AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"No, not yet." The god tilted his head and eyed me.
"Not yet?" I repeated as if I had to say it aloud to understand.
"Does that mean I'm going to die?" I concluded.
"That's up to you. Are you ready to leave everything behind?"
I had never considered whether you could be ready to let go of life and leave, living only in the memories of those close to you.
There was Dad and my brothers, who could manage without me but who would be heartbroken if I followed Mom in such a short time.
Alex was already in the realm of the dead, but Charly was still there, and she needed me more than ever. We had to find her and, after that, help her cope with her experience.
Aspasia, Maggy, Aza, and Emma came to my mind, as did Edward, Stephan, Sam, Hecate, and Zuri. They had all become friends to me, and together, we built a team with a mission—a mission that could make the difference between life and death, not just for one person but for many.
And then there was Tanael. Tanael.
I hastily pushed the last thought aside.
I looked around thoughtfully. Leaving all my problems and worries behind and immersing myself in this peaceful world would be easier.
But was it the right thing to do? Was it what I wanted, what made me human? Was this my wish?
No!
"No! I want to live!" I said out loud, and it felt good.
A smile spread across Hades' lips, and gold sparkled in his eyes.
"I didn't expect anything else from you."
"But what can I do to prevent me from dying? I can't breathe, and something is sucking the life out of me," I asked the god in front of me. Simply making the decision to live certainly couldn't save me.
"I don't know where you've been, but you seem to have encountered a hazardous kind of demon," Hades wondered.
"A demon is doing this to me? What kind is that?"
"He belongs to the part of the underworld that you humans would call hell. These demons are beings created by a cruel ruler. We call them the Keren. They are shadows that drain the darkness from their victims as they kill them. They need this essence to exist in their shadow shell," Hades explained.
I opened my eyes in shock. "My darkness?" I stammered, not knowing what to think at first. After all, it wasn't every day that you were confronted with your dark side, and I actually thought I had a pretty good self-image. But now?
How much darkness lived inside me that a demon could recognize it from this distance and want to claim it for himself? It was like someone holding a mirror up to me for the first time, reflecting the real me. Could I accept myself like this? I would have to consider that question as soon as I was back among the living.
"What do we do now?" I asked the God of the Underworld.
"We're calling a friend of yours." He winked at me, and I could already hear the muffled thud of hooves in the sand. Shortly afterward, I spotted the unicorn that had saved Hecate and me on our last visit to this realm. It was racing towards us at an incredible speed. Hades' dog whimpered and hid behind his master, although that didn't look very promising considering his size.
The unicorn came to a halt right before us and nudged its snout against my cheek in greeting.
"Hello beautiful, how are you?" I whispered to the creature.
"This is the unicorn mare Flordelis," the god introduced the magical animal.
"Flordelis. That's a beautiful name."
"It means lily flower," explained Hades, patting the unicorn gently on the neck.
"That suits you," I turned to her. "But is it okay if I call you Flor?" Flor nodded her head up and down as she neighed in agreement.
