Twisted Mythology: Three Tales of Greek Mythology Read online

  Twisted Mythology: Hades

  By Ashleigh Matthews

  Text © 2014 Heather Mayson

  All Rights reserved

  Author’s Note: The events in this tale occur prior to the events recounted in Twisted Mythology: Persephone.

  Chapter 1

  The rays of Helios beat down upon the practice field from directly above them; the guards in their armor tried to hide their fatigue as they circled their newest potential member among them. The testing had been going on since midmorning. First they had thrown one guard at him then two, but that had proven too easy for him, the one they called Aidoneus. Now he faced five and an audience of nobles and commoners had gathered. Among them, the one called Aidoneus could see the King, a mortal called Ixion, and his young son Pirithous who had the stink of a demigod on him.

  It made him wonder which of the Olympian gods had shared the King’s wife. His money was on Zeus rather than Poseidon; this wretched city of Larissa, in Thessaly, was too far inland for Poseidon’s tastes. He could be wrong, but he doubted it. He knew his brothers well, too well; better than they knew him. They would have said that their brother only left the Underworld when summoned to Olympus to appear before Zeus. How wrong they were! A grin formed on his lips as his voice threatened to chuckle at the thought.

  On the match, Hades scolded himself. The god of the dead cursed under his breath as the first of the five swung his blade. Time to concentrate on winning a spot on the palace guard rather than on his kin. Let them think he sat bored on his throne in the Underworld. He raised up his shield to block the blow. The sword clashed against his shield and the guard stepped back. He would have to learn this one’s name, he decided.

  This one had been the first guard sent against him and had participated in every round since. The heat seemed to effect this one’s stamina little; he didn’t stink of a demigod but it would not surprise Hades if the guard had a demigod ancestor; both Zeus and Poseidon had had enough affairs with mortal women over the centuries. It had done this guard well, if it were truth, and when his soul finally descended to the Underworld, Hades would claim him for his own palace guard.

  The god lowered his shield in time to see a second guard try his luck. Grinning, he raised his sword and met the blow the guard delivered. The rest of the guards followed, seeing how fast he would react. In the back of his mind, he reminded himself to slow down, to not use his normal speed and strength when facing these mortals. Be good enough to make the captain of the guard and perhaps the King as well that it would be foolish to send him on his way. If they suspected that he might be a demigod, he could live with that, and do not kill any of the guards getting there.

  He blocked blows and sent each of these mortals staggering back again and again as they continued to circle him to find a weakness in his defenses. Hades let several attacks through; he knew they might suspect something if he did not. Soon, these mortal guards began bowing out until only the first guard remained. He could see in this mortal’s eyes that he was planning his next assault when the captain called the match to a halt. Hades waited until his opponent sheathed his blade before doing the same. The crowd applauded and began to disperse when the captain approached with the King and his son at the mortal’s side.

  “Good show, soldier,” the King said.

  “Thank you, Majesty,” Hades answered with a bow.

  “My King,” the captain said, “I present to you Aidoneus of Sparta.”

  “What brings a man of your skill this far north?” the King asked.

  Hades smiled to keep himself from saying, complete and utter boredom. “A desire to see the world,” he replied. “Perhaps I will learn something that I can take back with me to Sparta should I ever decide to return.”

  “With your skill with that sword, I hope it is a very long time,” the King said. “The captain will see that you are found a bunk and a post to man. Come, Pirithous, your mother awaits our return.”

  Hades bowed again and watched the King and his son walk away. Once the mortal and his child had vanished, the captain escorted him as far as the guardhouse where a guardsman with a lame leg escorted him to a bunk piled with his saddlebags. Between the sparring and the crowd he had not seen his bags being taken away. He wondered for a moment if his possessions had been searched; he had heard it was a practice among some mortals to not only learn about their guests but steal from them as well. Hades had tried to bring a minimum of coin and the type of belongings he suspected a guardsman might bring.

