"I'd be impressed if you weren't such a fool." Hecate joined Megara atop Hades's chessboard. "I've never seen such a spirited minion before. Should he succeed tonight, and leave the Underworld to me, I'll personally request you in my retinue."

Great. More servitude.

"Because nothing's more reassuring than teaming up with a known backstabber."

"Touché, but let's not forget who I'm talking to. You'd leap at the chance to bring Hades down."

"That's because I'm a human with a conscience. All you want to do is take his place and be just as ruthless as he is."

"I knew I liked you. But would I really be all that bad?"

"It wasn't that long ago you took over the world, right? What was it you did again? Try to kill every living mortal? Gee, I don't see that going well for me."

"Oh, pish posh, bygones! All of it! No need to fret. He's leaving me unsupervised in the Underworld tonight. You'll see how well I manage the overflow from his apocalypse. After all, he's nothing but a washed-up lunatic with delusions of grandeur. This won't work." She leaned closer to Megara to whisper, "The Olympians have known about this invasion for weeks… and I think I know who warned them."

Megara looked Hecate directly in the eyes. "And who do you think that might be?"

"Someone who's been throwing around wild accusations of wanton backstabbery, and who hates her boss."

"Those are fair estimations, but you can't prove anything. However, I can think of a better use for your time than sitting around doing what he told you to. He's not paying attention to his domain, so why not set a trap for him when he gets back? Why wait for another opportunity? Let him conquer the cosmos for you, and then throw him into a hole deeper than where Zeus left the other Titans. The way I see it, the worst thing about the situation with the Titans has been that it's reversible. You ought to find a way to fundamentally change who he is so he can never become a threat in the future."

"There's only one place in the Underworld to accomplish any such thing. I'd have to throw him down the Vortex so it could reset his psyche. But he already knows what awaits at the bottom, so he'd never go down there."

"You're smart. I'm sure you could think of something. But if you do, your best move is to curry favor with the Olympians because they'll monitor this place after the invasion. You might even get your full goddess status back if you play your cards right." There was no time to push her verbal onslaught any further.

The Underworld disappeared around her only to blast her into the chill night air. She stood in the sandy center of a stadium with only seconds to orient herself.

"Meg!" Hercules called to her.

Hades stood between them. No matter what venom Hades had dripped from his fangs, Megara couldn't allow him to poison Hercules any further.

"Don't listen to–" Megara's mouth was covered over with gaseous chains before she could force out any further protests. The chains dragged her to the sand, slamming her sidelong into the grit that dug into her skin.

Hercules charged toward her, arms outstretched. He knelt over her, but Megara's vision went blank before he reached her. She reappeared between Pain and Panic. Her chains branched out so that each imp could hold her arms stretched to either side.

"Hands off the merchandise," Hades sneered. "We're not done bargaining yet. I need to hear your best offer before I agree to anything."

Megara furrowed her brow. She could tell Hercules to give no ground if she could just break into this conversation. He needed to know she wasn't worth giving away his advantage!

Pain yanked on one chain and Panic on the other. They pulled her arms to either side in a move so jarring that they might have jarred her shoulders out of joint.

"Stop it!" Hercules ordered the imps. Ignoring Hades's instructions, he charged after the trio, sword drawn. "I'm sick of you two!" He slashed at Pain, but the imp dodged. The sword went through the chain, holding Megara's arm instead. It evaporated, and the rest of the chain began unraveling.

Pain and Panic let go so they could dodge the strikes Hercules aimed at them, both with his sword and fists.

Megara clasped his arm. The second her mouth was free, she blurted out, "Don't give him anything!"

Hercules curled her into the crook of his elbow and pulled her to his chest. "I'm freeing you tonight, no matter what."

"You can't—" she began, but then she was gone. She reappeared between irritated imps who yanked on her chains in retaliation. "Malaka!" She huffed, exasperated. Then Hades covered her mouth again.

"Such a foul-mouthed little harpy. Unfortunately for you, we can do whatever we like with her," Hades said, steepling his fingers. "And we have been. Naughty little thing wasn't supposed to fall in love with you."

"Do you…?" Hercules's voice grew soft, leaning hard to one side to avoid Hades.

Megara remained stoically still. Her mouth was covered, anyway. Nobody could fault her either way for what she didn't say.

