It didn't take Apol o long to realize that holding Persephone was like hugging a corpse. He pulled back and studied her pale face.
"What's wrong? More problems with Demeter?"
Persephone shook her head. When she blinked, two perfect teardrops fel from her eyes and made glistening tracks down her cheeks. He was just considering whether he should kiss her or materialize a drink for her when a black monster burst from around the path and thrust his body between them.
"Be gone, beast from the pit!" he yel ed as he staggered back, trying not to fal . The stal ion turned and bared yel ow teeth at him.
"It's okay Orion. Apol o doesn't mean any harm."
The sadness in her voice touched the God. He peered around the black brute who was nuzzling Persephone. The Goddess caressed the horse absently. Tears leaked down her face, but she took no notice of them.
"Orion! I need to speak with your mistress." Eyes blazing, the stal ion turned his swiveled head to face Apol o. He held his hands out in an open gesture of peace. "I wish only to offer her aid." Orion seemed to study the God, then he blew through his nose and lipped the Goddess's cheek before moving a few feet down the path where he grazed while keeping one black eye focused on the God of Light.
Apol o took Persephone's limp arm and led her to a bench carved from bare rock. The Goddess sat. He made a spinning motion with his hand and a clear goblet appeared suddenly in a shower of sparks. He offered it to Persephone.
"It is only spring water," he said when she hesitated. "I thought you might need its refreshment."
"Thank you," she said woodenly. The water was cold and sweet. She drank deeply, but it didn't begin to quench the emptiness within her.
Apol o sat next to her.
"What has caused you such pain?" he asked.
She didn't answer for so long that he thought she wasn't going to respond. Then she spoke in a voice that was fil ed with such hopelessness that the God felt his own chest constrict.
"My own foolishness - that is what has caused me such pain."
Apol o took her hand. "What can I do to help you?"
She looked at him then, and the God felt as if her eyes could see through to his soul.
"Answer a question for me. What is it that loves - the body or the spirit?" Apol o smiled and began to respond with a witty reply, but he found he could not. Once again, she surprised him with her candor. Since their last meeting, the Goddess of Spring hadn't been far from his thoughts. His eyes met hers. He could not belittle her obvious pain, so he answered honestly.
"Persephone, you ask this question of the wrong god. As you know, I have had much experience with lusts of the body. I feel desire and I slake it. But love? That most elusive of emotions? I have witnessed it bring an undefeated warrior to his knees, and cause a single maiden to wield more power than Hercules, but I cannot say that I have ever truly experienced it." Wistfully, he touched her cheek. "But looking at you makes me wish otherwise."
The light was growing. It signaled the coming of dawn. His chariot had to be near, and his time was short. Apol o could see that, though he was close beside her and offering her comfort and compassion, Persephone was not even looking at him. She was staring at the mouth of the tunnel which led to Hades' domain. His hand dropped from her face.
"You love Hades!" He did not bother to hide the surprise in his voice. Persephone's eyes snapped to his. "And why do you find that so shocking? Because I am Spring and he is Death? Or is it because immortals don't real y know how to love?"
"I just didn't think it possible," Apol o said.
"It's probably not." The temporary fire in her voice was gone, and the hopelessness had returned. She lurched to her feet. "Orion!" The stal ion moved with supernatural speed to her side. Without another word, she flung herself astride the horse and dug her heels into his sides. Orion leapt forward, leaving Apol o to stare openmouthed at the dust that rose from his iron-clad hooves.
"Persephone and Hades? How could that be?" he murmured.
Hades was at his forge. He stoked the fire to a level that was almost unbearable and striped down to his loincloth. He wouldn't work on a horseshoe. That would not satisfy him. He needed something else, something larger. He would fashion a shield, wrought from the strongest of metals. Something that could protect a body, if not a soul.
He fed the coals until they screamed with the voice of searing heat. Then he thrust the naked sheet of unformed metal into them and pulled it out when it hummed with readiness. He began pounding it to his wil .
