Pantheon (The Tamar Black Saga)

by Nicola Rhodes

  They were both bleeding and weary, but Hecate was in far worse shape than he was.

  ‘Are you all right?’ asked Denny awkwardly. Hecate’s clothing had been torn, and there had not been that much of it to begin with – Denny was not used to seeing women (apart from Tamar) so exposed. He was trying to assess the extent of her injuries, therefore, without actually looking at her.

  ‘I am well enough,’ she told him. ‘Nothing that will not heal. You called me your friend,’ she added.

  ‘I did? Oh, er … well, aren’t you? I mean sort of. We’re on the same side anyway,’ he temporised.

  ‘Indeed,’ she said. ‘And that is what you meant?’

  ‘I suppose so, look do you want to borrow my cloak? You haven’t got much of an outfit left.’

  ‘Thank you,’ she said in surprise, accepting the gift and wrapping it around her shoulders to Denny’s immense relief.

  ‘So, what the hell happened to Proteus?’ said Denny.

  Hecate pointed to the bottom of the door. A small rodent was working its way under the gap, as soon as it had squeezed through it grew rapidly into Proteus as they had last seen him.

  ‘I see,’ said Denny sourly. ‘Well, since we’re all here, where to now, where’s Hades?’

  ‘Follow me,’ said Hecate. ‘And keep that dagger handy. Hades has guards stationed throughout this place.’

  ‘He would have,’ sighed Denny.

  * * *

  Tamar had fought a lot of monsters in her time, but even for her, a giant three headed dog was a bit of a challenge.

  Finding the damn thing was challenge number one. Hecate had said that Cerberus was usually to be found guarding the entrance to the underworld, but they certainly had not seen him on their way in – either time. Tamar thought this was suspicious. ‘It’s almost as if Hades was expecting us, and doesn’t care either.’ she said. ‘Do you think he’s up to something?’

  ‘I doubt it,’ Hephaestus said. ‘He never was all that bright. I expect he’s just letting things get a little slack around here. I mean who on earth would want to break into the underworld anyway? Apart from Heracles, who’s gone now anyway, you’re the first, as far as I know.’

  ‘So, if Cerberus isn’t here,’ said Tamar. ‘Then where is he?’

  ‘Who says he isn’t here?’ said Hephaestus.

  ‘Well, I can’t see him,’ said Tamar impatiently. ‘It’s a dirty great three headed hound of hell, you couldn’t exactly miss it.’

  ‘There!’ shrieked Aphrodite suddenly and ran to hide behind Hephaestus.

  ‘Was that there all the time?’ said Tamar.

  Cerberus was approaching slowly and silently on huge padded paws. Where the hell he had come from was anybody’s guess. There were no shadowy caves or tunnels that he could have been hiding in, as far as they could see. It looked as if he had simply appeared out of thin air. This was a bit of a worrying development as far as Tamar was concerned. No one had told her he could do that. And if he could appear, then presumably he could also disappear.

  ‘Will those chains of yours hold him?’ Tamar asked Hephaestus.

  ‘If you can get them on him,’ was the doubtful reply.

  ‘You leave that to me,’ she said confidently. ‘You just give me the chains and get back. ‘I’ll deal with this.’

  ‘Bossy isn’t she?’ said Aphrodite.

  ‘But fearless,’ Hephaestus said. ‘Just look at her.’

  Tamar had looped the chains into a lasso and was whirling it around her head ready to throw. Cerberus was shaking his heads from side to side in confusion, watching the progress of the chains as they swung back and forth. He kept up a steady deep growl – which was usually more than enough to scare anybody away, but it was not working this time. He bared three sets of impossible teeth and Tamar knew her time was up. She threw the lasso at the middle head. It caught – naturally – and Tamar pulled hard. The lasso tightened, and she dragged Cerberus to the ground.

  ‘By Zeus, exclaimed Hephaestus. ‘Would you look at that? How strong is that woman?’

  Of course, there were two other heads still snapping and snarling, to deal with. Still there was plenty of chain left. With horrendous, reckless disregard to her personal safety, Tamar leaped onto the right hand head and brought a fist wrapped in chains crashing down on the beast’s forehead. The eyes crossed comically and then closed.

