Hades and the Helm of Darkness Read online

  Suddenly they heard a girl’s voice call out, “Help!”

  Zeus gasped. “Was that Hera? Sounds like she’s in trouble!”

  “Hey! There’s Oceanus,” said Hades.

  Sure enough, Oceanus was across the field of flowers now. It looked like he was locking the greenhouse. Was there someone imprisoned inside it. Hera, maybe?

  Without thinking, Zeus whipped out his dagger-size thunderbolt. “Large!” he commanded. Nothing happened. The bolt didn’t get big or spark with electricity. He’d forgotten it had no powers here in the Underworld. So why had Chip worked briefly before, he wondered.

  “The three of us can take him,” said Hades. “Even without magic.”

  “We have to try, anyway,” said Poseidon.

  Zeus tucked the bolt back into his belt. “Give us Hera!” he shouted to Oceanus.

  “Make me!” Oceanus yelled back.

  The three boys charged toward him across the field. They drew closer and closer. But right before they reached him, Oceanus disappeared into thin air!

  CHAPTER SIX

  The Helm

  The minute Oceanus disappeared, Mnemosyne suddenly appeared a few feet away. She sprang into action. “Nyah, nyah. You can’t catch me!” Her giant footsteps took her in another direction, away from the boys.

  “They’ve got magic,” said Zeus.

  Poseidon nodded. “Magic that works in this world.”

  “Let’s get her!” shouted Hades. The three boys rushed toward the orchard where Mnemosyne now stood.

  Right before they reached her, she went invisible too! And then Oceanus reappeared. He ran over by the grapevines.

  This appearing and disappearing happened over and over. Just when the boys thought they’d cornered one of the Titans, he or she vanished. Then the other Titan appeared nearby to tease and laugh at them.

  When they charged Mnemosyne yet again, she was standing in front of a stone wall. Suddenly a bowl appeared in her hands. Quickly she put it on her head. Then she disappeared.

  The boys couldn’t stop in time. Bam! They crashed into the wall.

  “Ow!”

  “Ow!”

  “Ow!”

  Zeus sat up, rubbing the lump he’d gotten when his head hit the wall. “What’s going on here? Why do we only see one of them at a time?”

  “They must have something magic that’s making them invisible,” said Poseidon. “Maybe it’s that metal bowl they keep passing between them.”

  “That’s not a bowl,” argued Hades. “It’s a hat. Or a helmet. Why else would they keep putting it on top of their heads?”

  “Wait! That’s it!” said Zeus. “It’s a helmet. As in ‘helm.’ Get it?”

  “That’s right, fools!” said Mnemosyne. Though she was still invisible, she had obviously overheard them. “We are in possession of the Helm of Darkness.” She laughed in that scary way again.

  “Stole it from the throne of the lord of the Underworld himself!” Oceanus bragged. He was standing far across the field of wildflowers. It was as if he were afraid to come closer.

  The boys huddled up to talk. “Why don’t they attack us?” Zeus whispered.

  “I think they’re scared of your weapons,” said Hades. “Of the magic in your bolt and Poseidon’s trident.”

  “My trident is magic?” said Poseidon. He stared at it in awe.

  Zeus rolled his eyes. He’d forgotten for a minute that Poseidon couldn’t remember a lot of stuff. But maybe Hades was onto something.

  “I bet you’re right,” Zeus told Hades. “I mean, that helm’s magic seems to work fine in the Underworld. So maybe they haven’t guessed that our magic doesn’t.”

  “So let’s pretend like it does work,” Hades suggested.

  “Yeah, maybe the Titans will fall for it,” said Poseidon.

  “Good plan,” agreed Zeus. When they broke out of the huddle, he and Poseidon pulled out their weapons. They waved them menacingly over their heads.

  Hades stood between them as they all confronted the Titans. “Give us the Helm of Darkness!” he commanded.

  Oceanus eyed Poseidon’s trident, turning pale. Clackety-clack! His claw hands clacked together nervously. He backed away. Then he ran to the far end of the hedge, leaped over it, and escaped.

  “Wait for me!” shouted Mnemosyne. They couldn’t see her, but they saw the tall flowers part in the field as she ran away. Seconds later they heard the two Titans arguing in the distance.

