Page 35 of Hekate: The Witch
you can say we had an interesting
upbringing, and that is why
we are interesting Gods.’
I was perplexed. ‘Are you certain
you are not a God of Oracles?’
His bushy eyebrows furrowed.
‘What makes you say that?’
I triumphantly tossed down
a perfect hand as I answered,
‘You speak in riddles better
than most of my mother’s Oracles did.’
Charon’s face cleared
and he threw his head back,
his deep laughter echoing across
the halls of my palace.
Lessons in Cartography
It was hard to know how many mortal years I had spent in Hades already. The task of time was meant for those doomed to death, and there seemed little need for me to count my days in any similar way. So instead, I became a collector of stories to learn more about my new home. I asked Styx how far her waters flowed and she told me that she was one of five rivers here. Charon told me about Acheron, the river where he ferried the dead. When I wouldn’t stop begging Pallas, he would pause his carving and tell me about the other parts of Hades: the Elysian Fields, the Vale of Mourning and the Halls of the Night. I stored all of this away inside my mind until I could craft a careful map. With ink upon parchment I slowly drew every single story Styx, Charon and Pallas gave me.
But What Lay Beyond These Riverbanks?
I found myself lying awake with this question often. Gods did not need sleep, but we did sleep for pleasure. However I tossed and turned, picturing the stories about this dark realm which was now my home. Ihadto know more. It was like a hand wrapping around my throat, this curiosity. It would not let mebreathe.
One day, the need was so strong I made my plan. I told no one. Not Styx when she visited. Not Charon when he came to sit with me by my window. Not Pallas on his rare trips to my palace with a new carved gift. I waited until all was quiet before I moved through those heavy doors onto the familiar riverbanks. Here, I was even more caught in the feeling of emptiness when I saw the endless darkness around the glowing river.
No wonder I felt compelled towards the water: it was the only source of real light around, even if it was coming from the infinite souls occupying its depths. Was this the only place the dead lived? I had asked Charon, and he had hesitated before saying no. There was more to this place. But no matter how much I begged, he would not elaborate. So I went where I had seen his boat go. I walked along the riverbanks to see where the river led. I was strong now, nourished from regular meals of ambrosia and nectar.
Strength does not mean invincibility, Styx had once warned me when she found me trying to reach for the waters again. As I walked, my heart pounding and a feeling of adventure in my bones, I realized that strength is the capacity for so much more than invincibility.
It fed the need and hunger formore.
Finally a Light
It was small at first.
The darkness of this place
nearly swallowed up the glow
from my small lamp,
but I could see in the distance
a crack of light.
