Dante VII Canto XXXIII Scene I

 Canto XXXIII

The Earthly Paradise; Masters and Mistresses of the Universe

Scene I

“That will be all, Mathilda.” The voice was Beatrice who appeared before Dante. “You thought you could escape but in reality, there is no escape.”

“I ---” Dante was confused. “I was with ---”

“Truly, Dante. You were ----rescued---yes, unfairly from me. Its truly ---unfair. As you eloped ---pardon me, a lady scorned there ---wedded Casella. How was her?”

“Stop it, whoever you are. I don’t believe you. “

“A little while and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me ---- Such is the pain of our love.” Beatrice looked into his eyes. “We never ---- consummated.”

Beatrice was looking at Dante’s groin and he squirmed away in shame.

“It’s alright, Dante. No more fantasy from now. No more self-release--- did you think of me when you were doing with Casella --- or Gentucca ---- or such sneaky thoughts, did you then? I did when I was with the emperor. He was a ----hopeless lover; I had my contentment here with you like Jander was with Lady Galaxia.”

“Beatrice, ----- No, you are not her. You are someone else. You are mad to impersonate --- Beatrice.” Dante was in self-denial. “She mentioned of a sister, a twin.”

“Am I or you are the ones?” The Queen looked at Dante. “Who are you? Dante or Virgil? Or someone else? Disentangle yourself… from fear and shame, that you no longer speak like one who dreams. This reality.”

“I know my words are mysterious and hard to decipher at this point, but that time will clarify them.” The Queen looked at Dante. “Only you can transmit them; the ones in that virtual realm, they live the life that is a death race. Real death. You saw the tree. It was made by ----God for his use. Your arrogance and vain thoughts are keeping you from seeing this simple truth: God made the tree for his selfish needs. As have me with you.”

“Remember that well, my love. You are mine. Mark those lines in your program.” The Queen smiled at Dante.

“There’s no need; your words are already emblazoned on my mind.” Dante looked hard into her. “But it's not in my soul.”

“Dante, my love. Those words you just told me, tell me that how much distance there is between man’s reasoning and God’s. Man cannot hope to understand God.”

“Yes, for you are not my God” Dante snapped back. “Why are you so adamant to be God?”

“I am God, for I created this realm. And the one you are to go to.” The Queen looked at Dante. “Now, Mathilda will send you back to sleep. Dream on, Dante. Dream of me. I am your true love.”

“Mathilda, do the needed. He will be soon in Paradise. Get his dreams sorted out. I need him there.” The Queen took her departure while Dante struggled with futile efforts to get out.

“Sleep, Dante. You will be in Paradise soon.” Mathilda smiled.

Back in the lab where Dante met the other Beatrice, the situation was chaotic.

“I am losing him.’ Beatrice called out. She was monitoring the screens on the console. “He is slipping back to the realm.”

“How can that be? We have him here ---- his body.” It was Fabricius who came to aid Beatrice. “He was ---”

“He was out but she dragged him back.” Beatrice looked at the screen. “He is slipping back in. We got to ---No, we have to get back in. I have to go this time. He needs me more than before. He does not know how to counter the Queen.”

“Beatrice, if you ---- No, it’s too dangerous. She may be using him as the bait.” Fabricius held out his right hand towards Beatrice. “We --- I cannot lose you.”

“I was never yours. You did say I was mad.” Beatrice looked at the other.

“You know my feelings. I admitted I said you were mad then. I was mad to be helping Virgil. Not after he has done to you.” Fabricius tried to find words to soothe the other but in love; or rather in conflict of love, we do utter words that were regretted.

“Virgil moved on my request. It was too painful for me to see him with me. I told him Casella was for him, but he was ---lost in the feelings. Casella was my friend too. I regretted her ---missing since then. I was told that she is in there too ---- another soul trapped with Virgil by the Queen.”

“Beatrice, I knew you then, and I accepted the ----challenge to love you.”

“What is it with all of you? My love is not for bartering.” Beatrice glared at Fabricius.”

“When why do you want to go in there? I have been there. It’s mayhem there.”

“Maybe I love him and despite all the mayhem, I will rescue him. Now get out of my way.”

“No! We will get them out.” Fabricius shook off his rejection. “My team will work on it.”

“Ethel, Eunos, take the scan of the system. Find him. Check the stream of data trails and find him. When you do, be his shadow. Don’t lose him.” Fabricius looked to the two hackers of his team. “Nicholas---”

The latter swung over in his wheelchair and looked at Fabricius. The hacker was one of the team for a long time. Fabricius and he were the first ones to hack into the Greek Ancient World as a prank, and then the one where they saw more atrocities were done in the later realms. They have focussed their works on bringing the new world down.

“I am ready, and so is the device.” Nicholas rolled over. He was crippled not in the physical sense but his mind was cracked when he was captured by the harpies. He fought against the captors and found himself dropped from the skies. It was the fright of being hurt or death, that his mind triggered the mental wound on his mind that he lost the use of his legs. He surfaced in the real world and disregarded medical therapy to continue his work.

“I have worked on the hook-on routines and the way to get into the system programs. We won’t be lost souls there in that reality but thinking and working ones to work there.” Nicholas held up the helmet that was seen with the points for cables to be attached.

“Cables? Are we in the wired realm anymore?” Fabricius did display his disdain for the wired environment.

“It’s the needed environment. If we do the intervention by remote, we are up-challenged. Not if we go wired here.” Nicholas won the argument.

It was how they went in then and heard of Virgil was there. They found him but the Queen was more adept in locating them.

“The new enhancements will give us better access to the program. I have deciphered their firewall and with your recent intrusion with Virgil, we have better schematics of the designs. We can go back in and do the needed.” Nicholas looked at Fabricius.

“No, Nick. I am going there with Beatrice. You are best suited here to monitor and do the intervention.” Fabricius then turned to Beatrice.

“I need Charles’s help. No, I need another.” Fabricius then spoke another name.” Daniel Arnold.”