Hades Ch. 02

With his black robes flowing behind him he entered the Underworld furious at what the Moirae had told him. He walked into his study that was surrounded by black marble; he paced back and forth next to his stone desk. "Damn it!" Hades screamed, as he slammed his fist down on the table. The information the Moirae had given him, made him start to doubt the quest to Alaska.

"My lord, is there something wrong?" Hades turned his gaze toward Charon; he looked at the centaur that was an inch taller than him, had longer shiner black hair that reached the middle of his back, and was wearing a breastplate with Hades symbol in the center.

Hades sighed and rubbed his hand over his face, "Nothing is wrong."

"Sir, I have known you for centuries I can tell when you lie." Charon said to Hades back, he had noticed how tense Hades had been since Persephone's death. He stared at Hades' back and realized he didn't know the man in front of him anymore.

"Pirithous is not in Tartus."

Charon whistled loudly, "How did that happen?"

Hades turned and faced him. "I have no idea.....Who is watching the ferry?"

Charon shrugged a shoulder, "Thanatos."

"What!? Why would you let him watch the ferry?" Charon looked at Hades, with a confused look on his face.

"My lord, Thanatos has watched the ferry before."

"I'm sorry Charon; it's just that we have to keep our eyes on Tartus, now that I know Pirithous somehow left without anyone knowing."

Charon took a deep breath, "My lord does any of this have to do with the death of Persephone?"

Hades turned to his second in command, "Of course it does."

"My lord what did the Moirae tell you?" He watched as Hades sat down in chair that sat in the front of the table. Hades moping and being depressed was something that was foreign to Charon, Hades was all powerful, most feared, and indestructible God, until Persephone, he had watched the powerful Hades become weak the moment Persephone told him that she loved him.

"Demeter killed her, took her soul and put it into a human body." He looked at Charon and saw that there was no surprise on his face. "You don't seem surprised by the news old friend?"

Charon struggled not to roll his eyes at his Master; he knew Hades thought he was behind Pirithous escaping. "It's not a secret that Demeter hates you. I knew she would take desperate measures to get her daughter back."

Hades slouched in his chair, "Sorry, I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions, old friend." He twirled the bracelet on his left wrist that Persephone had made him; it was a thin piece of leather that wrapped around his wrist three times before it was secured, in the middle there is a metal piece that had a flower imprinted on it. It symbolized the time when he saw her picking flowers.

"My lord?" Charon looked at Hades and watched as his face grew blank indicating that Hades was thinking about Persephone. "My lord, I really hope you have a plan."

"Demeter is not happy with six months with her daughter. She doesn't want to share Persephone. She put Persephone's soul into a human, and will have Pirithous try and seduce her. Then she will have Persephone under her domain again, and if she is successful she will keep a better eye on her since she knows I will be after her. What I will have to do is find the human carrying Persephone's soul, and seduce her myself."

Charon looked at Hades, "It looks like you know Demeter's plan."

"Of course I do, I always think ahead."

"Then why are you still here?"

Hades looked at the dark wall to his left. "Is this chase worth my time Charon? What if I get her back and Demeter takes her from me again? I don't think I can live through another death of Persephone."

He walked up beside Hades, "No I don't think you can. My lord I couldn't stand Persephone I believed that she was weakening you. As much as I disliked her I realized that she made you happy; you weren't torturing people to celebrate every New Year's Eve, and for the first time in centuries you walked among the humans. My lord, you even started to have a relationship with your younger brothers. All of that would not have been possible if not for Persephone. You need her love, and she needs your love. If you let her go she will end up just as you are."

Hades turned his sea blue eyes toward Charon, "Well thank you for that lovely Oscar worthy speech."

"All I know is that the love of your life is out there in Alaska, and you sit here, accepting the fact that you will let your mother in law win." Charon took a deep breath and waited for Hades to make up his mind.

"Who will run the Underworld?"

"What was your answer to the Moirae?"

"You know me to well; I think it's time for your retirement." Hades grumbled.

"Ha! If only I could. The last time I threatened you with retirement you chained me to the ferry."

"Make arrangements for me in Alaska, I hope you will not have any problems with that?"

"Of course not, what would you like to live in apartment or house?"

"House, I couldn't ever live with other humans."

"True, it should take about two weeks if not less."

"Thank you." Charon bowed and exited Hades' study. He got into the extra ferry and rowed his way toward the river of Acheron, where Thanatos was accepting coins from European men. Once he saw Charon he stopped what he was doing, "So? What's going on?"

"He's going to Alaska to find Persephone's soul."

"Finally! I'm so sick and tired of him being depressed. I swear I saw him staring at his pancakes, when I asked him why he wasn't eating all he said was 'Persephone loved pancakes.' I swear almost stabbed him with a knife." Thanatos said as he brushed his blonde lock out of his face, he and his brother were the only demons that had a human figure as well as a demonic figure. Of course Thanatos and his brother were attractive men, standing six feet tall both had blonde hair with jade green eyes, and had a body that many Greeks would envy.

Charon looked at Thanatos; he saw that the demon didn't understand Hades' pain. "The love of his life was killed, and she was carrying his child." Thanatos mouth dropped.

"How did you know?"

Charon moved into the main ferry, and took the row that Thanatos was holding. "She asked me one day if Hades' liked kids. I told her that it would be interesting to see what Hades would do if he had to babysit. I didn't think much of it."

"Do you think he knows?" Thanatos asked still collecting the coins and helping the souls onto the ferry.

"Yes, the Moirae wouldn't have kept that from him. The death of his unborn child is the only reason he is going to Alaska. Otherwise he would let Demeter win."

"Why? He loves her more than anything."

"That's exactly why. Hades' always wondered what would happen if he would've left Persephone alone, would she have had tons of children like she always wanted? Would she have been happier with someone other than him? Each question he asks himself causes him to draw further and further away from who he is." Charon said as he pushes the boat into the Acheron River. He hoped that Hades would end his suffering and went to Alaska.