"You owe me a debt," said the personification of Death dryly.

"Oh no, I'm afraid it's much worse than that; I owe you my friendship," said the woman wryly.

"What?"

"You think for rescuing a daughter of Hades that one single favor could repay that? No, now you have my eternal friendship, tender care, and affection. That is much worse than you could possibly imagine."

Thanatos stood there and regarded Makaria with wary amusement. He could not tell if she were mocking him or that he should be justly concerned. Perhaps she was still as disoriented as he was from the misuse of his power to pull souls across the barriers of the realms.

He regarded her through his round glasses and stated factually, "I have no friends, save for those who commiserate with me in the low world during the occasional lull in my work. None follow me, none can go where I do, or bear to watch the things I must witness to ensure the job is done. I do not need your pity. All I did was pull you to me to spare your suffering as a member of the royal family of the Underworld. Go home to Hades and remember me in the future."

She considered the words of the guide of souls. She had not seen him in her father's court for years considering the amount of wars that had just ended. The steady stream of souls had kept him constantly ferrying between the mortal and immortal realms. He did not look any older than she did, although she knew he was almost as old as the mortal realm. Swathed in his large imposing cloak, he appeared to be ominous and shapeless with only a small sliver of his face, glasses, and a strange shimmering lock of hair shadowed under the hood.

He shifted impatiently, and she realized he was waiting to see that she had safely returned home before continuing with his work. She focused on opening a portal to her father's house, directing her power into the ground in the way she used to travel quickly. Nothing happened, and she could not feel the pathway open or see any sign that she had disturbed the realm at all. She tried again and feeling a sense of dread, she turned to Thanatos, who was beginning to look annoyed.

"Am I dead or alive?"

"What do you mean? You are immortal. " He was surprised by her question and it dawned on him that her being was ethereal rather than the usual immortal corporeality.

"You pulled me out of the mortal world; I have my body but have escaped my tormentors because they can no longer sense my presence. Except, it does not seem like I am in the immortal realm either as I cannot influence my path home. What or where am I?"

Thanatos faltered; his intent had only been to pull her to him sooner. He had not wished to see her suffer at the hands of her tormentors. He turned away, to hide his concern.

"You must be in a reflection of the realms; between realms."

"Can I die?"

"What?"

"Am I capable of dying in this state?"

He refused to face her. He had tried to spare her pain and had made things much worse.

"No, you have not lost your immortality. It's more that you have lost your ability to interact with the physical realms, because you are where I travel between them."

"No one can just cease to exist."

"Not when the rules are followed. If you were mortal, it would be beyond your comprehension and you would slip into one realm or the other."

She watched him curiously, "You broke the rules? For me? Why?"

"You ask too many questions. Perhaps I shall see you during the next plague or mass execution." He went to leave.

"Wait! Please," she went to grab his arm, but he recoiled instinctively, "I need your help to get back to my normal state."

"I don't…" he hesitated, "I don't know how."

"At least take me back," she looked worried, "or let me stay with you while you work? I could help you, especially if there's no other way for me to interact with the world."

As much as he wanted to reject her plea and continue through these godforsaken millennia, he was intrigued that someone, even someone desperate, would be intrigued by his work. He was present at all deaths in one way or another, always waiting to shepherd them below. It was gruesome and beautiful, not something he had found anyone else to appreciate and respect in his way. His only apprentice had been useless and treated the role as a necessary evil as punishment for his wrongdoings.

He looked at her waiting quietly and reflected that it was his recklessness punished her with this existence. She could not begin to imagine what kind of life she was facing. The least he could do would be to grant her this request but give her fair warning of the horrors he often came across.

"If we are to travel home with you in this state, we will have to go the long way. I doubt you have traveled this way before, so stay close."

Sighing resignedly, he broke open his passage to the lower world and beckoned for her to follow him. They walked along a dark hewn-rock passageway that lead into a large network of tunnels, caverns, and stairways. She stared wide-eyed at everything they passed. Their path took them from glowing caves that were lightly traveled through to large bustling underground cities, full of immortal figures and mythical beings living out their days. While passing through the third such town, one seeming to hover in the middle of a deep crevasse and glowing with revelry, that she finally began to ask one of the millions of questions racing through her mind.

