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26

AN ABANDONED ERA

“W ell, this isn’t what I was expecting,” Marcus muttered the second we were through the portal, one that was already fully operational. Although we had used Dariush’s unique skills to get us to the border of his brother’s land, so as we didn’t waste time.

However, one look around the abandoned castle and I would say we had already done that.

“Fuck!” I roared, punching my fist through some of the crumbling stone, as I shouted, “Where the fuck is he?!” Something neither Koro, Lerna, Marcus, nor my brother could answer.

“But I don’t understand… it should be here… he should be here… this is his castle,” Lerna said in a desolate tone, now walking towards a part of the garden that was filled with dead plants, broken statues, and a very distinct hole in the ground.

One where a tree once grew.

“Yes, well not anymore,” I gritted out, yanking my fist free and ignoring the way my torn skin healed. The portal had brought us to what had once been Hades’ castle, but one look at the ruins we found and we all knew that something had gone wrong. Hence why we had all gone running across the bridge. Quickly making our way inside, only to find nothing but the broken remnants of what once was a beautiful, imposing castle.

And within its walls we found his garden, or what little remained of it, for our sole purpose for coming here was gone. I honestly was so close to losing it completely and allowing my HellBeast to erupt, that I could have torn the rest of this Gods forsaken place to the ground. That was until we heard a voice.

“Who goes there?”

We all turned to face a broken doorway, to see an old figure emerging in a ragged cloak. The person hobbled out into the garden with a cane of twisted tree root, using it to aid their uneasy steps.

“Who are you?” I asked, making them scoff.

“I asked first, now speak before the spirits of the lost battle cast you from this place.”

I looked around as the rest of group did, seeing nothing but crumbled remains of a wall.

“That sounds like an empty threat to me,” I replied, before the cloaked figure tapped his cane on the floor once, and suddenly we found ourselves surrounded by the ghosts of what I assumed were Hades’ fallen soldiers. Each one was shrouded in a blue hue, as if caught in a giant, unburning flame. All were dressed the same, in their demonic armor, with chest plates holding the family crest of Hades. Some even held torn, ragged flags and banners with the same symbol, showing that indeed, this had once been Hades’ army.

“Arh!” Lerna shrieked, moving closer to Koro who tucked her into his side to protect her from the undead army.

Everyone now had their weapons drawn, whether it be by sword or by spear, the ghostly figures saw us as a threat.

“Alright, not an empty threat,” I replied wryly, before releasing a sigh and telling the newcomer,

“We are here in search of Hades.”

“And who would dare summon the King of the Underworld?” he asked, pointing his cane my way, as I think it became clear to him that I was the one leading this group.

“I am Cerberus.”

At this he gasped.

“The HellBeast King has returned?” he asked in clear shock.

“I have.” I nodded, crossing my arms over my chest, happy in the knowledge that my wound had healed and movements like this no longer hurt.

“And for what reason? For if it is to aid in battle, as you can see, you are decades too late,” he responded, making me glance around the ghosts of the fallen, that would now haunt this castle. Their faces were haunted and skeletal inside their spiked helmets.

“I am not here to help him but instead, I am here to help his daughter,” I told him, making him sneer angrily.

“Then you are the enemy, for who do you think did this!”

All the ghosts moved as one, closing in on us, making me rush out to say,

“I speak not of the Queen’s Daughter, but of the two he had with Nymph Leuce.”

The man staggered back, tapping his cane once more so as all the ghosts suddenly started to disappear. Their bodies evaporating like steam, leaving a blue hue in their wake.

“Then it is true… it was foretold.”

I frowned, demanding, “Explain.”

“Melino? came here with an army, with the sole purpose to overthrow her father’s rule. She destroyed all you see now.”

I looked around, following the journey of his cane as he pointed to the destruction. Greek style columns were missing chunks out of them, as if chipped with the projectile of cannon fire. Walls completely missing next to those that had survived. And nearly the entire marble floor was cracked or covered in the aftermath of the castle’s devastation.

“But you are still standing, I see,” I pointed out, nodding to the old man whose face we still had not seen.

“Yes, and at the request of the King I remained, for Hecate told him that Fate would need to find him when the time came,” he replied, giving me cause to ask,

“What time?”

“The time that the next King in line for ruling the Underworld would come home.”

I frowned in shock, my brother muttering,

“Yeah, don’t expect me to kneel and call you your majesty.”

I ignored this and asked,

“The next King?”

“The one born from this realm and who is fated to save it, the one fated to his daughter, the one who holds the true power of Hades,” he told me, and had I not had an audience, I would have needed to sit down to process this. Could what he be saying, be true?