  ‘Pretty damn strong,’ said Aphrodite. ‘Stronger even than Heracles maybe. She knocked him out.’

  Tamar wrapped the loose chain around the right hand head, thus attaching it to the middle head. But now she had run out of chains, and there was still the left hand head to deal with. And Cerberus was getting to his feet again.

  ‘Right!’ she thought. ‘I made a mistake there.’ She would never, under any conditions, have admitted this out loud. She looked up and saw… Yes, that ought to do it. Unwrapping the chains swiftly from the unconscious head ignoring the cries of protest from Aphrodite, and kicking desperately at the other head, she swung the loose end of the chain high and prayed it would catch. It did, sort of, but although it caught on the ropes and chains above, (the gods knew what they were there for, but they could not have been handier at the moment) it tangled up and did not go right over. Damn it, she would have to climb. She went up the chain swiftly with Cerberus snapping at her heels, and untangled the chain, then, still hanging on, she dropped. As she went down, Cerberus went up and over. Then she tied off the end leaving Cerberus dangling from a complicated arrangement of chains, ropes and what appeared to be nets.

  ‘Got him!’ she said standing back and breathing heavily.

  ‘You certainly did,’ said Hephaestus. ‘Do you always work like that?’

  ‘Like what?’ she said.

  ‘So … impromptu?’ he said. ‘Just making it up as you go along?’

  ‘You noticed that did you?’ she said with a grin. ‘I find it works for me.’

  ‘Unfortunately,’ said Hephaestus, ‘Those other chains are not of my construction. I don’t know how long they will hold him.’

  Tamar looked at the furiously struggling Cerberus. ‘Denny, will be in Hades palace by now,’ she said. ‘We’ll just have to hope they’ll hold him for long enough.’

  ‘If he managed to get past the Harpies,’ said Hephaestus.

  ‘Oh, he will have,’ said Tamar authoritatively. ‘You don’t know him like I do.’

  Aphrodite looked at the fiercely angry animal fighting to extricate himself from the impromptu prison that Tamar had fashioned. ‘I hope you are right,’ she said.

  * * *

  ‘What can we expect then?’ said Denny as Hecate led them along the dark passages of Hades’ palace. ‘Skeletal warriors?’ he said hopefully, ‘those ones that spring from the dragon’s teeth. I’ve always wanted to see those.’

  Hecate gave him an indulgent smile. ‘You are like a small boy,’ she said. ‘You think of this as an adventure. Yet you fight like a hero – although you do not look like one. I do not understand you at all.’

  ‘Never judge a book by its cover,’ said Denny absently.

  ‘And you say the strangest things,’ she said. ‘Sometimes it is as if you are speaking a different language, although I understand the words.’

  ‘It’s best not to take too much notice of me sometimes,’ he said evasively. I can talk a lot of nonsense at times.’

  ‘I do not believe this is the case,’ she said firmly. ‘But I will get to the heart of the enigma that you represent in time.’

  Since Denny personally knew this to be true he could not stop himself from saying so. ‘I know you will,’ he said. ‘In time.’

  Hecate stopped short. ‘All right,’ she said. ‘You know this about me, and you know that. Who are you?’

  Denny bit his lip. Ooops!

  ‘I feel as I ought to know you,’ she said, ‘but I do not. So tell me.’

  ‘Is this really the time for this?’ said Denny hopelessly. He knew from experience that this ploy neve
r worked. By the look on Hecate’s face, it was not working now. She raised an interrogative eyebrow.

  ‘We could be attacked by Hades’ guards any second,’ he tried.

  ‘Then tell me quickly,’ she countered.

  ‘I couldn’t tell you all that quickly if I tried,’ he said. ‘It’s a bit of a long story.

  ‘All right, all right.’ He ran his long thin fingers nervously through his hair, which, although it was still short, was beginning to look untidy again. ‘Short version, Tamar and I have met you before, but a long time in the future. That’s where we’ve come from.’

  ‘I see,’ she said. ‘There would indeed seem to be a long story behind that statement. You can tell it to me later. We have, as you say, pressing business at the moment.’

  ‘I can’t tell you too much,’ he said. ‘It could change the future.’

  ‘Tell me whatever you can,’ she said. ‘And I will try to be satisfied with that. I trust you at, least, not to lie to me.’