Thanatos cut her off before she spoke, "In this part of the below, these beings are the ones that choose to live below either because this is their home realm or because they cannot return to their own in the sea or sky. There are a few mortal souls that may travel here as they please from above. Additionally, a good many of the dead who lived pure and full lives there and are thus granted freedom in this life to traverse the realm as their eternal reward."

"What about me?"

"You are an anomaly. Just as no one above can see you, few down here can perceive you and far less would acknowledge your existence."

"If I'm the first of this sort, how can you possibly know this?"

"I've seen many beings in many states over many years, I'm an accidental expert on the subject."

She fell silent. He noticed she was frustrated that he did not give her a straight answer. He softened momentarily.

"No one has glanced at you and several have walked near enough to touch you without batting an eye."

She blushed at the obvious practical answer.

They left the city on a massive bridge that narrowed to a small slit in the cavernous wall. He gestured for her to go ahead of him down one long meandering staircase descending through barely lit chambers. His small lantern cast light along the descent from his position above her. The light illuminated her dark amethyst hair and the steps just in front of her.

For the first time in their travels, he was able to see her taking in their surroundings and barely restraining her curiosity. While he hadn't forbidden her from asking him questions, she seemed to have made a personal decision to not bombard him just yet. While he was used to the quiet, he began to wish for conversation as they plunged deeper on more narrow and steep steps. He thought better of it; however, not wanting to surprise her with sound and cause her to tumble to the below. While her mortality was not an issue, he knew from experience the unexpected plummet was not enjoyable nor painless. She had not lost her royal bearing and passion he remembered in her parents, but it had been a very long time since he had time to pay his respects to the court. Although they had never been formally introduced, he remembered her being not only a beloved daughter, but also a valued advisor to both of her parents. He had been present for multiple trials and had viewed her lenient and fair suggestions with fondness.

There were a few paths that branched off from this one and he only had to point her in the right direction once, toward an almost hidden set of stairs on one of the many landings. Halfway down this final staircase, she gasped when she realized they were traveling low enough to spiral around the outside of a great stalactite which pointed down to a dark hill in a vast dark cavern that seemed to twinkle in distance. It was like they had travelled so far down in the depths of the realms that they had reappeared at the tips of the heavens. They descended to where the pinnacle met the peak of the mountain. Thanatos assisted her in dropping onto the mossy hill from the finale step, his hood falling back from his face. She gazed into the darkness surrounding them, the bare outline of similar dark hills emerging and sinking into a low mist that slinked through the valleys. She noticed her guide had begun to walk along a dirt path that sloped down the hill, his small pool of light bobbing at each step. It silhouetted his figure; his darkly iridescent hair shifting color in the glow.

She followed at a slight distance as a light cool breeze flowed from the distance. The weight of immortal loneliness began to sink in as she mused on the extant that she could interact with the world. She could feel the realm, the ground, breeze, temperature, but the ability to control the world was just out of reach. The further into the familiarity of the Underworld they went, the more she felt and could control. The distance from the mortal realm made her own state a more distant concept and easier to comprehend. Her companion was right in that she had never travelled through the Underworld in this way or seen so much of its depths. She had not seen anything remotely near her father's house or her mother's gardens and wondered where Thanatos' was leading her.

Her silent companion had stopped ahead of her near an old wooden archway leading directly into a large underground door. Both were covered in ancient runes and symbols that she barely recognized. She waited while her guide opened the door with a gesture alike to the one he had used to open the path the Underworld. The door swung open slowly to reveal a living space full of strange object from throughout time. The walls were lined with torches casting a warm glow over the single large space. She marveled at the warmth and coziness of the place, wondering whose residence they were visiting.

