Rebecca Miller's

Prologue.

Hello everybody! I’m Xanthe daughter of Hades etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

I am going to continue where Roxy left off. Just in case you’ve forgotten Roxy is the daughter of Poseidon, she is travelling with Pegasus (the magic flying horse of Greek mythology) and her friend Katriona daughter of Athena, however if you call Katriona by her full name she will rip your head off, literally so it’s best to call her Kat

When you left us I had just been caught doing something I wasn’t supposed to be doing…

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Chapter 1.

“Stop, it’s Woofie!” I cried

“Who is Woofie?” asked Roxy, puzzled now.

“Err,” I mumbled “he is my pet hellhound, I found him in the fields of punishment when he was a puppy”

“Oh” said Kat hysterically “I suppose that’s alright then!”

“Calm down Kat” barked Roxy. Kat calmed down

“Did you know he was following us?” asked Rox

“Nah, I guess he just missed me and followed my scent,” I said

“Okay Xanthe, are you sure he isn’t dangerous?”

“Yes, of course I’m sure, I’ve grown up with him ain’t I?”

“Yeah, sorry.”

“S’ okay, Woofie ain’t offended are you Woofie?”

Woofie barked and licked Roxy’s nose. “Bleergh” she spluttered, “what was that for?”

“He likes you stupid,” I laughed

“What else did your dad give you?” she asked

“Well, I got a magic ring what turns into a shield, this flick knife with a black stygian iron blade and this Alice-band.” I took the black silk Alice-band with a silver skull on it and showed it to her.

“What does it do?” asked Rox

“Well, it’s basically the helmet of darkness except it’s an Alice-band”

“Cool…”

“Well, sorry to break up the party but I for one still don’t trust her,” said Kat throwing me a dark look.

“Well I’m sorry miss prissy perfect but I don’t give a damn whether or not you trust me.”

“Shut your face corpse breath”

“Oh yeah,” I sneered, “That’s the typical demigod response! You being the daughter of Athena and all I thought you might be able to thing of something original!”

“Huh! You stupid cow”

“You sure you ain’t daughter of the god of stupidity?”

“Shut your face!”

“STOP IT AND SHUT UP! BOTH OF YOU” yelled Rox from where she was tidying up the beds and sleeping bags.

We shut up, fast; the ground was starting to shake.

“Roxy calm down” I shouted, “You’re going to get us all killed!”

“I’m not doing anything,” Roxy yelled back

“Yes you are, trust me! Just calm down!”

“Why would she trust you?” asked Kat

“Look, this ain’t the time, alright? Just get Roxy to calm down!”

“Why?”

“Because you idiot she’s making an earthquake and the hut will fall in on us!”

“Why would she do that?”

“She ain’t doing it on purpose! She can’t help it! Poseidon is god of earthquakes”

“Oh, right.” Se turned towards Roxy “Roxy calm down! Think of something relaxing, any thing!” shouted Kat, trying to keep the panic from her voice.

Then the roof began to collapse; great chunks of plaster fell down and rained down upon our heads, I grabbed my bag, caught hold of Kat and Roxy and, together we stumbled out of the hut. Pegasus snorted, reared up on his hind legs and stretched out his wings, then he galloped out of the hut, skidding to a halt in font of the edge of the ledge on the edge of the stair.

Shaking Kat turned to me “well done, I guess you saved our lives”

“Yeah, I guess I did” I said, since I figured that was as close as I would get to an apology “thank the gods Rox tidied up while we were arguing, or we’d be without sleeping bags” I said.

“Nah” said Rox “thank me”

“Yeah” I said, “that works”

********

Chapter 2.

Three days, three whole days it took for us to climb the rest of the stair, we progressed somewhat faster than before due to the fact that Roxy had the bright idea of us riding. In short this meant I rode on Woofie, Rox and Kat rode, or flew on Pegasus.

We reached the top in half the time in this fashion and so presently I emerged into the (living) world for the first time.