“Ella,” Lerna whispered in shock, as clearly I wasn’t the only one dumbstruck to hear this. But then my own prophecy came to mind. The one that spoke of my own Fate and how with my Chosen One by my side, I would become more powerful than even the most ambitious minds could ever dream. Those had been the words of the Oracle, the one now residing with the Devil himself. Could this be that prophecy?

Of course, the chance to rule over an entire realm was not why I was here, nor did it matter to me. No, all that mattered to me was getting my girl back and if I could do that without her wanting to stab me, then all the better.

Hence why I told him,

“She is the reason we are here. We need a piece of her mother’s tree to bring her back.”

His reaction to this didn’t fill me with confidence as he sighed.

“Then there is only one place you will find it, and only one person who knows where,” he told us, naturally making me ask,

“Who?”

“His closest ally in a different realm not far from here,” he said, giving me hope once more. But even more so when he gave us a name.

“The King of Greed.”

I shot a look to my brother, who started grinning before telling me,

“Well lucky for us, we just happen to know his son.”

“Then the son of Greed will lead you to your next destination and my task is therefore complete,” he stated, his body starting to wither away. Making me shout out,

“But how did you know?!”

His voice was already fading away to barely above a whisper on the wind as he replied,

“Fate… knows… all.”

“Well, that was unexpected,” Marcus commented dryly, making me turn to face them and say,

“Looks like we have an Enforcer to visit.”

* * *

“This better be good, Lucius, as I was in bed with my wife when your ass showed up and demanded I follow,” said the deep voice of one Ryker Wyeth, as the tall, dark haired man stepped through the portal minutes after Lucius had returned.

We had made it back to Lucius’s castle, explaining all we had learned in hopes that the Enforcer could be located quickly. A bit of digging around from Lucius on his whereabouts, and the result was the man we were standing and looking at now. Admittedly, it was quite a task, first taking Lucius to Afterlife with the aid of his brother’s portal creating skills. After which, it then took him to where Dom had assured him his Enforcer would be.

But in the end, this killed two birds with one stone as he was able to update Dom on our progress and the plan we had in place. In turn, the King of Kings was making his own preparations and thankfully, this included an army.

But as for the man that stood before us now, of course, I had met Ryker a few times before over the years. He had even frequented my club a time or two. His second in command, Vander, was a big fan of fighting in my ring. Which meant Ryker was well acquainted with me and Lucius, so he would not class being summoned here as a threat. Yet despite this, his dark blue eyes scanned the room in an assessing way before landing on me.

“Cerberus,” he said with a nod, making me step forward to greet him, holding my hand out for him to shake. I was also used to seeing him dressed in a suit, as he was quite the successful businessman in the mortal realm. And well, naturally, he had the fortune to back that statement up. But then, given who his father was, this was not exactly surprising.

However, now he was wearing a pair of dark jeans and long-sleeved navy T-shirt, telling me that he had obviously grabbed the first thing he could find. And considering he had been in bed with his wife, who had been one of the Lost Sirens, it was little surprise that he looked pissed. Prompting me to say,

“Thanks for coming, Greed.”

“And I am here because?” he asked, looking around the room that Lucius had chosen to have this meeting in. A large sitting room that looked slightly more comfortable than anything else I had seen of his castle so far. For example, this room actually held leather armchairs, wooden furniture, and a large, carved fireplace that until their return, had remained unlit. It was as if Lucius was trying to make a conscious effort to make it more welcoming for the Son of Greed, as it ignited the moment he returned.

Greed continued to look around the room and nodded in acknowledgement to my brother. Someone who he had fought before in the ring at Devil’s. It had been a friendly match that, not surprisingly, neither of them had won.

“We need access to your father’s realm,” I told him, making him raise a brow in question.

“More specifically, we need to speak to the King himself.”

Greed narrowed his eyes in suspicion, before of course, asking why. But before I could open my mouth to try and explain it all, Marcus got there first.

“The super quick version, we need to save Jared’s fated from being controlled by a creepy bastard who wants to bring upon Ragnarok, using his woman to do it. But in order to stop it, we need Hades. Went to his castle, he’s not there and an old guy popped up. He told us your dad would know where to find Hades.” After which he took a deep breath, making Greed look to me in shock.

“Yeah, that’s pretty much the extent of it,” I replied, making Orth scoff and say,

“Yeah, about the last two percent but okay.”

“So can you take us there?” I asked, ignoring my brother’s comment. Ryker released a heavy sigh before agreeing.

“Yes, I can help you, but word of warning, HellBeast…” He paused, giving me a knowing look before cautioning,

“He may ask for something in return.”

I thought on this, wondering how much of my soul would be left by the time I was done, which is why I muttered,

“Yeah, those Kings of Hell usually do.”