Summoning Bones

7. Confusion in the Mansion

As Eirene left, Zagreus watched from the store window, letting the light that spilled out illuminate their path. When they turned onto the main road of town, he quickly closed the shop, locking the doors, cleaning the windows and display cases. He then went to the back room where the animals were whirring awake and stretching their stiff joints. A large cat bounded from their spot by the wrenches to rub against Zagreus' leg. He looked down.

"Ginger, you mustn't get oil on my pants, it wouldn't be proper when visiting Lord Eldridge. Although, I suppose it won't be me. But come, we must wake your nemesis," he said, plucking the cat from the ground to scratch under their metal chin. Their gears buzzed in a sort of purring sound as they walked to where the three-headed dog dog lay, still asleep despite the other animals' squeaking as they ran around the workshop.

He reached down and lightly tapped the top of the dog's middle head. It stirred to life and looked up at Zagreus. It's large tail began to thud, while its other heads rose and blinked their copper eyes set with glowing bulbs. The dog stood up, its height matching that of the tables around it.

"Good morning, Cerberus. Do you want to chase after my sister for me? You're such a good puppy," Zagreus whispered so only the dog could hear him. It's tail wagged faster, knocking half a dozen mice into the bin of metal scraps. It bounced once around the room and trotted out the door and into the shop. Zagreus watched the dog, nearly as large as himself maneuver through the shop, as not to break anything and out the door. He then turned to where the mice squeaked and wiggled. He plucked each one out by their metal tails and set them onto the workbench where they scurried away.

Meanwhile, the dog almost as fabled as the Summoner, meandered you the cobblestone streets. It tracked the smell of Eirene, light and airy, but with a hint of something sickly sweet like death clung to her scent. The dog inhaled, connecting the smell with its other home. It trotted along under the cloak of darkness, ducking into side streets whenever the sound or smell of another person was too close. For a machine, it knew to be seen meant a form of death. It's soul would return to the Underworld, and in the Underworld it was fed far less cake than it was under Zagreus' care.

It tracked Eirene up the street, past the shops and loud taverns to a side street, that wandered away from the town and close to the mansions. Brick houses turned to grass and the cobblestone turned to stone sheets. Soon even the grass was replaced with trees on one side and lush flower gardens on the other. Cerberus walked behind the mansions on the road the Rider and taken earlier that day. Eirene's scent still floated in the air. The dog traveled further to the largest mansion. The Eldridge Mansion.

It sat casting shadows on the other houses near by, and over the towering trees of the forest. Only deeper into the forest, where beasts lived, did the trees grow taller than the mansion. Inside, light poured out from electric bulbs that whirred and flickered. The silhouette of two woman shown in the window. Eirene's scent grew stronger than ever. The mechanical dog and sat outside, waiting for the moment Eirene was alone to visit her.

Inside the mansion, the Rider and the Summoner stood at opposite ends of the room. The Rider leaned nonchalantly on the marble column, the windows to her back. The Summoner stood by the door, her arms covered by her cloak, so the Rider couldn't see that she was gripping the silver dagger.

The room was filled with silence, except for the crackling fire. Over the mantle was a large portrait of the Eldridge family. The mother was thin with a stern face, but kind eyes. Her red hair was tied back into a tight bun. She was staring into the living eyes of her husband. Lord Eldridge had a hard face, with strong cheekbones and jaw. He held his wife gently,  and his children close to him, trying to protect them from the world. The boy had wild red hair, and looked ready to run off into some great adventure. The daughter had black hair like her father, and a sweet face. She looked no older than fourteen in the portrait, yet she was sixteen years of age. She was the only one smiling at the painter. She looked at them with pity, as if apologizing for the chaos of her family. It was a candid portrait, a rarity reserved for the wealthy.

At that moment, the sound of loud footsteps could be heard coming close to the office. Eirene looked over her shoulder at the door, which opened to show the Commander of the Riders.

He entered the room and looked over Calliope and Eirene. He nodded to his second in command then focused on Eirene. He smiled at her.

"Welcome Summoner," he said. She glared and turned to Calliope.

"I knew you were a Rider, yet I still tried to help. And you do what?"

"My job. I was told to help bring you to Lord Eldridge. His daughter-"

"Is dead. I cannot change that," Eirene snapped. She began to set into motion Zagreus' plan. Makaria's soul was on the line. If she remained too long in the Underworld, she may never return to the land of the living. And if she managed to return without their help, she would not be the same Makaria that Eirene had known.

"But you claimed, the woman, she said," rambled Calliope. Fear began to shine in her eyes. The commander looked over at Calliope, questing the abilities of his second in command.

"Commander Sylver?" He questioned.

"A woman in the village, Mrs. Lacy," uncertainty flashed in Eirene's eyes. The Commander looked over at her, not missing it. "She claimed you could help cure the ill and even bring back the dead."

"Are you who Mrs. Lacy claims?" The Commander said. Eirene stared into his icy blues eyes.

"No. I've never heard of anyone able to bring back the dead. What you speak of is the thing of children stories and fables."