What took me by surprise was the light, the heat and the sound, the sound of human hearts beating, counting down to the owner’s death and the new arrival in the underworld. I was used to the cold grey world of death, which was my home, and was destined to be the only place I could stay without knowing how and when everyone was going to die.

For instance, in the crowd on the beach there where ten stabbings, fifty cases of cancer, twenty lots of other diseases, around seventy heart-attacks two hundred and fifty people that would die in a car crash plus one hundred and sixty two that would die of old age. That’s five hundred and sixty two people I can list quickly but there were thousands more that I could say but you’d be here forever if I did.

“Is it always so bright and colourful here?” I asked Rox

“I don’t know, I’ve never been to Italy before” she replied

“No you fool, the life world”

“What? Oh, yes it is”

“It’s just I’ve never left home before” I said

“What? You’ve never left the…”

“Yes” I snapped interrupting her “my dad said I couldn’t cope with knowing how everyone was going to die”

“You know how I’m going to die then?”

“Yes”

“Tell me.”

“No, if I tell you you’ll try to change it and it’s fate how you die”

‘Fate,” she snapped “can be avoided, destiny cannot”

“I can’t tell you, I would if I thought you wouldn’t try to change it,” I said “and the only way I can know that is if you swear an oath on the river Styx”

“Very well then” said Rox “I swear on the river Styx that I will not try to change how I die”

“ You…” I began, but suddenly I began to choke “I… I… I can’t tell you, my father won’t allow it.”

“Oh, okay”

“What about me?” asked Kat?

“Um… I can’t tell you, I’ll start choking again”

“Oh, yeah, sorry” she mumbled

I carefully steered the conversation away from the subject of death.

********

Chapter 3.

We’d found a campsite the previous night and done everything we needed to set up a camp, in the morning I went to pay the bill while the others packed up our camp.

When the others joined me we found the way out blocked by a pink stretch limo, the door opened and an impossibly pretty woman told us to get in. we did and the limo sped off. About ten minutes later we stopped in a deserted field and the woman (who I guessed was Aphrodite) told Roxy and Kat to wait outside, as she wanted to talk to me alone.

“Well dear, I am as you’ve probably guessed Aphrodite. I have come to ask you if there is anything I can do for you”

“Like what?” I asked, I was as you can imagine pretty perplexed.

“Like if you want to meet the love of your life straight away or something like that.”

“Um no” a thought occurred to me “can you stop me having like, romantic love for two years though?”

“I was afraid you’d say that” she sighed, her face fell

“Why?”

“Because then you must pay a price, a price dictated in the first age, an age long before the gods, and so it is beyond my power to prevent it”

“What is the price?”

“You truly wish to know?”

“I do”

“Very well, I shall tell you. You will wish that you love a man who you never shall love except as a wish, I caution you against this path Xanthe daughter of Hades for it will bring you naught but pain. If you choose not to heed my warning I ask you to remember it isn’t my fault”

“I still wish to take that path” I said “but I will remember that you cautioned me against this”

“Thank you, now call the others in.”

I did as I was bidden, when the others entered a man did also, he wore black clothes and was cloaked in a stinking attitude.

“Lord Ares,” said Kat, her voice was frosty.

“So you made it this far, well done” his voice was frostier than Kat’s.

“Yeah, it is us again,” said Roxy, her voice was cold and devoid of emotion.

“Now calm down darling,” said Aphrodite, her voice laced with charm she went to sit on Ares’ lap and kissed him.

“Ew, gross” I muttered

“Uh, baby,” said Ares “not in front of the kids”

“Oh sorry, darlings” said Aphrodite to me, Kat and Roxy. “Now I have something for you,” she clicked her fingers and three parcels each labelled with one of our names, Aphrodite handed us a package each, we took them with muttered thanks and opened them.

In my package was a beautiful black knee-length dress spangled with silver stars, a pair of black leggings, a pair of black socks and some smart black high-heeled boots.

In Roxy’s was a long sea-green dress, a pair of gloss tights and some dainty green high-heels, they were beautiful and I knew they would suit Rox’s taste in clothes.