  The most valuable of what he had brought with him was the mare he had acquired before coming to Larissa, and she would prove hard to steal. But he would not put it past anyone to try their luck. A half-witted horse thief had tried during the ride through Attica, but she had called out during the attempt, waking Hades from his sleep. Had it been one of his immortal stallions, Hades would have found the man dead the following morning when he woke up, along with Hermes siting on the nearest rock and spitting out a thousand questions about why the lord of the dead was not lording over his subjects in the Underworld. That had been the main reason he had bought a horse rather than use his own. Whatever Hermes knew, Zeus knew as well.

  “Let me show ye to the baths,” the guardsman said. “The captain will expect ye clean for the meeting, soldier.”

  The god said nothing, only followed the man out of the guardhouse and through a courtyard to another building that served as the bathhouse. He had the baths to himself once the guardsman gave Hades the tour and a long list of rules that dictated behavior there. But the god did not dally, quickly removing his armor and bathing. He cleaned his armor afterwards, donning the suit again and heading back to the practice yard to find the captain yelling at his men as they drilled. The mortal called for one of his men to take over the session and marched to Hades’ side.

  “Guardsman,” he barked, “come with me.”

  “Yes, captain,” Hades answered and followed the mortal to a building off to one side of the yard.

  Inside, the captain sat behind a table heaped high with papers. The mortal stayed silent for a moment before yelling for a guardsman to join them. Behind him, Hades could hear the clatter of armor heading towards the room. Soon a figure stood to his right, breathing heavy. Hades imagined this guardsman was cursing both the heat and the weight of his armor. He had a grin; in the Underworld the temperature and the humidity made one’s armor far more constricting. It would be tempting to point that out to both these men. The god held back a curse at the thought; Hermes’ mischief was rubbing off on him.

  “Aidoneus,” the captain said, “this is Arcadius. You will do a patrol of the square with him. I’ve had reports reach my desk of a woman trespassing on the fountain. Check it out and report back to me.”

  “Yes, captain,” Hades replied in unison with the guardsman.

  The god let the mortal pivot first before joining him. He stayed several steps behind the guardsman as they crossed the practice yard. He had carefully studied a plan of the city prior to his arrival so he would know that layout upon entering the city gates, but he wanted the mortal to think that he was still learning his way around. And as if on cue, the guardsman asked, “How well do you know Larissa?”

  “Hardly at all,” Hades lied. “I only arrived two nights ago.”

  “With me as your guide, you’ll learn your way around quick enough,” the guardsman chuckled.

  The god laughed softly as they left the practice yard for an alleyway that stretched down the back of the barracks towards the city center. At the end of the alley, Hades stepped to the guardsman’s side and took his first glance at the mortal the captain had assigned to be his nanny. The god grinned; it was the same guardsman who had sparred with him. Now he had a name to go with the face, and he would hopefully soon learn what kind of leader this mortal was.

  They wound their way down streets to the large square at the center of the city. When they reached the edge of the square, Hades could see a grand fountain positioned at the very ce
nter. From the edge of the square, Hades could see a figure splashing around in the water. At first he thought it might be the fountain’s nymph, but she would not allow herself to be seen by mortal eyes in this fashion and there were several groups of people, mainly men, staring at her. The closer to the fountain they came, the louder her laughter grew. Hades and the guardsman arrived at the fountain just as the woman rushed to the opposite side of the statue in the middle of the fountain.

  “Miss,” the guardsman said, “what is your name?”

  She learned out to show them her tan face, a broad smile on her lips. She had gotten herself so wet that strands of hair were stuck to her forehead and her cheeks. She giggled and hid behind the statue again. Hades could see that she was a nymph by the glow that he had not been able to see at the opposite side of the square. This, however, was not her fountain. Where was the nymph who guarded this fountain?

  “I asked you a question, miss,” the guardsman persisted. “I would appreciate an answer.”

