Chapter Nineteen

"You've made a very big mistake coming here, Xenon." Zelus muttered as he stood across the chamber from me, decked out in full ancient Atlantean battle regalia. I clenched my fists at my sides, watching him warily.

"Zelus, get out of my way." I commanded. Zelus curled his lip.

"Bite me," He sneered, then raked me with a disgusted glare, "I can't believe you'd turn on your own family like this. And even worse, siding with the Greeks? Have you any idea the mistake you've made? Father will not only never forgive you for this, but he will torment you for eternity as he will with the Greeks once he's enslaved them." I laughed at that and it only infuriated Zelus further as I took a guarded stance, feet apart and hands flexing as I conjured a pair of swords to clench in my fists.

"No. The only one who's made a mistake here was Atlan. He lied to me and he betrayed me. He tried to kill my friends and he kidnapped Lea's infant. He tricked an ancient demon into falling in love with him just so he could use his powers to his advantage and now said demon is eternally enslaved. He wants to destroy a whole pantheon, a whole race, because he feels threatened by them. And he should. The Greeks may have their baggage, but so do most pantheons. At least they own up to their mistakes. At least they have a shred of humanity left inside themselves. And if there's one thing that I admire most about the Greeks, its their ability to value family above anything else."

Zelus growled at that, waving his hands out and conjuring twin swords into his fists.

"You're pathetic," He sneered, "The Greeks are nothing, but a group of pathetic actors. They will turn on you. And you know? It'll be too easy considering you're such a sap."

"Talking time is over. Come get some." I returned menacingly. Zelus let out a fierce war cry and lunged for me, slashing his swords at my face, but I swung mine up and knocked his back, aiming to stab him in the chest, but he stomped his foot down on mine and swung his elbow up into my nose. I cursed, stumbling back and wiping the blood from my nose.

"You fight like a child." I mocked. Zelus snarled and began to slash violently at me, but I ducked and dodged and spun out of the way until I smacked my back against a wall and cursed. Zelus roared and went to behead me, but I ducked low and swiped his feet out from under him, causing his swords to go flying. I cast mine aside to keep the fight fair, because I at least had some semblance of fairness, and leapt on Zelus, slugging him in the face. He writhed, struggling to get up and push me off.

I caught sight of him grabbing a dagger from his jacket and caught his wrist, trying to twist it away from him, but it buried against my suit. I cursed, waiting for it to break the material, but the material held tight and the dagger broke in half. Zelus stared at his dagger, then at my suit, then up at me as I smirked.

"The armor of the future, brother. Good luck getting your own." I replied, then grabbed his head and smashed it against the floor so hard that I swore it would shatter, but Zelus only managed a groan as I heaved myself off him, stepping back and moving toward one of the walls to try and blast through it. But a wall of hot flames whizzed past me and scorched my suit for a second before it healed itself. I turned to see Zelus lifting himself onto his feet, breathing hard.

"I'm not finished with you yet." He snarled, reaching up and brushing his bloody hair back from his face; blood from the crack I'd given to his skull. I narrowed my eyes and turned to face him. He ran at me again, but I caught him and threw him over my shoulder. The weight of his armor killed me, but it did the same to him as he fell like a box of rocks to the ground. I smirked.

"Pretty hard to fight with armor that weights nearly as much as you do, fatass." I said. Zelus scrambled in the dirt, lunging to his feet and headbutting me. I cursed, the breath knocked from my lungs as he threw me down onto the ground and slammed our heads together. I hissed, feeling blood ooze down either side of my nose. He reached down, grabbing my throat and squeezing so hard that I swore my head was going to pop off.

But Zelus seemed to know not to kill me for fear of rupturing the balance. Instead, his intention was to knock me out and take me prisoner. Images from being tortured last time fired me back up and I snarled, baring my fangs. I wrapped my arms around Zelus's waist, twisted one of my legs around his, and flipped us around so he was on his back and I jammed my arm up against his throat. Zelus squirmed, then sank his fangs down into my arm. I cursed, reeling back and Zelus caught me between the legs, sending pain exploding through my groin and into my stomach.

I slumped to the ground and fought the urge to vomit from the pain pulsing through me. Zelus got behind me, grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked my head back, sneering down at me.

"You will not defeat me, Xenon. I'm the older brother. I have far more experience than you." He growled, twisting his fingers in my hair.

