Chapter Forty-two

Ihad seen enough.

I witnessed Medusa’s sins, seeing the dark aura emanating not only from her transformed body but also from her human form of her past.

It disgusted me.

Hera’s original punishment should have remained. Medusa should have suffered for far longer, never receiving a reprieve and a damn reward. Hera thought she was doing the right thing, but she had no idea what a snake Medusa really was.

Medusa taking upon a serpent form was damn comical.

Now I didn’t know how to explain to the rest of the gods and my mate how much worse this fucking deity was.

Fuck.

How does one explain a situation such as this?

Three reapers enter the dungeon, they filed in one at a time. I would not reap Medusa’s soul. I didn’t want to touch the vile thing.

As the reapers emerged, they forcefully extracted her soul from her body, leaving her devoid of her tail serpentine body. With a sudden transformation, she stood upright on two legs. “Release me!” Her desperate screams reverberated through the heated, dry dungeon, but no deity paid her any heed. The weight of impending punishment hung in the air as the reapers sealed her lips.

“I suggest we carry out the judgment here,” Hades remarked, his voice dripped with icy nonchalance. A wisp of smoke curls around him, carrying the faint scent of sulfur as he adjusts the collar of his shirt. The room darkens as his piercing gaze becomes shrouded in an ominous darkness.

Lucifer, on the other hand, was downright ecstatic, his feathers shivering in excitement next to his mate.

“I have more evidence if you so desire. Along with knowing where the stone is being hidden. This evidence will make us all see Zeus differently,” I said.

Hera’s head jerked to me, her brows furrowing.

“Medusa, truly, is nothing but a snake. A perfect animal you chose for her, Hera,” I said dryly.

Hera stomped toward me and crossed her arms. “What did she do, Thanatos? The evidence was clear when I walked in on both of them. She was riding him into the fucking night!” Hera jerked her head back to Uriel. “Sorry, dear.”

Lucifer covered Uriel’s ears, sending a death glare to his mother-in-law.

“The reason for this starts before you found them. Zeus was at that party amongst the Greeks disguised as Poseidon, but he was only there for the free booze, not for women.” My hold went tight around Juniper to keep me grounded.

“Medusa poisoned his drink. She was planning on stealing Poseidon’s Trident and pawning it off to a witch. Instead, the drug dropped Zeus’ disguise and Medusa’s plans changed. Medusa led him to Athena’s temple and ripped off his clothes and she–”

“No!” Athena shook her head. “That is impossible. Why would she do such a thing!” Hera stared at Medusa’s being held by the reapers.

Medusa struggled in my reapers’ hold, narrowing her eyes at Hera.

Hera had no ability to touch a soul. It wasn’t in her power to do so. She gripped her fists, her lip curled into a snarl, and huffed out a breath.

“The trident Medusa wanted to steal was going to buy her immortality. Instead, Medusa saw Zeus’ disguise falter and decided to get her immortality another way. Medusa knew Zeus would give what she wanted if she got pregnant. Everyone knows Zeus takes care of his human affair partners when they resulted in offspring. But humans widely knew that Zeus wasn”t taking on affair partners anymore because of his strained relationship with Hera, but Medusa didn”t care. So she decided to drug—.”

Hera let out a sob.

I glanced down at my mate, who had her own tears in her eyes and spoke to my mate, “Zeus grants immortal life to a human who bears a child by his seed.” I explained to her softly.

Juniper gasped.

Hera stumbled back, her body colliding with the cold stone wall. Tremors coursed through her, causing her head to shake. The sound of her shaky breath filled the dungeon as she whispered, “No.” Her eyes squeezed shut, blocking out the world around her. The rhythmic thud of her head tapping the wall resonated, matching the weight of her regret. “You mean, Zeus?” she whispered, her voice filled with disbelief. “He was telling the truth all along? That he truly didn’t know how he ended up there? That he did not know of what was happening to him?”

I nodded and squeezed my mate’s shoulders.

Juniper stepped out of my grasp. I held onto her hand and followed her, not wanting to let go. I still had yet to get over what suffering I had seen from Medusa’s eyes about my mate. She would never leave my side again.

