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The Guardians Complete Series 1 Box Set: Contains Mercy, The Ferryman, Crossroads, Witchfinder, Infernum

Page 199

by Wendy Saunders


  ‘You still have your power?’ Olivia replied suspiciously.

  ‘Of course I do,’ she laughed, her voice throaty and sensual, ‘what did you think would happen?’

  ‘I figured your soul would move on and the next poor sap would be assigned to the Crossroad.’

  ‘Olivia, Olivia,’ she tutted, ‘dear sweet naive Olivia. I am bound to the Crossroad as you are to your precious book. I have no intention of giving up this kind of power,’ she breathed deeply, her smile full of mischief, ‘but I am rather sick of these walls you know. I think I’ll go have a little fun…’

  She raised both her hands and snapped her fingers, disappearing in an echo of delighted laughter.

  ‘Uh,’ Olivia replied slowly, ‘did I just set an incredibly unstable and powerful being loose with no restrictions?’

  ‘Yes love,’ Theo replied ruefully, ‘I think you just did.’

  She looked up at her husband.

  ‘Oops.’

  ‘Under the circumstances I think oops might be a bit of an understatement.’

  ‘Do you think Hades is going to be mad at me?’ she wrinkled her nose.

  ‘It wouldn’t be the first time,’ Theo chuckled as he dropped his arm around her shoulders and they walked back toward the doorway. ‘Besides, what does it matter? You never listen to him anyway.’

  ‘That’s true I suppose,’ she stepped through the doorway.

  As Theo followed her through the doorway, the wall shimmered and disappeared behind them.

  ‘I get the feeling that’s not the last we’ve seen of Marguerite,’ Olivia sighed.

  ‘What do you think she meant when she said this is far from over?’ Theo frowned.

  ‘I don’t know,’ Olivia shook her head, ‘but she is right. There are still four more books out there, which means four more Guardians.’

  ‘I know,’ Theo wrapped his arms around her, ‘don’t worry we’ll find them, but for now, let’s just go home.’

  She smiled up at Theo, pulling the Compass from her collar, she leaned in close to it, the needle twitching, her voice a whisper.

  ‘Wake up…’

  END OF BOOK FIVE

  Glossary of Terms in Greek Mythology

  Hades: - used to denote both the God of the Underworld and the Underworld itself

  Hades the God: He drew lots with his brothers Zeus and Poseidon, when they were dividing up the World after they had overthrown the Titans. Zeus gained the earth, Poseidon the sea and Hades the Underworld

  Persephone: daughter of Demeter, the Goddess of the harvest. Seduced by Hades and taken as his wife

  Hades the Underworld: In front of the entrance to the Underworld live Grief, Anxiety, Diseases and Old Age. Fear, Hunger, Death, Agony, and Sleep also live in front of the entrance, together with Guilty Joys.

  On the opposite threshold is War, the Erinyes, and Eris. Close to the doors are many beasts, including Centaurs, Gorgons, the Lernaean Hydra, the Chimera, and Harpies. In the midst of all this, an Elm can be seen where false dreams cling under every leaf.

  Erebus: Meaning deep, darkness. A place of darkness between Earth and Hades. This was the region of the Underworld where the dead pass immediately after dying

  Cerberus: The 3 headed dog who guarded Hades the Underworld to keep the souls in. He was generally viewed as a pet of Hades the God.

  The Erinyes (also known as the Furies): These were the three Goddesses associated with the souls of the dead and they avenged crimes against the natural order of the world. They consist of Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. They were particularly concerned with crimes done by children against their parents such as matricide, patricide, and un-filial conduct. They would inflict madness upon the living murderer, or if a nation was harboring such a criminal, the Erinyes would cause starvation and disease to the nation.

  Eris: She was the Goddess of Chaos, Strife and discord

  Charon: He is the ferryman who carried the souls of the dead down the River Styx, to the gates of Hades where they were to be judged. It was customary for the souls to pay a coin to the ferryman for his trouble. To this end the relatives of the deceased would place a coin in the mouth of the dead.

  Minos, Rhadamanthus and Aeacus: These are the three judges of the Underworld. Aeacus held the keys to Hades and Rhadamanthus and Aeacus judged the souls between them but Minos had the final decision.

  Eurynomos: a daimon (or spirit) of the Underworld who eats off all the flesh of the corpses and leaves only the bones

  The Fields of Punishment: the place in the Underworld where people are punished for evil deeds, using a variety of methods of torture

  Hecate: A goddess whom Zeus honored highly. She is most often shown holding two torches or a key. She was variously associated with crossroads, entrance-ways, dogs, light, the moon, magic, witchcraft, knowledge of herbs and poisonous plants, ghosts, necromancy, and sorcery. Through the honors bestowed upon her by Zeus she had influence in all parts of the universe but preferred to reside in the Underworld where she became a handmaiden to Persephone

  Dionysus: The God of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, ritual madness, ecstasy and fertility.

  Prometheus: He was one of the Titans. He stole fire from Zeus to give to the humans. As a punishment he was chained to a rock by Zeus and sentenced to have his liver eaten each day by an eagle. At night it would re-grow so that he would suffer the same torment again. Finally, he was cast down into Tartarus

  Cronus: He was the youngest leader of the Titans and the father of Zeus, Hades and Poseidon. He ruled during the so called Golden Age until he was overthrown by Zeus and imprisoned in Tartarus

  Tartarus: The deep abyss that was used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked and as the prison for the Titans

  The five rivers of the Underworld:

  The Styx – the river of hatred which circles the Underworld seven times

  The Acheron – the river of pain

  The Lethe – the river of forgetfulness

  The Phlegethon – the river of fire which leads to Tartarus

  The Cocytus – the river of wailing

  Other Titans:

  Lapetus: – Father of Prometheus

  Clymene: Daughter of Oceanus, therefore an Oceanid. She was also the mother of Prometheus

  Atlas: The God of astronomy and navigation. He was brother to Prometheus, and son of Lapetus and Clymene

  Oceanus: The God of the sea, and father to Clymene

  Author Bio.

  Wendy Saunders lives in Hampshire, England with her husband and three children. She spent twelve years caring for her grandmother but when her grandmother passed away she decided the time was right to pursue her own dream of writing. Infernum is the fifth book of a five book series.

  Also in this series

  Book 1 Mercy

  Book 2 The Ferryman

  Book 3 Crossroads

  Book 4 Witchfinder

  Book 5 Infernum

  The Guardians series 2 COMING SOON!

  Also by Wendy Saunders

  The Carter Legacy

  Book 1 Tangled Web

  Book 2 Twisted Lies – Available Soon

  Book 3 Blood Ties – Coming Soon

  Come find me!

  On my official website

  www.wendysaundersauthor.com

  Don’t forget to subscribe to my mailing list via my website to receive a free copy of my e-book Boothe’s Hollow, a companion/prequel short story to Mercy.

  On Facebook

  www.facebook.com/wendysaundersauthor

  On Twitter

  www.twitter.com/wsaundersauthor

  On Instagram

  www.instagram.com/wendysaundersauthor

  If you would like to rate this book and leave a review at Amazon or Goodreads.com I would be very grateful. Thank You.

  ntains Mercy, The Ferryman, Crossroads, Witchfinder, Infernum

 

 

 


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