ACT II: THE MONSTER
Polynices' soldiers charged forward, clashing with Antigone's soldiers. Swords collided, shields slammed into each other, and the arena was engulfed in the roar of battle and the cry of war.
Polynices and Antigone stood in their places, watching each other's movements. That's when someone appeared from behind Antigone—Calli, or rather, her fiancé, Haemon.
Haemon wore a long cloak of dark ash color, slit from both sides to allow for ease of movement. Underneath it, a black linen shirt woven with fine silver threads. His trousers were of aged leather, tight, held by a leather belt from which short daggers hung. On his left shoulder, a metal pauldron sculpted in the shape of a lion's face. His shoes were made of dark leather, bound with leather straps reaching mid-calf.
In his right hand, he held a straight sword with a dull silver blade. Its hilt was wrapped tightly in black leather, and its pommel was shaped like a small lion's head. The sword bore no decorations, but it was finely honed, gleaming at the edges, showing signs of use.
"Haemon!" said Polynices, his expression contorting. Haemon remained silent and unmoved.
Then, both of them gripped their swords tightly. Both began walking toward the center of the arena with indifference, while soldiers fought beside them. When they got close, Haemon lunged toward Polynices, swinging his sword with force, but Polynices blocked it. Their swords clashed, sparks flew. When they realized they were equally matched, both jumped back, away from each other.
"Polynices, what exactly are you trying to do by all of this?" Haemon said angrily, raising his sword and pointing it at Polynices.
"What else would I do but seize the throne, of course? Are you truly in your right mind to believe Antigone is a suitable queen for Thebes?" Polynices said with an arrogant and prideful tone.
"How dare you say that? Antigone was the only one who buried your corpse and opposed her uncle, you bastard! She was the only one who defied her tyrant uncle and took the throne from him! And now you return from death using dark black powers and dare—" Haemon shouted, his tone angry and his features distorted.
"Blah blah blah. No one asked your dear queen to bury me. No one told her to steal the throne from her uncle. Enough nonsense, Haemon, let's face reality: the only reason you support her is because you're her fiancé. Do you want the throne? Want to be king?" Polynices said arrogantly, walking toward Haemon with steady steps.
"I support my queen out of love and loyalty. Do not tarnish my intentions with your filthy mouth!" Haemon shouted in frustration, swinging his sword in the air like a whisper of resolve.
"I'd respect you more if you said you wanted to become king. But love? Really… Spare me the filth," Polynices said in disgust, his face showing scorn.
"…Arguing with you is a waste of time. I'll kill you here—not for me, but for my queen!" Haemon said firmly, rushing straight at Polynices.
Their swords clashed in an instant. Rage blinded Haemon so much he didn't care about his stance or the openings he created. He focused only on Polynices' head. Polynices then kicked Haemon in the stomach, making him stumble back in pain. Polynices swung again, but Haemon blocked each strike, taking a step back every time. Then Polynices halted his sword before it met Haemon's again and instead kicked Haemon in the neck, sending him flying toward the arena wall, crashing with force. Dust exploded everywhere, and the wall cracked.
Haemon coughed blood, staining his shirt. As Polynices approached, he tried to stand using his sword, staggering, his legs trembling. He gripped his sword with both hands, refusing to surrender.
"I really admire your courage, Antigone's dog. Unfortunately, had you joined my forces, I would've spared your life. But you cling to your knightly codes—loyalty and love... how absurd," Polynices said, his arrogant grin fading into seriousness.
Just then, Polynices was about to rush Haemon to kill him—but he was interrupted when he heard faint whispers in the air and the strange shift in weather, from hot to suddenly cold.
Polynices turned around to see his sister, Antigone, standing alone with dignity. She hadn't moved from her place. She sat on the ground, hands touching the soil, and her eyes were covered in black as if kohl had melted.
"Antigone..." Haemon whispered, shaken by the atmosphere.
The warriors ceased fighting. Everyone turned to look at Antigone. The sky dimmed, black clouds covered the sun, the ground trembled, and the clouds wept as if in sorrow.
"O you who returned from beneath the soil without the gods' permission,
You who defiled the laws of death and rejected eternal stillness...
In the name of Hades, Lord of the Seven Gates,
And in the name of Persephone, bride of darkness and mistress of souls,
I summon upon you the winds of return, and open for you the gate of downfall."
