In birth we lose them
to sudden defects.
Our minds are not open yet.
And all, all the life you had
you'll finally see.
-In Birth by Oceana
Fifty years after the Great Prophecy:
It was silent for a moment. Then came the first cry, the beginning of a new life. A baby was being born at Saint Richards' Hospital. The baby gasped in surprise, spilling tears onto the bloodied floor. The baby would be weighed, measured and given the proper vitamins. Penelope Morana leaned back against her hospital bed.
"Ma'am, here is your daughter," the lead doctor, a Thomas White said, handing the wrapped baby to the mother. The little girl opened her deep brown eyes and stared at her mother. The mother sighed, brushing her hand against the baby's cheek. "We will get you moved to recovery soon. Is the father here? I could let him in."
"No. He had work to do. Thank you Doctor White. I will let him know though," Ms. Morana said, sharply. The doctor started at the remark and then ordered some nurses to wheel the bed to the Recovery Room. The day soon swept by to night-time. A clock that was hung above the door clicked to midnight.
The door of the Recovery room swung open. In walked a man with intense black eyes and black hair. He was dressed in a neat black suit and business man-like shoes. He stopped at the incubatory the child was in and picked her up. She mumbled gibberish in her sleep and turned over. He walked over to Penelope Morana's bed. Another mother woke and saw him there and started. He just waved his hand and she fell back asleep.
"What are you doing here, Leon?" Penelope asked sitting up from the shallow sleep she was in.
"I came to look at my daughter," the man replied. "She looks just like you, you know. I wish I could spend some time here but he calls me back."
"There it is again. He. Why can't you just stay? Who is this he, who are you?" Penelope asked. The man sighs.
"I am not Leon. I am Hades. You may know Greek mythology. I am the god of the Underworld. Zeus calls me back, the god of the sky," Hades said. Penelope's mouth opens in dismay.
"My daughter. Of the god of death," she gasped. Her hand clutches her chest as to make sure her heart would still beat. "Why didn't you tell me? I wouldn't have- ever!"
"I am sorry, my dear. I was just trying to protect you," Hades said, placing a hand on hers. She flinched backwards, hitting an IV bag that swings on its cord. "Zeus has gotten a prophecy. It warns that the next child of the Big Three will be a key element in a great battle. He will soon order the destruction of- what is her name?" he frowned in frustration. Ten hours had past and the child hadn't been given a proper name.
"I thought you could pick it," Penelope squeaked, pulling herself farther away from the lord of the dead. "I was thinking of Rena or maybe Abigail." She shakes her head.
"Melinda Opal Morana. A name granted by her father," Hades said, smiling slightly at the sleeping figure. He set Melinda back in her bed and kissed Penelope goodbye. "Goodbye, my love. May Melinda grow great," he said, disappearing. Penelope sat back shaken. God of the dead.
A daughter of Hades had been born.
Penelope Morana and Melinda Opal Morana were released from the hospital a few days later. Penelope drove herself to the town of Lilac, Florida from St. Mary's, Georgia. She stopped in the middle of the night at Lilac Hill Orphanage that was settled on the far side of town. She got out of the car and ran to the light doorstep. She put the baby on the ground out of the rain and slid a hastily written note in her blankets. Then she ran back to her car and stepped on the gas.
The headlights disappeared into the night, leaving poor Melinda Opal Morana on the ground. With a note that read:
This is Melinda Opal Morana. Please take care of her.
Thanks for reading. PLEASE review.