On and on Hades worked. His shoulders ached and his blows coursed through his body, and stil he could not pound the pain from his soul. He did not blame her. She was just a young goddess. He should have known better. He had been wise to set himself apart from the immortals. She had simply proven how wise he had been. His way had worked for age after age. He had been foolish to deviate.
He felt her presence the moment she entered the forge. Absently he wondered if he would always know when she was near him. How could his soul be linked to hers even though she did not love him? It would bear consideration. Later. When he was alone again, when he could think of her without feeling such raw yearning. Now he must end it. He must return to his old ways before he humiliated himself further. And before she caused him irreparable pain.
"I wish you knew how incredibly handsome you are when you work at your forge." When she entered the room he had stopped pounding metal against metal, and her voice sounded too loud in the echoing silence. He could not force himself to speak.
"Hades?" She cleared her throat and continued, even when he didn't respond. "I'd love to see more of Elysia today. Would you escort me?"
Her voice. It was so young and sweet. For a moment his resolve wavered. Then he remembered how easily she had al owed Apol o to take her into his arms. When he turned slowly to face her, Persephone did not meet his eyes. Hades felt a little more of his soul dissolve.
"I am afraid our travels have come to an end. As you can see, I have work I must complete." Lina felt her stomach rol . The man who turned from the forge to speak to her wasn't her lover. He was the cold, imperious God she had met when she had first come to the Underworld. No - she studied him more carefully and realized her initial impression had been wrong. He wasn't even that familiar.
"But, I thought you liked teaching me about your realm," she said inanely. He laughed, but his voice held no warmth and his eyes were flat and cold.
"Persephone, let us stop this - "
"But," she interrupted him, shaking her head. "Last night... I don't understand." The look of naive shock on her face sliced through him. It was al a cruel pretense! He wanted to scream his pain, and with the anger of a god he hurled the hammer across the forge. When it landed sparks exploded and the floor beneath them shook. His eyes blazed and his voice thundered.
"Silence! I am Lord of the Dead, not a lowly teacher!"
Lina felt her face lose al color. "Al this time you've just been pretending to - "
"DO NOT SPEAK TO ME OF PRETENDING!" The wal s of the forge vibrated with the intensity of the dark God's rage. Before he destroyed the chamber in which they stood, Hades brought the force of his anger under control. Through tightly clenched teeth he hurled sarcasm at her. "Have you not been vacationing here, Persephone? Masquerading as Queen of the Dead?" His laughter was cold and cruel. "You may be young, but both of us know you are far from inexperienced. Yes, our lessons were amusing, but you must realize that it is time the charade end, and, as I sense your visit is also concluding, my timing is perfect. Unfortunately, I have al owed our dal iance to take me too long from my duties. If I do not find time to speak with you again before you depart, let me wish you a pleasant return trip to the Land of the Living. Perhaps you wil sojourn in the Underworld another time, perhaps not."
He shrugged nonchalantly, and then turned his back to her, closed another hammer within his shaking fist and resumed his rhythmic pounding. He didn't need to see her leave, he felt it. Soon sweat poured down his face, mixing with his silent tears, and stil he kept on beating against the unspeaking metal until the ache in his arms mirrored the pain in his soul.
"I don't belong here." Lina's lips felt bloodless, and she spoke her thoughts aloud to assure herself that they could stil form words. It didn't do any good to tel herself that Demeter had been right, that Hades' treatment of her was the norm for one of the immortals. She wasn't real y a goddess, and so it was her mortal soul that grieved, and her mortal soul that couldn't understand. Lina fled the forge without caring where her feet led her. She just wanted to be away. She skirted the stables and passed quickly between rows of ornamental shrubbery, but instead of keeping to the paths in Hades' gardens, she plunged into the surrounding woods. Final y, through the tumult of her mind, she recognized that she was retracing the path to the firefly meadow, and instantly changed direction. Her mind cringed away from the sweet memories of that night. She couldn't bear to go there.
