I curled my arms around my body, trying to retain some warmth where there wasn't any and carried on. Each step ached my bones as my feet felt like they were surrounded in cement blocks. It was an effort to get out of the hallway of echoes but I wouldn’t become a fixture to its evil any time soon.
The echoes continued to follow me, laughing at my back as I resumed moving but it didn't take long before I couldn't hear their words and they just became ghosts of my past. Even the sad thoughts that had plagued me became forgotten as I walked. It didn't matter where I ended up as long as I ended up far away from that place.
"Thank you." I whispered to Persephone as we left the hallway completely and entered a massive cavernous room. I stopped and looked around trying to find the next place I was supposed to go. The further I moved into the room the more I realised it was sprawling in all directions with no walls, or doors, in sight.
"Great, now what?"
I walked because it seemed like the only other thing I could do. There was nowhere for me to go the longer I walked the more space it revealed. I gave up after a while, deciding that it was useless. Maybe this was it; this was the point when I had to stop trying. I sank down to the ground, pressing my palms into the floor as I looked out at the vastness ahead of me.
My fingers curled and scratched against the stone beneath me when I looked down in surprise at it. I narrowed my eyes in thought and shifted around until I was on my hands and knees, pressing my palms into the cool flooring. It was a long shot but besides giving up I was rapidly running out of options. I pushed as hard as I could, thinking that to someone else I probably looked stupid when nothing happened right away, then just like that it opened.
"Yes!" I shouted gleefully, grinning with pride as I peered down into the dark. "Lights." A candle appeared to guide me and I grinned more, pleased that I was getting the hang of this place finally. "Okay, here goes nothing." I guided myself into the hole, half expecting another trampoline incident as I let myself get lower and lower until I finally had to let go with my hands and began to free fall.
The wind rushed around me, pulling at my already worn out dress and I immediately wished I had used the wardrobe Hades had given me. But before I could worry too much about that I landed, in a heap, on another stone floor. I groaned with pain and rolled onto my back so I could take a good look around. It looked just like any other place here and I found myself sighing in annoyance. As frustrated as I wanted to be though, there was one distinct difference with this place than the last... I could hear hissing up ahead like air slowly being let out of a balloon hole.
Picking myself up I made my way carefully through the darkness toward the noise, not wanting to draw attention to myself just incase it was something dangerous. I came out of the first room I'd landed in and entered what looked like a stereotypical witch cave. Three women, or so I assumed they were women, were hovering around a pot staring down at the bubbling contents.
"Oh yes, he'll get his..." One of them muttered while another one cackled in pleasure, "yes look at that. Oooh, yes!" Another round of hissing filled the room as I looked for the source of the sound. The one woman turned and I gasped in horror as a pair of massive black wings spread out from her back, stretching themselves and curling around the air before flicking back out. All three of them turned to me, squinting into the darkness as another hiss echoed toward me.
"Go see who it is." None of them moved though but I distinctly heard the ruffles of something as it left the pedestal and moved toward me. I swallowed hard, stepping backwards and casting my eyes to the ground to see what was coming for me. A snake slithered toward me and I gasped slightly, covering my mouth tightly before pressing myself to the wall in hopes that it didn’t see me nor came closer. It slithered into the darkness and I lost sight of it quickly before it hissed, not menacingly but as if to warn me it knew where I was.
“It’s a girl...” The hiss whispered into the darkness and I felt my heart speed up, pounding so hard against my chest I was sure it was about to leap out.
“A girl, well obviously... But who?” The witches’ question hung in the air and I heard the snake hiss again. I shrieked once more, panicking that it might be coming toward me and leapt from the shadows that were concealing me. The action revealed myself to the old hags gathered around the pot. I looked up sheepishly at them, gnawing slightly on my bottom lip before waving hello.
I didn’t have any reason to feel nervous or scared really, not if I was truly the Goddess of the Underworld. It just felt like I had been caught spying and the sheer embarrassment at that idea was enough to set me on edge.
“Valentina.” One whispered.
“Valentina.” Echoed the other.
“Persephone.” Said the last one and each old woman bowed low with a dramatic flourish, their wings spreading out and fighting for space as the snake slithered past me toward them. My eyes flicked to the serpent as it crawled up their legs, entwining itself once more around one of their ankles. I noticed then that each of them had a snake wrapped around their ankles, and others too that were wrapped around their wrists.
“Hello.” I said again bleakly, trying to offer a smile before moving forward into the room. For the third time today I felt myself grow awkward with the idea that these women knew who I was when I hadn’t the faintest clue who they were. “Nice to meet you...”
“We are the Erinyes.” I nodded my head like I understood what that meant but I didn’t. At least they knew I was Persephone, which was a step up from the other triplets I had met today. “Your children.”
I shrank back slightly; they all looked more like they should be my grandmothers instead of my children.
“I have triplets?” I asked sheepishly.
“Persephone and Hades bore us.”
“And you never went to sleep with the others?”
“No use.”
