He and It Chapter 146: The Serpent of Pharisee (12)

Chapter 146: The Serpent of Pharisee (12)

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: GaeaTiamat

 

“What’s wrong?” Xie Ning panicked, and wondered why he suddenly had such a look – like a puppy kicked to the side of the road. It made his heart sad, “What’s wrong?” 

When Echidna didn’t answer, he took the trouble of opening his arms then clumsily wrapped them around the other man’s waist and patting him on the back in a comforting gesture.

Perhaps the Olympians were up to something again? Xie Ning speculated in his heart.

The silence lasted for a long time. In the silence, there was only the sound of Echidna’s irritated, intermittent breathing. After an unknown length of time, Echidna moved with determination. He traveled around the palace, descended through one piece of hidden fog after another then let them rise in the high, open dome, until it was clouded over as far as the eye could see; as if the sky were clouded over.

“I will not let them look upon thee,” Echidna raged, and swore. “For of all men, I cherish thy life the most. I will not have the Gods look upon thee!” 

What did that mean? Xie Ning couldn’t figure it out, so he asked, “What the hell just happened?” 

His Dorus, his white and lovely Dorus. He wanted to open his snake’s mouth and swallow this precious soul into his belly, so that Zeus would split his body open with a thunderbolt to force him to separate from Dorus! Unfortunately, that idea was completely impossible.

Echidna, having covered the eyes of the Gods with the fog, answered with dismal dismay, “Poseidon, who wanders in the salty waters in the company of slimy fishes, came to the shore, and cast his eyes into my palace! It must have been Kostas’s call to his father that drew Poseidon’s attention, and I hate that my relaxed demands for the sacrifice have not made him grateful. I am bound to make him pay!” 

Xie Ning didn’t quite understand the logic. “Ah, why should he be punished? He didn’t do anything.” 

He looked at his ignorant and naive human, and Echidna said with infinite sadness, “Dorus, you don’t understand how far those frivolous and mischievous new gods will go for an impulsive thought; a whim. When Eris threw down a golden apple, and threatened to give it to the fairest of the goddesses, it stirred up a ferocious rivalry on Mount Olympus, and gave rise to the Trojan war, which lasted ten years. There was so much bloodshed, so many deaths, that the Styx was flooded, the gates of Hades’ palace were worn out by the newly arrived souls, and many demons watched from afar and marveled at the sight. And the source of all that was but three goddesses fighting each other for an apple.” ¹

He slid out his black tongue, and the forked tip probed the air for any scent of foreign divine power. “What would I do if they took a fancy to see what wonders you, the human who has aroused Echidna’s favor, has to offer and so take you from my arms? What shall I do then? Cut to pieces Kostas, who caused all this, and make his father, the dark-haired Poseidon, weep and gray his hair? Instead, I will make sure he knows the consequences of offending me first!” 

And after he spoke those words, he rended the earth and drew forth the hot waters, then created a deep, encircling river at the edge of Arima Palace. Then Echidna, dropped his serpent’s tail and immersed it in the waters, and at once they were blackened to a purple color, and boiled up with a thick, poisonous effervescence.

“The gods in the heavens and the mortals in the earthly realm have praised the Hydra’s venom as having no cure, but where does it come from?” Echidna taunted fiercely. “As all rivers return to the sea, so the venom of Hydra is but a branch spreading out from me!” ²

After he built a moat, he called for the four-armed giant. The giant did not have the protection of the snake demon, nor had he used the ointment of the sacrifice, nor the wine of cleansing, so he could only hold his breath in front of the poisonous river, and hang his great head.

“Call Kostas of Cilicia,” the snake demon commanded in a domineering fashion. “Call him here, and ask him nicely if he has done anything foolish in the way of informing others! If he answers with a cowardly yes, let him put his hand into the river, for an informer shall be punished; but if he answers with a hypocritical no, hold him still, and put his hand into the river, for if he is innocent, then the Gods he trusts in will save him.” 

The four-armed giant acceded to his master’s request. 

