Eva Pohler - Persephone

persephone

a prequel to the underworld saga

Eva Pohler

Copyright 2016 by Eva Pohler.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed Attention: Permissions Coordinator, at the address below.

Eva Pohler Books

20011 Park Ranch

San Antonio, Texas 78259

www.evapohler.com

Publishers Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the authors imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.

Book Layout 2017 BookDesignTemplates.com

Book Cover Design by B Rose Designz

Persephone/ Eva Pohler. -- 1st ed.

Paperback ISBN: 979-8610670812

For my children.

Contents

Life isnt fair, but death is.

--HADES

Chapter One

The Meeting in the Asphodel

H

ades sat on his throne alone in his underground palace. What did it matter that he had more subjects in his kingdom than either of his brothers? What did it matter that he had the worlds most precious and beautiful jewels displayed on shelves in his chambers? His life couldnt be more boring. He stood up and kicked a golden turtle that was a part of the altar leading to his throne. The golden image flew through the air until it crashed against the wall opposite him. Even tormenting the evildoers of the world no longer brought him any satisfaction. He hated his life. He might as well still be a prisoner in his fathers belly.

It still hurt him to think about how his mother hadnt tried to save him. Shed saved her youngest son, but shed allowed her husbandHadess father, Kronosto swallow the rest of them. And once her children had finally been set free, they fought their father and his supporters for ten years. During that time, Hadess mother, Rhea, had disappeared. Hed never had a chance to know her love. Had she cared about him at all? Had she wondered about the person hed become? If not, was there a person anywhere in this whole world who loved him?

He flew from his realm to spy on the people in the upperworld. As he hovered in the sky above them, he hoped for entertainment, but since he didnt care about any of the players below him, he found no joy in their pleasure or sorrow in their pain. He felt numb to everything around him and went home.

Weeks, months, and years went by. The only break he had from this growing despair were the few minutes each day when he wrestled with Cerberus. The three-headed guard dog was his only friend, but the beast could never leave his post at the gate. As it was, Hades took a huge risk in distracting him for even a few minutes.

Was there no way a god could end his existence?

Hades decided to pray to the Fates. He prayed to them every day. His request?

Bring me change. Anything is better than this.

Enter, Hades said in the language of the ancient Greeks when, months later, he sensed the Fates outside his door.

He wondered if their arrival had something to do with his prayer. He could only hope.

Clotho, the oldest of the three and the spinner, lifted a bony finger and said, We already know you will agree.

Hades narrowed his eyes. I thought you couldnt see your own futures.

No, Lachesis, the measurer, said. But we can see yours.

And you agree, Atroposs hoarse voice snapped, like the shears she used to cut the thread of life. So, heres the deal.

Hades hung back in the shadows at the edge of the clearing watching his future bride. Although she was alone in a field of flowers with nothing but blue sky above her, she walked with a sense of purpose, as if she were looking for something.

Hed seen Demeters daughter many times when he had dealings on Mount Olympus, but hed never looked at her with the knowledge he possessed today. The Fates were never wrong. In exchange for refuge in his kingdom, they had told him to choose wisely, and when he had given them a blank look, they had pointed him in the direction of Persephone. This was the woman who would spend eternity married to him.

So why was he hiding from her? Hed had no problems attracting women into his arms, but as soon as hed invited them home to the dreary depths of his underground palace, the delight in their eyes dimmed as quickly as the souls ferried through the gates by his boatman, Charon. Yet this beautiful, shining young goddess, as bright as springtime, was destined to be his. Why should he hide?

This was the change hed been longing for.

He removed his helm of invisibility and stepped into the light. The goddess, Persephone, noticed him at once.

She had no smile for him. Lifting a delicate wrist into the air, she used a golden bracelet to deflect the suns rays into his eyes. He blinked against the reflection of Helios, the sun god, and when Hades looked once more for Persephone, the goddess was gone.

Chapter Two

Persephones Request

S

ince their meeting in the asphodel, Hades sought every opportunity to see Persephone again. So what if the Fates were right (and they always were)? It could be centuries before Persephone ever noticed him, and he was beginning to feel impatient.

He saw her at court on Mount Olympus when Zeus laid out a plan to prevent a Titan uprising. Persephone sat stiffly and quietly on the double throne beside her mother. Hades stared at her, willing her to look at him, but she ignored him. Suspecting that Demeter had blocked others from communicating with her daughter, he left Mount Olympus that day feeling frustrated.

Hades saw Persephone again at court when the gods banded together to think of ways that they could help Perseus defeat the Gorgons. Persephone sat beside Demeter again, but this time seemed restless. Hades sensed that she wanted to be anywhere else but among the gods at court. But no matter how often he looked her way, she never returned his gaze. How long was he supposed to wait before his future bride became aware of his existence?

He saw her a third time on Mount Olympus during the discussion of the impending war between the Greeks and the Trojans, after Eriss apple was awarded by Paris to Aphroditenot because she was necessarily the more beautiful, but because she had the best bribe.

Again, he tried to get Persephones attention, and again she ignored him.

So Hades resigned himself to the Fates. He would stop trying. He would stop allowing himself to get so worked up in her presence. He would be patient if not indifferent. Their meeting was bound to happen one daythe Fates were never wrong.

One day, he was walking among the asphodel in the same location he had first seen Persephoneafter the Fates had revealed her as his future wife. He found it interesting that she, too, often walked near the chasm with the flowers at her feet and the sound of the rushing falls behind her. This was one of his favorite spots in the world, for it was near one of the entries to the Underworld; but it was also bright, fresh, and full of sweet songbirds and scent. He came here to refresh his mind before returning to his duties and to the dead.

This time, he didnt try to speak with her. He didnt want a repeat of their first encounter. Instead, he turned his back to her and continued his walk. If the Fates were rightand they always werethen there was no need for him to force a union.