𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 most gorgeous being I had ever seen, almost deathly so.

The way his piercing smoke-filled eyes swept across the chamber sent chills down my spine, it was like he would pounce at any moment. Yet, even in his stillness, his movements were delicately graceful, down to the batting of his dark eyelashes. His long braids swayed as he turned his neck, further scoping his surroundings, not bringing any attention towards the heavy metal chains that weighed down his wrists.

My fingers tightened the grip I had on the massive grey marble column I stood behind. This was the first time I had come across this imposing temple, though I'd not expected it to be occupied, as I was used to being the only person wandering in the gardens. A visitor would've otherwise thrilled me, but this one seemed to be present not by choice, but by punishment.

He didn't look like someone who could have committed a horrible crime, to my eyes at least. His hands appeared to be far too delicate and well-kept, his ebony skin too unblemished, his black chiton too clean. The expression etched on his face was one of silent frustration, tinged with a bit of resignation, but ultimately bothered to be here.

Whether he was meant to be a friend or a foe remained unclear to me and I didn't find the courage in me to introduce myself to him. It was much safer to stare from a distance, watching his beautifully imposing frame shift in the middle of the temple. His large dark wings had me mesmerized, maybe he was a fallen angel or even a demon...

I watched as he raised his head, looking vacantly in front of him. The chains that kept his bounded in the temple slightly rattled, echoing inside the empty chamber.

"You must find this amusing, don't you?"

He spoke with a grave voice, making me hold my breath at the sound of him speaking. I almost lost my grip on the column, catching myself before I could slip on the temple's cold floor. The friction against my bare feet made a little squeaking noise which I don't doubt he heard. Still, I got myself back upright and stayed hidden behind the marble column, not daring to make any form of contact with the prisoner.

"Answer me," he said after my clumsy attempt to remain out of his sight. "I know you are there."

I had no excuse now, he knew I was watching.

Taking in a deep breath, I slowly unwrapped my hands off the column to stand on my own, sliding against its side to steadily slip inside the temple. I looked down at the sunrays hitting the back of my feet, making streaks of light on the floor like if they were creating a path towards the middle of the temple, where he was.

The winged prisoner elegantly turned his head towards me, making me stop in my tracks once our eyes met. His gaze was stormy and tenebrous, having an almost sinister energy to them.

I crossed my arms together, pressing into my gut in order to calm my flittering stomach, my skin digging into the rope that was keeping my peplos tied at the waist.

"I don't," I breathed, anxious to answer, then cleared my throat and tried to speak more clearly. "Find it amusing, that is."

He followed my gaze to where I was staring at, on the floor. "Then you may leave me be. I do not need a pair of mortal eyes pitying me."

"Who are you?" I blurted out, my mouth revealing my inner thoughts and betraying my mind. "How did you end up..."

"You are asking the wrong questions," he bluntly said, his wings stretching around him.

I tried to be as calm and collected as he was, relaxing my tense shoulders. "No, you're just not giving me the right answers."

His stare abruptly darted back at me, his eyes slightly widening. It was almost as if he was taken aback by my choice of words or like I had offended him personally. I instantly hoped the latter wasn't the case; even though he was confined to where he remained, I didn't want to rule out the possibility of him smiting me with his powers (if he had any).

"She talks back," I faintly discerned him mumbling to himself. "Of course she does."

Determined not to let him know how terrified I was, I took a step forward in his direction, raising my eye-level to his. "Tell me why you're chained up here. Who did this to you?"

"Doesn't matter," the prisoner shrugged some of his braids off his shoulder. "I cannot do anything about it now."

"There has to be a way to get you out of those," I glanced at the bulky metal cuffs binding his wrists together, trailing down the chain that was attached to an anchor at his feet.

He coolly shook his head, sighing. "Don't even bother trying, they made sure that I wouldn't break free unless..."

I raised a brow, cautiously intrigued. "Unless what?"

I could tell that he saw my sudden interest in his plight, but that might've made him uncomfortable, being this vulnerable in front of me.

The prisoner lowered his head. "Like I said, it does not matter."

"So you're fine with being stuck here for God knows how long?" His situation might've bothered me more than it did for him, judging by his composure. He seemed to accept whatever lead to his punishment, but I somehow couldn't allow myself to just leave him here alone and possibly forever.

"If they wanted it so, then yes," he simply answered matter-of-factly, "I am."

I took another step closer to him, now less than a meter away from where he stood. His answers just kept me leaving unsatisfied, I had to know why he was here. "Who are they?"

He opened his mouth to answer, but instantly closed it after. I couldn't tell if he was confused, curious or disinterested in my question, his emotional expressions definitely needed some work.

He tilted his head at me, quizzically. "Do you usually ask questions this often?"

"Do you always avoid giving straightforward answers?" I asked him back, knitting my eyebrows together.

