When Darkness Met Her

The Iron Queen

"Me? In charge of this?" Persephone asked looking at the very dark office in the Underground Inc building Hades had built in downtown Olympus, far enough away from Zeus's realm that was uptown. The building had been created so that way when souls departed from the mortal realm, their souls wound up in front of the building to be processed to go to the right realm of Hades.

"That's what I think would be best" Hades said with a clever grin, ushering in his wife smoothly as he headed for the desk "Authorities sees the cases that actually need a final say in judging circumstances. You'll never believe the amount of souls that come through here wanting a bargain of some kind.  Usually most judging is done by Minos, but even him and his brothers get backed up with certain cases. You would be the final decision in a lot of them."

"Hades are you sure you trust me to judge souls? I mean I've never had any serious interactions with mortals besides springtime festivals." Persephone said eyeballing the chair hesitantly. The whole office screamed more her husband, with the menacing black marbled floor and heavy accents of shades of grey and slate, she might look like a snowflake in a sea of dark. She felt too tiny, too out of place to really understand what her husband was trying to pull.

"I trust you more than anyone" he said smiling down at her, his dark beard growing more full every day, his dashing pirate look seemingly more fitting to his pointed jawline. 

"What if you don't agree with my decision though?" Persephone said biting her lip as she twisted a golden lock in her fingers.

"You are the Queen of the Underworld, you should have just as much say as what happens down here as I do. I will respect whatever decision you make, so long as the balance of our world isn't thrown off completely" Hades said nodding his head in seriousness.

"Alright, I will try it out" Persephone said trying to get some confidence in her spine as she walked around the desk and plopped herself down in the menacing black chair. It seemed more like a thrown then a office chair, but she tried to make herself seem less small as she watched the doors on the other side of the room open up on their own.

"Ah look, your first customer" Hades said smiling down at her as he watched his wife visibly stiffen and eyeball the lanky soul of a man that was headed to the desk. He looked about in his mid 30's, dark scraggly hair and wide eyes. It must have been quite a sight, seeing the god of the dead leaning against a chair casually as  small young woman sat with her hands folded together looking at him expectently. 

"Alright Persy baby" Persephone said to herself "Try and act like a queen. Don't let a sob story get you right out the bat."

"Hello there" the young man said "Um, my name is Andrew Carlyle."

"Hello Andrew" Persephone said in a even tone "Why have you come before me today?"

"I think someone made a mistake" Andrew said holding out his hands "I don't think I was meant to die just yet, I had a lot of things going on."

"Everyone has to die eventually" Persephone said a little too seriously that it made even Hades raise an eyebrow as he stared down at his mate.

"I don't think you understand" Andrew said as his voice became desperate "I had plans! I had a life I was going to achieve! I wasn't meant to go yet."

Persephone suddenly saw the young man's life flash before her eyes, images of him as a child, his mother and father teaching him to ride a bike, his friends, high school, college, wishes and aspirations that didn't come true for a fear that resided in the young man's heart. He hadn't accomplished what he wanted, taken from the mortal world by a fatal accident. 

It was a sad story, and although Persephone felt for the young man, fate didn't seem to shift with the death of Andrew Carlyle. He needed to go to his final home.