Xie Ning, pinned in Echidna’s arms -he’d grown accustomed to that kittenish treatment- had half a dozen things to say, but he hesitated, and finally murmured, ” Um…I think–” 

Echidna immediately looked down at him and asked fondly, “What’s wrong, Dorus?” 

Xie Ning sighed, and said, “I think…I don’t think we should do this.” 

Echidna, confused, asked him, “Why, Dorus? Why would you stop me from punishing Kostas? However, I suppose you have your thoughts, so let me hear your reasoning.” 

The four-armed giant stood still. He didn’t understand the language the human was using, but the snake demon’s question caused a wave of malicious joy to rise in his heart.

Echidna never allowed disobedience, nor did he listen to contradictory opinions. He was the king of Arima, and even of Cilicia. And this proud human being really thought he could change Echidna’s mind!

If he answered poorly, the temperamental head of the demons would surely throw him in the river of poison in a fit of rage. The little man would soon precede Kostas, running miserably towards the hem of Death’s robe.

Xie Ning shrugged his shoulders. “Well…It doesn’t make sense. I just don’t want to cause trouble. If you kill the king, won’t his father hold a grudge? It’s better to do less than more. At least he hasn’t done anything yet. If there’s something wrong with the offering he sends, then you can have a go at it.” 

Echidna thought it over, and wondered if it was the person he was talking to that caused the argument to make sense to him.

“Well, as you say, the Fates have their own verdict, so Kostas’ death is not today.”  He spoke to the four-armed giant. “You heard Dorus! Go back now.” 

When he saw the four-armed giant standing there dumbfounded, the snake demon was about to get angry at his stupid appearance, when Xie Ning poked him in the chest and whispered, “Uh, he can’t understand a word I’m saying.” 

“Oh,” Echidna finally realized that only he could understand the youth’s language. He couldn’t help but gloat in his heart, “Then you heard me. Go back.” 

Without a word, the four-armed giant walked away, full of wrath.

Three words changed the snake demon’s mind, was he more cunning than Odysseus? ³ 

Xie Ning didn’t know about his mental activities, and wouldn’t care about them if he did. He looked at the dome which was covered by thick fog, and a thought suddenly came to his mind.

“Hurry!” He twisted out of Echidna’s arms, jumped to the ground, and ran ahead, “Follow me!” 

Echidna followed him curiously. The youth ran two steps, he moved forward a little, he ran two steps, the other moved a little…Echidna followed him indulgently along a long corridor, and finally, unable to resist, squeezed the teenager’s waist with both hands, picked him up and held him in his hands.

“Where are you leading me? Why don’t you let me take you?” the demon god asked.

“Well, uh…” Xie Ning uttered, before he recalled his idea. “Okay, let’s go to the treasure vault.” 

The interior of Arima’s underground palace contained a natural treasure trove, piled high with the earth’s bounty of minerals, as well as years of unceasing tribute from the Kingdom of Cilicia. Layers of silk and brocade fabrics were surrounded by gold and silver. Bronze tripods filled with pearls and ivory sat next to blackened copper pots filled with precious stones and gold cups.

Xie Ning went into the treasure house, then waded with difficulty through the deep piles of gold coins, until he came to the side of a man sized tripod. He picked up an irregularly shaped, as big as a chicken’s egg, pearl of the night, and showed it to Echidna.

“Look at this,” he said. “if we put it on the ceiling in the middle of the mist, won’t it be a star?” 

So that’s what all this was about.

Echidna didn’t like stars, too many demons slain by heroes were hypocritically raised into the sky by the Gods to become constellations that watched over the firmament. But since Dorus had asked, he could make a concession.

“What constellations will you display?” the snake demon asked. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen what the stars look like, but I remember the shapes of the constellations.” 

Xie Ning shook his head, “I don’t want to make any constellations. Why do I have to be so specific? It’s just for fun, to relieve boredom.” 

That said, he filled a pocket with night pearls. Their light was bright, and flashed in his eyes a bit. “Can you think of a way to put them up there?” 

