From left to right, we have
Acheron, the river of sorrow and woe- cries at least twice a week and is often pulled and forced into shenanigans by Styx.
Lethe, the river of forgetfulness- cheerful and desperately tries to remember important facts but to no avail.
Styx, the river of hatred- the trouble child of the family, LOVES pulling pranks, regardless of the consequences of whether it kills someone. Loves causing trouble for Phlegethon.
Phlegethon, the river of fire- The eldest and older sibling of the group. Possibly the only working braincell in the group.
And Cocytus, the river of lamentation- The most depressed out of all five. Cries and wails three to five times a day and believes they're at fault for every possible inconvenience
Of course, these are not the real, tried and true rivers. They officially reside in the Underworld of Greek mythology. However, as their rivers travel throughout every hell of every religion, there are spiritual clones/replicas scattered about.
Each river has a defining power that is highly dangerous to mortals and their souls that try to cross by foot or even in the ferry boat
Acheron causes such sorrow that people will often drown out of unwillingness to continue.
Lethe's forgetfulness will remove memories as crucial as to why a person is there, the fact that they're standing in water, or even the memory of their death. Losing these memories will cause anyone to sleep and drown.
Styx harbors and gives infectious hatred that will spread quickly if left unchecked. The solution is to simply push the first infected into the river, which will then swallow and tear apart it's victim if it's the right person. If not, any infected will begin coughing up blood and literally melt.
Phlegethon seems warm and comforting to people who have done enough good/only done the Seven Deadly Sins. It will burn and set fire, however to anyone trying to escape hell or anyone who committed one of the Eight Cruel Sub-Sins
Cocytus is the most dangerous, as it will cause such pain and lamentation that one will stop dead in their tracks, unable to move, and sink to the river bottom from a heavy heart*. Should a large wave come from Cocytus, anyone caught in it will have their skin dissolved and bones left behind to sink to the river floor. This is, more often than not, done unwillingly and out of Cocytus' depressive mindset
In each hell, all five rivers gather into a large pool that is ineffective and can be walked and swam through. In the BRU, they serve Lucifer, Beelzebub, and the Sins.
*This is a reference to the Swamps of Sadness in the Neverending Story, for those who may have noticed.
jbbartram-illu
germansingergirl
jacobvanloon
stormborns
tangentwithtanner
