"This is unbelievable." Phobetor repeated her words in his head, wondering how on earth she could believe all that bullshit Hypnos fed her. And Morpheus. He was now entirely sure Hypnos was too much of a coward to come here himself. But he just didn't get why he would send his son to Silverthorne.

"I suppose nothing he said is right?" Charlie sighed, even more worried about Morpheus now. She should've known that man was two-faced just by the way he shut down their deal. And how he manipulated them the first day Morpheus and her arrived to Silverthorne. He was playing a game, but even Charlie now wondered why.

"You suppose? That Uvalion- That man is not worthy of his title. I will report him and this time mention the use and manipulation of his own son. Maybe the senate will finally do something now." Charlie listened and wondered just how much Hypnos messed up. She realized that man had his own story and up until this very moment, she never cared about it. 

"And what about Morpheus? Can you just let me go and we forget about this? I just want to be with him. We won't report you or anything. It's clear you have no use of us now. Please, just let me go to him and tell him that it really isn't his fault. I will explain everything, including this big misunderstanding." She said, causing Phobetor to look at her again, remembering he wasn't alone. Her words weren't wrong, yet he somehow knew letting her go and forgetting about this was no solution.

"You still fear going to sleep?" He asked and Charlie gulped.
"I don't with Morpheus." Phobetor rolled his eyes.
"Sweet." He drily commented. But Charlie shook her head.
"No, I'm not trying to be romantic, I'm being serious. When he helps me sleep, I always wake up the next day. And when he doesn't help, I sleepwalk to him. There is no way around it." She shook her head. Phobetor's eyebrows rose.

"Helios." Phobetor muttered under his breath and swiftly sat back down.
"Of course. It explains the nightmares. The crying after he supposedly cursed you as a child. And now the sleepwalking. Hypnos must've figured it out. It is his way of trying to deny the inevitable. Of avoiding his punishment." Phobetor's grin was evil and Charlie took a step back again. 

"Figured what out?" Charlie asked. His serpent eyes snapped towards her again.
"That you-"

"Mother is on her way." A voice echoed through the cellar and Charlie flinched. Creepy, she thought, but looked back at Phobetor just in time to see him stand up and turn around. 

It was the atmosphere that immediately changed as soon as Charlie caught a glimpse of the woman. Her knowledge of Greek mythology told her that this woman had to be Nyx. She wasn't entirely sure, since mythology was always confusing and there were many sides to one story. But it looked like the woman wanted nothing more than to show Charlie who she was. The simple glare on her face of disgust as she glanced at Charlie was enough. 

"What are you doing down here?" Phobetor grabbed the woman's wrist.
"I could ask you the same. Why do you entertain this human?" Charlie noticed Phobetor had inherited her green eyes. Like mother, like son, Charlie thought.
"I am trying to get answers." He responded, letting his mother slip out of his grip and watching as she neared the cage.

"And have you gotten any?" The breathtakingly beautiful woman asked her son, her eyes still on Charlie. A gulp escaped her as she realized despite her being a Goddess, she looked like one. She had the curves of perfection and a face that looked like it was sculpted by Michael Angelo himself. Her hair was long and thick, stopping just below her chest. It was as black as Phobetor's and there was no denying these two were related.

"As a matter of fact, I have. Would you like to discuss them in your office?" Phobetor shoved his hands into his pockets now, looking slightly nervous. Why was he nervous? Charlie couldn't have him fear his mother now. She feared him and if her fear feared the woman who was currently looking at her, that would mean she was in danger.

"Why my office? You like it here better, I know." Taking her eyes off Charlie, the woman looked at Phobetor with a stern face.
"I don't wish to discuss it in front of her." He said, reminding Charlie that he still hasn't told her what he just realized.

"Then you may wait in my office while I have a little talk with our guest." The woman turned back around to smile at Charlie, who felt sick to her stomach now. Oh, she felt like she was going to throw up. 
"May I remind you that we cannot harm her. She is innocent." That surprised Charlie again, but she refrained from showing it.

"Of course, my son. Go on. I will be there before you know it." Still not taking her eyes off the human who was currently trapped in an iron barred cell, the elder woman sat down on the stool that Phobetor occupied before. Charlie watched Phobetor leave without a look in her direction and it took everything inside of her not to yell out for him to stay.

"Do you know who I am?" The woman asked, her arms crossed above her chest. Charlie shook her head swiftly.
"I suppose if I had to play along, my name would be Nyx. Yet, I believe giving ourselves mythical names is as dumb as trusting any word that comes out of Hypnos' mouth." She started and Charlie dared not interrupt.

"So tell me why Morpheus and you are here. Did you think a half Uvalion and a human crossing the borders would go unnoticed? Hypnos is not that dumb. Unless this was his plan." Nyx -or whatever her actual name was- said. Now, Charlie realized she expected an answer from her, but it was rather hard to come up with one.

"I- I don't know. We never even knew Hypnos had enemies here. I think if Morpheus did, he would not insist on me coming along." She mentally applauded for not stuttering throughout the whole sentence.
"Why wouldn't he? He's Hypnos' son after all. Who knows his true intentions." The woman said and Charlie immediately shook her head. 

