“Only if we jump in.” I yanked my hand out of his grip and dropped it into my lap. “I was just going to touch it. Nothing would have happened.”
“You can’t just go dipping your fingers into the Rivers of the Underworld.” He clenched his fists and took a few breaths to calm himself. “Promise me you won’t try anything like that again, okay?” he asked. “If anything happened to you…” He shook his head, his eyes pained at the thought. “I won’t be able to live with myself if anything bad happens to you while we’re here.”
I turned away from him, refusing to make him that promise. Why should I? He was the one offering to sacrifice himself to Kerberos. And he had the nerve to tell me that he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if anything bad happened to me.
It made no sense.
Because why did he think that I would be any less affected by his loss than he would be by mine?
* * *
We spent the rest of the ride down the river in silence. As I looked around, listening to the cries and screams echoing across the water, all I could think about was Blake ending up in Kerberos, and the pain and grief that he would suffer while there. No one aged in Kerberos, so he would be trapped there for eternity. And if he did die while there, he would go to the Underworld of Kerberos—not to the Underworld of Earth. The Underworld of Kerberos was worse than the deepest pits of Tartarus.
I couldn’t let Blake end up in Kerberos. The Oracle had to have another option for us. She just had to.
But if she didn’t… what would we do then?
I had to stop worrying about it. I needed to think about everything one step at a time. Right now, my focus had to be on speaking to the Oracle and getting an answer.
But it was impossible to relax, and as we rolled down the river, my mind was on an endless loop of worrying about the future.
Our boat turned a corner, and the appearance of a gigantic, three-headed dog straight ahead snapped me back into focus. The dog towered over the river, its paws on both sides so its body created a bridge overhead, its yellow eyes staring down at us. It sniffed as we moved closer, lips pulled back as it growled.
Charon rowed us closer and closer to the monstrous beast, and I glanced back at him and Persephone in alarm. Neither of them looked concerned in the slightest.
“Aren’t we going to stop before we get too close to that monster?” I asked them, scooting as far back in the boat as possible.
“That monster is Cerberus,” Blake said, pulling his sword out and raising it to fight. “The guard of the Gates of the Underworld. We can’t get into the Underworld without passing him.”
“That’s true,” Persephone said. “But you need to put away your weapon.”
Blake looked back at her like she was crazy, his sword still up and ready to fight.
“I am the Queen of the Underworld,” the goddess reminded us. “Cerberus answers to me. And I command you to put down your weapon. Having it out will accomplish nothing but instigating the dog.”
Blake glanced back at Cerberus, and after a few more seconds, he reluctantly sheathed his sword.
Now that we were closer, I saw collars around Cerberus’s three necks, each one connected to chains that bound him to the Gates. He pulled on the chains, but they didn’t budge. And despite Persephone’s claims that the dog listened to her, his growling and salivating hadn’t stopped. I didn’t think she would lie to us… but why was Cerberus still looking at us like he wanted to kill us?
Then Persephone pulled something out of her pocket—three pieces of lotus fruit. I recognized the cherry-sized fruit from the time I’d spent on the Land of the Lotus Eaters a few weeks ago during our quest through Greece. She held the fruit up, and all three of Cerberus’s heads stared at them and sniffed. His eyes glazed over at the smell of the snack.
“Sit,” Persephone commanded, her voice stern.
Cerberus plopped his butt on the ground. His tongues lolled out of his mouths as he panted in anticipation of the treat, dog breath invading the air so strongly that I held my hand to my nose to avoid inhaling the stench. His giant tail wagged with so much force that I could feel the breeze on my face.
Charon docked the ferry on the side of the river, and Persephone tossed the pieces of fruit up at the dog. His mouths caught them easily. Once all three heads finished eating, he lay down and closed his eyes, snoring in seconds.
“Works every time.” Persephone smiled and hopped off the ferry, wiping her hands on the sides of her dress. “Dogs are much more sensitive to lotus fruit than humans.”
