FanStory.com - A Battle of Willsby davisr (Rhonda)

Background
Years after a fire took her parents lives and devastated her home, Echo worked at a small town newspaper. She was rescued from danger by her old friend, Theo, who took her to a new life in his world.

End of Last Chapter:

"Oh, that's what I'm counting on. There's nothing like irrational emotions to weaken a man. I do hate to put you in the middle this way, my dear, but I need your help. You'll thank me for it later."

"I have a distinct feeling I won't."

Hades smiled wickedly. "That's okay, too. Now, if you'll come with me, I need to get this wound sewn up since you don't seem to want to help me with it."

"I hope you bleed to death," Echo popped back nastily.

"Yes, that would work in your favor, wouldn't it?"

"It would be a nice start. So, if you do die, where does your soul go? The underworld with all the poor unfortunates you guard, or would it just disappear like vapor?"

Hades' face grew even darker. A cold shiver enveloped his body. "That would be up to Thanatos."

"Who's that?"

Hades' face showed horror beyond horror for just a fraction of a second. A fraction lasting long enough to give Echo an idea that there was someone even the gods feared.

"He's my boss," Hades said. "The twin brother to Hypnos."

"Sleep and Death," Echo repeated. "I've heard of them."

New Chapter:

"Enough small talk, follow me," Hades ordered. It was obvious his mood had changed.

Echo complied. He no longer drew her with his energy, but neither was she in any position to run. It was important to keep his attention focused on her rather than on Philip and Hannah.

For a few, uncomfortable moments, neither spoke. The only sounds heard were their footfalls on the cave floor. His minions had stayed behind, and for that, she was grateful.

Finally, curiosity got the best of her.

"What could you possibly want with me?" she asked. "I'm not special enough to go to all this trouble. I'm just an orphan child from a tiny town in Georgia. I have a simple job at a local newspaper. That's it. I'm no one to put up such a fuss over."

"We're not judged by our jobs or where we're from," Hades said, "but by the strength of our spirits."

"I've got absolutely no idea how that applies to my situation."

Hades glanced over his shoulder. "When Immortals are born, their inner strength is assessed to determine position in our society. The system works well, but our people suffer from an unfortunate lack of genetic variety. Because of this, we occasionally look outside our society for Gifts."

"Gifts?"

"Humans born with exceptionally strong spirits. They're rare and prized by both worlds. We use some of them to maintain diversity within our people."

Echo couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Are you serious? What do you have, some sort of spirit detector that stalks babies?"

"You're not too far off. It's like this, when a person is born, regardless of their origin, they emit what we call a spirit signature. Most of these are average in strength, but occasionally, a birth is accompanied by a huge wave of energy that catches the attention of our scouts, a kind of energy storm."

"Let me guess, mine was a downpour."

"An absolute tempest, my dear, and it drew us to you."

Echo stopped in the middle of her stride, her head spinning. "That's just creepy."

Hades stopped as well, but didn't approach her. "Our people do a lot of what you might call creepy, but the point is, your spirit burst attracted the attention of Zeus, himself. He came to visit you, as did most of the rest of us. A Prophecy was proclaimed at once, declaring you to one day marry a member of the 12 ruling gods and become a queen thereof."

"Also creepy."

Hades nodded. "I get what you're saying. It's different from what you're used to, but it's our way. When I first saw you, I was drawn to your power and purity. I decided then and there I would be the one to add you to our ranks."

"And now you've taken it beyond creepy to criminal. I was just a baby, Hades. You can't lust after an infant."

"I'm not a pedophile, Echo. I chose you for later when you were older. The spirit is timeless and I'm a patient man."

Hades drew closer, placing a tender hand on her arm.

Echo wanted to recoil from his touch, to jerk away and declare eternal revulsion, but her body responded with quickened pulse and respiration. Her whole body tingled in anticipation.

