New Destination

Stepping through the portal, Eireen arrived at the Dead Steppes. She noticed that the air is not hot on her skin, compared to the last time she was in Infernum. Eireen did not know where she should go. She only knew that she felt something waiting for her far North from here. Somewhere, where Kenshi Corp. expeditions haven’t reached yet. Dead Steppes, contrary to the name, are not an empty and barren wasteland of sadness and regret. It’s inhabited by demons and condemned souls whose purpose is to walk these lands forever. And then there are Abyssals. The not-so-friendly strange demonic creatures, who prowled the Steppes, turning anything still living, into a pile of flesh and bones.

What Eireen didn’t know is that none of these would ever be stronger than a great demon.

Eireen’s mind was now a passenger in the vessel, who reacted to thoughts and memories, sometimes even of someone else, as it seemed. Voices became unrelenting and bombarded her mind with obsessive thoughts. Through all this jumbled mess of noise, she was somehow certain that she must venture North.

A few days went by and Eireen reached water. A long and deep river was in front of her. She saw transport vessels going on the river. Its water was near seethrough and gave off a light glow. The whole river was covered by low fog at its surface, and beyond that fog, she could make out the silhouette of a city. She somehow knew that this river was named Acheron, and the city further was Adamanthryx upon Acheron, the second largest city of Infernum.

The path leads near Adamanthryx, not through it. Eireen decided to swim across the Acheron river, as there was no other way across. As soon her paws hit land again, she fell over, consumed by grief. The grief of loss. She was grieving losing Daegna’ar, her true self, her free will, did she even ever have such a thing? She couldn't even piece together who Daegna’ar actually was. She did not know why at first, but a voice came through the barrage and whispered to her what she already knew from the shattered bits of memories that seemed to be of someone else. The river of Grief, Acheron, is made from the tears of the grieving souls, condemned in Infernum. Those who walk the translucent waters of Acheron, walk through grief itself. It is one of the natural forces that even some of the most powerful of this realm steer clear of. A few hours later, Eireen regained her strength and continued her pilgrimage to the unknown.

Not even two days later, she got to the river Styx, which was full of drowning souls of sinners, who grasped at her while she was crossing the river. These souls tried to pull her under, but even through this struggle Eireen relentlessly marched forward. She knew that west of the shallow area she just walked through, was the descent into the land of Gluttony. That is where her path leads.

Eireen was hiding and moving slower than usual, trying to slip by demons and other creatures skulking around this area.

She was on the move for days without rest, traversing the circles of Greed and Wrath, and finally arrived at the walls of the City of Dis – the capital of Infernum.