Winter Nights of Hell

 

Chapter Sixteen

Elysium, the Celestial Realm

 

“When do you think she’ll wake up?” 

“I” m not sure. How long has she been out for?”

“She’s not even a Celestial; why is she here?”

“We are Guardians to those from the Human Realm; why wouldn’t we protect her?”

“But she’s not from the human realm. Didn’t you see her markings?”

Gentle voices but concerned voices are what I was hearing. Celestial was the central word that stuck with me. As my eyes slowly open, they are greeted by the bright green grass beneath me. The sun’s warmth on my skin is a welcome contrast to the darkness that enveloped them before. My disorientation and confusion wash over me, and my heart rate quickens. My body feels heavy and unresponsive, and I struggle to move. Panic bubbles up inside me as I try to make sense of my surroundings. The peacefulness of the field is a stark contrast to the terror they remember feeling before losing consciousness. Waking up must’ve stunned the few surrounding me because they had fallen hushed. My memory was hazy, but I remember a sense of danger and urgency beforehand. Something was tugging at me, and I wasn’t sure what it was.  However, at this moment, I was safe and surrounded by the beauty of nature. I was lying on my side in the grass field surrounding me. Rolling over, I came into contact with three faces of younger children, two of which had white wings above them.  

When I began to sit up, I could feel a burning pain tinge through my side. I lowered my gaze to my side, coming into contact with the new bandage that covered it. “Ugh,” I gently groaned as the pain shot through me. “That’s definitely not a pain I miss,” I murmured.

The three little Celestial’s gasped as they heard me talk.

“You’re finally awake!” One of the little Celestials with red hair spoke. “I’ve been watching you for days, trying to wake you up! But you just kept stirring - not once waking up or anything,” She spoke in a high-pitched voice.

I frowned because these little kids were celestials by the wings attached to their backs. Why was I being woken up by Celestials anyway?

Wait… Did I die?

Did… That demon… Kill me? Officially? No. I would’ve been guided there, wouldn’t I have?

Wait, was that little girl, Sora, the guide that I had?! 

That would’ve meant I died in the human world with Yushin. 

No, that didn’t make sense.

I was genuinely confused. My face twisted into a frown as I took in my surroundings. Currently, I am in a field surrounded by green and nothing more. Just an endless field of tall, green grass that was incredibly soft. No trees, flowers, nothing. Grass. That was it. I reached out to one of the blades, gently rubbing it between my fingers as I turned my attention back to the three children.

“I... Where am I?” I dared to ask the question.

“The Celestial Realm - Welcome. We’ll be your guides!” The red-haired girl spoke with a cheery smile.

“No, Akane. We are not guides. Do not make silly jokes like that - the Council of the Sinless would be very disappointed in you!” The eldest of the group, a young boy with white hair and blue eyes, spoke. He was a bit older than the other two.

The third, another girl who was slightly older than Akane, huffed. “Seriously, she’s a demon. She doesn’t belong here anyway!” The older girl with long purple hair snorted. 

“If she were a demon, Shiro, she wouldn’t have been able to come here in the first place!” Akane, the wingless child, argued. 

“That’s not true! Demons have come to our world before!”

“FOR WAR?! DO YOU THINK THEY’D SEND ONE DEMON FOR WAR?!” 

“She might just be a distraction!” 

“Sisters, that’s enough,” The oldest sighed.

` I frowned at the two girls bickering about me being sent here to start a war. If anything, I was trying to peel away from any kind of war, except with the one demon. I’d like him gone - forever. Dead, Banished, whatever. 

“BUT JUN!” The girls huffed in unison. 

“Enough,” The winged boy, Jun, told them again, standing up straight. He brushed off his white clothing and looked at me again. “What is your name?” Jun asked me.

“My name is Snow - but I am no demon,” I explained to him and stood up slowly, stretching out as I did so. I gazed down at the dirty dress I was wearing. “My memory is a bit hazy… I am very much unsure how I get here to the Celestial Realm,” I murmured to him, gazing around the endless fields of green.