Blake and I followed Persephone off the boat, tip-toeing around the sleeping dog until we were gazing up at the towering gates of the Underworld. A shiver passed through my spine at the sight of them. They were black iron, twisted and warped, and as tall as a house. Beyond them was a brown, mountainous wasteland. There was no sun or moon—only a dim tawny light blanketing the area, as if the entire realm was perpetually in a gloomy, cloudy day.
“Don’t look so depressed,” Persephone said. “The Underworld is not as awful as it initially seems.” She stepped up to the gates, and as if they sensed her presence, they creaked open to let us in. She walked through, and having no other option, Blake and I followed her lead.
Once we were far enough inside, the gates slammed shut behind us.
I whipped my head around and stared back at them in panic. Even though Persephone had sworn on Zeus that she would return us to Earth, I felt trapped. What if something went wrong? What if we ended up stuck here forever? I used to be comforted by the idea of the afterlife, but this wasn’t what I’d imagined. Now that I was seeing what came next, I never wanted to return here again.
“What now?” Blake asked, zeroing in on Persephone. “When can we speak to Hades?”
“Normally, souls that enter the gate must follow the path up the mountain,” Persephone said, pointing to the tallest mountain in the distance. “Once they reach the top, they face the Judges, who place them in an appropriate realm of the Underworld. But you are not dead, so you are not here to be judged… yet. And now that we’ve entered the realm where I’m Queen, I can access my full powers and transport you to the palace.”
“Great.” I looked around the barren land surrounding us, wondering if the palace would be just as depressing. “But how are we getting there? Didn’t you say that portals can’t be created in the Underworld?”
“Just take my hand and close your eyes,” she said, holding out her hands for us to take. “I’ll take care of the rest.”
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
I reached for her hand, and the moment I closed my eyes, a comforting warmth filled my body. Everything that had been weighing me down vanished. I was floating, nowhere and everywhere at once, and I wished I could remain that way forever.
Seconds later, the warmth vanished, and my feet were on solid ground again.
“Open your eyes,” Persephone told us. “We have arrived.”
I did as she said, and my mouth dropped in awe at the beauty of the room around me. Hardwood floors, plush rugs, gold-paneled walls displaying magnificent artwork, tall carved ceilings, a burning fireplace, a dazzling chandelier, and colorful antique furniture fit for a queen—including a grand piano. Floor to ceiling windows lined the far wall, their curtains drawn.
Persephone clapped her hands twice, and the curtains opened, revealing the bluest lake and the clearest sky that I’d ever seen. Bright flowers and trees bursting with fruit surrounded the lake—if I didn’t know any better, I would think I was gazing upon Eden itself.
Blake was also taking it all in, looking equally impressed.
“Where are we?” I asked Persephone, because surely we weren’t in the Underworld anymore.
“We’re in my sitting room in the palace,” she said. “Hades is not expecting visitors—he doesn’t even expect me to return until the fall equinox. Since my chambers are empty during my six months on Earth, I thought this would be the safest place to arrive so we didn’t take anyone b
y surprise.”
“It’s beautiful.” I ran my fingers along a nearby end table—there was no dust on it at all. “But… are we really still in the Underworld? It looks nothing like where we first arrived.”
“Yes, we’re still in the Underworld.” Persephone laughed. “My chambers overlook the Crystal Lake in Elysium. Hades wanted me to be comfortable in my home here, so he ensured that my rooms overlooked the lake. It’s the best view in the entire palace. Better than even the view from his own rooms.”
“That was kind of him,” I said, although I was surprised, since kindness wasn’t a trait I expected from Hades. “So, Elysium is a part of the Underworld?”
“There are four realms in the Underworld,” Persephone explained. “Think of the realms like continents. As I mentioned earlier, all souls that enter the Underworld must face the Judges, who place them in an appropriate realm. Tartarus is for the worst of the worst, the Fields of Punishment is for those who broke the law and committed crimes in their life, Asphodel Meadows is for those who were ordinary and mediocre, and Elysium is for the heroic souls who achieved greatness in their lives—especially those who are related to the gods.”
