Editing Baator (section)

===Phlegethos===
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The fourth circle is the Hell that most resembles the stereotype of a fiery world of eternal damnation, filled with active volcanoes, rivers of liquid fire, molten rock, ash hills, smoking pits, unbearable heat, all wracked by tremors and earthquakes. Even the air seems aflame and thus Phlegethos is considered to be fire-dominant. The fires appear to be at least somewhat sapient, and lash out to burn vulnerable beings.

This layer is unique for nominally having two rulers. Lord Belial was formerly Archduke, and plotted during the political struggle called the Reckoning to take over Malbolge. He announced that Fierna was to rule Phlegethos in his name, but before he could move on Malbolge, Glasya stepped up and was given control of it by Asmodeus... forcing Belial and Fierna to rule jointly. Now, here's where it gets even more fucked up: supposedly, according to infernal rumors, Fierna and Belial are in some kind of depraved incestuous relationship. This rumor persists despite the fact they are also plotting and scheming against one another. Given that Belial is one of the smoothest-talking devils of all time, and that Fierna is apparently exquisitely beautiful even in human terms (and loves using seduction as a form of corruption), it's pretty much a 50/50 shot that the rumors are true.

It should be noted the Fierna has a very good friendship with Glasya, and is constructing her own network of allies and minions to stand on her own. This freaks out Belial, who is sure she'll depose him, but he actually doesn't want to destroy her, just... curb her ambition slightly. Fierna's palace is itself a den of vice which contains cells with her ex-lovers, which she alternately screws or skewers, as the mood takes her.

This layer has a rather interesting place for devils known as the Pit of Flame, a sea of boiling shit-water with columns of roaring flame. Even creatures immune to the searing flames here are still consumed with agony and suffering, so this is Hell's punishment place for devils. While most devils are terrified of the place, some see this place as a trial for themselves, a way to prove their loyalty or tenacity by voluntarily immersing themselves in the fires, so they pay for the privilege of torment.

But there is another, more compelling reason to visit this layer: Abriymoch, home of the Diabolical Courts, where not only devils can settle disputes between themselves, but mortals can get a second chance. Per the Pact Primeval, if a mortal feels that they were wrongly condemned by the terms of a Faustian pact, they can appeal their damnation to the Diabolical Courts for a reprieve (and while unlikely, it isn't entirely unheard of for someone to win their freedom via a sound argument). The city is also the home of Hell's armaments manufacturing, and is the one place in the cosmos where you can mine Baatorian green steel from the magma, which gives the city a certain economic edge.

The city is also the place where Hell's infamous soul-torturing devices, called Shrivers, are manufactured. Originally, they are used to flense souls and strip vital essence from them to make them into proto-lemures, or to make them into a kind of material used to manufacture certain items; the process is basically one of the most horrific and terrible things in the multiverse. However, clever mortals can use it as a magical location to give themselves some pretty sweet abilities for 99 days (which can be renewed with acts of corruption or obeisance, i.e. evil or lawful acts).

In a way, Phlegethos is the archtypical view of Hell: searing fires, insane levels of torture, and infernal courts where souls try - and mostly fail - to escape damnation. Shared with The Yama Court(s) in the Hindu/Buddhist tradition.

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