Lexi's Promise

~66~

"No. They would tell me not to go."

"And they would be right. You should let someone else take care of the emergency."

"The emergency is a matter of life and death. Only I can help. No one else has the gift. Do you understand?"

Lexi hated to play on Lars' sympathy, but they were running out of time. He nodded and that's all Lexi needed before she urged Rupert into the air again. She wasn't sure what she planned to do if she found Rhea's spirit in Elysium. There was a thought her gifts might give the titaness a connection to her body, or somehow send her back to Olympus. Lexi wasn't so worried about Rhea's spirit. Spirits could stay forever in the underworld. She was more concerned about Rhea's physical form and how it was responding to being soulless.

By the time they arrived in Elysium, Lexi had experienced three strong contractions. Based on her internal clock, they were about six minutes apart. She didn't want Lars to know what was happening to her body, so she pretended everything was fine. As they walked through the field, Lexi called out for Rhea while Lars held tightly to her hand, helping her navigate over obstacles and around holes. Three more contractions later, and Rhea's spirit had not appeared, which was when Lexi stopped to rest against a tree.

"This place is huge," she said as she panted. "I thought maybe Heracles or Macaria would respond to my shouting. They might have seen Rhea. Or maybe they're with her right now."

Lars looked down at Lexi after she finished her breathy rant, and she saw concern written in the added creases around his eyes. "You are in labor. You cannot hide that from me. I am taking you back to the palace."

Lexi bit her lip, not wanting to admit defeat. "I don't think this is the real thing. It's just false... Oooh." Lexi bent forward as a contraction took control of her body. This one would have been impossible to hide. When she righted herself, Lars scooped her into his arms.

"Home."

"No, Lars. I need to find Rhea's spirit. I need to help her."

"You cannot help me now, dear one." The soft, feminine voice lilted inside Lexi's head, which meant she was connecting with a soul, and she glanced around until she saw Rhea's spirit gliding toward them.

"Lars Stop. Rhea is here. She has found us."

Lars stopped walking but his eyes were locked on Lexi and not on the glowing image of Rhea as she floated in front of them. "I am at peace, Lexi, but it appears you are in need of assistance. Come, let us get you to the river."

Although Lexi didn't think a river was required to have a discussion, she didn't want to upset Rhea and have her vanish, so she agreed. "Lars, listen to me. Rhea wants us to follow her to the river. Please, give me time to talk to her. Then we can go back to the palace. I promise."

Grudgingly, Lars followed Lexi's guidance as Rhea's spirit led them through the trees. When they arrived at the edge of a stream, Lars lowered Lexi to the ground while Rhea instructed Lexi to get into the water.

"This is a tributary of the river Styx," Rhea explained. "It is quite shallow at this point. You will have no trouble giving birth here. I gave birth to Poseidon in a river similar to this."

"I am not going to give birth here. I can't..." Lexi was silenced by a hard contraction, and Lars offered his arm for support as she powered through the pain.

"Oh, I believe you can and you are," Rhea said. "Your babes are telling me they are perfectly content to be born right here."

Lexi stared at Rhea, wondering how she was able to communicate with her unborn children, but now was not the time to discuss the abilities of a deceased titaness. "Hades..." Lexi croaked. "Hades needs to be here. He's going to help deliver... He needs to see his children... Ugh."

As Lexi gritted her teeth against another contraction, Lars unhooked his belt and dropped his gear onto the shore. "I have witnessed four births. I will help you deliver your offspring safely."

While Lexi was grateful for Lars' presence, she didn't exactly want to get naked in front of him. It was now that Lexi regretted not telling anyone where she was headed. Hades would be furious, and he would be crushed. "Someone has to tell Hades. Please, Rhea can you go to him and tell him?"

"I am afraid I am relegated to stay on this side of the bridge, but I may know of a way to alert him. I will contact Heracles' spirit and have him send a message to his corporal form in Olympus. He can then contact Charon through the scrying mirror. Will that suit you?"

"Yes, thank you." Lexi allowed Lars to help her into the water, and as she made to sit down, a burst of warm liquid erupted from between her legs. She knew what that meant. It meant they were not going anywhere until her babies were born. It was time to get naked.

"Lars, help me out of my dress."

Lars appeared to know precisely what Lexi meant as he moved to stand behind her. It took him a few tries, but he managed to unzip her dress with his large fingers. He pulled it over her head, dislodging the clip Sella had used to hold up her hair. Her panties were next, and she managed to get them to her ankles on her own, then Lars handled the rest. Offering both his arms, he helped her sit down, taking a position in front of her. Lars stared at her body unabashedly as if he had never seen a naked goddess before, but Lexi was not in a state to feel embarrassed. She was in full delivery mode, and the next contraction she felt made her want to push.

"Oh, gods. Oh, gods."

Rhea joined them at the riverside, hovering over the shore as she offered support. "Heracles has heard my request. Not to worry, Lexi. Hades should be along shortly."

"But how will Hades find us!" Lexi shouted unnecessarily. "This place is huge!"

Rhea smiled. "I expect he will be able to follow your cries, but I will go to the bridge and wait for him there. Will you be okay without me?"

"Yes. Lars is here. Thank you, Rhea. Ouch!"

Lexi gripped Lars' arm as she hunkered through another contraction, barely aware of Rhea's spirit as it vanished among the trees. Digging one heel into the side of the riverbed and pressing the other against a boulder, Lexi found her stride. Lars praised her when the baby made progress, and stroked her fingers during rest periods. And when the head had been delivered and Lexi's body felt like it had split in two, Lars promised her next contraction would be the last. Of course, that wasn't true. She had another baby waiting to be born.

"The baby is coming," Lars said, stating the obvious, and Lexi used him as a point of focus while she caught her breath, watching sweat beads drip into his bushy eyebrows as he held his hands under the water, anticipating the birth.

"Arrgg!" Lexi groaned as she pushed with all her might until she felt a strange wiggling between her legs. Lars lifted her newborn out of the water and grabbed Lexi's dress to use as a swaddle. Then he did something Lexi had not expected. He drew the fluid from the baby's mouth and nose with his own mouth, sucking and spitting until the child uttered its first cry of life.