Hercules cleared his throat and stood back to his full height. "Never mind. Unfortunately for you," Hercules snarled, visibly forcing himself to remain calm, "I'm not letting you dictate the terms. I hereby call upon my divine consultant team."

"Your what?" Hades asked.

Two rose gold pillars of light streaked down from the sky.

Harp music manifested out of nowhere, along with the imposing forms of Hera and Aphrodite.

Hades's jaw dropped, and his lip twitched. "Ladies… what are you doing here?"

"Why Hades, are you surprised that a son would tell his mother when he made plans to propose?"

"Excuse me?" Hades asked.

Megara would've said something similar had her mouth been free. Instead, she could only stare in utter confusion.

"And I knew as soon as he told his little friend– what was it again?" Aphrodite waited for Hercules to respond, but he hung his head and blushed instead. "Well, anyway, I heard my name, and it won an argument. I normally punish blasphemy, but I'll let it slide this time because he's got it bad."

He did? Megara hung her head to avoid eye contact with Hercules. She couldn't handle it.

"Fine, fine! You can be part of the conversation! But Hercules is a big boy now! He's even graduated from that insipid high school! So, if he wants to negotiate for an orphan swindler, you should all know the truth. She uses men, gets their secrets from them, then disappears when they fall in love with her. You should be particularly offended, Aph! I've tried to talk her out of this, but she just won't listen. She doesn't see what's wrong with what she does, because she hates men."

Hera made a dismissive noise. "My son may choose whomever he pleases with whom to amuse himself. I appreciate you looking after his interests, but I will allow him to choose his own companions so long as he's my son. The lad is a good judge of character."

Megara would have disagreed if her mouth were free.

"As for your accusations that were supposed to offend me, I'm the one who knows how she feels," Aphrodite planted her fists on her hips. "So don't even bother trying to lie about something I already know as the embodiment of love. I don't try to tell you who's dead or not!"

"It's just too bad," Hades snarled, "she's enslaved. Can't have a mortal slave courting a god."

"You hadn't mentioned she was enslaved," Hera said with a harder edge. "But that's why I've arrived in my capacity as Goddess of Marriage. One contract fairly arranged can expunge a prior mistake."

Hades sneered at the queen. "Excuse me? Do you wanna look over Meg's contract? Nowhere, even in the fine print, do I refer to marriage as an escape clause. It's legal by the absolute letter of cosmic law. You'll never find a contract less crackable."

"Let's see it, then," Hera said, unimpressed.

Hades snapped his fingers, making the contract appear.

"Mmkay, I'm not really one for legal documents," Aphrodite said as Hera started her readthrough of the contract. "But I know brides-to-be shouldn't be bound and gagged."

"You haven't heard this one yap."

"You mean you don't want her to speak for herself. If you mistreat her, you get nothing," Hercules said, his fists tense and ready to swing.

"I can send her right back to the Underworld, and then you also get nothing."

"I'm not the one on a tight schedule," Hercules clapped back. "I can wait for her. Can you wait until after tonight?"

Hades shot Megara a dark warning glare over his shoulder. "Boys, loosen your grip." He released Megara's mouth, but the smoke burst up her nose and throat.

Before Megara could say anything, she had to hack up the smoke. She dropped to her knees and wheezed.

Hercules dove past Hades to fan air into her face. "I'm so sorry," he whispered and kissed her temple. "I knew he wouldn't be gentle with you, but I hate seeing this."

"Get used to it," Megara croaked. "What's this plot of yours?"

"There's one way to transfer ownership from one cosmic entity to another," Hercules whispered. "The one way Mother and I could think of, anyway… I won't force you to stay with me if you don't want to, but until we've taken care of the Hades problem, we could use this as an excuse to protect you."

"This method is marriage?"

"Well… yeah. Mortals can sell themselves into a kind of marriage, and once you change over to us, we can free you. I think tonight's our only shot at talking him into it, so…"

"I'll admit this is an elaborate scheme, but are you sure it's worth your time? You need to fight Hades, not pay him."

"Do you trust me?"

"I trust you. It's him with the problem."

"Then I'll ask another question. Do you want to marry me?"

"That's your proposal?"

"Best I can do right now. I'll do better once the war is over, I promise. All I need to know is that you want to be with me. I'll save you no matter what, but for my own… I don't know. I need to hear it from you."

Megara gave him a soft smile, then leaned against his shoulder. "I do want to be with you. But I don't believe this will work."

"Then just believe in me."

