Chapter 17 Chapter 16

Chapter 17 Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16

AILA

It’s so cold, and dark. I tried to push past the darkness and gasped when I see a man standing next to me, a hood covering his face.

“Who are you?”

I shivered at the sound of my voice as it echoes. The cloaked figure offered me a hand but I refused, eyeing it wearily as I asked once again, “Who are you?”

The cloaked figure spread his hand and offered it once again but I refused, pushing myself up the floor and brushing crumbs of silver from my robes. What is this thing?

“Hmm. I see you refuse my aid once again,” The cloaked figure said in a deep baritone voice, amused. He waves his hand and, in an instant, the fog clears out, revealing high pillars of alabaster stone; two chairs and a crackling fire situated across the room, waiting to accommodate us.

I scowled.

“Refusing my help, after all this time, that is so you.” The cloaked figure shakes his head as he pulls his hood off, revealing wisps of blue luminous hair while turning at me. His face is menacingly handsome; the appropriate face for that eyes of molten gray that holds me as though it were a hand. He was smiling with a bit of a sneer and his hair – oh!  was it on fire or was it a fire?

“Of course! All of you notice my hair first rather than my handsome face which is why I chose to appear with my hood on as to not distract the souls I am reaping.” He sarcastically pointed out, brushing his long fingers on his fiery locks. “All creatures alike when it comes to the level of stupidity.” He rolls his eyes and I gasped as one of them turns horribly white, “Whoopsie daisy.”

He hits the side of his head and his gray iris swirls back like a ball. He waves his hand and, in an instant, I found myself standing next to the fire with him next to me. “You might be wondering why you are here, cupid.”

The way he drawled about ‘cupid’ flickered a memory from inside my brain. I looked at the side of his cloak, expecting to see the luminous blue sword that he has threatened me while driving me out of Caelon’s flat.

Oh, Caelon!

“You finally remembered him, huh? I thought you won’t. Hmm, curious.” I watched as he throws back his head and laughed at me. He catches my gaze, having the decency to clear his throat before saying, “What? You're not gonna talk? Did you forget how to speak?” He scratched his head and snatched a paper from thin air, an eyebrow raised at me. “It was unlikely though not entirely possible considering your situation but if you forget how to speak, I can only-” he focuses his gaze at me, eyes unblinking as I said.

“I didn’t forget it.”

My memory drifted back to the day I was chased out of Caelon’s living quarters, my heart about to burst out, “I didn’t forget anything at all.”

He smirked.

“You remember and you can speak, fascinating!” He claps his hands, making his hair flicker. I huffed, following his example as he sits down.

“Why am I exactly here?” I popped the question that’s been running inside my head for the past ten minutes. “Why did you take me here?”

“Oh, I didn’t really take you here. This is not even a place, as a matter of fact.” I looked around the room and up to the high pillar before raising an eyebrow at him, “Stop playing games with me, sir-”

“Just call me Hades since that is my name. Sir is a bit, erm, so human?” He rolled his eyes before waving his hand, revealing an arrow – the golden arrow I had used to pierce myself.

“Wait! How did you get that? It was-” I touched my chest, focusing on the arrow he is holding in his hand, remembering the pain in brought me. How come it was in his possession? I have watched it all, how the arrow vanishes with the haze, fading into darkness as I slowly lose my consciousness.

“This arrow is enchanted. Once used, it will return to me until I give it to someone and wait for it to zoom back.” I sat, speechless. I couldn’t take my eyes off the arrow. The part where I pierced my chest smarted, as though I had just pierced it on my chest. “When Cupid, the original cupid – Eros as I call him – had once roamed the earth and fell in love with a human named Psyche, I was shocked; I did not expect that, all the other gods did not. They are so in love but Aphrodite despised her. I was there when this arrow pierced her heart, her soul floated across the room and soared on my hand. This arrow was supposed to claim his life, too, you know? That cupid who became a Dieuoubliè after he pierced his own heart yet he did not die.”

I watched as Hades ran his hand on the pointy end of the arrow and smirked at me. I couldn’t believe what he just said. “He pierced himself? Caelon pierced himself?”

“Yes, just like you did a while ago. He twirls the arrow on his hand. Hades smirks, “Well this arrow should really be stuck on Eros – or should I say - Caelon’s chest. I am giving you another chance to live but with the mission of putting this on his chest, as it originally should. ” Hades shrugs his shoulders as though he did not asked for me to kill another being.