Jun nodded, “Perhaps a lost soul? Typically lost souls are directed to the Council of the Sinless,” He explained. “However, it does not appear you are a soul… So that makes this all the more curious,” The young boy sighed. He shook his head and looked at the two girls looking over my dress.

“Your dress is dirty - did you fall in the dirt?” Akane, the wingless Celestial, asked me.

“I um… I don’t remember,” I told her softly, gazing down at the white dress I was wearing, stained with all kinds of different stains - green, brown, black, a little bit of everything. It almost looked like I was rolling in the dirt.

“How do you not remember how you got here?” Shiro scoffed at me. 

“Shiro, would you like to be a bit nicer?” Jun scolded her. “You’re a Celestial - show some respect.” 

“It’s ok. I’d also be weary of a stranger,” I commented to them. “But you state I am in the Celestial Realm… Well, this is a bit awkward,” I muttered as I tried to think about what happened. “Do you know of a Celestial named Sora?”

The three kids looked at each other and shook their heads. 

“No - no, Sora, sorry,” Akane replied, still staring at my dirty dress - which I was completely embarrassed about.

The last I remember was bringing Sora to a giant portal - only to be greeted with the face of a demon of some kind who, I’d assume, was going after her for being a lost soul. I couldn’t remember anything else except that the monster had taken me. I’m guessing it had knocked me unconscious because I don’t know much after watching that flash of gold take place with Sora walking through the portal. Perhaps I was still dreaming? 

If I were dreaming, these three wouldn’t be as curious about me, would they? It was strange - something wasn’t adding up, and I felt off. I pinched my hand to see if it was a dream, but my quick pain was real. Not a dream. Maybe the previous attack was a dream? But that pain and numbness I felt was accurate as well. These bandages on my wound were confirmed - this was real. These kids - this grass - this was real. I remembered the little owl that greeted us at the portal as well… Maki? Muki? 

Mati! That was its name. Mati! Maybe it can help me! I asked the kids about Mati, and they nodded their heads. 

“Mati is extremely busy helping at the Council of the Sinless with guidance; I doubt he’d be able to make time for you,” Shiro replied, glancing over me with her sharp purple eyes. 

“SHIRO!” Jun snapped at her, giving her a cold glare.

“Sorry,” She muttered, giving him a side-eye before turning away from the other two.

Akane’s little hand grabbed mine, and she smiled brightly at me, “I can take you to Mati. Mati and I are friends. I want to be able to help humans like he does!”

This little girl reminded me a lot of Sora, too, even if I had only known her briefly in my dream, nightmare, or whatever it was. I nodded, and she gripped my hand tightly, happiness shimmering in her bright eyes. She began to tug me, pulling me through the green field of grass.

“Do you think this is a good idea, Akane?” Jun questioned the little girl’s antics.

“I do. I see good in this girl. She’s a good person; I know it!” 

“Weird,” Shiro muttered under her breath and sighed. “Fine, but if we get in trouble, I blame you, Akane.”

Akane’s gentle gaze locked with her sisters, and she shrugged, “That’s fine - I’ll take the fall for it. I was the one who found Snow anyway. We can’t just leave a human trapped here anyway.”

Jun and Shiro exchanged worried glances before following after their sister and me. I happily went along with the little girl - who was extremely positive and happy - even offering to take the blame for bringing me to Mati. Perhaps Mati could tell me what happened after he got Sora through the portal? Or if this even happened? I had no idea. If anything - OH!

Casielle and Zarall! 

They could help me by guiding me back to the underworld. I’m sure they were busy, though, especially if they’re in the underworld now with Lord Mundus. From what I could remember, Casielle is mainly in the underworld for her ‘secret spy mission’ or whatever it was that she was sent off on by the Celestial’s leader - Michael. Mati had to be my option for now - he would’ve been the only one present to view what could’ve happened. 

