II. Gods and Monsters

25. Welcome to Hell

Oli fell to his knees, every ounce of willpower drained from him in one foul swoop. He'd failed.

Charlotte was gone.

He didn't cry. He didn't wail. He didn't scream or yell or fight or flee. He couldn't. Shock had gripped his body and numbed him to everything else. He didn't feel grief or rage or sadness or loss. He simply felt empty.

Charlotte felt the blood dripping down her back and the tip of Hades' blade pressed into her. She had felt it cut into her back and screamed, but Hades had simply stopped. She watched Oli drop to his knees and bow his head, thinking she was dead. But how could she be? She hadn't felt the blade sink through her. She couldn't see it sticking out of her. Then again, she hadn't exactly died at sword-point before. Maybe she wouldn't have felt anything once it went through her spine. Maybe it didn't need to go all the way through like it did in the films? But wait... she could still feel Hades' clutch on her shoulder...  It was then that Hades released her and she felt the blood burst onto the back of her head. Charlotte recoiled, turning to face Hades and a flickering form skewered on the end of his blade. She watched as the silvery-white image solidified. Floating patches of this whitish colour congealing to form a silhouette. The silhouette slowly grew hair, a beard and a battered old Stetson fell to the floor in front of it.

The old man lowered his head slightly, his silvery eyes locking onto hers and forcing a pained smile. His teeth were smeared with his own blood. But even through the agony, he was reassuring her. He had saved her life, and that was fine by him.

"CARTER!" Oli cried from behind her, scrabbling up to Charlotte as he did so.

She felt his arms wrap around her, as if he was still surprised that she sat there. But all she could do was watch as Hades swung his sword to one side, Carter's already frail body sliding free and cracking into the wall. He slumped there, the hole in his chest painting the ground around him crimson.

"You wretched old man! Your sacrifice is for nothing!" Hades roared, stalking towards Carter's limp body. "For your crimes, your soul will burn!"

Hades' gauntlet raised, a fireball slowly burning to life in its palm. Charlotte watched in horror, struggling to think of something, anything she could do.

"If Carter is burned now, his soul shall never make it to Heaven," she heard a woman's voice tell her.

"What the..." she muttered, her head whirling around.

"Down here," the voice said.

Instead of seeing the speaker, she saw Oli's chain. Confusion froze her for a few seconds before realisation hit her. Without another second wasted, she grabbed it, leapt to her feet and started to whirl the chain above her head like a lasso. Damn this thing was heavy. But with each swing, Charlotte found it easier, as if some higher power were guiding her hand. Oli looked like he was about to ask her what the hell she was doing, so she chose that point to hurl the chain forward. It arced out, wrapping itself around Hades' wrist. With a pull of strength far beyond her normally, Charlotte dragged Hades' arm away from Carter and extinguished the damning fire.

"You are full of surprises, aren't you little girl?" Hades growled in ever more building rage.

"Not as much as he is," she smiled.

A translucent, white stallion phased through the wall beside Hades, knocking him to the ground before it circled back, stopping by Carter's shimmering body. All three present watched in shared awe as an image of The Phantom Rider stood from Carter's body and mounted its ghostly steed. In silence, he turned to Charlotte and Oli, giving a tip of his hat before committing to his last ride, and the quest for redemption that awaited Carter's soul.