Beautiful and Unforgiving

(美しくで容赦ない)

The secret behind Dark Meadow, his ability and his heavy blows? It was the zeal for protecting his non-existent master and his ruling home for eons.

Is that where his strength came from? Increased tenfold? The strength of a Hell's Judge or two? Or perhaps near a God? When there's no Hell, the lamented became violent. To make up a fragment of his missing home, his missing Master, there had to be an answer. Like a true dog, he followed Hades to a tee. Therefore, he could process and accumulate all the workings and powers of the Underworld throughout the ages. Even when the Specters were locked away, he would remain loyal to Hell and its process of guiding the dead.

This has been going on for ages and even Holy Wars. Cerberus was not allowed to attack other Specters unless its order by Dead's Law, and if the Specter was considered a traitor. Even when the Specters invaded Earth, Cerberus was not allowed to go; in most Holy Wars, they took place upon the mortal world and both gods led their armies in person. Cerberus remained in Hell; it was a guardian and not a soldier. It was not allowed to interfere with the wars unless Hades willed it.

Dark Meadow was not a Specter, a dark star, to begin with. In a way, he was an experiment. As a soul, still young and on the path to resurrection, the first decree that Hades relayed to Akelepsos was to send out Cerberus in a human-like body. He was still the beast familiarized by Hades; an ancient relic was walking on two legs.

Only praise came from the Underworld King's own lips for his precious shadow:

Good beast, Meadow. After many generations of attempting to have the Earth under me, you inherited the loyalty beloved by all living things. Even among the dead, there is no difference. This dog has transcended, watching Earth and below it by my side, learning the ways of all. With the strength and breath of dragons, and the speed and venom of vipers and lions, showing no mercy, isn't he my finest specimen?

As expected, as a creature of the dead, the fervent protector had obtained the Eighth Sense naturally; the Arayashiki (阿 頼 耶 識) that was beyond the touch of most mortals. Therefore, Athena and Mirfak were completely confined by Path of the Dead; while Sagittarius Seiya escaped, he could have the hound breath down his neck at any moment.

And that smile, which Meadow wore upon killing Mirfak, was a sign of achieving vengeance for the first time.