"Oh please," I seethed past the pain and anger boiling inside me, "You're like ten days older, so shut up, asshole." Zelus snarled and threw me back against the wall. I slammed into it, pain bursting up my back and side. I slid to the ground, breathing hard. Zelus came over and went to kick me, but I whirled on him and sent an energy blast into him, causing him to go careering across the room and slamming into a wall so hard that he broke it open.

Oh look, I made an entrance.

I sprinted for it, but Zelus was already getting up on shaky legs. He threw his hand out and sent his own blast at me, but I deflected it and built up the anger inside me, gathering it up in my mouth and palm. I clenched my fist, drew it up in front of my mouth, then spread my palm open and blew into it, causing a stream of fire to go spewing out across the room, hurdling toward Zelus, who screamed in rage and agony as he had no time to deflect.

I dropped my hand, ceasing the fire as I approached him slowly. Zelus lay on the ground, twitching in agony and struggling to breath. I bit back the pain at seeing Zelus in pain, because of me. I had a feeling this was what stopped Anexius from trying to hurt me. Seeing your own blood laying there in pain because of you. Even worse, Zelus's entire left half was blackened with raw flesh, peeled and scorched. He was trembling violently, gasping for breath and every instinct in my body screamed at me to take him somewhere safe where I could heal him.

"You're not going to get away with this," Zelus choked in agony, making me stiffen as his white eyes met mine, "Atlan will hunt you all down and make you suffer. Just you wait, Xenon." I clenched my teeth.

"It didn't have to be like this, Zelus," I said in a tight voice, "You're the ones who attacked first. Everything was fine until you guys came back with that blood thirst you've been known for. This is no one's fault, but your own." Zelus's eyes flared with rage.

"I'm going to make you pay." He seethed. He made a choking sound and passed out from the pain. I winced. I started to move past him, but I couldn't bring myself to just leave him there. I should at least send him somewhere safe. I turned back around, knelt down and touched Zelus's uninjured temple. I teleported him back to Atlan's temple, then stood up and went through the gaping hole in the wall, retracing my steps all the way back until I met up with the group again.

"Xenon! I was worried," Dorean added nervously when he saw me and came up to wrap his arms around me, "I heard loud explosions and..." His voice trailed as if he didn't want to think about it. I hugged him to me tightly, lifting him clear off the ground before replacing him on his feet. I glanced at Anexius and Hades, who just shared glares. I sighed. Well, at least they weren't screaming at each other like they were.

"I'm glad you're safe," Lea told me, patting my cheek and giving me a smile, "Now let's get out of here so we don't have to worry about it anymore." I nodded and proceeded to help her lift Zetnos off the ground. Hades took the lead again, but this time, he walked more cautiously and I could feel him reaching his powers out to make sure we weren't approaching any enemies or being followed.

It didn't take us long to meet up with the desdios after that, though. Unfortunately, not everything was fine when we found them hiding in a closed off chamber. Valarian met us at the entrance, bloodied and mildly injured, but safe. Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for the body that lay beneath a tarp in the corner and looking around, my stomach dropped when I realized it was Nikos.

"He died from blood loss," Desiderius told us monotonously, and despite his stoicism, his eyes were filled with agony over the loss, "The griffin shredded most of his limbs and bit open his throat. We did everything we could." I looked at the others, who were also badly injured from their fight. I grimaced.

"I'm sorry." I said to him. Desiderius met my eyes.

"Me too." He said, his voice quiet. There was a short silence as everyone tried to avoid looking at the tarp in the corner that was saturated in blood. After a long pause, Xeno surprised me when he spoke in a very deep, gruff voice.

"I'll carry him." He said. No one argued as we watched Xeno walked over and hoist Nikos's body into his arms. I noticed a twinge of pain on Xeno's normally placid face. He must have been a lot closer to Nikos than I originally thought. No one spoke a word as we headed back through the catacombs and took the other exit out onto the outlying island.

Once we reached the surface, we teleported immediately away from the island and back to Hell. We let Hades and Lucifer leave with Zetnos to treat him while the desdios took Nikos's body to give him a proper burial, letting us know when a funeral would be scheduled. That left Dorean, Lea, Anexius, and I standing in the main lobby in cold silence, until Anexius cleared his throat.

"I should probably go," Anexius said quietly, "I think my master's summoning me." I nodded in understanding, then approached him and held my hand out.

