Chapter 2 - Immortality, kind-of

  Corvus launches right into further explanation. “As a soul in Hell, there are some aspects to your new existence that you need to be very aware of. As you are right now, with an Animus, you are functionally immortal here.” Alex sits up a little straighter, hearing this. “As long as you maintain one Animus at a minimum, your soul will always restore you. It doesn’t matter if you lose a limb, your head,or get completely obliterated. Given a little time, you’ll find yourself restored.” Corvus continues.

  Then his face turns grave. “However, should you no longer have an Animus, becoming ‘faded’, you will be vulnerable to dissolution. ‘Lethal’ wounds to a faded soul will cause you to start the process of being absorbed into Hell.” The crow makes an expansive ‘out-there’ gesture. “What used to be you will be intermixed with the remnants of other souls and filtered back into the Mortal-realm to become new souls. You though, you’ll be truly gone.”

  Alex swallows. “So keep at least one… yeah, got it.” He says, then frowns. “Wait, what if someone takes it from me?” He asks, a weight of dread settling in his chest. Immortality comes with some conditions it seems. And finding out these rules is at the top of Alex’s priority list.

  At the question, Corvus makes a placating gesture. “Have no fear in that regard. Animus may be traded, used to make Deals, even given away. But always done willingly. Any attempt to force it from you will be met with abject failure. Even if you’re tortured, a piece of your soul will recognize it’s being forced, and the Animus simply won’t be released.”

  The demon relaxes in his seat a bit and then picks up his explanations. “Here in Hell, Animus is a source of immense power, a currency, your claim on territory, and most importantly for new arrivals, it’s your key to self-actualization.” The last words are said with a bit more excitement in Corvus’s voice. “At certain thresholds of Animus, your form will start to remold itself to better fit your true nature. Right now, you are as you were when you died. But start collecting Animus, and your physicality will start to shift to align more fully with your true nature.”

  Alex blinks, then frowns, then rubs the side of his face. “So you’re telling me that Animus can change me? What if I don’t like what it does?” He asks, uncertain if he even wants that outcome. But Corvus just laughs softly and shakes his head.

  “No no, don’t worry about that. The changes that would come from Animus will feel more like taking off a mask. They will be the most comfortable changes you could imagine. Like the feeling of wearing ill-fitting clothing and then finally getting an outfit in your proper size and cut. It will be utterly natural for you.” The crow asserts reassuringly. “And later, at higher thresholds, you’ll be able to willfully alter your physicality yourself. But that will be far in the future for you.”

  Alex chews on the new details, mulling over the implications. “From some of the things you’ve said, there are ways of getting more Animus. How does that work?” He asks, scooting to the edge of the seat and leaning in. “Sounds like I’ll want a lot of it.”

  Corvus chuckles softly and nods. “That’s right. For new arrivals, the easiest method is making Deals. Someone with more Animus might need a service or a task done. They’ll offer a Deal. Once you complete the task, the agreed Animus payment is transferred directly to you. So if I made a Deal with you to walk around the room, as soon as you completed the last steps, you’d immediately receive the Animus, and I would immediately know you completed the task.” He says, using his hand to mime a walking motion with fingertips.

  Alex licks his lips and nods, eager to find out more. “So be an errand-boy for a bit, get more Animus. OK. But what stops others from making bad deals and stiffing the payment?” He questions, tipping his head to the side slightly.

  The crow smirks. “That’s the beauty of it. Deals are binding, soul to soul. If someone breaks the Deal, they forfeit all of their Animus to the other party. But it can’t just be a ‘failure’ to complete. Breaking the Deal is an intentional act. For example, if I made a Deal with you to collect a specific book for me. Let’s imagine that you discover that the book no longer exists, and thus you can’t complete the Deal. You aren’t breaking it, you simply can’t complete it. The Deal will just dissolve. But, if you do find the book, and decide to keep it for yourself, that would be breaking the Deal. And you’d suffer the consequences of doing so.” He finishes, delivering the last bit with a tone of warning creeping into his voice.

  Alex takes a moment to absorb that information, thinking over the implications. The system seemed simple, but elegant. A way of bartering for power without being vulnerable to being cheated. He figures there’s still some ways that a bad-actor could take advantage, but for now he can’t see quite how. “And can anyone make these ‘Deals’?” He asks, picking up that the way Corvus says the word has some additional meaning. The crow just nods, so Alex continues. “What are the first few thresholds?” He eventually asks.

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Corvus holds up a hand with one finger. “You are currently at the ‘zero’ threshold. Immortal, but lacking power. At three Animus, you cross the first threshold. At which point you’ll undergo a slight but noticeable change, the self-actualization I mentioned. The next threshold is at nine, and will accomplish further refinements of your identity. The next won’t come until you have twenty-seven Animus, and it’s the first major change. At twenty-seven, you’ll have an ability to claim territory in Hell. Carving out a little bit of geography as your own.”

