Chapter 1
The Deed
What would you do if the one person admired, more that any other being, was hidden behind reality's unbreakable wall?
What would you do if your only hope of ever encountering them would require you to place yourself in mortal danger?
And what would you do if someone magically appeared out of the blue… and gave you the opportunity to do just that?
…
Excitement can be a very dangerous thing. Who would have thought it? I know it would never have crossed my mind. When I was asked to perform this deed they didn't have to ask me twice, I jumped at the chance. Yet for weeks after I committed this act I would be asking myself why, why did I do it? Why did I feel so compelled to free him?
The Fates clearly knew why. Or at least, they knew I was more than happy to help. But after they gave me the power to restore the god of the Underworld back to his former glory I would never see the Fates again. They gave me the gift, whisked me away, and that was that. They left me to wander the rocky grounds of a new reality.
At least it wasn't a shock to me. I'd crossed this barrier before, and I'm not referring to the act of freeing a god, that was new to me. I'm talking about transitioning from one world to another. I'd done this before, although this particular world was a first.
Reality had shifted. I was in a new world and I knew the rules.
Rule one: Don't reveal anything about the future to the world's inhabitants, which didn't matter anyway because on this occasion I didn't know any future events. Rule two: Don't lie, that's something I'm forbidden to do. Although that doesn't mean I always have to tell the truth, thankfully. This particular rule does give me some breathing space though. It's three strikes, and I'm out.
Now, if I break the first two rules I'm sent home, as is always the case. But as for the third rule, breaking that does the opposite. Rule three: Never reveal my real name. If I do, I'll be trapped in the world I'm in. Don't ask me how this one works. I don't make the rules and I've never been able to figure them out.
Fortunately for me, I've never met anyone in another world who wasn't aware that 'Mezame' wasn't my real name. I don't have to tell them it's my alias. It's my name, when I'm not at home in my own world.
'Mezame' was my name right now, right this second as I stood on the edge of a rocky cliff. Embowered by grey-blue granite and so deep in the earth's crust I was sheltered from all natural light.
This was where my little imp escorts had brought me. This was the last place their boss was seen as a free god. Now he was trapped at the bottom of his own deathly river and I was carrying with me, at that very second, the only thing that could get him out.
This was very special, the circumstances I was in, and I had every intention of taking full advantage of the situation. I had something he wanted, but I wasn't going to just hand it over. I was in a position to demand a price for his freedom. I was in a position to make one of my greatest desires become reality and it was time to put my bargaining skills to the test.
"I have the power right here." I called down into the green abyss as I stood upon the jagged edge of the cliff. "Now do you want out or not?"
I may have sounded bold, but beneath my firm demeanour my anxiety was steadily increasing as I awaited a response. Hearing his voice for the first time had already made me smile uncontrollably. But now, only a few seconds later, uncertainty had taken control and I was worried that he might not like the terms I had laid out for him.
There was a long pause, before the silence was finally shattered by the god's sharp and distinctly cocky voice. "Help me out here, boys." He called out to his minions. "C'mon, what's she look like?"
The demonic duo gave each other worrying expressions, like they were unsure of how to answer. My face soon matched theirs as I began to have concerns of my own about the success of my bargain.
"HeLLOO?" Their fiery ruler cried out impatiently. "She pretty? She clueless? Does she look like she's gonna cause trouble? What!?"
"She doesn't look half bad." The pudgy pink imp dared answer with an uneasy tone. "But…" He paused, unable to conclude.
"Ah-I don't know what she's supposed to be wearing." The thin, green, second half of the duo finished off his companion's comment.
I felt obliged to comment myself. "You shouldn't judge people by what they look like or what they wear." I firmly objected. "I happen to be from the future."
At which point, the two little monsters erupted with laughter at the absurdness of my admission.
Their laughter only powered my confidence. "It's true!" I barked at them. "Ask the Fates if you don't believe me. They're the ones who brought me here."
I still didn't know where all this confidence was coming from. Perhaps it was because the main attraction was still beyond my reach and unable to touch me or cause me harm. Maybe it was also because I was talking to his minions rather than the god himself. This of course was about to change as the same voice that gave me chills spoke freely once again.
"So." The eerie voice of the Underworld god echoed back at me. "A canny little hussy from another cosmos."
I looked away over my shoulder. "You could say that." I uttered. I didn't know whether he was complimenting or complaining. Either way, he was only making me ever more nervous.
I had to fight through my fear and and try to focus. Our conversation had drifted off topic and I had to quickly return to reason I'd come to his Underworld in the first place.
"Look." I breathed out as I relaxed my shoulders. "I'm not going to be a pain if that's what you're worried about." I wanted to easy any concerns he may have had about this dabling damsel who he may soon have to share his Underworld with. But my attempts to ease would only lead to more troubling questions.