After 15 minutes of walking, we left the grass fields and approached a stone bridge lined with large pink and purple flowers. Across the stone bridge was a magnificent large castle and village floating on clouds.  The superb castle perched atop a fluffy white cloud. The entire village’s walls were shimmering white marble, and its turrets reached towards the sky like fingers longing to touch higher than the celestial realm. Blue skies wrapped around the entire city that floated before me, reaching out to eternities. I had wondered if other villages here were similar to this one. Or was there only one Celestial Realm castle? Was it similar to the underworld with different towns? So many questions. 

Akane giggled at the sight of amazement that played on my face, my eyes longing to see the village. “Isn’t it a beautiful place?!” She asked me. “I have never seen a human’s reaction to Elysium! It’s stunning from the outside. It’s the best place of all realms!” 

“It’s a beautiful and magical place,” I gently replied.

“Come on, let’s go, Akane, stop stopping,” Shiro huffed, rolling her eyes as she began to walk across the sizeable stone-grasped bridge. 

The stone bridge led right up to the castle’s sizeable golden entrance, adorned with gold-and-white tapestries. On the other side of the arches, it seemed rather busy with Celestial Beings with and without wings, walking through town - flying through the village, and even hanging around and talking outside with some merchants. The younglings guided me through the city, and no one looked in my great direction. They seemed so busy and caught up in their own time and personal business that they had no care in the world that I was there. Perhaps they had strange people walking through the gates of Elysium all the time. Or maybe they didn’t care. 

At the top of the stone path, we came across the giant castle I had seen from the bottom of the stone path leading up to the top. However, we didn’t go in through the front. Shiro motioned us off to the sides of the gates through some large trees and bushes. Were they sneaking me into the castle? Wouldn’t Michael or any other possible Celestial be angry that we snuck in? Whatever - I needed to see Mati. And if I wasn’t welcomed here, this was a good thing. The little ones snuck me through the crack towards the back, which led to a large garden of various things, including fruits, veggies, and flowers. 

“This way,” Jun motioned to me. 

He brought us to a door leading to a large tower and opened it. The building was off to the side of the castle and had a massive flight of stairs. 

“I have to climb this?” I murmured.

“No, don’t you see the portal?” Shiro asked. 

“... No,” I replied.

“Tch, typical humans,” The purple-haired girl murmured. “Take my hand.” She grabbed my other hand. Within a few seconds, she and Akane stepped forward, and we were teleported to the top of the stairs. At the top of the stairs was a large, dark blue and white room.  The room’s windows were stained glass, depicting scenes of mythical creatures and magical landscapes. The interior was just as breathtaking as the exterior, with soaring ceilings and grand chandeliers made of crystal. The walls were adorned with tapestries of dragons and birds, and the floors were made of gleaming marble. 

A smile played on my lips, and I stared in awe. Everything in the Celestial Realm was stunning compared to the dark and frozen underworld.

“The Higher-Ups typically don’t come here - they usually leave Mati’s room alone - because he’s special. He’s not a Celestial like us,” Akane explained, sitting in one of the plush chairs off to the side. “And he’s an amiable spirit. I’m not sure when he’ll be back, but. Hopefully, he’ll be here soon for you!” 

Jun nodded in agreement with his sister, “That’s right. Mati has been assigned to help the Council of the Sinless with lost souls.”

“Like a Spirit Walker?” I questioned him.

“Aren’t those the things that the reaper created? I heard because the last reaper didn’t want to do their job, they created extra help to do their job for them,” Akane murmured, putting her finger to her chin and tilting her head.

“What? I heard the reaper died, but they could not find their body, claiming a demon ate it!” Shiro gasped.

Jun shook his head, “You’re both wrong. The reaper was locked up somewhere because they weren’t redirecting souls correctly.”

Jun’s words made me curious, and I questioned him, “Locked up?”

The white-haired Celestial nodded, gazing off to the room’s walls, “Mhm. I heard a story from the Elders that the underworld locked up the reaper due to their inconsistency of successfully leading souls, causing a huge commotion between the worlds. Thus, the underworld was frozen.”

