“Do you know who I am?” the woman asked, her bi-colored skin offset by the lilac blue of her dress.

“You are…Hel?” I said. “I have read of you in the tales of this vessel’s ancestors.

The lovely young woman smiled, shifting to my other side, becoming half flesh, half bone. “That is right, my little youkai. I am Hel.”

I shivered. “Is…this real…or a dream?”

“What do you think?” She asked. “Are you a demon, or are you a broken boy who has gone insane?”

“I…don’t know.” I said softly. “I know what science says…but I know what I feel in my bones.”

“What does science say?” Hel asked, white and blue flesh, long silky hair. Her breasts were full, and soft, and looked so comforting.

“That there are no gods, no demons, just broken mortals.”

“What does your heart say?” She whispered, sliding around me.

“That I am a monster, a demon,” I whimpered, “That there could be others like me, stronger, Gods and Devils, Monsters and men.”

“What does your heart say about me?” She asked.

“That you’re like me.” I whispered. “Unwanted, unloved, feared, terrifying, but doing what you have to do, even when it is unpleasant.”

“You know my place well.” Hel said softly. “Just as I know yours well. I would journey with you, wrathful spirit born of a dead boy.”

“What if it is only a dream?” I asked, my heart burning with pain.

“Then let us make it a dream to remember…a dream to come true.” She said, drawing me close.