"HADES!" I screamed at the top of my voice as I was being forcefully dragged away from him and the others. I felt my body running over stones, pebbles and broken fragments of marble as I was pulled roughly on the ground.

Suddenly, I was being lifted into the air by the vine snake that had coiled itself around my ankle. I was then hanging upside down by my right ankle, and I could immediately feel the ichor in me rushing to my head, instantly making me feel very woozy.

But through my dizziness, I could see Hades running towards me with an angered expression, completely with dangerously narrowed eyes and a snarl.

Suddenly, I felt someone grasping the back of my head and I was forced to look to the right. There, I was met eye-to-eye with my mother.

If looks could kill, the angered look on hers could easily do the job thoroughly.

And then, I darted my eyes in the direction of Hades' angry yelling voice.

"LET GO OF HER RIGHT NOW, DEMETER!"

Demeter let go of my head and pointed both her hands at the incoming Hades. And right there, more vine-like growth darted up from the ground and wrapped around his legs, causing him to fall on his knees, where the vines too wrapped around his body like a straightjacket.

Seeing him trapped like that reminded me of the thorns that he was previously trapped in by my mother, and that only increased my pain.

"NO!" I cried. Then, I was suddenly begging. Begging desperately for Hades to be spared. "MOTHER, PLEASE! LET HIM GO! PLEASE!"

Unfortunately, she turned a deaf ear to my pleas. Instead, she waved a hand at me, causing more of the undergrowth to wrap around my entire body and form a mossy muzzle on my mouth, used to silence me completely. I screamed, but it only sounded muffled.

As I struggled, I saw Apollo, Artemis and Athena leaving their positions in the circle and running towards us, their faces showed that they were ready for a fight. A sliver of hope appeared then. A hope that they could help to stop everything there and then.

But suddenly, Demeter gave a wave of both her hands, and suddenly, the three of them stopped in their tracks, looked around in complete disbelief, and started pounding their hands in the air, as though they were held by an invisible barrier.

And I began to realize that was exactly what happened, for I could feel the absolutely strong aura of my mother's power all around me. She was trying to cut everyone off, so that none of them could reach the three of us and interfere.

I felt tears pooling in my eyes as I gazed at them. I was feeling so pathetic of myself right now. Compared to the other gods and goddesses around me, I was the weakest. My powers could not be compared to theirs. I was completely hopeless.

Hades was still struggling in his vine restraints, but he stopped just as my mother stood right in front of him.

I watched as they stared at each other's eyes, not saying a word. I continued to struggle slightly, but I mostly kept my eyes on them, tensing about which of them would make the first move.

It was Hades who made the first move. He struggled once more and muttered angrily, "How could you do this, Demeter? How could you do this to everyone? Especially Persephone, your own daughter?"

I could feel the outrage and disbelief in his voice, and it made me cry even more. I felt even more in pain when I felt the strong throbbing in my head, thanks to being upside-down.

My mother face only scrunched up into a grimace and she simply replied in a monotone voice, "I have my reasons."

Anger flashed across Hades' face and he shouted, "Reasons? REASONS? WHAT REASON DO YOU HAVE TO WANT TO FORCE PERSEPHONE INTO DEATH WITH YOU? WHAT REASON DO YOU HAVE THAT WOULD MAKE YOU REFUSE TO COME BACK TO BEING A GODDESS? TO COME BACK TO BEING WHO YOU TRULY ARE?"

Out of the blue, Demeter gave a cry and took a step back. She then clutched her heart as though she was suffering from a heart attack. In a broken voice, she howled, "ALL OF YOU!"

The air seemed to go very still after she had said that, and all of us waited in silence for her to answer.

She looked at Hades, then at the rest, and then at me. When her eyes looked over to me, I could see very clearly how bloodshot they were and extremely filled with tears. It then made my heart break, seeing my mother like that. I had never once wanted her to be unhappy. But it seemed that now she was already too deep in pain to be saved from it.

Then she turned away from me to glare hatefully at Hades once again. He, on the other hand, looked at her in a mixture of sadness and confusion.

Demeter then spat, "I know of all of your hatred towards me. Hatred that I was the one who brought the first cold winter, the harsh month that harmed the mortals who worshipped you. I know of how much all of you hate the way I act. Hate it so much that you do not hesitate to voice your disgust of me."