“Yes, no use.” I couldn’t tell anymore who was speaking. None of their mouths seemed to move and they all sounded alive when they answered. I decided to just go with the flow, so far that had served me well.
“Right, well, sorry I didn’t remember you...” I said a bit awkwardly, offering them a smile as a sign of peace. “Would you mind reminding me what your domain is?”
“We are interested in crimes against Gods... We serve justice where we see fit.”
“Oh, and what were you watching?” The women stepped away from their cauldron, signalling me forward. I felt a knot grow in my stomach at the idea of approaching these hideous, winged and serpent infested women – but I was curious.
Moving forward tentatively I took a deep breath and climbed onto the platform with them, trying to keep as much distance as I could as I approached the cauldron. Looking down into it I immediately recognised the walls of the throne room but it looked different. Things were strewn around the room; chunks of the murals and statues were shattered on the floor. I pulled away quickly, turning to look at them in surprise.
“What is this?” I demanded, pointing at the image.
“The Titanomachia.”
“The what?”
“Titanomachia, the battle of the Titans.”
“Why are the Titans battling, where are the Gods?”
“When Atlas freed the souls of the Gods he also freed the souls of the trapped Titans in Tartarus.”
“Tartarus, what is that?”
“It is the prison that Zeus sent the Titans to live in after the first Titanomachia and they were overthrown by the Olympians.”
“The judges were trying to put me in Tartarus.” I said with disbelief.
“The judges are corrupted, they have been corrupted by the Titans in order to help them with this new war.”
“Where are Aidan and Savannah?”
“Zeus has been captured.”
“Captured, what do you mean captured?” I felt the panic rising in my chest. The women stared at me as though the answer would come to me. All I felt was a growing panic at the chaos I observed in the cauldron.
All this time I had been wandering around the Underworld lost and taking my sweet time, while my friends were fighting a battle for a war I didn’t even know was happening.
Chapter Twenty
“Alright, I need you to start from the beginning.”
The women exchanged a glance between them as if deciding who was going to start. Then, one of the snakes hissed and spoke.
“For thousands of years the Gods ran Olympus under the rule of Zeus. When Zeus decided to put the Gods’ souls to sleep until the world needed them the Titans agreed to go to sleep as well. This would give them the opportunity to be freed because their souls would need to ascend a vessel when the time came. So before they went to sleep they concocted a plan to overthrow Zeus and the other Olympians in order to return the power, as they believed, into their rightful hands.”
“Lincoln, I mean, Cronos tried to overthrow Zeus. It didn’t work, he was killed.”
“Cronos plotted out of turn. He was power hungry and still angry with his son for winning the battle the first time. His pride made him act rashly. He wasn’t supposed to make the first move, the other Titans knew he would be the obvious choice to try and do that. They were biding their time, getting friendly with the Gods in order to find the weaknesses they needed to make it the most effective blow the first time.”
“Two weeks ago the Titans-“
“Two weeks? That can’t be possible; I haven’t been down here that long. What day is it?” As soon as I asked the question I knew it was hopeless, I didn’t know what day it had been when I had been brought down here. I didn’t even know the day Atlas had brought me to Olympus because I had lost track of time so much earlier than that. “Never mind, carry on.” I didn’t like the idea that I had been down here for two weeks when it only barely felt like it had been a single night.
“Two weeks ago the Titans attacked Zeus during his first court session. Atlas was to turn over the keys of the Heavens to him so that he and Hera might properly rule the mortal world. Zeus was to learn his fate from the Moirai; they were going to recall the prophecy Atlas had enacted when he first, mistakenly, released the Gods.”
I frowned, “Atlas released the souls early?” The three women nodded their heads over and over again. How had he managed to collect them all and put them back to sleep without causing significant damage?
“Atlas was going to tell him why the Gods had been awakened a second time and what they needed to do but the Titans attacked, stealing the key for themselves.” The snake continued, “Since neither Atlas nor Zeus had the keys it was out of their control to stop the Titans. They cast the Gods out of Olympus and sent them back into the mortal world where their powers can only be used so much without full ascension.”
“They’re trapped on Earth? How can that be? Atlas said most of the Olympians have ascended with their Gods, even I’ve united with Persephone now and as far as I know I was one of the last having trouble. There must be a way back into Olympus.”
“Like the Titans were trapped in Tartarus, the Gods are trapped on Earth until he who holds the key welcomes them back to the mountain.”
“So magic has trapped them on Earth. Like a curse.”
“Yes. And magic has exposed them to the dangers there that none of them know about.”
“What dangers?”
“The reason Atlas brought you back of course.”
I was imagining all the worse case scenarios that were possible. Picturing the horrors that might’ve come to my friends and I panicked. I was overwhelmed with fear for their lives, frustration at this Greek idea to keep secrets and angry because there was nothing I could do about any of it.
“What dangers!” I screamed, the panic bubbling out of me.
