Aleka, The Fourth Fate

Aleka

Aleka was still shaking from what had happened less than a minute ago. She was free, she was actually free......
She suddenly remembered Hypnos's directions and looked at the dagger in her hand.
It was beautiful, in a terrible way. The dim light gave the Stygian blade an odd shine, making the edge look sharper than it probably was. The symbols inscribed on it said the same thing in every known language: 'Fate is something to fear, not to challenge.'
She smiled grimly. 'True enough,' she thought, and pressed it's flat to the side of her neck, near her collarbone, and almost immediately regretted it.
She gasped. Pure, white-hot pain erupted in her mind, ripping away her Sight, something so close to her, to her mind, to her being, that it might've blinded her.
She sank to her knees, gasping, tears rolling down her cheeks. Her mouth was open in a silent scream, as if every nerve in her body was on fire. It hurt to breath, it hurt to think, oh, how she wished it would end, for everything to go dark, to leave nothing but peaceful void....
Just as abruptly as it had started, without warning, it stopped.
For a few moments, Aleka remained in that position, breathing hard, and then shakily got to her feet, wiping the tears off her face.
She straightened, blinked twice, and looked around. Everything seemed the same, but she knew it was different. She could no longer See as she once did.
She sighed, and wrapped her arms around herself. Her Sight had kept her sane throughout all those years in Tartarus, and it had simply disappeared, just like that...... Aleka sighed again, and began to walk, knowing the way by memory, though a much different kind of memory.
She neared the Underworld's entrance and walked straight through the main gates, padded silently under Cerberus's underbelly, and joined the line of souls headed to the Fields of Asphodel.
As soon as the line got far enough from the main gates, Aleka broke away from the line and walked away from the entrance to the Fields of Asphodel, past the Fields of Punishment, Elysium, and the Isles of the Blest.
She tried not to look at the entrance to Tartarus, yet felt it's presence tugging at her, trying to pull her away. She resisted and quickened her pace.
Finally, she found herself in front of the entryway to Hades's palace, a black obsidian replica of the Olympians' palace at the top of their high perch.
A pang of anxiety hit her as she ran her hand along the cold, black, wrought-iron gate, a kind of gate that you might use for an entrance to a garden, perhaps. 'Definitely Persephone's addition,' she thought absentmindedly. Her other thoughts were more about how Hades was an outcast, and how his time down here would have made him bitter. But perhaps today he would be feeling a tad more charitable......
She pushed open the doorway and walked through a garden of gems and jewels, and even passed a pomegranate tree, the sacred fruit of the Underworld.
She strolled through the garden and past the first set of large double doors. Strange enough, there were no guards. As she neared the second entryway, she saw guards, yes, but heard something, or someone, else entirely.
Aleka could make out that the two were arguing, and that one was Hades himself, but the other......She neared the door, and, glancing at the undead WWl soldiers for a split-second, raised her fist and knocked twice.The voices stopped abruptly. Aleka heard the distinct voice of Hades say, "We will resume this discussion later." The second voice protested (did he call him Father?) but the Lord of the Dead cut him off, saying,"Go! We will discuss this later. "
She had just enough time to pull her hood over her head and back away before the doors flew open and a man of about 20 stormed out, swearing in Italian under his breath. He wore black jeans and a black t-shirt, a Stygian Iron sword hanging from his belt. He had unruly black hair and deep black eyes so much like his father's.
Aleka recognized him from her previous Visions: Nico di Angelo, one of Hades's time stuck children. 'My, he had grown,' she thought, looking at him with interest.
He had an extremely good looking features, even when he was scowling. He had the typical structure of an Italian: high cheekbones, lean stature, decent height, broad shoulders, and olive skin, but in his case, once olive skin.
He glanced at her, and stopped in his tracks. Curiosity and confusion crossed his face. Panic welled up in her throat. She didn't look like one the dead. And even if she was, why would she be here?
Aleka pulled her hood farther over her face and walked into the throne room as the doors shut with a BOOM behind her.
