"Its no use of escape."
Janus said without a care of the world, staring straight at the squirming rodent thing as it continued to helplessly struggle against the spear holding it firmly in place. "Let me go, let me go!!" It yelled out in desperation, trying to wiggle its body away from the weapon, but to no avail.
Sighing tiredly, "First, I want to know why your little friends tried to ambush me," he asked while observing it carefully. "If you do answer my questions, then I will happily reconsider setting you off in your merry way," convincing him of its predicament, Janus added.
Staring at the deity with a terrified gaze, "No, no!! I will tell you everything that you need to know; just set me free! I won't do it ever again!!" It desperately pleaded, shaking its body frantically against the weapon's might.
Deep down, he knows something is odd about the squirrel's desperation. Almost if it was trying to trick him again, "nah," he said nonchalantly as he watched its reaction unfold before him. "Give me what I want, and I will consider it," once again, he inquired.
Its reaction was immediate and predictable, as he would have imagined. The poor thing started to cry tears of frustration, "Okay!" Or rather, he conceded, "They saw you as an unfortunate newcomer ready to be eaten," finally admitting the truth of this situation, "but I was the only follo—"
"Quiet."
Janus interjected with an abrupt demand, immediately silencing the rodent to speak, "Good, now have you seen a white cat around these parts?" He was looking dangerously at the hostage, wishing to inquire about the whereabouts of the cat that he was searching for.
A slight pause emanated between them, causing Janus to raise an eyebrow curiously. He awaited its response, wondering whether it was going to lie to him or not. Finally, it answered, "I can't," the squirrel told in a nervous voice, "they are going to devour me if I do."
Despite its apparent willingness to share what it knew, it seemed unwilling to tell him. Janus couldn't blame the furry vermin or whatever the hell it is, "Oh..." Disappointment resonated from the god of time: "It seems like I don't have a choice then."
Widening his eyes, "wait! I'll tell you! Please don't do it!" Panicking from its own failure to keep the information to itself, the rodent didn't want to experience any more pain than it had already been through, especially at the thought of dying.
If he had lips, Janus would smile at this moment of victory. Instead, he shifted his expression to be slightly less intimidating: "There, much better." With that, the deity wasted no time in continuing their conversation, "Where is he?" He calmly asked.
Taking a deep breath, the squirrel closed his eyes and spoke quietly, "Northwest from here, head towards the sun and look for a river flowing southbound," explaining briefly, "There, go to your left and you should see thick mist and tall trees; from there, you should see one of them currently tied onto a tree; if not, then it may not be worth investigating further." The rodent finished in hushed tones while avoiding eye contact.
Nodding his head, Janus muttered, "Thank you." Satisfied, he was more than ready to do what the creature had intended for him before Saturn chimed in with his worried, skeptic outlook on this decision of sparing the very person who was responsible for attacking him.
"You...you are letting it go?" Fear dripped in his voice. "What if he's going to come back with a new plan to get us?" Unable to fathom the idea of seeing the furball and its friends coming to take their revenge, "kill him already! I don't want to die by getting eaten by those things again." Scared, he continued to rant.
Janus tried his hardest to block out his partner's shrill screaming, but it became increasingly difficult as the old voice kept yelling at him over and over to just get rid of the damn beast already, making him more ready to just get it over with.
Vesta intervened, seeing this as a perfect opportunity to say something about the entire ordeal. "Have mercy," her kind words echoed in his mind. "There is already blood on our hands," she reminded him of what happened moments ago.
However, Quirinus could only disagree with the woman's statement, "Retribution demands action; we cannot let him live after it tried to attack us," refusing to change his mind at the prospect of showing some compassion to their enemies.
The intellectual voice of Portunus disagreed: "Were talking morals, are we?" The man challenged, "While I would agree with the brute force of killing this vermin, I think it is beneficial to have it spared," reasoning from his point of view of the situation they are in, "letting him go would potentially either allow us to be more respected and feared after having defeated its kin or cause us more problems than needed in the future. Despite the potential risks, this could give us leverage in our favor, provided the creature is honest."
Conflict sprung throughout Janus body like electricity. The voices has presented him with what he should do with it. Should he kill the poor creature or set it free? It's difficult to make this type of decision. Part of him wanted to be merciful out of chance, reaping the possible benefits, or kill him for preventing any future problems.
"Decision, decision, decision," the narrator chanted. "Make your choice, Janus. Whether you kill or spare, the universe is not going to care," pressing him to make this all-important decision, "Just hurry, will you? I want to get this affair done and over with so I can proceed on other things," becoming impatient to see his conclusion, "This whole dreamland business is getting stupid for the likes of me."
Gazing coldly at his anticipating hostage, he watched the small rodent with its red widening beads and panicked look, making him feel a wave of leniency wash over him. "What will it be?" The narrator inquired before Saturn returned and begged with a desperate tone, "Do it!"