I nodded slowly, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. “I haven’t heard of that… That’s an interesting story; I must keep that in mind. Thank you for sharing that with me. Was Michael the one who put the underworld into a Frosty World?” 

Jun shook his head, “Not that I’m aware,” He murmured. “But these are just rumors. No one knows what’s true, not even Michael himself. He has no reason to lie to us; we’re just helping until they decide to release the reaper. The Council of the Sinless immediately offered to take their job.” 

“That’s unfortunate…” 

“Why do I hear voices in my realm?” A voice whispered through the shadows.

“Mati!” Both the girls squealed loudly, racing over to a perch off the side of the room.

“Shiro? Akane? What are you doing here?” Mati questioned.

I turned around to come face to face with the sizeable majestic owl, who was a lot larger in person than he was in the dream.

Jun immediately stood up and turned his full attention to the owl. “Mati, um. This is Snow. She says she knows you,” He introduced me.

“Snow?” The owl tilted his head, yellow eyes beaming directly into mine as though he was piercing my soul. “Thank you, Celestials. Allow me to speak with Snow in private; much appreciated.” The bird’s gaze did not tear from me. 

My feet automatically shuffled, and my body tensed up. This bird was my answer - I needed help. 

“Aw, can’t we stay, Mati?!” Akane whined, looking up at Mati with big purple-orange eyes. 

“Not this time, little Akane. Please, join the others. I’m sure Michael is looking for you three anyway to get your report,” Mati dismissed them, holding out a wing to where we were teleported in. “Please excuse us.”

“Let’s go, Akane,” Jun told his sister, gently grabbing her with Shiro and bringing them to the spot we teleported.

“Bye, Snow!” Akane called out before they disappeared with a flash of light.

Immediately, Mati stretched out both wings and sighed gently, shuffling on his perch and gazing down at me with his bright yellow eyes. His head tilted some; I couldn’t read any emotions on his owl face. An awkward silence filled the room as he stared me over. 

I stood there, staring at him like I was a creep. 

“I didn’t think you made it here,” He spoke to me, his eyes focused directly on me. “Your spirit tore away from your body. I’m not sure how to explain it, but I watched your spirit leave your physical body behind.” The owl held out one of his wings, motioning to a couch off the side in the dark-blue spiritual room. “Please, have a seat. Would you care for anything to eat or perhaps something to drink?” He offered me.

“Drink? Eat? At a time like this?” I asked, bewildered. My body was tense, and I began to pace back and forth. “One second, I’m in the human world with Yushin, and then the next, I’m dreaming up a storm about a blue spark, which I thought was Yuna, but then there was a large wall that I couldn’t get through, only to come across little Sora, who those kids said didn’t even exist, only to be called to the Gates of, I’m assuming the Celestial World, only to witness a talking bird that I thought was also a Spirit Walker created by the Council of the Sinless, and then next moment, I’m attacked by a demon! And then I wake up in the CELESTIAL WORLD by three kids who state I was out for days!” I squealed, panting heavily toward the end as I forgot to breathe. My eyes were wide with confusion. “Like, I have no idea what’s even happening anymore! Why am I here, Mati?!” I quickly turned to face the bird, staring at him. 

His little bird brows furrowed as he covered his beak and eyes with one of his wings. “Snow,”

“AND YOU CALLED ME AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT NAME IN THAT DREAM!” 

“Calm down,” The bird sighed, lowering his wing below his striking yellow eyes. The bird ruffled his back tails and flew off to circle me, pushing pressure at me and causing me to step back some.

“Fine,” I muttered, glaring at him and taking a seat. 

After I sat on the couch, the owl took his spot on another of his wooden perches near the sofa. He had at least 3 or 4 in the room, but it makes sense for an owl. His eyes stared directly at me again. “I want to say you’re not dead, at least.” He told me. “You physically aren’t here.”

“But I pinched myself. I could feel the pain!” I retorted.

“That doesn’t mean anything,” He waved it off with a quick wing lash. “I’m not sure how your spirit is here or why,” He told me. “I do know that I do not have your body - and your body is still in that forest somewhere.”

