"Thanatos!" Hades growls, tapping his fingers on the armrest of his throne of ivory bones.

A black shadow misted from thin air, swirling and compacting enough to form the harsh unforgiving solid body of the said minor god. Even the contours and planes of the god seem to leak no color, no life no emotion. It was as if life itself curved away from the man before him.

Well, he was death made flesh.

"My lord." The words were like skittering spirits among shadows.

"Sisyphus. He evades death again." Hades growls and death does not flinch.

He merely nods and that aggravates Hades further.

"Do you not have anything to say on this matter?" Hades demands and even the darkness seems to flinch but Thanatos stays put.

"Are your ser-" Hades starts but Thanatos cuts in.

"I will go and get him myself this time."

Hades' mind goes blank at the offer. No not offer, but a statement. One that doesn't not care for permission nor denial. One only Thanatos would get away with in front of Hades.

"Is he worth your presence?" Hades quires and Thanatos black orbs are upon him, seemingly sweet, lulling and hypnotic like that of his twin; Hypnos, god of sleep.

"Death is not about being worth my lord, king, peasant, child or wise, in the end they are just mortals that are worth nothing but a soul. A soul that becomes one amongst many in that flow with time in this underworld." Thanatos says, each word low in timbre having no particular tone and Hades finds himself admiring the man before him again.

"Forget not Thanatos, that you were once a soul too. They are not grains of sand blown away by the wind, but blessed drops of water that gives life." Hades reminded him firmly, as to not let the latter forget the weight of a soul, its balances and influences in this world. "It births, it ceases, it returns newly. Do not forget its wealth."

This time Thanatos smiles humbly and Hades finds himself bewitched by the mere beauty of it. The sly soft curve, the light shift in his cheeks and the seemingly mocking light in death's eyes.

He wonders what death would feel like suddenly. If he was a mortal and not a deathless god. Finds himself wishing for it almost as Thantos walks forward and falls on one knee and sings his wise words again.

"Cursed that I am. To not live again, to die again, to not be that of heaven nor the earth. Even the ever welcoming sun shies away from me no matter where his journey and even the deathless gods hate me."  Thanatos' words cleave open his thoughts to the misty air in between them for the first time in centuries.

"Do not think that I do not envy those mortals for a second, do not think that I do not notice your thoughts my king, ones that envies and craves too, not of the glittery marbles of the Olympus but the fields of Demeter." Thanatos whispers like lover and his voice, the tone, the implication itself has the dark god reeling backwards in surprise.

"The world might not understand why you do not wage your war against the Olympus and take over the fair world with your power, but I do." Thanatos leans up from his position on the floor and Hades flicks a hand banishing all guarding spirits and wandering should form his palace and concealing his palace in a shield of dark power within the next breath.

Thanatos smooth fingers glide up teasingly down the slip of Hades' robe.

Who would dare touch the robe made of the souls of the damned than the one who sows them himself?

So lost in tracing the contours of Hades' chest, Thanatos doesn't notice the god's eyes on him until those fearless continues on its path from Hades' chest to his jaw and tracing the seam of his lips.

"M-my Lord." For the first time, since even the beginning of time whence he was birthed Hades is surprised at Thanatos stuttering.

For doesn't fear, death doesn't balk at anything nor does it stutter.

Thanatos was balking at the wanting in Hades' eyes. The warmth of it on the normally cold god's eyes were foreign. Thanatos had always watched from afar as the same look was thrown around like fall leaves. He had watched the shredding beauty of it, blossoming and fading but he was never the receiptant of it. Never, until now. The thought made hope rise in his chest, the kind he knew that was going to be trampled later on.

"I would give up the world for you." Hades' admitted softly and this time Thanatos has to hold back his disbelief.

"My lord..." Thanatos whispered and Hades just smiled.

"Death. Relief and salvation. Without what you what would be life? There's no life without death as there is no spring without winter or no Hades without his Thanatos." Hades almost gently traced Death's sharp jawbone and was rewarded with an almost imperceptible shiver.

"You might not be of heavens nor of the underworld's, but you'll always belong here Thanatos. The underworld is just a mere abode to me; I would give it up for you." Hades whispered the untellable, leaning forward and looking into the latter's eyes softly and Thanatos' mind was in a jumbled mess.