"Well?" Hades barked at Hera. "Look at those terms and conditions! Perfect and completely legal!"

"I don't get it. What does it say?" Aphrodite wasn't even looking at the contract. She was too focused on Hercule and Megara, where they knelt pressed close together on the sand.

"One thousand years of servitude for the continuation of an imperiled life. All acts carried out by the undersigned on behalf of the above-specified deity are subject to evaluation. Should the undersigned perform adequate service, the undersigned may be granted payment in the form of years removed from the original sum. Should the undersigned prove inadequate, every avenue of punishment remains open to the deity who takes the role of Master."

"I'll pay her debt." Hercules stood firm in a posture, ready to run to Megara. "Name your price, and I'll pay it. But she will go free, and you'll stop hurting her."

Danger flashed through Hades's eyes. "Well, I was thinking, and don't mind me, I just had this wild speculation that you'd like to take a day off from this hero business of yours. Maybe this works even better for both of us. You give up your strength for the next twenty-four hours and enjoy a nice, relaxing honeymoon with your treacherous harridan."

"You want him to give up his strength for a whole day?" Aphrodite asked. "Why not give up your fire for a day, then? What do you plan to do with this day without Hercules to stop you, anyway?"

Hades rounded on both goddesses. "Stay out of this! I'm planning to spare you from the war, anyway. Stop making it easier for him to weasel out of this!"

"I'm not weaseling," Hercules said. "You've got the girl I love in chains. You're going to release her."

"That's what we're here for, dear," Hera replied gently. "As for you, Hades: You're proposing a war with no army."

Hades waved Hera off. "You're missing the point. Tonight's the night–"

"The planets align, yes. The prison where we locked the Titans is revealed. Have you considered what happens if the gods are poised to take the Titans out the moment they're released?"

"You…" Hades vanished, and then Megara did as well.

She'd been so busy watching the gods for what would happen next that Megara forgot she was still in play. When she reappeared, it was to be bound even tighter than before, hovering above the ground and weighed down by something that hung below her feet.

"You told them?" Hades roared. "How did you tell them? I specifically had contingency plans against you telling anyone something that would damage my plans! What did you do?" Hades tightened the chains, but Megara refused to make a sound. "Nothing? He's not smart enough to figure this out on his own! And I know you haven't been talking to the other gods!"

He dropped her.

Though Megara braced herself, she didn't fall as far as expected. Hercules was too quick.

His arms closed around her, and one hand hooked around the chain covering her mouth. Without a word, he snapped the chain apart between his fingers.

"Let's try to be civil." As gentle as Hera's voice remained, her words implied there would be trouble if Hades weren't.

"Don't throw the fate of the world away over me," Megara whispered. "I've already told you there's no way to save me."

Hercules gave her shoulder a firm squeeze. "I'm not throwing anything away. Just hang in there."

"Now that we're focusing on what matters," Hades extended a hand to Hercules. "Buy her off of me with this one simple thing. Your strength. Twenty-four hours. Deal?"

"Hold on." Aphrodite interposed herself between Hercules and his uncle. "Why does it have to be him that gives something up? Why have you specifically targeted him?'

"Because he knows only Hercules can defeat him!" Megara blurted out. She focused her pleading eyes on Hera. "Don't let him do this. Tell him he can't!"

"I'm only here to lend support, not to divert his course," Hera said. "But I have already told him to exercise caution."

"This is caution?"

"I am pretty sure acts of heroism like this are the only thing making him an undefeatable force," Aphrodite added.

"But not this one! You can't do th–" Hades covered her mouth again before Megara could get her final word out.

Bronze resolve straightened the concern off Hercules's brow, and he glared at Hades. "You have one night to make your move, right? If not, this whole scheme you've set up falls apart for another eighteen years or more? I could just wait you out. But it's me you want, not her. Stop torturing her."

"Right, fine, so let's make this deal. You get the chatty little traitor, which– hey, good luck with that– for the low, low price of your strength for the next twenty-four hours. Honestly, you'll be doing me a favor. I'm pretty sure I'll see her again not too long after this, and I won't blame you for throwing her back where she belongs."

Something about the way he said that made Hercules twitch.

Hera brandished Megara's contract. "You want this to be legal? You'll abide by legal procedure. That means we get something, too."

"Excuse me?"

"You don't have time to argue," Aphrodite added. "We're buying the girl's freedom from you, but it's still customary for someone who's selling a girl into marriage to provide something for her upkeep."

