two. I carefully looked over the edge of the cliff. Condemned souls were desperately grabbing rocks with their bony fingers to keep themselves from falling eternally. Many managed to climb back up, only to have their flesh torn out by vicious harpies and fall again.

"This abyss divides Hell into two sections…" My mentor spoke, stealing my attention from the falling souls.

"You have seen nothing compared to what you will see at the other side of this pit."

He pointed to a decaying bridge.

"That is the only way across the abyss. To go around it will take an eternity."

I nodded and glanced briefly at the bridge as Death began to cross it, slashing any incoming harpies with his scythe. I slowly and carefully step on the rope bridge. I stop as a wind smelling of rotten flesh hits my face. I raise my eyes to see a city, almost in ruins and seemingly on fire at the other side of the bridge.

"What is that place?"

"The city of Dite*. Quite a hospitable place, if you can sleep with endless shrieks all through the night"

"How comfortable."

"Indeed."

With uneasy steps I continue my slow track over the bridge. The loud screeching of the harpies, along with the thunderous crashing of lighting across the red sky made the old wood tremble under my feet.

"Just a few more steps…" I said to myself as I saw the end of the bridge closer and closer. I wiped some sweat of my brow as I tried to move my shaking limbs faster.

Another piercing battle cry… I looked up to see a harpy diving in my direction. Now in a situation like this I probably would have ducked to safety or fought back. My reaction surprised the heck out of me. I froze in place and screamed, even as the beast dug its claws on my flesh. I caught a glimpse of the harpy's eyes. Its intentions were clear. It was about to throw me over the bridge into the abyss. As I felt the monster's hot breath over me, I screamed again.

Suddenly and with relative ease, Death gripped the flying demon around the neck and tossed it aside, making it crash painfully against some rocks.

I jumped off the bridge to Death's side, clutching my now inexistent wound.

"Harpies can smell fear"

He tilted his cloaked head to one side and tapped his scythe casually.

"Are you afraid, Ryu?"

"I, uh…"

"You disappoint me, but no matter… fear is something you will become more accustomed to in your stay here."

With a groan, I followed Death into the city.

*****

"Ha ha ha ha! That was the best kill of my life! Beautiful b*tch she was! Even more attractive soaked in her own blood! Muahahahahaha!"

"Oh yeah?! I've heard, seen and done better!"

"Bah! What about you, Bob? You don't mind me callin' ya Bob, now do ya?"

I casually removed off my shoulders the arm of a very disgusting, rum smelling pig.

"You're not gonna tell us why yer here Bob?"

I did not reply.

"Maybe he's already regretted his sins, Nestor. Hahahahaha!"

"Naw…" the one known as Nestor answered his colleague. "Bob here doesn't look like a goodie-two-shoes. Right Bob!"

He forcefully smacked my back. I groaned and ignored any other comments, or at least tried to…

"So Bob, what was it? Murder, rape, suicide, greed…?" "None"

"Aw, Bob here is no fun…" Nestor said, swallowing down a whole mug of something that looked like cheap beer.

I searched around the tavern for my guide. Oddly enough, I spotted him having a few drinks and casually chatting with a group of demons a few tables away.

I absently shook my head and recalled why he had brought me in here. He needed some time off I believe was what he said.

It was after a brief tour of the city… around the decaying structures, dirty streets and tortured souls… that he led me here. Death said that this city was some sort of sanctuary, a resting place for souls, but I found them torturing themselves anyway.

A table flying through the air threatened to crush my skull. Death came to my aid, suspending the table in mid air then tossing it back against a couple of drunken demons and souls.

"Don't hurt him… yet…"

"Yet?" I thought to myself as I followed Death out of the tavern, avoiding chairs, limbs and other debris that were crashing through the filthy tavern air.

"Why are you protecting me? Am I not supposed to suffer, just like every other soul here?" I questioned Death as we walked away from the tavern.

"Well, lets just say you are not like any other soul, Ryu. You will be aware of this trip's purpose soon"

I analyzed his words, no matter how simple they sounded.

"Oh, it does not mean you will no go through your punishments, but all in due time boy."

I decided to change the subject when the topic of my punishment came up.

"Tell me, you said this city is a sanctuary, then why are all these souls suffering as if they were being victims to torture?" I asked, looking at the souls lying in the dirty streets and screaming in agony.

"What best punishment is there, than the haunting of your own sins and your own crimes? These souls might seek rest and technically they do get it, but their past life hunts them until they are practically insane. Most prefer to end their emotional stress by inflicting themselves pain or staying in their torture circles. Even then, physical pain is not enough to drive away their sins."

I nodded in understanding.

****

We exited the city and found ourselves in front of another river. This one however, had crystal clear waters that looked inviting and refreshing.

"This is merely another stream of the River Styx. Beautiful isn't it? This is where I keep an eye on mortals until if is time for their death and trial. After their trial, it is decided where their soul will reside"

"I do not recall such a trial."

"Heh heh, souls are judged, but it doesn't mean they have a say in it"

"I see… So why are we here?"

"Like I said before boy, you are unlike any other soul. Since the very beginning, right after your death, you have been put through various… shall we say, tests. You would have come straight to h*ll without them anyway, but where is the fun in that?"

"So this is all a game you have been playing with me? Why not just take me back to the seventh circle so I can atone for my sins?"

"Well, I can take you back. Do listen to what I have to offer first."

"Alright" I nodded.

"No matter what the outcome of your trial was, Ryu, you were indeed a good man back on Earth. Even though you sinned, you saved many lives… touched many lives. That can not go unrewarded."

"What is my… reward?"

"The waters of this stream are the reflection of life. Through this river, I can see any mortal I so desire. No souls have had the privilege I have given you Ryu. Use it wisely. Who do you want to see one last time?"

The answer would have been pretty obvious, but I thought it wisely nevertheless. There are actually so many people I wanted to see. My friends… my best friend, Ken Masters… all the people whom I somehow met and made our lives better because of it… But I was sure of the person I wanted to see. My love, my one true love. The only being that would have completed my life had I gotten the chance.

Death tapped his scythe on the floor almost impatiently.

"Well? Who will it be, Ryu?"

"I…"

"Yes?"

"I would like to see Chun-li one last time"

"Very well."

He led me closer to the stream and slammed his scythe into the bluish gray ground. A quick flash of intense white light made me shield my eyes instinctively. When I opened them, the stream had stopped all it's movement. Death motioned for me to look in it, and I did.

If my heart were still beating it would have stopped. I ceased breathing. In the stream I could see a blurry image of a grave… my own. As the image came more into focus I could see a young Chinese woman, dressed in black and holding a long stemmed red rose in her hand.

"Chun li…"

"Ryu…" I exhaled and listened to her sweet words. "For days I have been blaming you for leaving me…for leaving me alone. I have been selfish. I understand now that you had obligations and that you have completed them, even if they cost you your life. I will not shed another tear, for I have shed enough. You may have passed away, my Ryu, but your memory has not. 'Til Death do us part' you once said… I have to disagree with you. Our love is so strong, that not even Death in his most powerful glory can break us apart."

"Come Ryu, it is time for you to go back…" Death said, almost in a saddened tone.

I watched as Chun li placed the red rose on my grave and walk away. There, as I looked at my beloved one final time, I shed my last tear… and smiled my last smile.