The Reviver's Passage: The Odd Stalker's Proposal

The-Reviver's-Passage

The Reviver’s Passage: Chapter V

by: Prappies

The sun was high in the sky, casting light and warmth down on the trees, plants, and river. Birds sang, and creatures ate their fill. Yet, while life went on for most beings of the land, a woman cloaked in black and covered in dirt and filth walked with a defeated expression. In her arms, she carried the unmoving body of her friend. Carried him through the woods, river and trees that blocked her from her house. The sun shined brightly as if no such evil had just occurred.

Her mind remained empty, having nothing more to do other than to lead her feet in the direction she must walk to get home. Panic blinded her no longer, her feet finally led her in the right direction, there was nothing left to be scared of. All damage had already been done.

Now she must suffer whatever comes next.

Her legs successfully got her across the river and to her house. Her eyes did not stray once away from the man she held.

Heavy as he was, she felt like she was carrying air. She felt nothing, both physically and mentally. The body in her arms, being much bigger and heavier than her own body weight, felt like nothing. Like a feather pressed to her palm.

She finally made her way back home. She was about to walk into her house when she bumped into someone.

She stopped her walk absentmindedly. She looked up to see the man she had helped before, the one who saved her in the forest from those bandits. The one who had given no name.

She looked up further to look into his face.

“Can I help you?” she said, no emotion behind her words. Neither hate nor confusion. Just an empty bottomless pit.

“I believe you can. May I come in?” he asked cheerfully, paying no heed to the corpse in her arms.

“No, I am busy right now. Come another time. Or even better yet, come back again never. Now please leave,” she said.

She attempted to walk past him, but the tall man made no intention to move. She looked up at him, tired and in grief.

“Can’t you see that I am busy?” She asked.

“Very much so. I am not blind.” He answered.

“So why don’t you move, you damn man.” she said hardly, she was beginning to lose her patience.

“I’m afraid I cannot do that yet.” He simply answered. He grabbed her shoulders to stop her from walking past him.

“Go away, why can’t you just listen, it’s really not that hard… please,” she croaked out. Tears once again building up in her eyes. The man in front of her simply watched her for a few seconds, his eyes showing no emotion for the woman in front of him.

“I have a proposal to make,” he stated calmly.

The woman didn’t respond at first. She tried to kick the man away with her feet, but he didn’t budge.

“No proposal can make me happy right now. It’s too late, everything I’ve loved is all gone.” she said. “Not even a miracle can save him right now. He’s already dead. Please go… I-I can’t take anything right now.”

She openly sobbed now. Her shoulders were shaking with grief. She buried her face in her hands.

The man in front of her sighed. And then gave her a little smile.

“Maybe not a miracle, but maybe a deal?” He asked. He leaned against the little house.

Hestia looked up and sniffled. Confusion added to her grief and anger.

“A deal? What kind of fool are you? If a miracle can’t bring him back, what makes you think a deal can. You are no one, you are simply a man. Man cannot create miracles for the dead. Only gods can, but they won’t do such things. They are too busy with other things to focus on bringing one man back from the dead. What makes Wally so different and special from anyone else who ever died. To them, nothing. To me… everything. Please be gone.” Her voice shook, but was steady and cold enough to give the message she meant to give.

She adjusted her grip on her friend, whose skin had begun to turn white with death, and turned to walk away, sensing there was no way to make the man leave. She wasn’t in the right of mind to deal with him so she decided to leave until he would leave her alone.

But then she stopped. Her eyes widened at the thing in front of her. In front of her was a light majestic blue light. It simply flew in the air. It came close to her face, a small, sweet, whooshing sound followed it as it moved.

Even in all her grief, she couldn’t stop the small ball of curiosity welling up. Her demeanor lightened slightly. She looked at the small ball of blue light; Small yet sweet. She was stunned, her anguish seemed to vanish. The anguish at losing someone so beloved seemed to cease. How can something so small, so irrelevant… give this weird feeling. What is this odd feeling anyway? It feels so different, but at the same time it feels like something She knew she had felt before… what is it?

The little light flew around her, the whooshing sounds it made as it moved reminded Hestia of the gleeful laughter of a small child. That was when it struck her.

The sensation she was feeling was none other than hope. Hope was all she had all these years. Just a simple yearning for better days. Days where she wouldn’t have to take care of a sick man. Days where they could be regular everyday people. Hope fueled the desire that refused to let go for ten entire years. But where exactly did this beautiful little thing come from?

As if reading her mind, it jumped up in the air. It then sped away, towards something behind her.