Antigone spoke, and the earth trembled, cracking in the center of the arena, splitting everyone into two sides and leaving a void in the middle. A towering gate rose—an enormous arch of black iron, its surface speckled with glowing purple spots. Thick violet smoke rose behind it, coiling like a serpent, while ghostly spirits wavered silently at its edges.
"What is this?!" Polynices shouted, his body trembling from the cold and the chill of the gate's presence.
"Oh brother, return to the underworld, you and your army of the dead. You have defiled Thebes' honorable warriors by reviving them and forcing them to attack Thebes. Your punishment will be severe in the underworld. But I shall pray daily to the god Hades to forgive you!" Antigone said. The gate to hell opened, revealing a tunnel of endless darkness, where faint violet light floated between its glittering walls, trapping souls from fleeing the world of the dead.
Then, violet iron chains moved like living loops, ensnaring Polynices' soldiers by their arms and legs, dragging them toward the gate to the underworld.
"T-This is impossible!" Polynices screamed, and suddenly the chains of the underworld wrapped around his hands, legs, and neck, pulling him slowly toward the land of the dead. Polynices' sword fell from his hand. He tried resisting, digging his feet into the ground.
"No! This is impossible! I'm still alive! I'm not dead yet! Antigone!!! How could you do this to your brother?! After all we went through together as children! How dare you send me through that gate?!" Polynices cried as he began to lose hope. Antigone turned away, unable to look at her brother, tears falling from her eyes.
"Antigone!!… O-Okay! I'm sorry! I'm sorry for being a bastard! Sorry for everything I did! I'll withdraw today! I promise! I'll never return here again! I'm your brother, Antigone, you can't do this to me!" Polynices shouted, hoping to sway his sister's naive heart and weaken her resolve.
"Bless me, O Hades. Bless me, O Hades. Bless me, O Hades. Bless me, O Hades," Antigone whispered to herself, trying to strengthen her faith that this was the right choice.
"Antigone! Please! I still love you! I'm your brother! Please! You don't know what exists in that world! So please don't send me back there!!" Polynices shouted, noticing the chains loosening slightly and the pulling force weakening.
But he began noticing how the gate had already started devouring his undead soldiers. Each second that passed, the gate of hell swallowed another soldier, leaving behind a sharp cry of pain before silence as they crossed into the other world.
"Antigone!... Please!" Polynices said, holding on tighter, noticing one of the chains around him had cracked.
"No... Antigone!" Haemon whispered, but his voice was too weak for her to hear.
Antigone approached Polynices and stood in front of him, tears streaming down her face, her kohl running from her eyes.
"Do you promise me that?" Antigone asked, her expression conflicted, but pity and weakness visible in her eyes.
"Yes... I promise you, sister," Polynices said, flustered, trying hard to show a sincere expression.
The chains around Polynices broke—from his hands, neck, and feet. He fell directly into Antigone's open arms in a sibling embrace.
"Polynices, you idiot... I was worried about you!" Antigone said between sobbing gasps, burying her face in her brother's chest.
"Yes…" Polynices said, slowly extending his hand, opening his palm. His sword lying on the ground trembled and flew straight into his hand.
"You should worry about yourself!" Polynices said, and the moment the sword touched his hand, he gripped it tight and stabbed Antigone in the stomach, then pulled it out.
"Polynices..." Antigone said, stunned and in pain. She pushed herself away, touching the wound and feeling the sharp pain. She raised her hand—covered in her red blood.
"ANTIGONE!!" Haemon shouted from afar, rushing toward both of them at full speed.
"Don't worry, sister. You'll die from the poison, not the bleeding," Polynices said with a wicked grin, raising his sword so Antigone could see the violet liquid dripping from its tip—it had been poisoned all along.
Antigone felt words caught in her throat, an overwhelming weakness in her legs made her collapse—but Haemon arrived just in time, lifted her up, and ran away to protect her.
"Whew, he's fast," Polynices muttered with surprise, turning to see his undead soldiers still bound by the gate's chains, still being pulled through.
He looked ahead to see Antigone's remaining soldiers surrounding him. Their legs trembled, their swords shook, but they would not let Polynices reach their queen.
"Such brave little fools," Polynices said sarcastically, lazily.