"Thank you for helping us, Anexius. I know it was hard, but this means a lot to me." I said. Anexius blinked, looking at my hand before looking back up at me. He reached out and took my hand in a hesitant grip, but when I pulled him in for a hug, his grip tightened and he held me close.

"I'm so sorry, Xenon," Anexius whispered, "You didn't deserve any of this pain. You were right before; that no matter what I do to our pantheon, it will never bring... Dexius back... I know that. But now they've threatened someone else I love and I won't sit back and let them hurt you. I'm yours to command from here on out, no matter what curse is placed upon me. Call my name and I will do everything in my power to be there for you. You and Dorean and Hannibal and... and Lea as well." His words meant much more to me than he could ever imagine and if I wasn't so intent on hiding my tears, I probably would've cried. But I withheld it as I hugged Anexius for a moment longer before releasing him and stepping back.

"Be careful, Anexius," Lea said, making Anexius turn to her, "Contrary to what you may think, I know what it's like to have someone you trust take what is most important to you. In this, we are kin." Anexius studied her face before holding his hand out. Lea hesitantly placed her hand in his and met his eyes.

"I didn't mean to hurt you, Aunt Lea," Anexius said quietly, "I was crazy at the time."

"Love makes us do crazy things," Lea agreed softly, placing her hand over Anexius's and smiling at him sadly, "I apologize for reacting the way I did in the beginning. I, of all people, know what it's like to have a loved one taken too soon." Anexius leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.

"I know one day you will find your son, Aunt Lea. I promise you." He said softly. Lea blinked at that. Anexius passed me a very quick glance out the corner of his eye and I swallowed the sliver of guilt that cut through my stomach. Anexius stepped away from Lea and approached Dorean with a smile that Dorean returned.

"I know this day was a struggle for you, Dorean, but you've done incredibly well for yourself. I'm jealous of your determination and your courage and I couldn't ask for a better person to love my brother." He said. Dorean smiled, reaching out to brush a lock of hair out of Anexius's face and behind his ear.

"And I couldn't ask for a better brother for my kitty." He answered. Anexius and Lea laughed when I blushed. Anexius gave Dorean a quick hug before he took a deep breath and gave me one last look before he vanished in a column of pale red smoke.

"I'm going to turn in for the night," Lea said after a moment, "I'm exhausted and I think I hear a gargantuan bathtub calling my name." Doreand and I nodded, watching her leave before I turned to look at Dorean, who was staring at the spot where Anexius had vanished. I frowned at his expression. It seemed distant, and scared. It worried me.

"Dorean, what's wrong?" I asked, approaching him. Dorean swallowed, wringing out his hands nervously. He was avoiding my eyes too. It made me anxious.

"I killed someone." He said after a long moment of silence. I blinked, confused at first until I realized he was talking about the mermaid back in Leanorius. I frowned, taking his hands in mine.

"Dorean, you did what you had to do." I said. Dorean pulled his hands back, shaking his head as he took a retreating step.

"Not that," He whispered, "It... I just... It was an accident, before." I looked at him, baffled.

"Wait, someone other than the mermaid?" I asked. Dorean's eyes welled with tears and it cut me to the quick to see him cry like this. I wanted to hold him in my arms, the way he did for me when I broke down, but he wouldn't let me near him as he took another step back and reached up to wipe at his teary eyes.

"Killing the mermaid... it reminded me of what I did," Dorean managed shakily, sniffing helplessly, "I didn't mean to kill him, but I wasn't there. I wasn't doing what I was told to do, so he died."

"Dorean, what're you talking about?" I asked in agony, reaching for him again. This time, Dorean let me take his hands in mine as he choked on a sob, holding his head down in shame.

"I never told no one before," He managed helplessly, "If I said something before, they'd kill me and I didn't want to die. Dorean was just so tired of it all. Didn't want to put up with it anymore, was so tired of being trapped and I couldn't take it anymore and master hurt Dorean's friend and I could do nothing about it, except that." He was babbling and speaking rapidly, his sobs breaking up his already broken English. I pulled Dorean against me, hugging him tightly as I stroked his hair and let him sob against my chest.

His cries tore at my heartstrings and I wanted to do anything to make him smile again, but I couldn't. All I could do was hold him while he wept and after what felt like half an hour, he finally calmed down enough to tell me what he was talking about. We'd taken a seat on one of the leather seats in the lobby while I held him against me as he sniffed.