Hades rolled his eyes. "And what do you want, exactly?"

"You have meddled for too long in the affairs of the living, which is strictly not your department. This will be the last time," Hera said firmly.

Hades raised a brow. "And I'm making this promise to the current queen of the Heavens on behalf of a mortal who will probably die from her stupidity within a year?"

Something unreadable crossed Hera's face. "Yes."

"Sure, but here's my counter-offer."

Slowly at first, but then all at once, the chains wrapped around Megara's body seared white hot into her skin. She was used to this. She could wait it out. Her pained cries would only push Hercules into rash actions to make it stop. They couldn't escape. She'd wait until she lost the ability to feel her flesh fizzle before she panicked. Her resistance only signaled Hades to escalate. The chains dug into her skin and twisted, finally eliciting a series of gasping groans from her that erupted into unstoppable screams.

"Stop it!" Hercules shouted.

"How about this?" Hades's flames went orange with irritation, then unchained Megara's screams. "I don't torture her within an inch of her life and leave her to recover slowly or not at all! You get a less-than-crispy girlfriend!"

Aphrodite and Hera were yelling, but she couldn't understand their words.

Was there a way to push Hades further still so she would die and negate all contracts with Hercules? Her near-death mania drowned out all other thoughts. To spite him, she threw in as many curse words as she could still remember while the fire raged. As loud as her cries got, she still heard Hercules agree to Hades's terms.

"Smart move!" Hades snickered over the irony of his own words.

Megara whimpered to herself through her tears, hoping nobody else could hear as she vented her pain. It was all so wrong. She wasn't meant to be so helpless… With eyes firmly shut, she tried to imagine the grotesque creature she may have become. It was impossible to take proper stock as Hades began restoring her.

Hercules cast her one heartrending look, then steeled himself as he saw her heal. Reassured that she would recover, he offered Hades his hand.

"And we're there! Bam!" Hades gloated.

A burst of blue light exploded between them. As the strength left Hercules's body, Hades leered down at him while intentionally tightening his grip on his nephew's hand so it would hurt as much as possible.

Hercules groaned in pain, his free hand clasped about the wrist of the hand still interlocked with that of Hades. He dropped to his knees as if the weight of his own body was too much for him to bear. At first, Megara had thought the red cast of his skin was a trick of the light. Then she saw that the red light glowed from within Hercules. It burst from under his skin and dissipated into the air while Hades released Hercules to fall backward onto the sand. It formed a brief cloud of gold around the demigod as if the last of his godly essence was gone.

Megara's eyes widened in impotent horror. All she could do was absorb the sight of the only good man in her life suffering and wish it was her instead. He should be untouchable, pristine in all things. She was used to the pain. She could handle it.

Hera wept openly for her son and threw herself at him. Megara wished it could be her holding him, but she could only stare in horror. At least he had someone there for him. The chains weren't going anywhere.

Hades made a cruel face, but he couldn't do anything without actively attacking Hera. Without the freed Titans, he was without sufficient clout to make a move that bold. "Feeling queasy? It's only natural," Hades gloated. "Here's this one more thing to choke on. I'm sure you'll love knowing I manufactured your relationship with your fiancee! She only met you because she was on the job, and I've put her in your way every time I wanted to lure you into danger. She wouldn't have cared if you died. She's a selfish little brat who only ever wanted her own freedom. She hates men. She probably hates you, too. But she still got you to do this for her, and now look at you. Pathetic."

Hercules did not register the slightest bit of pain at these taunts. "Let her go. You said you would."

"You must worry about yourself, dear," Hera reminded him.

Hercules set his jaw. "She's still in chains. That's not the deal.

Hades snapped his fingers. The chains unwound from Megara, and she gasped with the ability to breathe freely.

With Hera's help, Hercules had gotten to her feet while Megara recovered. "I know she never had a choice in seeing me, but you weren't watching the little ways I fell in love with her. You could never appreciate her, so I'm glad to get you away from her. Thank you for my wife. If it weren't for you, I never would've met her. I'd still be on Olympus, lonely and confused. Now, I know exactly what my purpose has always been. I'll give you a head start. Get out of my sight."

Hades's lip twitched. "You don't get to make threats when–!"

Withering looks from Hera and Aphrodite shut him up.

"Won't change a thing. Look out for my friends. You'll be hearing from them soon!"