Inside the colosseum, Haemon ran carrying Antigone.
"Don't worry, I'll get you out of here and take you to the nearest doctor," Haemon said desperately, looking down and smiling at her.
Antigone lifted her hand and gently touched Haemon's cheek.
"Oh my love... you can be a fool sometimes too," Antigone said with a foolish, love-drunk smile. But the poison had begun to show—her veins turned purple, reaching up to her right eye, her face pale, exhaustion evident. Life was leaving her.
"Antigone... please, hang on," Haemon said, his eyes filled with tears as he held her gently.
"Stop... it's over," Antigone said tiredly, coughing mid-sentence.
"Please..." Haemon whispered, closing his eyes. His steps slowed from exhaustion and her request.
"I want to spend the last few seconds of my life with my beloved... please, stop," Antigone whispered, her voice fading.
Haemon stopped, dropped to his knees, laid Antigone gently on the ground, holding her to keep her upright.
"Oh my love, please don't cry. This is the will of the god of the underworld. Death cannot be opposed, my dear," Antigone said with a warm smile, holding Haemon's hand. Their fingers intertwined.
"Antigone... I can't live without you. I never even got the chance to tell you how much I love you... Please, live," Haemon said, leaning closer to her, wiping his tears.
"You can... tell me... while I'm still breathing..." Antigone said with difficulty. The poison had reached her brain and claimed her body. Only a few seconds remained.
"I... how can I live a life without you? You were the light that chased away my darkness... your existence was the only reason I stayed strong, stayed alive... I can't breathe in a world without you... without you, I'm nothing... please don't go... please... please..." Haemon said, tears pouring down his face, unable to suppress his emotions anymore.
But Antigone was already gone by the time he finished speaking. Her pupils had faded into an empty white-gray; she lost her sight and saw only the light at the end of a dark tunnel. She was grateful that the last thing she heard in this world was her lover's voice.
"My love... I shall go now..." whispered Antigone lightly, before her hand fell cold from entwined fingers with Haemon's hand, while a slight smile rose on her face.
"No! Antigone! Antigone please! Wake up!... Please!.... Oh Hades, please don't take Antigone from me..." begged Haemon, having clasped his hands together, praying to the god of the underworld. At that moment, his sword at his waist glowed with a faint black color, and he drew it directly, looking at the faint glow emanating from it.
"Is this... a message?" said Haemon nervously and confused, immediately realizing what was required of him. Then, he put the sword near his neck, attempting to slit his throat, but the sword refused to move and his hand did not want to do it at all.
"Come on... for Antigone... for the love of my life... for my beloved..." whispered Haemon to himself, encouraging himself, and began trying to move the sword to cut his neck. He started shouting in anger with all his strength, then in a moment, he cut his neck, which caused a cut causing immediate death and severe bleeding. His sword fell to the ground stained with his blood, and his head rested downwards looking at Antigone's body. The lovers died together after one of them refused to live life without the other.
While the lovers shared their last moments of life and passed to the world of the dead, in the Coliseum arena, Polynices was standing alone. Around him, Antigone's warriors and her soldiers were thrown in all directions of the arena. A fight had happened, and the only man standing was Polynices.
Polynices slowly climbed the platform where Antigone had stood at the start of the battle. The area was considered the throne of the Coliseum. Polynices stood and began turning in place, looking around as if he was dancing in a spin. Then he stopped for a moment and waved his sword, causing the blood stained in his eyes to spread far onto the ground.
"I am Polynices... the exiled son, and the king whose throne was stolen, born from a curse and raised by wars. I did not come asking for mercy or to declare war, but carrying the banner of justice in the name of the gods. I came to reclaim what is mine, even if through a river of blood!" said Polynices loudly, his voice reaching all corners of the Coliseum. Fallen soldiers lifted their heads to see him as they were unable to rise. Whispers spread among the audience about how much they hated the character "Polynices."
At that moment, the glow of the light square around the pupil of Noah's right eye dimmed, and Noah felt lightness in his body as if a spirit had left him after possessing him.
"My assistance ends here for today..."
Noah heard a faint whisper in his ear like a urging, and assumed it was the strange being he had seen in his mirror reflection.
