Cerberus

=Cerberus=

= =

=**An Unwanted Intruder**=

"Did you see that man?" //"What man?"// //"Oh...he looks familiar..."// "Why yes, //I// remember the story as if it were just yesterday...
 * "The only man down here, you dimwit!"**
 * "Of course he does, fool. He almost killed us once, remember?"**

...as we sat in front of the gates, fulfilling our duty as Guardians of the Underworld, I heard the sounds of yet another poor soul awaiting his judgement. Amidst the cacophony of the agonized screams of Tantalus and Sisyphus, there was another noise unfamiliar to my ears. A silhouette swiftly glided across the dark river Styx as I watched in confusion at the sight before me. It appeared to swim with ease, despite the strong current. I was in awe of the creature; not a single soul had ever crossed without the help of Charon. The dark shadow finally surfaced, and revealed himself to be a brazen young man. I started to prepare my usual growl, but he strode briskly through the gates without taking notice of me or the three judges nearby."


 * "I should have torn him to pieces when I had the chance!"**

"Anyways, as I peered through the Gates, I heard the stranger brusquely addressing my Master. 'I need to talk to you...' 'What do you want?' Hades demanded, affronted by the stranger's lack of respect. '...in private,' the stranger replied. 'Follow me, Hercules,' Hades commanded, his eyes revealing omniscience.

I watched the two disappear into the gloaming. For several minutes, I strained my ears to catch any fragment of their conversation, but I could not distinguish any words. Giving up on deciphering their discussion, I went back to my usual routine of watching for trespassers." //"Not me!"// //"Oh."//
 * "Of course you didn't, you were sleeping, as always!"**

"As I was saying, the man talked to our Master, obviously coming to a compromise with him. The next thing we knew, he vaulted over the gate, pouncing upon our back. In his muscular grip, he grabbed all three of our heads. Although we tried to throw him off, he doggedly held on, until we had expended all of our energy." "//I was the mastermind of the plan."// "Think as you might, but I am the genius among us three. Allow me to continue. After wrestling us down to the ground, the man whipped out a rope, tied us up, and began to drag us towards Styx. He flung us, rope and all, into the river, and gracefully dove in."
 * "//We//** **fought? You mean to say** //**I**// **fought. You two didn't do anything."**
 * "Make sure to mention my heroic act of bravery."**

"Ah, yes...you //almost// saved us from drowning when you bit off part of the rope. Unfortunately, //dummy// has no attention span and was distracted by a scintillating coin dropped by Charon. The man noticed and resorted to pulling us across with brute force. We summoned all of our strength to escape, but our resistance was in vain; the man possessed far too much power. Eventually, he reached the other bank. We lost track of time as we were agonizingly dragged through the misty darkness. After what seemed to be an eternity, the mist dissolved into hazy daylight. Soon, the resplendent rays of the sun blinded our eyes, which were unaccustomed to the light. By now, we felt faint from exhaustion, torture, and suffocation. Every way we looked, bright hues of green, lavender, and white astounded our eyes, as we were accustomed to the monotonous shadow of our home." //"It was nice..."// //"But...it was so...pretty!"//
 * "No it wasn't! Haven't you forgotten, we are supposed to be ferocious demons of the underworld.**"

"Anyways, the stranger strode to a nearby tree, ripped it up from Mother Earth, turned around, and hit us until we lost consciousness. Once we awoke, we found ourselves outside of a miniscule version of Master's palace. This one was decked with jewels and precious stones of many sorts, though it did not compare to the magnificent wealth of Hades. The stranger unceremoniously deposited me at the feet of a heavyset, important-looking figure, who cowered in fear at our sight. 'Take him back at once!' he commanded. 'I hope you're happy!' the stranger replied, and reluctantly turned and strode from the audience chamber, picking us up again to return us to our home. As soon as he had exited the court, he violently threw us down in a display of fury. The blow to our heads proved so hard, that we instantly became unconscious for the second time. Upon reawakening, we found ourselves in front of the gates of Hades once again. The stranger had apparently returned us to our home."

"**Vile, dishonorable human! How dare he intrude upon our domain! Has he no shame? That foolish and insolent mortal has no respect for the gods. Do we not feel as he feels? Think as he thinks? Bleed as he bleeds? After the torture he put us through, not once did he show any consideration for our suffering. Humans have hearts of iron, and care only for themselves. From then on, I have not once trusted another man. After what Hercules did to us, I had a right not to."**

"You are right, brother. Hercules' foolish actions caused us much pain and strife. We lost our chance to avenge what he did, but there is no need; apparently, if this is his spirit, he is dead now."