She didn't notice the spirits of the dead except as vague, distant images that might have whispered her name. Her eyes were too blurred with unshed tears, leaving her vision as unfocused as her thoughts. Somewhere in her mind she realized that she was grateful that none of them approached her. She couldn't be their Goddess today.
As she passed, the dead paused. Something was wrong with Persephone. Her face had lost its color. Her eyes were glazed and she did not seem to be able to hear them. She moved with the numb steps of the newly dead. Concern for their Goddess began to flicker throughout Elysia. Lina kept walking. She'd be al right. She'd make it. Time would help it not to hurt so badly. The three sentences were a familiar litany. They had become her mantra when her husband had left her for a younger, more perfect woman who could bear him children. They had helped her through the shattered dreams and the sleepless nights that had fol owed. They had kept her strong through the series of disappointing relationships afterward. And they had soothed her when she had realized that she probably would never love again.
She'd be al right. She'd make it. Time would help it not to hurt so badly. A mischievous breeze brought with it the intoxicating fragrance of narcissus blossoms and she winced, recoiling from a bed of flowers in front of her. She changed direction, picking her way around the beautiful blooms, choosing her path according to which way led past fewer flowers. Her hand rose to her chest where the amethyst narcissus dangled from its silver chain. What had his gift real y meant? It wasn't a token of his love, his speech at the forge had made that painfully obvious. Lina blinked her eyes rapidly. In her mind she stil heard the echo of his uncaring words. Her fingers caressed the beautifully wrought outline of the narcissus. Payment for services rendered; that's al the gift had been. Hades - a different kind of a god? Her self-mocking laughter came out like a sob. Her hand closed over the jewel and she tugged, snapping the delicate chain.
"Demeter was right. I should have known better." Lina hurled the necklace to the ground and kept walking. She didn't look back.
She'd be al right. She'd make it. Time would help it not to hurt so badly. The only notice Lina took when the landscape began to change was to feel relief that there were no more narcissus blossoms to avoid. There were also fewer spirits of the dead hovering in the periphery of her vision, and that, too, brought her relief. Vaguely she acknowledged that it was growing darker, but the trees were very tal and dense. They could easily be shutting out the pastel light of the Underworld's day. And she had been walking for quite a white - at least she thought it had been quite a while. She didn't feel tired. Actual y, she didn't feel much of anything. The thought almost made her smile. Demeter needn't have been concerned. The gods underestimated the resiliency of the mortal spirit.
She should probably start back to the palace. Eurydice would be waiting to show her the sketches. She would enjoy the upbeat company of the little spirit, and then she would take a long bath. Not a shower on the balcony - her mind skittered away from the thought - just a long, relaxing soak. For the time that remained to her in the Underworld, she would simply avoid Hades. That shouldn't be difficult. He had made it clear that he was too busy to bother with her. Instead of pining over the God, she would spend time with Eurydice, but she'd be up-front with the spirit about the temporary nature of her visit. She'd also warn her to be careful about fal ing in love with Iapis. He seemed trustworthy, but so had...
Her mind shied from the rest of her thought.
She would ride Orion into Elysia and let the spirits see the Goddess of Spring. But she would be more careful with them, too. They deserved to know that hers was only a temporary visit. She could tel them that Persephone would continue to care for them from the world above, and then al she could do was hope that the real Goddess of Spring would fol ow through with her word. Deciding on her course of action felt good and she was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she did not notice that she had come to the forest edge until she stumbled from the tree line. Confused, she looked around her, trying to make sense of what she was seeing. The trees had ended, as had the grass and the ferny ground cover. The land was barren; the cinnamon-colored ground cracked and eroded. Directly in front of her flowed a river of seething flames, perfectly silhouetted against a background of inky darkness.
Lina stopped breathing. Tartarus - she had stumbled into the edge of Hel . Turn around. Retrace your path. Her mind knew the logical thing to do, but her stunned body would not obey her.