And then, she gestured to me with a raise of her hand, and continued in a more sad voice, "But never once has Persephone ever thought ill of me in the past. Despite the way I act, and most importantly, despite the fact that she knew I hated you, Hades, she has never scorned me. She loved me no matter what. She was the only person who did."

Demeter turned to look at me once again, and her olive green eyes were still full of tears, most of which were now streaming down her cheeks.

"I want to escape the hate that I receive from the rest of you, but I want Persephone to be there for me," she whispered through her tears. She then stepped away from Hades and walked towards me. I did not fidget as she came closer, and I did not flinch when she lifted her fingers to my cheek. I just blankly looked at her with eyes that held as much tears as hers did.

On a choked voice, Demeter said to me, "I know that you may hate me now, but I want you to know that no matter what, you always brought happiness into my life, even though I have brought pain into yours. And I want us to be together. I love you very much, my daughter."

I sucked in some air sharply through my nostrils and shut my eyes. I knew that she could hear me when I whispered in my mind, If you truly love me, you will stop this.

Suddenly, both of us turned in the direction of Hades, who was yelling something that was similar to a war cry. It was then I noticed that his vine straightjacket was fogged by shadows, and that it seemed to be disintegrating. His dark aura filled the entire interior of the invisible dome barrier, clashing against my mother's earthly aura.

My mother watched in fear as the vines that trapped him shrivelled and fell apart, and Hades stood to his formidable full height, completely free.

He glared daggers at Demeter, his jaw taut and his fists clenched tightly.

"NO!" Demeter suddenly cried, and she shot a hand out, shooting her forceful power out of her palm, directed solely on him.

I screamed his name in panic, but because of the mossy muzzle, it sounded muffled.

But thankfully, Hades shot out his hand quickly, and his own dark power shot out like a missile. It overcame Demeter's own power and sent her flying backwards, whereas it helped to weaken the vines that trapped and held me upside-down.

I turned my head to look behind me, and saw that my mother was pushed onto a large slab of marble. When her back had made contact with it, the forceful and powerful impact made the stone break into many pieces and sent the fragments flying in all directions. One even nearly hit my face, but I dodged it at the very last minute.

Demeter was quick to recover, and she got up on her feet all raging with power. Her aura was seen for the very first time, ablaze around her like golden fire.

Hades' aura could be seen clearly as well. But I was completely surprised that despite the fact that the powers he used to attack all seemed to radiate darkness, his aura was also burning gold, although it was still outlined with darkness.

He stood firm and strong, showing that he would not easily back down. And at that moment, I could finally see who he really was. The person I've always dreamt of seeing since I first fell in love with Greek myths.

I saw Hades, the God and King of the Underworld.

I've known that was him for long, but this was the very first time I actually saw him as such.

He was dangerous, powerful and formidable. But yet, so beautiful, magnificent and regal. Indeed, he fitted the title of a god.

But at the same time, he was a warrior.

And his opponent is my mother.

Things are about to get serious right here.

Athena used all the power she could muster to try and find a weak spot in Demeter's invisible barrier. But it was nearly close to pointless. This barrier was made up entirely of the power of the Earth that she stood on. It was at its maximum, and it was near impenetrable.

She wasn't the only one who was desperately trying. Around her, the others were unleashing all that they have got to try and break past the shield, all working at the command of Zeus. But no matter what, it still seemed hopeless.

Athena banged her fists on the invisible barrier in frustration. Damn it! she shouted in rage in her mind. Why does she have to make things so difficult! After a deep breath, she wondered, Why couldn't she just let go?

Suddenly, she felt a strong clashing of powerful auras coming from within the barrier. Athena looked up and saw that Hades and Demeter were both glowing golden, and they were locked in a fight. Meanwhile, Persephone was still trapped in and being hung upside-down by the vine-like cocoon, watching in dismay as her mother and her husband fought over her.

Athena watched as the Underworld God and the Harvest Goddess engaged in a battle of opposite powers. The fight was heated and intense, and the pure and powerful energy from their attacks bounced off the barriers.

But Athena noticed one thing. Demeter was using the powers of the Earth, enhancing her own strength, giving her the upper-hand in this fight. Though Hades proved himself to be a strong and powerful fighter, he could not match with the power Demeter had right now, for she was getting it straight from the source.

