Dying Ichor

TWENTY-SIX

Despite the fact he was stuck in the deepest parts of hell with a creature that could kill a civilization, Elias somehow found its company welcoming.

Of course, he wasn't too happy about being stuck with the monster in the beginning and made a few attempts to leave its side. Though Elias sighed and gave up after a while of it always capturing him. Now, he sat on pile of furs while being affectionately nudged by the thing. The way it purred was strange, and he would always feel the vibrations coming from the ground when the monster kept emitting those noises.

Because of how pushy it was, Elias would always shove its hands and nose away from him before it suffocated the male. Normally, he wouldn't do shit like this since he was too much of a coward to do so, but he oddly felt at peace with the creature and didn't really have to worry about aggravating it. It also looked pleased with Elias and would always come back to express its happiness.

Once, Elias was trying to get comfortable when the creature watched the male intently and tried copying him. He also wanted to get under the fur blankets with Elias, but the mortal constantly yanked the furs away from it. Elias didn't understand what it was trying to do or why it tried sneaking one of its tails under the blankets, so he misunderstood the situation and faced away from it.

It emitted a low whine, wanting to get Elias' attention and bugged the boy so much by nudging him. It caused Elias to glare up at the creature, raising a hand up to beckon it closer. Delighted, the monster happily lowered its face and expected some sort of affection, but it recoiled when Elias delivered a slap to its nose.

Of course, it didn't hurt for the creature. It actually made Elias wince instead, though the expression from the monster dropped and it faced away from the boy. It grew depressed and heaved a heavy sigh which shook the chasm. Elias rolled his eyes in return and comfortably snuggled under the blankets, ignoring the soft whines and careful nudges to his side.

There really wasn't anything Elias needed to be cautious about at that point.

The only thing Elias actually needs to watch for is angering it when he tries to leave. The times he got close to the walls of the chasm, the creature would let out a loud shriek and desperately grabbed Elias back. It'd place the male right under his wings or torso, keeping him safe and contained.

He was annoyed, but Elias could hardly do anything about it.

Although this was bugging Elias, his hunger was the worst part of staying with the creature. Elias didn't understand why he was starving when he knew he ate at Hades' palace not too long ago, but he honestly couldn't stand the gnawing hunger in his stomach. He forced himself to curl up underneath the monster's wing to try and sleep it off, but every time he woke up, it only worsened.

The creature knew after watching Elias intently. He was hesitant to leave the mortal alone, but when Elias fell down to his knees, cradling his stomach with a pained expression, it took off to the surface of the chasms again. Without fail, the chains glowed and pulled the monster back mercilessly. It shrieked when it hit the ground, though it kept trying to break free until Elias tiredly grabbed onto the very edge of one of its wings.

"It's okay. I'm not that hungry."

A few of its wings flapped, hitting the sides of the chasm and causing the whole area to shake again. Unfazed, Elias held a hand up to the creature. Immediately, its head dove down while its massive hands placed themselves on the ground on both side of the mortal. It emitted a low whine as Elias combed his hand through the thing's matted hair.

The monster stopped and curled itself around Elias in the abyss, providing warmth as the male thought to himself.

Being this hungry was unnatural. Perhaps something in Tartarus caused him to be like this, or maybe it's something else related to the fact he's in the underworld. Either way, Elias knew it wasn't as simple and knew he needed to eat something. Otherwise, he might die of starvation instead of the demons roaming around Tartarus.