"I find your impertinence annoying," he squinted at me, "yet surprisingly brazen of you."

I decided to take that as an insult.

"You talk like a high school English teacher," I told him, trying to come across as nonchalant, but still having trouble to conceal my apprehension at his intimidating presence.

The winged prisoner stared me down with such an intensity, I was scared I'd burst into flames at any moment. "Very few people dare to speak to me that way, girl."

"Well I think they should," I shakily said, loudly gulping down a knot of anxiety stuck in my throat, "it would humble you."

His index finger slightly twitched, betraying his calm façade. At this point in our conversation, I was sure all hell would soon break loose. The last thing I needed was to have an other-worldly being furious at me for my not-so-smart mouth.

But instead of summoning all of his power to make his wrath rain down on me, the prisoner simply sighed with dismissal. "You obviously haven't a clue of who you are speaking to."

Who does he think he is?

Then again, I don't even think I know who he is.

Or what he is.

"I would if you just told me who you were," I shifted my weight from one foot to another, feeling very fidgety all of a sudden.

He glanced down at my restless feet, lifting a subtle brow, before sighing again in defeat. "I am the second greatest relief known to man."

"I'm horrible at riddles," I told him, not satisfied with the vague answers he was always giving me, "so you need to walk me through this one."

"There is no greater relief than that of sleep," he simply said, caressing one of his delicate wings. "It may come like an intoxicating mist, fogging the mind with the sweet promise of rest and peace. It might manifest itself as a yawn, a slowed breathing, a heaviness of the eyes. No matter the place nor the time, it will always have a way to find you. Those foolish enough to dare challenge their slumber will surely be consumed by the very thing they wanted to defeat..."

The prisoner looked expectantly at me, as if waiting for my eyes to widen in sudden recognition of who he was, but I couldn't do anything else besides looking back at him, waiting for him to finish his bizarre, spontaneous speech.

"But it is not the need for sleep that people tend to flee from," he continued after a few awkward moments, "as they wish to avoid their dreams. Those curious worlds fabricated from one's own subconscious, a dormant and abstract part of one's mind that only come to life at dusk, when sleep whisks you away in the darkness of your imagination. You, of course, have no reason to flee from them, for they welcome you with a world of wonder."

I glanced outside the temple, through its columns, to quickly look at the wilderness that laid beyond. It was like my very own garden of Eden; trees with vines and bushes full of fruit grew with no restraints and lived in harmony with the forest animals. I knew where all the most magical spots were; the waterfalls, the gardens, the crystal cave. All of it was just for me.

"But the sleep I bring is eternal," the prisoner brought the attention back to him, "no amount of nightmares can wake you up from it."

I immediately knew what he was referring to.

"Death," I spoke with an unwavering voice. "You mean death."

He nodded. "Mine is of a peaceful kind, much likened to sleep. That is why my brother is the guardian of sleep."

"And you're..." I started saying, but refrained to actually speak it. Part of me was still unsure if I really knew what his true identity was.

"Thanatos," he proudly affirmed, lifting his head, "god of peaceful death."

"What are you doing here? Why aren't you, you know..."

"In the Underworld? Serving my master, Hades? Well, we can thank the Olympians for that one. It seems that Zeus decided he was displeased with me, probably over one of his mortal lovers who ended up dying as mortals tend to do. He thought it would be a good idea to punish me by trapping me here, your dreamscape."

"That seems harsh," I mumbled under my breath.

"He wishes to teach me a lesson," he said in a low voice, looking to the side, "to feel what it's like to love and to lose. I also sense that Aphrodite might have had something to do with this punishment."

I abruptly stopped my fidgeting, freezing in place. "Wait... To love?"

"Yes," Thanatos pursed his lips, "I must learn what it is to love another."

I shook my head in disbelief. "But, what do I have to do with any of this?"

"I think that matter is quite obvious," he tilted his head.

"Okay then," I sighed, taking in the weight of the situation, "well what happens when I wake up?"

"I will still be trapped here for as long as it will take for me to fall in love."

Suddenly, I started feeling lighter on my feet, the sensation of the temple's cold marble floor slowly began to fade, my vision becoming more and more blurred.

It was time.

"Look," I straightened my peplos in a hurried manner, "I really want to help you, but-"

"You must find my brother, Hypnos," Thanatos firmly told me. "He can help you stay asleep long enough for you to free me."

"But how will I-"

"Promise me you will seek him for me," he stared in my eyes with great intensity, one that was almost desperate in keeping my attention, "promise me."

Staring at me as I gradually dissociated from the world, the winged prisoner softly breathed. "Until we meet again, girl," I heard him whisper before waking up.

❥ ━━━━━━━━━

𝐆𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐒𝐀𝐑𝐘

Peplos (n.) : a robe worn by women in Ancient Greece.

Chiton (n.) : a long woolen tunic worn in Ancient Greece.