8. Chapter 8
Ablood-curdling scream pierced through the peace of Tartarus. As Zoe plummeted into the abyss, she cursed at her bad luck, knowing her day couldn’t get any worse than this. But as a sea of ghoulish hands emerged from the darkness below, she realized it could get much, much worse.
Zoe looked in horror as ghostly faces emerged from the gloom, their hideous features obscured behind veils of shadow, while crowns of ancient gold rested upon their brows. They called to her with cries of despair, reaching towards her with skeletal hands that sparkled with lavishly jeweled rings. Zoe drew a fearful breath, and called for help once more as she fell towards the hordes of the undead.
“Shadow, help me!”
Her cry echoed through the canyon, until the valley reverberated with her fear. But despite her plea, her call went unanswered. She tumbled towards the outstretched hands of the dead, knowing that she was a fool to expect help from the brooding God the Underworld. She would probably have been better off asking Spooks to lend a hand…
“Zoe, hold on!”
Zoe gasped as a comet of darkness sped towards her from the sky. It gathered speed as it dived towards her, until her eyes widened in recognition.
“Shadow?”
“Take my hand!” Shadow flew towards her at top-speed, leaving a trail of darkness billowing behind him. “Now, Zoe!”
Zoe reached for him, and gasped as their hands connected. A deep chill spread through her fingers and turned the blood in her veins to ice. It was as if she held the hand of winter itself.
“Brace yourself!” Shadow roared to her over the wails of the dead. “It’s going to be a bumpy ride!”
At once, they took off, soaring across the canyon of darkness like shooting stars. Shadow wove nimbly through the outstretched hands of the dead, leaving a path of icicles in his wake, before he sped into a current of wind. Zoe gasped as it sent them soaring upwards along the sheer cliff face, before they burst free of the canyon’s gloom, and tumbled into a vast snow heap. Zoe spluttered as an explosion of snowflakes filled the air, and drew deep lungfuls of air to calm her hammering heart. Against all odds, she was alive.
With her limbs still entwined with Shadows, she turned to him in surprise.
“You saved me.”
He shrugged nonchalantly, as if diving headfirst into a chasm of the dead was an everyday occurrence.
“Well, I could hardly let our first visitor in years perish in the depths of Tartarus.”
As Shadow broke into a smile, Zoe watched as his eyes gleamed in the moonlight. For a moment, she caught a glimpse of what lay beneath his fearsome demeanor, to where a spark of his inner light remained. But as their hands brushed, she looked in surprise as an icy chill spread through her fingertips. It was as if his body was made from winter’s breath, unable to be held in the hands of a mortal. She shivered from the cold, until Shadow retracted his hand self-consciously.
“I don’t understand.” Zoe looked at her hand in surprise, her skin pale and bluish from his touch. “How were you able to save me if we can’t touch?”
“The powers of the Underworld might be great, but they come with a pretty big limitation. As its guardian, I can see you, speak with you, even share my powers with you.” Shadow placed his hand towards Zoe’s, until his fingers fell through hers. “But I can never touch, nor be touched by a living thing.”
Zoe looked at their hands in surprise. She could sense his presence, but could feel nothing more than a cold breeze drifting along her skin. She watched as small crystals of ice formed from his touch, until he removed his hand once more.
“So… you’ve never touched anyone?”
As the words tumbled out of Zoe’s mouth, Shadow’s cheeks burned with a deep heat that contrasted their wintry surroundings.
“That’s not… well, I…” The God of the Underworld spluttered as he failed to find his words, before he shot to his feet. “I think we have more pressing matters to discuss. Specifically, why you took a sightseeing tour across Tartarus?”
“Trust me, I hadn’t planned on it.” Zoe peered over the edge of the canyon and into the abyss beyond. “What were those things?”
“The souls of the damned.” A cold breeze carried the whispers of those below. “Nothing good lives down there, trust me.”
Zoe shuddered as she recalled the sea of outstretched ghoulish hands, their jeweled rings gleaming malevolently in the darkness.
“But why were they wearing crowns? There were enough gemstones down there to fill a vault.”
“Tartarus is a home for those who have lost sight of what’s truly important in life. Those consumed by their mortal greed for riches, status, and power.” Shadow’s eyes welled with darkness as he gazed into the abyss. “Until they free themselves of such things, they’ll remain in the darkness. It’s just a pity they didn’t learn such a lesson while they were still mortal.”
Zoe’s stomach churned as Shadow’s eyes lingered on her pointedly.
“Hey, cut that out. You don’t need to scare me with your ghost stories.” She glanced back at the abyss, recalling the glittering wealth of the ghouls. “Besides, do I look like the kind of person who has crowns and jewels lying around in my apartment?”
“Perhaps not. But you do look like the kind of person who’s lost sight of the real treasures in life.” Shadow’s dark eyes turned to her, as if he gazed into her very soul. “And you still haven’t answered my question. What were you doing in Tartarus in the middle of the night?”
