The Cult of Kronos Read online

  Penny looked up and smiled at Peter. He smiled back down at her and nodded his head. “Well, when I heard that Kronos was out for you,” he said, “I couldn't just wait around for the rest of you to show up.”

  “Come on inside,” Jason said, extracting himself from the pile of hugs. “You two are drenched.”

  Jason found some sweatpants and old t-shirts for Celene and Peter. He expected them to look silly, dressed in his clothing, but when Celene had come out of the master bedroom, she looked as if she was wearing her own clothes.

  “How?” Jason had asked.

  “Dying refreshed some things for me. Like how to change form.”

  The pizza had arrived while Peter was explaining how death awakened their memories. The two had shifted into strange forms until the pizza delivery boy had left. It would have been a crisis had the pimply high school senior seen his dead teacher and classmate sitting calmly on the sofa.

  Realizing that a single pizza was no longer enough, Jason baked a batch of frozen garlic bread. They caught Peter up on the events of the last five months and then filled Celene in on everything that had happened since her death. There wasn't much to tell, just her funeral and a political scandal that had been thoroughly ribbed on The Daily Show.

  The four decided not to try to text or call any of the members of The Pantheon with the news. It wasn't safe. They needed to have a meeting, they decided, which would be difficult with Zach and June already in Gainesville and Minnie all the way up at MIT.

  “We'll have a meeting with whoever we can get,” Celene said. “And I'm sure if we sent Minnie a coded letter, she'd get the picture.”

  “And Zach?” Jason asked. “He's our leader, right? He has to know as soon as possible.”

  “It's only five hours to Gainesville,” Celene said. “Give or take. We can make a road trip. Not like I have a job to go back to.”

  Jason nodded. He wondered what Peter and Celene would do with their lives, now that they were legally dead. Jason chuckled; it was out of the question, but Jason would have loved to see the look on Dr. Phillips' face if Celene walked in on the first day of school and asked for her job back.

  “Tomorrow I'll call, then,” Jason said. “I'll explain that it's something they have to see to understand and invite them over for a meeting.”

  Peter yawned. Jason pointed at him and then started cleaning up the plates. “Mr. Hadley has a great point. You just walked back from the underworld. You need sleep.”

  “Well, walked. Then caught a greyhound. Then took a cab,” Peter said. “We didn't hike from New Orleans. That'd be madness.”

  “How did you pay for a bus ticket?”

  “We didn’t,” Peter said. He reached out and touched Celene’s arm. For a moment they faded from sight before appearing again. “And the cab, well, I may have borrowed some cash from someone on the bus.”

  “Penny, can you get a set of clean sheets out of the linen closet for Peter? You can take the twins' room and I'll camp on the couch.”

  Jason brought the stacks of dishes to the kitchen and loaded the dishwasher. Celene followed him in, carrying an armful of cups. “You can have my room,” Jason said. “I'm not sure if you had a real bed in the underworld.”

  “Wasn't there long enough to get one. I've been camping and sleeping on bus seats.”

  “Then it'll feel nice to have a real mattress for once. I got one of those memory foam things in April. I never want to get out of bed anymore.”

  Jason lead Celene into his room, a calming space decorated in shades of gray and slate blue (a space uncluttered by children's toys) and stripped the bed. He ducked out to the linen closet to get clean sheets. Celene helped him make the bed; the two worked silently together.

  “Your memories,” Jason said as he laid the black and blue quilted comforter back on the queen-sized bed. “You have them all?”

  “They're a little jumbled,” Celene said. “But yes, I have them.”

  Jason started shuffling through his dresser drawers for something she could wear to bed. “Would you prefer to sleep in pants that are too big or shorts that are too big?”

  “Jason, don't worry,” she said. When he turned around, Celene was dressed in a comfortable pair of yoga pants and a cotton sleep shirt, both sage green.

  “The money you'll save on clothes,” he said.

  There was a long silence. The sound of rain and thunder raged on outside. Jason didn't know what to say. What was an appropriate conversation to have with someone who had been dead for a week.