Aleka pulled down her hood and faced the Ruler of the Underworld.
There he sat, the only being above Tartarus who knew who she was. She had never met him until today, but he looked exactly like he had in her Visions:
So pale, he looked blue. A robe waved from the souls of the eternally Damned, some even from the River Acheron. A curtain of black hair was under the twisted black crown that he wore. His eyes were so much like his son's, but Nico's eyes had a kind, humorous light in them, while his father's had the manic look of a madman. He sat on his throne of bones, and, upon realizing who she was, gave a cry of outrage. Well, so much for charitable.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" he roared.
She cringed at his volume as dust began to fall from the ceiling, and the undead redcoats around him shifted nervously.
"YOU ARE MEANT TO BE IN TARTARUS!" he growled, pounding his fist on the arm of his throne.
"Lord Hades, I--"
"And better yet, how did you get here? My guards would have alerted me of your presence. I couldn't even sense you." He leaned back in his throne, and glared at Aleka with hatred.
"I'm from Tartarus, my lord. I appear as one of the dead."
"You might as well be, when your mother finds out." Hades smiled wickedly, a cruel light in his eyes.
"She probably already has, lord, but she will not be able to pursue me here, or, at least, not yet."
She was trying to intrigue him, and seemed to be working.
"Nyx is bound by the Laws of Chaos. If she can't move around in Tartarus, how is she possibly going to get up here?"
"Well, Lord Hades, I've foretold that a war is coming,"
"Not again," the god muttered. "I thought they would end."
"I'm afraid not. This war is unlike anything the gods and their children have ever faced. This is a war that will be fought by Chaos and Night. The demons and beasts of Tartarus will rise, and they will overcome this world, including your realm."
"How have the Fates not heard of this?" he asked dubiously.
"This is a prophecy deep from Tartarus, a prophecy that can be only fulfilled by the demigods, both Greek and Roman, and by those who follow the ways of the Egyptians."
Aleka paused for a moment. The god's face paled even more, but then regained composure and said,"Very well. And how do you hope to accomplish this great feat, Aleka?"
"By guiding the demigods and magicians. I will join them and set them on the path to victory, but I'm afraid I'll need to get to Long Island first, and from there, I'll make the rest of the journey."
Slowly, Hades nodded. "Very well. On one condition."
Aleka, who could sense passage would be guarantee, nodded her head. "Yes, my lord?"
"My children, Nico and Hazel, are they a part of this?"
"Yes, a fairly large part."
"Then you shall watch over them. Don't make too much of a lasting impression on them, but keep them safe. You know how heroes can be. They have earned the right to be happy, and I prefer to see them that way. I'll check in on you every now and then."
"Of course, Lord,"
"Good, and know that if any lasting harm comes to them, you will be held responsible."
Aleka swallowed and said, "Yes, Lord Hades. Thank you."
"Now go." He waved his hand and Aleka felt the darkness wrap around her and pull her towards the east. She closed her eyes against the wind.
Soon, the sensation ended, and she found herself sprawled on the ground. She groaned and opened her eyes.
She was laying in the sand near a familiar beach. She could see Thalia's pine tree from here, the Golden Fleece on it's branch and the camp's guard dragon coiled around it.
Aleka got up and dusted herself off. She was wearing black jeans and a t-shirt advertising a band called Fall Out Boy. A worn leather jacket added to her outfit. Her long brown hair was in a braid down her back and faded purple sneakers on her feet. Her dagger was in a sheath in her hand and there was a backpack slung over her shoulders. She tucked it inside the bag and glanced at the hill.
"Hello, Camp Half-Blood. Meet Alexandra Payne, daughter of Hecate." She murmured as she began the trek up the hill, already contemplating a story to tell them as she walked.

Notes

Hi guys! I've done an early morning chapter since I don't have school today because of a field trip I'm not attending. Aleka finally meets Nico! Though distantly...... By the way, I gave Aleka the false name 'Alexandra' because Aleka is actually the Greek version of 'Alexandra' which is Russian. And the last name Payne because I just like that name. :) I hope you enjoy, and PLEEASEEE comment below and let me know what you all think! I want to know your opinion! ☃☂☆