The hippogryph, now rather proudly named Ansgar, pumped its powerful wings, forcing Hakon to hold tightly to its feather-maned and muscled neck. The creature seemed only vaguely phased as the swarm around it began to fall under a hail of shadow and blackness, alas… It climbed the circle further with one last stroke of its wings before leveling out, allowing the massive blasts of volcanic and sulfuric air to assist in its slow, downward glide. Hakon straightened upon its back, now that they were level, able to. Occassionally blast away or hack apart the stray harpy. Upon Aven's words she smiled, looking somewhat pale," Well ah- it looked cool, didn't it?" She protests with a soft laugh as the hippogryph turns its head slightlyto peer at her and whoever was inside her armor with a critical yellow eye

Aven's voice became worried as he noticed Hakon's complexion, feeling her heartbeat begin to become slightly irregular. Was she…? Aven emerged from the shadow of her armor and manifested behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Haki, what's wrong?" To his knowledge, she hadn't been hit by any attacks that would have injured her, was it merely exhaustion?

Ansgar seemed to bristle slightly upon the manifestation of a stranger on it back, the feathers atop his head shooting up as he clacked his beak somewhat threateningly but continued his slow pinwheel into what seemed like the next circle forming beneath them.

Hakon took off her helmet, looking rather sallow," Don't worry, my love- I'm just a little tired. I had to heal Ansgar here, and he wouldn't be so strong if I just did a normal spell-" she ran her hands through the tawny tfeathers of the hippogryyph,"- besides, we made a friend didn't we?"

Aven was skeptical, but he didn't comment further. He noted the Hippogryph's behavior, typical of any animal he came across. They just never liked him. "That's true… Ansgar, huh? A bit ironic, for a steed you met in the underworld to be named after a god." Aven chuckles at his own little joke, hugging Hakon tightly. "Just… take it easy for a while, okay?"

Relaxing against the massive beast as well as her dearest husband, she closed her eyes and nodded slowly," Right- I will- don't frey my dearest Aven," she soothed softly, taking a deep breath as thr hippogryph glides into an abandonned village. Slowly its massive claws collide with the earth followed by its hooves, slowly comping to a trot then a stop as Ansgar looked about warily," It seemed right for him to be named like an old God I put so much faith into," she murmurs as she looks around the empty village in confusion.

" this place is…?"

Aven's eyes narrow. "The eighth circle, Fraud. We need to be cautious here." Aven's eyes scanned the area, met with the sight of a normal village, but there was sething off about it. It was almost as though a powerful illusion was cast over everything, making it seem normal. Dangerous magic, to be sure… in the middle of the square sat an Old Man, clothed in rags with a long grey beard. The man looked up at the three of them,  revealing his eyes to be pitch black, seeming to stare directly in their minds, reading their pasts.

After a moment, his eyes widened, as if surprised. If one looked closely, they would see a soft smile on the man's face as his head fell back downward, and he waved a hand, the three of them being thrust into the next circle without a word. Aven's eyebrows shot skyward, but there was no time to say anything before a cold, harsh wind blew across the three of them. The plane of Ruin…

Hakon seems equally surprised but does not question the elderly Guardian's idle passage. He seemed to be one of the few of hell's guardians not tempered to die should he fail- what a blessing.. Or a curse. She mulled this over but not for long as they emerged onto an icy plane. The population here nearly causing her to wretch with disgust. Whatever innocence or life they had ruined in their living times seemed to be reinacted upon them with icy malice in this plane. Maidens of frost glided across the plane- one such maiden with an orbitting crown of icicles idly approached the trio- pausing before pointing to Aven.

" Destroyer of purity." it decrees in a low, frigid voice, its spindly finger idly moving to point toward Hakon.

" Destroyer of innocents." Before slowly gesturing toward the hippogryph.

" False God." Ansgar snorted and pawed at the ground, flapping his wings in protest as if saying, I didn't choose that name!

