ONYX

Chapter Twenty-Six

“You know very well that we’ve been calling you, brother.” Poseidon said.

Hades materialized in the Great Hall of Heroes where there had been statues of many of the Gods that had been named great warriors of their kind. He gazed around the empty space of marble floors and stone pillars as if it were his first time being there, but it wasn’t. In all honestly, it never ceased to amaze him. They’d come a long way since the beginning of time to finally have this grandeur.

It was Hades’ second favorite place to be when his brothers weren’t pestering him. Poseidon and Zeus watched their brother as he strolled around the room, his hands prompt on his hips and his face wiped of any emotion. That’s how he is when he’s topside, emotionless and quiet. He intimidated the other Gods, filled the room with heavy darkness that made it unbearable to be within the same vicinity of him.

But, Zeus and Poseidon had a love for him that none of the other Gods would understand.

Hades finished his prowl, finally. He walked to his throne posted directly across from Zeus and took his seat. The layout had been that of a circle so that they surrounded the mirror in the center. The mirror was an opening in the ground that gave them coverage of the activity happening on Earth beneath them. When given the order, the mirror showed them images of whatever they desired to see.

They used it to spy or seek out any threats where they may be. Zeus used it to keep tabs on his many children that he sired while secretly staking out his next warm body to bed.

On Zeus’ left was a throne reserved only for his queen, Hera. Below their platform were the thrones for the rest of the Olympian Gods, like Athena, Aphrodite, Apollo, Ares, Artemis, Demeter, Dionysus, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Hestia. However, the only ones that mattered to Hades were Zeus and Poseidon, his brothers. Their story had begun long before their reign on Mount Olympus; he’d credited his younger brother to being his savior. And for that, he admired Zeus’ leadership. He’d kept order and restored peace after the Titans.

He ruled Olympus. Poseidon ruled the sea. And Hades ruled the Underworld. It was the natural order of things and Hades enjoyed his domain. It was agreed upon the brothers that no one enter unless personally sanctioned by that ruler. Thankfully, his brothers never asked to enter the Underworld, but they used other means to get in contact with Hades.

With each God in their place and finally present, they could begin their intervention. Hades no doubt knew what this meeting would be about. It was between the three of them so Zeus didn’t want any of the other Gods to be involved. Good, Hades thought. He didn’t want anyone else to know his business. He smoothed his hand over the flat surface of his armrest, tracing the crooked lines of the marble like he’d done times before. Each seat had been carved out of marble and sized only for the Olympian God or Goddess that it seated. A symbol was embedded in them to identify their title. For Zeus, there was a thunderbolt and for Poseidon there were waves. 

Hades didn’t have a specific symbol. He cared not to be known to others that didn’t matter and he wasn’t in Olympus often enough to sit in his chair. Regardless of what is assumed, Hades and Poseidon preferred their true homes than in Mount Olympus.

It was foreign to see them anywhere else.

Hades and Poseidon looked and felt out of place. They’d come here and there, but only for important meetings to discuss drastic decisions that needed to be made, but never on a social call. Hades turned his attention to the God of the Sea.

He was menacing and a great leader. If Zeus weren’t chosen, then Poseidon would’ve most definitely been a better suitor to rule Olympus. He wasn’t as much a nuisance as Zeus, but he was annoying all the same. Zeus always called in Poseidon for back up for whenever Hades seemed to be doing something that he didn’t agree on.