The Queen Below

Chapter 3

The next few days passed without incident. Thoughts of the Underworld slipped from my mind because of all the physical labor I was doing. Disguised as mundane humans, my mother and I always helped with the mortals' harvest of grain and other crops. It was hard work and not necessarily rewarding to me, but it was my mother's duties and I was required to help her.

The flowers that grew wherever my feet touched the earth did not help with my disguise, but I still went to the festivals and drank wine and danced with the mortals and the nymphs. The anonymity of it was nice and it was surprisingly fun. It would be far into the night when I finally stumbled into my mother's temple for much needed rest, and I would wake with the sun to begin my work again the next day.

My worries about Zeus eased with the passing of time and the distraction of hard labor. I started to imagine myself living here in Eleusis while the seasons passed, with the nymphs and my mother. The nymphs loved me, and maybe my mother could learn as well. Maybe I could learn to forgive her.

I still dreamed of the chthonic goddess, whoever she was, every night. Recurring dreams were not to be taken lightly, especially not for the gods. Wanting to know who she was and why she haunted my dreams was becoming a secret obsession, a festering wound that I could do nothing about. Our meeting had been in secret, as was our conversation, and I could not risk asking without people wanting to know more.

Maybe if I decided to live here, I could visit the Underworld at least once to finally get my answers.

During the day she was forgotten, but I always woke breathless, still feeling her hand on mine. The obol, lost in my sheets after I fell asleep with it in my hand, was found and shoved under my pillow to be hidden. A mortal coin was surely something that would cause questions should a nymph or my mother ever find it.

The nymphs in Eleusis were a refreshing change of company compared to the gods. They were not immortal, but they were ageless, and I think having a little fear of death was good for the soul. The gods, myself included, tended to take life for granted because we knew it was forever.

I knew Kalligeneia was older than me, and she had been the nymph to comfort Demeter after she left Olympus. Kalligeneia was a kind soul, but mostly all nymphs were. They were some form of nature in one way or another, respectful, and their love ran deep. They knew much more of this world than I did so I spent most of my time with them, listening, learning all that I could.

However pure their souls were, they were prone to fleshly desires. They seemed to take new lovers every other day, and I would be forced to listen to their exploits long into the night. It reminded me of Olympus all too well. I often had the misfortune of finding nymphs and their lovers during the day, collapsed in naked piles in the fields, sleeping, or some of them still having sex.

I had been working in the corner of a field by myself when I heard the familiar moans of pleasure. I waited a few minutes, hoping the act would soon be over, but I had no such luck. Eventually, I decided to approach and tell them to move to a more private area. I found them partially hidden by rows of barley.

"Um, excuse me. Please take it somewhere else, will you? I'm working and others will be arriving shortly."

The nymph giggled but when her eyes landed on me, she gasped. "Oh, Neotera! I'm so sorry!"

The man on top of her, on the other hand, turned slowly, deliberately, but I already knew. He was well disguised, but my eyes had been trained to see the luminescent glow of immortality under his skin.

"Whoever you are, leave. You have no business here. This is my mother's domain."

He rose slowly, his disguise flickering as he grinned. "Daughter."