Styx: The River of Hate [malexmale]

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Hades!

Epimetheus was frozen in place, staring at Hades, who watched Epimetheus like a cat watching a mouse quiver in a corner. Those cold blue eyes were trained on him, body appearing relaxed underneath heavy black armor that glinted dangerously in the lights. I could hear Epimetheus' heart skip a beat and launch into overdrive, pounding down on top of me like a jack hammer.

"How..." Epimetheus couldn't even squeeze the sentence out. Hades appeared very calm, nonchalant even, as if none of this was too much of a surprise for him. Something that should of annoyed me, but I wasn't about to forsake the only salvation that Theo had.

"I heard my puppy howl," Hades answered calmly, not once blinking away from Epimetheus, "It was a very sad kind of howl and I was intrigued to see that could possibly make my strongest soldier cry like a mourning widow... It would seem that somebody has been bullying my kids. Again." Epimetheus seemed to be at a loss for words. What could he possibly have to say to Hades anyway?

It didn't matter. The look on Hades face told us that he wasn't in the mood for petty words, at least, not the ones that Epimetheus had to offer.

I almost scoffed at how pitiful Epimetheus appeared now. For all his tough talk, he seemed very timid right now, very caught off guard and confused. For a moment, I saw the thought of him trying to pretend he was me to escape, but Hades laughed, signifying that he heard the thought as loud as I did.

"Don't sully Sept's reputation," Hades chuckled, "Sept is a very level-headed subordinate. It's why I had him sent to my youngest. Theo has always been very... Well, let's not split hairs. He's a brat. He needed an adult to keep him from doing anything stupid. Though, he will be severely punished for allowing a titan to weasel its way into our ranks. I'm disappointed your negligence, Sept. Although, it seems it was punishment enough to have him watch you torment my sons." I grimaced and squirmed a little, but it was no use. Hades seemed to notice that. Epimetheus finally snapped out of his stunned daze to twitch, his fingers curling into tight fists.

"And what do you plan to do to me? You can't touch me. I have my soul, the soul of a demigod, and the soul of a god. You can't even get near me." He managed angrily, but I could feel the fear freezing the walls around me, making me gasp at the icy sting of it against my soul.

"Oh, no," Haded admitted, "You've done rather well. For an idiot. But you're barely a thorn in my foot. I'm just waiting for someone to bring me the tweezers to pull you out." Epimetheus curled his lip.

"And just what the hell is that supposed to mean?" He demanded. Hades tsked and snapped his fingers in a sarcastic "oh darn" kind of way, which I'm sure he just muttered in Greek before he put a hand on his hip.

"I forgot. You're the stupid one. No, silly me to forget such a thing. Had I been dealing with Prometheus, he would've always slit my throat and moved on by now. Hell, even Menoetius would have more of a chance. And he's dead!" He exclaimed, making Epimetheus blush hotly as he clenched his fists so tightly, I could feel his nails cutting into his flesh.

"Do not mock me, Hades." He sneered hatefully, flashing his teeth. Hades stared at him flatly.

"Oh, trust me. Your existence alone is a mockery." He replied. Epimetheus fumed and thrust his palm out to face Hades.

"Fuck this." He snapped and sent a sharp blast of red energy swirling toward Hades, who easily swept his hand out, leaving behind a red bubbling mist in the air that easily deflected the move.

"Oh, you fight with magic," Hades commented, stepping forward and waving his hand around in the air to clear the glittering remains of the magic, "That's cool. Very old-fashioned. I used to be a very big fan of this move." He swung his palm out and sent an icy cold blue shard of magic shaped like a sword toward Epimetheus, but he deflected it with red shield magic.