It can’t be… her eyes widened as she slowly turned around.

The man behind her wore a warm smile, with the small ball of light playing in his right palm, which was facing up towards the sky. He turned and twisted around his fingers. The light circled around his hand and through his fingers. Until it finally extinguished itself.

Hestia stood there, starstruck. Not a single word could escape from her mouth for a good few seconds. Whatever words she meant to say, got stuck in her throat.

“What-what are you? Are you a god?” she asked, her voice just above a whisper. The man stood a little taller, and pushed himself off the building, so that he was no longer leaning on it. He then walked towards her, and stopped when he was a foot away from Hestia and the corpse.

“The miracle you wished for.” he simply answered.

She just stared at him, wide eyed and confused.

“What-why?” She asked.

Now it was the mysterious man’s turn to be confused.

“Is something the matter? You look more apprehensive than happy.” he questioned her.

“You’re willing to bring Wally back to life?” deduced a very confused Hestia.

The man blinked. “Yes, that’s why I’m here.”

“Why?”

The man looked taken aback. “Huh?”

He was definitely not expecting that.

‘Why… out of the hundreds of thousands of people who died today. Why Wally. Why is he so special?” She asked. “Why would one god…choose him?”

The man in front of her was silent for a few seconds, at first Hestia thought he was ignoring him. But when she looked closer, she realized he was lost in thought.

But then, he smiled.

“Well, it’s not him I’m interested in,” he answered. “In fact… it’s you I’m interested in.”

“What? Me? Why me!? I’m a nobody… I’m no one special,” she stated quickly.

“Is that so? That may be the case… but even a ‘nobody’ has virtues that a ‘somebody’ may need. In this case, you’re the ‘nobody’, and I am the ‘somebody’.” he answered.

“I-” asked Hestia.

“As I said before, this is a deal, not a one-way gift. I have what you need, and you have what I need.” Said the man as he pointed at himself, and then at her.

“I am sorry, but what is it that I can do for you, and what is it that you can do to bring Wally back?” asked Hestia.

The man in front of her sighed and scratched the back of his head.

“Well, that is a long story… but I do suppose it is a necessary one… Alright, are you up for a long story?” he asked her.

“I have nothing else to do,” Hestia responded.

“Well, if that’s what you want, I’m more than happy to oblige. But for god’s sake… put that corpse down somewhere, I can’t take you seriously.”

Hestia quickly looked down at her arms, and her demeanor darkened. The man took notice of this.

“Let me take that for you, meet me down by the river. Ok?” He asked, gruffly.

Hestia did not answer. The man slowly put his arms underneath the body, and grabbed it. He attempted to tug it from her grip, but the saddened woman did not let go. He attempted a harder tug, but that did not work either.

Instead, he looked into her eyes, and smiled a warm and comforting smile, that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Hey Hestia,” he asked her. The woman turned up to finally look at him.

“It’s ok, you can trust me.” he tried.

Hestia’s eyes bore into him, but he was not swayed. He stared firm into her eyes, there was not much warmth in his eyes, like he was forcing himself to put on a facade. After a while, Hestia gave in and released the body.

The man lifted the body easily and walked into the house. Hestia heeded his words and walked down to the river slowly. When she reached the riverside, she sat down and waited for him.

She looked towards the forest, lost deeply in her thoughts.

Then suddenly, a large hand fell onto her shoulder and jostled her. She quickly turned around to see the face of the odd man. He was smiling down at her. He then lowered himself down and sat at her left. He leaned back on his hands letting out a little sigh, before turning to address her.

“So… I guess I have to start with why I am here huh. What is a god who usually resides in the underworld doing up here?” he asked her with an award-winning smile.

Hestia’s eyes widened. “God… of… the underworld?”

The man clicked his tongue. “No, not the GOD of the underworld. I am just a god who resides in the underworld. I merely live down there.”

“A god of the underworld? So there are multiple gods down there I am guessing. Why are there so many gods in the underworld? How many are there?” Asked Hestia.

“Many, the underworld is a place for gods of a certain kind to reside.”

Hestia frowned. “A certain kind?”

The god waved his hand. “I’ll tell you about that later.”

Hestia was not happy with that answer, but decided to drop it. “What’s your father’s name?”

“My father has no name. He is merely the God of the Underworld. I am a god who resides in the Underworld. He is THE God of the Underworld,” said the man.

“This has got to be some kind of a joke. Gods? Talking to me? You’ve got to be messing with me,” Hestia laughed, she covered her mouth with her hand. She attempted to sequester her giggles when she noticed the “god” looked absolutely offended.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “But you’ve got to come up with better lies than that. What is it you want anyway?”

