The Beauty and the Omega

Chapter 3: The River Styx

Brooke sat in silence inside the boat as it floated down the river. Leonidas towered above her as he rowed, and the only sound that could be heard was the oar pushing through the water. Occasionally, Leonidas would shift the oar to the other side of the boat, but they continued in silence for a long while.

Glancing around at her surroundings, Brooke couldn’t help but think how normal everything looked. If this was truly the Underworld, why did it look so much like Earth?

I must be high, she thought. But is this really the best my imagination could come up with?

She turned her hazel gaze onto the mysterious Leonidas, who kept his eyes ahead as he rowed. Every once in a while, the sleeve of his tattered, gray robes would fall back as he lifted his arms over his head to switch sides with the oar, and a glimpse of his strong, toned arms would peek through.

However, he wasn’t attractive in the traditional sense, or at least Brooke didn’t think so. He was much too pale to even have a chance of gaining followers on i********:, and his dark brown hair was just a mess of curls on top of his head.

Effortlessly chic, maybe? Brooke thought. But we need to do something about that tragic outfit of his.

However, those silvery eyes were quite intriguing…

Leonidas glanced down at Brooke, giving her a questioning look.

“You know, Leo, with the right outfit, you might pass for slightly-older Timothée Chalamet,” Brooke said quickly, avoiding an awkward silence.

“I have no idea who that is,” he replied, rolling his eyes. “And my name is Leonidas, not–”

“I’m just saying, a makeover could do you some good,” she interrupted. “That hint of stubble gives you a cool vibe that says, ‘I don’t care.’”

“Because I don’t care,” he said with a hint of annoyance. “Stop picking apart my appearance.”

“Geez, sorry.”

Awkward silence fell between the two as Brooke crossed her arms and glanced out at the riverbank. Leonidas continued to row forward as he avoided looking at her.

“Can I have my phone?” she asked after a few minutes had passed.

“What phone?” he sighed exasperatedly.

“Don’t you have my purse?”

“Your human possessions do not follow you here to the Underworld,” he explained through gritted teeth. “Except for the clothes on your back.”

“You mean…my phone isn’t here?”

“No.”

“How am I supposed to manage my social accounts without my phone?!” she demanded.

“You can’t. You’re dead, remember?”

“No! Stop messing with me, Leo!”

“Stop calling me Leo.”

“I want my phone!”

“Calm down! You’re rocking the boat.”

“UGH!”

Brooke ran her fingers nervously through her hair, tugging a bit on the ends. A panic began to rise in her chest at the idea of her phone being lost. It was the device through which she lived her life, curating content and showing the world what they wanted to see. Without it, she would lose the followers and sponsorships upon which her livelihood depended upon.

“Hey!” Leonidas shouted.

Brooke glanced over to find the hem of his robes on fire. Reacting quickly, Leonidas dropped the oar to the floor of the boat and held his hands out. Water shot forth from his palms to extinguish the fire, which left a burnt, sizzling smell in the air between them.

“What did you do that for?” he barked.

“Me?” Brooke asked, taken aback. “I didn’t do anything!”

“Well, it couldn’t have been me,” he argued, giving her a pointed look. “I have water powers, not fire.”

“I don’t have any powers.”

“Each soul has an affinity for a particular element,” he explained impatiently. “It’s usually not apparent in your world, but when you die, you’re released from the limitations of your human body, unlocking your powers. But you need to remain calm, or your powers could get out of control.”

“So…I have fire powers?”

“Not surprising, given your personality,” he snorted, picking up his oar. However, he glanced nervously at her once more before continuing forward.

“And I’m not surprised you have water powers,” she retorted. “You are a ferryman after all.”

Brooke dipped her fingers into the river and splashed some water toward his face.

“Hey, stop that!” he scolded, recoiling in surprise. “Hands in the boat at all times!”

However, he couldn’t hide a small smile that flashed across his face as he glanced down at her, but it was gone as fast as it appeared.

“Isn’t the River Styx supposed to give you immortality or something?” she asked, peering her head over the edge of the boat.

“Yes, but you’re already dead, so it’s a moot point.”

“Are you dead, Leo?”

“No, but I am immortal, because I was dipped in the river upon my birth. And for the last time, my name is not–”

“So, I’m dead, and you’re immortal,” she interrupted. “If that’s the case, why can’t we go into the water? We could go swimming!”

“That’s a terrible idea,” he scoffed. “The waters are calm here, but there are parts of the river with a strong current, and your soul would be carried away, stuck in the River Styx for eternity. It’s worse than being condemned to Tartarus.”

“That’s like Hell, right?”

“Yes.”

“So, I’m going to Heaven?”

“Probably,” he shrugged.

“Leo, what do you mean, ‘probably?’” she asked slowly.

“Ugh, I give up,” he muttered.

“Leo?!”

“There has been an administrative error on your file,” he explained quickly.

“An administrative error?” she repeated incredulously. “What the f**k is that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing to worry about,” he replied. “Just remain calm.”

“Remain calm?! How am I supposed to remain calm if my eternal resting place might be Hell itself?”

Brooke’s chest began to heave as her breathing became shallow and more labored.

“I need a Xanax,” she moaned, lying back in the boat and fanning herself.

“Just take deep breaths,” Leonidas said in a low voice, setting his oar down and crouching low in front of her.

Brooke could feel his hands wrap around her shoulders, pulling her back up to a sitting position. His silvery eyes seemed to bore into hers, and she felt a wave of calm wash over her as she mimicked his breaths in and out her nose.

“Very good,” he said soothingly.

“I’m surprised you’re being so nice to me,” she quipped, breaking the serious of their moment.

“Well, if you lose control, you could set this entire boat on fire.”

“Shut up, Leo,” she snorted, pushing him away from her.

He let out a low chuckle as he stood back up, grabbing his oar to begin rowing once more.

“So, if we’re not going to either Heaven or Hell, where are we going, exactly?” she asked.

“We just have to make a detour to get this clerical error cleared up,” he shrugged. “It happens from time to time. We’re almost there…just up ahead.”

Leonidas pointed forward, and Brooke turned around to see where he was directing at. A dark, towering gate made of wrought iron bars slowly came into view, pointing upward into the dark, stormy sky in a hostile way. On either side of it was a dense forest, where fog hung low around the tree trunks. She could feel the fear slowly rising in her chest as they approached, especially as a shadowy figure emerged from the trees.

“Holy s**t!” she exclaimed, scrambling backward until she hit Leonidas’ knees.

“Calm down,” he muttered to her, rowing them closer toward the shore where the massive creature stood.

The shadowy figure was a large wolf that was nearly as big as a military tank, and his fur was as black as midnight. However, the most distinguishing feature of the wolf was its three heads, each of which had a pair of glowing red eyes that stared them down dangerously.

“Don’t be afraid,” Leonidas reassured her quietly as the boat bumped gently against the riverbank. He spent a minute tying up the boat before helping Brooke onto the shore with his hand.

Brooke shuffled timidly in her heels behind Leonidas as they approached the giant, three-headed wolf, who snorted in irritation as they approached.

However, when they reached the creature, Leonidas bowed to it and greeted it in a way that almost knocked Brooke onto the ground.

“Hello, Father.”