The ground gave way beneath their feet, and in a flash, Aurelia found herself plummeting into the abyss below. She screamed as the darkness swallowed her whole, the cold air rushing past her in a blur. She reached out, trying to grasp onto something, anything, but there was nothing. Just the endless fall.
And then, suddenly, she stopped.
Hades' hand was around her wrist, pulling her to safety.
For a moment, everything was still. Aurelia's heart hammered in her chest, and she gasped for breath, unable to process what had just happened. One moment, she had been falling, and the next, Hades had saved her.
He pulled her back onto solid ground, his grip unyielding.
"Are you trying to get us both killed?" he snapped, his voice harsh.
Aurelia stared at him, her pulse still racing from the adrenaline. "You didn't exactly leave me much room to breathe."
"I didn't have a choice," he growled. "You're the one who set this place off. You should have known better."
She opened her mouth to retort, but the words died on her tongue when she saw the look in his eyes. There was no mockery, no amusement—just cold fury.
Aurelia swallowed hard, guilt settling heavily in her chest.
"Let's just get out of here," she muttered, looking around, searching for any sign of a way out.
Hades's gaze softened, but only slightly. "Agreed. But you'll need to keep your hands to yourself this time."
She nodded quickly, aware that she couldn't afford to make another mistake.
Without a word, he extended his hand, and before Aurelia could blink, the world around her seemed to warp and twist. The temple, the forest, the ground that had nearly swallowed her whole—everything disappeared in a blur of shadows.
She stumbled slightly as the world settled, finding herself back in her apartment. The familiar sight of her worn couch and the cluttered coffee table felt like a strange anchor after everything that had just happened. She was back in her space, but nothing felt the same.
Aurelia exhaled, still reeling from the suddenness of the teleportation. She glanced up at Hades, who was already standing tall by the window, his expression unreadable.
Finally, she broke the silence. "I know it's bad timing to point this out, but… where are the scrolls we needed?"
Hades didn't look at her immediately. He was still facing the window, his hands folded behind his back, but his voice was steady when he finally spoke.
"They are not here."
Aurelia blinked. "What do you mean, they're not here?"
"They fell into the chasm when I tried to save you."
Aurelia's heart skipped a beat, the weight of his words sinking in like a lead anchor. Her pulse quickened, and for a moment, she couldn't form a coherent thought.
"Wait, what?" she stammered. "The scrolls? You're telling me… they're gone?"
Hades's jaw tightened, and his gaze darkened. "Yes. The scrolls are lost."
Aurelia recoiled slightly, stung by the sharpness in his voice, though she didn't dare argue. The guilt she already felt weighed heavier now, suffocating her.
"I didn't mean for that to happen!" she said quickly, her voice tinged with frustration and helplessness. "I didn't—how was I supposed to know that would set everything off?"
Hades's eyes narrowed, but he didn't immediately respond. Instead, he crossed the room with a few long strides, his cloak trailing behind him like an ominous shadow.
Aurelia watched him, her heart still pounding, the gravity of the situation settling over her like a suffocating fog. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. The one chance they had to find a solution—gone. Disappeared into the abyss when she made one wrong move.
"Now what?" she asked, her voice quieter this time. "What do we do without the scrolls?"
Hades paused in front of her, his presence looming as he looked down at her with a calculated, icy expression. He studied her for a moment, then spoke in a low, deliberate tone.
"We find another way."
The finality in his voice made her stomach churn. Aurelia wanted to protest, to argue that they needed the scrolls, that they couldn't just give up, but the weight of his words crushed the fight inside her. She wasn't sure how they could move forward without the ancient knowledge those scrolls contained.
Her mind raced, desperately grasping for any idea, any clue that could help them. The world outside her apartment felt distant, unreal after everything that had just happened.
"And what if there is no other way?" she asked, her voice cracking slightly.
Hades didn't answer at first. He merely stared at her, his eyes flickering with something—anger, maybe, or something more dangerous. He was never one to indulge in pity, and it didn't look like he was going to start now.
"We'll find out," he said, his voice cold and unyielding. "You can waste time feeling sorry for yourself, or you can help me figure out how to fix your mistake."
The words stung, but they also lit a fire inside her. She wasn't going to back down, not now. She had to find a way to fix this. She had no choice.
Aurelia took a deep breath, her mind beginning to clear. "Fine. What do we do next?"
Hades's eyes glinted with a faint, unreadable emotion. "We go to the only place left that might have what we need."
Aurelia raised an eyebrow. "Where's that?"
He didn't answer immediately, but when he did, his words were measured, as if carefully choosing each one.
