A Death Up Above - Chapter 4

“Achlys! Get back here!” Zeus yells as he chases after Achlys. With no response, he tries to run faster as with each step he takes the world around him darkens. “Achlys! Come back!”

“Keep going, just keep running.” Achlys says to herself while running faster and faster. “Almost there.”

“Achlys please stop.” Zeus says after losing her through the darkness. He stops running and stands in place. Looks around, and sees complete darkness. Surrounded in shadows. “He better not find out about this.” Zeus says as he screams and slowly floats in the air. All of a sudden sparks cover him as he yells louder and louder, illuminating the area around. His eyes light up as the lighting surrounding his body come and accumulate over his hand and lower arm. As he lifts it up and runs, lighting up the darkness. “I will find you Achlys, and no shadow will stop me.”

“Made it.” Achlys pants and falls down. She turns on her back and tries to rest. Suddenly someone starts screaming. “Ugh! No, no no no. Please not now.”

“Achlys?” Zeus shouts from a distance.

“No no n-AGHH!” Achlys cries in pain as the screams get louder and louder. The screams pierces through her head as the pain agonizes Achlys. “STOP IT!”

“ACHLYS!” Zeus shouts as he sees Achlys and runs towards her. “What happ-”

“STAY BACK!” Achlys yells as the screams become more high-pitched and more painful. “Go, go away!”

“What’s goin-”

“I SAID GO!” She yells as the pain intensifies in her head. “Leave me alone.”

“Achlys tell me what’s going on.” Zeus asks as Achlys starts calming down.

“Go away.” Achlys says as the screams start to quiet down. “Leave me alone.”

“I won’t go anywhere until you tell me what’s going.” Zeus says firmly.

“Or what? Do you think you can help me?” Achlys scoffs. “I’ve known so many people like you, Zeus, you say you want to help but can’t do anything about it. So you leave thinking you’ve done good.”

“Achlys what’s going on?” Zeus asks. “You’ve never acted like this before.”

“Yeah I haven’t, and I’m done with it.” Achlys says. “Every day I wake up, every time I go to sleep, at all times. I hear screams. From everywhere. From hell and from the mortal realm. Every time someone screams I hear it, every time someone cries I hear it, and every time someone dies, I hear it. Their pain, sorrows, sadness, misery, and mourns. I hear it all. It’s been like that for thousands of years. Then I have to act like everything’s ok, when it really isn’t.”

“No there’s something else.” Zeus states. “You lost it in front of the rest of us for a different reason.”

“That’s none of your concern.” Achlys says back to him. “Now leave me alone.”

“Fine, I’ll go.” Zeus says as he’s about to leave.

“Wait.”

“What?”

“Is there really someone above us as gods?”