Athena watched as Demeter summoned for plants to shoot out of the ground to trap Hades within its growth, or to shoot out poisonous liquids onto him. Being a god of the Underworld, Hades caused the said plants to die with ease, but Demeter only caused more to grow with each passing second.

Being the Goddess of Battle Strategy, Athena could easily note that Demeter was using the elements around her to her advantage. And thankfully for Demeter, the elements just happened to be nature, which she was the very goddess of.

Athena became worried. If this kept on going, the rapture would arrive in quicker time. And if the gods and goddesses weren't assembled by the time it did, the new world would cease to make it without them there to stabilize it.

Suddenly, Athena could feel a shift in the air. She was sure that the others could feel it too, for all of them stopped whatever they were doing and trying to find the source of the cause.

The more Athena concentrated on the shift, the more she could feel a new aura. But this aura was very special. It felt like a mix between Demeter's aura and Hades'. But it wasn't clashing. It was acting in union.

In an instant, the Goddess of Wisdom's piercing grey eyes darted to Persephone.

I have to get out quickly.

I have to end this.

With all the power I possessed, I tried with all I got to force the vines off me. I could feel my power building up from deep within me, and working its way to the vines, prying it open.

It worked slightly, but it was still not enough. The vines remained tight around me.

I was so desperate to escape, that I did something that I didn't think I was capable of doing.

Being the queen of the Underworld, also making me a goddess of it, I knew that I must have possessed some dark powers like Hades. But I suspected mine must be weaker than his due to the fact that I was still at the same time a goddess of Earth. I believed that to be true, but I didn't know if it was.

So I decided to find out.

I shut my eyes and focused very intensely. In me, I tried to find for anything that was similar to Hades' aura. I tried to detect if there was even one hint of darkness within me. But all I could feel was brightness. A shining and strong brightness that seemed to destroy any form of darkness.

So I tried harder, and, for some reason, I thought about many things.

I thought about Hades. His warmth and lovingness. The protection I felt around him.

Macaria, Melinoe and Zagreus. My three beautiful children with Hades. The apples of my eye.

Hecate. My good friend and confidante.

And then, I began to remember the very first dream I had of 'Aiden Cole'.

I remembered clearly the foggy world and the bland weeping willow trees that had colourful flowers adorning its droopy branches. I remembered the soft, velvety feel of the petal of the dark pink azalea-like flower in between my fingertips.

And I especially remembered Aiden approaching me. I remembered his scent; woodsy and laced with smoke, warm earth after rain and peppermint. And I remembered that when he stood in front of me, he murmured one word.

"Remember…"

And I knew now what he wanted me to remember. He wanted me to remember who I really was.

Persephone, the Goddess of Spring and the Queen of the Underworld.

And I did. I remembered it.

My eyes flew open to see the vines around me shrivelling and dying. The muzzle on my lips fell of, and I inhaled a large amount of air. And then, when the last of the vine coil died away, I finally fell to the ground after being suspended in the air for so long.

I lay down on the grass for a while, recollecting myself. I felt the ichor that had filled my head quickly spread throughout my body, and I felt relieve when the throbbing finally stopped.

But as my senses returned to normal, I quickly remembered the fight going on. I lifted my head up, ignoring the wave of vertigo, and looked over to where my mother and Hades were.

Demeter was too strong. She was too powerful. Hades could not defeat her, but he was struggling to try. He was not going to give up.

Nor was I going to let him. I was going to help him.

In a flash, I got onto my feet and ran towards them. As he was on his back on the ground, Hades finally noticed that I was free of my restraints and was going to cut in the heat of the fight. He looked at me with a panicked expression.

But thankfully, Demeter hadn't noticed the way he was looking at me, meaning that she had yet to notice me. Because of that one mistake, she was suddenly being thrown off to the side under my strong powers.

Demeter looked at me, and her eyes widened when she saw me advancing towards her. But suddenly, her tears returned, and she whispered in a voice full of pain and sadness, "Why, Persephone? Why do you still side with him? Do you really despise me that much?"

I kept my guard on, but I replied back in gentle sincerity, "Never say that, Mother. No matter what, I still love you. I love you with all my heart. I never want to let go of my love for you. But yet, I cannot leave Hades either. He is my husband. We are bound in union. I am bound to the Underworld, but I wilfully fulfil the agreement without complaint."

