CHAPTER XXII

WARNING: Dark, Mature themes

Author's note: Apologies for the week's wait, it will happen on occasion (and possibly next week), but you can expect to see something usually at the beginning of the week.

*.*.*

'This is the first and last time you will come here.'

Ares laughed.

'Then you'll have to come to me,' he said, 'but you can't keep me away.'

Their lips met briefly. Even in those few seconds, Athena felt a palpable electricity pass between them. How shameless of her to kiss Ares so flagrantly on the steps of her temple's entrance, curious eyes watching them from behind the temple's columns. As their lips parted, she sighed.

'Now, go away.'

Ares' grip around her waist tightened.

'First, tell me why you're in such a rush to get rid of me. You're planning something, aren't you?'

Athena hesitated, but ultimately her resolve could not be shaken by his gaze.

'I'll send you a letter by owl tonight,' she kissed his forehead.

'Please, anything but owl.' He groaned. The tinkle of her laugh made his belly flutter.

'I'll find some other creature to deliver it to you—'

'Perhaps I should just come fetch it myself?' Athena felt his hands roam along her back.

'Go,' she kissed him once more before capturing his hands, 'away.'

Before he did, he encircled her in is arms. Burying his head into the nook of her neck and shoulder, he kissed her skin. Athena melted into him as her arms found their way around his shoulders. In his hair, she could still smell the scent of the warm, earthy oils that were used by the servants to rid him of the syrupy odour with which he arrived. Tonight, when she returned to her bed, this scent would still be on her sheets.

'I'm going to keep coming back for you, Athena,' his warm voice rumbled through her, 'until I've had my fill. And I'm not so easily sated.'

'Then for my own good,' Athena gently parted from him, 'I should let you go while there is still anything left of me.'

Already longing for his warmth, she watched him as he returned to his steed. Dark and regal, it awaited its master's arrival patiently and allowed Ares to stroke its muzzle before mounting.

As Ares steered his horse towards the forest opening, Athena called out to him.

'Where are you going now?'

He turned to her and smirked with characteristic smugness.

'You won't tell me what you're up to, why should I tell you?' Tugging on the reigns of his steed, he shot off, disappearing into the thick of the forest.

Athena watched the leaves rustle behind him before they returned to a ghostly stillness. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled; a sudden reminder of the prying eyes that watched her.

'I hope you've all enjoyed the show. You know the penalty for spying and eavesdropping.' She said into the air. The sound of armour clattering filled the foyer as feverish footsteps fled the temple's entrance.

Athena sighed, a feeling of dread passing over her.

It wouldn't be a stretch to believe that he was heading towards Aphrodite's palace, would it?

'Oi. I said we're here.'

Athena's ears pricked as Charon's grating voice roused her from her thoughts. The little ferry pulled up onto the pebbled bank of the river. Careful not to touch the icy water, Athena hopped onto the shore. Before Charon could protest, she tossed him a golden coin. With a grumble, he caught it in the air and tucked it into his pocket.

Athena was sure she heard a few curses directed at her before the little boat returned to the waves of the river. Looking towards the large gates that gazed across the river bank, Athena made her way to the Underworld's entrance, three dark heads coming into view.

*.*.*

When he arrived, it wasn't very warm.

He remembered the summers of Olympus being hotter, nearly unbearable. Poseidon would always tease him for lurking in the shadows, a handkerchief swiping at his brow. Perhaps the summers were becoming shorter. Perhaps Autumn would come sooner than before.

Nonsense. Demeter would never allow it. The warm seasons would never end if she were to have it her way. Only a few more months...

Only a few more and then she would return.

The sound of Cerberus' incessant barking travelled to Hades' ears. Closing his eyes, a vision of the gates came to him.

Of course. No surprise there. He was already sending them, but this was somewhat earlier than what Hades had expected. It had only been a day since the hearing.

Naturally, Zeus was more shaken than he was letting on. Hades smiled to himself.