"If I know one thing about Morpheus, it's that he is genuine and selfless. Sometimes a little too much. He is naive, maybe. But he only wants what's best for me. He always does the right thing, no matter the consequences for him." Charlie was sure of her words and had no doubt that Morpheus had no idea about Hypnos' plan. A plan she still hasn't figured out. 

"How heroic." Nyx looked unimpressed when she said that.
"But that doesn't change the fact that he is Hypnos' son. And if I have to, I will kill him myself in order to get what I want. Falling in love with him might not be the best idea, human. For both of you." She stood up and turned around, but Charlie ran to the bars.

"Wait!" She yelled and to her surprise, the woman turned around.
"Can you just tell me if he's alright?" Charlie really worried about him. Knowing Morpheus, he would probably blame himself and she never wanted him to do that.

"He's miserable." She shrugged. Charlie shook her head.

"Wait! You must tell him that he hasn't cursed me. Please. If I can't tell him myself, you have to. From what I've collected, you're just mad at Hypnos. Morpheus has nothing to do with whatever business you have with him. He doesn't deserve to suffer like that." Charlie yelled.

"I must not listen to you. Who do you think you are?" Nyx sounded offended.
"Please, just- Let me tell him. Let me go and we will figure out together how to get to Hypnos." The woman laughed at her suggestion, the same evil laughter from her son. And she had the exact same reaction as before.

"You must think of me as a fool." She growled now, stepping closer. Charlie shook her head.
"I- I- I have these cards. Little golden cards in my bag in my hotel room. Hypnos wanted me to update him every night. You can communicate with him through them. You just write a letter and then toss them out of the window. You can get to him directly. But please leave Morpheus out of it." She begged.

"Cards." She sounded very interested now and Charlie felt a bit relieved.
"Yes, we use them as a medium in order to communicate. You just have to write a letter on them and toss-"
"You just explained how they work, why are you repeating yourself? I will discuss it with my son. Whatever happens to Morpheus is up to Hypnos. But for now, you stay here."

"You don't understand! I need Morpheus. I don't have much time to figure this out, I can feel it." Charlie burst out, causing the Uvalion to glare at her.
"Oh yes, your sleepwalking and never waking up again." The woman shook her head with an amused smile. 

"It is not funny." Charlie scoffed.
"It is to me. But don't bother explaining, my son will do that in a second." She said with a tone of finality that urged Charlie to stop talking. She watched as the woman walked back upstairs, not glancing at her once. Why would she? It was clear to Charlie that she thought nothing better of her than the dirt on her shoes. 

"What have I done?" Charlie asked herself, reflecting on how much trouble she had caused Morpheus. Just the thought of him blaming himself hurt her heart. It was physical pain she was currently in as her knees gave in again. She was hungry, cold and lonely. She just wanted to see Morpheus again. 

"Nathaniel." She corrected her own thoughts aloud. It felt wrong for her to tell these Uvalions his real name, so she kept calling him Morpheus. But to her, since last night he was Nathaniel and she liked Nathaniel way better than Morpheus already. 

"Who is Nathaniel?" The same voice as before echoed through the empty cellar. Charlie sprang up from her seated position and looked around the dark cave. But she couldn't see anyone and was slightly afraid that she was going insane already.

"Hello?" For some reason, Charlie felt the need to whisper. 
"Hello." The same voice responded. Another look around.
"Where are you?" She asked, now louder.

"Everywhere. And nowhere." That wasn't confusing at all, Charlie thought.
"And which one of the Greek Gods are you?" She asked.
"Actually, we are not Greek Gods." She rolled her eyes at that and sighed.

"Okay, but what is your name?" Came her second question.
"Oh yes, my name is Phantasos." His words made Charlie nod. Of course. 
"You don't sound too upset with me, Phantasos." She admitted.

"I have no reason to be, human." Charlie snorted.
"Neither do your mother and brother." 
"That is true." Silence for a long minute.

"Can you tell me where I am?" She tried.
"I'm afraid I cannot. But I can make you an apple." The voice said and in that exact minute, a juicy looking green apple appeared in front of Charlie. She caught it before it hit the floor. Before taking a bite and succumbing to her growling stomach, she hesitated. 

"It is not poisoned, we have already captured you." The voice said as if hearing her thoughts.
"Can you hear my thoughts?" She asked, before biting into the fruit in her hand. Her eyes closed at how fresh it tasted. Charlie loved apples, especially pink lady ones, but this green one did the job as well.

"I cannot, but I can see you." He said, causing Charlie to look around again.
"Why don't you show yourself?" She asked, before remembering the books she read about him.
"I do not have a human form. It is part of why my mother wants Hypnos dead." He revealed.

"What?" She asked and sat down criss crossed on the ground.
"Yes, you heard right." Phantasos answered.
"What did Hypnos do to you?" Charlie asked, fearing his answer would only worsen her worry about Nathaniel.