The muscles in Echidna’s tail flared. He gathered up the cauldron as easily as if it were a pomegranate. The serpent’s belly broke through the sparkling gold coins as he left the treasure room for his own lair, dripping a sporadic trail of gold coins along the way.

“Just put it there.” The snake demon circled a towering stone column, and slithered toward the dense clouds with Xie Ning in his arms. “Like this.” 

He picked up a night pearl and pressed it into the black rock that made up the dome. The pearl emitted a vague glow from under the clouds.

“Another one there…There! Up and to the left, yes!” Xie Ning offered off-site advice as he instructed Echidna on how to use those valuable treasures that only looked good in the underground palace, “Hmm…It seems a little dense. Whatever. Let’s take the river of stars in that direction.” 

It wasn’t much of a creative undertaking, more like a rough renovation, but Echidna was pleased with it. He happily squandered the gems. When he worked with Dorus, he wasn’t alone, wasn’t lonely, and had something to do to pass the time. Every part of it was good.

And Xie Ning…Xie Ning was a little distracted.

He was a sexual minority, there was no doubt about it. When he was in college, all his close friends knew his secret. Since he came here, he had spent half of his time worrying about the language and making a living, and the other half worrying about his home and how to get back. Naturally he hadn’t had time to consider his personal issues. However, after he arrived in Arima, the situation became complicated.

First of all, Echidna treated him well, even too well.

Xie Ning wasn’t blind or deaf, so of course he could sense the difference between how the Demon God treated him and how he treated others. He often laughed at himself, saying that he was a cat slave’s new kitten, but in reality, Echidna’s behavior towards him was much more than a cat slave to a cat. Xie Ning didn’t go out of Echidna’s lair very often. He knew that the giants didn’t like human beings, and they especially didn’t like him. If any of the giants showed the slightest contempt towards him, Echidna would be furious and would kill them.

Otherwise, Echidna was obedient to Xie Ning. Who could understand where that strong and unexplained trust came from? Was it because he had marveled at Echidna’s beauty? But it was the truth. Was it because he promised to paint Echidna? But that was the means by which he earned his living. Echidna was basically his boss.

However, Echidna fit Xie Ning’s aesthetics in every way. The beauty and vitality of the demon, his animalistic and natural personality with a touch of innocence, plus his body…Well, whenever Xie Ning saw his robust, smooth and strong body, it was like a big piece of roasted meat hanging in front of a hungry man’s nose, and constantly aroused his desire to take a bite out of the other man’s well-defined pectoral muscles.

Then there was how Echidna especially loved to hug him. With his strong arms, he always lifted Xie Ning gently into his embrace and carried him around. When he was happy, he pressed Xie Ning tightly against his chest, and caused Xie Ning’s palms to press against his narrow waist and belly; when he was angry, he also pressed Xie Ning tightly against his chest, so that Xie Ning’s palms were squeezed into the middle of his abs again…

So difficult! For a homosexual lover, this kind of day was too difficult!

At that moment, Xie Ning looked at the demon’s body as he hovered between the stone pillars. Alas, it was so beautiful! The posture of his outstretched arm was similar to Michelangelo’s Adam with his fingers outstretched. ⁴ Wasn’t that even more deadly?  Think of something else, horny me! Interracial relationships don’t end well! Think of Suzy!

Having sensed his absent-mindedness, Echidna pouted unhappily and he spat out his forked tongue, tickling it over Xie Ning’s earlobe, and causing the human to shiver.

Well…Dorus’ ears were soft and small, and tasted so good on his tongue…he teased them a little more.

“Ah!” Xie Ning yelped. “What are you doing?” 

Echidna was unhappy, and licked him with jealousy. “You’re lost in thought. Obviously you are with me, but are you thinking of someone else?” 

Yes, I’m thinking about Suzy. ⁵

“I’m not thinking of anyone!” As he covered his wet ears, Xie Ning huffed in dismay. Hurriedly, he pushed on Echidna’s chest to direct him towards continuing the great work of installing the stars. “There, install another smaller one, this one.” 