“I…” Zoe peered at the lights of the Underworld Motel in the distance, where a jingle of bells echoed in the air. “I was playing Hide and Shriek with Spooks.”
Shadow’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “You don’t strike me as the typical Hide and Shriek player.”
“Well, I was a little more successful than I’d expected, thanks to your maze giving me an impromptu tour of the Underworld.”
“Is that so?” Shadow’s eyes narrowed, like a predator closing in on its prey. “That maze exists to protect the Underworld. To misdirect intruders and those who would seek to cause it harm. Which makes me wonder… why would it see you as a threat?”
Zoe’s stomach churned as Shadow’s gaze lingered on her. The intensity of his stare sent a shiver, one that wasn’t entirely unpleasant, down her spine. But despite her uneasiness, she forced herself to stand her ground.
“And do you see me as a threat?”
“I haven’t decided yet.” The darkness in Shadow’s eyes receded, although his skepticism remained. “It’s most unusual for a mortal to want to stay in this town.”
Zoe lifted her chin defiantly, and held his gaze. “Well, perhaps I’m not like most mortals.”
Shadow’s eyes narrowed, while his lips curled into a smile. “Perhaps...”
Silence descended between the pair, until a scattering of snow drifted through the air. The snowflakes danced around their bodies like a storm of confetti, glittering in the moonlight like diamonds. But despite the beautiful sight, they glanced at one another distrustfully.
A merry bark broke the silence, until Cerberus bounded from the darkness towards his master. Shadow groaned in despair as the dog approached, clenching a bone in each of its three jaws.
“Please don’t tell me you’ve gone digging in the graveyard again?”
Cerberus dropped the object at his master’s feet, before he peered at Zoe with a whine. Shadow sighed in exasperation, before he nodded reluctantly.
“Fine. The mortal can join us.” Shadow turned his back to Zoe and marched along the cliff top. “Follow me.”
“To where?”
“To the Throne of the Underworld.” Shadow pointed to a steep incline on the cliff edge, where the cliff curled inwards, like the point of a witch’s hat. “Metaphorically speaking, of course. It’s the best view in all the Underworld.”
With a bark of excitement, Cerberus bounded towards Zoe, before he excitedly nudged her in his master’s direction. She stumbled after Shadow, weaving her way between snow-covered brambles and dead undergrowth as she followed him into the gloom. As the three of them climbed to the cliff top, Zoe couldn’t help but shake her head in bewilderment. Of all the things she expected to do this evening, going for a midnight dog walk with the King of the Underworld hadn’t been one of them.
“We’re here.”
Shadow parted the branches of the undergrowth to reveal a clearing bathed in moonlight. Zoe gasped as she marveled at the panorama of the Underworld. Hundreds of stars shone brightly in the skies above, illuminating the snow-covered expanse of the canyons and cliffs, while in the distance, the lights of the Underworld Motel glowed brightly.
“It’s beautiful…” Zoe gazed at the night sky in awe, where the Arctic winds danced in a heavenly spectacle of lights. “I’ve never seen so many stars.”
“One for every lost soul we’ve saved.” But Shadow’s smile faded. “But like everything here, they’ve lost the shine they once held.”
Zoe followed his gaze to the barren landscape of brambles and frost-tipped trees. “I suppose it is a little… sparse.”
“It wasn’t always this way. Once, this landscape teemed with life. It was a true paradise.” Shadow’s eyes glistened as he gazed at the panorama, before he approached a nearby tree perched on the hilltop. “And these were the jewel in our crown.”
Zoe looked at the deadened tree in surprise. With its gnarled trunk, bare branches and warped appearance, it looked less like a jewel, and more like an eyesore. But her breath caught in her throat as its trunk emitted a soft golden glow, that traveled all the way down into its roots. A glow that was the very same as she’d seen in the center of the maze.
“I can’t say I’ve seen a tree like this before.” Zoe peered at the small ruby-colored buds that perched on its white branches, forever frozen in time within the wintry wastelands. “Although it looks like it’s seen better days.”
“They’re pomegranate trees, sown from the seeds of Persephone’s Tree.” At seeing Zoe’s lack of comprehension, Shadow continued. “The Queen of the Underworld. She had a bit of a green-thumb. Although I suppose that’s to be expected, given her mother was the Goddess of Nature.”
“And what exactly was a green-thumbed goddess doing down here?”
“It’s a long story. A story of abduction, meddling Gods, and love blooming in the most unexpected of places. When it comes to relationships, nothing with the Olympians was simple. Trust me.” Shadow’s eyes narrowed shrewdly. “The pomegranate was a symbol of Persephone and Hades’ love. A magic that brought life to the realm of the dead. And in planting her tree, Persephone brought life to the Underworld.”
Shadow gazed across the valley, reliving the magic that had once existed within the landscape. But a mournful look filled his eyes, until his gentle smile faded.
“So, what happened?”
