Hell's Rising (A Tale Of The Gods Book 1) Read online

  Suddenly, there was a loud crash. The boat rocked violently to one side. The sound of gunshots echoed through the air, men screamed followed by splashes as they hit the water.

  “Hell has arrived” Nyx muttered as she got to her feet. The double doors swung open and one of them fell off its hinges as it hit the wall behind. Eris stood with her wings expanded, her hair swirling around her. Her eyes glowed bright amber, the colour of flames and the veins around her eyes has blackened. Her skin was greying and her arms were covered in black patterns that looked like lace engraved in her skin.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” she shouted loud and threatening. He had never seen her like that, but yet he wasn’t scared. He had seen worse pictures of her in books, he knew why she was angry and he knew she was trying to protect him. She didn’t look at him. Her glare was fixed on Nyx as she sat with her martini and smirked. With a flick of her finger, the glass tipped and the liquid soaked Nyx. She stood up quickly and her eyes flames brightly as she squared up to Eris. Eris’ wings flapped and she hovered above Nyx with her eyes blazing.

  “Relax you two” Hades barked as he rolled his eyes, he pushed Nyx backward. The ship swayed from side the side and thunder struck in the skies. She sky was so dark it was almost black, rain started to fall. Was Eris doing that?

  “Why is he here?” she growled glancing to Axel as she sneered at the two in front of her. The wind whistled louder and louder. Screams fell from the boat followed by more and more splashes as the men were knocked over board.

  “We wanted to keep him safe” Nyx smirked and Eris narrowed her eyes. She lowered herself to the ground but got closer to Nyx’ face.

  “If anything happens to him, the plans are finished. You cannot complete the plans without me, either of you. Regardless of how powerful you are. You need me to open the portal to the underworld” she hissed through gritted teeth. The two glanced to each other and Nyx rolled her eyes, defeated.

  “You’re overreacting little one, we brought him here to keep him safe, we didn’t want him to get caught in the cross fire” Hades said softly, Eris seemed to ease at the sound of his voice. The veins faded from her face and her eyes cooled to a smouldering amber rather than a blaze. He hugged her tight and she loosely wrapped her arms around him. Axel watched as she glanced over to him and gave him a weak smile. He smiled back.

  “Hello uncle” she muttered as he pulled away and held her at arm’s length by the shoulders.

  “You’ve become quite the Goddess” he said proudly as he took a step back to look at her. She closed her eyes and turned back to her human form. Her eyes were a cold, guarded jet with silver rings around the irises. Axel couldn’t peel his eyes away from her.

  “Thank you, uncle. I assume you’re here because Nyx has asked you to join us?” she asked gently and he bowed his head out of respect for her. She was a force to be reckoned with, it took him until now to realise how strong she was. The stories made her out to be a minor God, but it was clear there was nothing minor about her.

  “You’re as strong as Hera and Zeus, with all the beauty of Aphrodite and the deadliness of…well, Eris” he laughed to himself. He watched her in amazement as if he was seeing his niece for the very first time.

  “Thank you. Speaking of Zeus and Hera. They both have tried to get me to go back with them. No doubt they would try and strip my power again” she frowned as if remembering it.

  “They will do no such thing; it would be a crime to take away your gifts” Hades said in a smooth tone. Axel didn’t think he was being sincere, by the look on Eris’ face, she didn’t believe it entirely either.

  “Why don’t you two go and rest a while, I think could all do with resting” Hades suggested, Axel walked out of the room and Eris followed him to his cabin.

  Chapter 14

  As soon as the door shut she leapt into his arms. She hugged him fiercely and a wide smile spread across his face. He kissed her, hard and she melted into it.

  “Why did you leave?” he asked between kisses, they were both breathing hard when they parted and stood with their foreheads pressed together.

  “I need to do something” she whispered as she panted for air.

  “What?” Axel pressed, wanting to know more. He wanted to know what was going on and how bad everything was going to fall apart. She gazed at him thoughtfully for a moment before sighing. She waved her hand and a notebook and pen emerged from nowhere. She opened the book and scribbled.

  They will be listening

  “Let’s relax shall we, fancy some TV?” she asked as she crossed the room and switched on the TV. They sat on the bed and she put the pad on her lap. He watched her write as she tucked her hair behind her ear. A few strands of it fell back over her face, she blew them out of the way. He smiled as he watched her. She wasn’t like the other two. He could tell that. She may have been at one point, but doesn’t everyone deserve another chance? She handed him back the book after a few minutes.

  I don’t know why Hades is here, he was never supposed to be involved in the plan.

  Nyx and I wanted to create a world only we could rule in, a world of chaos and darkness. The people of Earth would lose faith in the Gods and as a result they would fall.

  The only reason I could think that Hades would be here is to raise an army of undead to fight against Zeus because he will retaliate.