Hades placed his hands on both her arms. "Now you're ripe for becoming Immortal and taking your place amongst your equals. Theo knew it. That's why he brought you to Concorde Valley and placed you under the protection of his parents and Poseidon."

Echo took a deep breath and averted her face from the tall handsome god. She was a reporter, a strong woman not easily swayed by charm and good looks. What had Hannah said her horse name was, Perseverance? She would persevere. She fought to regain control of her wayward body.

A shuddering breath later, she said, "I'm not sure I believe all the stuff you're saying, but even if it's partially correct, and if I must become Immortal, then it will be Theo who will make me so, not you or any of your nutty relatives."

Hades tilted his handsome head to the side and squinted his eyes, "And therein lies the problem, Echo. Theo isn't one of the 12. The Prophecy says...."

"Screw the Prophecy." Echo spat the words out like bitter wine. "Your gods, as you call them, don't determine my destiny."

Hades uttered a deep throated laugh and tried to draw Echo closer.

"Now that's the spirit I remember at your birth. Yes, the same spirit you showed later as you stood in the field outside your burning house. You had a toy bear clutched in your arms and a light burning in your eyes brighter than the flames before you."

A queasy feeling oozed into Echo's guts. "You were there?"

"My dear," Hades said slowly and distinctly, "I wasn't just there. I was the one who set the fire."

Echo jerked her arms away and took several steps backward. Her heart beat so hard her whole body vibrated. With every breath, she became more and more engulfed by the weapon of the enemy... pure hate.

"Why?"

"To free you from those pitiful mortals who held you back. If not for the intervention of Theo and his parents, I would have taken you into my fold back then."

In one swift motion, Echo snatched up a stone and threw it at his head, landing it with a satisfying thud. In response, Hades grabbed her by the hair, just like in her dream, and jerked her head backwards. He glared into her eyes.

"You can't hurt me," he said. His mouth was just inches from hers. The smell of rotting flesh and sulfur poured out of his mouth and bathed her face.

Echo fought the impulse to retch. "Maybe not, but neither could I ever desire or love you."

"After many years of confinement, you'll beg for even the tiniest drop of my attention."

"Well, as appealing as that sounds, Hades, I respectfully decline. An eternity as your captive, something I don't believe is going to happen, will never erase what you did to me. Give up. I'm sure there are many beautiful women who would die to be with you."

The unintended pun hung in the air for a moment. Hades blinked, with the hint of a smile resting on his lips. Echo tried to make her face impassive, as though not noticing her faux pax.

Finally, Hades broke the standoff. "Those aren't the kind of women I crave. They have no fight, no powerful spirit inside. Women such as you are rare."

"But, according to you, I won't have that for long, since you plan to isolate me until I bend to your will."

"It doesn't have to be that way, Echo. If you'll just pledge yourself to me, our wedding will be joyous, and your place by my side, cherished. I'll hold you above everyone else, mortal or otherwise."

"I can't give you my love, Hades. You destroyed that chance when you burned my home and killed my parents."

Hades nodded his head, ever so slightly. There was a catch in his voice when he spoke. "In that case, I'll break your will, like I have so many others. The memory of what you once were will be enough to satisfy me."

Hades let her hair go and stepped away. "I'll, also, enjoy the fact I was able to use you to defeat the only real threat I had to becoming the head of the gods."

"Theo?"

"Yes, and those pitiful gods he's got helping him. He might be a great leader and a mighty warrior, but he has a weakness, you to be exact, and it's that weakness I'll use against him."

"Well, dead-god. I don't intend to be Theo's Achilles' heel, any more than I plan to be your wife."

"Really, and just how do you propose to stop me? With perseverance? What does that useless horse name mean, anyway? Are you planning to bug me to death? Haha, it will take more than tenacity to defeat me, my pet."

"Then, Sir, we'll have an interesting contest of wills. Before it's over, maybe you'll be the one begging for my attention."

Hades rested his hand, again, on her arm. "I beg it now."