Kat had a white floor-length dress spangled with gold stars white leggings, a lovely pair of white dolly shoes and a gold bracelet with an owl on it. The image of the owl was set with diamonds and had a gleaming emerald eye.

“Do you like them?” asked Aphrodite

“Yes” we answered, “they’re beautiful”

“Good, now I have something else for you too” she said, handing us another package each.

Our second packages contained a handbag each. Mine was a beautiful black silk purse spangled with silver stars on a silver chain; I also got a rhinestone-studded collar with a matching lead. Roxy had a sea-green silk purse also on a silver chain and Kat had a white silk purse spangled with gold stars on a gold chain.

We thanked Aphrodite and Ares for their gifts and took our leave.

********

Chapter 4.

We’d gone about three and a half miles riding on our various animals when we found ourselves somewhere we did not want to be, in the middle of a graveyard to be precise.

For the others this was a bit creepy but it made me feel more at home, the fact that we were now alone in this place and there was no-one there to intrude upon my death-sense. Except of course Roxy and Kat, but I was used to them and I could block them from my mind now so they were no longer a problem.

A crash came from the trees around us and a great gold sphinx burst from the trees and straight at Kat’s throat. Now since I don’t like Kat I would’ve let her fight it if it’d been any other monster. Except it was a sphinx and sphinx are hard to kill, in fact the only way to kill one as far a I know is to stab it through the heart, I had to get it off Kat to do that though.

I knelt on the wet grass and spread my hands out wide.

Spirits of the dead I thought come to me, serve me the daughter of death, I am the child of Hades. Hear me and obey.

While I waited for the newly inhabited skeletons to dig themselves out of their graves I reached into my pocket and drew out my flick-knife.

I flicked it out and watched as it turned itself into a two handed sword like the one my ghostly fighting tutor had taught me to use since I was five years old.

I ran up behind Rox “get your weapon,” I whispered in her ear.

Rox reached into her pocket and drew out a gold eyeliner

“This is no time for putting on make-up,” I yelled at her. Rox ignored me, took the lid off and put it in her pocket. Immediately the eyeliner transformed into a gold trident, she pushed a gem on her ring and it turned into a gold shield with a trident on.

I was good thinking, I did the same, the ring on my finger turned into a silver shield emblazoned with a skull and some writing I never got around to reading.

I ran up to the sphinx and whacked it with the flat of my blade, then I span around, my long black hair whipped the sphinx in the eyes as I ran away from it. I reached for the silver skull on my Alice-band and pressed it. I heard Kat gasp as my form flickered, once, twice, three times and then I was gone.

Confused the sphinx looked about it, but I was long gone, I crept up behind the sphinx and cut it’s tail off, the sphinx’s head was that of a woman and in accordance with this it let out a very high-pitched and girly scream.

********

Chapter 5.

An explosion of earth, skeletons scrambling out of graves, rushing at the sphinx, attacking it, fighting, and absolute pandemonium followed the sphinx’s scream. I joined in, becoming visible again and stabbing at the sphinx but always just missing it’s heart.

I was running out of energy, I made a snap decision; I would make one last attempt to kill the sphinx. I summoned up all my remaining energy and plunged my arms forward, burying my sword up to the hilt in the sphinx’s heart.

You are dismissed I thought at the spirits return your borrowed forms to where they came from then return to my father’s halls. I am the daughter of death, the child of Hades. Hear me and obey.

Forcing the spirits I had summoned from death back into death nearly surpassed my remaining strength and only the ritual words saved me from exhausting my remaining power.

“Thank-you” said Kat “you saved my life”

“Yes” I said “I suppose I did and…”

“Thanks I’m…”

“Grateful?”

“Well, yes and I, I’m sorry I didn’t trust you”

“Don’t worry ‘bout it”

“But I was a complete…”

“What’s done is done an cannot be undone, or unsaid” I stated

“What?”

“I don’t know either,” I laughed and smiled, I wondered if she noticed that it didn’t reach my eyes.

