Chapter 8: The Dark Side
"Jet!" Levy jumped up upon seeing her old friend in the doorway of her new home.
She ran up to him and hugged him. He was surprised, but wrapped his arms around her. She heard Hades' tell tale growl and instinctively knew Jet was glaring at Hades. She pulled away from Jet and back up until her back hit Hades' chest and a single strong arm wrapped around her waist.
"How can we help you, Jet?"
"We? What?" Jet stammered, his frown increasing the longer he stared at the pair. "Your mother wants you back on Earth. Zeus has sent me to retrieve you."
"I refuse to go. This is my home now." Levy stated letting one of her hands lay a top Hades' arm.
"Don't you know how evil this place is?" Jet blanched.
"Why should I?" Levy huffed although her eyes didn't meet Jet's.
"Then I'll just have to be the one to show you." Jet stormed forward, ignoring Hades' warning growl and pulled Levy out of his grasp.
Levy was march out of the antechamber and down the hall, Hades' following behind the pair silent, a dark cloud over his head. Jet was being serious as he called forth Charon's boat to the entrance of the castle. Charon's boat was a ghostly black detailed with silvery smoke.
Charon himself was an ancient looking man, with his long silver hair and bread. His left eye was covered with a patch while his right eyes was a empty clouded blue. He wore robes of tattered grey covered in cobwebs and soot. Charon drug his crooked cane to halt his boat against the cobble stone. Jet pulled Levy up into the boat both shook slightly from the chill of the boat.
"To the Fields." Jet demanded. Charon's one good eye drifted as the boat shifted under Hades' weight.
"As he says." Hades grumbled making Jet's hair stand on end.
Charon nodded once before casting off and heading where Jet instructed. Jet sat Levy down beside him, while Hades loomed in the back of the boat with Charon. Levy glanced over her shoulder at her Gajeel sending him a soft smile before looking before them.
Charon's boat flowed down the river Styx before veering off onto the river Lethe. Levy could only watch as they passed from the main chamber and began traveling down into the deeper lands of the Underworld. The river Lethe leveled soon though revealing a land bare of light, illuminated only by the glow of lava walls. Here souls of mortals wandered aimlessly for an eternity.
"The Asphodel Meadows." Jet hissed.
Levy's honey brown eyes saddened at the wandering souls not granted the light and prosperity she witnessed in Elysium. Charon did not stop, however, no he maneuvered the ferry down the river Cocytus. Levy covered her ears as the wailing increased the farther down the Cocytus they traveled.
Here the walls were dull grey and a dense fog clung to the ground. Some of the souls wandered, although many of them were curled into little balls on the ground. All of the were wailing, which reverberated around the walls and all along the river Cocytus. Jet puts an arm around Levy's shoulders and she collapses into him, but Levy wasn't afraid.
No, she felt sorry for the souls trapped here. She knew she could bring a little bit of light to such a dark and dreary corner of her new kingdom. How and if she was allowed to didn't matter, she would do it. She tried to glance back at Hades, but Charon was already turning the boat down a new path.
Levy slowly lowered her hands from her head as they now traveled deeper along the river Acheron. Levy's skin began to crawl as the sounds of chains rattling, whips cracking, and pained screams reverberated up the river.
When they arrived in the chamber Levy had to swallow back the bile that had crept up her . She had read about this room. The room where people who had committed grievous crimes and who had reeked havoc among the living were sent here. She knew she should not feel bad for the souls who occupied this room, they had certainly hurt girls like her in the mortal world.
However, that understanding did not stop her skin from turning ghostly pale as she watched the skin being peeled off of one soul.
Gajeel hated this. Hated corrupting this beautiful and accepting creature with the dirt and disgust that existed down here. He saw her every reaction and each time that slimeball Hermes comforted her or she flinched Gajeel felt his bond with her weakening. His heart grew sadder and sadder as they entered the Fields of Punishment.
Her once lively form seemed to collapse in on itself as she witnessed the horrors that occurred here. Hades shot Hermes a death glare as anger boiled under his skin. Didn't Hermes respect her enough to keep these things from her. Still though Gajeel said nothing. Let the tour continue though the vast Fields of Punishment. That was until Jet motioned to a dark turn off that hissed with darkness so palpable it left the taste of decay on one's tongue. Gajeel put a hand on Charon's shoulder.
"Enough. Return us." Gajeel's red eyes pinned Hermes in place leaving no room for argument.
Charon obeyed and expertly maneuvered away from the river Phlegethon and the darkness that was Tartarus. Charon's ferry rose quickly through the levels of the Underworld now that he wasn't touring for Hermes. They returned to Hades' looming castle in seconds, where Gajeel promptly disembarked.
"I will have the others prepare your things." He murmured knowing the two gods would here him.
Gajeel couldn't look back and see how scared she looked. He knew it would break him and he wouldn't be able to part from her. As he burst through the castle doors his mind began remembering. Persephone standing before the large ornate mirror wearing his cloak. Persephone in the antechamber stroking his hair. No...wait...she was Levy. She had given him her true name. Gajeel's red eyes swam a little as Lily appeared at his side.
"Prepare my lady's things." Gajeel didn't look at Lily.
"Where are you going?" Lily questioned his eyes narrowing causing his scar to scrunch up menacingly.
"Persephone is leaving us." Gajeel stated flatly before continuing on to his rooms.
"What do you mean lea-" Lily barked, but Gajeel slammed his ebony door blocking out Lily's words and the sounds of the servants packing Levy's things.