I frowned; this was a bit confusing. How could I have possibly been split from my body? Mati stated I wasn’t dead and felt normal - like I wasn’t transparent like a spirit would be. But then again, neither was Sora. The only one that I’ve seen fine would probably be Yushin…

That’s the only thing I could remember from the previous - I was with Yushin. I don’t know where or how we arrived, but I was with the Spirit Walker. 

“Mati, I need to find my body - I need to know what happened to it,” I demanded from him. “Those kids were right - I don’t belong here,” I told him.

“Your body may be in danger, but at least we know your spirit is safe,” He told me, tilting his head and taking flight to sit beside me. He reached out one of his wings. “Do you recall what the demon looked like? I couldn’t see anything - it was too dark.” The owl ruffled his feathers as he stared blankly into my empty gaze.

I frowned as I tried to recollect the images but couldn’t remember anything. I know it wasn’t a human-like demon, though, but rather a creature. An animal of some sort. “Would Sora remember?” I asked him quietly.

“No. She was teleported before she locked eyes with the creature,” He explained to me, letting out a soft sigh. 

“Do you know Yushin, the Spirit Walker? He can bring me back to my body if you can contact him. He must have seen it, right?”

“I do not. The Council of the Sinless has only recently assigned me to help with assisting souls,” The bird spoke, tilting his head. 

I sat against the back of the couch, crossing my legs. “Mati,” I started quietly, lowering my gaze to my hands with the large owl standing on the arm of the couch. “What exactly are you? Those kids said you were not called a Spirit Walker,” I questioned him. 

From the pressure of the owl, I could feel him shifting on the arm of the couch as though he were uncomfortable. He seemed to know something.

“I am not a Spirit Walker - I am just a Celestial with a different form.”

“Then why are you guiding souls? Isn’t that their job and the Reapers?”

The owl hesitated to reply, and his gaze became highly shifty. 

“Do you… Know something about the reaper…?” I questioned him.

Ruffling his white and red feathers again, a defeated sigh escaped him.

I quickly turned, coming face-to-face with the owl, which caused him to lose his balance suddenly and fall towards me, falling into my lap, and he stared up at me. When the owl stood straight in my lap, he put his feathers out on the sides of my face, ensuring all my focus was his yellow gaze. 

“Snow, your Spirit is Special. Please understand this. Your spirit is something I have not seen in a very long time. I have many answers for you; however, now is not the time. I promise you, though, I will tell you what I know one day,” He told me with all seriousness. His beak did not move, but his voice was unmistakable. I knew he could not answer questions because his gaze and voice were highly stern. It broke my heart that he knew something, and I couldn’t get the answers to it.

I gently put my hands on the owl’s wings and pushed them down from my side view. The feathers ruffled as my hands met his wings, which caused a strange pulsating feeling to run through my body - the same that I felt with Sora in the dream or nightmare or whatever it was. “I understand, Mati,” I murmured to him. The feeling was strong, and it also felt similar to that feeling from the portal to Heaven. It did not disappear or change directions; it kept pulsing through my hands. It was a very cold but warm feeling at the same time. A vision flashed across my gaze as I gripped the tip of his wing feathers even slightly. For a second, I thought I had seen my parents in the vision - the long blue hair from my mother and the short black and white hair from my father.

They held each other, smiling, but the vision lasted only briefly before bringing me back to Mati’s yellow gaze. 

“Your spirit is stronger than I thought, Snow,” He said confidently. “Ren and Sayuri were exceptional Sorcerers. It amuses me that you were that close with them, however.”

A frown played on my lips as I let go of the bird’s wings, “I never got to see their magic, but from the sounds of it, they were compelling. They were wonderful parents too, and always will be.” I frowned, replaying the story from Kurai in my head about how a demon had murdered them. 

“Tell me, Mati,” I murmured, “What happened to their spirits? Do you know?” I asked him quietly.

“Only the previous… Reaper… Would,” He murmured, stammering off a bit. “I do not have the ability, such as a Spirit Walker.”

