Chapter Six
“Daddy, be nice!” Demetera, daughter of Hades and Persephone, and one of two god children whom the Wild Magic had affected, tapped her father's nose.
Hades grimaced and nipped his daughter's finger.
Deme giggled, her green eyes going bright.
At four years old, she was already showing signs of the beautiful woman she'd become.
Her blond hair reminded me of her namesake, Demeter, but that was all I saw of her grandmother.
Deme had her mother's eyes and kindness blended with her father's nose and propensity toward sarcasm. In short, she was an astounding child.
“Hello, Deme.” I kissed her cheek. “How are you?”
“I'm well, thank you, Aunty Vervain.”
I raised my eyebrows at her grown-up response.
Then she went on. “But Daddy is upset about dead people.”
“Dead people?” Viper scrunched up his face. “I don't like the sound of that.”
Princess yipped.
“Yes, I see you,” I cooed to the dog as I stroked her head. “Hi, Princess. Who's a pretty girl?”
The dog panted happily, its fur gleaming from a recent brushing.
Once Princess had her due, Persephone put the dog down and hugged me. “Thank you for coming, V. It's the souls.”
“What about them?”
“There are none!” Hades growled.
Princess ran down the hallway, yipping.
Hades put Demetera down and took her hand. “I don't understand it. The banks of the river are empty.”
“Well, there aren't that many believers in the Greek Gods these days, Hades.” I patted his shoulder. “Especially with the Fey coming out of the closet. I'm not surprised things have slowed down.”
“There are always believers, Vervain. And this isn't slowing down—it's a complete stop.” Hades' eyes, out on full display without his usual sunglasses to soften them, were like windows on the fires of hell. The flames flared as he turned and headed down the hallway with his daughter.
“Sorry about him,” Sephy whispered. “He's really upset.”
She led us after the King of the Underworld, his offspring chatting gaily to him and swinging their joined hands, while Princess doubled back to bark at them. I couldn't see Hades' face, but going by the tension in his shoulders, I knew he was grimacing.
We went through the glorious halls of the underworld palace, passing the priceless possessions of a royal god, collected over centuries. But the palace also held touches of Persephone, with several hallways turning into outdoor colonnades that spanned eternally blooming gardens.
At last, we left the palace to find an open carriage waiting for us with a team of black horses that snorted smoke. At the reins was Cerberus, the Guardian of the Underworld. He jumped down to collect the Princess—the child, not the dog—and set her on the driver's perch.
Deme squealed and reached for the reins.
“Not yet, Deme,” Cerberus said and then nodded at me. “Godhunter.” He nodded at my husbands. “Mr. Godhunters.”
I chuckled at my husbands' outraged expressions. “Hey, Cerberus. How you doing?” I took his hand, and he helped me into the carriage.
“Good, good.” Cerberus was nearly as muscular as Hephaestus, but it was proportionate to his tall frame. He was good-looking too, and had the personality of a junkyard dog—loyal to his master but death to anyone who threatened him. It was kind of endearing.
Luckily, the carriage was big enough for all of us, with seats at the front and back. Even Princess the dog came along, sitting on Sephy's lap as if it were her throne. Viper sat with Hades and Persephone facing the front, while the rest of us took the back-facing bench.
Then we were off, Cerberus with Deme on his lap, holding her hands around the reins.
The little girl giggled as we circled the courtyard, and rolled away from the palace.
The road we traveled split a grass meadow that rolled down toward the neutral section of the underworld.
A valley dipped to the left, a plain to the right, and rivers bisected it all.
They were the Elysian Fields. You had to be a good soul to get put there. Not saintly, but truly good.
Our path took us through the fields, ending at the Dividing Road that formed a boundary between paradise and the rest of Hades.
Behind us and the palace were even nicer digs—islands where the best of the best souls got to languish in luxury.
Only heroes and holy people got to go to the Blessed Isles.
Sounded dull to me, but Hades told me they threw the best parties.
You'd holy souls wouldn't be interested in such things, but after a lifetime of being good, they needed to cut loose. Plus, heroes were known to party hard.
At the opposite side of the spectrum was Tartarus, down the Dividing Road to our right.
You had to venture through caves to get there, so we didn't hear any of the tortured evil souls.
The Dividing Road was more than a boundary.
This was where judges sat upon thrones to determine where a soul got sent. At least, they usually did.
I leaned over to peer down the road at three figures huddled near the ground. “Uh, are those the judges? What are they doing?”
