Chapter Two
"Primer gray is the color when you're done dying
I'm trying to drink away the part of the day
That I cannot sleep away"
- Polar Opposites, Modest Mouse -
~ KORE ~
Enna, Sicily.
A year earlier…
"Be it Gods or men…all males are greedy pigs!"
My mother's stern voice comes from the head of the table, cutting through my reverie.
Sparing her a glance, I see that she is talking heatedly into the phone. I'm not sure too what the problem is but I think a few of my mother's farming apprentices were caught selling their produce to an unknown buyer and for some reason my mother is pissed off about it. But business is business right? I mean, why stop a bunch of farmers from making extra cash? It's not like Lady Demeter doesn't have enough wealth to drown the whole of Sicily in it.
"How dare he steal from me?! All these years, treating me like a fool! No, no! I'm not letting this go. Stop taking his side, Hestia! I've called for a meeting with Zeus." I hear her say, then silence, and then she furiously replies, "Don't test my patience. If you cross me on this, you'll make an enemy out of me. Arghh! To Tartarus with bloody relations! That arrogant son-of-a-bitch can be damned!"
Holy Gods.
My jaw almost dropped. Thankfully, I still have some control over my nerves or else I couldn't have composed that poker face for when mom gave me a regretful onceover. This is the first time I hear my mother curse. Clearly, the black trade is upsetting her. When I saw a copy of the Golden Times and my phone records remained untouched on her work desk this morning, obviously, it wasn't a normal sight but I didn't think much of it. But looking at her now, I'd say things have gone downhill.
Whatever. It's not like she'll tell me if I ask anyway. In this house, we don't do heart to heart.
I sink lower in my chair, my hands fast at work on the new flower I envisioned while doodling random patterns and stick figures on my sketchbook. Reaching for two color pencils of different hue, I started shading and contouring the petal. There aren't enough details on my flower art but I don't mind it. Too much thinking seems to spoil the arbitrariness of my creation. Maybe it has something to do with the word 'procrastinator' sandwiched amongst my many middle names, but I happen to find myself feeling utmost creative at the very last minute.
Flowers are my forte. I grow and nurture them, and they make me happy. My creation may go unnoticed by many but I see the small, subtle joy it gives, the sweet scent clouding the night air where lovers meet, the vibrant colors that lure a smile, the transience that embodies the brevity and mystery of life. The rich may demean its simplicity, the powerful derides its harmlessness, but their conceit fades against the muted whispers of the vulnerable. My flowers may seem bright in a golden vase but it survives best in the dark, dirty soil where the poor appreciates its sincerity and the tortured shelters its innocence.
Although none of it was said out loud, I know that many immortals don't think very highly of my powers. On occasion, I even hear some of mom's priestesses' talk that I'm piggybacking on her high station, that my abilities are a mere pitiable representation of her own majestic powers. The prayers I receive aren't for me, rather it beseech that I appease Demeter's displeasure in hopes that she may be bountiful in her blessings. For long now I have stopped feeling jittery and excited whenever news arrives from the temple; the words from my altar, I've come to realize, are never for me.
If I was being honest with myself, being the Goddess of Spring does little to boost my powers. On top of that, mom refuses to let me show myself or perform deeds that could strengthen my divinity and grow my abilities. She plays the protective mother card any time I question her about it, using my safety and men's perversity as reasons to justify her actions. Why can't she see how her restrictions are only weakening me! I am a child of the King of Gods and the Goddess of Harvest, the highest deities, the first Olympians and yet, my powers are so insignificant as to render me the weakest amongst my siblings.
The tip of my color pencil breaks on the pressure of my grip and I momentarily shuffle out of my thoughts. A housekeeper brings in our dessert of fruits and a cake. Mom, while barking into the phone, balances it between her ear and shoulder, and cuts me a slice; choosing the side where a plump, red strawberry sits on the bulb of fresh cream on the edge of the cake.
