Vile awoke to the
sound of spirits. Heartbeat still silent, Vile sat up in his bed and looked out
the window. To his surprise, Lerna wasn’t as green as he had expected. But as a
West Texan raised American (as he liked to declare even after learning his
decent) he expected any place outside of west Texas (other than the obvious
dessert biomes) to be greener than west Texas.
According to Hera,
as the reincarnation of the Lernaean Hydra, he was to guard the entrance of the
Underworld and thus defeat Heracles. However, according to every online story
that Vile could get his hands on, the Lernaean Hydra was not exactly the chosen
winner for humanity.
We shall be saved! Exclaimed a voice.
Oh, the Gods be in our favor! Said another.
Curse Zeus! Curse him! Shouted another.
Vile shook his head
as he looked over the books and papers scattered on the table top of his hotel
room.
“Hera?” He asked aloud.
What is it, my dearest?
“Do these spirits even understand that if
they get to entrance of the Underworld they’re not exactly going to ‘heaven’?”
Hera laughed. Dearest, what is this heaven you speak of?
“Heaven…?” Vile questioned. “You know,
the opposite of Hell?” He added. “Angels, demons, all that jazz?”
In the opposite seat
across from him, a shimmering light exposed, making him cover his eyes. Light
dimming, Vile took away his arm to see the result. Sitting across from him was
a young woman similar to his dear Gweyne from back home.
“We have the home of
the Gods.” The woman said, her voice rich. “Then there is the world of the
living.” She paused. “And then the world of the dead, the Underworld.”
“Hera….” He
muttered. “Where does Heaven and Hell come into play?” Vile asked in utter
confusion, skimming his papers for answers.
“There is none.”
Hera shrugged. “Why would one want a world of the dead in two worlds?”
“Well...” Vile
smirked. “There’s also Purgatory if you want to get technical.”
Hera shook her head.
“I am Greek. What you speak of must not be Greek.”
“The Bible?” Vile
wondered. “I’ve always known about it. I never thought that the Gods wouldn’t
know about ‘The Bible’.”
With that, an idea
popped into Vile’s head. “There’s always one hidden in a hotel drawer. I never
cared to read it but I know its stories.” He said as he searched.
“Does this ‘Bible’
you speak of have a God?” Hera questioned.
“Yea!” Vile nodded
dumbfounded after closing the last possible drawer and finding nothing.
“What is his name?”
Hera smiled. “Or hers if the one is a Goddess?”
Silent for a moment,
Vile took his seat again and tapped his finger searching the stories in his
head.
“You mean to tell me
that you know not of our stories in your culture and you know of this ‘God’
that has no name?” Hera raised an eyebrow.
Looking up and
gazing Hera and her shimmering self, Vile shook his head. “No…” He paused. “In
America…” He paused. “Where I’m from anyways, there are churches everywhere of
every kind. I don’t know how to explain it but they always talk about their ‘God’.
They never speak of his name of even if there is a possibility that ‘God’ could
be a ‘Goddess.’ The only case I can think of where that is true could be who
they call ‘the Virgin Mary’.” Vile shrugged. “I’m not Christian so this subject
isn’t my stronghold as you can see.”
Hera nodded in
comprehension. “No.” She shook her head. “You are Greek. This ‘Bible’ of yours.
You should be digging more in the papers before you and the books on this table
more than this ‘Bible’ that doesn’t even seem accurate.”
“Hey now.” Vile put
up his arms. “Not all Christians are bad and I’ve never actually read the book
so don’t judge it based on what I’ve told you because I’m not a reliable
source.”
Hera frowned. “And this nameless God is?”
Vile rolled his
eyes. “Do you want me to look up it’s orig for you? Maybe then you’ll figure
out why you don’t know of this ‘God’.?”
Hera nodded. “That
would be pleasant.”
Scooting his chair
over to his laptop, Vile opened up a new tab and began to type. Next to him,
appeared a small silver cup. Looking up at Hera, Vile raised an eyebrow.
“Try it,” Hera
smiled. “You seem stressed.”
Vile sighed. “If you
wanted to kill me you would have already done it.” Vile shrugged and took the
cup in his hand as he began to read.
Eyes widening, Vile
parted the cup from his lips and looked at Hera in amusement. “Nectar?”
“Do you like it?”
Hera questioned.
Vile took a moment to
take in the taste and nodded. “That’s… The most amazing nectar I’ve ever had.”
“I’m afraid you can’t
have more than that sip.” Hera smiled. “It is the drink of the Gods and you are
no demigod like Heracles but I did allow you to taste through me the beauty of
our nectar.”
Vile nodded as he
held the empty silver cup. “It says here that the Bible is originally Hebrew.”
He said looking up again at Hera. Every time he set his eyes on her, he felt
calm and didn’t feel the rage deep down inside him. He could also ignore the
rambling of the thousands of spirits in his head awaiting for their doom.
“Hebrew?” Hera
questioned. “You mean Jewish?”
Vile shrugged. “I
guess so. I honestly don’t trust have of what’s popping up in half the results
here but it looks like the Bible is Hebrew.”
Hera nodded. “Would
you believe me if I told you that the ancient Greeks were first?”
Vile shrugged. “Well,
it doesn’t look like their God’s speaking up any time soon.” He smirked. “But I
wouldn’t blame him. If I’m Greek and he’s Jewish what business does he have
with me?”
Hera smiled. “You
are the reincarnation of the Lernaean Hydra. What business does he not have
with you?”
Viile shook his
head. “I think I can live with knowing that one demigod is meant to kill me and
I am meant to kill him. But bear with me, I looked up more than the history of
the bible. Tell me…” Vile smirked. “Why choose me, the son of Typhon and Echidna, over a demigod? He is half
God isn’t he?”
Vile shrugged. “After
all, I’m full monster over here. He’s at least
half God.”
Hera nodded. “Yea… half.” She smiled.
Vile sighed. “I don’t
understand you, Gods.”
“I’m a Goddess.”
Hera corrected.
Vile shook his head.
“However you prefer it, your majesty.”
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