The Underworld (The Atlas Series Book 3)

by Becca C. Smith

  Life should matter. Coming from an ex-sniper, Kala felt like a hypocrite, but the simple idea that killing one person saved lives allowed her to live with herself. If it was senseless murder. Kala could never be a part of that. It was one of the reasons she wanted nothing to do with the whole Titans versus Olympians war that was coming. They didn’t care who they hurt as long as they demolished the other team. For what? Power? To rule? Rule what? Humans didn’t even know the gods existed. What exactly were they going to rule?

  “Are you okay in there?” Turner’s voice cut through her train of thought. “The wave lengths from your memories that are showing up on the screen are going crazy. I keep seeing snippets of you pummeling Cronus.”

  Kala pulled off the headpiece and massaged her forehead. “I need to take a break.”

  “Of course.” Turner helped Kala to her feet. “Come look at this.” He led her over to the computer’s monitor screen.

  “I’m not sure if I’ll be able to see anything. Screens usually equal Vision for me, but I am able to use the computer, so maybe it’ll work the same way.”

  Upon examination of the monitor, Kala happily found that she was able to see the results of the scan. It was fascinating, as if someone had taken a camera and attempted to film her memories. The images were shaky, full of static and slightly blurred, but the pictures were there. “This is incredible. Do you think we’ll be able to clean it up?”

  Turner’s face was alight with excitement as he spoke, “I’m not sure, but even what we have so far is more than we’ve ever been able to achieve on our volunteers.”

  Volunteers? Somehow, Kala doubted anyone actually volunteered for this machine, but she kept that distinction out of her mind and was highly impressed with what Turner had managed to record. “Can we scroll through this?”

  Taking control, Turner fast-forwarded through the footage he’d managed to pull from Kala’s head.

  And there it was.

  Maybe.

  “Okay, stop there,” Kala instructed Turner.

  The cave. Hopefully.

  Yes – it was. The image was distorted, but the cave was almost clear, as if someone had taken a picture in the dark.

  “That’s the place!” Kala cried in triumph. “Let’s focus on cleaning this one up. Maybe someone will be able to recognize it. What about your satellites? You think the location can be tracked down?”

  Turner shrugged, unsure. “We only have two satellites that can scan underground and they’re a bit glitchy, but we can certainly give it a try.” He began typing in commands. “Let’s see how much we can clean this up first though. The more information we give the satellite, the better.”

  For the next few hours, Kala and Turner worked on trying to analyze and clean the footage they had. Kala knew she should be worried about the countdown deadline, but if she didn’t know where she was going, then the mission was impossible anyway. Not wanting to, Kala glanced at the time.

  3d 07h 10m 33s. 10:50PM.

  Kala’s heart jumped in her throat.

  “What is it?” Turner noticed at once Kala’s change in mood.

  “Nothing. It’s just, there’s only seven hours left of Day One. If we don’t figure out where Hades is…”

  Turner interrupted by placing a hand on her shoulder reassuringly, “We’ll find him. We’re so close now and the day’s not even over.” Then Turner’s eyes lit up. “I wonder if Roberta could do a locator spell for Hades.”

  Kala perked up instantly. “You think she could do that?”

  “I really have no clue, but we’ve got to try everything, right?” Turner picked up his phone and left the room to call his wife, leaving Kala to work on the image of the cave.

  She was using a program that was created for cleaning up security footage with low pixilation, and it was definitely helping, but not enough. She wondered if this would ever work in time. Maybe Roberta could help. Too many maybes.

  Glancing up from the screen, Kala almost thought she was hallucinating as three people suddenly appeared in front of her. But it was no illusion. Kala groaned inwardly, Olympians. Great.

  Zeus, Hephaestus, and Talan apparently had felt the need to track her down to the Compound. Talan she was happy about, but the other two Kala could do without.

  Talan seemed cautious as he approached Kala. She knew it was because he was unsure what had happened with Asmodeus. She decided to try and set his mind at ease : “Asmodeus knew jack shit, but he’s going to ask around. Turner hooked me up to his machine and we managed to grab some images from my vision. Come look.”

