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❝Shadowed steps in wake,
Eternal darkness surrounds
the innocent clawing tendrils
tossed upon the torrent of howls
Woe the screech - Night Mare gallops to thee,
Rotting maw upon thy soul.
None can cheat claws of Fayte.❞
Hades watched his boy and debated. Thanatos really would give him anything he wanted? That was such a dangerous admission, even for a demi-god. Hades could ask for any number of things. He could order that Thanatos stay here in the Underworld. He could tell him to throw himself into the Pit of Woe. he could even say he wanted him to be Cerberus's chew toy. And worse of all, Hades could easily request that Niall's soul be damned in the darkest pits of the Underworld when he did eventually die again in the mortal realm. Why was his son not thinking before he spoke? Had this runt really enslaved Thanatos this much of there short year or so that he'd been with him? It was disgusting and Hades found that Thanatos had taken all pleasure out of this deal. What fun could he have when the man he was dealing with was already so broken?
He extended his hand gracefully and within moments, Niall's soul reappeared. Niall blinked and looked over at Thanatos and reached for him but he couldn't get to him. In moments, the form disappeared to leave a little ball of energy formed in his hand. "This is the raw form of Niall's soul. Shapeless, memory-less, vacant. His essence is much more vulnerable than the form you saw earlier and all it craves is life. If you get it back to the body, it will eagerly take up the empty vessel and form its shape again. All his memories will return.
"There are conditions however. As mentioned, this form is the most vulnerable for a soul, easily devoured and ripped apart. If that should happen, his soul will disintegrate and will be unable to return her or to the mortal realm. Your trip back to his body will not be easy. Cerberus will not allow you to just take a soul back across the river and he will attack. You need to ensure he doesn't manage to get to the soul. Secondly, the souls of the dead in Styx will hunger for the essence, wanting to feel that energy of life again, even for just a brief moment. They hunger, and are greedy. The boat will not be there for you. You will have walk the river. Fourth, you cannot touch it with your skin. Just as you have drained his life before, your touch will bleed the essence to nothing. And lastly, you have 19 hours, judge by mortal time, to get that soul to its body. If you do not, the body cannot accept the soul again, as I am sure you are well aware. " Hades used some of his own energy then to capture the soul within an orb like cage and handed it towards Thanatos.
"That will keep the soul in one piece as you leave the Underworld. Now, if you complete this task, you will not remain by his side. As soon as he breaths life, you will forget him. Your memories, your love, your sacrifice, all of it will be wiped clean and you will go back to doing your duty. You gained Hera's ire and you know as well as I that she will not give you peace. She will hunt this boy again and destroy him otherwise. Niall however, will remember you and everything that has happened to him. When he does eventually die and come back, he'll have his eternal rest like the other souls here and will not be subject to our games. Remember, Niall has suffered greatly for the use of his Sight and will be disoriented for the rest of his mortal life. However, he will not fall deeper to insanity consider Hera has taken the seat of his power. Do you really want to subject him to that loneliness?" Overall, Hades was not a cruel god though he played the part well. He dealt in punishments sure, but all punishments were deserved and nothing more. He did not willingly rip apart the souls that came to dwell in his kingdom and once this ill against the gods had been avenged, there was no reason to punish the mortal further when he returned. The task ahead of Thanatos was an arduous one. "These are the terms of my deal. Do you accept them?"