Alkhese, Torment of Solitude
One of the six Torments, archdevils who rule the hellish plains. Alkhese takes particular joy in exploiting the mortal need for companionship. It has long since been discovered by Alkhese that a mortal would much prefer to have anyone, even a reviled enemy, than to have no one.
The archdevil traps the souls they collect in a lightless space that seems to stretch infinitely. The only source of light is a dim halo around the soul. Those collected are left in this space, free to explore and even exit their light if they see fit. They are left in this dark soundless space for eternity. They wallow in their loneliness until Alkhese chooses to prod at their hope.
The trapped soul will, at one point or another hear something; the call of someone in danger, the laughter of an old friend, the bark of a loyal hound. It sounds so near, yet somehow feels so distant. These sounds lure the trapped soul from their halo and into the darkness, in a desperate need to find the source. Only for the calls to silence and the soul to be lost in the darkness or return to their distant light.
They are continuously tormented with these promises of companionship. Alkhese may even allow his imprisoned toys to hear one another. This is not a two-way communication. Such would defeat the purpose of Alkhese's torture. One soul will hear another, who in turn hears a different soul, who themselves hear another soul, and so on. The souls call to each other, but are each unheard.
The masks whose to represent Alkhese have a long drooping chin that reaches to the sternum of the wearer. It posesses a haunting smile the stretches vertically to take up most of the mask. The eyes and nose are pressed underneath the bulging forehead. It is speculated that actors portraying Alkhese also wore a halo of light, similar to his victims however this is unconfirmed and still under debate.