Hush, hush Cerberus. Let her in.

*.*.*

As Athena entered the throne room of Hades' palace, she wondered how Cerberus was soothed so quickly. In truth she did not have a plan for how she would tackle the beast and thought her wits would be enough to get around it. But at the height of Cerberus' frenzy, his howling and snarling simmered to a low growl. All six eyes fixed upon Athena, he stepped aside and the gates creaked open.

It was cold here. As cold as an Olympian winter and yet Athena was indoors apparently. The hallway that led to the foyer was dark and unadorned and when she stepped into the throne room, she saw that it was equally unwelcoming. The ceiling was impossibly high and two lone thrones stood at the end of the room, elevated on a terraced platform. It was empty. Athena raised a brow.

'I'm sure you're here,' she called out, 'I don't believe you would leave this room unattended.'

No response came yet she could feel a prickling sensation on her skin. He was definitely here.

'This is an intrusion and I'm being impudent,' Athena placed a hand on her chest, 'I would like an audience with you, King Hades. There are some important questions I'd like to ask and I think only you can answer them.'

'He trains all of his dogs well,' a voice came from the depths of the room, 'state why he sent you and then leave.'

Usually, Athena would not allow the dog comment to fly but there were more pressing matters at hand.

'He? Zeus did not send me. I came of my own accord.'

Low, grim laughter filled Athena's ears.

'I do not believe that. I don't believe any of you could squat in a ditch without reporting it to your father.'

This vitriol was not something new to Athena. The two king brothers could not speak of one another without it.

'And I did not believe you at the hearing. In fact, I'm still not sure that I do but that is only a consequence of the trust that has been lost between our two realms. Us Olympians are not without fault for that, but I am coming to you in good faith. If I'm not wrong, Cerberus only responds to your whim. You allowed me entrance; you must know my intentions are pure.'

Silence. It was as though the walls of this room were sealed too tightly; when Athena spoke, her ears rang as the sound of her voice bounced across the walls. A sigh travelled across the room and Athena felt a breath of cool wind pass over her.

'As I said – state your business and then leave.'

'There is a race of beasts I have never known before, wreaking havoc upon Olympus. I wanted to know if you knew anything about them.'

'I stated then,' Hades' voice came, 'that any bizarre hybridised creature that you may see is probably a result of Typhon's…slumber-spawning. One can't predict what is born from it—'

'I am not convinced that these beasts' existence is the result of involuntary spawning on Typhon's part, if this is true.' Athena's voice rang with conviction, 'Their behaviour, the way in which they attack is deliberate and calculated, if not by themselves then by another force that is intended on destruction.'

Behind the thrones, a dark shimmering dust began to materialise. It dipped and swirled until, amidst its plumes, the figure of Hades appeared. He looked down at Athena, his gaze dark and contemptuous.

At the very least Athena was relieved to speak to him in person rather than to his eerie, disembodied voice.

'What do you mean?' His brows furrowed.

'Since the frequency of the attacks increased, I have been collecting data on the beasts and looking for ways to anticipate their behaviour and the manner in which they spawn. I have been unable to find any correlation until the second appearance of these beasts. Last night, one attacked Aphrodite in her palace and weeks prior to this another gravely injured Ares in his domain. I soon realised that this is not the normal behaviour for the beasts that have been spawning in Olympus. These creatures are unaffected by the divine energy that surrounds and protects the gods' temples. The beast that attacked Ares hunted him deliberately with the intent to destroy him. The beast that attacked Aphrodite rampaged through her palace in an attempt to seize and harm her too. Most other beasts will only engage in this sort of behaviour if provoked or threatened, but these creatures sought out their targets without warning or reason. This is not just some hybrid.'

Athena felt out of breath as relief flooded her. It was a burden to carry the weight of these bizarre theories and conclusions and she wanted nothing more than to pick them apart with someone who seemed to know a great deal about beast-spawning and dangerous creatures. She awaited Hades' reaction.

