The second half of the thirty-minute trek went surprisingly smooth. 

There were no pointless obstacles wasting time needlessly. 

No cliches like bandits popping out and causing a scene. 

In fact, according to Ms. Kna’Ve, we arrived at the entrance earlier than we were supposed to at fourteen minutes instead of the expected fifteen.

The entrance itself was quite eye-catching when compared to the relatively tame surroundings.

At the same time, I’m pretty sure that anything would stand out against the flat sandy plains of the ocean floor.

That said, the opening to the underworld was something. It jutted out a little over a story above the rest of the ground.  The entire formation was smooth but firm-looking almost like a hill made of sandstone.

The opening was rimmed with sharp mineral deposits from the floor and the ceiling…what were they called again?

“What’s those rock icicle thingies coming from the ground and the roof?” I asked the group.

“Stalagmites and stalactites. Stalagmites have a ‘g’ for ground and stalactites have a ‘t’ for top,” Ms. Kna’Ve informed me.

‘Professor Kna’Ve saves the day once again. Informative and even gives you a way to remember it. I would’ve killed to have her teach me back on Earth instead of those fools.’

Ah but that’s right, the sharpened stalagmites and stalactites rimmed the opening, looking eerily similar to teeth.

Following that line of thought, the smooth surface looked like a chin. That made me think the whole structure looked like a giant was buried while laying on its back, with its mouth being the only part left unsubmerged.

Admittedly, that made the act of entering a little bit less appealing…because apparently, it’s possible for Hell to be less entrancing.

The logical part of my mind was aware of my experience and how nice it was, and how illogical I was being based on that experience.

But a small part of me was completely against going to the literal location of damnation for irredeemable souls. On Earth, it was depicted as the worst place you could ever end up in, in virtually every source of media since like forever.

And what I saw of the damned souls and their treatment by the guardians and the place itself, I’d say their guesses weren’t that far off.

I just happened to be exempt from that treatment because I was apparently the creator of Hell and the entire fudging universe….apparently. 

The denizens had recognized me in my snake form as well as the tree person one…both of which I could no longer transform into…

Crabapples.

Maybe that part that I deemed illogical was actually on the right track.

Apparently having no similar thoughts, the group pressed forward after quickly taking in the appearance of the entrance, ushering me along with them midst my internal monologue. 

Walking through into the opening gave me a weird feeling. It felt as if I was passing through a thick bubble or a wad of person-sized bubble gum. Before I could even open my mouth to ask what that was, Professor Kna’Ve answered.

“There are several theories that suggest that places such as Hell are so concentrated with Soulia that the energy replaces those who enter in the area’s basic needs such as eating, or in this case our need to breathe water.”

“So that icky stick feeling was us passing through the force field between water and Soulia,” I asked.

She nodded in affirmation to the inquiry. “At least allegedly that is. Most places where it’s present are too dangerous for people to go study them safely. It’s actually surprising that nothing is trying to attack us right now. I may take some notes on the way back if it’s still this clear.”

We quickly passed the teeth-shaped mineral deposits, all with no attacks and before I knew it, I found myself in front of the opening to a tunnel at the back of the cavern.

A tunnel that I couldn’t help but look at as an esophagus following the theme of a buried giant. It was deep enough that I couldn’t see the end from where I stood. Rather there was nothing to see at all other than the obviousness of the downward slope. 

Again, the others had no such qualms and pressed forward.

Before long, we were engulfed in darkness, to the point that I couldn’t see the light from the entrance.

Of course, this didn’t slow the women I was traveling with in the slightest.

“Aurvi,” Master whispered, producing a golden flame in her palm that lit the entire area surrounding us.

Vision no longer impeded, the four women hastened our pace, all while we continued having some enjoyable conversations.

Not long after the dragon lady evoked her magic lighter I began to see light from a source other than her hand.

“We’re here,” Master called out.

In response, all of the idle chatter dropped, and we all took a look at the first circle of Fanalaau’s hell.

“Wow. It’s so pretty,” Mama muttered.

I smiled despite myself. Regardless of the anxiousness, I was feeling, my mother’s bubbliness was infectious. 

But as I took in the scenery, I found myself agreeing with her. 

It was the same no matter which direction you looked. 

Waves of gold swayed softly in the gentle wind as far as the eye could see.

Something about the plainness invoked a feeling of calmness within you.

“Is this your first time here, Mama?” I asked.

She nodded. “It wouldn’t be the brightest thing for a sovereign of a nation to venture into one of the most dangerous places on the planet.”

That’s right, she former queen of a kingdom…I keep forgetting that. Maybe it's because of who I know her to be, but I can’t quite picture her sitting regally on a throne.

Leaving my mother to admire the circle and my thoughts on her days as a queen alone, I ventured over to Ms. Kna’Ve and Ms. Myri who were taking a look at one of the grains.

Master was standing nearby, eyes alert and roaming. 

“Interesting!” the two-headed woman exclaimed. “It seems like it's able to photosynthesis with light made of Soulia. If we could replicate this people we’d never have to worry about food shortages again.”

“I definitely agree,” replied Ms. Myri. She turned to me seemingly aware of my presence. “Maua, is it ok if we took a couple of these grain plants back for testing?”

‘Why is she- oh right. This belongs to me supposedly…then it should be fine if they take a couple right?’

“Sure?” I responded hesitantly.

“Great!” the pink-haired lady beamed, pulling a handheld shovel from her bag. 

As she inserts the shovel in the dirt to remove the plant at its root, we hear an ear-numbing shriek.

A sound I heard before.

I looked up and sure enough, my suspicion was correct.

A horde of humanoid creatures was surrounding us from all sides.

Barnacles.

Lulla

Hey! Not much to say today. Thanks again for your understanding yesterday! As suggested by several of you, I'll be lax on my uploads until I'm completely finished with school for this semster...(in like a week.) As a reward for being such great readers I give you this cliffhanger. MAUAHAHAHAAHA! See what I did there? But jokes aside stay safe, and thanks for reading!