Hades grimaced. “Playing dice, I assume. They're bored.”
“Holy cannoli,” I whispered. “Are their dice made of human bones?”
Persephone giggled. “No, but they'll love that you asked that.”
A few minutes after we crossed the Dividing Road, we crossed a bridge that spanned the Cocytus River.
Knowing what was coming, I hunched into the seat.
Even had I not known or missed the distant sound of wailing, Deme going suddenly silent would have clued me in.
The rest of us followed her lead, going quiet as we rode past the bent forms of the weeping dead.
The Vale of Mourning. It wasn't a punishment, though it felt that way.
This was where they sent the souls consumed with heartbreak, leaving them to wail and cry forever. Or until they got over it.
Luckily, we passed the vale quickly and rolled into the Asphodel Fields. This is where most souls went. It was a neutral place—not paradise, but not Tartarus either. Souls meandered about, at peace mostly, but with little to do. I grimaced as we passed an orgy. Yeah, not much to do beyond that.
Next was the Acheron River. Traditionally, this was Cerberus' territory.
But he'd been serving his king directly lately.
Instead of him, a chimera roamed the shores of Acheron.
It lifted its lion head and roared in salute to the King of the Underworld.
Hades motioned back absently, his stare scanning the wooded area to our left.
I assumed he was on the lookout for Centaurs.
He hated them, calling them snotty bastards who liked to swing their giant cocks around.
Yes, that's a direct quote. Having met a few Centaurs, I can attest to his accuracy.
Deme was bright and bubbly again, waving at the chimera as we crossed yet another bridge.
Her smile didn't falter when the light vanished abruptly.
As Princess of the Underworld, she'd been expecting the shift.
There was nothing to fear. We had entered the Land of Dreams, where it was perpetually night.
The dark landscape spread out to either side of us, the Lethe forming its eastern and southern border.
In the distance to the front-right, the mountains where Morpheus lived rose to loom as a black shadow.
It should have been creepy, but it was a land of dreams, not nightmares.
It felt peaceful there. Until we passed the elm tree of false dreams.
Shuddering, I looked away toward the southern bank of the Lethe River.
Across the river was where the souls arrived.
As we drew closer, the sound of lapping water called to me.
One step in, and I would forget my entire life—everything and everyone in it.
Merely crossing it in a boat separated a soul from the world of the living.
Except there weren't any souls waiting to cross.
“Um, is that dude surfing?” Viper stretched to look around Hades.
Hades sighed.
Deme called out, “Uncle Charon!”
As the carriage stopped, the surfer raised an arm to wave at us as the wave he was riding—a wave that shouldn't exist in a river—turned abruptly and brought him to shore. We climbed out of the carriage as he came out of the water, dripping mind-wiping water.
“Uncle Charon!” Deme broke into a run.
Hades darted after her and scooped her up. “Not while he's wet, darling. That water will make you forget everything.”
“Why can he swim in it?” Deme pouted.
“Because the river is his domain. It bows to his power.” Hades set her down.
Charon stuck his board in the sand and strode over to us. As he came, the water evaporated from his skin and hair while a robe appeared on his thin, wiry body. He settled a hood in place and crouched to open his arms, his blue-gray eyes flashing.
“Demetera!” he called.
Deme looked at her father. Hades nodded, and she ran into Charon's arms. He swooped her up and settled her on his hip, grinning broadly. We joined them as the Lethe settled into its usual stillness.
“Yo', boss man!” Charon bounced Deme to make her giggle. “How's it hanging?”
Viper widened his eyes at me, and I chuckled.
“I'm fine, thank you. I brought Vervain to see the empty shore.” Hades peered down the river. “I'm hoping she will see something I missed.”
“Godhunter, been a while.” He came over, and we fist-bumped.
“It has. Nice to see you, Charon.” I stared across the water. “This is creepy.”
“Yeah, it's bananas. But I'm enjoying the time off. Been jazzin' the glass. You guys want a ride to the other side?”
“Yes, please.”
“Allrighty then.” He set Deme down and went to his surfboard.
With a smooth move, he pulled it out of the sand and tossed it into the water.
It transformed as it flew, becoming a large, narrow boat like the sort you find navigating the canals of Venice.
Its prow curled up to form the head of a beast, and I could have sworn that the creature winked at me.
The boat slid up onto the shore and waited.
“Nice trick,” Viper said.
