Persephone and I ran away from the angry creature, hiding behind a cold stone wall to catch our breaths.
"What was that?" I asked, panting. "It looked like a dragon. Why is there a dragon in this chamber?"
"I was certain it was the chamber of dark secrets," she said. "This wasn't in my plan at all. I never knew Hades kept a dragon in his palace."
"We have to get out of here before it finds us."
"Do you get burned by fire?" Persephone suddenly asked. "I know your mother doesn't since she wields it, but do you?"
I shook my head. "Not if I can help it. Why do you ask?"
"I've been in the Underworld for months against my will, yearning for escape. And I thought my plan would actually work when you showed up as I'd predicted. I thought I could threaten Hades with the dark secrets and make him let everyone go, including me... This is not how it was supposed to go. This was supposed to work!"
I heard a growl. "The dragon is close now. We have to go, Persephone." I took her hand. "We have to find a way out of here first."
"I'm sorry, Cassia." She pulled her hand out of my grasp. "I will ask father to rescue everyone else from here. I will beg for his help. I will be back for you all." She put the Helm of Darkness on her head and disappeared.
"Persephone!" I yelled after her, not believing what just happened.
Hearing me, the dragon roared in response, its claws scratching the stone floors as it came closer.
"Bloody hell." I looked around to see if I could find an escape, but I was surrounded by more walls.
A black muzzle, followed by a red eye peaked over the wall I was hiding, meeting my eyes. I walked backwards until my back touched cold stones.
The dragon growled, dragging the rest of its large body to face me head-on. I grew the flames in my hands as it got ready to spew its own fire at me. We both let our fires out to attack each other, our flames meeting in the middle and having a battle of their own.
It lasted for over a minute, until I heard a frustrated growl and the dragon ceased its fire. I slowly lowered my hands as well, keeping one flame lit, ready to start again if I saw the creature prepare to attack.
But that never happened. Instead, the dragon dropped its body to the ground and rested its head on the now hot stone floors, seemingly tired. Its red eyes stared at me with guarded curiosity.
"What, no more fire fights?" I asked, getting a quiet growl in response which sounded like a sigh.
I took a moment to study the creature. Aside from its blood red eyes, the rest of it was as black as the darkness that surrounded us. Then I noticed a gleam of metal on one of its legs.
A thick shackle.
"You poor thing," I said, slowly approaching it. "Were you locked away in this dark chamber all by yourself?"
The dragon slowly moved back its head with every inch I stepped closer, clear distrust in its eyes. I stopped moving.
"I won't hurt you, you know. I just want to take a look at the shackle on your leg. May I?"
I got a sigh in response, but the beautiful creature moved its head to the side to give me a better view of its trapped leg. I felt its penetrating gaze on me as I inspected it. The metal itself was one smooth piece, without a single break or a keyhole to fit a key. Though there were some faint burn marks, it wasn't damaged by fire, and the scales around the shackle were covered in blood, as if the dragon had also tried to chew off the metal.
I carefully smoothed my hand over the thick ring of steel. The dragon howled in pain and pulled back its leg. I stepped away.
"Who did this to you?"
It grumbled something, as if speaking, but I understood nothing. It all sounded like a series of growls. I walked over to where it lay its head and gently caressed it. The dragon closed its eyes, seeming to enjoy my touch.
"I'm sorry. I'll try to help you get out of here. I promise."
The dragon opened its eyes and lifted its big head, looking down at me with a spark of hope.
"Could you lead me to where your chain ends?"
Nodding, the dark creature rose and started to lead me, turning its head once in a while to see if I was still following. I almost smiled at that.
We made it to the end of the chain that was attached to the shackle. The other end of it was attached to a wall with a small, thick ring. The dragon sat down in the corner and watched me as I tried to figure out how to break it. I blazed it with fire, and looked at the dragon when it didn't work. It shook its head.