  Kala didn’t want to ask why the other two Olympians were there, so she pretended as if they were all there to help her. It wouldn’t last long, but she would enjoy the delusion while she could, and maybe she could get an answer.

  Talan came around first, examining the still image of the cave. “I don’t recognize it. Zeus?” He motioned for the god to look.

  A flicker of recognition from Zeus as he studied the screen. “It seems familiar, but I’m not sure. Definitely Earth, though.”

  “That’s something.” Kala didn’t want to sound too grateful, but she couldn’t help but feeling a stirring of hope.

  “Would you like me to try?” Hephaestus offered. “Machines are my specialty.”

  “Have at it.” Kala stood and let Hephaestus sit down at her chair. Instead of typing though, he placed his hands on the monitor screen.

  “I can see the missing pieces,” Hephaestus announced. “I’ll put them together.” In less than a few seconds, Kala was looking at her vision.

  She was so shocked by the ease at which Hephaestus put the whole thing together it made her feel stupid she didn’t ask for his help earlier. Of course, he’d be good with computers. He had forged the twelve blades that could injure all supernatural beings, why not electronics?

  Before the vision began to play, Turner returned to the room. His only reaction to the new guests was a slight opening of his eyes.

  “Hephaestus got it to work. Check it out.” Kala needed as many eyes on her vision as possible, and she trusted Turner a lot more than she trusted Zeus and his son.

  They all gathered around the screen to watch. When Zeus recognized Hades, Kala heard him mumbling under his breath. She was sure she’d have an earful after everyone was finished with the viewing party. Talan had to turn away when Vision-Kala was killed – whereas Turner immediately stared at her.

  “I didn’t think you could die,” Turner voiced his thoughts. “Maybe you should sit this mission out.”

  “It doesn’t work that way. If I don’t do it, the world ends,” Kala explained.

  “Well, it looks like if you do do it, the world will end too. The next cycle won’t be complete. Isn’t that the way it works?” Turner countered.

  Zeus guffawed and rolled his eyes. “She won’t die. At least not permanently.” He focused on Kala. “We didn’t come here to see your vision, or help you complete it. We came here because we need you on our side against Cronus.”

  Changing the subject back to his own problems. Typical.

  “What do you mean I won’t die permanently?” Kala decided to steer the conversation back to her mission.

  Zeus looked as if she had asked him to eat nails. “You’re not going to help me until I answer, are you?”

  Kala knew there were a few ways to answer that question: diplomacy, deception…

  “Nope.” Kala went with honesty.

  Zeus acted as a child would, by crossing his arms defiantly. “You really shouldn’t wake my brother. He’s not exactly someone you want to have around.”

  “I don’t have a choice in the matter,” Kala pushed. It was one thing for Asmodeus not to like Hades, but for Zeus to have such a bad opinion? It made Kala wonder again how her Atlas vision was actually a “good” thing.

  Zeus grumbled, “Since Atlas tricked you humans into taking over his job, I’ve never heard of an Atlas mission that had anything to do with a god or a Titan. It became a
job for human existence, not immortals. Waking up Hades only puts you little apes in danger. And since my brother’s only goal is to consume as many souls as he can, he’ll want you to fail…” Zeus suddenly broke off, as if an idea had just come to him.

  “What?” Kala didn’t like that look.

  “That’s why he kills you. So you’ll fail you’re next task. It’s a trap. You can’t go,” Zeus announced with authority.

  “But I have to.” There wasn’t a choice. Go, or world go boom. “And you still haven’t answered my question. What do you mean about me not dying permanently?”

  Zeus sighed as if Kala was an idiot he had to explain things slowly to. “Hades can’t kill an immortal. But he can send them to the Underworld.”

  Oh.

  “So it is real, then.” Kala knew the Underworld existed, since seeing Hades in her vision, but it was nice to have confirmation.

  “Of course it’s real. What did you think?” Zeus acted as if she was absurd for even doubting.

  Being trapped in the Underworld sounded way better than actually dying. But if she couldn’t find a way out, then she’d end up there forever anyway. “Is the Underworld how they describe it in mythology books?” Kala asked.

