Page 56 of Seeking Hades' Ember

Chapter 28

Jillian

I was nestled softly, feeling warmth instead of the cold that I fell asleep in. The Phantomtails had either lit their tails back to life while Cerberus was sleeping, or Hades had found me, and I was at home in bed. I preferred the latter but I’m not that lucky.

Opening my eyes, I was in a small log cabin with a fire roaring at the hearth. I was sleeping in a pile of hay with large blankets on top; it was literally a nest I was sleeping on, and I didn’t mind. The smell of the fresh forest floated in through the window, and small chatting could be heard outside the large wooden door. The area around me felt so real, I wondered if this was a dream at all.

“It’s a dream,” a voice spoke with a hint of a melody in her voice. It was quiet, barely audible but I noticed it. Turning my head to my right, next to the fire was a woman with a beautiful face. Her bright blue eyes shone like the moon. Her glowing hand came from the rags she wore. The hood covered most of her dirtied face as she touched my hand.

Speechless, I let her touch me as she pulled me from the nest-like bed. “We don’t have much time,” she whispered. “Just know your mate is just fine,” she smiled.

“S-Selene? The Goddess Selene?” I tried to kneel in front of her, but she just made a little laugh.

“No, child no need for that.” The other hand appeared, now holding my palm close to her.

“I’m happy that Hades finally woke up and claimed you. I was getting worried.” Confused I sat on my knees to kneel at her to listen. “I don’t have much time, I’ve been captured, and I cannot match souls, and if I don’t find my way out quickly, I may not be able to reverse what Malachi is planning to do.”

“Malachi? Who is Malachi?” I whispered. The whispers became yells and cheers outside as she gripped me tighter. “He has us both, Hecate and I, but I fear he is working for another.”

“Another? Who is the other person?” The scene around us started to blur and the hard thuds at the door became louder.

“Ember!” Selene grabbed me harshly and had me investigate her blue spheres. “Find the Sphere of Souls,” she rushed, panicking. “It is at your favorite spot as a child. Listen to the voice inside you!” Selene hissed. My head started pounding. “You are Ember!” Selene’s voice faded as my body rocked back and forth. A loud whooshing howl swept the room, and the fire was extinguished. I was left in the dark with the moon rising above the window as the shaking became gentler. The bed faded along with the other furniture in the room. The chair where Selene sat left nothing but a crescent moon on her seat.

My eyes instantly closed and fluttered open again to be welcomed by the cold cave. Hades was knelt, stroking my shoulder gently. “There’s my beautiful soul mate,” he purred as I jumped from Cerberus. His clothes had changed, he had a dark pair of slacks on along with a crimson dress shirt that was rolled up his forearms. Black flame tattoos traveled up his arm while a few rings tinkled as Blaze sat with his tail bright.

“You’re Okay!” I wrapped my arms around his neck as he chuckled into my hair.

“Of course, I’m Okay, I’m the King of the Underworld!” Hades pulled me back and swept a thumb pad over my cheek. “I’m sorry if that scared you, I wasn’t expecting company. It’s been taken care of, and you will not see them again.” Hades smoothed out my hair as I held onto him tightly.

Hades had a been working tirelessly on that missing person report that Loukas kept bringing up this week. Now there wasn’t one but two people, and with a dream I just had, at least I thought it was a dream, I knew that they were connected. I’m dealing with gods and goddesses; I’m sure some magic is coming into play here because I’m not just an ignorant human anymore.

“Selene and Hecate are the ones missing, aren’t they?” I blurted at him as Hades eyes widened.

“How did you know those names?”

“I’ve read about Selene and the other gods in books while you work in your office. That’s beside the point,” I rushed while waving my hands about. “Selene visited me just now! I prayed for her to help you and she came to me in a dream!” I gushed. Even the rags couldn’t disguise her beauty. I couldn’t imagine Aphrodite could be more beautiful.

“W-what did she say? This is important, Jillian.” Hades held onto my shoulders.

“First of all, my name isn’t Jillian, it is Ember! That name I keep hearing from my dreams, it is my name!” My excitement woke up the Phantomtails that were all growling in annoyance while Cerberus stood up and shook them off.

Little chatters filled the room as Hades pulled me to his chest. “Ember,” he whispered.

I felt a shiver run through me; it sounded right. This was my name. Jillian always felt foreign on my tongue but truly saying that Ember was my name felt good. It felt like home. Now that I knew it was my name, I wanted him to say it all the time. “Ember.” He titled my head back and planted a kiss. “Forever my burning Ember.”

***

It took us just a blink of an eye to return to Hades’ palace. Next time he should just blink me to the cave instead of making me ride Cerberus. No offence to my doggy friend but my riding a galloping canine while dealing with your lady time wasn’t fun.

Ares and Vulcan joined us in the office as I spilled my guts about the dream I had. I spent more time describing her and how beautiful she was. Her blue moon eyes and light hair covered by nothing but rags were still stunning. Vulcan continued to smile as I spoke once she vanished a crescent moon was left on her seat.

“We need to find the Sphere of Souls, correct?” Vulcan interjected. “Not only that, Jillian-I mean Ember is the only one that can do that.” My heart sank. How was I to remember my past when I couldn’t even remember my name?

“It will be fine, Ember. One day at a time.” Hades tucked my hair behind my ear as I sat on his lap. Pulling me to his chest, he had me listen to the steady beat of his heart. “It looks like Ember is more tangled up in this mess than we thought. Selene has her involvement in it and now I wonder if that is the reason Hecate wouldn’t remove some of the spells cast on her. Hecate must have foreseen this and needed to buy time, but time for what?”

Ares had his dagger out, sharpening it on the couch. Every once in a while he would spit on the rock as he sharpened it more. Vulcan stood in deep thought how all these pieces of the puzzle were going to fit together.

“Who has a vendetta against you?” Vulcan finally broke the silence. Hades smirked while he chuckled.

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