  He read the words a few times just to be sure. Of course it was about greed and envy; Hades, Nyx and Eris wanted to rule the world. They had all been hurt by Zeus before, he thought Eris had been hurt the most. He tried to take her power away from her because of how much of a threat he saw in her. He tricked Hades into ruling the underworld where everyone would hate him. He didn’t know why Nyx was so against them. He sighed heavily. Eris was planning on stopping them, if she did that; he would never see his father or brother again. He knew it was selfish of him, he knew what he wanted was impossible. But why not add that to the list of other endless impossible things? He picked up the pad and began to write.

  Hades said that he could bring my dad and brother back from the dead. Make them actually living again. Could he actually do that?

  She read the note and her eyes narrowed at the words. She shook her head disapprovingly and stood from the bed. She took his hand and he followed her from the room. He followed her onto the deck of the ship. They stood on the far left side and looked over the edge.

  “Do you trust me?” she asked, her eyes warm and wanting. He did trust her; he couldn’t deny that. No matter what her plans had previously been. He thought maybe he was blinded by how much he wanted her, his feelings for her. Maybe that was why he was willing to overlook what she was so easily. He nodded and they jumped. The water rushed up to them, it seemed to catch them as they fell. They were enclosed in a giant bubble that sank further and further. He looked around, confused and frightened, but excited at the same time. Eris closed her eyes and the ocean began swirling around them violently. The scenery changed, the water seemed to evaporate away and left them standing on a cliff face. All around them were rocks floating. There was no wind, everything seemed perfectly still. The sky was a rusty orange colour, there was no sun and no moon. There were no clouds or birds or trees. Just the odd car floating in the distance.

  “Where are we?” he asked looking around, she was quiet for a moment. Watching him.

  “This is my realm, Discordia” she said quietly. This was her creation, the world she made in her image. She waved her hand and the rocks in front of them pushed together to make a path. A few hundred yards ahead a large house appeared. It was an old English house with grey bricks. The windows had dying flowers in the window boxes and ivy scaled the building like a ladder. She pushed the door open and inside it was much homelier than the house she lived in on Earth. The furniture was black, black wood and leather. The floors were black wood with grey, fluffy rugs. There were no pictures, apart from one. On the fireplace was a small silver picture fame, it was decorative with engravin
gs of music notes. Inside was a picture of the two of them, Axel and Eris. He wondered over to it. They were both smiling and he had his arm around her. He didn’t remember where or when the picture was taken. It made him smile.

  “Why did you bring me here?” he asked her as he turned away from the picture to look at her. She seemed uncomfortable. She played with her fingers and twisted the ends of her hair.

  “It’s the safest place, n0body else can come here unless I bring them” she told him, she looked like she wanted to cross the room to him, but he thought maybe she didn’t want to overwhelm him.

  “Won’t they turn on you?” he asked and she smiled lightly

  “I sent them a message, saying we wanted some alone time. We need to talk about things where they can’t hear us” she smiled a small smile, she sat down on one of the leather sofas. He joined her after a moment. He was surprised by how comfortable it was.

  “You said Hades told you that he could bring your family back? It’s possible, it takes centuries to build that power but it is possible. They want to raise an army of undead to take Zeus on, once the world in plunged into chaos, the people will lose their faith in the Gods, that will weaken them, meaning Hades could kill him” she explained and he listened quietly. He knew it was too good to be true.

  “And they’re using me as leverage against you?” he suggested and she sighed heavily.

  “Yes. They knew I was gathering my army, I told them it was to help our cause. They need me to open the portal to the underworld” she told him. He knew one of them or neither of them would make it out alive. He thought they would turn against Eris; they already did by taking Axel. He wondered if there was some way he could stop Eris being harmed. He leant forward and leant his head into his hands. She didn’t move, he knew she wanted to hold him, to comfort him.

  “One of us, if not both of us, is going to die” he muttered and then she was in front of him, pushing his head up to look at her. Her eyes were scared.

  “No matter what happens, you’ll live. I might not survive this, but you will” she urged and he stared at her for a moment. He wished he could be as brave as she was. She had had a lot of practise at it he thought. He didn’t want to lose her any more than he wanted to lose his mum.

  “Can you stop this?” he mumbled and she was quiet for a moment. She stared down at the ground in front of him.

  “I might be able to, but for now, we need to play along. I need them to think I’m on their side, I need you to act like you trust them. They think you’re a gullible human, let them think it for a while?” she pleaded with him, he didn’t even need to think about it. If there was a chance they could stop Hades and Nyx by acting like he believed them, he would. He nodded with a smile before holding her face between both of his hands. She peaked up at him through long lashes and raised her chin slightly. He pressed his lips to hers and after a moment he felt the ground shift beneath him.

  He pulled away to find them back on board the ship. The sun was setting over the ocean. Clouds of pink and orange spattered the sky and everything was set alight with an electric orange glow as the sun went down over the horizon. The wind blew gently against his face and the seagulls chirped overhead as they circled the ship.

  ***

  Chapter 15

  She left him to sleep. He looked so peaceful as he lay there snoring. She sighed heavily and left the cabin quietly. She walked down the stairs into the lower compartments. Most of the ship was filled with guns, guns that they had to roll on wheels just to move them because of how heavy they were. They were preparing for war, but so was she. She felt dread wash over her. Could she do it? She watched as men bustled around trying to make the weapons more powerful. Nyx stepped next to her and they watched the men work for a few moments in silence.