'What does this beast look like?' he narrowed his eyes.

'Large, faceless. As in, it doesn't seem to have eyes, ears or even a nose but it has a mouth that appears when it attacks. It has this…huge, oversized belly with spindly limbs that seem like they could hardly support it. It looks a bit clumsy—'

'That just sounds like some sort of ogre or goblin.' Hades waved his hand and turned away, dust forming around him again.

'No wait!' Athena pleaded, 'It is incredibly fast. Faster than any ogre or goblin I have ever seen. It looks clumsy, but it is frighteningly deft and can disappear and reappear at will. It has a stench the same way any ogre does but much, much worse, almost like a rotting carcass. Its skin is this scarred…putrefying, fetid mess whose odour is infinitely worse when you cut into it. It cannot be just your ordinary goblin or ogre.'

Hades watched Athena for a moment. There was distress on her face. This was not some ploy; she had truly seen this beast. Zeus had not sent her.

'You say these beasts have only attacked twice?'

'Yes, well…I'm not sure to be honest. The first that attacked Ares, I was convinced I had slain. I saw its charred, bleeding carcass in the forest's opening but…remembering now how it could disappear and reappear at will, its entirely possible that it feigned death while I was present and then escaped when I returned to Ares. Who's to say that the beast that attacked Aphrodite is not the same one? Eye-witness testimony from her servants suggest that something similar rampaged through her palace and chased her into the woods. Two beasts, one beast, an entire legion – it is unclear at this point.'

Hades turned away for a moment, thinking.

'I'm afraid Athena,' he spoke with gravitas, 'I have never heard of such creature.'

'But you've spawned one before,' she walked towards the throne, 'not this faceless beast but the Basilisk. At the hearing you said that it would take an immense amount of power and time to spawn in creatures at the frequency that they were appearing in Olympus. But these creatures are not appearing several times a week. Weeks passed between these two attacks – you don't think it's possible that someone whose power is of your calibre is spawning them in to weaken us before Typhon attacks?'

Athena swallowed her words. Once again, she had gone too far and said too much. What was going through her mind to so carelessly expose her hand? Hades may have been absolved by Ma'at's scales but he had still acted in ways that threatened the integrity of the kingdom. She could not trust him enough to divulge the fears of Olympus' fiercest warrior goddess just yet.

'Someone of my calibre,' a smile appeared on Hades' lips, 'who do you know is of my calibre? My brothers, perhaps, but other than us an entity has never existed in Olympus whose power could match ours.'

A chill crept up Athena's spine and it did not go unnoticed.

'Rest easy, Lady Athena, this should provide you with some comfort. Zeus is not the culprit behind your beast – he wouldn't dare endanger his own kingdom. Poseidon hasn't a clue about the sort of science that goes behind breeding and spawning, and as for me,' Hades approached, descending the first few stars of the platform, 'I proved my innocence before the scales of Ma'at. Who then do you believe could be spawning such heinous creatures?'

There was an air of mockery in Hades' voice that Athena could not ignore. She watched him, unaware of the intensity of her stare.

'You'll burn holes through me. Or is it that you think I truly am the culprit?'

'I don't think that you're the culprit,' Athena said tersely, 'but I don't believe you're telling me everything you know.'

'Of course, you don't; you're Zeus' little girl. You've been trained to be wary of me like a good pet—'

'I don't believe you because of this farce, this charade!' Athena boomed, swinging her arm, motioning to the room. Her voice was too loud again but despite the ringing in her ears she continued.

'You put on airs of being this villain to spite Zeus, to ruffle his feathers, but I know it is not true. The spooky omnipresent voice, your kingdom's shadowy entrance, the show of smoke and dust when you appear and disappear, its all a showcase to be as contrary to Zeus as possible. Even this very throne room – this cannot be part of your palace. I do not believe that you would allow Persephone to wilt away somewhere so dark and cold.'