  “It worked!” said Poseidon, punching his fist in the air. “They didn’t guess that our weapons are temporarily powerless!”

  “Help! Let me out of here,” called a girl’s muffled voice.

  “Hera!” said Zeus. “She must be inside that greenhouse. C’mon. Let’s rescue her.”

  “You and Poseidon can do that,” said Hades. “I’ll go after the helm.” He turned toward the hedge.

  Zeus grabbed his arm, stopping him. “No splitting up! That’s how we lost Hera in the first place. I say we save her first. Then we’ll all go after the helm together.”

  “Okay, fine,” huffed Hades, sounding a little annoyed.

  The three boys ran for the greenhouse. Through its glass walls they could see that there was a girl inside. She was about their same age. But she wasn’t Hera. There were flower blossoms in her light red hair, and she was wearing a flowing green dress.

  “Who are you?” Zeus and Poseidon called through the glass to her at the same time.

  “Demeter!” said Hades, grinning. He looked at Poseidon. “We grew up with her. All of us in King Cronus’s belly. Then Zeus freed us. Remember?”

  Poseidon shook his head. “Nuh-uh.”

  Hades reached for the greenhouse doorknob. “Ignore Poseidon,” he called through the glass to Demeter. “He drank from the River Lethe. Lost half his memory.”

  “Oh, no!” she said, staring at them through the glass.

  Poseidon looked a little embarrassed.

  “It’s locked,” Hades announced when the door wouldn’t open. “Stand back, Demeter. We’ll break the glass.”

  “You can’t,” Demeter told them. “Hera was imprisoned with me for a while, and we tried to break it. But it’s magic. Unbreakable. So don’t waste your time. Go after Hera.” She made a shooing motion with her hand. “And then come back for me. She’s in the Underworld too, trapped in Asphodel Meadow.”

  “Okay,” said Hades. “We’ll be back in a—”

  “We’ll set Demeter free first,” Zeus insisted, cutting him off. “Then we’ll search for Hera together.”

  Demeter smiled at him. “Hera told me you were a bossy thunderpants,” she said teasingly.

  Now it was Zeus’s turn to look embarrassed. He hadn’t minded when Hera had called him Thunderboy. But her other nicknames for him stunk worse than the River Styx!

  “How’d you wind up here?” Zeus asked her, to change the subject. Meanwhile Poseidon began poking the lock with one of the sharp tips of his trident, trying to pick it.

  “Mnemosyne brought me here on King Cronus’s orders. She and Oceanus planned to take both Hera and me to a more secure hiding place today. To Tartarus.” She shivered. “It’s the lowest, foulest pit in the Underworld.”

  Just then the lock gave. Demeter shot out of the greenhouse door. “Come on,” she called, making for the hedge. “To Asphodel Meadow!”

  The four of them dashed through the hedge door and out of the Elysian Fields. Then Demeter stopped short, looking around. “Unfortunately, I don’t know exactly where Asphodel Meadow is,” she admitted.

  “I do,” said Zeus. “I saw a map.” He took the lead, knowing it probably made him look bossy again. But sometimes the urge to take charge like this came over him. It was happening more and more as the days passed.

  Ten minutes later the four of them came to a huge meadow of star-shaped white flowers.

  “Wow! This must be what snow looks like,” said Hades. Since the Olympians had been trapped in King Cronus’s belly their whole lives,
they’d never seen snow.

  “It’s asphodel,” Demeter informed them. “The only flower that will grow in the Underworld outside of the Elysian Fields.”

  “Look—the Titans. They have Hera!” said Poseidon, gesturing across the meadow.

  Sure enough, Oceanus and Mnemosyne were both visible now. Oceanus was carrying Hera. Mnemosyne was holding the helm.

  “Hmm. That helm must only make you invisible if it’s on your head,” Zeus told the others.

  Roarrr! Roarrr! Roarrr!

  At the sudden sound the boys and Demeter whipped around in surprise. Behind them the enormous slobbering three-headed dog was headed their way, looking ready to pounce.

  “Run for your lives!” yelled Hades. The four of them took off across the meadow, racing in different directions. The Titans laughed, apparently enjoying their fright.

  The dog charged after Hades. Easily catching up, it frolicked around him in happy circles. Its three heads licked him, like Hades and the dog were long-lost best friends.