  “More or less.” Zeus shrugged. “But you won’t be able to get out without help, and I won’t help you unless you help me fight Cronus.”

  Now it was Kala’s turn to feel like she was dealing with a child. “Really? You’re giving me an ultimatum?”

  Talan made eye contact with Kala. His whole demeanor toward her had changed. The news that she’d be in the Underworld and potentially be able to come back to life had obviously put the pep back in his step. “I will get you out. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”

  Zeus laughed. “You? Tell me the last time a Grigori entered the Underworld?”

  Seeing the blank expression on Talan’s face, Zeus acted as if he were vindicated.

  “Exactly.” He dismissed Talan from his attention and turned back to Kala. “The only way out of the Underworld is through an Olympian and the Olympians obey me. So, are we making a deal?”

  Kala envied Turner, who could remain silent through all this. Even Hephaestus was trying to stay out of it, quietly watching and re-watching the video of Kala’s Atlas vision. Talan was always in her corner, of course, but how could he argue with Zeus? From the look on the Grigori’s face, it was clear that he had no idea how to escape the Underworld, let alone enter it.

  Though she wasn’t quite convinced yet enough to make any deals with Zeus, Kala decided to placate him anyway, to see where his intentions lay.

  “What do you want from me?” she asked – then before he could respond, Kala added, “And don’t think I’m going to consume Cronus, either. Because that’s not happening. Ever.”

  Zeus appeared appalled. “Why not? It’s the best way to defeat him.”

  Kala groaned. “I knew it!” Shaking her head, she responded, “Are you serious? You really thought I’d agree to that? You are more insane now than you were in that prison.”

  Hephaestus calmly entered into the conversation. “With Gaia in you, you’d have complete control of yourself.”

  Kala whirled on him. “You know that for sure, do you? I’m still partially human and even having a single memory of Atlas made me pass out. As in, zero consciousness.”

  “But he,” Zeus nodded toward Talan, “fixed all that.”

  Talan joined in, “Atlas was a lesser Titan and it was a difficult process. If Kala consumes Cronus… I’m not sure I’d be able to help. He could be strong enough to take over Kala’s body and then you’d be dealing with the power of your father and your grandmother.”

  “And Atlas.” Kala somehow felt the need to defend the Titan she’d swallowed. He might not be the biggest heavyweight in the Greek pantheon, but he was at least in the ring. “Look, I don’t want any part of your inbred war. I have to do my job and that’s to wake up your stupid brother and apparently plan a prison break out of the Underworld. So unless you want to help me complete my mission, I have no use for you.”

  Zeus looked miffed. “If you can’t consume Cronus, then you can at least help us find my other Olympians. I told my father they were destroying the 5th level of Hell in our epic battle if you remember? I lied. And now Cronus has the safety of the 5th to protect him. The Olympians are lost to us and if we can’t find them, there won’t be a war. Cronus will come after me with all he has and I won’t be able to fight him off.”

  “Am I supposed to feel sorry for you?” Kala was appalled. “You do remember you drained me like a battery to get your mojo back, right?” She waved at the screen. “And I can tell you where at least one Olympian is, if you can figure out the location of that cave.”

  Zeus glanced at the screen and its repeated sequence of Kala waking up Hades. “Not that one. I would be perfectly content to go through the rest of eternity without my brother mucking things up.”

  “Well, I’m not letting the world end for your brotherly grudge, so you better get used to the idea of a family reunion. Besides, don’t you have the whole of the Grigori to fight beside you? I thought that was the deal when you freed them.” Kala addressed the question to both Zeus and Talan.

  Talan nodded. “Yes, the Grigori will help Zeus and all those that side with the Olympians, but finding the other Olympians could tip the balance.”

  “Pressure, much? How on earth am I supposed to help you find your people if I can’t even find this stupid cavern!” Kala was at her wits end.

  She glanced over at Turner, who seemed to be eating up this entire conversation. If it hadn’t been for physical proof of Kala being a Titan, he’d probably think this whole lot was insane.

