A Game with the Weight of a World.

“By Blood, another one.”

When they entered Hell, they were surrounded by all parts, countless blades right at their throats.
Armored monsters of all sizes and shapes made them kneel down before the throne.

One eyed giants, winged swans with human shape, literal tigers mounted by boars twice their ordinary size. Viscous liquids with four limbs and a face, stone statues in the form of the devil himself.

All like the bedtime stories, those monsters were indeed real.

“Welcome, to the One World of Hell.”

Shamash and Rahu kept the mask of confidence, trying their hardest to keep their cool. But the truth was they were afraid beyond compare.
It wasn’t the first time that they got caught. From their childhood to even now, it had been more than hundreds of nights they passed into the countless prisons of their world. And each time, they found a way to escape it.

But in that moment, there was no chance.
Their fates, were at the mercy of that one person.

Sitting on the throne, an unbearable heat emanated from the reptilian king.
Scales of fire all over his arms, legs and chest. A long red gown covering his body. The piercing eyes beyond the black veil over his face observed the two brothers with elegance.
Then, a not so gentle smile was drawn on his face.

“I am Jormungand, king of Hell.” He addressed them proudly. “You should know that I am extremely displeased with your presence. It has been many epochs since the last of your kind stepped foot in here, and many epochs it has been since I burned the last of you at the city to entertain my subjects. Finally I had believed that we would have peace from your intrusions, but here you are. Brazenly walking into my castle, thinking that you could even lay hand on my riches—when in truth, you wouldn’t even be able to take a scrap of bread from me. So speak, despicable humans! What would you say to save your life?”

“…”

“…”

Not a word.
They knew very well that no matter what they said, it would displease The Overlord.
Silence, was the best answer they could give.

“You refuse to speak, even though I ordered you to?”

“…!”

But The Overlord is cunning, he wouldn’t let them have even a semblance of control.

“Then, your tongue is without use.”

Just as he raised his hand,

“We didn’t–”

“Please accept our apologies, Great Sir.” Shamash answered first. “We dared not speak before your majesty, for it is an honor beyond our station.”

“Ohhh.” He found himself surprised, widening his eyes. “Here is someone who knows how to speak. The previous one never stopped sobbing, making an unsightly display of himself as he pleaded for his meager life—the fact that his tears soiled my carpets was an insult grave enough that he should have been tortured for the remainder of his lifespan, but I was in a good mood that day, and let it go with a public lashing before execution.” He casually recounts, leaning on his throne. “Looks like we can have an interesting conversation here.”

The Overlord smiled again—this time, it was a friendly smile.
He stepped down from his throne and walked toward them, with each step taken, his heavy tail struck the ground.

“Jormungand is cruel toward the bad-mannered, and generous with the courteous. This is what the people of my world say about me, and they are not wrong. Among the humans that have appeared here, only three gained my favor—you two included.”

“It is my honor, Lord Jormungand.”

“You have our gratitude, Lord Jormungand.” Rahu followed his brother.

“…Hmm, you are disciplined. I wonder if you were already put in such a situation before.” The Overlord guessed right about the brothers. “But enough with platitudes, just this once, you may call me by my name alone. For what we have to discuss concerns the fate of your homeland.”

“The fate, of our homeland?” Questioned Rahu. “What about our world?”

Jormungand marked a pause, crossing his arms as he pondered.

“Just now, in this moment, the fancy to begin the fated invasion of your world came to me. If your kind were to keep pestering me, annihilating humans and taking over your world early would make this problem go away, and certainly resolve a lot of headaches for me. But seeing you both, it would be a shame to spread slaughter and decimation for the sake of conquest. Humans are a specie with limitless potential, and such potential is something I admire, as well as one of the reasons we monsters were sealed into Hell. Therefore, I have decided to start a little game with you.”

“And, what kind of game may it be?” The big brother questions in turn.

“…You two, names yourselves.”

“I am Shamash, leader of the syndicate of thieves, Lustrous Blank.”

“And I am Rahu, the co-leader, as well as his little brother.”

“Two brother then, amusing!”

Jormungand raised his palm, ordering his soldiers to put down their weapons before the guests of the king. Kneeling on the ground, the brothers stared at the towering hybrid king.

“Shamash, Rahu.” The Overlord called them personally, intending to shorten the distance between them. “Something about you pleases me. Not your good conduct, but something I can’t put my finger on. So, I will offer you a chance to save your kind from assured destruction. Depending on how well you do, I might consider leaving humanity alone for eternity.”

Taking something out of his pocket, he put them on each brother’s hands.
A medallion, bearing a crest of a serpent eating its tail—the same as those banners in the earlier ruins.
The moment they felt the cold metal, suddenly, the absurd heat of Hell dissipated, relieving them at once.

“This is the symbol of citizenship. With this, you won’t have any problems traveling Hell, and shall be protected from its sufferings.”

“Well, we’re glad to have this Jormungand.” Rahu called him by his name without hesitation. “But what for? You want us to live here?”

“Oh? That wouldn’t be a bad idea, but I have a better fate prepared for you.”

Again, The Overlord smiled—a playful smile.

“In the next three days, each one of you will present me with the greatest treasure this world has to offer. If it displeases me, I will send my armies to conquer yet another world. If I catch you in the act of thievery, know that I have means to extend your lifespans as to make you suffer until your mind breaks.”

The thieves, unknowing of the vastness of Hell saw the vision of a clock, each second passing by, a moment wasted in stillness. They look at each other, a face of terror and fear reflected in each other’s eyes. 

But for some reason, in their heart of hearts—they started getting excited.
They, the Lustrous Blank, would become the first humans who commit thievery in Hell.
Even with the consequence of theft hanging over their heads, they knew their inner nature couldn’t be suppressed.

Greed is their creed, and what made them into thieves.

And so, the weight of the world fell upon their shoulders, as the king of Hell watched them depart playfully, wondering what kind of treasure such curious thieves would bring before him.
Hell, with all of its various landscapes, castles, people and resources, became a hunting ground for the thieves to save the world of humans.