Forgotten memories

I get two Drachmas

What happened afterward was... well, a little weird. I was huddled in a quiet corner of the throne room with Christine, trying to just... breathe, when I noticed Hades gliding toward us. My stomach dropped like I'd swallowed a lump of lead. Every instinct screamed, Run. Hide. Maybe pretend you're a statue. But, surprisingly, he didn't look like he was about to turn me into a skeleton for his army.

He stopped a few feet away, his shadow stretching long across the marble floor. His black robes swirled around him like smoke, and for a second, I couldn't tell if he was smiling or just sharpening his glare.

"I have spoken with Charon," Hades began, his voice low and even. "He indeed took you on the boat. Then he... told me something interesting." He paused, studying my expression as if trying to gauge whether I was going to panic. I looked confused, which, apparently, was enough for him to continue, albeit reluctantly.

"Charon told me that you were speaking with Castellan," Hades said slowly, deliberately. "He mentioned that you... reacted strangely to a question posed by him?"

I swallowed and nodded, though I had no idea where this was going. "Yes, Lord Hades. Luke said something... but there was another voice instead of his. —a..." My voice trailed off. I couldn't quite remember, and the frustration bubbled up hot in my chest. Why does this have to happen again? One time wasn't enough?

Hades didn't flinch at my muttered irritation. Instead, he continued in his usual chilling calm. "I will not disintegrate you. I have been forbidden to..." He let the words hang for a moment, then added coldly, "However... when you die, for real this time, you will stay dead."

I gave him a grin, maybe a little too cocky considering the god in front of me. "I wouldn't have it any other way," I said.

For the first time, Hades actually smirked. Just a small, knowing smirk, but it made him look... almost human, in a terrifying way. Then he turned, his cape billowing behind him like some cartoonish villain, and drifted away.

Christine let out a soft, exasperated laugh when his shadow disappeared from view. "He's a ray of sunshine, isn't he?"

I chuckled and nodded, shaking my head. "That he is."

I was about to relax a little when I noticed another figure approaching. This time it was Athena. Now that was a reason to actually stand.

She stopped right in front of me, arms crossed, eyes blazing with that intense gray fire she always carried. She wasn't in armor anymore—just jeans and a crisp white blouse—but she still radiated that same battlefield authority that made me want to salute.

"Well, Orion," she said, her voice calm but sharp enough to cut glass, "you will stay mortal."

"Um... I guess so," I said, my throat dry and my stomach doing somersaults.

Then, slowly, her posture softened. The fire in her eyes didn't disappear, but it changed—like the look of a mother who finally understands a particularly complicated puzzle.

"I trust my daughter would be safe in your hands?" she asked, and I swear my face turned a shade of red that could have rivaled a ripe tomato. My eyes darted to Christine, who was looking at her mother with the exact same mixture of embarrassment and disbelief.

"Mother—" Christine started, but I cut her off.

"You have my word," I said before I could even think about it. The words tumbled out naturally, but they weren't a lie. That was exactly how I felt—honestly and completely.

Athena's stern face softened into a small, approving smile. She reached out and placed a hand lightly on Christine's shoulder. "Keep one eye on him," she said, flicking a thumb toward me. "He's smarter than we think."