Letting out an inaudible sigh, I mouth a 'thank you' and fork some of that yummy goodness into my mouth. Look, I know my mother isn't a bad person but I wish she would trust me more and let me discover life beyond Enna. Mom rarely tells me stories from her past; I'm void of any knowledge of her life before the Golden Age of Olympus. There are stories from the Great War, ones that I hear from gossiping nymphs. They say that my mother wasn't always like this, apparently she was an adventurous deity, bold even…the tales go so far as to say that she even had a lover, and then something happened after the war, it wasn't certain if he broke it off with mom or if she'd turned her affections to Zeus, my father, but it seems that during that time, she changed. Demeter became a completely new person.
If the stories are true, then, I hope that someday Demeter could resolve her issues and see that I'm not her. I don't carry her ambitions or the weight of her desire.
I am Kore, I'm my own person.
And I too have secrets…
Flipping to a new blank page, I start making the same outline that I've been doing these past couple of days. Slanting my color pencil, I begin smoothing the corners, defining the nose, shading the jaw, filling the eyes. Once finished, I find myself staring at his face, his disheveled hair and those brown eyes. My crush. I try to keep myself from blushing and steal a look at my mother who has moved on to another topic, my breath hitches when she suddenly catches my eyes and lifts a brow.
Oh my Gods. Oh my Gods. Oh my Gods.
I offer a tight smile and pray she doesn't request to see my drawing. Dear Fates, if my mother sees it, she'll fucking lose her shit! Thankfully, she relaxes and turns away slightly, about to end the conversation. I quickly and quietly tear the paper and shove the pieces inside my pocket.
My mother drops her phone on the table and smiles at me. The kind of smile that reeks of her helicopter parenting; seemingly friendly yet sufficiently patronizing and a tad bit threatening. A smile that makes you sweat. "Everything okay, Kore?"
I swallow a knot that has suddenly formed at the back of my throat. Why? Is my face red? Resisting the urge to check my reflection in the gigantic mirror plastered on a side wall, I put on my most reassuring smile and hear myself saying, "Yeah, everything's good mom."
Mom is really the last person I would share my secret with. No, I take that back. I would happily take a trip down to the Underworld any day if that warrants my mother remaining oblivious about my crush on her weekly guest.
"Very well." she nods. "I won't be able to take a stroll in your garden, child. I hope you don't mind."
Hope I don't mind? Gracious Fates, I'm ecstatic! Knowing my mom, a 'stroll' isn't a stroll. It's a fucking inspection.
"I'm rushing to Olympus. Urgent business." Anger infects her voice as she speaks.
I can hardly believe my ears. I love it when Demeter goes to Olympus. She gets home really late and I get a whole day to myself.
Yes! Yes! Yes!
Folding my lips between my teeth, I refrain myself from smiling or jumping up my chair and throwing a dozen air punches! Whew, I feel like a leash has already come off my neck.
"In the meantime, find something productive to do, will you?" her snippy remark fails to irk me. "And don't leave the house!"
"Yes." I choke out the words, my voice sounding more like a croak. Before she could formulate any suspicion, I blurt, "Gonna work on a new flower." I add a shrug, hoping to appear impassive.
"Mm. Be careful."
Her phone vibrates on the table and she narrows her eyes when she sees the caller ID, then I notice how she curls her left hand into a fist. Fates help whoever is on the other side of the line. "Off you go, Kore." she says dismissively, her tone curt. "I'll see you at dinner."
I don't say another word and walk out hiding a smile.
This day could not get any better.
"Wanna tell you story
About a woman I know
When it comes to lovin'
She steals the show"
- Whole Lotta Rosie, AC/DC -
~ HADES ~
On the day of my return from Tartarus I find myself in the company of three very hot, very naked nymphs who could fuck like no one's business.
The room reeks of debauchery, of sweat, cum and weed and I can't think of a better place to be. Sprawled on the couch, smoking prime cigar, chugging a bottle of Jack; watching the girls suck each others' tongue on my bed, I'd say it a pretty good way to start the day. After another week in the pits, I expect nothing less.
