DEMIS (A Clash With Lightning)

36

"They are here, sir," a servant of Hades reported.

"It's about time." Alexander grinned.

He lounged in Hades' throne near the entrance of the castle. He wanted to be present when they entered. He had been counting the seconds until their arrival. He didn't know exactly how this would play out. He was hoping to gain some even more powerful teammates, but he would also enjoy having worthy opponents to fight.

His mind drifted to Jasmine. She was just exquisite. He'd been watching them through a crystal ball that his accomplice had given him. She was advancing at an alarming rate compared to her little friends. He liked a woman who could hold her own, a leader. He was most excited to see her.

"They'll be approaching the castle shortly." The servant bowed as she waited to be dismissed.

"You can go." He waved his hand. The servant girl wasted no time scurrying away, desperate to get away from the man who had overthrown her master in his own domain.

It had been too easy to take over the Underworld. Hades' power was one of the first of the gods to go, as per the plan. When Alexander arrived, he was no more powerful than a human man.

"You don't have to do this," he had pleaded.

"We both know I do." Alexander laughed. "Are we gonna make this easy, or are you going to try to fight me in this pathetic state?"

"I can't just let you take over," Hades said. "This domain needs me to sustain itself."

Alexander didn't respond. He punched Hades in the face and sent him flying into the wall. Hades coughed and gasped for air, trying to catch his breath after the wind was knocked out of him.

Alexander walked to him slowly, preparing to hit him again when he felt small and rapid hits on his back. He turned around to see a servant girl hitting him repeatedly with tears in her eyes.

"Leave him alone!" she cried out.

Alexander kicked her with a lot less force than he had used on Hades. He had no desire to hurt the human soul, but he wouldn't let her get in his way.

"Don't touch her!" Hades gasped between breaths.

Alexander raised his eyebrow at him. "Why not?"

"She's innocent," he coughed. "Just kill me. I'm the one you want. Leave the servants. They've done you no wrong."

Alexander hated the way that it touched his heart. He found himself locking Hades in the dungeons below the castle instead of killing him—not per the plan. It was frustrating that Hades had shown such a human side of himself. He just needed to lock him away for a while. Then he would surely kill him later.

It had been days since that happened, and Alexander frowned when he realized he still hadn't killed Hades. Not only had he spared him, but he had been allowing the servants to bring him meals.

He pushed that thought out of his mind. He instead chose to think about his own success and how far he'd come.

"Gods, I am a genius," he said as he laid sideways on the chair with his hands behind his head for support.

"You are the genius?" He heard an agitating voice.

He rolled his eyes and looked to see Hecate standing in front of him. "What do you want now?"

"I told you that you should have finished them in the restaurant. Now they are coming to start knocking on our doors," she hissed.

It annoyed him the way she said "our" doors. He let it go for now. He would betray her the moment he had the Titans under his control, and she would be the first of the gods to die.

"I'm not worried about them," he said instead. "I wish you would leave until I need you."

"You always need me," she snapped. "You could have done none of this without me."

"Mhm," he responded nonchalantly.

"You have all the powers of the gods thanks to me!" she hissed at him. It was just like humans. They don't appreciate what's been given to them.

"You say that as if I wield all their power," he argued. "I don't have it. It's just sealed away."

"But you will!" She was losing patience.

"Listen, Hecate, it's not that I don't appreciate the effort you've put in. I just want to sing my own praises for a moment," he sighed. "You're dampening my mood."

"And you mine," she continued. "I would be on top of the world right now knowing that those threats were dealt with while they were useless. You've allowed them to grow too strong."

"Enough!" Alexander boomed. "You're not in charge. I do what I want. Now get lost."

Hecate gritted her teeth before storming off. Now Alexander would have to cool down before they got to the castle. He didn't want to be in a bad mood when they arrived.

"Someone bring me some calming tea!" he called out to the servants.

He was hours away from taking over Olympus and becoming a new-generation god. Humanity would finally be free from their tyranny. He silently swore to never allow things to be the way they were under his father's rule.

After his mom passed away, he was sent to an orphanage. Zeus never bothered to visit even once. He didn't care about that evil woman he called a wife murdering his mother, and he didn't care about his human son. The only affection Alexander received was from the employees and volunteers at the orphanage. When he aged out of the system, he had no family to fall back on.

He was homeless for the first week before meeting a recruiter for the army. He joined because they offered him pay, food, and housing. The barracks sucked ass. The carpet was severely water-damaged, and mold grew on the walls, but it was a hell of a lot better than sleeping under a bridge, so he bore with it.

The training was intense. Sergeants would come into the barracks blasting horns and forcing them awake at crazy hours. They would train all day until it was time for dinner and bed. Then it would repeat the next day. Alexander was thankful for it, though. It was what brought out his powers. The stronger he became in the army, the stronger his powers manifested.

Now he was untouchable. No one would hurt him ever again. He held the crystal ball that Hecate had given him in his hands. He wouldn't let the witch dampen his mood. A servant passed him a cup of tea, and he sipped it while staring at the ball. He zoomed in on Jasmine as she walked through the Underworld.

History was about to be made, and he couldn't wait to see what would happen.