and stared down at my bloodied
and bruised feet.
I wanted her to say no;
at least that way
whatever happened to my mother,
we were together.
Styx’s voice broke through my thoughts.
Quietly and cautiously
she said,
‘Yes.’
My mother looked up hopefully,
just as Styx added,
‘If Hades agrees.’
The God of the Underworld
His name acted as a summoning.
Before my mother could rise
he was already before us.
Hades of spirits.
Hades of death.
Hades, king of
this strange realm.
The whispers said that
Zeus, Poseidon and Hades,
the three Olympian brothers,
had a choice between the realms
of the sky, the sea and the Underworld.
And Hades chose this place,
where nothing shines
and nothing grows.
My eyes widened when I saw him.
