Styx

"Ha, where in the world am I?" Those were the first words that Jude mumbled upon opening his eyes.

He found himself lying down, looking at nothing—literally nothing. He tried his hardest to focus on what was above him, but he could find nothing in fact. But for some reason, it kinda felt peaceful to him. As if a big burden was off him or something. That is, until he felt all nauseous and realized that he was in a boat.

"Can you stop rowing now, please?" He asked as he sat up and tried his best not to puke.

"Well, that's kind of a stupid question if you were to ask me." The person across him with the row in his hand shrugged as he spoke. "I mean, think about it. Even if I stopped rowing, the boat would still rock because of the waves." He spoke.

"Hmm, I guess you are right about that." Jude nodded his head in agreement at that point. "By the way, where the hell am I? And who in the world are you?" He asked, getting straight into the point.

"That's disappointing! I expected you to catch on to the signs by now." The man sighed.

"What are you talking about?" Jude looked a bit confused at that point.

"Well, you are on a boat in the middle of a river. And you are sitting beside a person wearing a really large black robe. What do you think is even happening?" He asked.

"Boat... River... River Styx. Black robe... That would make you Charon. Holy—I'm dead, aren't I?" Jude asked.

"Correct! Hmm, weird. I thought you would be freaking out once you realized that you were dead. I mean, I can see your soul, you know? It looks like you were yearning to live a bit longer and all. And a person who's soul is crying out loud like that usually ends up doing the same as well. However, you seem different for some reason. Why is that so?" Charon asked back.

"Well, it's not like I didn't expect myself to die. And what's the point in crying out loud now? I mean, what's done is done. It's not like I can go back and change my death or anything, can I?" Jude asked.

"Yea, you're right. I just wish that more people took that approach, you know? It would've made my journey across this river easier. Like, do you know the sort of people that I have to deal with on a daily basis?" Charon cried.

"Well, I guess you deal with the people who get all shocked after realizing that they died and the ones with a lot of regret and all, huh?" Jude shrugged.

"The first ones, yes. The guys with regret and unresolved hatred and all... Well, I never get to meet them because, rather than ending up on the shore of this river, they end up beneath the river, trying to pull the people traveling in this boat into their little group. So, just be careful if you're thinking of dipping your head into the water or something. I mean, you can, only if you are confident of pulling yourself out of the mess." Charon warned him.

"Humm... I'm not that interested in wrestling with them, you know? But then again, does this water make you immortal? I mean, if it did like it did with Achilles, then I'm a bit tempted by it." Jude shrugged as he spoke.

"There are a few things YOU in particular need to consider. First thing is that no one has survived a full dip in the river. I mean, even in the case of Achilles, he had to be held by his heels so that the souls of this river wouldn't consume him and all. And you know where that led." Charon spoke.

"Well, Achilles was a kid back then. And I'm a grown man! I'm pretty sure that I can resist a few hands trying to pull me down." Jude sounded awfully confident while he looked like he was this close to jumping.

"I mean, I appreciate the confidence, but it's not just a few hands, you know? Millions of souls are gonna tug at you and then weigh you down exponentially, which is actually the reason why you're gonna be pulled down. And before you say something stupid once again, let me ask you this. What's the point?" He asked.

"Huh?" Jude tilted his head in confusion.

"Well, imagine if you actually succeed in what you are planning to do right now. Then what? It's not like you'll become immortal or something. I mean, you are dead, after all." Charon shrugged as he spoke.

"Ah..." Jude sighed as he realized that one important fact. "Well, I just got excited by the possibility of immortality that I forgot the fact that I'm actually dead." He mumbled.

"Happens to the best of us." Charon nodded his head.

"I guess so..." Jude replied.

The rest of the journey was rather silent. Charon looked like he wanted to talk about something, but when he looked at Jude, who seemed like he was in some deep thought, he felt like it would be better if he wasn't disturbing him. After all, Jude had just died. The least he could do was to provide him with some space.

"So, here we go! We are finally here at the end of the Styx. I'm happy that I got to have a rather peaceful journey this time around." Charon smiled as he spoke.

"Well, the pleasure is all mine." Jude gave him a smile back as he stepped out of the boat. "So, what am I supposed to do now?" He asked.

"Ah, if you were to walk straight, you'd meet up with someone and that someone would be taking you to my master, the God of the Underworld, Hades." Charon replied.

"And then?"

"Well, that's not something that I can disclose. You'll see what's gonna happen in due time. Until then, I bid you adieu. I have more souls to guide, you know?" Charon waved his hand as he slowly rowed away from the shore, leaving Jude all alone.

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