The dice is cast and our heroes are in the endgame now. Alexander is at the Gates of Hades, in order to unleash hell on earth and make the Gods bleed. Will Achilles be able to confront the young king? Or the fate of the world is already sealed?

At the Gates of Hades

Alexander took a deep breath and approached the golden door. Beside him stood two of his closest followers: Ptolemy, his half-brother, born from Philip and a servant girl, and Hephaestion, his childhood best friend. Each man held one of the three weapons that were used almost a thousand years ago to keep Hades imprisoned in Tartarus. In front of them were the Gates of Hades, adorned with carvings of Hades and his demon-like creatures. As soon as they set foot in the hall in front of the Gates, the entire area shook, and an otherworldly cry made them cover their ears with their hands.

“He knows we are here,” said the king.

With slow steps, he moved closer to Hades’ Gates.

“Man was never supposed to be mortal!” he exclaimed as he unsheathed the Sword of Peleus.

He approached a rock with a fissure. With each step towards it, the rock started to glow, calling for the blade. When Alexander sheathed the sword into the rock, the whole place started shaking violently.

“Quickly, put in the other ones!” he shouted to his companions.

They did as he asked. When all three weapons were in place, the earthquake stopped. A soft metallic sound was heard, like a breaking lock. Suddenly, the sound of horses made them wonder.

“What is happening?” asked Hephaestion, but before he could receive an answer, a blast of fire sent them flying backwards.

Although it was late at night, the dark sky was illuminated as if it were day. A flaming chariot landed on the mountain where the Gates were. Alexander stood up, dusting off his clothes. In front of him stood Achilles’ entire squad.

Hell on Earth

“That’s enough brother!” said Achilles.

“You are too late!” shouted Alexander, laughing in a cruel manner. “Soon the world will feel my wrath! It is time for the Era of the Gods to end! Man will rule over this world now!”.

Behind him the Gates opened wide open and monstrous beasts came out behind Alexander.

“This is it! Now I will become the ruler of all Earth! Now even Hades belongs to me!”

Nikolaus, fueling his power he created a line of fire, making Alexander and his Companions to step away from the Gates. Once they saw them come towards them Achilles’ friends attacked. The two brothers, Achilles, and Alexander were standing face to face, ready to kill each other.

“This sword is peculiar” said Alexander smirking. “The legend says that a cut from Peleus’ sword can kill a god! We could call it a cure to immortality. Time to test this theory!” he said and charged screaming to his brother. They started exchanging blows, sparks flying from the clash of steel. Around them the rest was fighting with each other. Ptolemy and Hephaestion was fighting with the two Spartan brothers, while Thalestres, Anthea and Nikolaus were trying to keep the monsters at bay. As they were fighting, they came closer to the Gates.

With Air Manipulation, Achilles tried to push Alexander towards the fire, but he missed the Hellhound coming towards him. He lost his balance and Alexander took this opportunity to pin his brother to the ground, right at the edge of the Gates. Beside them they could see the Realm of Tartarus. All the rot and death of the world that was going to take root at this world, if Alexander continued with this plan.

Fear of Punishment

“Look!” Achilles shouted, struggling to steady Alexander’s hand.

He could feel the knife’s edge against his throat. Ironic, he thought. He had become immortal under the guidance of the gods, yet now he faced death from a weapon crafted to slay every immortal being in the cosmos. In that moment, he saw death reflected in his brother’s eyes. But then, Alexander’s gaze flickered, and his expression changed. Was that… fear? Alexander’s grip loosened, and Achilles managed to seize the weapon, hurling it into the blazing abyss below. Then he pinned Alexander to the ground. As he surveyed his surroundings, he discovered what had suddenly frightened his brother.

“Erinyes,” he murmured.

He had heard legends of these hellish creatures. The most common tale among the priests of Delphi involved Orestes, the man who had slain his own mother. He spent the remainder of his days relentlessly pursued by these she-demons, driving him to madness. Alexander beheld them and realized the tormented existence he would endure if he were to slit his brother’s throat. It caused him to reconsider his choices.

“Is this the future you desire? Are you willing to sacrifice everything for power?” Achilles shouted at his brother.

“It was never about power!” Alexander retorted, tears welling in his eyes as a battle raged within his soul and mind. “It’s about revenge! The gods took everything from me! My father, my mother, the simple life I could have had!”

“You’re not the only one seeking retribution or seeking to rectify matters with the gods,” Achilles replied, his voice now calmer.

The Battle at the Gates of Hades

Before they could move, a huge tremble made the whole mountain shake violently. From the Gates, a black chariot, pulled by the three-headed-dog Cerberus, came forward. On it, the God of the Underworld made his appearance.