“So Chris might be in Elysium?” Blake asked, and I swallowed down tears at the mention of his name.
“I’m not supposed to tell you this…” She stepped closer to us, glanced around the room, and lowered her voice, as if letting us in on a huge secret. “But I have it on good authority that Chris is in Elysium. Hypatia is there as well. Their heroic actions saved the world from Typhon. The decision to send them to Elysium was an easy one, and they’re incredibly deserving of their places there.”
“Thank you,” I told her. “For telling me. It means a lot.” I wiped away a tear and looked back out at the lake. “Do you think we might see them out there?”
“Elysium is a large realm,” she said. “Not as large as Asphodel Meadows and the Fields of Punishment, but it’s larger than any continent on Earth. You will not see them while you’re here. But you’re a daughter of Apollo. Continue on the path you’re on now, and you’ll surely join them in Elysium when your time comes.”
“It looks like a great place to be,” Blake said, joining me at the window. “I’m glad I’m here to see it now.”
I opened my mouth to add that he would end up in Elysium as well, since he’s also a descendant of the gods, but then I closed it. Because if Blake sacrificed himself to Kerberos, he couldn’t end up in the Underworld of Earth. He would end up in the Underworld of Kerberos.
In the Underworld of Kerberos, nothing like Elysium existed. It was eternal Hell for everyone.
“Hopefully we can speak with Hades as soon as possible,” I told Persephone, since the sooner we spoke to Hades, the sooner we would be able to speak to the Oracle. “When can you tell him that we’re here?”
“Right now,” she answered. “I’ll go find him. Once he’s ready, I’ll retrieve you from here and escort you to his throne room.”
She closed her eyes, and in a burst of warm light, she was gone.
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
Silence descended upon the room after Persephone disappeared. It was so strange. For the first time since we’d officially started dating, I had no idea what to say to Blake.
So I walked across the room and sat down at the piano, laying my fingers on the keys and starting to play. This was the most exquisite piano I’d ever seen in person, and the melody flowed from my body—my favorite song from the musical The Phantom of the Opera. It was the show my mom had starred in back in college—the show that Apollo had attended, when he’d heard my mom sing for the first time.
It was crazy to think that if he hadn’t attended the show that night—if he hadn’t heard my mom sing and spoken to her as she left through the stage door—I never would have been born.
Now, I cleared my mind, thinking only of the music. For the past few months, all I’d been doing was training and fighting. But music was in my blood too, and sitting at the piano, letting the notes flow from my body, made me feel more relaxed than I’d been in weeks.
Once I finished the song, Blake sat down next to me on the bench, the side of his body pressing against mine. “That was beautiful,” he told me, his eyes soft and intense. “Once this is all over, I hope you have time to play piano more often.”
“Thanks.” I pulled my fingers off the keys and turned away from him. Because after all of this, if I did play piano more often, he wouldn’t be there to hear it.
With Blake gone, I feared that the music in my soul would be gone, too.
But before either of us could say another word, Persephone appeared in the middle of the room. She’d changed out of her green dress—now she was wearing a red velvet gown with a cinched waist and a low neckline.
“I’ve told Hades that you’re here,” she told us, holding her hands out for us to take. “He’s ready to speak with you, and he’s waiting in the throne room.”
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
We took Persephone’s hands, and she teleported us into a room much larger and more intimidating than her sitting room—the royal throne room.
Looking around, I felt like I’d traveled back in time to medieval Europe. The ceiling was as tall as the one in the New Alexandrian Library, and it was held up by thick columns and curving archways. The room was dark, lit up only by torches that lined the walls, and two stone fountains bursting with fire instead of water. Red carpet rolled down the room and up the steep steps, leading up to two magnificent thrones.