  The nymph giggled loudly and emerged from behind the statue. The dress she wore clung to her body, revealing every curse from her shoulders to her breasts and to her hips and thighs. The fabric was so thin that her tanned skin could be seen. She was slim and tiny, even for a nymph. She walked up to Arcadius and nearly planted herself against his armor with a smile on her face. She shot a glance towards Hades and giggled again.

  “I would rather ask you a question,” she said. Another giggle burst from her lips. Hades watched her lift her hand up and send a finger over the guardsman’s lips. “Would you care to join me in the fountain? I would love the company.”

  The guardsman took her hand from his lips. “I will be the one asking the questions. What is your name?”

  She pulled her hand from his grip with a frown. “You’re no fun. Minthe. My name is Minthe.”

  “What are you doing trespassing on the fountain?”

  “It was hot,” she said, crossing her arms.

  “Go home,” the guardsman commanded, “and do not do something like this again. The next time I find you in the fountain I will arrest you.”

  “Fine,” she snapped. “Ruin my fun.” The nymph sat down on the ledge of the fountain as both Hades and Arcadius stepped away and then she swung her legs over. She came to her feet and walked slowly around the fountain. They stayed a few steps behind her and watched her pick up a pair of sandals from the stone. Minthe headed towards the opposite side of the square that he and the guardsman had emerged.

  Chapter 2

  Hades began patrolling the square regularly with the guardsman Arcadius. Every few days, a trainee would accompany them. Occasionally they would see Minthe sitting on the edge of the fountain. Hades still had not seen the nymph who should have been in the fountain; he hoped that he would be able to find time to speak with Minthe alone, but the opportunity had yet to present itself. He only saw her at the fountain. Whenever they saw her there, Arcadius asked the people they passed in the square if they had seen her jumping around in the water again. No one had noticed and they suspected every time they saw her on the ledge she would defy the order she had been given.

  Arcadius confronted the nymph at least once when they came across her at the fountain. Minthe would smile and giggle at them; she would then retort that she had little desire to be arrested. As she was doing nothing illegal, they had to leave her be. The mortals at the square still complained at the sight of her. She was a water nymph, Hades wanted to snap at them, and she needed to be near water for at least part of her day. It would not surprise Hades if she slipped into the fountain at night between patrols.

  A full moon after arriving, Arcadius invited Hades to join him and several other guardsmen at their favorite tavern. He accepted their invitation and followed the guardsmen to a small building off the square. The barkeep warmly welcomed the guards back and demanded to know the identity of the newcomer before offering them something to drink. The mortal then ushered them to a table in the corner with promises that drinks would soon follow. The guardsmen were a rowdy bunch of men who spoke of their wives and their sons if they had any. Not once did they ask him of his family, and Hades was glad for it as it was one less lie he had to remember.

  Half-way through the evening, Hades excused himself for a breath of fresh air out a side door that led to an alley. Even with the door completely closed, he could still hear the voices of the patrons with the guardsmen’s voices rising above the rest. He imagined there would be a fight before the night was over. He leaned against the stone wall, casting his eyes to the ground. His gaze fixed on a stone in the middle of the alley. He grinned and squatted down to get a closer look at it. He picked up the stone and turned it around his palm, the stone crumbling away as he did so until only a small gem remained. He was not called the owner of the riches of the earth for nothing.

  “Only a god can work such magic,” a voice coming from the street side of the alley. Hades shot his head towards the sound, seeing the outline of a woman coming in his direction. He came to his feet as his guest came close enough to make out her features. The nymph Minthe smiled at him. The god grinned back at her; at last he had a moment alone with her.

  “Maybe I just found something shiny on the ground,” he told her.

  The nymph giggled. “I don’t believe you. I’ve seen both Zeus and Poseidon. I’ve been pursued by both to no avail. Many of Zeus’ sons have chased me, too. That only leaves one, and I like what I see, Rich One.”