And then she heard it, the whisperings from the blackness beyond the river of fire. Like threads of hate they cal ed to her, weaving a net of dark remembrances: every mistake she'd every made, every lie she'd ever told, every time her words or actions had caused others hurt. Her mortal soul cringed. Lina whimpered and staggered under the weight of her own misdeeds. She fel to her knees.
The oily darkness leaked from the bank of the blazing river. It licked at her with tendrils of hate. She wasn't a goddess. She was a mortal woman - middle-aged, plain of appearance - a failure in relationships. No man loved her. Why would anyone? She couldn't even bear children. She was a failure as a woman and a wife. Being alone was what she deserved. Slowly her soul began to peel away from Persephone's body and Lina felt herself begin to disintegrate.
"Hades, you must come." The daimon had to shout over the incessant pounding to gain the God's attention.
Hades straightened and wiped the sweat from his face. "Whatever it is, you must deal with it. I do not wish to be disturbed."
"It is the dead. They ask to speak with you."
Hades' expression was dark and dangerous. "Then they can petition their God when I hold court."
"I do not believe you wil want to wait for court to hear what they have to say," Iapis insisted.
"Leave me in peace! What they have to say could not interest me today," Hades snarled. Unmoved by the God's show of temper, Iapis met his eyes. "They say there is something wrong with Persephone."
Hades was pulling on his tunic when he burst from the forge. The sight before him brought him to a sudden halt. Spreading down the landscaped tiers of his formal gardens were countless spirits of the dead. They stood quietly, side by side: young girls, maidens, mothers, matrons and crones. An ancient crone and a maiden Hades recognized as one Persephone had danced with in the meadow, detached themselves from the forefront of the group and approached him. The women curtsied deeply. The crone spoke first.
"Great God, we come to you because of our love for the Goddess of Spring. Something is amiss. The Goddess is not herself."
"We saw her walking through the forest," the maiden said. "We cal ed her name, but she did not hear us, nor did she see us."
"It was as if she were dead," the old woman said.
A dagger of fear pricked the God's heart. "Where was she last seen?"
"There," the crone and the maiden turned, raising their hands to show the direction. They were pointing toward Tartarus.
"Saddle Orion!" Hades commanded in a voice that carried to the stables. Then the God closed his eyes and took a deep, calming breath. He blocked out the voices of the dead and focused his entire being on Persephone. He found the link that tied their souls together, the link that had told him when she had entered his forge, and then told him when she had departed. But it was like a thread that had been cut. Their connection had been severed. Fear mushroomed within him.
"Bring Cerberus," Hades commanded Iapis. The daimon nodded and disappeared. Hades turned back to the spirits of the women. "You did the right thing coming to me." The crone and the maiden bowed their heads, as did the multitude behind them. Hades' gazed searched the faces in the throng surrounding him.
"Eurydice! Bring me an article of Persephone's clothing. Something she has worn recently." Instead of instantly obeying his bidding, the young spirit approached him. Her eyes met his and he felt the light touch of her hand on his arm.
"You must bring her back to us, Hades." Her voice was choked.
"I wil ," he said, and strode to the stables.
Orion plunged through the forest close on the heels of Cerberus. The three-headed dog hunted silently, fol owing the scent of his goddess. Hades' hands were slick with sweat, and they gripped the steed's reins tightly. The stal ion needed no urging to stay on the dog's trail, which led inexorably toward the dark realm of Tartarus.
His thoughts warred within his mind. He must have wounded her terribly if he had driven her to the dark realm. He hadn't meant to hurt her. His own pain and jealousy had made him forget her youth. Persephone couldn't possibly know into what she was heading. Not even being a goddess would afford her protection against the utter despair that reigned in Tartarus. Desperately he tried to remember if she had been wearing the amethyst narcissus when he had last seen her. Yes, he thought she had been. A trickle of relief cooled his panic. The amethyst would help to protect her. It was a powerful jewel that he had fashioned specifical y for her. Its protective properties were vast.