No hard feelings. I love being in Tartarus, there is a matter of indulgence when you're the one calling the shots, delivering torture. Every time I descend into the pits, a dark energy consumes me, it unleashes my wrath, providing a rush that permeates my bones and burns my blood, it's a heavy temptation and I don't bother resisting.
Like when three girls show up on my doorstep in their little thongs…how could I deny them?
My eyes follow the path of Leuce's hands as they glide over Minthe's tits, circling her nipples and pinching them between her fingers. The biker chick, Evarne, breaks from the kiss and rolls onto the empty side of the bed. She moves her hand slowly down her stomach, spreading her legs wide open and slips her fingers between them. Her gaze falls on my rock-hard dick. I raise a brow, then reach down to stroke my shaft, spurring her on.
Leuce knows how to throw a party celebrate my arrival back into the Underworld. She's one to look out for when I need a good time. We've been friends since the war and she'd found a way to keep my morale up after a fucked up battle. When she decided not to descend with me or take the penthouse suite I got her in Asphodel, I respected her decision. Being the daughter of Okeanus and Tethys, she chose to reside permanently with her pacifist Titan parents but often pops her head in my kingdom for a quick fuck in the office. And she knows the drill.
I don't fuck to claim.
When I do it, I always use a rubber. I don't attach myself to any women. The ones I get involved with physically are under no pretenses; they enter my bed willingly and leave with a sated smile and a sore pussy to last a whole good week.
Back in the day, when I first got to the Underworld, I celebrated my return from Tartarus by pushing dope into my veins and snorting copious amount blow off hookers' tits. Throughout the first few years I was mostly high on some kind of drug, soaking my fists with blood or balls deep in some girl's pussy; it was the only way I knew how to unchain myself, so I partied hard and fucked harder.
I got into fights. I fucked. I got wasted. I did drugs. I tortured. I killed. I did more drugs. I fucked.
My habits pissed some people off, mostly just one woman. She stormed into the cheap motel I was staying in and caught me right in the act. She didn't cringe or apologize to her new King and leave me to finish what I'd started. Instead she dragged me out of that coke-infested shit of a room and did some really messed up stuff that never made me look at drugs the same way again. I've sworn off most of it, except for the occasional joint. I stopped having bar fights with the folks I was destined to govern and started sparring for recreation. I channeled my deprivation on perfecting the techniques of torture and everybody knew not to fuck with me. They began to see what a monster I am, and it's fucking fantastic. People say I'm cruel; I'm not going to refute it.
I find fear to be the common denominator to people's motivations and I feed on it.
Friends, I don't have many. With so many Gods eager to trample another in the bid to gain mortals' faith, you can only trust a few.
Leuce, for one, is an exception. She'd been there for me through shit and glory.
As if sensing my thoughts, she pulls away from Minthe, laughing. Breathless, she glances at me for a beat. "I'm done warming up," she states and beckons me with her finger.
"Good. I'm done waiting."
Placing the nearly depleted bottle on the coffee table and stubbing the cigar into the ashtray, I smile and stride towards them. I barely got onto the bed and Evarne is already kneeling on the mattress, eagerly pressing her lips to mine. A second later, I'm groaning as Minthe grips my cock, giving it a slow pump while she sucks on my neck. Leuce move behind me and drags, slow wet kisses down my spine.
Every kiss, every stroke, devised to drive me over the edge.
Sliding lower, Evarne nips playfully at my pecs, and I smack her ass hard, watching it jiggle. The loud, carnal hiss that came from her lips sounds so tortured and lewd at the same time.
"My lord, I need you…inside me…now!" Minthe demands, her breath hot and teasing against my neck. She kisses her way to my chest and I lower her onto the pillows and suck one straining nipple, making her moan and her hips buck off the mattress. I shove two fingers inside her, fast and without warning, eliciting a hard gasp, feeling her clamp down on my fingers as she groans louder and louder with each thrust.
