Persephone's Cage [Connor Stoll]

chapter three

Lilly stood in a dark room, the only light source being a green lamp. 'Greek fire' she assumed. Looking around, she couldn't find anything out of the ordinary, until she found a birdcage. It was swinging from the ceiling, and it was massive. Big enough to where it could-

"Help." A weak voice called out. Lilly gasped, realizing there was a person inside. Or rather... "Please, young demigod." Persephone spoke, a hand reaching in her direction. "Help me."

A sinister laugh echoed from behind Lilly, and she realized that Persephone wasn't speaking to her, but someone behind her. She twirled around, but she couldn't see anyone in the darkness. "I'm not here to help you, you stupid flower goddess." The voice spat. "I'm here to make sure you can't escape. What would your poor mother think?"

"My..mother is behind this?" The goddess asked. "I should have known. She has never liked Hades."

The voice laughed again. "As she should. He's a good for nothing sleazebag. He kidnapped you, dumbass. You don't really love him, it's just Stockholm Syndrome." The voice taunted, causing the goddess to cry.

Lilly clenched her fists. How could someone say something so cruel to someone so pure? Well, as pure as a goddess to get. She tried to speak, but words would not come out. "I know there will be help on the way." Persephone said. "I am not afraid."

"You should be." Something was thrown at her cage, eliciting a yelp. The voice laughed and continued to throw objects at her, until she begged him to stop. Lilly tried to do something, anything, but she couldn't move.

"Hey, wake up, sleepyhead." Aiden's voice filled her ears, and Lilly winced. Slowly she opened her eyes, the blinding white light of the infirmary causing her to close them again. "Yeah, be careful. Just slowly adjust."

Lilly croaked. "What happened?"

"Hades looked at you and you passed out." Aiden spoke. "And unfortunately, that made him call you suspect number one."

She shook her head. "I had a dream, I-"

"Shh. We'll talk about it later. Just relax for right now." Aiden placed a wet cloth on the girl's forehead.

"Oh! She's awake!" Will walked in, a smile on his face. "How're you feeling?"
Lilly groaned. "Just peachy."

"Good, because Lord Hades wants to talk to you."

"Great."

***

Lilly nervously sat in the Big House, Hades himself standing in front of her. His gaze was intimidating, as his eyes were pure black. It was like death himself was staring her in the eye. "So, demigod." He began. "You are lucky my son has vouched for you, or you would be dead where you sit." She gulped. "How come you fainted?"

"I-I'm not sure, sir. Hades. Lord Hades." She fumbled with her words, shaking terribly. "But! I..I didn't do it. But when I passed out, I had a vision."

Hades's eyes went wide. "A vision? What did you see?" He was at her side in an instant, his face only inches away from hers. He reeked of death and the earth. His hands tightly grabbed her shoulders and he roughly shook her. "Speak, child!"

Lilly slowly told the god of her dream, about Persephone being weak and trapped. "Yes, that Demeter has always had it out for me." Hades stepped away from the girl, which she felt like she could finally breathe. "And you say there was a demigod involved?"

"Yes, sir. At least that's what Persephone said." Lilly was terrified. Her fear melted when she saw Chiron's familiar face, giving her a quick smile.

"Brother, you are scaring the poor child." Chiron spoke, making Lilly feel at ease.

"She is obviously important! She knows something the others do not." Hades glanced at her. "What if she is lying?"

Chiron shook his head. "I have known Lillian for five years. She has always been very loyal to her fellow demigods and the gods themselves. She would never do something so evil." The girl felt glad that someone was defending her. "But, I do believe she is important. Which is why, Lillian, I need you to have a visit with Rachel."

"Rachel? As in Rachel the Oracle?" She asked. "Will I be getting a quest?"

Chiron frowned. "It seems very likely in the state we are in right now. So please, go give her a visit. She should have arrived by now."

Lilly nodded, and with hesitation, she stood up. She slowly made her way past Hades, who gave her the death stare, no pun intended. When she walked out of the Big House, she felt relief fill her veins, until she saw who was waiting for her.

"Connor, what could you possibly want right now?" Lilly frowned deeply, her blue eyes cold and unnerving.

He gave her a smile. "I heard you spoke with Hades himself. That's..pretty cool." He turned more serious, which was weird for the Stoll sibling. "Are you okay?"

"I'm just fine." She snapped. "I have to go meet up with Rachel. I'll see you later." She began to walk away, but Connor followed.

"I'll come with you! You know how dangerous it is to walk alone." He winked at her, which she rolled her eyes.

"I'm a fully capable demigod. Plus, no one here would mess with me anyways." Lilly turned her gaze towards the boy. "No one but you."

Connor gasped dramatically, holding a hand to his chest. "Me? Mess with you? Why would you even imply that?"

The two bickered back and forth, before they both stood in front of Rachel's cave entrance. Lilly stopped speaking, a frown etched on her face. She was scared and nervous, as she had never led a quest before. What if this was her first one? What if luck wasn't on her side, and her quest ended badly?

"Hey, Lilly. Frowning that much will give you wrinkles."

"You're giving me wrinkles by stressing me out. Shut up."

And by pure chance, the two walked into the cave full of paintings, unknowingly starting their journey.