"What d'you want with me anyway?" The witty Lord of the Dead was still suspicious. "What's in it for you?"
I tensed once again. I really didn't know how to answer this question, and unbeknownst to me at the time, it would take me weeks to figure it out. What did I want with him? At the time, the only answer I could provide was the one told to me by the bewitching trio whose powers brought me here.
"Well, the Fates couldn't do this by themselves." I began to explain. "They needed a mortal to do the job, and I was the only one willing to free you."
In a snap, my godly inquisitor cut me off right at the end of my sentence. "That's not answering my question." He spoke to me in such a cunning tone. Why did I have the feeling that if I could see his face he would be smirking? "Y'know I've had mortals ask me for bigger than this." He resumed. "I've had lowlifes come crawling to my Underworld begging me to raise somebody from the dead, that's the one I'm used to hearing… But you?"
My breathing became heavier. Being put on the spot like this only made it that much harder for me to come up with a satisfying answer. I truly didn't know what compelled me to accept the offer of the Fates. I just found the opportunity too special to resist.
"You're a myth in my world. I thought meeting you would be interesting." I tried my hardest to explain what I knew without breaking the second rule and lying. "Besides." I quickly changed the topic once again. "Someone's got to bring you back, and the Fates knew I was willing to do it."
After making my best attempt to satisfy this god's question, I could then relay to him my demands. I had already specified what I wanted at the start of our conversation, but now I'm about to reveal my terms to my readers too.
"I'm not asking for much." I dissed my own desires in hopes of persuading the Underworld god. "Just to come and go as I please without any harm coming to me."
That was all I wanted. Which is why the reason I wanted to free him became so troubling. I wasn't just wanting to free him. I wanted…him. I didn't ask for immortality or for someone's soul to be saved, or for anything that any other mortal might have asked him for before. I wanted him. Or, at least to be around him. And since I knew how dangerous this Underworld god could potentially be, I wanted to be able to wander in his world without risk of harm.
So that was it. If he made this deal with me then I would be staying right here in the Greek Underworld, in the presence of this deathly god. I couldn't be made to leave, and I couldn't be harmed either.
Maybe this is what made him suspicious of me. Not only was this an unusual request in exchange for his freedom, but what if having me around became a burden to him? Perhaps this is what he was worried about.
"You got a name?" That voice again, curious or seductive, I couldn't tell. But regardless, I needed to take another deep breath before I could relax enough to reply.
"Mezame." My otherworldly name left my lips in a rather unexpectedly proud tone. Maybe it was because my name always sounds so unique that I was able to announce it so confidently.
It seemed that the Lord of the Dead somewhat agreed, even if for different reasons. "That doesn't sound like a mortal name."
It wasn't a question, but it still required a answer. "It's my mortal name." I clarified. "And remember, I'm from another world. I'm not Greek either, so that might explain it."
There came a short silence, or at least there would have been silence if not for a short hum from Underworld god as he pondered about the situation.
I dared shatter the quiet. I had to help move things along. This was my only chance, even if I still didn't know what this 'chance' entailed. My only chance to do what? I would never find out if I let it slip my grasp.
"Why hesitate?" I smiled calmly for the first time since our conversation began. "I'm not going to get in your way, and don't you want to get out of there? And get back to being the almighty God of the Underworld?"
Persuasion is a talent I had never practiced before. Surely he wouldn't just walk away from the freedom I was offering. It must have been unbearable for him being in such a weak position, robbed of his power and so helplessly stranded.
"I mean let's face it." I used this very principle to my advantage. "You're in no position to do anything where you are. You're not exactly an almighty god when you're stuck at the bottom of a whirlpool."
"Alright-alright okay!" His sharp echoing voice cut me off once again and silenced me on the spot. But it wasn't his voice that made my spine tingle with excitement. It was what he was about to say next that would make my eyes widen. "…We got a deal."
My heart pulsed with anticipation. The great god of the Underworld had swayed and I couldn't contain the smile on my face that tightened my cheeks so tensely. But despite the thrill I was experiencing, I was determined not to be imprudent, and I still had enough control over my impulses not to give in to them. Before I made a deal with a devil, it was essential that my rewards were made clear.
"Free to roam wherever you roam without any harm coming to me?" I reiterated the terms or our bargain.
That seductively smooth tone drifted to my ears. "You get me outta here?" He confirmed. "I'm all yours. Just, try not to get on my badside, alright?"
This was it. The conclusion had been reached, and I all had to do was utter a single word that would change my near future, and set in stone an exclusive and truly exceptional contract between a mortal and a god.
"Alright." I exhaled as every ounce of apprehension and caution escaped my human body. "Deal."
[Read in comic format :D]
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