“Don’t worry then”

“Yeah” I said keeping the scepticism from my voice, “sounds like a good plan”

We busied ourselves with clearing up the mess from the fight and preparing to move on, we had a good five hours until sundown so we had time to carry on and find a better place to stay for the night.

Around half an hour later we were ready to continue on our way and shortly we were doing so, about a half-mile further down the road I spotted a smaller road, we went down it and found ourselves in a field by a wood, we climbed into the wood and found a clearing. We pitched our tent and settled down to eat.

********

Chapter 6.

That night I had a nightmare, hundreds of thousands of monsters were joining together, forming an army, an army the likes of which hadn’t been seen since Zeus and the Olympians had battled Kronos at the beginning of time.

But now, I realised the son of Zeus and the children of the Olympians would battle Kronos again, and I would be one of them, many would die but millions more might be saved,

Come to me my army, you must dig, dig to the centre of the earth and free me from Tartarus came a voice, a voice I knew only too well, it was the voice of Kronos the titan lord.

Now I think I owe you an explanation, according to science the centre of the earth is molten rock, but really the centre of the earth is Tartarus, and what gives the earth gravity is actually Kronos and some other titans that live there. Without Kronos the earth would be pretty much normal but all the things you mortals call global warming will be even more frequent since they are actually caused by Kronos’ growing strength.

My sleeping mind reverted to the dream; monsters loomed out of the dark, things rumbled and growled, I realised that the monsters were actually in a circle surrounding me; they were closing in on me.

I woke up drenched in a cold sweat; I closed my eyes, collapsed back on my pillows and went back to sleep. I almost forgot the dream, almost but not quite.

In the morning I got up and found Rox and Kat beginning to cook breakfast, they were talking about a dream they’d both had last night, it was the same as mine although they didn’t know about the true structure of the earth as only Hades and his children knew about that. Except Kronos knew so someone must’ve told him. Of course, Zachariah (Zach for short) must’ve done that.

Now Zach was my twin brother, he got fed up of everyone fussing over me and decided to turn into an evil twit along with his girlfriend Sophia. He went to Kronos and told him about the earth’s structure. Except dad found out, he got stressed and sort of blasted Zach to bits then sentenced his soul to eternal damnation in the fields of punishment, it was on a visit to Zach I found Woofie, so some good did come of it after all. I did try to kill the person who ratted him out so at least I tried.

********

Chapter 7.

I went over to the others, and they told me about the dreams that they’d had and questioned me on the stuff Kronos had said about how to find him, I guess I should’ve told them but I didn’t think I should then so they remained blissfully ignorant of the forces that created the world.

It was at that time that I realised that one of us must die in this venture, I was determined to make this my death, I would not let anyone else die, besides I wasn’t sure I could die.

I sat moodily by the fire poking at the flames with a branch, bored I got up and began to practise my sword skills, and Kat got her bow and arrows out and began to practice her archery.

“Xanthe where do we go now?” asked Rox

“Somewhere else?” I suggested

“Ha ha” she said sarcastically “what ‘bout you Kat?”

“I think I should ask my mother”

“Ooh” I said nastily “mother is she, I really had no idea you were so sophisticated”

“SHUT UP!” bellowed Kat, then came the inevitable words “sorry Rox”

“Please stop arguing,” said Rox

“STOP TELLING ME WHAT TO DO!” I shouted then I stormed off into the trees.

I sat alone by the creek and began to get my flute out of my bag; I put it together and began to play it. I wove a tune only the dead could hear; I played a song specifically for one spirit, the spirit of my mother.

My mother’s spirit was so old it must be called by my flute’s magic.

“Xanthe” came a voice. But it was not my mother’s voice; it was Roxy’s.

“What?”

“Look I know you don’t like Kat but please try to get on”

“I’ll try but I just can’t stand her”

“I know, I know”

We made our way back to camp and sat back down, Kat was nowhere to be seen.

“Tut, tut Xanthe, you don’t even care where Kat is” chided Rox

“I said I would be nice not that I would care about her.” I said. Now I have to be honest, Kat was a big problem for me; her heart was tick, tick ticking away, practically yelling how and when it was going to die.

