Part 24 (2/2)

'Yea, but you'll put the frighteners on 'im and his horse good an' proper!' said Tizzi with a big grin.

'Shut up Tiz! She's right. Listen to her,' said Al. 'That'll only make him mad, it won't give him the message we want to get over.'

'Yea but it'll get up his nose and make him really p.i.s.sed off and it'll show Hecate we're here at last.'

'Tiz! You're not listening.' Al clonked her beak roughly with a k.n.o.bbly claw. 'If you were less impetuous and stopped just scaring people for the h.e.l.l of it we might get somewhere'.

'Yea Tizzi, them days are over,' said Meg, exasperated.'We got to be more subtle, just scaring folks don't make them think like it used to. Now they don't believe in anything it just plain confuses them. We got to explain what we're about these days.'

'Yea, an' while we're here chattin', this latest sp.a.w.n of Zeus is upsettin' the whole of Hades and is about to unleash the G.o.ds only know what kind of mayhem on Gaia and it's up to us to...'

'I don't know Tizzi,' Meg hesitated. 'We have to think this thing through a bit more. I mean we haven't got a long term plan have we? I mean we just reacted like we always do. It's obvious he's got it horribly wrong and he's about to commit a terrible crime against humanity and intelligent life by removing growth and development from Gaia. But maybe that's no bad thing. I mean to say we've been that busy setting up consequences for the hubris of his entire culture we're run ragged.'

'And what good's it done us or anything else!' Tizzi raised her awful self to her full eight feet, extended her wings and breathed hot blasts from her great curved beak.

'G.o.ds a'mighty! Tizz, I hate you in that outfit,' said Meg. 'In fact I hate all three of us. Just look at us, dressed to kill. People don't believe in us like this, avenging monsters are jokes for horror films.'

'Sure! sure!' cried Tizzi. 'But at the bottom of all of them there they've all got monsters just waiting to see 'em off. They won't ever get over that. Come on you lot, stop the chat and let's get on with some real avengin'! Look how's this for an outfit! Never fails!' Tizzi turned into huge filthy wolf, top lip curled in a growl, fangs dripping venom - the whole gamut.

'Knock it off Tiz! There's a love,' sighed Meg, exasperated. 'You really don't listen do you. I said he's about to commit a terrible crime, not that he'd done it. Hecate is keeping an eye on him. We can't avenge what hasn't yet happened!'

'Oh come off it Meg! It's in his heart so, it's like he's done it already! He really has forgotten what he's suppose to be about and it's only a matter of time. I'm all for punis.h.i.+n' his forgetfulness, and his pride has definitely got the better of him. He really thinks he can do it, he really thinks he can save the world with Zeus' cape over his shoulders to protect him and NightChant at his side to keep his p.e.c.k.e.r up, so's to speak! And what's more I get the feeling you're falling for the argument. It's not like you to make excuses for the punters. When they deserve a good frightening they just need it, no questions asked, no quarter given. What's up with you today? You gone soft or what?'

'Zeus, Hades, and Jesus H Yhahwe!' exclaimed Meg. 'Al, tell her - she hasn't got it yet!'

Alecto, nicest of the Furies changed into her natural motherly form, a signal to her sisters to regain their own. The Erinyes reduced to just larger than human size took the seriously severe form of Greek women on vases and Tisiphone, got herself up like Madonna in leather breast cones as she thought being a thoroughly modern vamp, best expressed the essence of her savage bis.e.xuality. Alecto put her motherly arm round Tisiphone's waist and drew her close.

'Tizzie darling,' her voice was soft but without disguising its harder edge, indicated an ancient need for respect and attention. 'See what's going on down there do we?'

Tizzie wriggled to get away from her sister like the naughty child she was. Alecto increased her grip a might too tightly for comfort and Tizzie gave in and subsided to nestle submissively against her sister's body and pouted.

'It's a procession,' she said grudgingly.

'Yes my sweetest little petal, it's a procession. But what kind of procession is it I'd like you to tell me, my bitter sweet?'

'It's a lot of people coming through Elysium and going to Erebus, to see Hades and Persephone.'

'Right first time and who's the bloke in charge?'

'It's that Alexander chap who's been chatting up old Ma Hecate and he's in dead lumber 'cos he's getting above himself and we're going to get him! Real good!' At this she turned into a fire eating dragon and hissed a good flame far into the canyon. Hecate gazed upwards and smiled grimly. Alexander saw nothing.

'Now stop that Tizzie my girl!' She turned back to herself and snuggled into the warm shoulder of her sister once again, grinning and showing a filthy row of discoloured teeth. A little plume of black smoke curled from her lip.

'See? You make Ma Hecate take notice.'

'I'm not scared of her!' retorted Tizzie, and she stuck the middle finger of her right hand in the air in a well known gesture.

'No dear, maybe not, but we are wary. That's the point. We need our thinking caps on my sweet. This is no ordinary vengeance project. It's not a clear open and shut case yet, my sugar bun. You don't like this Alexander do you?'

'You bet your sweet a.r.s.e I don't. He thinks he's all sweetness and light and he's got an angle on what's what around here. If he gets to Hades with this lot in tow he'll set the cat among the pigeons and things will never be the same again.'

'Right enough, sweetypie, we've got to stop him or at least see to it he is stopped. Why is that do you think my little cuc.u.mber?'

'Jeez, Al, stop treatin' me like I was a kid, be nice like only you can be.'

'Not now, my kitten, later. Now, you got to get it straight so's you me and Meg don't make any serious mistakes and upset the balance. Come on, let's go, it's quicker to show you than explain everything.'

'Where to?'

'I said let's go!'

Al held Tizzie firmly by one hand and Meg grasped the other and they flew wingtip to wingtip, three black crows towards the city. Al continued her discussion with Tizzie shouting to her as they went.

'We have to go careful like, slowly, slowly catchee monkey - Hang on a mo!' she braked and then dived almost vertically. 'Follow me. Quick!'

Tizzie lost several feathers in the descent. All three alighted clumsily in confusion on the branch of a Mesquite, 'Shhh! You lot. Get a grip! See that!'

Al pointed out the figure of Marina dodging between boulders and almost at the gates of the city.

'That's my girl!' said Al in triumph. 'See her girls, that's the one going to help us sort out this Alexander person in the right way.'

'How'd she get here?' asked Meg. 'It's got to be that b.l.o.o.d.y Pan again. It's enough letting that Alexander in without permission. He's done it this time - we should set the dogs on him!'

'He's the least of our problems, but that girl's the answer to an avengers' prayer.'

'How's that then?' asked Tizzie.

'There's no time to explain everything, stick with me and it'll all come clear. The main thing for now is to remember we've got to watch out for that girl - okay you got that?' Meg was doubtful.

'Hold on Al, that's three interlopers down here now if you include Pan which I always do. Him and that Alexander bloke have already upset things and this girl's another risk. By the looks of her she's a determined type and put her with that Alexander and that'd make two of 'em, live bodies making waves. And you say we've got to protect her!'

'Not you too Meg, Tizzie's a bit of a slow cow at times, but I expect better from you. Just keep by me and keep your eyes and ears open and watch out for this girl like I said.'

Chapter 6.

All descriptions of the Halls of Hades, the Fastness of Erebus, the Shades of Tartarus, call them what you will, are inventions of the living. Hades frequently complained to Zeus that this irksome result was one of many unpredicted outcomes of his eternal a.s.signment. He grumbled on and on to anyone who would listen that the living have no idea of the real nature and purpose of the underworld. What's more, he had it on the best authority that Yahweh too suffered from the same problem of misinterpretation by this reprehensible fifth race of mortals, only more so.

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