A Cruel Curse
THE UNDERWORLD.
We are all slaves to fate, even the gods.
Hades, the god of the Underworld, never believed in destiny until it led him to Persephone—his soulmate—and his dreams became reality.
Hades and his best friend Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft, had been called upon to judge a Dunamis mage—the most powerful of magical beings.
That day, once again, destiny was afoot, and sometimes fate tests our strength and determination...
‘You are here to be judged.’ Hades’ icy voice slithered like venom through the mage’s bloodstream, yet she did not flinch. A small smile twisted on her lips as she regarded the god of the Underworld.
‘Hecate will not allow you harm me.’ The woman’s eyes shifted towards her goddess.
‘Hecate has no choice. I am the god of the Underworld, and I see into your dark soul, old crone. I see your crimes and malevolence. You will be vanquished… by Hecate.’
The mage’s eyes widened, and, for the first time in a long while, she felt fear.
They’d ensnared her in a bubble of pure magic—Hecate’s magic—from which she could not escape even if she tried.
But her words could maim—she was a more powerful being than they realised.
The mage laughed softly, then pointed at Hades.
‘The pain of losing her
Will consume and maim.
Your dark heart will perish before
You find her again.
The thing of beauty will be such a sweet foe.
She did not feel.
She will not know.’
A crack of lightning blinded the room, and the mage’s laughter echoed off the walls.
Hades felt a tug in his chest, and suddenly, it seemed hollow—a void of darkness. The dark sensation morphed into agony, yet he gritted his teeth and endured the onslaught.
‘What the…’ He turned to Hecate, whose eyes glowed white, her mouth twisting into a snarl. With a flick of her wrist, the crone fragmented like smoke in the wind, and particles of her were sucked towards the small golden box in Hecate’s hand. Hecate snapped the lid shut.
‘She is dangerous—immensely dangerous, Hades. This box must never be opened. We need to bury it in Tartarus.’ Hecate’s eyes widened as she whipped her head around to meet Hades’ gaze, mentally recounting the nonsensical, cryptic words of the curse. ‘Persephone… we need to check on her.’
‘My wife,’ Hades muttered. ‘I shall return soon.’ Shadows enveloped Hades, and with a loud pop, he vanished. Hades materialised in Zeus’s kingdom to discover a party in full swing—typical of Zeus. Persephone loathed these gatherings.
Zeus swaggered towards his brother wearing his trademark conceited smirk. ‘Hades, to what do we owe the pleasure? I can’t recall the last time you graced us with your presence.'
Hades ground his back teeth.
Zeus… King of the gods.
King of deceit.
King of vengeance.
King of infidelity.
The manipulative king who had underhandedly bound Hades to the underworld aeons ago after Titanomachy, the ten-year war between the Olympian gods and the Titans. The only place Hades was permitted to visit was Zeus’s kingdom of Naxos, which was filled with sycophants. No. Thank. You.
Hades' hatred for his brother was as consuming as wildfire, but now was not the time for bickering; he needed to find Persephone. Before her, Hades merely existed. Since Persephone, he had discovered what it meant to truly live.
At Hades’ silence, tense jaw, and darting eyes, Zeus’s face paled as he tilted his head. ‘Brother?’
‘I need to know that Persephone is safe,’ Hades hissed through clenched teeth. He felt panicked; that warm glow in his chest—their soul bond—was missing. The notion of his love being no more tasted bitter on his tongue. Daggers of pain and turmoil tore at his heart.
‘Of course she is.’ Demeter, Persephone’s mother, strode towards the man she loathed.
‘She is with the gods of Olympus, where she belongs.’ With a haughty smile, she raised her brow; oblivious to the mage’s curse, she was typically contemptuous towards him.
‘I still have three months with her, Hades,’ Demeter spat.
Persephone, stifled by her mother, still loved her and had agreed to spend half of the year with each of them following Demeter’s meltdown over her bonding with Hades.
‘So, where is she?’ Hades ground out.
They scoured and turned Zeus’ kingdom in Olympus inside and out, but Persephone had disappeared—vanished—along with their bond. Hades knew he had lost her.
‘What have you done?’ Demeter screamed at Hades, who looked at her from between his hands. His movements were listless, and he sank to the ground, his heart in shreds.
‘I judged a mage. She cursed me,’ he uttered as he closed his eyes.
‘Tell me everything, Brother.’ Zeus placed a hand on Hades’ shoulder.
Hades explained how he had judged the malevolent old crone and the curse she had placed upon him: the curse to lose his one true love… Persephone.
‘Magic is a threat to us all,’ Zeus bellowed as multiple forks of lightning shot through the sky.
‘I decree that we, once again, take control of the mortal realm. We shall go to war! Any being with witchcraft will be destroyed,’ the god of the sky yelled as Demeter sat beside Hades, both a shell of their former godly selves.
‘It’s all your fault,’ Demeter growled through her sobs.
‘I know,’ he whispered, holding his bowed head.