My knowledge of Greek Mythology is loose and poor. So, for those of you who are well versed in such things please bare that in mind. I'm also a college student, and I have never waged war on anyone in my life, so writing the scenes where Hades is planning attacks and such is bit new for me. Also, it's just a story I made up for my(and hopefully others) amusement so don't get bogged down in the details. I'm just making crap up as I go along kay? Thanks for reading! Btw sorry for the lack of romance in this. I had originally planned on TONS of fluff, but I found that the story really needed all this other stuff to have it make sense ya know? I just hope one day I'll actually get to the part where Meg and Hades are bouncing off the walls with hormones for each other. xD
Recap:
"I am the almighty overlord. I do as I damn well please, little cherub. Now if you don't mind. I'd like to have a meeting in the forecourt, and you are required to be there. Don't keep me waiting."
And with that Hades swirled past Meg, black toga robes billowing with smoky tendrils. Meg found herself staring, dazed as she was with this new information. Shaking her head, and suddenly realizing that she was icecold, she quickly ran the rest of the way to her room.
"Oooh, damn that man!" She said testily. How dare he…he…save her like that, and then order her about like some sort of slave! Hmmph! The nerve!
'Except you are a slave', her inner conscience reminded her. 'And he didn't have to rescue you. You should be grateful'.
She threw a tunic with more force than was probably necessary into her drawer. "Yeah, well he probably just doesn't want to go through the trouble of finding another indentured servant all over again."
She didn't question the fact that she was in essence, arguing most heatedly with herself. Often the only tolerable company in the Underworld was herself, so she picked up the habit of conversing with herself. But suddenly she wasn't sure whether to feel angry, sad, or somewhat thankful. Hades, himself, was a very vexing man. He liked to tease her, sometimes in jest, but other times most cruelly. Her looks, which was her sole weapon and only usefulness to him, was something he often mocked. It was very irritating. She didn't ask to be born this way, and yet she was sorely paying for it. She snorted to herself in a most unladylike manner. 'It would have been better had I been born ugly. Then no one would want me for anything and I could live my days in peace without heartache' she thought morosely to herself.
Also, the fact that she was nothing more than a slave was a hard pill to swallow, but one she must choke on every single day of her life. She had once had a life filled with hopes and dreams, but now all she had to look forward to were Hades's insulting grins and a life occupied with sliding up to anything with eyes in hopes of enticing them with the promise of her luscious body. Some days it was hard looking at herself in the mirror when all she saw was a pitiful creature who lost her pride a long time ago.
But, she thought quietly, rubbing her hands against her arms in an attempt to warm them, it's not all bad. Sometimes the banter she shared with Hades was actually quite enjoyable. 'When he wasn't being an ass.' she thought tartly. Plus, she got to travel to strange, new places which she would have never done had she not become his servant.
Sighing at her mixed emotions Meg drew out from the back of her closet a blue dress. Frowning to herself she decided that it would have to do. It wasn't purple, but it was better than being naked. It was a plain dress that reached the bottom of her toes. The neckline swooped low in a heart-shaped fashion that most Greek women would be too embarrassed to wear in public. The sleeves were of Italian design, long with several silver strings twining around her arms til they tied at the wrist, the fabric hanging over her hands, almost shielding them entirely. The bodice was tight, accentuating her curvature most prominently. She had become quite adept at tying the suffocating contraption on her own, a skill that would've been most enviable by other women were there any around to share it with.
Meg's stomach growled. She groaned at the unfairness of the world. She would have to eat something after the meeting unfortunately. 'Ugh, I'm staaarving.' Meg thought despondently. She slipped a white flowery hair comb into her thick locks, and decided that she looked presentable enough. So, with her appearance in order she began the long walk down to the forecourt.
