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nTrinity

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nBefore I started to move forward, I looked all around me. I needed to see what was in every direction. If there was something nearby that I should search or anything like that, I didn't want to overlook it and move in the opposite direction. I needed to be thorough here and make sure that I didn't inadvertently move away from the door.

nI saw that the Hall of Purgatory started approximately twenty feet behind me. Oh, it looked like it went on for much further than that, but there was clearly a barrier there that stopped the debris that was blowing in the wind. The fires that were beyond that invisible barrier looked more like they were paintings rather than actually flickering and alive. It looked like it was just a cleverly painted wall that made people think that they could run in that direction for miles and miles. In truth, if anyone tried, they would most likely smack face first into the wall and slide to the ground in pain.

nOn either side of me, there were large rock formations that shot toward the sky. They didn't completely fill the view since I was able to see onto the other side of them. There were several people being 'purified' through various tortures so that they could ascend to this underworld's version of heaven.

nI guess, in a way, those rock formations were forming a hall that I needed to walk down. They weren't close to me at all, the corridor they were forming was quite vast. So vast. in fact, that I could have fit an entire stadium between the formations and still had room.

nI decided to follow their lead and walk toward the end of the corridor. It looked like it went on for a long time, but there was nothing but torture on their other side, so there was no reason for me to go over there at all.

nI needed to find a door. I was not here to save people. I was not here to interfere. I just needed a door to the next level so that I could eventually get to the halls of eternal torture and damnation.

nI felt awkward and uneasy as I walked past all of these people. I didn't know who any of them were and I didn't know what sins they had committed. However, I felt like I was invading something personal and private as I made my way past them. It felt like I was intruding on something that I was never meant to see.

nI thought that I would be able to continue on the way that I was without issue. I thought that I would have near free range to roam the halls and look for my door. I thought that, since I wasn't here for punishment, I wouldn't be subjected to the same rules as the other souls here.

nI was wrong.

nThe further I walked on through that corridor, the more that my view changed. I had seen it in the beginning, but now, I could see that there was a large gate standing at the end of this path that I was on. The gate seemed to be opened to allow souls to enter, but it was also heavily guarded to keep the souls in. This was when I first noticed that there were other people moving around me on that path.

nIn truth, they had been there the entire time, I just didn't pay any of them any attention. I had been too focused on what I needed to do to even think about the other souls that were here for their torture.

nThe souls of dead people that were moving into the halls of purgatory were all naked. They weren't wearing anything and were not saying anything until their punishments were handed down to them. When they heard what they were going to be doing until their sins were wiped clean, that was when they started to wail and fight against the guards who would drag them off to their new home in purgatory.

nThinking about it, the boys and I were the only ones here that were wearing clothes. Well, us four and the guards. I was still wearing the same things that I had been when I entered the underworld, the three little boys were wearing old fashioned looking pants and dark colored t-shirts. It was like the underworld couldn't figure out how to dress them so it mixed and matched.

nThe guards on the other hand, were wearing dark red leather armor. The armor was clearly ancient in style, but it looked brand new. They were wearing the armor over some sort of pants that were black but didn't look like it was made out of any type of modern day fabrics. The shirts, or rather tunics, that they were wearing looked like they were a dark slate gray under their armor. And all of them were wearing strong-looking black leather boots.

nAll of the guards also had swords, shields, bows, and a whip. It was a lot for them to carry, but I am guessing that they needed it from time to time. You know, when they needed to put a rowdy soul back in their place.

nI wondered for a moment if a soul that was in purgatory could find themselves in damnation if they fought against their punishment? That was an interesting thought, but I don't know if I really wanted to find out the answer to it.

nThe gate was getting closer now. I could see the people in the distance stopping one by one as they had their souls scanned and their punishment handed down. The guards had a large stone tablet in their hands, something that they seemed to be checking the souls off on, like a list. Also, the tablets in their arms seemed to emit a strange and eerie looking red light that would move over each soul as it entered through the gates. That must be how they determined where to send the people that were here.

nWhat was going to happen to me and the boys? How were we going to make it through this gate? We weren't dead. We weren't here to be cleansed of our sins. We were here to find a door and nothing more.

nI was starting to panic now. I needed to find a way past this gate, past this barrier in my way. And I needed to do it without catching the eyes of the guards that were watching over the steady flow of souls.

nMy initial guess was to climb through the stone barriers that were forming the hallway. If I could get over there, then I could move past the guards and start looking for a door.

nWhen I moved toward the door, I saw that my plan was foiled as quickly as I thought about it. The invisible barrier that was at the back of that hall, was over here as well. I hadn't noticed at first, but there was no wind moving past the rock formations. Even though I could see the wind moving and the smoke swirling, it was all stuck on the other side of the rocks. And sure enough, when I tried to get closer to the rocks, I found a solid invisible wall in my way.

nThis wasn't going to work at all. I needed to find something else. I needed a new plan. And I needed it quickly.

nThe boys were getting more and more scared by the minute. They were clinging to me and trembling as they listened to the sounds of the souls being tortured. They were the souls of unborn babies. They were innocents. They were pure. And this was not something that they should be witnessing. Not yet. Not even before they had a chance to live.

nI had a moment to think, to wonder, if this experience was going to become a memory of theirs. Something they don't know the origin of but have nightmares about when they were toddlers or older. Or would the souls forget about all of this when they were born.. Would they be clean slates once again, never needing to fear or worry about the monsters that lurk in the underworld? I could only wonder and hope, hope that they would never suffer because of this.

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