Hadrian gives the unusual necklace a calculating look, before nodding and saying, 'Yep. You passed three, but you failed four. But at least it wasn't a complete fail, or, as I said, you'd be thrown into a snake pit.'
Only the last two words register, and I pale. 'Snake pit?'
'Along those lines,' he says casually. 'Depending on the sin.'
Clutching the tag around my neck, I turn it around so I can read it. The metal chain is too small to pull off over my head, and there's no unfastening mechanism. The plaque, of engraved metal, reads:
Nerissa Sarabella, Soul No. 3654829
A: 3 E: 2 Gr: 0 Gl: 0 L: 4 P: 4 S:0
'I don't understand what it says,' I murmur, catching Hadrian's arm. I touch skin, and I take a moment to appreciate that he's still in his underwear, only now his boxer shorts are clinging to his body, waterlogged.
They really should make waterlogged a fashion trend, I muse. From the corner of my eye, I can see those V lines that I had so meticulously explored in the waterfall dream...
'What just happened to you?' I add, 'I went through this weird dream. Did you...?'
Hadrian shakes his head, taking the plaque in his hands and studying it again. 'No, I'm not a human undergoing judgement,' he replies.
I'm struck by his words, wondering if that means he saw my vision instead. Remembering trousers discarded on the floor, I pray that he didn't. To distract myself from the dream and the half naked man before me, I chew the inside of my lip and take stock of my surroundings.
The world is a mix of dark blues and lush, emerald greens. For what seems like miles, there's only tall grasses and wildflowers, lilting in a gentle night's breeze. In the far distance, small lights of a city can be seen, but it's beyond my sight to visualize it.
Hadrian nudges me, then pointing to the plaque, says, 'Here, underneath your name and number, there's a series of letters and numbers. They're your scores. Each one stands for a cardinal sin.'
I frown at the small, chiseled writing. 'You mean, the seven deadly sins?'
I know a fair amount of Minoa's religious worship, not by choice but necessity. To understand the ritual of the little saint bride, I'd delved into religious theology to understand what was needed. Turns out, the Minoan temples weren't entirely sure themselves, but from what I gathered souls were judged after death for their sins, classified into seven categories.
'Yes,' Hadrian says, and his smirk grows wider. 'The points are out of five, with five being the worst and zero being the best. You got three zeros: greed, gluttony and sloth. That's quite good. Shame about Anger, Pride, Envy and Lust, though.'
'And they judged me in that dream?' My head feels intruded. Whatever was in that psychedelic whirlpool of water I do not trust one bit.
Hadrian nods. 'It's quite clever. Each person sees a different dream, of course, but it always relates to their inside desires and wants. You picked to do the proper thing with greed, gluttony and sloth.'
'I don't even know which bits represented what sin,' I reply, pulling my dripping wet hair from my back. 'The beggar is obvious now I think about it; that was gluttony, right? But what about the school? And the argument with my mother?'
'Definitely gluttony if it was about food,' Hadrian murmurs, 'Chronus isn't subtle about this stuff. As to the argument with your mother...' He trails away, as if looking beyond me, into the water. 'The sin of anger is to reject love and instead choose confrontation. Would that fit?'
I consider it, nodding. 'Yes. She offered to be mother and daughter again. I should have known then that I was having a goddamn nightmare.'
If Hadrian is surprised by my venom, he doesn't judge. He watches me carefully, like he's assessing my likelihood of crying or hitting him.
'I still don't understand the school,' I sigh, and his guarded expression relaxes. I'm obviously not at a threat of tears or tantrums. 'Why did I see myself? And Nate? That can never...oh.'
I had wanted that normal relationship and education, but knew I couldn't have it. I'd been envious.
Similarly, then, Ginger could only have been greed, offering me riches and jewels-- but I'd rejected her. Although, on reflection, I might have accepted had she offered something more interesting...
Then, Father. And Hadrian.
'There's only sloth and lust left, and the second is clear to both of us,' I speak tentatively, waiting for Hadrian to mock me. My face whitens as I look at him expectantly.
He doesn't, he just gives me an exasperated look. 'I wasn't there! I didn't see any of your test, so to speak. Only the God of the After did.'
Maybe if I wasn't so relieved on hearing Hadrian's admittance, I might have questioned him about this God, and asked for a name. I'm too dazed and happy that he doesn't know to care for anything else.
A wave of relief washes over me. Hadrian doesn't know what happened in my vision. It's tinged with sadness that he doesn't recall something I'll remember forever-- in great detail.
Lust-- well that's obvious. Shamefully, obvious. But all to myself.
That left sloth to helping out my father. It all fits. Mollified, I say, 'Yeah, it makes sense now.'
'I see you know where you failed on lust, my little lust-filled bride,' his eyes flicker over my pink cheeks. 'What happened?'
I frown. 'I'm not telling you that, it's private.'
'Was it me?'
His question makes me freeze. He repeats it, stepping towards me on the grassy earth. Instinctively, I step around him.
'Was it you what?' I laugh, trying to brush away the question.
Hadrian doesn't like being brushed off. Doggedly, he says, 'Was it me that you lusted over?'
I snort, rolling my eyes and hiding my intense embarrassment. 'It wasn't you, asshole. Maybe you should be tested for your vanity.'
But Hadrian's face has slumped, and his mouth actually curls up, as if he's tasting something unpleasant. Before I can make any comment, he turns away, and begins to walk across the grass.
He's such a sore loser.
I follow his dark outline, the strands of his dark hair blowing in the wind, and his pale body illuminated against a sky filled with stars. To my amazement, the heavens are full of light surrounded by the dark black of the night, galaxies forming white trails over our heads. I stop walking, staring upwards.