  “You’re with me, aren’t you?” Eris asked, she wanted it to make it seem as if she was having doubts about Nyx rather than the other way around. It made her seems stronger in her goals.

  “Of course I’m with you, I’ve been worrying about you myself. Since you’ve been messing around with that human, you’ve seemed different” Nyx told her as they turned and headed back up the stairs into the pool room on deck. They stripped down and floated in the warm water.

  “I know it seems weird, why would a Goddess want a mortal? I can’t explain it, he was…unexpected” she smiled at the fond memories she had of the two of them, even the fights she enjoyed; but that was just her character.

  “It’s happened many times before and it will continue to happen again, just look at your father, he’s had more mistresses than even Eros” she laughed gently. Eris often forgot how kind and gentle Nyx was. She was completely twisted but she cared for her family in a way that her father never had. She wanted to believe there was good in Nyx, that she wasn’t all bad. But a part of her knew what she could do and what she wanted to do. She had always wanted to see her father fall from power, since it was starting to happen; she felt sick of the idea.

  “Why didn’t you tell me about Hades sooner?” Eris asked, turning to Nyx. She watched her for a moment and Nyx smiled a wide, toothy smile.

  “We couldn’t do it ourselves. In case you haven’t noticed, we don’t have an army. We have these guns but I don’t think they’re going to cut it. With Hades we could have an army of undead” Nyx explained to her, she looked guarded.

  “That’s true, you know Hades is going to want to rule, right?” she lied, she didn’t want to give it up about her army.

  “He would be a much better ruler than dear old Zeus. Don’t go having doubts on us now, we’ve come too far. Besides, it’s you. How many wars have you created just by whispering in someone’s ear?” Nyx sniggered and Eris smiled back at her, even though she didn’t mean it. She couldn’t escape the fact that she had done terrible things. Nor did she want to. She was the Goddess of chaos for a reason and she liked the chaos. She liked manipulating people to do whatever she wanted. She wondered if she had manipulated Axel by accident, not even realising she had done it.

  “They were brilliant wars though” she grinned a devilish grin to appease Nyx. The only way she was going to get through the near events, was if she acted the way she had always done in the past. Axel wouldn’t like it, she knew that. She just hoped he would understand.

  The two of them laughed and caught up. Eris forgot how much she missed Nyx. The more they spoke, the more she began to agree with the plans again. The world wouldn’t be a bad place. It would be chaotic, but that would mainly be down to the people. If she could find a way to protect the people, it would be a better plan. They had never spoke about protecting the people before, they just wanted to take the world away from Zeus. They could do it.

  Later that night she went back to Axel. He was still asleep with the TV on. She guessed he must have woken up during the night. She nudged him gently as she climbed into bed and he woke groggily with a groan. His eyes fluttered open and he stared at her, still half asleep. He tilted his chin up and puckered his lips, lazily wanting a kiss. She giggled and brushed her lips against his. She waved her hand, creating a cloak around the room. She didn’t want anyone to hear them but she thought he was too cosy to move him.

  “You’re beautiful” he mumbled as his eyes closed again and he began to snore. He must have been exhausted. She smiled down at him and let him sleep. She curled up into a ball next to him and waited patiently for him to wake up. She was excited to tell them about the plans.

  He woke the following morning and he looked at her in confusion.

  “You left last night” he muttered, looking at her in mock pain.

  “I went to see Nyx” she told him and he smiled gently at her.

  “Everything okay?” he asked and she nodded at him eagerly.

  “There’s something I want to tell you. Before I do, I want you to know that everything will be okay and I’m going to find a way to make everything work out” she explained. He sat up in the bed and leant against the head board with pillows propping him up.
He watched her patiently, awaiting an explanation.

  “I know we wanted to stop Nyx and Hades altogether because the world would be destroyed and everyone would die. But what if it wasn’t like that? What if there was a way to save everyone and not let the world become like my realm?” she suggested and he looked at her, puzzled.

  “What do you mean?” he asked as he narrowed his eyes slightly

  “I could save everyone, nobody would ever know what happened and the world would be as it was before. You could have your family back” she whispered as her voice faltered toward the end. She watched him as his eyes widened in realisation that she was serious. He was quiet for a moment and that worried her.

  “How could you save everyone?” he asked in a low voice

  “Temporarily everyone would be sent to Discordia” she said quickly and the side of his mouth twitched.

  “Eris…I thought we were going to stop them, you didn’t agree with what they were doing…what’s changed?” he asked and she looked at him in concern, was he going to argue with her on this?

  “I know, but it’s true what they’re saying. Zeus and the others…they’re so high and mighty and they always look down on the likes of us. They have no respect for human life, they see you as ants. Sooner or later the world is going to end, would it not be better for everyone if they had a God that truly cared for them?” she explained to him and he watched her carefully. She didn’t know what he was thinking. His face was blank.