"Let's talk in my place, ok? Can you walk me back?" Victoria said, a tremor in her voice.
"Sure. Remember where you parked?"
"This time, yes," Victoria said, leading him back into the vast parking and camping area.
Across the plaza, Sheriff Howell stood with his deputy, Fleming. They watched people picking up their camping gear and moving out.
Howell spit onto the dust and snorted.
"Sheriff?" Fleming said. "Did those military guys say anything to you?"
"Nothing that makes sense." Howell said, observing the surrounding activities.
"I can hardly remember taking those guys down, but that's it. You'd think I'd remember stopping a terrorist attack," Fleming said.
"Just don't push it, Earl. All right?"
"Roger that, boss." Fleming said, irritated.
"Besides, you'll get a commendation. It'll look good on your wall after you retire," Howell reminded his deputy.
"Which will be early next month. Meanwhile, I want desk duty," Fleming sighed.
"You'll get it. It's much deserved." Howell clapped his deputy on the back and walked towards the closest tent to get out of the hot sun.
<<<>>>
Furies House
Gaia kneeled in her garden, pulling weeds, and encouraging the bees as they flew around, happily checking flowers for any pollen they might have missed.
Dan kneeled next to her and nodded
"Hello, mother," Dan said, grabbing a weed. He needed something to take his mind off of the last few weeks. Megaera moving in, remodeling, her adjusting to a more domestic lifestyle. This was as normal as it got.
"How is it working out now?" Gaia asked, softly. Then she looked over her shoulder to the sisters, sitting on the patio, enjoying the afternoon. They were talking, animated and laughing.
"So far, so good. She's so focused on the remodel of the bedroom, she hasn't gotten angry over anything," he said. He looked back and watched as Brianna showed up with another pitcher of a red drink. "I have to resist telling my sister about Brianna."
"It's best to leave that type of news alone." Gaia continued to pull weeds. It appeared to Dan that she was pulling where no weeds grew, but the weeds piled up behind her. No actual weeds, but the potential for weeds.
"Have you determined how Megaera was able to recover her powers while still carrying the baby?" Dan asked.
Gaia paused a moment, then grinned. "I think it was because she was so sick, and was adjusting to being a woman, and not a goddess. Once the need was strong enough, her abilities came back. It's all what I call mental. All in her head."
"Are you going to tell her?"
"Oh, lord no. And you shouldn't either if you know what's good for you." Gaia grinned as she moved to her left.
Brianna sat the pitcher of wine on a small center table as a noise emanated from Megaera's pocket. Megaera pulled out a smart phone and started talking.
"Yes, this is she," Megaera began. Then she stood and began pacing. Brianna had seen this before and she started looking for shelter.
Megaera erupted.
"That's FUCKING BULLSHIT! You tell them if they can't deliver the cabinets by Thursday, I'll castrate every last one of them and have their balls for LUNCH!" she shouted into the phone.
Enraged, Megaera threw her cell phone across the patio where it impacted a potted plant, blasting the terracotta pot into pieces and scattering a mixture of dirt and semiconductors over the side of the house.
She stood, arms on her hips and seethed. No one said a word.
Then: "Damned Zeus balls! HONEY? Can we go get another cell? Like, right now?"
Dan sighed and stood. Brianna, Tisiphone, and Alecto all looked at him with sympathy, but were unwilling to make any moves.
"It gets better, Dan. Honestly," Gaia said, smiling. "Once the boy shows up, and she can get back to a normal life, it will get better."
<<<>>>
In another dimension of space and time, at a depth measured not in distance, but in time, there is a darkness.
Utter darkness.
A small space of Tartarus that is beyond reach of any being, gods, or immortals.
Now, slight movement. Not seen, but heard.
A beast so powerful, it even defeated Zeus himself.
A beast who's lain dormant for several millennia.
A beast who has just now learned to project mentally.
A small shaft of light appears, striking the beast in one eye.
That eye blinked. Its slit pupil adjusted from wide open to a small slit, revealing a ruby red iris.
Yes.
It was time.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
David Thompson is an award-winning screenwriter, director and award-winning photographer currently spending his time between Los Angeles, CA and Austin, Texas.
“Descent into Tartarus” is an adaptation of his screenplay: “The Furies”
If you liked this book, please give it a review on Amazon!
You can contact him via his website:
http://davethompsonauthor.com
While you are there; sign up for his mailing list, to get updates on the sequel to this book and what is happening with his motion picture projects.
Goodreads Author’s Page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17799797.David_Thompson
Dave’s IMDB page is: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm6318931
Follow Dave on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DaveThompson59
And the Furies’ page on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/The-Furies-Book-Series-798274537038366/
* * *
[1] A brief note about death in the Underworld. Those who are already dead, cannot, of course, die any further. They do feel the pain and are usually restored a few hours later, only to be tormented again. Demons, imps, and the other mythical creatures that populate the Underworld can die, then they are usually reborn in a few days' time, often suffering the effects of the damage that was caused while dying.
Overall, it's something to avoid.
[2] Greek god of Medicine, designer of the caduceus.
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