  “I'm sorry,” he finally said. “about abandoning all of you in March. I shouldn't have.”

  “You have your family to worry about.”

  “You and Penny should be my family too. I ran away.”

  “You did what—”

  “I was a coward,” Jason said.

  “Hey, no, don't think that,” Celene crossed the room and took his hands. “People were dying. You should not be ashamed of protecting your loved ones—”

  “But I loved you,” Jason said. “Are my kids any safer when I'm at home twiddling my thumbs? No, because my name is already on Kronos's list. Prometheus and Epimethius knew to use me. Menoetius knew to use me. I sealed my fate the moment we called that first meeting. I don't get to run away now. The Pantheon is my family. You and Penny are my family.”

  “Let's go back to that loved part. Past tense?”

  Jason shook his head. “Love. Present tense.”

  Celene placed her hands on the side of his face and drew him down into a kiss. Jason wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. It had been five months since he had kissed her goodbye at the airport. All of that time seemed to fade away as she parted her lips against his. All of his worry, all of his regrets about that afternoon in March dissolved into the ether as Celene pulled him back towards the bed.

  As each article of her clothing was shed, it transformed back to its original form. The yoga pants that hit the floor shifted into Jason's old, worn sweatpants, the shirt a men's football jersey. Only Celene stayed the way he knew her, with her cat-like green eyes shining up at him, a curtain of dark brown hair spread like a wreath around her head. Her long slender fingers danced across his back, slid around his sides, and played with the narrow trail of hairs on his stomach.

  It was slow and sweet, the way he had imagined it when they made their plans in the airport that morning five months ago. Perhaps there was no wine and there were no candles, but none of that was needed to make the moment perfect. And when it was over, when they settled, breathless, against the pillows and finally decided to climb under the sheets, Jason was free of regret.

  Peter was at the kitchen table eating a powdered donut when Jason wandered out the next morning. The box of donuts, a variety pack of plain, powdered, and chocolate coated, had been brand new when Jason had brought it home yesterday afternoon. Now it was half empty. Jason shuffled over to the coffee pot and turned it on. He pulled a can of coffee out of the freezer and dumped a few scoops into a clean filter and set the machine to percolate.

  “Penny still sleeping?” he asked Peter.

  “Yeah,” Peter said. “How about Dr. Davis?”

  Jason hesitated.

  “I noticed you didn't sleep on the couch last night.”

  “Uh…”

  “How was that? A goddess.” Peter licked the powdered sugar off of his fingers and grabbed another donut—chocolate.

  Jason scowled and turned back to the cupboard. “I'm not having this conversation with you.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because you're seventeen,” Jason grumbled.

  “No, I'm not. I'm dead. Technically my age is not applicable.”

  “Well, for a dead man you sure eat a lot.” Jason shook his head. He sat down with a rice cake while he waited for his coffee to brew.

  “I'm thousands of years old.”

  “Hey, tell me, if you're thousands of years old, why did you hang out on the throne for five months before deci
ding to make an appearance?”

  Peter shrugged, “The memories are kind of messy right now. It never occurred to me that I could leave.”

  “Never occurred to you? Didn't you think that maybe you should try to come back? You're kind of the boss down there.”

  “I didn't think anyone would want me,” Peter said quietly.

  “You didn't…” Jason sighed. “Of course we wanted you. Everyone was destroyed over it. Even Nick was crying at your funeral.”

  “What was I gonna come back to? A dad who only stopped beating me because he was afraid of me? A minimum wage job?”

  “Friends. Penny missed you.”

  “It's not like that with Penny. She's never going to—”

  “She's still your friend.”

  Peter put the donuts down and pushed the box away. “I guess I figured everyone would be kind of relieved when I died.”

  “Relieved? Peter, it's been five months. Five months since you jumped off that damned schoolhouse and devastated everyone in The Pantheon. I still have nightmares about it at least once a week, showing up in time to see the Titan tumble off that roof, to see you appear on the ground, broken. That wasn't supposed to be you and Frank and Lewis up on that roof. That was supposed to be me.”