"The master I had before Wind Storm," Dorean explained tearfully, "He was really mean, much meaner than Wind Storm. He beat us often and he tormented us when we disobeyed. One of my friends, another imp that worked with me, did something to make him angry. And he was punished. He was injected and frozen and put on display in the room that I was in charge of cleaning every day. He did it on purpose. I couldn't do anything. I had to go in that room every day to do my job and I was forced to listen to my friend cry and not able to move or eat or drink or anything. I couldn't take it anymore. I... I took some of my master's poison. And..." His voice trailed into a whimpering sob.

I understood now. Killing the mermaid had reminded him of killing his master, something that baffled me. First of all, I had never known Dorean to hurt or hate anyone. His motto was to love everyone and treat them the way he wanted to be treated. Second of all, Dorean was right; if he had been caught, he would have been killed. An imp killing its master was punishable by death and his soul would have been sent straight to Tartarus. I swallowed at that pain of that and held Dorean to me tighter.

"Dorean, you're not a bad person for that," I told him softly, stroking his hair back from his tear-stained face, "You did what you had to do. What you did was extremely brave. I can't think of an imp that's stood up to anyone like that." Dorean sniffed and gave his head a shake.

"I shouldn't have done it. I didn't think about anyone else, but myself when I did. I hurt master's wife and his baby. His baby didn't have a daddy anymore. And they lost their money after master died, and I was sold to Wind Storm after that. And it didn't change the fact that my friend was still just... just a piece of furniture, who was also sold, then later killed by his next master. It didn't help anything." He said sorrowfully. His wings quivered and his tail coiled tightly around him as he sniffed, wiping at his eyes. I leaned down to kiss the top of his head.

"Well... For the record, you saved my life down there, Dorean. And I'm grateful for that." I said quietly. Dorean sniffled, then looked up at me, studying my face before his eyes welled up with tears again.

"I was really scared," He managed, "When that thing grabbed you and pulled you under, I thought it was all over and I panicked. I did it without even thinking. All I knew was that I had to help you."

"And you did, Dorean," I replied softly, pressing my cheek against his head and trailing my hand down his back to stroke his wings, making them flutter and his body relax a bit, "Everyone makes mistakes. You were hurt and angry and scared when you killed your master. It wasn't your fault. And when you killed that mermaid, you weren't hurting anyone. You saved me, and you probably saved the rest of the group as well." Dorean let that sink in, and while I'm sure it still hurt him inside, he seemed to accept my words and just closed his eyes, leaning against me.

"Please don't get captured anymore, Xenon. I don't want to be that scared again." He said. I smiled.

"Trust me, I won't make it a habit. Nothing crushes a god's ego like getting captured by a mermaid." I added, wrinkling my nose. Dorean laughed quietly, reaching up to rub at my nose before he gave me a kiss there and hugged me. We sat there for a while in silence, enjoying one another's company before Dorean decided he was going to take a bath as well. I let him go ahead, deciding to go check on Zetnos and his progress.

I headed down the hallway to the laboratory, which had been converted into a temporary operating room. When I peeked in the window, Hades was still working on Zetnos's injuries and appeared to want total concentration because the door was locked, so I just leaned against the wall across from the doors. A few minutes later, Lucifer came out, looking exhausted.

"I figured you'd be here," He said, making me push off the wall and approach him, "Zetnos is doing fine and responding well to our treatment. He's still shaken up and he's going to be weak for a while. We couldn't really get anything out of him. We decided it's best just to let him rest for a few days before we talk to him about anything." I nodded in understanding.

"Thank you, Lucifer. I'd say the same to Hades, but I feel like he'd tell me to stuff it." I said with a shrug. Lucifer smiled.

"Yes, that sounds like him," He agreed, glancing back through one of the windows before looking at me, "Hades is finishing it up. You're welcome to go inside to check on him. I'll be in my office if you need me." I watched him vanish on the spot before I walked in through the double doors into the sterile room that reeked of blood and sulphur. I headed to the other side of the laboratory where an open space had been set up as the operating area. Several bright lights shone down on where Zetnos lay on a stretcher, hooked up to countless machines, and Hades was just moving away from him.

"We should nickname your dad the butcher," Hades said dryly, making me arch a brow at him, "The way he cut this guy up is unbelievable. I think even Jack the Ripper would be highly impressed, if not envious." I grimaced as Hades walked past me to go wash his hands off at a sink. I approached Zetnos's side, looking down at him as he breathed into an oxygen mask. He appeared to have been washed and bathed, something I was extremely grateful for, especially when it seemed like it wasn't something Hades would normally do.

