The Adventures of Hermes, God of Thieves by Murielle Szac

Author:Murielle Szac [Murielle Szac]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781782690702
Publisher: Steerforth Press
Published: 2014-02-14T16:00:00+00:00

To be continued…

EPISODE 50

DURING WHICH HERMES MEETS THE MYSTERIOUS CHARON

Previously: Hermes has been punished for having stolen Hera’s chariot and Poseidon’s trident. He must go and spend three months in the Underworld in his uncle Hades’ house and place himself from now on in his service.

It was with a heavy heart that Hermes set out towards the Underworld. He had never yet been in the underground kingdom of his uncle Hades, but the idea of being shut up below the earth, where the sun and the air never entered, frightened him. Furthermore, he did not know Hades all that well, yet his stern aspect intimidated him. He had sometimes met him in the palace and he seemed to be a querulous man, mean even. Like everyone else, Hermes did not like the company of the dead. And that was just it: Hades reigned over the kingdom of the dead.

When he reached the cave which was the entrance to the Underworld, Hermes found himself before a wide, black river overcast by a lingering fog. “I cannot very well swim across it,” murmured the young god. “And it is impossible to fly over it in this fog—one cannot even see the opposite bank.” He was mulling things over in his mind when he heard a strange lapping sound. It was like the sound of slowly approaching oars. Suddenly, a boat emerged from the mists. It was steered by an old man, whose head was covered by a black hood. The old man pressed with a slow and precise motion on the great oar which he used to move the vessel along. Soon, the boat had reached the shore where Hermes stood.

Just then, a host of shadows began to push and shove in order to get on board the boat. Hermes had not heard them arrive. Where had they come from? Where were they going? Who were they? They seemed exhausted and they pressed on so they might not miss the boarding. The old man scrutinized them one by one. He examined them from head to toe, then he made them turn around. After this check, some were given permission to board the boat while others were firmly thrown back onto the shore. Those who had been refused passage beseeched the old man, hanging themselves from his sleeves, weeping. But nothing seemed capable of changing his mind. Hermes looked at these shadows as they wept and his heart sank, without knowing the reason why. He could understand nothing of the scene unfolding before his eyes, yet it unsettled him in a strange way.

He remembered that his mission was to gain entrance to the Underworld. So he tried in his turn to climb on board the small boat.

“My name is Hermes,” he said to the old man, and he stretched out his hand in greeting.

“And I am Charon, and this black river is the Styx,” muttered the other, who did not take Hermes’ extended hand. “No living person, however, can cross this river. You cannot board now.

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