“I will kill him?”

“No. Not really. You will just restore him to his original state, a balance.” He held out a hand and said, “I need you to make him fall in love. In this case, you will be the human that will make the Cupid fall – just like it has always been – for a thousand of years, his fate remains the same – a god that falls in love with a human.”

“But you are asking the impossible!  A Dieuoubliè can’t fall in love. He is the opposite of love. How am I supposed to make him fall?” I stand  from my seat and started pacing. Hades acknowledged me with a weary gaze, his one eye stuck on white again. Angrily, he taps the side of his face and blew a sigh, “Well, your perished child won’t be conceived had he not love you.”

“Child? My, child?” What is he talking about?

“What? You didn’t know?” I take a step back, collapsing on the chair. Me and Caelon had a child?

“Yes, fool. You were pregnant but you chose to pierce yourself with the arrow, killing yourself and  your child. You were unaware so it is forgivable but you lost that child in this lifetime.” He spreads his hand and a little white wisp ensued, dancing around us before vanishing. I choked up with tears and shake my head at him. “Ah, well. I am sorry that I announce the death of your child rather than the birth. What to do? It was unavoidable.”

“But Caelon said that it wasn’t possible.”

“ He is a fool like you,” Hades shakes his head. “I don’t have time for you to cry like this and wallow in self pity. It is your actions that brought forth such tragedy, but Eros is the one to be blame here.” He snatched the arrow from me and stood from his seat, “Here, feel it, I’ll show you the whole prophecy.”

The curls on the sides of the arrow ruffled as though it is heaving a sigh. I blinked and was surprised when it morphed into symbols - the old tongue. “I do not know how to read this, sorry.” I passed the arrow back to Hades and he rolled his eyes. 

Clearing his throat, he reads the inscription, “For he who fell on earth because of love will suffer the same fate once again, an endless life only to be ended by the wielder of the arrow\-”

“I already know that prophecy, I read it from the scroll.”

“Oh, have you?” He fakes a gasp, stating in a bored tone, “What you read was incomplete. I assume that you saw the ripped portion at the end of the scroll?” I nodded and his lips quirk up, his eyebrows arched as he continues with the next part, “Cupid must pay a hefty price for the greatest love his heart desires. He will roam this earth with hopeless front, as envy and loneliness rules his perished heart.” Hades paused before giving me a look, inquiring as to why I did not show any signs of being surprise. “What? You’ve heard of this too?”

“Read it from Caelon’s magical cupboard.”

“Magical cupboard? You mean his safe box?” I frowned at his weird term, nodding with reluctance as I let Hades continue.

“Yet Cupid must remember the heaven knows and honor him with a ginger lass-” Hades stops to smile at me, giving me a knowing look. I scratched my head, urging him to get on with it. “Who will knock at his heart and be welcomed, follow him around until he fell in love.” His lips were pulled upon the sides as he finished. The arrow floats behind him as he comfortably stretched, making his way at the far side of the room where a tall window emerged as though it was being pushed in. I remain standing, trying to comprehend the last part of the scroll – Is it true? Will it be true?

I scowled back at Hades whose back is turned at me. Is he joking?

“I’m not.” I gritted my teeth and tried to close off my mind from this nosy man, my fist shaking. “There’s no point trying to stop me from hearing or reading your thoughts. It’s so hard not to listen when you are practically screaming the words inside your head.”

The golden arrow felt so warm and tingly, my thoughts drifting back to when I pierced my chest and how I had ended up here – the place that was never really a place.

“Does it mean that when I finish what you are asking me to do, I will die?”

He did not answer me, instead, he looks at me for a long time, his molten grey eyes unblinking.  With his hands on his back, he walks on a stride, not leaving my eyes as he whispered, “You love him. You might not notice it but I do and I am certain of that.” he chuckled, spreading out his fingers to receive the golden arrow. The arrow whizzed past my head and settled on his outstretched hand, “This is your chance – make the Cupid fall and  pierce his heart with the arrow. Do this to avenge the child you have lost. He has to suffer to realize how much pain you have endured in his part, do you understand?”

And I fell back, waking up to a pair of bright blue eyes waiting for me.