Athena watched Hades' expression change. Something melted away and a glimpse of sincerity emotion appeared. Her heart thumped; Athena knew this was a soft spot that could either bear fruit or get her fed to Cerberus.

'She never speaks ill of you. Despite having two seasons to spew as much vitriol about you as she wants, to ears like Demeter's who would be more than happy to hear it, she never does. Which tells me there is somewhere beyond this dark hovel that is bright and lush for her where you prove to be great company. If it is really true, what you say about Typhon, then I need you to tell me everything you know about beasts, creatures, spawning – everything. No games, no airs, just the truth.'

The huge hall filled with silence once again.

Hades mused over Athena. Ares came to mind. The mind of that god was an unnavigable minefield that Hades was not interested to decode. However, whatever it was that bewitched Ares was becoming apparent.

'I understand,' Hades said after some time, 'why Zeus enjoys toting you around. But why do you allow it? Olympus' shining ace ordered about like a watchdog, why endure it?'

'It's not about being toted around or shining aces. My only desire is to secure Olympus' safety.'

'You're only desire? Is that all you want from that kingdom? I'm sure there is more.'

Athena felt her ears heat up. Little had changed on Hades' face but his voice, suddenly smooth and thick like molasses, seemed right at her ears despite the distance between them.

'Desire is a painfully complicated creature, perhaps as painfully complicated as we are. You can never have just one and seldom can you satisfy one without sacrificing another. Your devotion to your kingdom, your father, is admiral. But I've always wondered whether duty disallows one to pursue more,' Hades turned to his throne, 'ardent desires.'

The back of Athena's neck must have been blood red and if it were not for her hair, it would have stuck out like a beacon in this dark room. Why did it feel like the warmth of his breath was right against her ears, his voice in her head?

Images raced through her mind. Embers, moonlight, sweat, linen.

Aphrodite's face, bruised and tearful came into view and Athena remembered it with the same disdain for her petite, battered body, the same apathy for her tears.

'Athena,' Hades spoke, seated in his throne; her head shot up, 'I do not know this creature you speak of. I have never seen such a beast in the Underworld and during the brief time I spent on Olympus, I was not made aware of it. I am doubtful that there are wanton forces spawning this creature and I simply couldn't tell you if it is the spawn of Typhon without seeing it.'

Athena shut her eyes and her shoulders sunk. Back to square one.

'However,' he drew out the word, 'I will offer you some aid in your search for answers. If you encounter the beast again, apprehend it and bring it to me. Alive, preferably, but by the sound of things I should expect seeing it dead, shouldn't I? Either way, with some analysis and research of my own I should be able to offer some insight into what exactly is afflicting your kingdom.'

Athena's eyes widened.

'You're truly agreeing to that? Why?'

'Isn't it what you wanted? Why risk changing my mind?' Hades eyed her. His gaze was stern as ever, but not unkind.

Athena sighed. It was strange to feel the delight of her own smile. Before she could allow relief to inundate her, she could not forget that she was still working in private and with someone whose relationship with her kingdom was tenuous to say the least. But if it meant the possibility of ridding Olympus of those banes, then the imminent risks could be overlooked for now.

'Thank you, Hades,' she said and to her ears her voice sounded clearer than ever, 'I wouldn't dare be so bold as to offer to put in a good word for you to Zeus in return, would I?'

She didn't expect to here a faint chuckle from him.

'I'm curious about this faceless beast you speak of. For that reason alone, consider this service gratis. Now leave, while Cerberus is still in a good mood.'

Athena offered Hades a bow before turning towards the hallway leading out of the throne room. Before she could leave, she turned to Hades one last time.

'There isn't any message…you would have me deliver to Persephone when I return?'

A tender smile played on Hades' lips; his eyes distant as plumes of dark smoke blossomed around him and slowly consumed his form.

'No.'