And back again! However, before we continue I have an announcement.
In case you haven't noticed yet I lowered the rating to broaden my public due to the low, almost non-existent number of reviews and hopefully I can get some feedback with this. Honestly, it's a pain and I get really nervous when I hear nothing and unfortunately I don't know what I have to correct, which parts of my writing do I have to put a greater effort in and all these details that I long for.
With that said, I give you the next chapter.
...oh, almost forgot. I DO NOT OWN any of Percy Jackson's series characters, they belong to Master Riordan.
Thalia woke up in the middle of the night with a set of soft knocks on her room's door, being with the hunters means you have to be alert or at least quick at reacting thus change the sleeping habits was essential and nothing better than light sleep for starters. She got up and put the clothes that had been separated for her, nothing extravagant, a dark gray jeans and a black t-shirt with a silver moon on the left side that gave away her slender body.
She found her uncle waiting on the other side of the door, Hades was clad in a black robe that later Thalia noticed was actually made of moving shadows and he was cautiously looking at the other door, hoping for Sieg to be asleep. "Good night, Thalia. My I come in?" He whispered with his hoarse voice, resembling the murmur of the dead in the Asphodels. Thalia moved so her uncle could enter the room and watched in silence as he closed the door as soon as he was in and without making a single noise.
"Good, now we can talk in peace" He took one of the chairs in the room and sat, relaxing and dissolving his mantle of shadows, revealing an outfit that would make any heavy metal fan shed a tear of joy. Thalia had a sense of pride in those clothes since it had been her to choose some new pieces for her uncle's wardrobe after the Battle of Manhattan.
"And here I thought I wouldn't be able to talk to you in private." The god was much calmer and was already returning to his usual self or at least one she learned to like. "Now, you probably already know why I`m here"
"Hundred drachma it's about Sieg" She replied getting a little annoyed with the prospect of another warning this quest was too dangerous.
"Smart girl. Indeed, but it isn't about your choice of going with him or even your little secret" He had a sly grin on his face and Thalia became even paler than the shades. Soon Hades was laughing without any consideration for her feelings and Thalia just wanted to disappear from there; however that would be a little difficult as the god in front of her controlled everything in the Underworld. "Don't feel ashamed, Thalia! You are the first to put him on a leash in less than a year".
"I think I barely holding the chain than actually holding him back" The hunter managed to say despite her embarrassment.
"That's more I like! Don't over think about this matter. There was a time that even Artemis fell for him but she didn't know how to approach him, so she kept avoiding him until he also lost interest in dating her, although they remained close friends ever since." Now that was big news for Thalia, she thought her mistress only had that hateful Orion that turned out to be one of Aphrodite's schemes. Being close to Sieg was another matter, from what she had heard Sieg was countless times better than the arrogant rapist brat.
"It's good to know, I think. But what about father?" Zeus wasn't exactly known for being sensible or even a decent listener.
"I'm sure your father won't object either. Sieg caught him red-handed more times than I dare to count" Thalia wondered how much time Sieg had actually spent with her relatives and what he knew about them or what other kind of secrets he kept for himself. "Now the matter I actually wanted to discuss with you. What he really is."
"What do you mean?" Thalia was surprised by the question "He is what he is, an immortal that can be killed in battle just like me" She was sure of it since it was the only thing that made sense with all that talk about being an Einherjar and the Blessing of Odin.
Hades, however, didn't agree with her, letting it clear on his face "You are wrong, my dear. He isn't like you, he isn't like anything else" His voice was low and Thalia had to approach him so she could hear it "Even if he isn't from our Pantheon, there are some things that I know. One is to know if can die or not and the other is what is your true nature".
"Wait! What!?" Thalia couldn't understand what her uncle was talking about, only those with the blessing of a major god or mythological entities could live for so long. If Sieg wasn't that, then what was he? "What are you not telling me, uncle?"
"I'm trying for Olympus' sake!" He yelled but soon covered in mouth and remained in silence, listening. When no sound was heard he resumed "I think he only told half of the truth to us and only the older gods know it whole like Odin or Ra..." He again covered his mouth, but this time it was a little too fast and it sounded as if he have just slapped himself.