All three women snapped their heads in my direction, eyes narrowed. “Disbelief; people no longer believe and without belief they have no power. Without power they cannot protect themselves against the unseen... Creatures like us that have existed all this time that the Gods were sleeping. They were trapped in a conscious sleep until the Gods returned. Not all of us were happy about the imprisonment and blame the Gods for their selfish ways. Without belief to fuel their powers there’s only so many ways a God might protect themselves against a Minotaur or a Kraken before they run out and can be killed.”
“Because they’re not fully ascended, because the union isn’t complete.”
“No, because they have a limited supply of power on Earth. Without belief to fuel their magic there is only so much power in each God outside of the three realms that can be wielded.”
“Like battery power.” I said quietly, but the women stared blankly at me. Pursing my lips in thought I considered my options for a moment before speaking, “I can go back to Olympus though.”
The women looked at me in confusion, “I wasn’t cast out. Hades trapped me here in the Underworld, trying to control me for himself, we – at least, I – wasn’t in Olympus when they cast out the Olympians. I could still get up there. I could steal the keys back from the Titans.”
“It is not a real set of keys as you think it is.”
“What is it then?”
“Well, at first it was Atlas’ globe. It was to be Zeus’ lightning bolt. It changes depending on the owner you see.”
“Who is the current owner?”
“Coeus, Titan of Intellect. He is the one who came up with the plans. But-“
“But what?”
“He has gone mad, there is no humanity left in him.”
“Like Cronos.” The women nodded at me sullenly. I brought my hand to my mouth, chewing on my thumbnail as I considered this. Turning around to look into the cauldron at the scene before me, the throne room was still empty but my eyes fell to the broken remains of Zeus’ throne.
“Where is Zeus; you said he was captured.”
“Zeus is being held by the Titans in a prison much like the one he put them into.”
“Is the prison here? Is it in the Underworld?”
The women shook their heads, their faces betraying the fact that they didn’t know.
“If Zeus wasn’t cast out of Olympus either I could find Aidan, I could free him and help him get the key... What about Hades, where is Griffin?”
I looked back at the women for answers; the only sound answering my questions at first was that of the hissing snakes.
“Hades has sided with the Titans, he has betrayed his fellow Gods and given them up to the Titans.”
“No, he wouldn’t do that.”
“He did. In a bid for self-preservation he turned over Zeus and Hera in order to save himself and his domain.”
“No, he did it to protect me. If they had come down here and found me here they would’ve cast me out as well, trapping me on Earth.” I was firm, absolute. Griffin wouldn't do that, not after all the progress I'd made with him. I could even feel Persephone was sure Hades wouldn't act so rashly either. He wanted power but not enough to work with the Titans. He'd fought them in the first Titanomachia, it made no sense to side with them in this one. Hades was playing a game with the Titans, a dangerous one, but now I was as much apart of it as he was. He had freed me from the apartment knowing that I would find sanctuary in the Underworld. He must’ve hoped eventually I would learn of what was happening and I would be able to help. I would help. I had surprise on my side.
“If I got the Titans to come down here, while I’m still here, while I’m still the Queen, the rules apply to them right? Those that enter can never leave unless given permission?”
“This is true.”
“For Gods too?”
“No, some Gods can come and go here freely, others would require permission.” I licked my lips trying to think about what I was going to do, or more important how I was going to do it. I wasn’t as powerful as Aidan; I couldn’t fight off a Titan and win. I also didn’t know how to lie to people like Griffin did in order to protect myself. But I was small and I knew how to stay out of the way if need be.
I could make myself i
nvisible, that was my specialty because I myself was nothing special to begin with. If I could get up into Olympus and get into wherever the Titans were I might be able to find out what the keys looked like for Coeus and steal them back. I could bring them to the other Gods, and those Gods in turn to the Underworld... Then, some how, I needed to convince the Titans to come to the Underworld as well where I could trap them.
I saw the plan formulating in my mind, all the things I needed to do, and things I was sure I could do with Persephone’s help. She was still with me and if we were still in Olympus I would have the power I needed to get to Griffin and to Aidan and help my other Gods out.
I turned to the hags once more and nodded my head, “okay, I’m going to need your help.”
“We only step in to help when a God as been unduly sinned against. It is a shame what has happened, but it is not enough to required our help.”
“No, I don’t need your help with that.” I said flippantly, hoping that they wouldn’t see what I was doing. “I told you before Hades kidnapped me and brought me down to the Underworld against my will. He tricked me and lied to me, locking me in a room with no resources. I need you to help me exact justice on him for what he did.”
“We’re...”
They weren’t buying it. So I licked my lips and tried again, “He intended to rape me and make me love him against my will, he told me he was going to take away my ability to have a choice. He was planning on keeping me locked in that room forever until I loved him.”
They exchanged glances between themselves, silently debating over what they were going to do. As I waited for their answer I thought about Griffin’s thread and a renewed sense of urgency filled me. If Griffin was going to die it only made sense it was because of this, either because the Titans were going to try and take back the Underworld from him. Or they would find out he lied to them and his “loyalty” was all a ruse. Could I change its length if his fate was already sealed?
Gods Save the Princess (Grace of Gods Book 2) Page 18