At the corner of my eye, I see Evarne get under Leuce. Then, I observe her push two fingers into the Evarne, following my action. Leuce catches my ravenous stare and grins up at me. Then, she trails kisses down Evarne's hipbone, moving towards the apex of her thighs.
Pumping my fingers inside Minthe, I move my other hand down and nudge Leuce's legs apart. My lips travel over her smooth, deep tanned skin until I got to the end of her tail bone, and I lick my lips at the sight of her wet cunt. Just as she begins licking Evarne, I spread her folds, circling my thumb over her clit. Then, I plunge my tongue inside her, hearing her screams fill the room.
The steamy wetness on my fingers tells me that Minthe's getting off on this. Reaching over the drawer, I grab the vibrator, turn it on and push it inside Leuce. Quickly, her hand follows and she fucks herself with the red toy as Evarne comes on her tongue.
Turning my attention back to Minthe, I order her to grab the condom. I practically grunted those words. Fuck, I need release.
She opens the drawer and fishes out a packet, and tears the foil between her teeth. I pull my fingers out of her pussy and thrust them inside her mouth, letting her suck greedily while she circles her finger along the wet tip of my cock; a lustful stare in her eyes. I know what she wants. Pussy will have to wait. Minthe takes it better further down. I grab her head back and squeeze her tit. "You want my cock in your ass, Minthe?"
"Yes, yes" she whimpers, grinding her hips against my erection. "Please - My Lord…"
"Wrap me up." I growl.
She moans eagerly and scoots nearer, ready to roll the rubber on my dick…
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Someone pounds on the damned door. Minthe jolts in shock and Leuce peeks up at me questioningly.
What the fuck?!
Then, a voice shouts "Yo, boss-man, open up!"
"I'm gonna kill that motherfucker!" I mutter under my breath.
Leuce got up from her position, looking annoyed. "Please, do."
Getting off the bed, I pull on the boxers and walk to the door; my irritation growing at the incessant beat on the heavy wood.
I yank open the door to a gum-chewing Morpheus who shrugs and takes a step to the side. I narrow my eyes at the witch standing before me. This was unexpected."Hecate?"
"Forgive me Lord Hades but I have urgent news!"
If it were any other entity I would have smite them on the spot and slammed the door to their charred remains. But Hecate and I function on a mutualistic relationship; we toss favors without excessively getting into each other's business. She of all people knew when not to disrupt me. Hence, her presence here means some shit had gone down while I was going down on a pussy. "What is it?"
Dragging a shaky breath, she straightens her posture; appearing more like the calm witch I knew her to be. "All shipments to the Underworld have been put on hold. The grains, vegetables, fruits…everything."
"Why?"
"They gave no reason. Seemed too scared to talk."
"But our payments are always on time and we've been so discreet…" Morpheus asserts, leaning against the door jamb.
I could think of several deities who would sink that low. Anger radiates off my stance but I keep my features composed.
Right away I notice that Hecate is staring at me differently. My eyebrows soar up. "Heard something?"
"Rumors. At the crossroads." Lowering her voice, she shares her knowledge. "Apparently she found out and brought it up to the council."
"About time if you ask me." It's nearly impossible to keep transporting tons of resources into the Underworld without casting any suspicion. I rub the back of my neck, trying to relieve the growing tension. "How much is left in the storage?"
Morpheus answers while trying to peep into my room, "Enough to last a month. Maybe less - Oh hey Leuce! Minthe!" he calls, waving at the girls. "I dunno who you are baby girl but I wouldn't mind findin' out."
Stepping out in my boxers, I shut the door behind me; stopping Morpheus from entering my room and pimping himself to my guests.
Observing Hecate's silence, I take it that she can't do anything about the situation. Fuck. The bitch really screwed us up big time. "I'll take care of it."
Suspicion laces her tone as she queries, "What do you plan to do, my lord?"
Morpheus sees the look on my face and pops his gum.
"Make her pay."
PREPPY: So, what do you think?