  She pressed her body against his; he chuckled. Not since Leuce had he had a female so close to him. Unlike his brothers who were known for forcing themselves on any female, mortal or not, Hades preferred a willing partner. And while Minthe did look willing, he still needed to inquire about the nymph of Larissa’s fountain; the warming in his groin would just have to wait. The nymph giggled again as she slid her right hand around his neck.

  “I’ve been waiting to get alone with you for some time, my lord,” she whispered.

  “How fortunate for me,” he replied, sliding his hands over her hips. He watched her smiled and listened to her giggle one more time before speaking again. “But I have something to ask you before this goes any further.”

  “Ask away.”

  “What do you know of the nymph who is supposed to be in the fountain?”

  “She wasn’t there when I arrived,” Minthe answered. “No one has heard from her in some time, so I volunteered to come check to see if she was still there. I sent word back to her father who asked me to stay here until another nymph could be chosen to replace her. I can’t explain why it’s taking so long. But I’m glad it is.”

  The nymph leaned closer, ready for Hades to kiss her. The god of the dead did not keep her waiting. His hands pulled her dress upward as she draped her left arm over his shoulder. This alley was no place to enjoy a woman, he thought as he slid her dress further up her body. When his hands reached her arms, she pulled away to let him slide the dress over her arms and head. He tossed the dress aside as the nymph sent her hands to his waist, grabbing the fabric of his chiton, pulling it up.

  He pushed her against the wall of the tavern, then he lifted her legs off the ground. The nymph grabbed his shoulders as she accepted him inside her with a grin on her face. She arched her back and cried out in joy. Hades smiled, pulling her closer to him. Minthe lowered her head for him to kiss her then pushed him away when she was done.

  Hades let the nymph down and watched her slip her dress back on. She came up to him for one last kiss then whispered into his ear the directions to the building that she had taken as her home while she was in Larissa. Minthe pushed away and quietly walked back in the direction she had come; Hades watched her until she had reached the end of the alley and looked back at him. In the darkness, he could barely see the smile on her face. When she vanished behind the building, the god returned to the tavern and the guards who did not seem to have noticed that he had even left.

  They spoke animatedly about their patrols of the city a
nd the territory around the walls. As he listened to the men carry on, Hades shot glances around the tavern, eying all the patrons he could see from where he sat. The mortals were having cheerful conversations for the most part; there were a few he suspected might turn violent given the opportunity. He turned back to the table to see Arcadius grinning. The guardsman leaned forward.

  “This tavern is due for a brawl,” Arcadius told him. “It has been at least a fortnight since there was a fight here. It should be entertaining.”

  “And worth the night in the stockade,” another added.

  “And the fine,” Arcadius agreed.

  The guardsmen laughed in unison before taking swallows of their wine. Hades hid a frown. So, he thought, they brought him here so he could join him in the fight and the punishment that would eventually follow should Arcadius’ prediction come true. He had heard that mortals like comradeship, and if he could only hope that by participating at least on some level, he could win their confidence. And only a few moments later, two patrons did not heed the warnings that there were guardsmen in the tavern that night. Soon other patrons joined the fighting as did the guardsmen.

  Hades took a step back to oversee what was happening. There were patrons trying to flee through the main door but were blocked by several large men. He turned towards the alley door and found it unguarded. The god had to fight his way to the innkeeper and the patrons he was protecting by the bar; with this mortal’s help, he managed to get these mortals to that side door and out of the tavern. More bystanders made their way through the fighting; some got punched or brought into the fighting as they made their way through.

  Once the bystanders had been sent outside, Hades sent the tavern owner to the nearest guardhouse to summon the night watch. If it was a night in the stockade Arcadius and his fellow guardsmen wanted, then Hades would be certain that they would get it and he would join them there. While he waited, he could see Arcadius laughing as he knocked out one opponent and moved on to the next. Each victory of his own or the other guards brought cheers from the group.