"I know you've probably tried that too, seeing that you're a fire-breathing dragon and all... But I just wanted to check. What else have you tried?" Lifting its front paw, it drew an invisible arc. "Everything?"
I got a nod.
"Hmm." I stared at the ring, then the chain, then the shackle. "Is this all there is here? Was this chamber made with the sole purpose of keeping you imprisoned?"
The dragon shook its head, then rose from its seated position, motioning for me to follow. I followed the creature until we stopped in front of another stone wall.
"What is it?"
The dragon did nothing, simply staring pointedly at one stone. Understanding, I pushed that stone, and it flattened into the wall, opening a secret passage before me. Torches lining one side of the wall lit up one after another, illuminating a staircase leading down.
I turned to the dragon. "I'll be back after I see what's down there. Wait here."
It nodded and sat down in front of the wall, waiting. I smiled and gently patted its front leg.
It smelled like old books as I descended the staircase, the smell growing stronger the closer I got to the bottom. When I reached the end, I saw a small library. Three large bookshelves faced each other, with a small table in the middle, and on that table laid a glass sphere.
I suddenly heard hushed whispers all around me. They got louder when I approached the sphere on the table, which began to fog up inside as I studied it. I picked it up to take a closer look as the fog swirled inside.
"Hello!" A face appeared inside it, flattening against the glass to look at me.
"Ahh!" I screeched and dropped the sphere. It fell on my foot and I cursed in pain, hopping on one leg to cradle my poor foot. The ball rolled around the floor, without a single crack on it. "What in the Underworld are you?"
The glass ball cackled. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Yes," I said, "I'd like to know."
Whispers started up again.
"Should we tell her?" the ball erupted in whispers. "No, there's no need." "But it would be good for her to know." "How so? Just tell her the important part!" "Oh, Zeus wouldn't like that." "Hades wouldn't like that either." "Who cares!" "I do!" "You're an old hag. Stop pining for those imbeciles!" "Am not! "Are too!" "Am not!" "Are too!" "Am not!" "Are--"
"Stop!" I yelled.
"Did she just yell at us?" "Not very nice. Not very nice." "At least we can agree on that." "We shouldn't tell her then." "Yes, let's not tell her." "I agree." "Me too."
"Tell me what?" I asked.
"Should we tell her then?" "I don't know. I'm having second thoughts." "What do we get out of it?" "Now that I think about it, nothing at all." "But it would be entertaining." "The girl has it in her." "She's here already. Might as well tell her." "Just tell her about Avyssos." "Ah yes, we can let that slip at least." "I feel pity for the poor thing." "I agree." "Me too." "Yes, let's tell her that."
"Tell me what?" I asked again, picking up the sphere.
A mouth appeared this time, grinning with rotting teeth. "Look inside the book on the first shelf to your left, child."
I went toward the shelf to my left. "Which book exactly?"
The mouth disappeared and I saw fog again.
"Should we tell her?" "I don't know." "She can find it herself. We told her enough already."
"Please?" I said.
"Oh, she's being polite." "Should we tell her?" "I'm not against it." "I agree." "Me too." "Tell her."
The grinning mouth appeared again. "The one with the most dust on it."
I sighed. "They all have dust on them."
"Oh, she's very ungrateful." "That was more than enough information." "I agree. More than enough." "Are you certain she's capable?" "Her string is strong."
As the fog swirled inside the sphere and the whispers continued, I tried to look for the book they spoke of, looking for the one that had the most dust on it. I stopped my hand on the largest book on the shelf. It was as dusty as the rest of them, but it held the most dust because of its size. Was that what they meant?
"She found it!" "I told you she's capable." "No you didn't." "Did too!" "Did not!" "Did too!" "Did not!"
I held back the urge to sigh again. Instead I asked, "Do these books hold the dark secrets of the Underworld?"
"Should we tell her?" "I don't know. I don't think so." "Yes, I agree." "Me too."
The mouth appeared again. "What do you think?" It grinned, then disappeared.