A handsome man with jet-black hair, wearing dark jeans and a black leather jacket, already occupied one throne. He had the chiseled look of a classic star from the early days of Hollywood. But his skin was as pale as a ghost’s, as if he was dead himself.
I assumed he was Hades.
Persephone glided up the steps and took the throne next to him, falling naturally into her seat by his side. But with her tan skin and red dress, she looked so alive next to him. Almost as if she were out of place in the Underworld itself.
I waited for one of them to speak, but they both stared at us, saying nothing.
Were we supposed to kneel? Bow to them? It would have been nice if Persephone had given us a heads up about the protocol before dropping us at the foot of Hades’s throne. Now I just shuffled my feet, my eyes darting around as I searched for a hint about how to proceed.
Blake glanced over at me, gave me a reassuring nod, and walked to the bottom of the steps. I tried to remain steady as I followed him, hoping my nerves didn’t show.
“I’m Blake Carter, descendant of Ares and wielder of fire,” he said, the fire in the fountains blazing higher as he spoke. “And this is Nicole Cassidy, daughter of Apollo and conductor of spirit.”
“I know who you are.” Hades held his gaze with ours, his voice steady and low. “And I’d like to know what you need to ask me that was important enough for my wife to bring you here during the months she’s free to spend up on Earth.”
“How much do you know about the threat of the portal to Kerberos opening and the Titans returning to Earth?” I asked him.
“I may live in the Underworld, but I’m not completely cut off from Earth,” he said. “I know about you and the other Elementals, and I know of your recent feat of defeating the monsters that have escaped from Kerberos, including Typhon himself. Impressive achievements, I must say.”
“Thank you,” I said, my cheeks flushing at having been complimented by a god.
“However, I wasn’t expecting to meet you until your mortal bodies passed on and your souls joined those of the other heroes in Elysium,” he continued. “I assume that for my wife to have broken protocol and transported you here now, that you need something from me of much importance.”
“Yes.” I nodded. “We do.”
“Then get on with it,” he said. “I don’t have all day.”
Persephone said nothing from her throne next to him, although she did give me a small nod, encouraging me to continue.
“You just said that you expect to see all of us Elementals in Elysium once we officially arrive in the Underworld,” I said, his recent statement giving me the idea to approach it from this angle. “So as the King of the Underworld, I assume you feel it’s of utmost importance that every soul goes to its proper realm after death.”
“I do,” he confirmed.
“So do I,” I said, pausing to emphasize that Hades and I agreed on that key point. “But Nyx told us that the only way to seal the portal to Kerberos is for either Blake or Danielle to bind it from the Kerberos side. Once they do that, they’ll be stuck in Kerberos forever. And if they die in Kerberos… they’ll end up in the Underworld there, serving an eternity in an afterlife that they don’t deserve. I was hoping you could help us make sure that doesn’t happen.”
“I see how that’s problematic,” Hades said, rubbing his chin with his thumb. “But I don’t think there’s anything I can do to help. The portal needs to be closed—if it isn’t, the consequences will be deadly for everyone on Earth and in the Underworld. If Nyx told you that that’s the only way to seal the portal, then she’s telling the truth.”
“And I’m prepared to make that sacrifice,” Blake said, the reminder ripping my heart into pieces all over again. “Unless there’s another way to seal the portal that even Nyx doesn’t know about.”
“Nyx is an ancient primordial deity—older than all but Chaos himself,” Hades said. “If there were another way to close the portal, she would tell you.”
“Unless there’s another way that even she doesn’t know about,” I said, narrowing my eyes in challenge.
Hades raised his eyebrows—I’d clearly piqued his interest. “And who, young demigod, do you think knows more about the Universe than Nyx?” he asked.
“The only person in all of history who can clearly see the exact future.” I held his gaze, each word coming out strong and confident. “The Oracle herself.”
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
Elementals 5: The Hands of Time Page 12