Monarch of Darkness, Arsene

"My King! My King! Please do not leave me! Do not leave me! Please burn me alive! Tear me apart! Plunge your mighty hands through my eyes, and feed them to me! I'll be good, my King! I'll be a good dog!" Yan Yu, a shriveled little thing that somehow wound up in my Hells, squealed.

Truly one of the most pristine residents of my hells. Rarely does one such as he appear in this hellish landscape. To those like him… It matters not whether I sear his soul to the core of his being or how many times I carve into his flesh till only his screams remain. He never had a limit... Not once did he scream for me to stop... until I left him for a day or two without torment.

The level of madness he displayed truly opened my eyes. He wasn't a masochist, as the torment didn't bring any pleasure, but… it was all he knew. All he craved. He was a product of his surroundings. This was the truth of human souls that made it so enjoyable to torment. In all of the known Myriad heavens, there was not one race more bred to be tormented than humans. Their minds are flimsy, as are their bodies.

Yan Yu… I've had him for over twelve chaos Cycles, and he's long forgotten who he is. Broken beyond measure for the sin of betrayal. He was nothing more than a demi-god when he fell into my palm for the betrayal of his god. He was sent to me.

As was his child. Truly a father and son combo I'd not expect. At first, these two were so prideful, so poised before me it amused me. But after merely a day, Yan Lin was nothing more than a mumbling fool. A retard by any measure of the word, and Yan Yu, a shriveled mess. He couldn't even look at his son, much less this King.

They broke on the first day, but by the second, the madness had begun to dig into their souls so deep in merely a cycle the son became a demon and would be sent to start his Infernal Pilgrimage through all nine layers just like any newly turned devil or demon.

This would temper their mind and bodies, breeding madness till all that was left of their mortal side was despair. And since mortals were so flimsy, their temperament would be all the more enlightening for both the tormented and torturer.

Human Devilkin would breeze through the Pilgrimage unlike any other race or immortal denizen. They were, after all, bred to worship another, bred to sin. I'd seen to that. But then there was Yan Yu… the one who had never truly been corrupted enough to become a devil or demon.

No matter the levels of cruelty I showed him, the only thing he feared was my disregard. He was a little thing that had all seven sins purged of his mind and body, all virtues till only a… a 'thing' was left.

"I see you found another one," Mephisto said as he appeared in my royal chambers, drawing my attention.

It was rare for him to appear unannounced. My brother was anything but rude when it came to procedures within the Hell.

"What is it?" I asked him, somewhat surprised he recreated his body so quickly. Mephisto clones were usually all top quality. They were so high that the clones were as strong as the creator, able to use even 'unique' abilities.

"I want to move the Avernus Gates." He told me, startling me as I rose from my throne.

Yan Yu barked, lowering his head like a good dog. And against even my reasoning, he rolled over, displaying his belly for me to rub.

'...'

'...'

"I swear they are the oddest within the Nines. Have you started the actual breaking yet?" Mephisto curiously asked. "My research into these 'things' has hit a wall."

"Glorious! M'lord! Glorious! Please, by your will, step on this lowly insect. Feed me my spine so that I may feel your glory!' Yan Yu chimed in. 'Show this lowly 'thing' your cruelty. Spit on me, m'lord. So that I may savor your love!'

"Find your own. But I think he's ready for phase two." I told him, chucking as my gaze slid to this lonesome thing and back to Mephisto.

"The Avernus Gates are rare, only existing on Earth. To move them would require Hellmaster as well as my permission."

Mephisto shook his head. "It's a request from Zariel through Tenebrae. And they claim that the Avernus Gate will not be leaving Earth. Strange, don't you think? She's even gone as far as to take over Babels Gate."

I frowned at that… Mephisto and I were both administrators within Babels Tower. We'd even gone as far as to temper and recreate it with all Sovergin Lords and a few Fallen so the Tower never breaks under the pressure of Arcadia and the Mryaid.

I folded my arms. "We'd lose access to all Hell Gates if we move the main gate. You know that. Avernus is a tool that Lord Hellmaster created that stretches through all conceivable Heavens. Moving it a little could result in our authority on the outside dropping quite significantly. You know Devils, demons, and fallen cannot leave Hell if the Avernus Gate is down."

"I know, brother," Mephisto said curiously. "But… Zariel requested it. And you know he is fair, someone who tends to look at the big picture. He's no stake in this, so he usually behaves fairly."

Still… We draw power from Avernus to create Hell Gates. Even summonings of Devils and Demons require mortals and gods to tap into the power of the Avernus Gates. It's our bread and butter.

"Mehpisto, how are you fine with this?" I asked, " Losing Babels tower that is critical for our plan, is sure to—"

"My plan has been completed. I'd completed my plan the instant I planted Babels Tower on Iluthath. It doesn't matter who owns babel tower. We are still admins. And we still have authority regarding that Tower. She can't even move the Tower, not without destroying Iluthath. And she'd never do that. I've thought of everything, brother. "

True… But I still don't understand what those two are doing. Tenebrae was never one to care about anything. Rarely did she scheme, despite being quite proficient in it. She'd never clashed with us. There were close times, but we'd drop the issue.

Tenebrae was terrifying when she was angry.

The goal of Babels Tower was to use it alongside the Blade of—

"Stop thinking. You suck at it." Mephisto shouted with a chuckle.

"All of Hell would disagree with you," I replied, rolling my eyes. "Let's go see Tenebrae. I need a contract made. There's no way I'm allowing anyone to touch Avernus, much less move it."