  “Yeah, well, good thing it was me,” Peter said. “Lewis and Frank couldn't just walk out of the underworld without me. And you…you're not even one of us.”

  “I've been one of you since Celene and I called that meeting two years ago. Maybe I'm not a god, and maybe I can't shoot lightning or turn invisible, but this is my responsibility too.”

  “I sacrificed myself for you guys,” Peter said, standing up and walking to the sink. “I thought you'd be grateful.”

  “We are,” Jason said. “We are, Peter. You just…you didn't have to throw your life away. It's worth something. If you did it for your friends, that's honorable. If you did it because you had a death wish, that's…”

  “What?” Peter turned his head to look back at Jason.

  “Tragic.”

  Peter chewed on his lip. Jason looked him over, now noticing that something was different. Given the chance to conjure clothing from his imagination, Peter had set aside the baggy thrift-store clothes of his life. Instead, he was wearing a fitted black shirt with black leather on the shoulders and down the sleeves. His trousers, too, were well-fitted, and Jason was sure it was the first time he had seen Peter in pants without worn-out knees.

  “I see you're taking some liberties with fashion,” Jason said. Peter looked healthier and more confident in clothes that fit him well.

  “Yeah. I uh… no more hand-me-downs.”

  “It looks good,” Jason said with a nod. “Listen,” he got up and went to pour a cup of coffee. “I'm sorry about getting on your case. You stopped a Titan. That’s something to be proud of.”

  “It's alright,” Peter said. “I guess I wasn't thinking that people might miss me.”

  “Well, I'm glad we have you back. Most people don't get second chances.”

  “Second chances,” Peter repeated, “Like you and Dr. Davis?”

  Jason laughed. “I'm not sharing details with you. You're still a kid to me, oh great Lord Hades, King of the Underworld.”

  “Have it your way,” Peter said. He grabbed a clean mug and poured himself a cup of coffee before sipping it, black.

  “No one loves the man whom he fears.”

  -Aristotle

  viii.

  Queen Hera was seated at his right hand side,

  and Prometheus took a seat at his left,

  while Lord Zeus drank heavily of wine and sang

  at his weekly feast.

  Zeus was already sloppy with too much drink

  and boasting loudly of his latest exploits.

  Prometheus lectured him under his breath;

  his words went unheard.

  As Zeus continued to ignore his cousin,

  who still remembered his long imprisonment—

  the vultures picking at his liver in hell—

  the Titan grew mad.

  At last Prometheus rose and slammed his fist,

  shaking the entire table with his strength.

  The feast grew quiet as everyone listened

  to his loud tirade.

  And when Lord Zeus had recovered from his shock

  of being chastised in front of the others,

  he began to shout back with a reddened face.

  Spit flew from his lips.

  Prometheus did not wait for Zeus to bark

  the order to eject him from the chamber.

  He stormed off into the night to find his kin

  to punish great Zeus.

  “Union gives strength.”

  -Aesop

  VIII.

  Zach skipped furniture shopping and drove back to Olympia Heights the next morning. Jason's tone had sounded urgent. June stayed behind to pick out a sofa, coffee table, and end table for their little apartment in Gainesville. Zach sped along the Florida Turnpike, only slowing for tolls, and made it home in four and a half hours.

  Just after lunch, The Pantheon—minus June and Minnie—sat down in Jason's living room. Zach paced around in jeans and a plain white undershirt. He needed to shave and his hair was messy from tugging at it during the drive. Devon, Frank, and baby Xander took the sofa, and Penny sat next to them, admiring the infant's golden hair. Teddy and Lewis sat on the step to the sunken living room, hoarding the pizza rolls that Jason had set out. Diana and Evan took the loveseat, and Nick perched on the arm. Valerie sat on a folding chair that Jason had put out for the gathering, and Astin lounged on the floor. Peter and Celene waited in the kitchen.