  ‘You see,’ he said. ‘You know me too. You just don’t remember it.’

  ‘I cannot remember a thing that has not yet happened,’ she said.

  ‘Not yet anyway,’ said Denny. ‘But things change.’

  ‘Did you know me too?’ asked Proteus who had been listening to all this with avid interest.

  ‘No,’ said Denny shortly.

  ‘Oh.’

  ‘I knew someone a bit like you once,’ he said seeing that Proteus was disappointed by this answer for some reason. ‘Knew someone like Aphrodite too. Very like her, in fact.’ he added thoughtfully. ‘Practically the same person. It’s enough to make you believe in reincarnation.’

  But immortals don’t understand the concept of reincarnation so all he got for his trouble was a blank stare.

  ‘Yeah well …’ he said. ‘So, where are all these guards then?’

  ‘Ah,’ he said, turning at the sounds of scuffling, ‘ask and ye shall receive,’

  Behind him were seven of the standard “empty suit of armour” type magical warriors lurching towards them in a threatening manner. Denny was disappointed. He knew he could dispatch these without breaking a sweat. They were hardly impressive, or particularly fast moving. For a moment he had a vision of himself as he had been before the Athame, before Tamar. He would have been terrified, back then, of these lurching monsters. But now … What the hell had happened to his life, to him, that this sort of thing was commonplace? He began to laugh.

  ‘What is so funny?’ demanded Hecate. But Denny just continued to laugh.

  ‘Is he all right?’ asked Proteus in a worried voice. If Denny had gone off the deep end, then they were all in very big trouble.

  ‘Perhaps the stress …?’ said Hecate. ‘The danger …?’ she shrugged helplessly.

  ‘What danger?’ snorted Denny, apparently hearing this. ‘These guys aren’t dangerous. That’s what’s funny.’

  ‘Oh god, when did I become so arrogant?’

  ‘Stand back,’ he heard himself say. ‘I’ll deal with this.’

  ‘I’ve finally turned into Tamar,’ he thought. ‘Maybe it was bound to happen eventually.’

  He had fun. He twirled his sword (the Athame in disguise) he swung from the chandeliers (he had always wanted to try this) – after all, there was no point in taking a fight like this too seriously.

  ‘Are you having fun?’ said Hecate dryly as he slid past her backwards dragging a warrior along with him and catapulting it into the hangings.

  Denny grinned at her.

  ‘A small boy,’ she said. ‘Just like a small boy. I said so. Just look at him!’

  ‘If that’s the best old Hades has got,’ he said when it was over (all too soon) ‘Then this is going to be easy.’

  ‘It’s usually more than enough for most people,’ said Hecate. ‘But you are not most people are you? I wonder if you realise …’

  ‘Realise what?’ said Denny sheathing the Athame.

  ‘Never mind,’ she said.

  ‘That won’t be the last of them,’ said Proteus in a slightly peeved voice. He was a god after all; he did not like being outshone so completely by a mortal. It was humiliating. This guy was worse than Heracles. At least the son of Zeus had taken this sort of thing seriously. Old Hades indeed! He might show a bit of respect.

  ‘Okay,’ said Denny to Hecate, ignoring Proteus, ‘which way?’

  ‘Actually, we are here,’ she said. ‘Just beyond that door, is the throne room of Hades.’

  ‘Do you want me to go in alone?’ Denny asked.

  ‘No, not at all.’ A spiteful look slid onto her face. ‘I want to see this.’

  Denny raised an eyebrow but said nothing. He opened the door.

  As Hades rose from his throne, several warriors hastened into place before him and raised their weapons.

  Denny ignored them; he was staring at Hades in utter bewilderment and shock. Now that was a familiar face. He looked at Hecate in confusion. She hated this man? Then how was it possible that, in the future, she could …

  He grabbed Hecate by the collar of his cloak that she was still wearing and demanded angrily. ‘What’s going on?’

  ‘Let me go!’ she said haughtily.

  ‘Not until you explain yourself,’ he told her. There was something wrong here; he just knew it. He pointed to Hades. ‘Who is that?’ he snapped.

  Hecate looked at him as if he was insane. ‘That is Hades,’ she said. ‘Lord of the Dead. Who…?’

  ‘That’s Hades?’ said Denny in disbelief. ‘But … but … it can’t be.’

