sixteen

Kai stands at the entrance of Tartarus, staring down into the pit of darkness, wondering what in the world Cronus could have done to cause the Underworld to shake so much. He examines the barrier, tapping his staff against it, only to find that there’s not so much as a scratch on its surface. “What the?” he mutters, tapping on it again.

The surface suddenly ripples then cracks begin to form. “Oh,” the single syllable word leaves his mouth just as the barrier shimmers before it shatters into a million glittering shards. Kai creates a hastily made shield around himself as a black mist begins to rise from the entrance. “Miasma. I should have known,” Kai mutters. He slips his helm on and were you to see him from afar, you would have shuddered with a feeling of overwhelming fear and awe.

Kai taps his staff against the ground lightly, watching as it begins to glow an unearthly red. He takes a deep breath just as the red spreads out like veins under skin, then rises up in strands of light, knitting together to form a new barrier – a net that gathers up the black mist as it seems to strain against the barrier, pushing against it until Kai manages to force the miasma back down into Tartarus with sheer willpower, drops of sweat beading on his forehead from the effort.

He only has a moment of relief when the black mist surges back up again, the force of it breaking Kai’s new barrier, pushing him backwards and leaving him to stumble onto the ground as it leaves Tartarus. Kai watches in disbelief as the miasma drains from the ground and quickly scrambles to his feet.

“Damnit!” he yells in frustration, rushing to follow the destruction and contain it before it caused more damage than he could repair. Sticky trails of black sludge are left behind on the walls wherever the miasma has already touched.

What Kai doesn’t realise is that behind him a figure emerges calmly from Tartarus, a sinister grin on his face as he watches the frantic Lord of the Underworld rush out after the wrong danger.

“You’re going the wrong way, my son,” Cronus sang cheerily.

***

I fret and worry in my room as I wait for Kai’s return. After Cerberus had arrived back at the palatial house that I seem to have dearly missed, I hurry up the stairs as best as I can, occasionally tripping over my own feet, the blood-covered cloth still over my mouth. The three-headed dog follows behind me, whining when he sees me stumbling around like a headless chicken.

Eventually, I make it to my room and get cleaned up, watching the blood wash off my hands and flow down the drain, and dumping the dirtied cloth into a laundry basket. I check my reflection, only seeing my tired face reflected back.

The first thing I notice is how haggard I appear to be, my face pale and cheeks gaunt. My hair hanging limp and lifeless over my shoulders. Clearly, anyone can see just how much I seem to have gone through. I hadn’t really looked in the mirror this morning back on Olympus.

No wonder Kai seemed so worried before; all the blood I seemed to have lost has caused me to look like I’d just faced Death. Ironic, since I’m currently dating him.

Now, my lungs no longer feel like they’re blocked, my breathing even and steady.

But my heart is not.

I wring my hands and continue to pace wobblily in my room, occasionally looking out the balcony at the darkened sky. My body still felt somewhat numb in places. I massage my body as I pace.

Tia knocks on the door as she comes inside, side glancing at Cerberus who sleeps by the door, a tray of food in her hands as she comes over to where I sit anxiously on my bed. “Milady, please, you should eat,” Tia urges, holding the tray towards me, “You’ve been away for so long,” she sighs, “And I heard you got poisoned too!”

Turning to look at Tia, I take the tray from her hands and place it in my lap, meeting her eyes with a strained smile, “I’m feeling a lot better now. No more coughing after getting back here,” I say. Tia suddenly gasps, her eyes widening slightly as she looks at me. “What, what is it?” I ask in confusion.

“Y-your eyes! They’ve changed c-colours!” she whispers.

“Huh?” What could she mean? I had looked in the mirror earlier and saw no changes.

Tia leans in closer to looks a