Chapter 23: Underworld Vacation (1/2)

The goddess, who along with her mother Demeter, was the idol of the most mysterious cult of Ancient Greece, the Eleusinian Mysteries.

Persephone was now in front of him, and he could observe her features.

She had a dark skin tone and piercing green eyes that seldom seemed to reflect a verdant garden. Her short hair reached to the upper part of her neck and was slightly curly.

As for her clothing, Persephone wore a dark beige dress and on her hair was adorned a crown made of golden strands of wheat.

Her lips were lightly raised, forming a light smile. The smile lines dotting her otherwise ageless face indicated such a smile was default to her expression.

Overall, she gave off a lively impression and she exuded confidence and bravery. She looked like someone who was both respected and loved, and she reminded him of a certain princess from his world that unfortunately, met a tragic end...

And respect Persephone, they sure did. Everyone in the throne room except for Alex, Crista and Hades were bowing down and exclaiming ”Deepest welcome to our Queen!”

Hades looked listless and unreactive, as if his GPU suddenly overheated.

As for Alex, he had diverted his attention from Persephone to the woman following behind her.

She was extremely tall, about the same height as Hades.

She was wearing a thin veil that hid her facial features and wore a black robe patterned with stars that made it look like there was a night sky draping down her body. The most special thing about her, however, was her presence.

If Alex didn't concentrate his eyesight on the exact spot she was standing, she would fade from sight and he wouldn't be able to detect her anymore, as if she didn't exist at all.

'Who is she?' Alex was wondering about the origins of the woman but he wouldn't be able to fall into thought as he felt a rush of air passing by him. It was the gigantic figure of Hades, who sprinted at an unbelievable speed towards Persephone, covering the wide throne room in an instant.

”My Queen, you are.....here” By now, Hades was kneeled down in front of her(he was still taller than her though) and was speaking in a deep and melancholic tone.

”Hades, stop calling me that. I am very well here, in flesh and bone. Well, as far as flesh and bone go in the land of the dead, I guess.” Persephone's lively voice answered with frustration. She then continued speaking ”I was alerted that there were not one, but two living beings that entered our realm and I wasn't going to let this one-of-a-kind event pass while I was trapped in my mother's boring house so I.....snuck out and came here with Nyx.”

Persephone turned around to the woman as she was speaking, and he assumed the woman was called Nyx.

'Nyx' was a vaguely familiar name to Alex. There wasn't much information about her at all in Athena's studies but it was known she was Night Incarnate and the most prominent of the Chthonic goddesses.

While he was recouping the limited information he had on Nyx and processing it, he heard the voice of Crista whispering to him ”Who is she talking to?”

She was speaking about Persephone.

Alex was puzzled, and answered with a murmur ”You can't see Nyx?”

Crista looked at him dumbfounded, and Elana noticed their quiet conversation and jumped in, scaring the two and turning the duo's gossiping into a trio's gossiping.

She asked ”What are you two up to?”

Alex responded with another question ”Isn't there a woman behind the Queen? Am I hallucinating?”

Elana mouthed an 'Oh' in realization and answered him ”That's Mother Nyx. She's not actually our mother but we all call her that. Mortals can't see her or feel her presence at all and she can only interact with us through telepathy.”

He nodded and thanked her.

While the three were engaged in a discussion, the two rulers of the Underworld were acting all lovey-dovey with each other and it seemed it wouldn't be over anytime soon.

Thanatos, who seemed to have recovered from his earlier loss, was now in front of Nyx and they were both silent, which he wouldn't have understood if he didn't know Nyx usually communicated through telepathy.

After a few uneventful minutes, Thanatos turned to face Alex, nodded in goodbye and left the throne room.

While Elana and Crista were speaking, Alex heard a voice in his head and jumped out of fright.

'Do not be afraid, child.' The voice sounded muffled and distant.

'That helps very much.' Hearing voices in your head can be a symptom of psychosis. Can gods get psychosis, anyways?

But then he remembered that this could be a form of telepathy and he looked to where Nyw was, focusing his sight on her and he could vaguely see her facing his exact direction.

'I am Nyx, child.'

Alex nodded and answered 'I am Alex, why do you wish to speak with me....Nyx?'

It felt a bit weird speaking in his head but he felt like he got the hang of it. At least he knew he wasn't going crazy.

'I know who you are, child. I also know you are not of this world.' Her voice rang out in his head.