“Finally!” he shouted, so the whole world could hear him. “I am free! Now all of earth shall bow down to me and my army!”

By saying that, many monsters, minotaurs and other hellish creatures surrounded him, creating a wall of rotting flesh around the King of Darkness. Hades wasn’t taking any chances. But suddenly, thunder was heard, and beams of lighting fell upon the army of Hades, opening holes on the bodies of the monsters. Cerberus lost one of the heads and run off back to the Gates, capsizing the chariot of Hades, sending him on the ground.

“Who the f—” Hades went to say, but a beam of water hit him in the face.

A beam of light came from the sky and Zeus and Poseidon came forth.

“Father!” exclaimed Achilles, who was stabbing one Cursed Cyclop.

Hades was enraged. Dark energy started forming around him.

“You will pay for that! You are out of bounds!”

“I may pay big brother. But not from you”.

The fight was fierce. Beams of dark magic were coming out of Hades hands, while the two Olympians were dodging and sending attacks on their own. Achilles tried to fight Hades and managed to land some watery blades, but he pushed him with a wave back. If Achilles hadn’t dive into the river Styx, he would be dead. Hades seemed almost impossible to harm. After all they were fighting to his grounds. Zeus then shouted to Poseidon.

“Brother! Let’s end this!”

Poseidon seemed unsure.

“Let’s go! We don’t have time!” said Zeus again.

Closing the Gates

Poseidon and Zeus combined their powers and created a huge blast of water and lighting.

“Let’s see you dodge that brother!” shouted Zeus and sent the blast towards Hades.

It hit him with gigantic force, that the whole earth shook. Hades was pushed back into the Gates of his realm. The doors were slammed after him. The beasts that remained outside let out a cry of despair, as they had been left behind by their master. They ran to the door but found it impossible to open it up. The whole squad of Achilles encircled them.

“And now… we END this!” said Nikolaus, sending waves of fire towards them.

Some of the beasts tried to fight back, only to be shot down by Anthea and Thalestres. If some managed to pass through, the two Spartan brothers managed to slaughter them with their spears or swords. Soon, the rocky terrain before them was covered in black blood and bodies of hellish beasts, others burned, others shot down and some cut to pieces.

“Seems we won the day!” declared Dienekes.

Hephaestion was kneeling beside Alexander, who was unconscious and just coming back to his senses.

“What happened?” he asked.

“We changed the fate of the world, brother. For now, at least” answered Achilles, who approached them.  

Alexander didn’t give a response. For sure, his plans with Hades had been destroyed. But now, that he “saved” the world, he wasn’t sure how to feel. He made a mortal enemy out of this confrontation. And secondly, he failed at taking revenge from Zeus, something that deep down still wanted it.

Achilles then turned to Zeus and Poseidon.

“Quite a reunion” he joked.

Zeus didn’t seem to be himself. He was somewhat distracted.

“Everything alright uncle?”

The Death of a King

Zeus suddenly froze, his face turned pale.
“It is done” he said. “My thread has been cut”.

Poseidon rolled his eyes and ran to the side of his brother. He grabbed Zeus’ hand, but it was frozen.

“The Fates have decided brother. My time has come” he said, with his voice soft and weary.

Soon, the body of Zeus started glowing in a golden light and was dissolved into the air. It started raining as the golden dust of Zeus were scattered through the wind. The whole nature seemed to mourn the death of the king of the Gods.

“Now what happens?” asked Alexander.

Poseidon seemed to be lost in his thoughts.

“I don’t know… This has never happened since the era of the Titans. Since the death of our father, Kronos…”

Achilles stepped forward.

“Will you become the king of Olympus?”

Poseidon laughed softly.

“I never asked for such a position. I will let my brothers decide who wants to lead the Olympians. Also, my powers are limited after the defeat of Hades, so I cannot make any claims right now”.

“Will you…” asked Achilles, clearing his throat. “Will you stay with us?”

Poseidon smiled with affection.

“No, I can’t. We walk in uncharted waters now, with the demise of my brother. We must wait and see. For now, let’s enjoy our morning with peace”.

“Oh no” grunted Alexander, seeing the sun rise up to the sky.

“What?” asked Achilles.

“You must leave now!” said the king.

“And go where?” asked Nikolaus, raising his voice.

“To Delphi!”

“What happens there?” questioned Anthea.

“Antipater, my general in Macedonia, is going to attack Delphi, with direct orders to reduce it to ashes! If you want to save your home, please go now, and tell them to stop the assault!”