The god looked scandalized. “You do not think I am a god?”

“Of course not.”

“But the magic I showed you… the little light I played with. Was that not enough?”

“My mind is playing tricks on me. That’s what all this is.” Hestia laughed, wandering ever so slightly if she was losing her mind. Wally was dead, and a random man was claiming to be a god. What else could happen today? Everything around her must be fiction, her mind reeling from some other trauamtic event that it was making up all these fake scenerios to help her cope. She was not coping well, so her subconsious was failing very badly.

The odd man gave her a side eye, looking as flabbergasted as she felt. “Well how can I convince you that I am speaking the truth?”

Hestia looked thoughtful. She folded her arms and closed her eyes. After a short while, she opened them, and then snapped her fingers, having gotten her answer.

She looked the man in the eye. She then pointed to a random tree. “Set that tree on fire. With a snap of your fingers.” She grabbed his palm and poked it thrice to prove her point. She then dropped it.

Despite the day’s events, a small part of her couldn’t help but be pleased at finding an impossible task for this said “god” to complete.

She felt a sudden gust of wind smack the side of her face, her long hair flew into her mouth and eyes. She slightly gagged as the hair got stuck in her tongue. She pushed the hair out of her mouth, but not before she could feel a sudden feeling of warmth in the air.

The air pressed against her entire body. The sudden rise in humidity tickled her exposed neck. The newly heated air percolated through her thick coat. Sweat was quickly forming on her body.

She sucked in her breath as she turned around slowly, not having missed the god’s giddy and arrogant smirk. Her eyes widened when she saw the tree beside her burning down. Branches were blackening at a very fast rate. Leaves had turned to ash, a pile forming at the foot of the trunk.

“Are you convinced now?” Asked the god. Hestia’s eyes were wide as she watched the tree fall apart. The bark blackened and charred as the bright orange flames ate away at it. The leaves were the first go. The green leaves turned to ash fairly quickly, disintegrating before falling to the ground- swaying in the air in much the same way that snow fell. Soft, floating, and elegant. The only difference being one was black and hot to the touch, and the other was white and chill on your tongue.

“I can’t think of any way to have convinced me so. So…back to your father,” she said, looking at the burning tree in horror, and having been fully convinced of the man’s godly status. “Important guy huh?”

“Yes, he is going to be very important later on. He is the one you’ll have to appeal to if you want to bring your one and only back,” mocked the man.

“I have to appeal to the God of the Underworld himself? What am I supposed to say to him and how? It’s not like going into a friend’s house for some tea. How can I enter the house of the Underworld?” Asked Hestia, curiosity and fear getting a hold of her.

“Well, it’s not about convincing him to give you one-and-only back. It’s about impressing him. You’d have to enter the underworld first, then go through hell to reach his abode,” said the man.

“Through hell?” questioned Hestia, lifting an eyebrow.

“Yes, you’d have to pass a series of trials to reach him. By passing those trials, only then can you impress him.”

“What are these trials?”

After that question, the man sat there. He sat staring into space.

“The trials would be… my brothers,” he pushed out finally.

“Your brothers?” She asked. Now she looked like she was hanging onto every word escaping his mouth.

“Yes, my brothers… you’d have to pass through them first before coming face to face with my father.”

“Ok, that’s all good, but why are you helping me?” She asked him. Confused at everything, But slowly taking all the wacky information in.

He stared at her with a weird smile, then chuckled.

“I was wondering when you’d ask that question,” He admitted. “The reason I want to help you…is because I need to earn the approval of my father as well.”

“I’m sorry… you need to earn the approval of your father? Why would you have to do that?” Hestia implored, very confused.

“Let’s say, a short while ago, my family and I had a small falling out. So in my father’s anger, he banished me from the underworld. I want to go back home to my domain and return to my role by my father’s side. And for that, I have to earn my way back,” he answered with a sad smile, which immediately fell when the confused expression on Hestia’s face did not disappear.

“You still seem confused,” he stated.

“But why would you need me?” she asked. “You’re a god, you can very well do it by yourself. Why would you come all the way over here to get me? And what is it I have that you don’t?”

“I don’t think it’s quite like that. I am a god, I am far superior to all you humans. And the other gods are superior to me.”

Hestia looked slightly annoyed. “So, why am I needed then? What can a puny human do for a god? An immortal being themself?”

“Well… when I was banished from the Underworld… I was given an ultimatum. That ultimatum required a human. A human was to come with me to the Underworld.”