Nonetheless, before them rose a sudden army of mages made of snow, of children, men and women… Hakon audibly releases a choked sob. The Dead. Those she had sewn so mercilessly on the battlefield or chopping block… Come to haunt her again.

as for Aven- it seemed as if Hakon's armor had suddenly grown cold- she seemed to whisper to him," You took the last thing that belonged to me. You took my chastity. I am chained to you- why? Why did you make me unclean?"

Aven stuttered, any response caught in his throat. What was she saying? Was this realm getting to her head or… was that truly how she felt? A cold, icy hand gripped at his heart. Deep down, he'd always wondered if she resented him for what he did, for coaxing her to open her heart, forcing her to choose between her duty and him. It was cruel, perhaps his greatest sin, to have stolen the only thing she truly possessed. Aven clutched his chest, pain spiking through him: he'd known, as well. Oh, he'd known all too well how much her purity had meant to her, how much she cherished the freedom it granted her. He'd carelessly stolen it, robbed her of all that she had. 

Aven collapsed to his knees, overwhelmed by the realization, the gravity of his sin too much for him to stand. He hadn't meant to hurt her! He loved Hakon so much, he couldn't imagine life without her, but… was it possible she didn't feel the same?! Was he the warden of her prison, a cage that kept her from living the life of a warrior, the life he knew she was born to lead? Fate… his fate had been severed the moment he became dark matter, his destiny cut from the annuls of the universe. He was an abomination, a monster that toyed with other's destinies, their hopes, their dreams… He couldn't bear it, his eyes became empty and hopeless.

The thought occurred to him: what if he could fix it? A voice echoed in his head, You should just disappear. Yes, yes he could restore the freedom of his lover, set her back upon the path she so desperately longed for, if he only ceased to exist. It wouldn't be hard, only a single stab away from erasing his heart. A shadow tendril slowly rose from behind him, positioning to do the deed.

Hakon froze in terror at the undead slowly approached and began to paw at her, weakly yet angrily- grasping her hands and attempting to gnaw her fingers off eith toothless gums. She trembled as she stared down one headless child. No more then a toddler, her ultimate disgrace risen before her again. The headless toddler moved through the crowd, crawling up her body, tryin to scratch at her face through the helm. Her breathing came in rapid gasps of panic yet she turned, through the icy masses- her Aven- he was kneeling, a tendril of darkness poised toward him.


the ghostly Hakon of ice knelt before him, naked, shivering, ducking her head and hugging herself begging," Do it- d-do it. If you love me, free me."

" Do it."


Hakon found her voice, struggling free from her icy attackers' grip to scream," Aven don't do it!" Her voice ripped raw and high with the lack of water and rest from the last day or so of trekking through this hell- she tried to reach him through the icy crowd, clawing and pushing but so weakened she couldn't," Aven!!"

Aven was frozen in defeat, the tendril about to strike, when Hakon affirmed his actions. "If you love me, free me." He did, he loved her more than anything in the world, in the universe. If he had to die to right his wrong, he would… he would end his life. Frost appeared upon his skin, the warmth sapping from him as despair overtook him, but as the tendril wounds back to end him for good, a voice called out. It was… warm, echoing like a distant greeting. "Aven, don't do it!" The icy grip on his heart began to falter, and the voice- no, Hakon!- called out once more. "AVEN!" 

Teh tendril struck, passing straight through the rib cage, striking true, shattering the petty visage of his lover in chunks of ice. The Maidens hissed in protest, but like springtime blossoming from a harsh winter, the frost burst from Aven's body as the warmth of love flowed like fire through his veins, and he was filled with energy. Aven looked toward the sound of her voice, and saw that Hakon was trapped among a horde of ice wraiths, desperately trying to reach him. "Hakon!" He cuts his way through the icy figures, reaching Hakon and embracing her tightly as a dome of dark matter enveloped them, expanding outward several meters and throwing the nearby ice wraiths into the air in all directions. He cradled her, trying to warm her up, whispering softly. "I heard you, Hakon you saved me… I thought I'd given up." A sudden wave of nostalgia hit Aven, glancing around them at the snowy ground, the walls of the dome. He chuckled. "This is just like when we first met, isn't it? Taking shelter from the cold, warming ourselves from a long, arduous journey. Only this time," He smiles, removing her helmet slowly. "The fire is our love."