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I snarl as Kaif grabs my shoulder, shoving me to my knees.
“Do you order and push my sister around like that? I am starting to feel like your bitch,” I tell him as I'm forced to my knees.
“Your sister loves getting on her knees for me,” Kaif laughs, and I glare at him. He reslices his hand.
“This is now starting to feel like a bad porno, but instead of you spraying your jizz over my face, you're dripping your blood on it.”
Kaif laughs, the sound echoing around the place as he grabs my face, forcing my mouth open. “Ever wonder why Marabella's skin glows so radiantly? Remember that next time you peck her on the cheek,” Kaif tells me. However, before I can say anything, he squeezes the knife in his fist over my open mouth, I choke and gag on the taste of it.
The moment Kaif's blood slides down my throat, an overwhelming coldness invades me. I’ve never known a feeling so cold, as if the very shadows from which Kaif was born have wrapped around my core. Each drop felt like a weight, pulling me deeper into an abyss I couldn't see.
Being a light Gemini, there's a brightness in me, a glow that I've always felt. But as I swallow, that light flickers, almost threatening to go out. It is as if the two forces – the light and the darkness – are at war inside me. Every inch the blood travels sends waves of icy cold through my veins, making my breath cloud in front of me, a misty contrast in the still, warm air of the underworld.
For a brief moment, panic grips me, and I’m worried that something irreversible has happened. Will my light be swallowed whole? The sensation of that darkness coursing through me, that chilling shadow, is so terrifyingly alien. It feels like an eternity, even if it’s just been a few heartbeats. Once the panic subsides, a strange mix of vulnerability and newfound strength settles in. It’s as though I'd touched a forbidden realm, a place where light and dark don’t just coexist but merge.
When he's satisfied I've drank enough, he lets me go, and he pulls me to my feet. The room spins violently, and Dominic grabs me as I sway, unsteady on my feet. “Are you good?” Dominic asks just as everything starts to settle around, remaining still. I nod, turning to see Kaif enter the pool.
The pool of Mnemosyne. To me, it's a paradox. While everything around me in this room seems tainted by shadows and sorrow, the pool gleams with an inexplicable luminosity.
The water is clearer than any I've ever seen, as if made from pure crystal rather than liquid. It is strangely expansive, spreading out wider than I would expect, but it is also unnaturally still, not even a single ripple to mar its smooth surface. The pool's edges are not defined by rocks or earthen banks but seem to simply fade into the ground, giving it the illusion of being infinite, or maybe it is.
As I approach, I feel a cold draft emanating from it, a chill that speaks more of metaphysical unease than temperature. It beckons, but it also repels, like a siren's song that promises knowledge at the cost of one's soul.
Looking closer, the depths of the pool seem boundless. Despite its clarity, I cannot see its bottom, only an endless abyss that stretches down into the heart of the underworld. Yet, within this chasm, there are flashes of memories, mere fragments of a time gone by, dancing just beyond my grasp. They shimmer like fish under a sunlit surface, teasingly unreachable.
Drawing nearer, I feel an invisible pull, a gentle tug at the very core of my being. There's an energy here, an ancient power that resonates with the flow of time and memory. It feels both welcoming and warning, like a guardian that stands between the world of the living and the recollections of the dead.
As I touch the water, a jolt runs through me. It's cold, colder than the deepest winter's night, and it feels thick, almost viscous, as if I'm touching liquid history. There's an icky sensation, something that feels wrong, unnatural. It clashes with my essence, reminding me that I am the light side of the Gemini, and this place, with all its dark allure, is not meant for me.
Yet, as my fingers skim the surface, the memories become more vivid, drawing me in, urging me to dive deeper into Hades's past and uncover the truth that lies submerged within the pool of Mnemosyne.
The cool touch of the Mnemosyne pool's water meets my feet first, a gentle caress that sends shivers up my spine. As Dominic guides Kaif and me further into the shimmering expanse. I take a deep breath, trying to brace myself for the sensation that was about to engulf me.
As we become fully submerged, a deafening silence fills my ears — the kind of silence that precedes a storm. It’s as if the world has muted itself, leaving only my heartbeat to punctuate the stillness. With each passing second, the sensation intensifies, as though I am plunging deeper into an abyss of memory and time.
Suddenly, memories that do not belong to me start flooding my consciousness. Images, sounds, and emotions overwhelm me, swirling and merging like a tumultuous storm. Before me, I see the birth of the universe, the forging of the stars, the creation of worlds. There are fleeting glimpses of gods, titans, and celestial beings, their might and fury on full display.
A scene from an old saloon that looks to be in the viking era, maybe even earlier, unfurls before us. People chatter and move about, the air filled with tobacco smoke, and the tang of whiskey. Celeste, a striking woman, stands at the bar, exchanging herbs with another woman behind it. But my eyes are drawn to another figure — a man, seemingly trying to blend in. Even though he appears human, there's an undeniable aura about him. It takes me a few moments to recognize him as Hades.
I watch as his heart visibly races as if it were my beating heart in my chest when his gaze finds Celeste. Despite his attempts to appear casual, she seems to sense something amiss. The energy between them is palpable.
“Why would Hades come to the human realm?” I murmur, more to myself than to anyone else.
Kaif ponders for a moment before replying, “Maybe he was searching for something… or someone.” I am shocked when I hear Kaif's voice clear as a bell, making me realize we are both watching the same thing thanks to his father playing anchor.
Celeste's movements are hesitant as she tries to walk past Hades, yet she keeps stopping, like she can feel him but can't locate him. She comes to an abrupt halt, scanning her surroundings. Trying to shake off the unease, she continues on her way. Hades, however, cloaked in invisibility, trails her. For the next few moments we watch the next few days unfold, this eerie dance continues. He stalks, she senses, yet remains unaware of his proximity.
Yet at the saloon, their paths intersect again. She's handing over tinctures to the woman at the bar when Hades approaches. Through Hades's memory, we come to learn that the humans think Celeste is just a crazy medicine woman. If only they knew how powerful the small woman truly is.
Hades stops next to her, and Celeste glances at him, turning her attention back to the woman. Suddenly, she gasps and stumbles back, her voice barely a whisper, “That is not possible!” she gasps when she takes him in. “Witches don't have mates!” she blurts in her shock.
“But you're no normal witch are you, Celeste?” Hades replies, his voice dripping with irony.
“Who are you?” Her eyes search his, trying to decipher what the man is before her.
It's so weird being in Hades's memories. We don't get to just watch here, we also feel what he feels. I can sense Hades's hesitation, the fear of rejection looming over him. “Luca Octavian,” he finally responds.
Time seems to rush forward, and we're suddenly at their wedding. Celeste's joy is palpable, but a shadow of doubt creeps in when she remarks on the absence of Hades' family. “They're dead,” he tells her. I can't help but think of the truth he withholds, knowing how their love story ends.
