Chapter 59 Make a choice

Chapter 59 Make a choice
Hades

I arrive at death’s door in a cloud of rage. The darkness deepening announces my presence. I burst through the wooden door into the Reaper’s realm in hell. His house floats on a river from which he brings the dead souls into Hell.

The Reaper sits with his back to the door when I arrive. But even my arrival does not make him move an inch.

“Where is she?” I scream at him.

“You owe me a soul. Her soul.”

“She does not belong to you. She’s a goddess.”

“Her mother promised her to me. And she’s more human than she is a goddess. I guess that’s the consequences of stripping her of her powers and hiding her away amongst the humans.”

I groan audibly, charging toward him. He disappears before I could grab hold of him. I feel him reappear behind me.

“You work for me, death. You have no right to take a soul I didn’t sanction, especially hers!”

Reaper plays with his scythe, laughing at me. “Maybe, maybe things are starting to change around here.”

“Excuse me?”

His amused expression drops, morphing into something darker, menacing. “For eons, you have spent more time on earth than you do here. You have no interest in guarding Hell. You’ve failed in your duties to this realm. Demons are running amok. Souls are not getting their required punishments. You’ve left your realm unguarded, unprotected. You’ve failed. All because of her!” His voice is full of hatred and blind ambition.

“So what? I spent millions of years carrying out my duties, performing everything expected of me. What else do you require? The fact that I want to be with the love of my life is annoying you?”

“You were not meant to fall in love. She has broken your brain. She has kept you away from your duties for ages now. You have no insight into what’s going on in your own realm. Well, times have changed! I took her to make you see that times are changing around here.”

I burst out into a booming laughter. In the distance, the foundation of Hell cracks a little sending walls collapsing into the deeper earth.

“What? Are you challenging me, Reaper?” I ask. The very thought of it happening is so amusing and impossible to even consider.

“If you wish to see her again, you will relinquish your staff and duties. Renounce your position as the ruler of Hell, be cast down into Tartarus where you’ll spend all of eternity.”

“Are you mad? I am the Ruler of Hell. Who would take my place? Without me, Hell is finished. The balance of the universe will be ruined.”

“I will take your place. I will become the new ruler of Hell,” death replies immediately.

My brows arch in confusion and anger. How long has he been plotting this? Did he really think his little ploy to take power from me would work? He is my inferior, for Hell’s sake!

Death steps up to me. His boldness written all over his face. He does not have any shred of weakness, fear, just blind ambition and courage.

“I am asking you to make a choice. Her life for your power.”

All I wish is to strangle his neck. His audacity stuns me. But even in this moment, the realization is dawning on me. He’s the only one who can save Daphne. I could never in under any circumstances allow my ego to get in the way of saving Daphne’s life.

“You will never become the ruler of Hell.”

“A choice, Hades. You’ve got less than twenty-four hours to make a choice. Tartarus for Daphne’s life.”

Eternity imprisonment for Daphne’s life? I didn’t even need twenty-four hours to know which option I was choosing. I would lay down my life for her any second of any day.

“Where is she? How do I know you’ll free her soul?”

“I am a creature of my word, Hades. I have no intention of harming her. She’s my bargaining chip. As soon as you make your choice, she will be returned safely to live her life. Consider this mercy. That girl has eaten away at every rationalism in you. She has stripped you from your core. You are no longer the ruthless, brutal lord of Hell. We are this close to destabilizing this entire realm. Hell deserves a Lord who will not fumble in his duties and that leader is me.”

I ball my fists together, controlling myself from ripping his head off. “I want to talk to my brother, Michael first.”

“Sure, you can talk to your brother. Remember, you have twenty-four hours to make up your mind.”

With that, Death vanishes. An echo is left in his departure. I storm out of his house. All around me, I can feel everything collapsing. Why is this happening in this life cycle when I am so close to getting Daphne?

I return to Michael’s small, picturesqure temple in Olyumpus. I find him in the balcony, staring down at the streets of Olympus with a concerned expression on his face. He spins around as soon as I enter.

“Hey, I’ve been worried sick. I thought you would, at least, let someone else come with you to get her back!”

He peers behind me. “So? Did you find her?”

I sigh. “Something’s happened, Michael.”

I repeat everything that happened to her. Micheal’s expression changes multiple times from disbelief to sadness to anger.

“Reaper? Is this a joke? He works for you. He can’t blackmail you to Tartarus and you certainly can’t take him up on his offer.”

“Daphne’s life depends on it!”

“So what? You get another life cycle if you lose her this time.”

I shake my head. Tension falls between us. “You and I both know…. I’m running out of chances. This was supposed to be it. My last hope. The only chance I have to get her back.”

Michael closes the distance between us. “Hades, please tell me, you are not seriously considering taking his offer. Tartarus?” he lowers his voice dramatically. “That’s where your father’s locked up. It’s the deepest, cruelest part of Hell. You will never be free if you sentence yourself there!”

I take a deep breath, my mind already made up.

“I have no other choice. I have to sacrifice myself for Daphne.”