Then, Noah noticed an insect descending from the sky toward him, flying lightly, fluttering its golden wings softly making a gentle flapping sound in the air. Noah raised his hand, and it landed directly on his hand. Noah looked at it— a beautiful insect the size of a bee he had never seen before, with transparent white wings bearing golden lines, and a round black body where bright golden lines swayed like waves. Noah looked at its face and was shocked that all he saw there was a sharp mouth with protruding teeth that looked like blades.
"What is this?—" thought Noah to himself in confusion. Then the insect bit his hand hard, causing him to panic and wave his hand, throwing the insect away from him.
Noah looked at his hand to see that the place of the bite had lost its skin as if it was torn and the wound was soaked in blood, dripping onto the ground.
"Ah, shit!," thought Noah to himself in panic as he felt a strange swelling coming from his shirt, as if the air began to lift and puff it up despite the lack of sufficient breeze. Then Noah's shirt exploded with black golden insects with mouth-like faces emerging from his shirt as if a raging and angry black wave had surrounded Noah.
"W-what is this?!" shouted Noah shocked and terrified with a strong feeling of fear.
Then, the insects covered his body and stuck to it, piling on each other and started biting his body, tearing Noah's skin and eating it.
"AHHHHHHH!!!," screamed Noah with all his strength in pain and terror until his throat was injured.
He plunged his fingers among the insects and threw them away but they were many. They came back to bite harder. The insects passed through Noah's shirt to his chest and began gnawing at it. Their mouths worked as they had never worked before as if it was a feast happening once in hundreds of years. They gnawed at his neck, flew inside his ears and mouth, and reached his throat. Noah became unable to speak and was only coughing up blood and insects. He fell to his knees and began dragging himself away, but the insects had penetrated the flesh of his body and entered the nerves. This caused severe pain to Noah. He started hitting the ground with all his might and grabbed a nearby stone and began hitting the insects on it. Blood and pieces of his flesh splattered because every hit was only reaching him. Finally, they covered his eyes and embedded their blade-like teeth in them, pierced through, and entered his brain. There was no time to think even for Noah, and he started punching his body and everything around him. Blood and pieces of flesh scattered. Noah's hands completely disappeared, and his legs too, leaving only his torso.
"Hahaha, I call this heavenly punishment," said someone from the audience sarcastically.
"The scriptwriter has truly done his job well," said a woman with a satisfied smile.
"And the actors also do their work well, especially Polynices. Just look at him, as if he is truly in pain," said someone with an amazed tone.
What no one realized was that Noah was really in pain. His hollow, bloody eyes began to tear but the tears ran down from the edges of his eyelids because he had lost his eyes. The tears mixed with blood and ran down his cheeks. His teeth and hair fell out, and when everything started to become catastrophic, he began biting what was left of his tongue to kill himself, but every time he bit it, he crushed the insects and felt the disgusting liquid of their blood as a result of the crushing. The insects reached his brain and gnawed it completely, making Noah unable to move or think. He stretched out in place awaiting his painful and tragic end.
While the audience felt the scene lasted 20 seconds, time seemed frozen to Noah, who was suffering without the ability to scream or cry clearly. When it ended, only a pile of ashes remained from his body; even his bones were eaten. A few pieces of fabric from his clothes covered his remains. The audience sighed in relief because the scene was extremely horrifying to them.
In a completely different space, black and dense like the sea, Noah was drowning in it. Directly from being eaten, now he was drowning. Then, a pair of eyes appeared in the space, huge, covering the whole space. Under the pupil of each eye was a cluster of other pupils melting and dripping like tears. The color of the eyes was like a constantly changing rainbow.
Suddenly, Noah opened his eyes to find himself standing in the Coliseum in the middle in a straight line, holding Tali's hand on his right and Lou Yan's hand on his left while they bowed to the audience, who stood up clapping and whistling at them in amazement and encouragement.
Noah stood in place, his body sweating heavily, his eyes wide with the horror he had lived, his hands and legs shaking, and a tired, confused, and weary smile drawn on his sweaty face. A strong disgusting feeling rose in his chest as he was about to vomit.
Then, everyone lifted their heads and began leaving and returning behind the scenes, while Noah remained standing in shock. Lou Yan noticed this and turned to him.
"Actor, are you okay?" Lou Yan asked with curiosity and concern.
"...I am tired..."
ACT II: END