Chapter 17
For a long time after I was safely back in my room, I couldn't help feeling like I'd just lost some sort of game. It made me furious that he could manipulate my body like that. Thank god my brain was harder to coax.
“You know, he thinks he's the big cheese, but he's not. That's why he's so pissed at the moment,” snapped Skop. He was really not happy about being left behind. I was surprised he was taking his guarding duties so seriously to be honest.
“What do you mean?” I asked the kobaloi.
“Oceanus is back. Which means Zeus is no longer the strongest being in Olympus,” he said cattily.
“Oceanus is stronger than Zeus? What do you mean he's back? Where did he go?”
“Gods, you're clueless,” he sighed, and flopped onto his front paws. “The Olympians went to war with the Titans,” he said, and I nodded.
“I remember learning that. Cronos was told that his own son would overthrow him so he ate all his children.”
“Correct. Fucking weirdo. But his wife, Rhea, hid her seventh son, Zeus. He grew up, rescued his eaten siblings, then the war began.”
I opened my mouth to ask how you could rescue someone who had been eaten, but closed it again. I wasn't sure I wanted to know the answer.
“The Olympians won, and threw most of the Titans into Tartarus, a pit of endless torture. But some Titans didn't fight, including Oceanus and Prometheus. Two of the most powerful beings to have ever lived. Titans are the original gods, they're fiercely strong.”
“Oh,” I said.
“The Titans who didn't fight were allowed to live in Olympus, as long as they kept to themselves. Which they did, but everybody knew Zeus feared and hated them. They were seen less and less, and eventually they just vanished. Until recently, when Oceanus returned.”
“Why did he come back?”
“Some descendant of his went and woke him up, is what I heard. But he was good friends with Hades back in the day, and they've fallen in together again pretty quickly.”
“So that's why Zeus is so angry? He's scared?”
“I wouldn't say it to his face, but yeah, that's what I think.”
“How do you know all this stuff?” I asked him.
“Parties. Everything you need to know can be learned at parties. They're where all the politics of Olympus are managed.” I thought about the ball, supposedly my biggest Trial yet.
“That's what Hedone told me.”
“She's right. As well as smoking hot,” Skop said. I rolled my eyes, even though I agreed with him.
“The masquerade ball can't be as bad as the chasm,” I asserted, loudly.
“I wouldn't be so sure about that,” Skop replied.
A little while later there was another knock on my door and I jumped to my feet to open it.
I was bored, and pent-up; anxiety-fueled energy was surging through me.
The fresh air in Zeus's realm had only served to remind me that I was trapped underground here, and I was becoming more and more bothered by the fact.
“Good afternoon, Persephone,” said Hedone, but I looked straight past her at the man behind, towering over her shoulder.
He must have been at least eight feet tall, and just like me he had a shock of white hair.
But he also had white eyebrows, over sparkling blue eyes and his skin was a very pale blue.
Glittering dust seemed to swirl across his face as I stared, and he smiled at me, a broad smile that made his incredible eyes light up even more.
“I'm pleased to meet you, Persephone. I'm Morpheus, god of dreams and permanent resident of the underworld,” he said, and held out his arm around Hedone.
“Hi,” I said, and took his proffered hand. His skin was ice cold and smooth, and I noticed he was wearing something that looked like wizards’ robes, a gaping sleeve falling back and revealing deep blue swirling tattoos snaking up his muscled arm as he shook my hand.
“The lovely Hedone tells me you're missing your garden.”
Alarm bells rang in my mind. This man was the god of dreams, and he knew I was missing gardens. Did the voice in the garden in my dreams belong to him?
“I am,” I said.
“Well, I haven't sought permission from the boss, but I think I know a place you might like,” he said with another broad smile. His voice sounded nothing like the one in my dreams.
“Thank you,” I said. “Can we walk there, instead of doing that flashy thing?”
He laughed, and his skin seemed to ripple with more blue light.
“Of course.”
We walked for ages, and I checked with Skop that he was paying attention to where we were going again. The thought of getting lost in this underground labyrinth was more than I could take. Hedone walked with her hand in Morpheus's and they frequently exchanged happy glances with each other.
“Are you two, um, an item?” I ventured awkwardly.
“Yes,” Hedone beamed at me. I thought about that for a moment. The goddess of pleasure with the god of dreams. I bet that lead to some seriously epic sex.
“So, Morpheus, do you control everyone's dreams?”
“Oh no. No, I create themes for people's dreams, then I allocate them as necessary.”
“Themes?”
“Yes. Like fear, or self-reflection, or guilt, or humor. Every individual interprets those themes differently, in their sleep. The sub-conscious is a powerful thing, and it dictates most of my work.”
“Can you... can you talk to people in their dreams?”
“Oh yes. But I'm only allowed to do that on order of Hades.”
“Oh. Can Hades do it too?”
“All of the Olympians can. They can do pretty much anything they like,” he said, with a raised eyebrow. “Are you getting a visitor in your sleep?”
“No, no, I'm sure it's just an overactive imagination,” I said quickly, and Morpheus’ lips quirked into a smile.
“Well, whatever it is, it's nothing to do with me, I can assure you,” he said.
“Huh. Will you be at the ball?”
“Of course. Are you prepared for it? I've heard the tests are going to be good,” he said.
“What have you heard?” said Hedone, excited. “You must share!”
“That would be cheating! I could lose my job,” he said teasingly, then leaned forward and kissed her quickly. “Sorry, my love.” I felt a stab of jealousy at their cute flirting and squashed it guiltily. Hedone was nice. Why would I begrudge her anything?
“Persephone has a little more prep to go through, but mostly just conversational etiquette now,” Hedone said. “She'll do great.”
I smiled warmly at her.
“I'll be honest, I don't see how it can be worse than the chasm,” I said quietly. Neither Hedone or Morpheus replied.
“Told ya,” said Skop in my head.