  “So what's up?” Zach asked. “What did I risk a ticket to get down here for?”

  Jason pointed to an empty chair.

  “Sit down.”

  Zach sat down and leaned forward, bridging his fingertips. “Alright. Shoot.”

  “I had a surprise visit last night,” Jason began.

  “Was it Kronos?” Lewis interrupted.

  “No. No, thank God.” Jason paused. “Celene and Peter showed up on my doorstep.”

  “Say what now?” Lewis said.

  “But, Doc, they're dead,” Teddy Wexler said. “Are you sure?”

  “We're sure,” Penny said.

  Jason looked back towards the kitchen. “You can come out now,” he called.

  Celene walked out first. She was dressed in a dark-green wrap blouse, tied with a sash, and a long, brown skirt. Peter followed close behind her, dressed in his black shirt with the leather shoulders and gray trousers. He carried the water skin from the underworld on a strap around his shoulder. They stopped a few feet behind the spot where Lewis and Teddy sat and waited for the murmurs to die down.

  “Wait,” Nick said, holding his hand to signal Celene to stay put. “Menoetius could change shape. How can we be sure?”

  “It's my mom,” Penny said, unconsciously scratching at the edges of the cast on her right arm. “I know my mom. She hasn't been gone that long.”

  “And nobody but Hades could have escorted me out of the underworld,” Celene said. “But thank you, Nick, for thinking clearly. Safety should come first.”

  Zach got up from his seat and hugged Celene. “It's good to have you back,” he said. He then turned to Peter. Peter looked startled, but Zach pulled him into a hug before he could back away. “You too,” he said. “You went out like a badass, but we prefer you alive.”

  Zach's display of affection sparked a round of hugs that took ten minutes to resolve itself. The group had always felt like a family, but that had been in the bickering, teasing sense. It took the deaths of two of their members to make them express the love part of their family dynamic.

  When everyone settled down, Penny was wiping tears from her eyes and Frank was smiling like a toddler with a new toy. Lewis did a little excited spin that looked something like a tornado and sent the papers on Jason's coffee table flying about the ro
om.

  “Oh man, we have to call Minnie,” Astin said.

  “No!” Zach snapped. “After that nosy P.D., Spade, with all the murders we've been around, we can't be sure we're not on some NSA watch list. From now on, we don't discuss anything supernatural on the phone or internet. That includes email.”

  “I can work on our own special encryption program,” Evan said. “We can't have you in Gainesville and Minnie in Massachusetts without some way to communicate. She can't just drive down to Miami whenever we have news to share, especially if we're in danger.”

  “Get on that this afternoon,” Zach said. “You can sneak a thumb drive into a care package to Minnie with the software. Until Evan writes the software, the line is silent. Got it? Nothing more than a, 'Hey, come meet me at Starbucks.'”

  Jason nodded. “Zach's right. Safety is our priority. Celene and Peter did come back, but you can still be killed and still be captured. Remember that vase Epimetheus and Prometheus tried to lock you in?”

  “There's an even bigger one of those,” Peter said. “And it's called Tartarus, the underworld's prison pit. Our old friends are there right now. If you think mortal cellmates are bad…”

  “Peter,” Celene said, “The water.”

  “Right,” Peter said, slipping the strap for the water skin over his head and passing it to Jason. “We ran into someone,” Peter said, “on our way out. Ryan Bear was hanging out by the Mnemosyne.”

  “Ryan?” Diana asked, perking up.

  Peter nodded, his solemn black eyes connecting with hers for a moment. “Yes. He was worried about you.”

  “Most of the souls drink from the Lethe,” Celene explained. “They forget their lives on earth. Ryan and a few others chose a different path.”

  “Mnemosyne,” Peter explained, “is the river of memory. Now, dying unlocked my memories and my ability to do this.” Without warning, Peter shifted suddenly. He grew six inches in stature and gained over a hundred pounds of muscle. The wild-eyed, bearded Hades stood before The Pantheon.