When Meg entered the large and spacious room she kept her eyes off her surroundings. 'Never gets old does it?' No matter how many times she had been in this room she couldn't get over it. The walls and ceiling were covered in illustrious paintings. Each painting depicted some grotesque scene or other of heads being decapitated, hundreds of men being slaughtered, babies sacrificed, or sexual torture of some sort. They were detailed and painstakingly crafted, but Meg couldn't appreciate such craftsmanship on something so vile.
She noticed Hades standing at a table, his large hand placed under his sharp chin in contemplation. Maps of various places around the world were covering the structure with different markings written over certain places.
Casting her eyes about for the three people usually in attendance of such meetings she didn't know how she missed them. They were seated at the front of the room, in three large thrones. Each seat was pearly white, made from the bones of poor souls who probably died in some tragic way or another and were now wandering around as a shade of themselves. 'That can't possibly be comfortable' she thought to herself. They were the judges of the Underworld, Meg knew that much. And although it wasn't in their job description they were usually lingering around Hades as his advisors in his plans for war.
There was Aiakos, a thin, tall man with shifty eyes. His features were very pointed and resembled an elf with his pointy ears and high edged cheekbones. His hairs were fair, and straight, cropped short and close in wisps. He was the most nervous and twitchy of the bunch. Meg found she really didn't like him. He reminded her too much of her ex-boyfriend….'The undead version…'
In straight contrast to Aiakos was Rhadamanthys, a name in which Meg still struggled to pronounce. She heard when in life he hailed from somewhere in Asia. His hair was coarse and black, running thick in waves down his back. His body was tall and sturdy, that of a warriors. He was intimidating with his hulking frame and piercing gray eyes.
And lastly, Meg's eyes slid over to the final judge, Minos. He was the eldest of them, his dark hair graying on the sides. Yet he still held the virility in which to command attention and authority. A scar ran down across his left eye, accentuating his honey brown gaze. Despite his age and scars he was not unattractive. His frame was lean and muscular, and his features were straight and pleasing to the eye. He held a kindness in his eyes as well that was so rare in the underworld that Meg decided that he was her favorite. He bared the final vote, and the most with which to sway the others thankfully.
Meg noticed Pain and Panic standing off to the side, so she decided to stand by them. They were the only other slaves in this room, so she felt the most comfortable standing with her rank. As she walked past Hades, his arm darted out, grabbing her suddenly by the shoulder.
"Not so fast Nutmeg."
Startled, Meg almost fell backward as Hade's dragged her over to the table with one arm. He pointed towards a map.
"I told you to go to the marshes to discuss matters with the giants, yes?"
Meg tilted her head, 'Is he stupid?' she thought. "Yeah" she responded, arching a finely shaped brow, as if talking to a child.
"And you went there?"
Rolling her eyes she wondered if he had been struck with a blow to the head. "It was pretty marshy, and there were definitely giants, so I'm going to say yes." She hissed through her teeth.
Gesturing towards his map again Hades questioned, "Then why did the necklace that I gave you show signs of your location being nowhere near the marshes?"
Puzzled Meg looked down at the map. She scanned the area around the marshes. It had a circle around the word 'Giants', but when she looked further she saw that her name was indeed way off course. She was, apparently, in the middle of the ocean?
"That can't be…." She muttered to herself. Turning she looked over at Hades. He was staring at her and frowning.
Floundering about for an answer, words tumbled from her mouth. "I-I don't know what happened! I was there! I swear I was! I almost got smashed by this huge giant, and my dress is completely ruined thanks to those stupid marshes. Oh! And that necklace just spat me out like a fly! Maybe it's defective?"
Minos spoke up then. "Peace, Megara. We're not accusing you of anything."
Aiakos's reedy voice piped up, "Well it is strange, is it not? Your powers have never failed you before?" This question was directed at Hades, who did not take kindly to his authority being questioned.
"What!?" he hissed at the man.
Backtracking he tried to recover, "I-I only meant to say! Uh…that is! W-well?"
Hades' hand was quickly being enveloped by scorching blue fire. "Eep!" cried Aiakos.