  The guards of Hades had been standing to attention awaiting orders, and now, Hades clicked his fingers, and three of them attacked. Denny swatted them away absently, still holding on to Hecate with one hand. He had a preoccupied look on his face. Upon seeing this, Hades fled from the throne room through a back exit.

  ‘He’s escaping,’ shrieked Hecate. ‘Go after him.’

  ‘All right,’ agreed Denny, releasing her. ‘I want some answers.’

  ‘Wait,’ said Hecate. ‘What is it you think you are seeing?’ she asked him.

  ‘What?’ he said.

  ‘It is a power of the gods to take an image from your mind and project it on to their own appearance. A talent Zeus often employed in the seduction of young maidens.’

  ‘That wouldn’t work on me,’ said Denny. ‘The Athame protects me from glamours.’

  ‘Are you certain?’ she said. ‘Do not let Hades fool you. He is cunning, the face you see, does it belong to one whom you would not wish to come to harm?’

  ‘Er, yes, yes it does. You mean … it was a trick?’

  ‘Of course. Hades is a coward. He hides behind guards and behind the faces of other men. It is inconceivable that he did not know of your arrival. He was prepared. But, you must not let him escape, you must kill him.’

  ‘If he’s still wearing that face, I don’t know if I can,’ said Denny. ‘Why do you care so much anyway?’ he added. ‘It’s not as it makes any difference to you. Why do you hate him so much?’

  Then suddenly Denny got it, unrequited love. Hadn’t he himself been the victim of this very thing, didn’t he know the symptoms? How such a love could turn to bitter hate. So, that was Hades real face. He had known that no mere glamour could blind him. But Hades was only the forerunner, a preview, as it were, of the real love of her life. She would find out one day, he knew she would.

  Knowing all this made it easier. Hades was Hades, no matter what he looked like. Denny was now ready to do what he had to do.

  He took Hecate gently by the shoulders. ‘Thanks,’ he said. ‘Let’s do this so we can get out of here.’

  ‘Er, where would he go?’ he asked.

  Hecate thought for a moment then a slow smile came over her face.

  ‘His seat of judgment,’ she said. ‘It is where he feels most powerful.’

  ‘Seat of judgment?’ asked Denny. ‘Does he by any chance carry out interrogations there?’

  ‘You could
call it that,’ she replied, looking puzzled.

  ‘Innocent or guilty sort of thing?’ asked Denny.

  ‘Yes, Elysian Fields or Tartarus, reward or punishment. It is for him to decide.’

  ‘And he never gets it wrong?’ said Denny, knowing already what the answer would be.

  Of course not. He can see into men’s souls. You cannot lie to Hades. He does not listen to the words you say aloud anyway’

  ‘I should have known,’ said Denny. ‘The same but different.’

  He did not bother to explain this remark. She would understand one day in any case, if she even remembered this conversation.

  ‘Where is this seat of judgement then?’ he asked.

  ‘I will show you,’ she said. ‘But it is unfortunate.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘I believe I mentioned that he is at his most powerful there,’ she said.

  ‘I can handle it,’ said Denny.

  ‘I believe you,’ she said.

  Denny bowed before Hades at the seat of Judgement. He could not help it; he was being crushed under the weight of his own guilty conscience. He saw himself betraying Tamar with Cindy, murdering Artemis, the whole Nemesis thing; in fact, every horrible thing he had ever been ashamed of doing was now passing before him to torture him.

  ‘Fight it,’ hissed Hecate. ‘He’s using your conscience against you. If you were a bad person, you would not feel guilty.’

  ‘Uh, huh,’ grunted Denny.

  ‘Oh … hell!’ Hecate tasted the unfamiliar word and found that it helped release a little frustration. ‘If you want a thing doing,’ she said. ‘You must it yourself.’ And she took the Athame from Denny’s belt. It was a sign of his complete and utter prostration that he made no protest when she did this. He barely seemed to notice.

  Hades, his attention focussed entirely on Denny’s suffering, never saw her coming as she crept up behind him.

  ‘I just hope this thing works,’ she thought to herself. She had no clear idea of what the Athame was nor what it was supposed to do, but she had become aware that Denny intended to use it against Hades in some manner. She could only improvise and hope.