"I suppose you will need to be going then." Kore said. She took my arm, pulling me closer to her. I was frozen as she wrapped her tender arms around my neck and put her lips to my cheek. "Come see me again soon alright?" She whispered.

With that she was gone, retracing the trail back down to her mother's home. I wished she would have let me walk with her at least; then again, she had just saved me not the other way around.

Thanatos was standing at attention still, next to Campe; stoic and unmoving. The young god was only a thousand at the time, what he lacked in maturity he made up for in loyalty. He'd been by my side through untold horrors and countless struggles. He was still a boy as heart though; he hadn't become hardened as I just yet. The corner of his mouth twitched as I passed by him by. Rolling my eyes I heaved a sigh,

"Get it out." I groused. He descended into hysterical laughing, like a child, rolling in the grass. Thanatos started pounding the ground with his fist as he struggled to breathe.

"That was the greatest thing I've ever seen!" he said between bouts of giggling.

"Yes, yes, I know." I stood with my arms over my chest, exasperated.

"You have a girlfriend!" He exclaimed.

"Shut up you twit."

Once Campe was secured again, I took a moment in my personal chambers, to recover from what had just occurred. I was sore, the blow to my back blistering with the heat of burns. I took off my armor, standing in front of the mirror to examine my injuries. A gash was spread across my flesh, from my left shoulder to the right side of my lower back, surrounded by red welts. The venom from the Drakaina had inhibited my ability to heal rapidly; normally a wound like this would disappear on its own in seconds. I uttered a few choice curse words under my breath, and snatched up a small glass bottle from my desk drawer. It contained a serum created by Hecate; she prepared it for me after the first fight with the same Drakaina long ago. She was wise in all things, thus I decided to seek her advice on my feelings for Kore. I let the liquid drip onto my back, coating the wound. The relief that overcame me was bliss, as the venom dissipated and my skin began to mend its self.

Waiting for it to take full effect, I took a quick glance around my bedroom; Kore still on my mind. My chambers where bleak; the heavy presence of grey, faded navy blue and black suited my taste, however it didn't seem very inviting. I had little use of this room save for when I slept and even that was rare. I began to imagine what it might look like if Kore did live here with me.

She would need a place to put her clothes and other possessions. It was strange to think about a female having her things in my bedroom. She would have a table next to her side of the bed. It would be our bed, not just mine, and empty no more. What would it be like, to awaken next to her? Then again, I was certain I was getting ahead of myself.

I hadn't expected to see Thanatos again tonight, but not long after I resumed the throne, he entered the hall, along with his twin brother Hypnos. The two were identical save for their eyes; Thanatos had eyes a brilliant blood red, with dark flecks inside somewhat like tarnished rubies. Hypnos had amethyst colored eyes that were as bright and clear as the stone they resembled. When their mother Nyx, asked me to find places for her sons in my court, I assessed their abilities; finding that Hypnos would be best suited as the bringer of sleep, and Thanatos the bringer of death.

Thanatos wore the rugged leather armor of the age and a hooded cloak, always black. He went nowhere without his sword, and the chains of Tartarus. He was a menacing figured of death, pale angelic youth with black wings and a lethal touch.

Hypnos was the gentler of the two, he hung back, wanting to support his brother, but not included in this exchange, he seemed to be awkwardly studying a blank spot on the wall. He favored light colors, often wearing loose fitting robes tied with cords. He too boasted black wings, yet instead of a sword carried the horn of sleep. Thanatos bowed his head as he approached me, he appeared to be beyond exhausted. He began cautiously,

"I regret to admit, I'm not capable of doing my task alone any longer."

"I've become aware." I told him, "Help is in order; I know, however I have been at as loss as to where I might to find the right beings to share your burden."

"I can't go on," he lamented on his knees. "I'm exhausted my lord, the souls of the peaceful come easily enough. However, evil men and those who resist death are greater in number than ever before, along with the creatures that must be kept in the pit; my resources are spread too thin. I can't keep up and the chains of Tartarus weaken." He pulled them out to show me; indeed the restraints had lost their luster. They had been forged by the Cyclopes, created as mystical restrains that will duplicate themselves endlessly, a new copy made for every prisoner who requires these mythical chains. They bind whoever wears them with a powerful spell, draining them of their strength. Thanatos went on, "Without help I fear the chains will break."

"And Typhon's rage will split open Tartarus and the earth with it." I finished.

"Yes my lord." he rose up slowly, "Your work will be undone and so will mine."

"I will continue to search for assistance for you Thanatos." I assured him, "Perhaps then we can restrict your role to the gathering of those already dead, and those who will die peacefully."

"I appreciate it."

I found Hecate at the Trivium where the three bridges meet over the three rivers of Styx, Akheron, and Lethe. I'd come to ask her what I should do about my budding feelings for Kore; however I was also concerned about the chains of Tartarus. She was waiting for me; torch in hand, her face expressionless. She had long dark hair that fell over her shoulders, and wore a simple black dress.

The beautiful Titaness never looked a day over twenty five, though she'd walked between the realms of the earth and underworld for thousands of years. She was no crone, and no fool either, she already knew why I had come,

"You seek my advice on romance?" She cracked a smile then, "But certainly you know," she went on, "just how much this affliction of affection, could disrupt the world." I stooped to run my hand over the back of the hound sitting beside her; I found the presence of canines to be soothing.

"My heart aches for her." I admitted, "I tried to turn her away; oh how I tried, but she has me reeling, I feel as though I can't escape it now." Hecate had a way of cutting to the point,

"She is like you and would inevitably seek you. The problem isn't with your feelings, rather the repercussions."

"It seems there is nothing I can have without repercussions." I groused.

"Already the world is in an upheaval, uniting light and darkness will certainly change the world forever. The matter at hand is: how shall it all be sorted in the end? Honestly, it's up to you."

"Nothing about winning her heart then?" I jested,

"You've already got her heart; certainly to reject her will break it."

"I wouldn't reject her now anyway."

"Then nothing shall remain the same as it is now."

"Any other suggestions?"

"Show her who you really are, that will bring her to life."

"Bring her to life?" I repeated, but then she was gone, Hecate comes and goes on a whim like the night wind all at once here then gone; back into the darkness without a trace.

That night was one of many sleepless nights I sat gazing over the Styx, contemplating. Finally my thoughts settled on Kore and what she told me about her mother; the things she may do if Kore ever tried to leave. Demeter can't really be so unable to accept that her daughter had fallen in love. She must realize at some point she can't keep Kore by her side forever. I repeated Hecate's words as they rattled around in my head, uttering them into the darkness before me where they are swallowed up,

"When light and dark unite..."