Son of Atom

Chapter 7 About the Boom, Sort of

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I was told to go, and thats exactly what I did! So why am I alone now?!

Well alone would be wrong since I seem to be surrounded by more people than I have ever seen, and it was so cramped in here to. I don't think I knew a number high enough to count this many people.

Now the darkness of it all wasn't a problem, see my eyes don't only glow, they also emit light for me. The silence was a bit off putting though, even the constant whispering, well more so self mumblings, only added to the tragic feeling of it all. What did Annabeth call this Feilds of... Kansas? If this is what a Kansas is then I don't like it.

The black grass that I treaded across seemed to have been worn down into a blackened path by a countless number of feet. A warm, moist wind blew through the crowds, bringing a smell that reminded me of home just no radiation. Black trees grew here and there in small clumps. With all the black it almost seemed like everything had a scorched look to it.

Just as my eyes started to wander across the cavern ceiling high above a green glow caught my eyes. The same kind of glow those who are effected by radiation have, and so I followed it.

The glow seemed to lead me deep into the feilds, and bordered on the edge of what I think Annabeth called the Feilds of Punishment. I passed those who looked like soldiers, though the strange thing is their tended to be more of one uniform in the feilds of punishment than Kansas.

The thing about the dead is their faces sort of shimmered. They either looked slightly confused or angry. Some of them tried speaking to me and I could almost make out their words, but ultimately sounded like dull chattering. It tended to result in them frowning and moving away.

The dead aren’t scary. They’re just sad.

I crept along, following the line of new arrivals that snaked from the main gates towards a black-tented pavilion with a banner that read:

JUDGMENTS FOR ELYSIUM AND ETERNAL DAMNATION

Welcome, Newly Deceased!

Out the back of the tent came two much smaller lines.

To the left, spirits flanked by security ghouls were marched down a rocky path towards the Fields of Punishment, which glowed and smoked in the distance, a vast, cracked wasteland with rivers of something glowing red and minefields and miles of barbed wire separating the different torture areas. Even from far away, I could see people being chased by giant hounds, burned at the stake, forced to run naked through cactus patches or listen to some moaning music. I could just make out a tiny hill, with the ant-size figure of a man struggling to move a boulder to the top. And I saw worse tortures, too – things I don’t care to describe.

Though for a moment I just stood there, staring at it all. Until a green glow seemed to come up beside me, turning I saw a man witha cigarette in his mouth and a hat on his head. Sure I was only seeing the side of his face, but he had a sort of shell shocked looked as he stared out over the feild.

"Feilds of Punishment... Hades has me make some of the schematics for the newer punishment devices." He said, the tone of his voice was indifferent.

Then he looked at me, and staring him straight on I could confirm he had a shell shocked look, and a faint but minor glow of radiation around him.

I stared at him for a moment, completely suprised that he had any radiation around him that I was familiar with. That shouldn't be with what my three friends have told me.