Chapter 31: Fifth Circle

In which I am a tourist in hell.

I've decided to stay some days down here in 5th. It's an interesting place, at least more interesting than 2nd where I come from.

To set the context, let me first explain the topography of Hell. The "floors" schema I posted earlier is somewhat simplified. Hell reminds, in fact, a giant funnel. The circles of Hell are concentric rings:

Each cercle is deeper than the preceding ones, except 5th and 6th which are almost on the same level, but separated by the Walls of Dis:

The city of Dis is, properly spoken, the 6th Circle and everything below, in other words, the lower hell.  It is extremely hot, that's why it's also called the Burning City. It is surrounded by the river Styx which i crossed when I wrote my last entry.

Since the visit of Dante Alighieri, the circles have been mordernized. In the old time, the wrathful and slothful souls were tortured in the swamp-like water of the Styx. Since then, the river has been canalized and crosses several Torture Centers, not unlike terrestrial purification plants, where souls are tortured in a more industrial manner.

At the opposite side of the Circle, we find the administrative district with contains, among others, the Local Souls Office. Next to the Administrative District are the research facilities, large buildings where thousands of scientist demons research new temptation and torture methods.

The walls of Dis are impressive, huge walls with giant towers, a symbolic stronghold of evil. They haven't been much modernized, as their value is symbolic, and the older a symbol is, the more powerful.

Behind the walls lies the 6th Circle, the Circle where I had been judged and imprisoned. I didn't feel like sightseeing in this zone. It's general impression is that of a city with lots of spires. Dante thought they were minarets, but this is, of course, nonsense - of course there are no mosques in hell, as they are no churches. The spires are, in fact, watchtowers, from which Inquisition watches out - symbolically - for heretics. As you might remember, symbols are important down here in hell.

Alltogether, it's the most interesting and impressive place in Hell I've seen so far. I don't know if a human would consider it "beautiful", as the concept of beauty is still somewhat unclear to me.

I think I'll still stay one or two days before coming back. My superiors won't miss me, they probably think I'm dead. Which would be the case, if it wasn't for my mysterious "friend"...