He hadn't expected this. Of course he had seen those lingering gazes and unusual avoiding eyes. But he hadn't even thought that the god of the underworld was coveting an idea like this. He had mistaken it for another game, one of hunter and prey or man and servant, one whose only rule was lust and submission.

He hadnt expected this. He didn't know whether to be elated or surprised.

He didn't know anything. So he did the only thing he could.

"I'll be taking your leave my lord." Thanatos said almost in guilt and then he was a whisper of misty oblivion against Hades robes.

*

Hades discesion was one of the most recless descisions he had made in centuries.

But he wasnt going to back away from it. No matter what.

For this time it was thanatos mere existence at the stake and heavens forbid if he didnt raise hell for it. Quite literally.

His robes swished in the musty room, smelling ironically of death mixed with the intoxicating smell of some plant whose name he couldnt remeber.

Its blue and pink petals were a constant pop up in the going to be sandcastle of sisyphus's house.

Hades wrinkled his nose in distaste as he soundlessly padded accros the room, the spectre in his hand lighting up the way in front of him with its bluish light.

The spectre that showed him the way was one of Hades main weapons that had been given to him along with the realms when they had divided their abodes to rule and withe the spectre had come his specialized fear rendering helmet and robe of souls.

The spectre was capable of many things and one of the things, giving light, finding a path and sometimes even useful for getting a good back scratch. But currently it performed one of its main duties as it throbbed in its hand, weight bearing heavily to one side on its own as if showing the way, making it easy for hades to mavigate to the rubble and cracked plasters of walls.

"Thanatos." Hades called unabashedly. As far as he knew death was the biggest villain of earth and he was the god of death so where was the fear?

But one thing he forgot was the fact that this was a mortal who had managed to chain death. A fact he soon was reminded of as he walked into the barely lit chamber as the spectre showed.

Chains from every cracked wall of the small chamber hung aroundthanatoss form, stretchim and securing his limbs strategically in place in a way he couldnt move. Those shackles made of celestial bronze was melded with imperial gold, the merged power of both metals rendering deaths magic weak where he hung.

"Thanatos." Hades whispered almost trembled and the one who was named stiffened in surprise and disbelief. 

"My lord." Thanatos whispered in disbelief watching as his masters strides grew confident as he approached him.

"Please leave. " thanatos requested silver lining his eyes while the sajd god paid no heed and began to work on the golden chains, blasting them with his specter. "The gods-"

"I dont care about the gods thanatos!"

"But my lor-"

"I said enough!" Hades bellowed and then huffed trying to calm himself from the dread he felt when he saw thanatos flinch but determined  hold his gaze

"The rules of my brothers who have abondonded me does not bother me." Hades said a bit softly now. "Besides the promise i gave before you left...did you think i would not mean it?"

The fear in thanatos eyes were palable. But hades saw it was the fear for their future, fear of the hope he had guven the lesser god.

"Thanatos..." hades smiled gently tracibg doen thanatoss jawbone and then leaned in wayching his beloveds eyes all the while.

When their lips met it felt like the thousand eternities that they had spent together had finally combusted to a mere moment between them, the promise of something more in the the rythm of their lips made the both the gods hearts falter as they pulled back.

"Well, well, what do we here?" A gravellly voice sneered, startling them apart. "The gods themselves sinning."

"You forget your place mortal." Hades thundered as he stood in front of thanatos sheilding the lesser god from the dangerous mortal.

"Im a mortal my god, but in the end im a mortal who managed to chain Thanatos,death itself." The man  flaunted twirling a spectre similar to his except this one had a dull normal looking rock in the centre, dull as it was maybe it caused a silvery glow from within. 

All of a sudden sisyphus slammed the weapon down with a thud and then sweeping it with an arc in front of him before smiling a smallk satusfied smile as the walls of the chamber shook and out came dazed looking nymphz, ouerei, and countless other sporits of this earth startling hades whi watched in grwoing apprehension.

How was it that a mere mortal cane to possess this kind of power of otherworldly spirits?

Almost as if hearing his thoughts, sisyphus smiled a manic smiled and surged his hands forward and almost immodestly the spirits of nature he had summoned burst forth, raging feral screams piercing screams shuttled in the air as they followed sisyphus order.

With no way around, hades slammed his own spectre down, skeletal hands bursting forth from the cracks it had caused and some directly from the earth as the foundation of the building they stood in. 

Hades etes met sisyphus in fury, and thus began  the war.