"I'll be back," Hades said, making me look at him as he dried his hands off, "I haven't eaten since we left and I think I hear a plate of baklava calling my name." I shook my head at him as he vanished and I turned back to face Zetnos, frowning at the way he laid there almost as if he were dead. The only indication that he was even still alive was the steady rise and fall of his chest, the machines around me clicking and beeping eerily.

I sighed, gripping the railing around Zetnos as I studied him.

"I'm sorry this happened to you." I said quietly. I started to let go and drift away, but a strong grip caught my wrist and I stiffened, looking down to see Zetnos staring up at me.

"Zetnos?" I asked, alarmed. He squeezed my wrist to the point where it was painful and he parted his lips. They moved as if he were trying to speak and I leaned down closer, frowning curiously. After silent lip movements, I finally heard Zetnos rasp.

"The hy....brid... Atlan... is gunning... for the hybrid..." My eyes widened and I snapped my head back to look down at Zetnos, but he slumped back against the bed and passed out again. Worried something was wrong with him, I waited a little longer by his bedside, my mind was whirling now.

Hybrid? The only Atlantean hybrid was Hannibal. There was no other way around it.

But Hannibal? Why would Atlan want Hannibal? How did he even know Hannibal was still around? What did he plan to do to Hannibal? Concern swept through me and I was tempted to contact Akin immediately, but I still wasn't entirely sure what Atlan would want with Hannibal and I needed to know the full details before I said anything to Akin, who was bound to panic. Even more so, Hannibal would probably go into soldier mode if I mentioned anything and once that happened, we might all be in danger.

If what Valarian said was true about Hannibal being a god of blood lust and chaos, Hannibal couldn't be getting worked up. That kind of hunger for blood and violence was unquenchable and a bitch to fight. The fact that Hannibal hadn't gone bonkers and destroyed everything around him was a miracle, a true testament to his strength. I had yet to know a god of blood lust and chaos that hadn't gone insane from their cursed realm of rule. Part of me wondered if Akin really was Hannibal's only tether to sanity, but was that even possible? Could one person be so strong?

I had no idea.

All I knew now was that Atlan wanted Hannibal. And if he got his hands on Hannibal, and managed to twist him around his finger, we were fucked. Being a hybrid god meant Hannibal had powers we couldn't even begin to imagine. For all we knew, Hannibal could have powers that not even Hades had, and Hades had the power of three gods inside him. Hannibal, on the other hand, had the power of two pantheons inside him.

Christ. The more I thought about it, the more I realized how much of a nuclear bomb Hannibal was.

Which is exactly why Atlan wanted to get his hands on him. Atlan could use Hannibal the same way he used Xiphrus, and if he could turn someone like Xiphrus into a mindless drone, I feared for Hannibal even more so. Atlan could easily play on Hannibal's guilt and self-loathing, twist it to suit his need.

His need to destroy the universe and bring it to its knees before him.

A shudder wracked me as I shot to my feet, leaving the laboratory. I couldn't just sit there and let all of this happen at once. I needed to do something about it, even if I didn't have all the information. A small pang of pain hit me in the chest as I went down the hallway.

And there was one stop I had to make before I could do anything else, however. A long overdue conversation that made my stomach twist in knots.

I walked down the hallways of Lucifer's palace, made my way upstairs, and approached a white wood door. I took a deep breath, staring at the door as I struggled to mentally prepare myself for something I don't think centuries could have prepared me for. I squeezed my eyes shut, took another deep breath, then knocked on the door.

"Come in." A voice inside called. I swallowed down a lump in my throat and opened the door, looking inside the room to see my aunt Lea sitting on the edge of her bed with her boots off and her iPad in her lap as she scrolled through her messages. I stood in the doorway, frozen for a second as I watched her smile at her message before she looked up, and her smile slowly faded.

"Xenon? What's wrong?" She asked curiously. I slowly pulled the door shut behind me.

"Aunt Lea... There's something I need to tell you..."

To Be Continued...

A/N: That ending, though. So, this is the end of the first book to the Atlantis Saga. This saga is the sequel series to the Underworld series. It must be read after you read the first series. So, without further adieu, ladies and gents and possibly literate cats, I, rotXinXpieces, welcome you to the Atlantis Saga, starting with book one, Retribution. Book Two: The Hybrid. Thank you all so much for your endless support! See you in the next book! *highfive*