  Alex focuses, running the numbers in his head. “Three to nine to twenty-seven.” He mutters. “Is the next threshold after that at eighty-one?” Corvus looks surprised, but nods his agreement. “So it’s a three-times scale. The next threshold is always three times the last one.”

  Corvus holds up a finger to pause Alex’s musing. “Initially, yes. But at a point, that metric shifts. It’s a significantly further threshold, so nothing you need to fret over at this stage.” He takes a deep breath before continuing. “Some people never hit the three mark. Many fail to get twenty-seven. But if you can reach that stage with Animus, that’s when the real movers-and-shakers of Hell will start to take notice. If you can make it that far, you’re going to go the distance.” He says encouragingly.

  Alex chuckles. “Yaaaaay. Immortality, kind-of.” Alex says with a sigh. “Can’t escape the rat-race, even when you die.” He says, half-joking, but strangely Alex finds himself almost excited to collect the Animus. He leans back into the chair and lets himself slouch a bit. Then he perks up slightly. “So I won’t need food or anything, as long as I have Animus. It won’t cost me anything just to be alive.” Corvus listens and nods along with what Alex says. “I should want more Animus, to hit the thresholds, but there’s no rush or incentive to do so quickly.”

  Corvus just smiles, content to let Alex continue the line of thought. Only when the other falls quite again does the crow speak up. “Correct. And Animus doesn’t directly make you stronger or more powerful. It helps, but only practice, knowledge, and effort will make you grow in power. The only other thing that will significantly increase your capabilities would be a Title.”

  Alex quirks a brow. “Like becoming nobility?” Corvus shakes his head in reply. “Then what kind of titles?” He asks, then remembers when Corvus introduced himself. “Wait, like ‘the guide’, that’s a title?”

  The crow smiles. “Exactly. I am The Guide.” And once more, when it’s spoken by him, that solidity in the air returns. This time Alex also notices that all the colors around them seem more saturated, more rich. The effect fades just as fast as before, but this time, Alex was watching for it. “That Title is how I am able to greet every soul that enters Hell with a splinter of myself. As well as a few other powers I can call on in the service of that role. The more I adhere to the role and what it means to guide others, the more strength my Title receives. It isn’t my only one, but it is by far my most loved.”

  Alex listens eagerly, the Titles seem like real power. Like magic almost. And the draw of such a prospect is very alluring to him. “How do you get a Title then?” Alex asks, quickly followed by, “And how many can one person have?”

  Corvus’s smile widens. “Be true to your own nature, do what feels right to you. Titles are Hell’s recognition of who and what you are, they’re part of the fabric of reality in this place. No one grants you a Title, you have to claim them.” He pauses and taps a finger to his chin. “I believe the most titles I’ve heard of one being possessing is… seven or eight, I believe.” He says, then shrugs. “There’s no limit, as far as I am aware.”

  Alex whistles softly. “What all kinds of Titles are there?” He asks, his curiosity eager for more information about this topic. Some part of Alex craves this, like a person seeking the warmth of a hearth during a frigid winter. And recognizing it, Alex wonders why. He seemed to grasp the nature of Animus quickly, adapted his mentality to the new situation just as fast, and now he hears about a way to gain power, and he’s ready to reach for it. It leaves Alex wondering if he’d been a gamer prior to his death, his mind somehow associating the new reality’s quirks with game mechanics.

  Corvus hmmmms and thinks. “Many, many varieties. And all unique. You’ll never meet two beings with the same Titles. They broadly fall into a few types. Internal and External, as well as Martial or Utility. Mine as The Guide,” the effect happens again but is less pronounced, “is what allows me to do this splintering. As well as giving me insight into what to explain and how to do so for each individual. Some I barely speak to for a few minutes. Others, as I mentioned before, spend days in this meeting. It’s an Internal Utility. But bear in mind, the categories are not a rule, and are more of an agreed upon classification rather than something concrete.”

  Alex mulls this over, nodding softly to himself. “There’s a lot to unpack with all this… But I think I understand for the most part. Animus helps me become more ‘Me’, and is both a form of power and a currency. Titles enhance what you already are, if you can earn one.” He looks up to see Corvus listening intently. When he pauses the crow nods and uses a hand gesture to indicate for Alex to continue. “I want to avoid having no Animus and becoming, what did you call it, Faded? And I can earn more by making Deals.” He pauses again and chews his lip.

  Gathering his nerves, Alex makes a choice. “Alright Corvus, I want to make a Deal with you.”