“Thanks, man!” He looked at Viper and then at me, a question in his expression.
“Oh, this is Viper.” I motioned to him. “My husband.”
“Another one? Yo, V, enough already. Leave some for the other mamas.” He paused. “On second thought, scoop 'em up, lady! That leaves more babes for me.”
I burst out laughing. “I pulled this one out of the Void and made his body out of dark magic.” I waggled my fingers at him.
Charon gaped at me. “You made him?” He looked at Viper, who grinned back. “Whoo-ee! I'm gonna need to percolate on that one. You just blew my mind.” He leaned in. “You know, my birthday's comin' up.”
Hades cleared his throat.
“Yeah, yeah, chill, boss.” Charon grabbed at empty air, and a staff appeared in his hand. “It's not like you've got stuff to do.”
“Charon!”
Charon snickered and whispered to us, “I better stop or he's gonna give me dirty lickings.”
“Sounds kinky.” Re sidled closer. “Tell me more.”
Charon snorted, shook his head, and went to the boat. “You're gnar, bro. You need to chill.”
“He meant Hades is going to punish him,” I said.
“Oh, I know what he meant.” Re winked.
“Boat ride! Boat ride!” Demetera sang.
Hades picked her up and put her in the boat. The rest of us piled in and sat down on the benches. All but Persephone.
Sephy put Princess in the carriage and climbed in to settle on a seat. “I'll wait here.”
“Bye, Mommy!” Deme called.
“Bye, baby!”
“She doesn't like the Lethe,” Hades said. “Gives her the creeps.”
“The Lethe gives the Goddess of the Underworld the creeps?” Re chuckled.
Hades set his fiery stare on Re. “I was talking about Princess.”
I giggled as Re rolled his golden eyes. But then we were gliding across the river, Charon pushing us across with his staff.
“If you can control the water, why do you need to push the boat?” Viper asked.
Charon lifted the staff out and set the base on the boat's floor. “I don't have to, but the ladies dig it. It's become a habit.”
“All right, you do you.” Viper leaned on the boat's edge and peered into the water.
“Don't get too close.” Kirill pulled Viper upright by the back of his shirt.
“Yeah, you're dumb enough as it is,” Re drawled.
“Re!” I got up and moved away from Re to sit between Kirill and Viper. There was plenty of space on the bench. As I said, it was a big boat.
Viper leaned forward to smirk at Re. “Who's dumb now?”
“Both of you.” Kirill stood up. “Pay attention! Ve are here.”
The boat shushed onto the sandy shore, taking us well beyond the water's edge so we could disembark safely.
Viper jumped over the side and then reached in to help me out.
I stared out across the empty shore to the Gates of the Sun in the distance.
The shimmering arches ran in a line between us and Persephone's grove.
Past the grove were the shores of Hades, circled six times by the River Styx.
Was Hades an island? Maybe a continent. I wasn't sure.
“It's a ghost town.” Viper followed my gaze.
“Normally, yes. But now it's just empty.” Hades joined us, glancing back at Charon, who had put Deme on his shoulders and was running around the beach with her, making horse sounds.
“Oh, yeah. I get it.” Viper chuckled. “Ghost town. Ghosts. Souls. Sure.”
I stepped past everyone, letting my dragon take over my senses. She could see a broader spectrum, smell more intensely, and hear things whispered across a river.
“Shh!” Hades hissed at Charon and Deme.
It went silent. I stretched my senses further, but they weren’t meant for tracking souls. And this wasn't my realm.
I turned to look at Hades. “I can't sense anything. What about you? Don't you feel when a soul arrives?”
“I've learned to dampen the sensation over the years. It was too distracting.” He stepped up beside me. “But I can try.”
Hades closed his eyes.
I stepped back, giving him room. The rest of us watched him solemnly; even Deme didn't make a sound. Hades went tense. His head moved as if tracking something. He started to turn around and then stopped abruptly. His hand lifted. Reached out.
“Son of a bitch!” Hades shouted as his eyes flew open.
Deme shrank back, and Charon picked her up.
“I felt a soul.” Hades spun to look at us. “I felt it approach. It was mine! Mine!”
“What happened?” I asked.
“It just . . . slipped away.” Hades locked stares with me. “I had it, but then something pulled it out of my grasp. What could have done that?”
“You're asking me? You know more than I do about the god world, especially souls. What do you think happened?”
Hades' eyes blazed. “I think someone just stole my soul!”