“You didn’t know,” Juniper tried to soothed Hera. “And his cheating track record wasn’t great. You can’t blame yourself. But I think for both of your sakes you should bring this dark secret to light and talk to each other about it. Zeus doesn’t look like he has anybody.”

A tear ran down Hera’s cheek, and her lip quivered. “Zeus said that was the last time he has ever laid with a woman. And he didn’t even–” Hera sobbed.

Juniper wrapped her arms around Hera, even if she was a head taller than her. Hera took her embrace, her head landing on Juniper’s shoulder. My mate calmed her, petted her hair, and whispered encouragement.

”Even the darkest of secrets will eventually be revealed,” said Juniper. “We just needed the right light to find our answers.”

Hera sniffed, tears streaming down her face. “I think part of me knew he didn’t do it. He was so–out of it. He looked like he had just woken up when I stepped into the temple and he looked around like he didn’t know where he was, but–I was so angry. I told him the last time he did this to me it would be over. Zeus told me not to worry and that he swore to Rhea that he never would. Then seeing Medusa with him—”

Juniper hummed, her soul glowing brighter. “But now you have the truth. Medusa concealed it well, portraying herself as a victim, but now that we have lifted the veil, we can all see that Zeus isn”t as horrible?” Her voice rose as she said it as in question.

Hera chuckled and pulled away, wiping a tear away from her cheek. “Juniper, you were very brave what you did to find Medusa. Foolish, but brave. I wouldn”t be surprised if Thanatos punished you by tanning your backside. She gave a much more cheerful chuckle that I thought she would give.

Juniper stiffened and glanced up at me with a worried gaze.

“Yes, she was foolish.” My shadows engulfed the flickering torches in the dungeon, the air grew heavy with an ominous darkness.

Juniper’s body seemed to shrink to make herself become smaller. Meanwhile, my wings expanded to the length of the dungeon and everyone backed away.

“Thanatos, are you alright?” Hades inquired. My shadows weaved between my mate and I and my rage continued to rise. Becoming nothing but bone only gets me the expansion of a few emotions. I knew love, from a distance I knew it, but the only emotions that I felt were--anger.

What my mate had gone through, what I have seen and heard through Medusa, it was enough to push all aside what Zeus had gone through and see those men that looked at her in want—what her family had done to her. Then, on top of it all, an anger at her not accepting me, not asking to be bonded. Disappointment now turned into--fear.

What was enough for her to say she wanted me--forever?

The velvety darkness of my shadows swirled gracefully, dancing around us. Like a protective embrace, my wings enfolded her, gently constricting, melding with my body.

“Is she gonna be alright?” Ares shouted as the wind roared around us in the once lifeless dungeon.

“He won’t hurt me,” Juniper said and kept her eyes into my boned sockets. “He’s my mate,” she whispered like a prayer.

Instead of satisfying me, it only intensified my fury, the wind howling through the hallways of the darkened dungeon.

She accepts we are mates. Then why were we not bonded?

Juniper reached above her, and I bowed my head. She cupped my boned face and in a blink of an eye I had us transported to the mansion on the top of my brother and I’s mountain.

We arrived directly in the receiving room, a vast space that could have easily served as ballroom had I ever thrown a party. The room, despite its size, seemed strangely cramped as it teemed with men, their presence overwhelming. My reapers and demons stood around, gripping chains that bound the filthy humans, their combined scent filling the air with a pungent mix of sweat and fear.

They all kneeled, their bodies pressed against the cold floor, their heads bowed low in submission. I turned my gaze towards my brother, and he looked at me with caution, his eyes narrowing as he noticed the radiant glow of my skull above the crowd. With a deliberate motion, I unwrapped my wings, feeling the cool air brush against my bones, the sound of fabric unfurling echoing softly in the silence.

If this does not get her approval, I’m not sure what will.

Juniper gasps, seeing the sight before her. If I had my lips, I would smile wildly. I hope to have pleased her.

Each male bore the marks of violence etched onto their flesh - blood, bruises, and cuts marring their bodies. Their garments hung in tatters, barely clinging to their forms, providing minimal protection. Reluctantly, I permitted them to keep what little they possessed to shield their modesty. It was imperative that my mate not catch sight of their diminutive members before they were all disposed of.