"Ra? The bird-head god? What an Egyptian god have to do with Sieg?" Thalia question stunned the god in front of her.
"How do you know of the other gods?" Hades asked after recovering from the shock but all Thalia did was signal she wouldn't answer before he finished telling what he knew about her love interest. "Urgh...fine. You do take after you father sometimes" sparks started flying around her fingers but that surely wouldn't pose a threat to one of The Big Three, but the guy next door...wasn't the sort of to mess with and a lighting being fired in a closed space would definitely wake him up.
"You are right about one point: he can die in battle" the god continued, preferring to keep this conversation between the two of them "On the other hand, he isn't like you. He has the soul of a god"
Thalia's jaw dropped a few inches and while she still couldn't articulate a word, Hades continued "Amazing, isn't it? He probably uses the Blessing of Odin as a decoy, borrowing power to mask his own"
Thalia didn't know what to do with this, if all this was true then why he didn't told her? Why keep this from her? She trusted him with her life, why couldn't he do the same? All she knew was that she would have to find out why. "Thalia, please remember, the guy have been alive more than any of your relatives, he is even older than Gaea" As her knees gave away, Hades picked her up carried her back to the bed "Understand one thing, Thalia. He's been keeping this from everyone so there must be good reasons"
She wanted to believe there was but how could she... She slapped her herself, literally, they didn't even have started dating properly and she was already overreacting, after all she too have things she still preferred to be left unknown. "I'll keep that in mind"
"Good, now let me hear how you now about Ra" sitting next to Thalia the god was truly curious to know how she had discovered about the others.
Thalia took a moment to get her mind back to normal and revealed her theory. "I first thought about that when I went on a quest to rescue Artemis and Annabeth" she started, trying to read the god's features "When we were at the Smithsonian, we went through an exhibition about Ancient Egypt and I saw some statues with animal heads on human bodies".
"Zoey..." it still pained Thalia's heart that she spent more time fighting with her than trying to understand her "Zoey later explained to me that was how the Egyptians pictured their gods but said nothing more so I didn't give much thought at that time" It was the first time she was telling this to someone and she was extremely nervous, but kept going despite that
"The next time was four months after I had joined the Hunt and one of the new hunters at that time brought a trinity knot pendant with her saying it was a family heirloom and the others hunters became quite curious about it" Hades scratched his chin, already figuring what had happened "We asked Lady Artemis about the pendant and she said it was related to northern European gods, however she too didn't give any details. That's when I got myself thinking of a possibility and suddenly the penny dropped, if there have always been a rift among our own gods, needless to say about other pantheons"
"And finally Sieg's story confirmed my suspicions" Thalia was surprisingly relaxed after telling the craziest idea she have ever had, even more strange was the fact she didn't felt worried of what could happen after the revelation. Hades' behaviour, on the other hand, was a complete mystery. He simply raised and walked to the door, opening it silently and turned backwards, facing Thalia with a warm smile "I just want to know why this generation is so different. Percy, Nico, you and all the others demigods with major roles yet to be full-filled are all unique in your own way, but at the same time you are better than all those who came before".
With a unexpected praise the god steeped out the room and closed the door leaving Thalia trying to figure any hidden meaning in his words. "You got yourself a remarkable woman, however be careful, Master, she is strong, wise and cunning. After all she saw through our little secret". Hades whispered to himself, but froze afterwards as a knife passed to close to his throat and hit the wall behind him, a piece of his own silvery have been used to harm him and he didn't notice anything.
"Watch your mouth, Corpse Breath." A cold voice came from behind the other door, one with a small hole where the knife went through "The Blessing of Odin can't protects you here"
Hades hurried to get away from there, cursing himself for leaving a blade near him. He was the man who had raised them, and thinking he wouldn't notice his presence was foolish, to say the least. On the other side of the wall, Sieg was sitting on one of the chairs playing with the rest of the silvery he'd found in there and talking with himself "I know, I know. She already figured too many things on her own" he put the piece of metal on the table and moving to the bed. "I just wonder how much of this was actually planned beforehand"
He remained awake while Thalia slept, trying to figure the whole situation they were in when the bed he was laying burst in flames, soon after being enclosed in a block of ice. He got up, brushing the ashes off his armour and later looking at his hand, small sparks running between his fingers. "It does seem I'll soon have to choose too, whether to keep hidden or to let the storm of fire and ice free". He ignite a flame on the tip of his fingers and draw a rustic pattern of a wolf on the table "Odin...I don't know what to choose".