I was surprised when tears started falling from my eyes, but I continued on.

"I love you. And I love him. I want the both of you in my life, and I am willing to spend an equal amount of time with either of you so that all of us would be at peace. However, I cannot take it if I lose either you or him."

Slowly, I lifted a hand to my mother. She looked at it sadly, more tears falling from her eyes and her lips trembling so much.

In a whisper, I asked, "Please, Mother. Return with us. I will still be with you, no matter what."

I waited for her to take it. I looked at her pleadingly, wanting desperately for her to take my hand.

And slowly, she lifted her own hand, and was about to put it into mine.

Athena felt the barrier weakening. It weakened and weakened until finally, it disappeared.

Her eyes were locked on Demeter and Persephone. Especially on Demeter, who was slowly about to take her daughter's hand. Athena did not really know what had happened, what Persephone had said to cause the older goddess to be that way, but she could tell that it was a good thing.

Unfortunately, she did not notice that Zeus had a lightning bolt in his hand.

Zeus threw the lightning bolt the very minute the barrier had faltered. He had intended to use his powerful weapon to break open the barrier. But instead, he unintentionally struck it to the ground Demeter was standing on, causing the ground to break and exposing a hole underneath it.

A hole that Demeter was now falling into.

When she fell, I screamed in fear and panic. My screams complimented the one coming from her lips.

But both of our screams were cut off when Demeter stopped falling, for she was now holding onto a hand of Hades, who was lying on his front near the edge of the hole. Demeter looked up at her brother with wide and bewildered eyes. Her eyes became even more bewildered when he lowered his other hand.

"Take my hand," he urged her desperately.

She did not take it immediately. Instead, with fresh new tears in her eyes, she cried, "Why do you want to save me, Hades? After all I've done to you? After all I've done to her? Let me go, and you can finally have Persephone to yourself. You deserve her."

I felt my heart break into many pieces when she said that. It pained me to see her hurt, and it pained me even more to see her defeated like this.

Somehow, Hades must have felt the same thing, for he replied to her gently, "I would never do that to you, sister. I would never let you fall into misery."

Hearing him say that overwhelmed me with new tears. I couldn't believe how he was. Despite everything my mother had done, he still found it in his heart to see past it and made him refuse to let go of her.

Demeter looked at him in shock as more tears slipped from her face and into the bottomless pit below. She gazed into Hades' eyes, doing absolutely nothing. Her hands were still gripping tightly onto his right hand.

Hades lowered his left hand a little bit more, and pleaded, "Please, sister... Please don't do this... Things will be better... I promise..."

And with that one promise, Demeter finally grabbed hold of his other hand, and hoisted herself up just as Hades pulled her up onto the ground.

When her feet touched the grass, I rushed to her and threw my arms around her, crying into the cloth of her blouse. She held me just as tightly, and cried softly into my hair.

I never wanted to let her go. Not now, not ever.

But we had to momentarily release each other when Apollo suddenly exclaimed, "It is time! Hurry, before it is too late!"

Quickly, all of us ran to the former position of the circle and formed a bigger circle, due to the addition of me, Hades and my mother. We stood a space apart from each other, standing firmly and strong.

As I looked up at the starry night sky, I heard Apollo say out loud and seriously, "Let us proclaim ourselves as gods once more, and we may finally return home."

And so, the proclamations began.

"I am Dionysus, God of Wine, Festivities and Theatre."

"I am Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, the Wild and the Moon."

"I am Apollo, God of Music, Knowledge and the Sun."

"I am Hermes, God of Thieves, Communication and Commerce."

"I am Persephone, Goddess of Spring."

"I am Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and Battle Strategy."

"I am Ares, God of War and Violence."

"I am Aphrodite, Goddess of Love and Beauty."

"I am Hephaestus, God of Fire and Metalworking."

"I am Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth and the Home."

"I am Demeter, Goddess of the Harvest and Agriculture."

"I am Poseidon, God of the Sea and Earthquakes."

"I am Hades, God of the Dead and Riches."

"I am Hera, Goddess of Women and Marriage."

"I am Zeus, God of Lightning, Law, Order and Justice."

And when the last of the proclamation was done, I slid my eyes shut, after allowing myself one last view of the land around me. A single tear trickled down my eye.

And then, I was flying.