********

Chapter 8.

Kat returned sporting a tawny owl and a grin as wide as the base of Mount Etna (which, incidentally is not all it’s cracked up to be) looking very self-satisfied and sat down on the far side of the fire (basically as far away from me as she could get) and threw me a cold look.

“I found one,” she said, indicating the owl

“Good, you best get on with it then” replied Rox

“Um, sorry for existing but is any one going to tell me WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?” I said. Kat ignored me and stifled a smirk

“Xanthe, calm down. Okay, Kat is going to use the owl to send a message to her mother for help”

“We don’t need any help”

“Yes we do Xanthe, we’re stuck travelling to only the gods know where to find only the gods know who” Rox stated

“Rubbish” I snorted

“No it isn’t”

“Yes it…”

“STOP! Don’t let a petty argument get in the way of doing what is right” shouted Rox

During our ‘heated discussion’ Kat had gotten up and knelt down in the trees and began chanting words in an undertone, speaking to the owl.

“What is she doing?” I asked

“Getting on with it”

“With what?”

“With messaging her mum. Duh.”

“Okay, okay keep your hair on”

As we finished speaking Kat released the owl and watched it fly off into the remnants of the dawn. Returning to the fireside Kat sat down and began to stir the fire with a stick.

“Come on” said Rox and she led me over to the fire and sat down. I sat down and began to stir the fire with a stick of my own.

Five hours we waited until a flash of light behind us alerted us to the presence of The Mighty Athena Goddess Of Wisdom, we all turned to see a tall and forbidding woman in smart black jeans and a dark purple shirt with long curly blonde hair the same as Kat’s.

“Well children, how may I help?” asked Athena

“We need to find the son of Zeus mother,” replied Kat

“Very well. Are you ready to go?”

“Yes ma’am” I said, knowing how touchy Athena was.

“Then follow me”

“Yes ma’am” I said, Rox repeated my acquiescence but Kat replied with a ‘yes mother’ or something.

********

Chapter 9.

Athena led us to a glamorous black and silver limousine and told us to sit down and fasten our seatbelts.

“Do you have appropriate clothing for a party?” asked Athena

“Yes ma’am” I replied, “Aphrodite gave us some things”

“Good, go and get changed then I will tell you more.”

I reached into the bag and drew out what Aphrodite had given us, my black package I kept on my lap but I handed Rox hers and practically threw Kat her clothes.

I went behind one of the screens that surrounded groups of seats and changed putting a few essential items into my black purse including, my flick-knife sword some make-up and a hairbrush. I was pleased to find that the bag had the same god power on it as was on my rucksack granting the interior of the bag infinite space.

Woofie shrunk to handbag size and I pulled his rhinestone-studded lead and collar from Aphrodite out of the bag, as I put the hellhound-sized collar around his neck it shrunk to fit a handbag-sized Woofie instead.

As I returned to Athena I herd Rox creeping up behind me, I whirled around and found myself staring straight into Rox’s sea-green eyes.

“Not going to get me that easily Rox”

“Oh okay, but it was worth a try”

We turned to face Kat and her mother who now sat side by side on the bench seat and looking scarily similar.

I seated myself opposite Kat and looked at Athena “well children as you may have deduced we are going to a party, the son of Zeus will be there. It is his seventeenth birthday so carrying gifts for the ‘birthday boy’ as you mortals say it would be most appropriate henceforth.”

And never use a big word where a diminutive alternative would suffice. I thought, stifling a smile I returned my focus to Athena’s complex prose. And promptly wished I hadn’t.

“… And here is one for you to give him Xanthe when you see him.”

“Excuse me ma’am but what is his name?”

“The son of Zeus? Oh I think its Luke”

Uh-oh. I thought. I’d had a slight issue with him when I was… younger.