She turned to see the god of death hang up his billowing cloak and set down the lantern in a familiar spot by the door. She glanced around the room again at all the personal objects, recognizing that the warm comforting residence belong to death himself. Her host stood awkwardly by the door until she caught his eye. He jumped toward a low table, pulling out a chair for her to sit. He joined her after pulling a book off the wall of bookshelves, a chart from the opposite wall, and two small boiling cauldrons.

She sat watching him scan the book intently, comparing its contents to items on the chart. He was much smaller although no less impressive without his cloak. He was near her own height and wore a comfortable black tunic covered in a faint small golden oval design that she thought could be mistaken for skulls. He struck her as an eccentric figure and she wondered why they had not been introduced before at the court. She started to feel awkward just sitting and watching him.

"Is there something I can do to help you?"

He didn't move, but his eyes froze on his place on the page.

"No, I need to see where I failed y… in all this. You may use my bed to rest or you may read. Do you not like the coffee?"

"Coffee?"

He looked up at her confused, picking up one of the small cauldrons and taking a drink.

"I'm sorry, it is a delicacy of my own creation from the last time of peace. According to Chronos, the mortals enjoy it in the future and that's what they call it. If you'll let me finish my research, I'll be able to answer your questions."

She nodded, picking up the other cauldron and began to peruse the items around his home. The walls that were not lined with books were covered in strange art; the ceiling itself was decked in luminescent stars. On the desks and shelves, there were small grotesque statues and odd abandoned contraptions that she did not have the words to describe. There were few personal amenities for the home's single occupant and even then, they did not seem to be in use often.

A loud slam from above woke her and a heavy book fell on her. She turned to look at the source of the thrown book to find an irritated Thanatos standing by the table surrounded by papers. He twisted toward her, deflating once he realized his outburst caused her to wake.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you," he said sheepishly, "I didn't hit you, did I?"

"No," she replied, "it only woke me. Is everything alright?"

He didn't reply instead he began angrily rolling up the charts and tossing them into a bin.

"Did you find anything?"

He slammed the bin onto a table and began stacking the books frantically until the entire stack fell onto the floor. He threw another book at the opposite wall, knocking over a contraption and breaking a glass. She watched with concern as he pounded his fist into the table as release of his fury.

She leapt from the bed and paused; unsure if she should interrupt or stay out of his way.

"Than, are you alright?"

He froze mid-swing and was jarred out of his rage. He looked at her quizzically as if he had never seen her before that moment. He shook his head as if to banish a thought and threw himself into the nearest chair. While she was concerned about what his temper may imply for her future, she was more concerned for his well-being. He had taken an unprecedented risk to save her from torment and capture and her vow of friendship had only been in half-jest. She drew closer to him and knelt next to his chair placing herself in his line of sight.

He drew his hand back through his hair with frustration and stared through her as he thought. She slid her right hand beneath his left where it lay on the thin wooden armrest. He sat motionless and lost in his thoughts. After a while he seemed to become so lost that he began to absentmindedly draw circles on the back of her hand. She stayed as still as possible in case he came to any new conclusions and took the opportunity to watch him. She was amused to find that the small ovals in his clothing were in fact ironic skulls and that his cloak hid his less than formidable appearance. She did not doubt that he was able to protect himself, however it was evident that his iconic cloak was meant to influence the perception of the world.

At her father's court, everyone was acquainted with him, however she had heard of few people that he confided in. She remembered at one ball a long time ago in her mother's honor that he had caused quite a stir by appearing. The last reign of peace had started abruptly, and none had expected him. The women of the Underworld had discussed him at length and deemed his work, along with the dark rumors of his life, to make him unsuitable as a companion. From everything she had witnessed of his behavior today, she wondered if the rumors were more false court gossip than truth. She shifted at the idea that his life may have become more isolated due to misconceptions.

He felt her move and his eyes came into focus abruptly. His finger stopped moving across her skin but remained hovering just above her hand. He blinked slowly, as if he were waking up from a long rest. He shifted slightly in his chair to sit up in a more alert manner and sighed resignedly. She decided to take a chance.

"Than," she whispered and his blue eyes snapped to hers apologetically, "may I have some answers about what is going on?"