Charon raises a finely grey arched BROW to Imelda and her words. Although she is a woman whose occupation was in the shoes variety, she faced death with no less the same BRAVERY as many Olympian heroes - demigod and mortal alike. The silence he hails in this moment is not of INDIFFERENCE or godly superiority, but rather a quieted respect as he bows his sharpened features downward to acknowledge the presence before him. Charon may be the creation of a mighty king and god, who has WITNESSED countless souls pass, cowardly and bravely, but when one soul stands out so vibrantly then Charon must pause to truly appreciate this. Even more so, he permits himself the visual of Imelda among the Olympians, in the era of great myths when they were BELIEVED in - ey⊠Imelda truly would have vanquished lesser heroes âŠ
â You MORTALS are so lacking in imagination ! Everything has become so literal, with a demand to make scientific and logical sense, that you have forgotten the MAGIC of a world without sense and logic, â sighs Charon, slightly frustrated as he raises a bony hand to touch his equally bony forehead. He has seen COUNTLESS souls fret and squeak in horror over the levitating Ferryman, or for the three-headed beast ( bloody dog ⊠) guarding the entrance, or even to the Queen Persephone making flowers bloom on dead, blackened rocks. The mortals have so forgotten the ways of the old world. It is disappointing.
Still, Charonâs mood is promptly salvaged when Imelda brings up PRICE. â Iâve paid for worse for better things, such as a rather boring lap dance from an unenthusiastic dancer from Las Vegas - terrible place, by the way, the GAMBLING is utterly unfair, â says the Ferryman, making no effort to explain a lap dance to Imelda, knowing FULL well she will be unable to wrap her head around its purpose. â So your family being scared to death over my suggestion would be nothing, but ⊠I wonât do it, because one too many Riveraâs in the Land of the Dead may prove to be too much for your own gods or god ⊠whatever it is that OVERSEES your side of things. â
â Well, lucky for you I have LEATHER in my home, which ⊠â Charon concentrates for a moment and the leather in question appears on the floor of the boat, black and glossy. â I had intended to sew it into a ⊠material ⊠but the needle would not fit between my bony fingers. Now, as far as tools go, letâs see ⊠â He focuses once more, concentrating, FUELED by the thought of this woman being a cold-blooded murderer, before the tools appear by the leather. â There. Now, shall we begin our JOURNEY whilst you make my sandals ? â
âAy, no,â Imelda protested with a casual wave of the hand, âQuizĂĄs the new generaciones, sĂ, pero, the old generaciones? Ah, no. We believe in magic and las cosas that are more than we can understand or imagine, we respect things that are beyond us, pero, the young generaciones, they have all those devil boxes to watch things and to play things and it makes them forget there is an entire mundo filled with things that are so much bigger than themâ Miguel was a prime ejemplo of this. The niño had not believed in the importance of the ofrenda, not really believing that his familia could come to share food with them on one night of the year, he had not even believed the dead familia were anywhere at all! The entire Land of the Dead had been a sorpresa to him!
âPero, despite that,â she continued, âA floating esqueleto would unnerve even the most dedicated believer. Especialmente when they are not expecting itâ
However, the greater sorpresa for Imelda was to hear that Charon had been paid in a lap dance. Her entire expression revealed what she thought of that, as she looked the Ferryman up and down in bewildered considered, as if involuntarily trying to imagine the situaciĂłn and still not being able to understand it. âI imagine it was all she had to give,â She reasoned, deciding that never having seen Vegas in her life was not something she should consider a loss.Â
âI can think of a God or two that would not be happy to see so many of us so soon...â Imelda reasoned, thinking of Xibalba in particular. She and HĂ©ctor had defied his odds and even though, since her arrival in the Land of the Remembered, Imelda had always found it easy to talk with La Muerte....Xibalba was one she always found it much easier to argue with. No doubt Elena would be exactly the same.Â
âÂĄAh, perfecto!â Imelda exclaimed as she examined the tools and equipment now before her. She picked them up, squinting at each one in turn, before decided they were exactly fit for purpose. âSĂ, this boat is not so diferente from a workbench...it will be easy to make the zapatos aquĂ. Pero,â She added, looking at Charon with a point of the finger, âNo interferingâ