  “Ick! Get away!” said Hades, swatting at the dog as he ran. Surprise—it didn’t listen. “Fetch,” he ordered desperately. He pointed toward the Titans.

  Looking thrilled to have been given a job to do, the dog bounded across the meadow. When it returned, it held Hera in one of its mouths.

  There was also one Titan in each of its other mouths. Only a dog like this—one nearly as big as a temple—could manage such a feat!

  All three captives were protesting loudly. The dragon dog dropped them at Hades’ feet, like it was bringing him roadkill. The helm slipped from Mnemosyne’s clutches as she tumbled to the ground. The magical object rolled toward Hades. It was almost as big as he was!

  “Whoa!” he said, backing away. Before he could run, it bumped into him, knocking him over. In the blink of an eye, it shrank down to a size that would fit the head of a boy.

  And for just a second Hades thought the helm flashed with gold and jewels! He blinked. When he looked again, he saw only a plain old spiked helmet. He must have been imagining things.

  As Hades was getting to his feet, Zeus and Poseidon reached his side.

  Poseidon snatched up the helm. He put it on his head and turned invisible. “We have the helm,” his voice said gleefully.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  The Furies

  Hera jumped to her feet and wiped at her arms. “Eew! Dog slobber,” she complained.

  “Hera!” Demeter squealed joyfully.

  “Demeter!” Hera squealed back. The two girls threw their arms around each other and hugged.

  “Hera!” Still invisible, Poseidon wrapped his arms around both girls, making it a three-way hug. Since he only recalled half of everything, Zeus figured it made sense that he’d remember Hera, even if he’d forgotten Demeter.

  But Poseidon also seemed to have forgotten how annoying he’d always considered Hera. That could be a good thing, though. Maybe there’d be fewer arguments between them.

  Meanwhile, the Titans tried to sneak away. The dog was watching and quickly nabbed them again. Then it pinned them to the ground with its front paws. It grinned over at Hades, and made that happy gurgle sound again. “Sir. Brr. Us.”

  Though wary of the dog, the others gathered near it. After the boys explained to the girls about the oracle sending them on this quest for the helm, they made plans.

  “I say we imprison these two Titans in Tartarus first thing,” said Hera. Demeter nodded.

  “Sounds good,” said Hades. “After that we can look for the lord of the Underworld and return the helm to him.”

  “Or her,” Hera put in.

  “Come on, then,” said Poseidon’s disembodied voice. “Zeus knows the way.”

  “Of course he does,” said Hera, rolling her eyes.

  “You’re welcome,” Zeus huffed in reply as they all began walking. By now she’d hugged everyone but him. He was feeling left out. Not that he actually wanted a hug, of course.

  “For what?” she asked, frowning over at him. “Saving me? Humph! I could’ve saved myself. Without the slobber.”

  “Where’ve you been, anyway?” Hades asked her.

  “I got caught in an ocean current while looking for the trident,” she explained. “Oceanus’s doing. It swept me from sea to sea until I wound up in the River Styx. I’ve been trapped in the Underworld ever since.”

  As the group headed out of Asphodel Meadow, Zeus and Poseidon took the lead. Hera and Demeter were behind them, chatting away. Poseidon had given them the helm, and they were trying it on and giggling at being invisible.

  Last of all came Hades and the dragon dog. The pooch carried Mnemosyne and Oceanus in its jaws like the two Titans were oversize dog toys.

  “Go away. . . . Don’t walk so close to me. . . . Stop breathing on me,” Hades ordered now and then. But the dog just kept gazing at him with adoring puppy-dog eyes.

  Every so often the Titans would start complaining, asking to be put down. But with a hard shake of his heads, the dog would shut them up.

  A feeling of satisfaction settled over Zeus. “Four Olympians down, one to go,” he said to Poseidon as they walked. “Only Hestia is still missing.”

  “You mean five Olympians down, right?” said Poseidon. “Including you.”

  Zeus’s brow wrinkled in confusion. “Huh?” What was he talking about? Zeus was no Olympian! Thinking that Poseidon’s memory was still half cuckoo from his River Lethe drink, Zeus decided to let the comment pass.

  Just then Hera called to Poseidon, asking about his trident. For some reason, she eyed Zeus a little nervously.