'You never seen a sky before?' Hadrian's voice, ahead of me.
I don't look at him, still allowing my neck to support my head as it flops to look upwards. The slight pain in the muscles is worth the view of thousands of dots like stars made of icing sugar. Spherical planets hang low in the sky, allowing me to see thin rings surrounding them. Agape, I don't notice Hadrian step up before me until his heat courses over to me.
'Not properly,' I whisper, turning on the spot so that I could view the next angle of stars. A planet lay further in the distance, a tiny blue ball hanging alone against the darkness. 'The city is filled with smog...'
Copying my tone, Hadrian also whispers. 'If you watch and wait, you might see a shooting star.'
'They don't exist!' I say. Even so, I stand whilst the minutes pass, tracing the night patterns with my eyes and drinking in the heavens. After a while, Hadrian stands behind me and turns my head to where he's looking.
I see it-- a blindingly white streak falling across the sky, leaving a trail of blazing dust in its wake. And within a few seconds, it's all over, and I gasp in amazement when it's gone.
I spin to face him, excited. 'They're real? They're actually real?'
'Of course they are,' Hadrian says, hesitation etched across his brow, like he thinks I'm tricking him. I'm not. I'm so overjoyed that even his icy demeanor shatters, and we race to point them out to one another. He's always that tiny bit quicker, his hand shooting faster than the star to beat me in the game. I shriek, still amazed by each one but frustrated that he's winning. His smile gets larger and more goading, until I'm more focused on him, trying to catch his arm before it can point out the next one.
In one swoop, I catch his arm, pinning it to my side and triumphantly spinning to point out the shooting star right before it disappears. 'I win!'
I've spun so that Hadrian's pressed against my back, his arm is wrapped around my middle, and damn it, he's still half naked. And warm, warm like a hot water bottle burning at my hips. I loosen the grip on his arm, but he still leaves it holding my waist, his face pulled low and against mine, cheek to cheek.
I swallow, throat dry. We'd been kissing not long ago, and we'd fallen into the waterfall. Is that what he's remembering too? Or was it my overactive, dream-fueled imagination whizzing through each detail of his magnetic body?
But there's something else. I've seen handsome men before, and never fallen prey to their charms. They were all slower than I was, boys that tried to flirt but were lost when I snapped back or made a joke that furrowed their brows. They weren't attractive in the slightest, they didn't move me sensually or emotionally.
Does Hadrian? I wonder.
From the start, he's been my equal, if not my challenge. Whenever I think I have the upper hand, he manages to turn the tables, leaving me flat on my arse. And he does it effortlessly, with a cute grin.
Am I attracted to that dynamic? To the man that keeps up with me?
'Ness...' Hadrian's voice croaks, deep and conflicted. His nickname for me dances on my ears, converting audio into something low and sensitive in the pit of my body. Blue eyes flicker at me, almost hopeful.
Upper hand, I remind myself. He's always trying to lure you. Don't be drawn in. Revenge. Nate. You need to get back up the waterfall.
I pull away, avoiding his gaze. 'Which way to get out?'
'...further in,' there's hurt in his voice, but I can't tell if it's fake. 'We need to meet with the ruler of Elysium if you want to be unchained.'
Again, I look down at the hated necklace of chain and label. 'Does he often grant those requests?' I think back to the book earlier, saying it was extremely difficult.
'One in a millennia,' Hadrian says bluntly, and I flinch. 'But we can try.'
I can't help but notice the "we", and my head snaps around as he says it. 'We? Why would you want to help?'
'Believe it or not, I'm stuck here too without my mask, thanks to someone. I'm virtually powerless.'
So much for wanting to keep me, I think. My lip threatens to curl in anger, but I'm conscious of it getting me in a mess already.
'Who is this ruler?' I ask as we turn in unison and begin our journey towards the city. In all the books I'd read, few named anything beyond the waterfall, and less were clear about the structure of the Underworld entirely. If I ever managed to make it back to the Above, I would profit from my own factual traveler's guide to navigation in death. 'I thought you were the ruler of the Underworld.'
Hadrian pauses. 'This isn't technically the Underworld. Elysium is the Afterlife, and he's ruler of Elysium. His name is Chronus, and some books recount him being my father, but that's not true. He fathered my role as King of the Underworld, a job that he deemed too onerous for him. In actual fact, he's my older brother.'
I nearly career into him, not watching where I was going after hearing such a revelation. The King gives me an amused look. 'Your brother? That's good, right? You can give a good word for me.'
Again, I see Hadrian's lip twitch, as if he's trying hard not to smile, but he wants me to see his disbelief. 'You don't know my brother.'
'Does he have any weaknesses? Secrets to exploit? Amenable to sexual favors?'
At this last suggestion, Hadrian scoffs. 'That doesn't matter. Chronus is...well, you'll see. The only times he's ever let souls out was when this guy played a lyre. You don't happen to play a lyre, do you?'
I shake my head. Music wasn't something I had deemed useful in my pursuit of revenge, and as such, any talent I might have had was quickly abandoned after Nate's death. As we continue in silence and the lights of Elysium grow larger, I begin to wonder if there would be anything I could offer to this lyre-loving ruler in exchange for my freedom.
If he's anything as stubborn as the brother at my side, I could be here for the next thousand years.
---
A/N: There were shooting stars out a couple of week ago. They were so pretty I had to incorporate them somewhere...
Please let me know your thoughts and opinions. What kind of person do you think Chronus will be?
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Larissa
xxx