A hard, gravelly voice echoed around the room, "What he means to say, is that either the necklace is defective and does not work on mortals, or someone is tampering with your plans Hades" said Rhadamanthys.
Hades paused. His expression grew contemplative.
"That makes sense", Minos said. "Have your enchantments worked on mortals before this?"
Rubbing his sharp blue chin thoughtfully Hades responded, "You know….I've lived so long….I'm not really sure…I've had my hand in many mortal deaths, but to enchant an object to help them? It's not something I do very often…"
Pain suddenly piped up from the corner, causing disapproval to show on Aiakos's face. "Uh! Master!? I believe you enchanted Meg's shoes once when she complained about them pinching her!"
'What!?' Meg thought, completely flabbergasted. She stared open mouthed at the tall, blue god.
He was glowering furiously at the stout red demon. Pain quivered in fear and quickly scampered behind Panic who had remained wise enough keep quiet through the whole meeting.
There was an uncomfortable silence in the room as everyone stared at Hades. A cough echoed through the air.
Hades finally ruptured. "Hey! I was tired of hearing the little tart griping alright! Sheesh, can't a guy just do something once in a while without getting the third degree!?" He was scratching at his flaming head in agitation. The edges of his eyes turned a reddish color, not from tears, but anger bubbling to the surface. His paltry explanation seemed to diffuse the tension however.
'Wow' Meg thought, 'So that explains why those shoes suddenly became the most comfortable heels I've ever worn.' She frowned. 'And I ended up losing them…Maybe he would enchant another pair?' She smiled to herself at the idea.
Hades took note of her grinning face. "And what are you so giddy about?" He snarled at her.
Her smile turned into a smirk. "Just didn't know ya cared, ya big lug." If he weren't her boss, and had the ability to make her life a living hell(no pun intended) she would've amiably punched him in the arm.
"Ahem" said Minos. "Yes, well getting back to the matter at hand, I'm not sure if the problem with Megara's location and the necklace are really relevant to our plans".
Hades arched a brow at that.
"While the possibilities as to the cause are rather curious, don't you think we should be planning our next alliance?"
Aiakos chimed in, eager to put his two cents in. "Yes! The window of opportunity is closing. Zeus's annual Spring Ball is upon us and with the chaos of the mortal world in harvest as well as Olympus's own cirumstances this is the perfect time to strike."
Hades rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know all of that."
He idly walked over to the table of maps again, as if drawn by something. He rubbed his sharp chin, for the third time in consideration.
"There's something here….I think…that the necklace is involved somehow. Someone purposefully manipulated it."
Meg couldn't see what he was getting at. It was as if he was trying to piece together a puzzle with only half the pieces.
"Sire?" queried Minos.
Shaking his head as if he had a headache coming on Hades waved a listless hand at Pain and Panic.
"Summon Circe for me. I want her to take a look at the necklace." With their tasks in hand the two demons scrambled over one another out the door.
Hades peered down at his accumulation of maps, noting which colonies have pledged to serve him and which hadn't.
"Sire?" spoke Minos once again.
Hades jerked his head over to the eldest judge, suddenly in a foul temper.
Minos felt the heated gaze of his Lord and tread carefully. "What is the next plan?"
Not looking at anyone but the table in front of him he replied, "We are not abandoning our original plan with the giants. There is still time enough for this."
"But how will we convince them? According to your servant there they seemed very adamant about staying out of it ", sneered Aiakos.
Meg made a face at Aiyakos calling her a servant. 'I mean, I am a servant, but I have a name. Damn smarmy bastard' she thought testily.
"We shall call upon the help of Demeter. She owes me a favor. She'll make it so that no matter what they plant, their crops will not grow. They will find no food source for miles, and will be forced out of hunger to join me or die." Hades grinned maliciously at this, his pincer-like teeth gleaming in the eerie glow of the afterlife.