They were ready to depart a few hours later, after Thalia woke up. She was feeling much better after sleeping on a decent bed instead of the ground or Sieg, she did like him but his armour certainly wasn't exactly confortable. Sieg, was a complete different matter, he had remained in silence the rest of their stay, and even stranger was the faint glow he now emitted, like a golden dust had been sprayed on him.
Thalia didn't bother to ask about it, the facts Hades had told the night before still shaken her up, Sieg being a god explained why he was insanely strong but it also raised new question such as why he wasn't bound by the same ancient laws that forbidden her father and other gods from interfering in mortals affairs. "Sieg?" she tried to start a conversation with him but he seemed distracted, lost in his thoughts "SIEG!"
The warrior was brought back to reality when Thalia screamed his name at his ear. He grunted, furiously picking his ear "You know you usually poke someone before screaming at them"
Thalia couldn't help but smile a little, even if he was a god, he definitely different. "What's wrong?". Despite her everything she felt about him, she was worried with what this quest could do to him. "You have been acting strange ever since we got to the underworld" she said pointing at him in the end.
He immediately noticed what was happening and subdued his glow with a wave of his hand and looked at her with puppy eyes, trying to put her off but she wouldn't have it. Sieg shrugged and was about to say something when Hades and Persephone appeared out of nowhere. "Hello to you, my goo..." Hades was cut short but Thalia glaring at him "Awful timing I take" she nodded and the god raised his hands, apologizing.
"Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the hospitality of the Underworld" Persephone spoke as a true lady "and that you can visit us again, especially you, Master Sieg. You are more than welcomed at our humble house"
Sieg respectfully bowed to the goddess "I appreciate your words, Lady Persephone, and I'll keep your invitation in mind" he then turned to the god in front of them "And Hades, remember this: you can be one of my favourites, but that doesn't mean I won't teach you some manners if you slip". The god gulped loudly, stretching the collar of his shirt in a comic gesture, grinning like an idiot afterwards and Thalia chuckled, amazed once more by casual the conversation between those two could be.
"I can only wish you succeed in your quest and return safe and sound" Hades said in a low and sad tone after the laughs died. Thalia knew that was he was being optimistic as every quest left marks, visible or not, on every person that went on one. "You have my permission to travel through any part of my domain you desire". He pulled Thalia away and whispered to her "Take care, Thalia, both of you"
She smiled and replied out loud, not caring if Sieg would hear or not "I will and thanks for everything, uncle". With those last words, Sieg and Thalia resumed their way towards whatever would come against them. After a few minutes they arrived at their next trial, a huge plain of flesh, blood and pain, The Fields of Punishment. "It's different than what I remember" she remembered the last time she have been there with Percy and Nico looking for Hades new symbol of power and that ended up with a titan taking a bath in the River Lethe as a courtesy of Percy.
"What you saw back then was the oldest part of the this place" Sieg started explaining, already back to his old self much to Thalia's relief "This are the new sections, build after the two World Wars and in my opinion, the worst place in the Underworld"
"What about Tartarus then?" Thalia asked slightly intrigued.
"Tartarus is consistent, he doesn't change or alter his from in any way" She shrugged at the thought that Sieg actually considered the Pit to be better than this place "The Fields of Punishment, however, are a complete different matter, they expand and adapt to suit the horrors its dwellers met in live, amplifying them and trust me, when it comes down to atrocities the mortal mind is far more devious than an immortal"
"Not exactly a motivational speech, you know?" She remarked but didn't argue with him, she was in her 20's and have already had her share of the cruelty mortal could dispense so Sieg, who have lived for over ten thousand years probably had seem much more than one could wish and even if they were being tricked by the Mist in most of the cases, it wasn't an excuse to the way they treated each other.