Hades tried not to imagine what might be happening to Persephone. As God of the Underworld, he knew only too wel the horrors of Tartarus. It was the eternal dwel ing place of the damned. Only the souls of mortals who had completely embraced darkness were condemned to that region. He loathed it, but he acknowledged the necessity of a place to house immutable evil. And that was where his beloved had gone.
Orion came to a halt beside the dog. Cerberus was snuffling through dried leaves and pawing at something that flashed silver in the dim light. Hades dismounted and picked up the object. It was Persephone's amethyst necklace. She had no talisman to protect her.
"Faster, Cerberus!" he commanded.
The dog redoubled his efforts and Orion responded in kind. They broke through the forest of trees. Cerberus had come to a halt beside the fiery bank of Phlegethon. The dog was whining piteously and al three heads were nudging what Hades thought might be the col apsed body of a dead animal. Then Orion pierced the air with a heart-wrenching scream and plunged down the bank toward the dog. As the horse slid to a halt, Hades recognized the body.
"No!"
He flung himself from Orion's back and pushed Cerberus' massive body aside. Persephone had col apsed upon the cracked earth. Her arms were wrapped around her legs so that her knees pressed into her chest and her body had formed a rigid bal . Her eyes were open, but her pupils were fully dilated and she stared unseeing into the darkness beyond the flaming river. Hades fol owed her gaze. The blackness of Tartarus was leaking from its banks. He looked down. Fingers of darkness had slithered from Phlegethon and they soaked the ground around Persephone.
Fury pulsed through the God. Quickly, he bent and knotted the broken chain around Persephone's unresisting neck. The amethyst narcissus began to glow. Then he raised his arms and the air around him began to swirl. In a voice magnified by anger and love, he commanded the grasping darkness.
"Away! You have no right to harm this Goddess!"
The dark tendrils shivered, but they did not loosen their hold on Persephone.
"I am Hades, Lord of the Dead, and I command you. Do not touch her!" The God roared, casting al of his formidable power against the malignant fingers of evil.
The darkness drew back and then with a sizzling sound it dissipated like a thief retreating into the night.
Hades fel to his knees beside Persephone. He grasped the goddess's shoulders and turned her rigid body to face him.
"Persephone!"
She did not respond. Instead she continued to stare unblinkingly into the darkness beyond Phlegethon. Her face was deathly pale and her skin was cool to the touch. She was gasping in short, panting breaths, like she was having difficulty breathing.
"It is gone. It cannot harm you now. Look at me, Persephone." Stil she did not acknowledge his presence.
"Persephone! You have to listen to me." He shook her until her head bobbled and Cerberus whined his distress.
The Goddess's lips moved.
"Yes! Speak to me," Hades cried.
"Too many mistakes. I can't..." Her voice cracked, and her words became inaudible.
"You can't what?" Hades prompted, shaking her again.
"Can't find my way. My body isn't here. I've disappeared."
The emptiness in her voice terrified Hades. Her face was blank. Her eyes were glazed. The Persephone he knew was not there. It was as if an echo of her spirit was speaking through a shel . And suddenly nothing mattered to him except bringing her back. He didn't care if she thought of him only as a job her mother had charged her to complete. He didn't care that Apol o was her lover. He didn't even care that she was going to leave him. He cared only that she was herself again.
Hades cupped her cold face in his hands. "Your way is here. You must come back to those who love you."
Persephone blinked.
"Come back to us, beloved. Come back to me."
She took one deep, rasping breath and Hades watched as her hand lifted to grasp the glowing amethyst flower. Then she blinked and struggled to focus on his face.
"Hades?" she croaked his name.
Dizzy with relief, he pulled her into his arms. "Yes, beloved. It is Hades, the foolish, arrogant God who loves you."
"Take me away from here," she sobbed, and buried her face in his chest.