“And why is that?” questioned Hestia.

“You ask far too many questions. I am giving you the offer of a trillion lifetimes… bringing back the dead. It would do you well to accept it,” he told her scantily.

Hestia was stunned by the sudden burst of rudeness.

Hestia was highly suspicious. It was a wild and daring offer, after all. She knew very little about the situation she might be putting herself into, but she did know that the man seemed to be hiding something. Something he didn’t want her to know. But still, no matter how odd and stupid the idea seemed, the prospect of getting the man she was very fond of back, was too promising.

“But I cannot fight, yes I make blades and can bring down a highwayman or two. But that’s nothing compared to fighting four gods,” she reasoned. Even though the prospect of getting Wally back seemed amazing, she wanted to see what this god saw in her. Because clearly, it was not her combat capability.

The man looked at her, and waved his hand. The beautiful blue light from before reappeared. It circled his hand.

“Swoosh,” he said, while suddenly pointing at her. The blue light zoomed towards her, and disappeared into her chest.

“Huh-what?” she said, patting her chest trying to look for wherever the blue light disappeared to. She turned around thinking it was behind her, and then looked to her right and left.

She saw nothing. She then turned to look at the man, who was smiling playfully and broadly.

“What was that?” She asked him.

“Half of my power, I transmitted half of my power to you,” he answered. Hestia’s eyes widened.

“Half your power? Half the power of a god?” She asked, stunned.

He waved away her remark. “Half the power of a weak god, don’t forget that.”

“Why would you trust me with half your power?” She asked. “You don’t even know me.”

“Well normally, I’d be giving you my entire power… I’m giving you half just to show you what would happen.

“Your entire power?” she choked.

“Yes, going back to your last question, I don’t know much about you. But I know enough. I know you’d go far just to bring Wally back from the dead. Even if it means risking your own soul.”

“I’d be willing to do any… wait, risk my own soul?” She looked terrified.

“Of course… dying is honestly the best-case scenario. Mess up, and our souls could be sentenced to purgatory for all of eternity,” He said blatantly.

“Oh….” said Hestia in a small voice.

The man turned to look back at her with a calculating look again. “

“If you want to back out, now’s the time,” he told her.

Her terrified expression was quickly replaced by one with determination. Hestia knew that the deal was too sweet to let go, so she had to ensure this “god” trusted her enough. At least, trust her enough to not duke out halfway through the journey.

“No.. no I have to do this… for him. I can’t abandon him, especially when I just got this good chance. I will do this.”

The man’s smile turned into a smirk. He licked his lips.

“Well, that’s wonderful…” He got up, and stood, while looking down at her. “Get packed, we leave in ten minutes. Pack only what you need and what you can carry. Mainly non-perishable food. Water will not be a problem” He looked towards the sun.

“We’re leaving so soon?” She asked surprised.

The man looked back towards her. “Yes… you got a problem with that? I’d say the quicker the better.”

Hestia shook her head. “No, no, no, you’re right. I’ll be back in five.”

She got up and sprinted towards the house. She slammed the door open, and began to rummage around her cabinet.

None of my food is non-perishable. The only food close to that is rice, but that has to be cooked.

“Take the rice, it can be cooked there,” said the man appearing behind her. She jumped.

“Dear gods, you scared me.”

“Take the rice, it’s the best option you have. Take enough for one meal a day, for two weeks. We won’t have time nor the resources for you to eat more than once. And I doubt you can carry more than that,” he said. “If we absolutely must, there will be some food to eat there in the Underworld. Not the greatest for living humans though.”

“Ok,” she grabbed out the bag of rice, and pulled out a large piece of cloth to store the rice in. She put as much rice in it as she could and tied it shut. She tied it to her belt where it hung. She turned around to come face to face with her sword. The man held it out to her.

She smiled and grabbed it, and slid it into her belt.

‘Thank you,” she said.

“You’re welcome, let’s go.” he walked out of the house.

She followed him, but stopped just before she left the house. From the corner of her eye, she could see someone on Wally’s bed. She turned her head slightly to the right and noticed it was Wally’s body himself. The god outside had laid him on his back, his chin raised to the ceiling, with his hair neatly underneath him.

His hands were clamped together on his stomach. He looked like a corpse waiting to be put in a coffin. But Hestia would not allow that.

She turned to look at the dead man on the bed. Stared long and hard, gulped and left.

I’ll bring you back no matter what, I promise you that.

And with that, she went to meet the god.

the-reviver's-passage