  It was then that he decided to come to Kala’s aid. “We’ll get the satellites on this footage and see if we can find a location. If it’s on Earth like Zeus says, then we’ll find it.” Turner smiled when he said Zeus’s name, probably because of how surreal it sounded aloud.

  Zeus’s demeanor turned serious as he addressed Kala. “My grandmother runs through your veins. Her power could decide the war.”

  Exasperated, Kala took a deep breath. “Then why don’t you go and find her? I only have a piece of her inside me. I think the real deal would be much more powerful.”

  Hephaestus said almost sadly, “Gaia’s been lost for three millennia. No one knows where she is. You’re the first we’ve seen of her.”

  The sentiment struck Kala as sad for some reason. Gaia was Zeus’s grandmother and Hephaestus’s great grandmother and being close to Kala made them feel closer to Gaia. It was a little warped, but made a strange sort of sense.

  “Look, just let me find Hades and wake him up. If I’m going to be in the Underworld for a while, then maybe Hades knows where your fellow Olympians are. There’s not much more I can do,” Kala admitted.

  Turner’s eyebrow rose. “Actually, my wife said she could do a locator spell if she had a personal item from any one of the beings in question.”

  Zeus and Hephaestus shared a look of interest, but it was Zeus who spoke, “I can get you something from Poseidon and Hera, but the others, Cronus kept anything of theirs hidden.”

  Hephaestus directed his comment at Zeus. “Poseidon and Hera may be all we need, especially if we could talk Hades into working with us.”

  Zeus said to Hephaestus, “He might be angry enough, since Cronus put him to sleep for so long.”

  “So you’ll help me find Hades?” Kala asked.

  Zeus turned his attention to Kala and nodded slowly. “We’ll take your human’s aid and we’ll help you find Hades.”

  Kala wondered at how one of the most powerful men on the planet liked being referred to as her human, but Turner didn’t seem to mind. He actually appeared eager to help.

  Kala shrugged. “Let’s get to it, then.”

  Chapter Five

  Before Kala could do anything, however, five more beings suddenly arrived by teleportation. Four Grigo
ri and Penny to be precise. The only one Kala cared about was her adoptive father, Owen, a Grigori angel himself. He was supporting Antel with the help of Penny since Antel was injured and couldn’t stand on her own. Antel was a beautiful Grigori with dark skin and even darker eyes. Next to them was Rotoph and another male Grigori Kala didn’t recognize. Antel seemed to be the only one hurt.

  Turner was the first to speak, “For a high security building, people do tend to pop in whenever they like.” He was more amused than angry.

  Owen was out of breath as he said, “I apologize. We had to move fast and Rotoph and I both focused on Kala. We didn’t know she’d be here.”

  Kala ran over to him and took Antel from his arms. “Is she okay? What happened?”

  Antel’s voice was weak, “I’ll be okay. Cronus gutted me with one of the Grigori blades, so it’ll take some time to recover.”

  Kala remembered all too well what a Grigori blade could do. She was first introduced to one when Rotoph stabbed Talan in the back, literally and figuratively. Rotoph had sided with Cronus during the war and forged the blades with Hephaestus. Hephaestus thought the blades were being made to immobilize the Grigori to enable the Olympians and the Titans to imprison them.

  But Cronus had had other plans. He directed Rotoph to engrave the weapons with a spell that not only stripped the Grigori of their powers, but would drain any supernatural being that wielded them. When Cronus handed the twelve blades over to the twelve Olympians, Zeus and his fellow gods were drained of their power, allowing Cronus to imprison the Olympians along with the Grigori.

  Hephaestus had been duped. Rotoph had done it all willingly. He betrayed his family to serve Cronus.

  Then, as of three days ago, Rotoph had proved he regretted his actions by helping Zeus and Hephaestus free the Grigori. Nevertheless, Kala could tell that Owen and Talan still had their doubts. If Rotoph betrayed them once, he could do it again.

  Kala’s second introduction to the blades had been when Cronus had cut Talan into a pile of body parts. She had thought Talan was dead, but Owen was able to put him back together. That was the moment when she realized Grigori really couldn’t die. Or, if they could, becoming kibble apparently wasn’t a deal breaker.