"Don't... don't... cry..." despite Niallâs urging the man couldnât hold back. The tears didnât stop, running from his eyes and down the bridge of his nose as they dropped onto Niallâs bloodied face. This wasnât fair, this wasnât supposed to happen, this wasnât Niallâs end. He pulled the boy closer to him as he sobbed, hoarse and whispered âno sâ being whimpered as he cried, unable to control himself. His whole body shook, his gasping breaths turning wet and mucus filled when he couldnât calm down. This wasnât fair, it wasnât right. Hera had killed outside of the destined end; she had gone against the natural flow when it wasnât her business too. Surely she would pay.
"Ego booster... I made... I made God of Death fall.... fall in l-love" He tried to laugh, tried to bring up his mood to respond to the boy, but it fell flat. All Kei managed was a halfhearted shaky smile that crumpled into more tears mere moments later. With his head bowed all Keisuke could think was it wasnât fair. âNiall you canât leave me alone. I canât be alone again, I need you. Re-remember when we thought I was dying? A-and you told me to stay w-with you? Now itâs my turn.â
âYou have to stay with me, Iâm begging you. This canât be your end, you and I were supposed to have a long and happy life. Iâll protect you better next time, Iâll save you, Iâll be the hero, so donât abandon me Niall. I canât be without you.â He knew what he was asking was unfair. He knew that nothing was going to change, He knew that saying these things might only make Niall feel worse, but he couldnât stop. He was so desperate to keep the boy with him. It was the only thing he wanted, it was the only thing he would ever ask for in the rest of his eternal life.
âI love you too.â He whispered in his hiccupped breathes, âI love you, I love you, I love you , I love you.â Why did this happen? He watched as the boy struggled to hold on to reality. He watched him suffer with each breath he took. He watched him strain against the pain yet still smile. Keiâs entire face stung with tears, and he leaned down to the boyâs lips, his own quivering uncontrollably, and pressed a kiss to them.
Kei watched him die.
He felt Niall go limp in his arms, felt his pulse fade, felt him go cold. He broke. He cradled Niallâs body in his arms and screamed, screamed until his voice was gone and all he could do was continue the motion as he tore apart his vocal chords. Eos curled up on the boyâs chest and didnât move and Kei had to stand up and walk away. He paced the ground, punched the ground until his hands broke, cried until there was nothing left to come out. The nothing that was left was replaced with anger.
He felt it well up in his chest, and briefly noted that Eos had flown away. His chest heaved as he breathed heavily until the point where he was hyperventilating, and with a voiceless wail he hit the ground with his fist. The ground boomed beneath him, as if an explosion had gone off, and everything around him died, wilted, and withered. And he had felt it, everything within a mile radius of the man had ceased living.
He heard the flap of wings as Eos returned to him, landing beside the man in silence. He was getting Niall back. In the shock wave he had felt a door and Kei took off running without another thought, get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall. Get to the door, get to Niall.
Eos was beside him as he ran, he ran for two hours as fast as he could without stopping, he didnât slow as he reached the door either, he crashed through it, his mortal vessel ripping away and leaving his true form standing at the edge of the River Styx. Eos was right behind him, she was technically an immortal being, and that alone would grant her free passage on the ferry to the underworld.
He looked down at himself, flexing his fingers and observing his pale arms. It had been so long since he had assumed his true form he had forgotten what it had looked like, what being a god truly felt like. His hair was dark, long and wavy, reaching just above his waist. It was messy and wild, yet beautiful all the same. A crown of thrones sat atop his head, keeping his hair in place. He was wearing a black robe, though it exposed his entire chest, that was adorned with teal accents running along the edges, and when he looked into the water his bone structure was even different from Keisukeâs.
It features were sharper, thinner, his nose straighter, but his eyes remained black and lifeless like those of a dead fish. Eos chirped at him and he looked up to see a ferry waiting. Being Thantos, he was allowed to travel the river without paying fare, something not even the great and mighty Hera could do, and boarded with ease. Phlegyas stood at the end of the ferry, oar in hand, and bowed to Kei. âWelcome back, Master Thanatos.â
Thantosâs silence had the ferryman raising an eyebrow, but one look at the godâs features had any questions caught in his throat. Phlegyas had known Thanatos to be the kindest of the permanent underworld gods, he was never brutal and despite his sad fate to kill when he did not wish it Thanatos was never cruel to anyone. But looking at him now, Phlegyas thought that for the first time Thanatosâs eyes matched his expression, dead.
Kei stood the moment the boat reached the shore of the underworld. He didnât so much as spare Phlegyas a glance as he walked up to Hadesâs castle. He didnât acknowledge anyone, his eyes set on his goal, his expression tight and unwavering. He stormed into the castle, not caring for those that saw him. Time in the underworld moved differently for sentenced souls. While he was on the surface for five hours after Niallâs death, for the boyâs soul that may have felt like fifty or more years.
âWhere is Hades?â He yelled, his voice thundered off the empty stone walls.