Grabbing the spear, he watched the unfortunate assailant close its eyes, anticipating its executioner to kill it on the spot, only for Janus to hesitate and loosen his grip around the handle of his weapon, deciding to then carefully slide it out of the woody material he pierced into, immediately making the squirrel fall down on the ground with a mixture of surprise and relief over its face.
Looking up, the thing nodded before leaving outside the system of causality as a temporary escape from Janus's decision to show mercy on their enemy, much to Quirinus and Saturn's disapproval in choosing this foolish choice of action.
Staring down at where it was standing prior to its disappearance, he wondered if he had made the right choice or not. Will the future bring the worst out of him for this mistake, or would the benefits come in handy? Whatever the answer is, there's no turning back on what had already happened; he made this choice, and that's that.
"Happy now?"
Quirinus said with an irritably toned voice, "Even after that rat attacked us, you had the audacity to let him go. When the time comes, don't come crying to me if we're dead," scoffing in disgust at this terrible mistake.
Vesta, however, expressed joy in this development: "Well done, Janus. I am proud of you for doing the right thing for once," not caring for her peer's sourness in the situation. She would've congratulated their host for having done something altruistic for a change.
On the other hand, Culsans yawned casually, "Man, it would be more hilarious if we had made him piss his pants or make him wet himself to death or maybe even throw up all over himself because we're so awesome," not being surprised by the turn of events, "not that I care what happened. But seriously, someone who can't hold it in and piss themselves off from fright is like a total mood killer of fun."
Shaking his head, Janus turned and walked to where he was told to go: "I don't really care anymore," stating matter of factly, not interested in what had happened anymore; "I'm heading out to see if this is all a bluff," not completely trusting this new information as being truthful in the slightest; "all of this could be some sort of elaborate trap again," causing Saturn to shout back at him.
"You see!" Erupting a sudden panic from Saturn's very own mouth, "It is all a lie; that's it, that is it. We should've killed him or gotten more answers out of it, but because of our stupidity in not seeing this, we were as good as dead!"
Ignoring his pleas and whining, he casually continued on with his trip through this dense forest, being careful enough not to slip in any mud puddles or trudge across any thick bushes while watching over his shoulders from time to time to see if they came back.
So far, all he could see around him was nothing but trees and bushes, with a few flowers occasionally seen lying around with multiple shades of color and some butterflies flying around him, only to flutter away from the moment he got close enough.
It is as peaceful as he should have imagined it to be, having seen nothing but the beautiful sight of this wonderland that he is walking across. This type of moment is almost nostalgic and melancholic in how mundane it is. Feeling the breeze touching his skin and the blades of grass tickling the soles of his feet. Every second and every moment here feels incredible.
Unlike the prison that he called home, this place is nothing like it. The fresh air, the tranquil surroundings—everything here is far better than what he called reality. Nothing could compare to this euphoric experience.
This moment of peace came to an abrupt end after seeing a river flowing southbound, making him realize there is a chance that their little vermin was telling the truth all along. Which is a good thing when they find Schrodinger again.
Heading closer to get the full view, its river was a torrent of liquid, roaring with the thunder of rushing water. It cut a deep channel into the landscape, carving its way through rock and dirt. The water was crystal clear and ice cold. It rushed over rocks and boulders, tumbling and falling, spilling over itself in a never-ending rush.
Where its waters met the banks, the river was shallower. It ran smoothly and quietly, but the force of the current was still evident. The rocks were rounded and worn down by the constant motion of the water, and the pebbles in the sand were polished by the ebb and flow of the tide.
A sigh of relief escaped from him after seeing this: "Let's go get that cat," determined to finish this pointless chase, "I hope he's alive; it would be a shame if he died," becoming disgruntled at the idea that their only tour guide to this world had died somewhere in these woods.
With that, he went back to his journey, strolling near the edge of the river as he enjoyed the cooling sensation of the air and the warmth of the sun on his face. It was refreshing in comparison to the suffocating atmosphere in which he was forced to live in that terrible prison.
And sometimes, the air smelled sweet, like flowers blooming on an autumn evening. At other times, it was ripe with the scent of pine trees and freshly turned soil. On some days, its crisp and clean, like a cold mountain stream.
"Enjoying the view, my friend?" The narrator spoke, "I can't blame you; we have been stuck in our prison for so long that we finally see this. It truly is beautiful, isn't it?" Being glad that he and everyone else are experiencing this newfound freedom.
Looking above the sun, Janus nodded silently in agreement, "It has," confirming the other's opinion of the scenery around him, "I almost missed seeing all of this. After having to spend entirely in that dark place for so long," finding everything so nostalgic that its as if he is seeing this for the first time.