Juniper’s long crimson hair flew back as she turned to look at me, a look of not awe, but shock over her face. “What is this?” Juniper asked, her voice filled with disbelief as she surveyed the scene of battered men kneeling before us. I could sense her confusion and concern intertwining within her.

“These are the men responsible for the atrocities committed against you and to other females in that strip club,” I replied, my voice laced with a chilling calmness. “They are the ones who dared to look at you in lust, touch you, want you, pay to watch you demean yourself, to keep yourself living. They funded Medusa and her greed thus also stripping you of your agency. I’ve captured them for you.”

The room, once filled with the haunting clinks of chains, now fell into an eerie silence. The men, their bodies quivering, could not escape my piercing gaze, realizing that the long-awaited retribution had at last found them. Juniper, her focus returning, directed her gaze towards the shattered figures before her, her eyes brimming with a tumultuous blend of fury and grief.

My mate gazed over the males in the room, their chains clinking on the floor. “W-why?”

The ethereal shadows slithered sinuously across the dimly lit room, their inky tendrils coiling and constricting around the chains that bound the helpless men. The air was heavy with the scent of fear, mingling with the metallic tang of blood. The anguished cries of pain reverberated through the chilling silence. With a mere flick of my wrist, I raised my hand, commanding the shadows to cease the men’s pitiful pleas. The shadows, obedient to my will, seeped into the very essence of their beings, infiltrating their souls. Slowly, inexorably, the men’s limbs were drawn inward, crushed mercilessly until their bodies were rendered immobile, their spirits broken.

“To let you witness their demise. When I entered your mind and Medusa’s, I saw their faces. The lust, the greed. I could see what they wanted to do to you, Juniper. And no one gets to think about my mate that way, ever.” I snarled. “My reapers are excellent at their jobs and brought them here.”

Juniper barely breathed. “You can’t just--they thought they were at a normal strip club,” Juniper tried to reason.

I reared my head back, my boned hand tightening on my shadows to suffocate them, slowly.

“Is that what you think?” I lowered my mouth to her ear. “They are innocent? Think again, my mate. Medusa”s club was available on the dark web for both humans and supernaturals. The most evil of men, women, deities, angels, and demons spread it widely. Medusa had it all planned. No one in this room is innocent,” I yelled. “And soon, so soon, I will have my reapers hunt every single damn supernatural, deity, demon, angel and whatever the fuck else is out there! This is just the start.”

Juniper’s lips parted and stepped toward me. Her gaze never leaving mine. She reached up and gently stroked the side of my skull, her fingers tracing the ridges of my bones. “What’s happened to you, Thanatos?” she whispered, her voice trembling with emotion. “What happened to my sweet god that barely knew how to embrace me? Why are you showing me all this, why not keep it hidden from me like you normally do?”

Agonizing pain coursed through her heart, like searing flames engulfing her. I could vividly sense it through the unbreakable bond we shared, as if her anguish had been etched into my very being. Though our connection had not been formally sealed, its strength surpassed any physical limitations. Even with my boned form, I could feel the intensity of her emotions resonating within me.

“I’m here to show you--that I will make all pay for their transgressions, against you against all that have wronged--.”

Juniper shook her head. “No, that isn’t it. It’s something deeper. Bring me your secret.”

I growled, my eyes growing a bright blue against her golden soul that gleamed back at me. “I don’t know what you want from me!” I roared, my voice echoing over the battered bodies. “I have tried to give you everything, show and tell you what type of mate I would be for you, and yet you have not given me the one thing I desire most. I am here, I am Thanatos, I am not the best of the gods. I do not understand many things about the world above, but I can learn.”

My mate stared at me, while she fisted my robes.

“I cannot bring life, but you bring it in me. I am here, at your feet, begging you to accept me and bring to you not a ring to place on your finger, but give you what I can provide. The souls of all your enemies at your feet, yet you do not-- “

Juniper shook her head, and tears streamed down her face. “I want you to bond with me!” She yelled.