𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙳𝚊𝚛𝚔 𝙱𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍

Beyond the golden gate

♪Soldier, Poet, King♪
-Jacob Cook

Eden hadn't forgotten about Azrial, she went on with her life as if nothing happened.. for the most part. But the incident still stuck with her...

"Not everything is as it seems."

She'd been thinking a lot about that. How a seemingly happy tale could turn into something miserable, how there's always two sides to a story.

Eden had always loved reading but she's recently taken to writing in a journal to collect thoughts, because lately, there'd been a lot of them.

She wasn't exactly sure how time goes up here in the above, compared to in the below and on land, but she figured it didn't really matter did it. She'd go about her own day just as others do, she wakes up and gets ready before going off to the library. The library is her happy place, the shelves of books that tell of new adventures, the calming atmosphere, and the kind librarian who tells Eden of her life's adventures from when she was alive.

Elsie has told Eden of her romances, her heartbreaks, how beautiful the cities down there are, how much there is to see. She taught Eden art, how to paint and draw, as well as how to sing and dance. In return, Eden told her about the gods, she had met all of them in her life.. that is, all but Hades and Persephone.

Father always told Eden of the horrid things they had done, of the torture they put people through. That was another thing that had confused her, Azrial didn't seem like the type to torture people, nor did he look tortured himself.

"Not everything is as it seems."

   There's that line again, not everything is as it seems. Eden hoped she would know what Azrial meant by that soon but it seemed unlikely. She's never seen him before their encounter, she could conclude she probably wouldn't be seeing him again.

   She stared off at the scene she was painting in the distance, the glowing golden gates surrounded by clouds as white as snow. It was a scene she would paint often, mostly because it was intriguing.

   Eden hadn't ever dared go near the gates, she was told not to from a young age, but she had always wondered what was beyond them... beyond the beyond she liked to say.

   "Eden?... Eden!" Elsie called

   Eden snapped herself out of whatever trance she had fallen into and looked up, tilting her head slightly.

   "Eden, Hermes is looking for you." Elsie spoke, catching her breath.

   "Oh, sorry, thank you Elsie!"

   She ran off to find Hermes, not even taking time ti consider asking where he was in the first place.

   Hermes considered himself one of Eden's favorite gods, anytime he wanted to see her it was always about something cool. Last time he gave her what he called a dagger. It was a sharp object with a curved blade, and a light blue and gold marbled handle. From then on, Eden kept it on her at all times, it felt important. And Eden never denied a word when Hermes argued with Ares over who her favorite was.

   She kept looking around a while, before running into the god she was looking at the marble gazebo.

   "Eyy watch it kid, you could hurt someone." Hermes laughed, "How are you?"

   He ruffled up her hair, and patted a spot on a bench next to him, which she took right away.

   "I'm good, watcha got this time?"

   "Now why is it that I always have to have something when I ask to see you." He spoke, shaking his head.

   "Sorry... well, do you?" She asked cautiously

   "Of course I do, but it's not from me this time it's from someone else, can't tell you who tho cause I don't know..." he explained, winking twice on 'I don't know'

   "So you do know who?" Eden asks, taking the letter.

   Eden was a smart girl, but picking up on sarcasm wasn't a strong suit of hers, along with taking a hint.

   "No." He said, nodding.

   "But you just- nevermind."

   She opened the letter carefully, pulling out a letter written in black ink, the handwriting was pleasing to look at.

   The letter read,

    Dᴇᴀʀ ᴇᴅᴇɴ,
      I ᴄᴀɴᴛ sɪɢɴ ᴛʜɪs ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴍʏ ɴᴀᴍᴇ ʙᴜᴛ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ ᴄᴀʀᴇғᴜʟʟʏ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ᴡʜᴏ ᴛʜɪs ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ʙᴇ. I ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ sᴇᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ, ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏᴍᴇɴᴛ ɪ ʟᴀɪᴅ ᴇʏᴇs ᴏɴ ʏᴏᴜ ɪ sᴀᴡ sᴏᴍᴇᴛʜɪɴɢ ᴅɪғғᴇʀᴇɴᴛ ᴛʜᴇɴ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ɪ ᴡᴀs ᴛᴏʟᴅ ᴍʏ ᴡʜᴏʟᴇ ʟɪғᴇ, ɪ sᴀᴡ ᴀ ɢᴇɴᴜɪɴᴇ ᴘᴇʀsᴏɴ. Sᴏ ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴍᴇᴇᴛ ᴍᴇ ᴏᴜᴛsɪᴅᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴏʟᴅᴇɴ ɢᴀᴛᴇs ᴛᴏɴɪɢʜᴛ ᴀᴛ 8? Aɴᴅ ʀᴇᴍᴇᴍʙᴇʀ, ɴᴏᴛ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ɪs ᴀs ɪᴛ sᴇᴇᴍs.
                    Sɪɢɴᴇᴅ,
                        Aɴᴏɴʏᴍᴜs

   Azrial.

   She took a deep breath, folding up the letter and shoving it in her pocket.

   It's definitely him. "Not everything is as it seems". He wanted to see her.... outside the golden gates... she didn't even know how to get there. She believed there had to be something keeping people in, shes been told often not to go out, that it's dangerous... so what is it out there that's so bad?

   "Anything interesting kid?" Hermes asked, trying to sneak a look.

   "Nope just uh... taxes, yep taxes." Eden lied, rather terribly seeing as she didn't know what taxes actually were.

   Elise had tried for hours at a time to explain what they were in the human world, but Eden never could understand, and Hermes knew that, and eden knew that Hermes knew that when she told him that she was reading about taxes.

   "Sure," he winked, "tAXeS, whatever you have to tell me to get me away, eh?"

   Hermes sped away, leaving Eden to think about the letter.

   For one, it could be a trap. What if Azrial wasn't as kind as he came off, he IS Hades' son, and Hades is the very man Eden was told her whole life was bad bad news. Maybe everything isn't as it seems, though, maybe Hades isn't evil...

   In that moment she knew, that there was only one way to find out.

   She had to go past the golden gate.