“As far as Yushin has shared with me, they cannot see the death of a collected spirit - only the reaper can. They can collect a few details from some… Candles?”

The owl nodded and questioned me, “Has Yushin shown you to the Reaper’s Realm?”

I shook my head, “No, why would he?” 

Standing up straight and ruffling his feathers one more time, Mati’s furry brows furrowed, and he brought a wing tip to his beak as he thought for a moment. “Interesting, well. How about we find your body, then? Come along. I will bring you to the portal. The owl stretched out both wings and flapped, staring down at me. “Come along, Little Snow,” He invited me by stretching out one wing to me, and I gently grabbed it. When I did, we began to shimmer with a light blue, my feet starting to go transparent up to our hand and wing combo. 

The room around us faded, disconnecting us from the Celestial Realm. It slowly transformed into the large green field I was in when the children found me. The area was massive, full of green scenery and flowers for miles to miles. In the very far distance, you could barely see Elysium itself, but mostly the big fluffy cloud with a shimmer of gold. However, there wasn’t much else out here. 

“These are the fields of Elysium,” Mati spoke to me.

I nodded, “Somewhere here, those children found me.”

“Akane has… A gift to finding spirits… It typically gets her in trouble. Often, they’re animal spirits, and she wants to bring them home.”

“You know, that one thing I haven’t seen is an animal spirit,” I murmured, shaking my head to focus. My body was in danger, and I needed to return to it. “Mati, how do I get back to the Underworld?” I asked him. 

“Where do you remember you were last awake?”

I frowned; the memory didn’t click with me. I was with Yushin somewhere in the human world, but for whatever reason, I couldn’t remember where I was beforehand. It bothered me and poked hard at me as I tried to remember, but I could not imagine where I was. A sigh escaped my breath, and I began to pace back and forth. “The only thing I remember was being in that dream world,” I told the owl.

“That is unfortunate. We can get you back to the underworld, but you will be a bigger target than you were previously. If the underworld sees a portion of your spirit, a Demon could easily get its hands on you,” Mati explained, perching on my shoulder. I gazed up at the bird, who was staring ahead with his bright yellow eyes.

I gulped as I thought about my spirit being devoured by a demon. My gaze traveled down to the dressed wound on my side that sat under the dress I had. My hand gently touched it, and I could still feel the pain ripple. 

“What… Do you suggest we do, Mati?” I was at the end loss. I had no idea what I should do. If I went to the demon world without protection, I could quickly be devoured and gone forever - no spirit walking for me. However, I needed to find my body. What would happen if my body was in danger? My nerves felt uneasy as I thought about the possibilities. “I can’t just wait for someone to stumble across my body and poof me back, can I?” 

The bird stared ahead as he replied, “No, Little Snow.” 

“What is with that name? Astaroth calls me Little Snow, too,” I muttered to him, giving him a sideways gaze.

“Ah, Astaroth, what a wonderful Demon,” Mati cooed, ruffling his feathers again and stretching his wings out. “He has a strange effect on humans, demons, and celestials - Fascinating.”

“Mati,” I muttered. 

“Hoo, yes!” The bird gasped and tilted his head, looking down at me from my shoulder and tilting his head. “What do I suggest? My best recommendation is to remember what happened before your spirit departed your body and why it departed. Perhaps we can try and meet with Yushin, too. However, the underworld and I communication have been inferior lately.” 

I put a finger to my chin and began to pace back and forth, “Maybe I can try and find Yuna again,” I murmured gently.

“Yuna?” He echoed.

“The Spirit Walker -”

“The Spirit Walker created that of the Lady in Red’s blood, yes, yes. I know her. I can help you connect with her.”

“What?” I asked, shocked out of my mind.

“She enjoys visiting me every once in a blue moon; however, our moon is not blue.”

“.... What does that even mean?”

“It means I can help you find Yuna,” He told me.

Mati and Akane

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elysium, The Celestial Realm

 

Shiro and Jun