"The Temple of Percy."
Aurelia hesitated for a moment, the weight of Hades' words settling over her like a heavy shroud. She knew she didn't have much of a choice. Whatever mess she had caused in the temple wasn't going to fix itself. If Percy's temple held the answers, then she'd have to face whatever was waiting there.
"Fine," she said, crossing her arms. "I'll go. Let's just get this over with."
Hades gave her a satisfied nod, his crimson eyes gleaming faintly in the dim light of her apartment.
She exhaled sharply and glanced at him. "So, where exactly is this temple? What country is it in?"
He turned to face her fully, his expression unreadable. Then, with an almost casual air, he said, "The Underworld."
Aurelia blinked, certain she had misheard. "I'm sorry… the what?"
"The Underworld," he repeated, his voice calm and nonchalant, as though he had just told her the temple was down the street.
For a moment, she just stared at him, waiting for him to crack a smile, to say it was a joke. But his expression remained stone cold, the weight of his words sinking in.
"The actual Underworld," she said slowly, her voice rising slightly. "As in the place where the dead go?"
Hades arched a single brow, his gaze sharp. "Were you expecting something else?"
"I don't know!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "Maybe a hidden temple in some remote mountain range or an ancient ruin in Greece—literally anywhere but the Underworld!"
Hades sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as though her reaction was exhausting. "Percy's Temple is not accessible to mortals in your world. It lies in my domain, where it has always been."
She let out a shaky laugh, though there was no humor in it. "You mean to tell me I'm supposed to march into the Underworld like it's some casual day trip?"
"It won't be a march," Hades said flatly. "And it won't be casual. But yes, that is precisely what you're going to do."
She ran a hand through her hair, pacing the length of the room. "How are we supposed to do that? Aren't you, like, stuck here on Earth with me? You said the summoning mark binds you here."
"It binds me to you," he clarified, his tone cool but with a hint of irritation. "Wherever you go, I am forced to follow. The mark has no restriction on location. We can travel to the Underworld— but together."
The words hit her like a slap. "Wait, so you're saying… we could've gone anywhere this whole time?"
"Do you honestly believe I would choose to remain here?" he said sharply, his crimson eyes narrowing. "I would have returned to my realm the moment I was summoned if I could. But thanks to you, I cannot exist apart from your presence."
Aurelia felt her cheeks flush with both embarrassment and frustration. "Well, excuse me for not knowing all the fine print of summoning a god."
Hades crossed the room with a fluid grace that sent a chill down her spine. His towering presence loomed over her as he stopped just inches away, his voice dropping to a cold, measured tone. "If you want to undo the disaster you've caused, we must go to Percy's temple. There, and only there, may we find the means to sever the bond."
Aurelia swallowed hard, the enormity of the task settling over her like a heavy shroud. "And you're sure this temple has what we need?"
Hades's eyes flickered with something unreadable. "Percy has always been the keeper of balance. If anyone understood how to break a bond such as this, it would be her."
Aurelia rubbed her temples, trying to process what she was hearing. "And how exactly do we get there? Do you have some sort of… magical elevator, or—"
"Something like that," he said dryly, gesturing toward the floor.
Before she could ask what he meant, the shadows at his feet began to move, dark tendrils curling and twisting outward. The air in the room seemed to thicken, and the temperature dropped, sending a shiver down her spine. Within moments, the shadows had formed a swirling vortex on the floor, its inky depths pulsing with an almost hypnotic energy.
"This passage will take us to the Underworld," Hades said, his voice steady. "Once we step through, there is no turning back until we reach the temple."
Aurelia stared at the vortex, her stomach churning. "No turning back. Great. That's… comforting."
Hades didn't respond, his crimson eyes fixed on her as though daring her to back out. She swallowed hard, forcing herself to meet his gaze.
"Okay," she said, more to herself than to him. "Okay. I can do this."
Aurelia took a deep breath, her gaze flicking between Hades and the swirling vortex of shadow at their feet. The room felt smaller, darker, the weight of what lay ahead pressing down on her like an invisible hand.
But as she steeled herself to step forward, a stray thought tugged at the edge of her mind. Something didn't add up.
"Wait a second," she said, her voice cutting through the thick silence. "I've never heard of a god named Percy. Who is that?"
Hades froze, and for a fleeting moment, something flickered across his face—amusement, annoyance, maybe both. Then, ever so slowly, a smirk spread across his lips, sharp and wicked.
"Persephone," he said, his voice dripping with dark humor. "My ex-wife."
Aurelia's heart stuttered, and her breath caught in her throat. Ex-wife?