"I'll take that as a yes then," I said.
"Why did you give it away?!" "She guessed it herself!" "We should leave now." "I agree." "Me too."
The fog inside the sphere disappeared, and now I was simply holding a clear ball of glass. I placed it back on the table and went to take out the large book. Dusting it off, I opened its yellow pages, coughing as I did so. I flipped though all of them.
They were all blank.
Frustrated, I picked up the glass sphere and shook it. "The book contains nothing! Are you playing a joke on me? This is not a good time to do it. Hello?" I kept shaking it, waiting for fog to reappear. "Hello?"
As I was busy shaking the sphere, I didn't see the black ink slowly appearing on the pages of the book. When I noticed it, I stopped moving.
Stop shaking the ball.
That's all the book said. I put down the sphere.
The ink disappeared, sinking back into the yellow page, but soon new words emerged.
What are you seeking to know?
I was seeking to know many things, but as I glanced back at the staircase behind me, I wanted to ask about the poor dragon outside. "Who trapped the dragon in the dark chamber upstairs?"
Hades.
I frowned. "Why?"
He grew tired of his pet.
I balled my hands into angry fists. "How do I free the dragon?"
Break the chain.
"How?"
The glass sphere.
"The sphere?" I looked at the ball. I could try it. If it didn't work, I could come back here for more answers. "Do I just hit the chain with it?"
Yes.
I nodded. "Oh, there's something else I'd like to know. Where is Persephone right now?"
Olympus.
"Good. At least she made it there in one piece." The ink continued forming words.
With Eros.
"What!" I looked at the pages. "Why is she with him?"
The ink disappeared and the page remained empty for a while.
Wouldn't you like to know?
"Yes!"
The book stopped answering my questions.
Angry, I picked up the glass sphere and stomped upstairs. The dragon tilted its head when it saw me with a ball of glass in my hands. I stopped above its chain and smashed the ball against the hard metal. It broke in an instant, disappearing completely, along with the shackle around the dragon's leg.
Wide eyed, the dragon stared at its leg in disbelief.
"Wait here," I said. "I forgot to ask something."
I stomped back downstairs and asked the book for the dragon's name.
Avyssos.
"Of course you answer this!" I returned the sphere back to its place and stomped up the stairs.
Avyssos was turning in circles, chirping happily. When he saw me, I was attacked with dragon saliva as I kept getting loving licks. It was almost enough to dissipate my anger. Almost.
"You saw Persephone, right?" Avyssos stopped licking me and nodded, sitting back. "She came in here with me before she took the Helm that I helped find and assemble and teleport myself into hell to help my family and my people, and then she left me behind to save her own arse! All helpless and innocent. I can't believe I fell for that act! And now she's with my man! Trying Gods know what!"
Avyssos shifted uncomfortably, but kept listening to my angry rant.
I paced back and forth. "Remember, she's our enemy number one now."
He nodded, chirping in agreement.
"Well, no..." I looked at his poor leg, where it was bound by a shackle moments ago. "Hades is our number one enemy. I'll never forgive him for what he did to you and everyone else."
This time, Avyssos's nod was accompanied by a low growl.
"Make Persephone enemy number two." When I saw him nod again, my mouth twitched into a smile. "Let's go give the King of the Underworld what he deserves." I paused. "After I ask that damn book how to get out of this place."
~~~
"Hades!" I called out, walking the halls of the palace. Avyssos barely fit his humongous body as he followed behind me. I was hoping that Hades was out looking for Persephone again as she definitely wasn't at the festivities he'd arranged for her. I didn't want to confront him among the crowd of drunken people and scare them with my dragon companion.
"Hades!"
Two guards rounded the hall and unsheathed their swords. "Who are you?" one of them demanded.
Avyssos growled in warning, bringing his head beside me and glaring at the guards.
They looked scared, but didn't back down from their positions, even with sweat slowly forming on their foreheads.