Taking the package Athena handed me I stowed in my bag

“What is it?” I asked

“A leather cord with a gold lightning bolt pendant on”

“What is this one mother?” asked Kat

“A gold hip flask”

“And this one?” Roxy asked

“I believe that’s a gold Rolex watch.” Turing to look at the driver she shouted “Aaron, get going or we’ll be late”

“Yes mother” Aaron replied.

********

Chapter 10.

As we pulled up outside a mansion around an hour later we found that several other limousines like ours were there and many other glamorously dressed people were climbing out of them and entering the house.

Aaron came over and opened our door with a flourish, out we got and we got out of the car and walked over to the house.

Before I got out I studied him, he had blue eyes the colour of the sea on a stormy day, thick brown hair of a shade I’d never seen anywhere else and skin almost as pale as mine. I had to admit he was gorgeous, and I was able to admire him in a detached manner. Phwoar, he was gorgeous though.

As soon as we got inside a pounding noise of human heartbeats overwhelmed me.

“Erm, guys can we go outside a minute?”

“Sure” we ducked back out the way we’d come.

“Okay, crazy idea time. I think I can sense Luke’s heartbeat I know what it sounds like so it might not be too difficult.”

Kat mumbled something that sounded remarkably like the f-word, then ‘corpse breath’ and several other obscenities.

Walking back into the house I proceeded to draw upon my senses, giving up control of my mind and withdrawing into myself. I concentrated on the remembered sound an the one that I knew it would have become… yes that silent countdown, heard only by me thud, thud, thud Luke’s beating heart was growing louder until it was almost deafening.

I opened my eyes and met Luke’s electric blue ones.

“Hello Xanthe” he said.

With that simple greeting the memory came Aphrodite’s face swimming into my mind ‘You will wish that you love a man who you never shall love except as a wish, I caution you against this path Xanthe daughter of Hades for it will bring you naught but pain’ the curse of the first age had found it’s way into my heart.

“Can we have a word?” I asked

“Sure” replied Luke

“In private”

“Oh okay, not going to try to kill me again then are you?”

“No, why do you always have to bring that up? Besides, you ratted my brother out.”

“Hey! I’m just your annoying cousin” he smirked “besides it was you who told me about that in the first place”

I wanted to say a lot of things to Luke right then, all of them obscene so I decided not to bother. I raised one eyebrow instead.

Luke winced “why do you always do that? I creeps me out.”

Which, dummy is why I always do it I thought, instead I said “Hey! I’m just your annoying cousin”

“Very mature Xan” scowled Luke

“Do. Not. Call. Me. Xan. Ever. Is. That. Understood.” I growled putting a venomous edge on each word.

“Okay! Okay! Keep your hair on!” he said putting his hands up in surrender “OUCH” he shouted. Woofie had just bitten his ankles.

“Well done Woofie, good dog”

“That’s Woofie? I thought he was a full-grown hellhound.”

“He is” I smiled smugly “he can shrink ‘n everythin’.”

“Grammar as bad as always? Your mum would be disappointed” he remarked snidely.

“You know nothing about my mum, or what she would want so shut up” I hissed

“Okay,” said Rox “time to go outside.” Then she muttered to me “what’s that about trying to kill him?”

“Oh, I really, really hated him when I was younger, he got my brother killed.”

“Oh”

“Yep, oh indeed”

We followed Luke outside to a small bandstand on the lawn, we took seats on the bench and Rox explained our situation.

“so” she summarised “we need your help to defeat Kronos” she gazed at him with such silly adoration I wanted to slap her. But I stayed my hand; it would not do to lose my temper now. Besides, if I got up, Woofie would fall on the floor and I might hurt him.

********

Epilogue.

Xanthe:

Well to my annoyance I must now hand this story over to

Luke oh joy (not) and I hope he can tell it truthfully (but I doubt it) so with regret I must say goodbye and hope he doesn’t exaggerate too much (if he does I will give him a nice unfriendly slap in the face).

Thank you

Xanthe

Roxy:

From the moment I saw Luke I knew I was in love. I know how cheesy that sounds but right now I don’t care. I love him and I will always love him.

That’s all

Roxy

The End

Almost.

Death’s Daughter