  Poseidon dropped back and proudly showed the trident off to the girls. “I’m god of the sea,” he bragged to them.

  Zeus couldn’t help feeling a little jealous. Someday he’d have to give up his thunderbolt to that Goose guy it belonged to. But Poseidon would get to keep his trident forever.

  As they all approached the dreaded pit of the Underworld—Tartarus—Hera accidentally dropped the helm.

  “Careful,” Zeus cautioned. “That helm’s got powerful magic.”

  “Okay, Mr. Bossy Bolts,” she told him. “You carry it. It’s heavy.” She tossed the helm to him and he caught it.

  At the exact same time the dragon dog suddenly spit out the two Titans. Patooey! Patooey! It started barking wildly.

  The Titans scrambled to their feet, ready to run for it. But Poseidon and Zeus drew their trident and thunderbolt, keeping them in check.

  “What is that weird dog of yours barking at?” Poseidon asked Hades.

  “It’s not mine!” Hades said quickly. One of the dog’s heads stopped barking long enough to reach over and give Hades a lick, as if to say, Of course I am.

  “Well, he sure has taken a licking—I mean, a liking—to you,” teased Hera.

  “Ha-ha,” grumped Hades.

  “Hey! What are those?” asked Demeter. She pointed upward. Three winged creatures were flying above them!

  Mnemosyne squinted at them, then paled. “Oh, no! It’s the Furies.”

  “Is that bad?” asked Hera.

  “They’re Creatures of Chaos!” Oceanus bellowed. “Of course it’s bad.”

  As the Furies flew closer, Zeus saw they were women. One had a long pointy nose, another wore black pointy boots, and the third one had pointed ears. All three had wild hair and wore long black dresses. The belts and bracelets they had on were woven of live snakes!

  The Furies circled overhead, gazing suspiciously down at the group on the ground. Finally each of them screeched out a question.

  “Who goes there?”

  “Why are you here?”

  “What do you want?”

  “We’re Olympians!” Hades replied.

  “We’re taking prisoners to Tartarus,” Hera added.

  “We don’t want any trouble,” Zeus said in answer to the third question. He was hoping he could reason with them.

  That had been impossible with the Androphagoi, the last Creatures of Chaos
they’d tangled with. They’d had mouths in the middle of their chests and sharp, bone-crunching teeth. Brandishing clubs and spears, they’d attacked without asking any questions.

  But it seemed that the Furies weren’t interested in reason either. When they noticed the helm in Zeus’s hands, they chorused furiously, “Thieves! You have stolen the helm. You must be punished!”

  All at once the winged women dive-bombed them. Everyone started to run.

  “Do something! Use your thunderbolt,” Hera urged Zeus.

  “Its magic doesn’t work in the Underworld,” Poseidon called back, without thinking.

  Hearing this, the two Titans looked at each other. Then Zeus saw them look at the helm. It must be more powerful than anyone knew, since they wanted it so badly. Badly enough to stick around in hopes of surviving the Furies and stealing it back.

  Luckily, the dragon dog’s three heads were keeping the Furies at bay by snapping at them. For now at least.

  “Leave us alone!” Zeus hollered to the Furies as he ran. “The Titans stole the Helm of Darkness. Not us.”

  Mnemosyne got a crafty look on her face. “They’re lying! These five spawns of evil came here on a quest to steal the helm. Right, Oceanus?”

  Oceanus hesitated, then nodded. He wasn’t all bad, Zeus knew. But he was easily influenced by the other Titans, especially King Cronus. And apparently by Mnemosyne, too.

  Mnemosyne jabbered on to the Furies, telling lies. “In fact, we saw them steal it. From the jeweled box on the throne that awaits the true lord of the Underworld.”

  “No! We’re innocent,” said Demeter.

  Confounded, the Furies flew around and around the group.

  “If someone doesn’t confess, we’ll drive you all into a river of lava,” Pointy-Boots threatened.

  “No! I say we dump them all in a sulfur swamp,” said Pointy-Ears.

  “I say we put a pox on them,” said Pointy-Nose. She drew back and hurled what looked like a handful of beans at them.

  They struck the dragon dog. Immediately it began scratching. She’d hit it with a pox of fleas!

  “Idiot! You missed,” Pointy-Boots complained.