"Where is Hades?" I asked them. "I need to speak with him."
"His Majesty is occupied." The other guard spoke up, gulping as he made eye contact with the dragon. His eyes shifted to mine. "Are you part of the Asterin party? Did your wine wear off?"
"She is not." Hades himself answered for me, walking past the guards who bowed to their king and sheathed their swords. "You two may leave."
"But Your Majesty, there is a dragon," one of them said.
Hades raised a brow. "I can see that. Are you telling me I'm not capable of handling a little pet?"
The guards scurried off before he said anything else.
"I see you've set my dragon free. And I thought they'd locked him up properly... This is why I must do everything myself..." he complained. "So? Did you think you could threaten me with Avyssos to get what you want?"
Avyssos growled.
"Silence!" Hades boomed. "Sit down and don't make another sound."
To my surprise, the giant creature sat down and lowered his head, avoiding eye contact with his owner. I've seen this behaviour with animals whose owners had abused them. Seeing the fear in the dragon's eyes made my blood boil.
"You monster!" I snapped, glaring at the God. "What have you done to him to make him so afraid of you?"
"What I do with my pets is none of your concern. Now get to it, child. What did you want to say to me, calling out my name and making all this pointless ruckus? I have more important things to do."
"Are you looking for Persephone?" I asked, raising a brow.
He stilled. "Where is she?"
"If you let everyone go, I will tell you where she is," I bargained.
"I can find her myself." He turned to leave.
"I found the chamber!" That made him halt in his step. His back was to me, but I knew he was listening. I had his full attention now. "The chamber filled with the darkest secrets of the Underworld. And I know that these secrets could bring you down from you throne."
Hades turned, his face unreadable. He tried to read my eyes, gauging my honesty. "You're the spitting image of Helios. Did your grandfather tell you these absurd stories? They're rumours. Baseless rumours created by other Gods out of fear of my powers and my reign. Don't expect me to believe that you found this supposed chamber of secrets. It doesn't exist."
I laughed. "You're scared, aren't you? You're scared that your reign will crumble once these secrets are exposed to all the Gods and mortals alike. The greatly feared ruler of the Underworld reduced to nothing."
Hades gritted his teeth. "I'd be careful with your words, child. I'm feared for a reason, and it doesn't seem like you know that you're walking a very dangerous line right now."
I pulled out one of the books from the secret chamber. "This," I said, "contains quite a lot of your dirty secrets, and it's only one book." I shook it, taunting him. "There's much more where it came from, and you know it."
The book was snatched from my hands and Hades put his hand on my throat, squeezing. I couldn't move my limbs as they were suddenly held captive by large serpents that jumped out of the ground itself. They screamed as I burned them with fire, but didn't release their strong hold on my arms and legs.
"Persephone is in Olympus," I said hurriedly as Hades squeezed harder, making it difficult for me to breathe. "She used the Helm of Darkness to get there and bring the other Gods here to stop you. They'll be here any moment now. It was her...plan..." I wheezed, "...She found the chamber...She...planned to unveil them... She..."
My vision was getting blurry, but I tried to concentrate on meeting Hades's furious eyes. "She hated you." Hurt flashed through them, but he didn't loosen his grip. I could feel myself slowly losing consciousness.
"Stop talking!" Hades yelled.
I felt a sharp pain in my leg as one of the serpents bit me.
Hades was suddenly flung to the side with a huge black paw and so were the serpents. Avyssos roared so loudly that the walls of the palace shook with the impact.
I turned to the dragon. His legs were shaking in fear, but he stood tall and shielded me from his abuser.
"Thank you," I whispered before I collapsed to the ground.
***
Hope you're all having a nice weekend :)
I've been listening to a podcast called "IN HINDZSIGHT" by HINDZ, and it's so calming. Highly recommend if you're looking for a peaceful mental break (the episodes are pretty short too).
See you in the next chapter! Take care <3