After an afternoon’s work, they had almost picked the entire treasure trove clean of night pearls, and created a brilliant river of stars over Echidna’s nesting chamber.

The continuous fog covered the dark and rocky roof, so that countless jewels, which wouldn’t burn themselves out, shimmered and sparkled like crystalline lamps. Where once it had been the lair of a demon, all dark and gloomy, buried miles beneath the earth, now it was another little world of its own. One with no sun or moon, but many, many artificial stars.

Echidna was lying on the ground, as he stared blankly at the starry sky, while beside him, Xie Ning was also lying on his back in the bed, as he happily faced the stars.

“How’s that? Not bad, right?” he asked. “When you sleep at night, isn’t this much more fun?” 

The snake demon nodded and replied softly, “It’s nice.” 

They didn’t arrange the stars according to the constellations the Gods had raised to the firmament. His human encouraged him to be free to make whatever pattern he wanted, so he clumsily set one of himself, and one of Dorus, right in the center.

It would be nice if they could rise up together in the sky, a constellation of eternal companionship! Unfortunately, that was a vain delusion. It wouldn’t be permitted by the Gods of Olympus.

The starlight of the jewels shone on them. Xie Ning was tired enough that gradually he couldn’t hold up his eyelids, and fell asleep, Echidna skillfully stretched out his tail tip, and moved him in his arms.

It’s okay. As he looked at the young man’s sleeping face, Echidna thought, It doesn’t matter if he can’t become a constellation, he has already given me a starry river. Even if in the future he comes to loathe and hate me as much as other human beings do, I’ll never blame him, because even though I’ve seen such a wonderful thing, it still can’t compare to the love that he’s given to me.

.

A week later, Xie Ning received a gift from Cilicia. A ten-thousand-dollar drop of purple pigment in a crystal box the length of his forefinger, which came to him as part of the offering.

In the current age, the color purple was undeniably expensive, and could only be extracted from a shellfish called the purple snail, and it was said that it took 10,000 snails to dye a single robe pure purple. Like the crown and scepter, purple clothing was a symbol of great power. ⁶  

Xie Ning was surprised to see such an offering.

“Amazing…” he murmured. The extract of the purple snail, although not as colorful as later generations of purple, was already very colorful and rich, and at the thought of its value, Xie Ning felt that the little box was heavy; heavier than anything he’d held before.

In addition to that, there were many other colors of pigments, but none as precious as the purple.

When he saw Dorus praise Cilicia’s offerings, Echidna’s dissatisfaction receded a lot. In his mind, King Kostas might be exonerated, but he couldn’t escape the shadow of death. If he ever revealed Dorus’ whereabouts to the Gods again, he would surely kill that audacious demigod himself, with no room for excuses.

That day, Xie Ning was trying out the paint that had been delivered to him, when Echidna poked his head through the palace door and suddenly called out, “Dorus.” 

Xie Ning looked back at him. “What’s wrong?” 

“I would ask you to please stay here, all right?” The snake demon slithered over, with a rare hesitation. “There are a few visitors, not human, not heavenly Gods. However, they cause me headaches. I don’t want you to see their appearance, or know their unpleasant speech and behaviors. If you avoid them, I will feel relieved.” 

Not humans, not gods, but demons of the same race? That would make sense…

He thought about it, then Xie Ning nodded his head and agreed, “Okay. I won’t go out.” 

Echidna circled around the nest two more times, then firmly closed the door of the nesting chamber and left.

Xie Ning scratched the back of his head as he continued with his previous project, using water to dissolve the drying lumps of paint in turn, then applied the colors to the paper in the manner of a modern paint palette. ⁹

“Do not trespass on His private domain! Since Echidna of the opposite sex inherited the name, he has become more violent than ever! Do you want to annoy him?” 

“Make the mischief yourself, Chimera, and when Echidna blames us, thou shalt not speak our names.” ¹⁰

Xie Ning, “?” 

No, brother, who are you to break into someone’s house?