Sieg urged Thalia but she wouldn't move so he grabbed her hand and that jolted her back to her senses "Don't leave my side, Thalia. This place is more dangerous than you think". She gulped but also didn't let go of his hand, truth be told, she actually enjoy filling his touch, she locked her fingers with his and noticed him tightening his grip on her hand as well as a shy smile on his face.
They stepped through the gate and soon they were thrown back in time, that part of the Fields was all the pain, suffering and hideous acts that took place during recent war times, all brought together in a single place. Trenches have been dug all over the place with bodies reliving their deaths in those rotten grounds, clouds of mustard gas floated all around the place corroding everything that it touched.
"Now you see why I hate modern wars so much. Only pain and misery are born in these, no legends, no heroes, nothing…" He slung his cape over her, protecting specially her face from while they walked through that horrid place.
"Ever since mortals developed their fire guns, our ranks have reduced considerably" He commented with a distant, sad look.
"And why is that?" Thalia asked, stumbling over bodies.
"With such coward way of facing the enemy, no glory can be obtained and no glory means no honour. An Einherjar must have an honoured death before he is claimed by the gods, without honour in both life and death, one could never join our ranks" his voice was low making it hard for Thalia understand what he was talking with machine guns and bombs echoing all over the place.
Either way, she got the message since she too dislike this form of combat, in her own away she was old-fashioned, not like Sieg who literally lived that kind of life, but still understood his sadness in turning something with already a low number good or decent aspects in something completely hideous and senseless.
Sieg's cape covered her face most of the time, protecting her from deadly yellow clouds, however this meant she couldn't she what was ahead of her and resulting in her almost falling a couple of times on the blood soaked soil whenever skeletal hands got tangled on her feet. Luckily, he was there to catch her but not fast enough to save her pants as they finally crossed the path her legs were covered in blood up to her thighs.
Thalia froze when Sieg removed his cape from over her, not only for the vast emptiness that was in front of them but also because the freezing wind gusts that burst now and then. They continued walking towards the edge of the cliff, much to Thalia's displease.
"It's been quite a while since the last time I came here" Sieg had a nostalgic look on his face that he soon brushed off even though Thalia had already taken a glimpse of his expression. He turned to her, trying to sound nonchalantly and failing miserably as he sound like a sport caster "Welcome, Thalia! To Ginnungagap!"
"And what? Do you really expect that a cliff will make me happy?" Her words were harsh and what else could be expected from someone with a severe case of acrophobia.
"Come on! This is where everything began, the birth place of this world and most of their inhabitants, us inclu…" Sieg went completely quiet when he took a glimpse of some kind of shine object with the corner of his eye and started running towards it.
Thalia was only half the way to where Sieg had run off when he came back caring a spear on his hand. He tossed her the weapon and she examined it, a magnificent spear with intricate drawings and countless runes organized in a way to complex to understand. The spear head was made of a metal that resembled steel, longer than any other she had seen, the blade was a feet tall while the shaft had another 5 feet and was made of a black wood.
"You are allowed to wield it until you can return it to its rightful owner" Sieg's voice was cold and blunt, all excitement was gone and a seriousness like none Thalia had seen so far took over his face.
"Wha.." She tried to argue, maybe get some answer, but was cut short by him.
"Its name is Gungnir and it's the symbol of power of my lord" Now it made sense. No god would leave something so important behind without a good reason. She took his hand, giving a reassuring squeeze and let herself be guided by him. She completely ignored her fear as the dread she was felling now was much larger.
If Odin was the strongest god of the North, than she certainly wouldn't like meeting whatever was capable of defeating him.
Done! Now before I go I must tell you something. I'll be insanely busy for the few next months so I don't know when I'll be able to finish the next chapter, but fear not, dear readers, whenever I have a little of free time, I'll write it.
And for those who might think I'll abandon this story, I'm not sorry to crush your little expectation… I'll continue this story no matter what because: 1. I've already finished this story in my head, only have to put it on paper, and 2. I also already have some ideas for the sequel. (Just a little something to look forward, this gona be fun).
See you guys as soon as possible!