Shadow looked at Zoe warily, his inner shields raised at the thought of opening up to an outsider. But a bark of encouragement from Cerberus pulled him from his doubts, until he spoke once more.
“The Underworld has seen many changes in its time, but one thing has always remained the same. Charon. The Ferryman of the Underworld, responsible for bringing lost souls to our lands, so that they may move on. He was like a father to me, and I trusted him in life and death. Until the day he betrayed me.”
An icy wind tore through the canyon, until the sparse overgrowth shuddered from its touch. Shadow studied the barren landscape with eyes of flint, his gaze as cold as his wintry surroundings.
“Charon always expected a payment for ferrying lost souls to our lands. It was Ancient Greek custom for the dead to be buried with a coin, meant for his service. But over time, his appetite for payment turned to greed. A thirst for power. And he planned to betray us all, by stealing the magic of the Underworld.” Shadow’s hands balled into fists as he spoke. “When I discovered what he’d planned, I had no choice but to banish him from the Underworld. I was forced to build our walls, and hide our existence from the world. And without a messenger to ferry lost souls to our lands, our magic waned, until the eternal winter descended. A winter where nothing can bloom, where our rivers freeze, and where life slumbers forevermore.”
Shadow’s eyes burned with a dark flame, fueled by the hurt of Charon’s betrayal. Zoe followed his gaze to the frozen landscape, until her gaze lingered on the faint lights of the city far in the distance.
“Couldn’t you just move? Make your home elsewhere?
“The specters here can’t venture beyond the River Lethe’s boundaries. And as King of the Underworld, I’m tied to this land. I’m… part of it.” Shadow’s brows furrowed in concentration, until gnarled and twisted vines grew from the earth below. “I feel its magic, its pain, its sorrow. I feel everything.”
Zoe glanced at the cold, barren landscape. As she gazed at the layers of frost and bracing winds, she realized Shadow wasn’t just tied to the land. It was a reflection of who he had become. A man who protected himself in the darkness, who was lost beneath layers of ice.
“So how can the Underworld wake from its slumber? How can it return to what it once was?”
Shadow plucked an object from the shadows, until a leather-bound tome emerged. He blew a layer of dust from the cover, revealing ornate gilded lettering underneath, and opened the ancient yellowed pages.
“That’s the motel guest book.”
“It’s more than a guest book.” Shadow gazed at the signatures that adorned the pages. “It’s a record of every lost soul I helped move on to the other side.”
“You helped all these people?” Zoe’s eyes widened as she took in the list of names. “But how?”
“These lands hold a special power. A power to remind people of what is truly important in life. I simply helped lost souls rediscover the magic in their lives, so that they could move on.” Shadow sighed as the signatures suddenly stopped, the pages blank. “At least, I used to. If I want to save the Underworld, then I must help another lost soul, before it’s too late.”
Silence descended between the pair. As Shadow looked mournfully at the wasteland that had once been his kingdom, Zoe followed his gaze. She studied the icicle-laden trees as they sparkled in the starlight, and watched the drifts of snow as they fluttered through the sky like butterflies. A landscape that was frozen in time, slumbering beneath the layers of ice and snow. The sight of the sparkling snow storm stirred something deep within her heart, until she reached into her satchel, and retrieved her camera. She angled her lens at the ice-covered vista before her, each snowflake shimmering in her cracked lens, before she clicked the shutter.
“What are you doing?”
“The Underworld might not look how it used to, but there’s still a beauty to be found here.” Zoe broke into a smile, despite Shadow’s suspicion. “I guess I just needed someone to open my eyes to it.”
As Zoe held Shadow’s gaze, a faint glimmer of light shone in his eyes. For a brief second, he returned her smile, until the two gazed at each other in the moonlight, as if seeing each other anew. But as the sound of the mariachi band drifted in the distance, Shadow cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Well, I guess we should head back. It’s never a good idea to leave Spooks alone for too long.” Shadow turned to leave, but paused before he spoke once more. “I should have known better than to put him on guard duty. It didn’t take you long to give him the slip.”
Zoe’s cheeks burned, until she glanced at Shadow uneasily. “I don’t know what you’re talking about…”
“We both know you had no intention of playing Hide and Shriek with the resident poltergeist.” Shadow’s eyes narrowed, his formidable gaze sending chills down her spine. “I know you’re hiding something, Zoe. I could tell the moment you arrived in this town.”
Zoe’s chest tightened as his gaze lingered on her.
“Then why did you let me stay?”
At this, Shadow broke into a rare smile.
“Because I know a lost soul when I see one.” Shadow glanced at the guest book in his hands, its empty pages gleaming in the light. “And maybe this town can help you live again.”
Without another word, Shadow walked into the darkness, leaving Zoe reeling with surprise. She glanced at the maze of thorns in the center of the Underworld, and knew that Shadow was right. One way or another, the Underworld held the key to her future. But as her gaze returned to the Shadow, she couldn’t help but think that her future might be a little more complicated than she’d expected.