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The Truth of the Lost Apples
A Team Cerberus Entry by Ruriska, Three Tailed Fox and La Fantome de le opera


The truth of how Cerberus lost the apples is one that has changed much over time. In fact, the story doesn’t have any resemblance to what truly happened at all. Though it hardly matters; the Cerberus have held onto their hatred for the gorgons for hundreds of years and aren't about to stop now.

Some versions of the story tell of a sorrowful, epic tale of how the golden apples were lost; stolen away by she who bargained them. But the truth of the matter is...

After the gorgon had continued on her way; the Cerberus had sat back and admired his three Golden apples. He balanced them on top of each other and then carefully knocked it over, rearranging it next as a pyramid. He spent a good part of the day placing his apples in different positions to admire them. They were after all very pretty, golden apples.

Soon enough a figure appeared and asked to pass into the Underworld (no doubt on some foolish quest). The Cerberus refused, having already let the gorgon through earlier, and chased it back towards the river Styx. However, when he returned to the apples; one was missing. With a rumble of anger the Cerberus searched around the gateway, peering under rocks and in crevices in case one had rolled away.

However it could not be found. Unhappily he settled down in front of the gateway again and closed his eyes. A clatter of noise nearby awoke him and he rose to his feet, padding over to inspect it. When he found nothing he returned, only to find that one more of the apples was gone. Somebody must have taken them, he reasoned. The Cerberus was incensed and he howled out for the thief to show themselves. Nobody appeared to face his wrath. He sniffed at the ground, catching a soft scent and with a rumble of triumph he followed it.

The scent went cold and as the Cerberus pondered his next move the keening wail of the dead echoed out. Thee Cerberus raced back to the gate in time to see three shades race past, one of which was the powerful Medusa, their faces stretched in a gleeful leer as they found freedom from Hades. In a panic he paced in front of the gate, knowing his punishment would be terrible.

At the clip clop of hooves his head jerked up and there stood Pegasus, looking quite pleased and munching on the last Golden Apple. It finished off the apple, core and all, and then spread its wings; soaring straight out of the underworld without a care in the world. The Pegasus had noticed the gorgon taking the apples and had followed her, hoping to get a bit of the tasty treats.

It was all a terrible mess. So as the Cerberus waited for the terrible things to come he concocted a story. The gorgon had of course tricked him. Two of her fellow gorgons had been waiting in the shadows. One had distracted him and the other had stolen the apples that were rightfully his, because all gorgons were terrible, greedy creatures. They had tricked their way into Hades in order release their kin, Medusa.

When he was banished from Hades he told this story to his kin; spoke of his woes and hid the truth. And the hatred for the gorgons grew to amazing proportions; based on a lie.

Team Aegis (Gorgon)
Madness_insanity, Witchneko, and Dark_Musashi

(The pink-snaked gorgon smirks at you after the question is asked; obviously relishing the tale to come. Although she is the middle sister, she is the one to most often deal with unwanted visitors or stories to tell, and you…you are both.)

“A part of that dreadful story that isn't usually told is what happened exactly after our heroine entered the Underworld. The reason for this omission is simple: these details put our main Gorgon, Medusa, the Cerberus, and more in bad light, quite dissonant with the rest of the tale.
However, our family favors accuracy over honor-“ (the oldest sister sighs, obviously having been the victim of a bad result of accuracy over honor) ”and here is a story of the terrible choices that lead to the Cerberus and the Gorgon's demise.“

Tartaros was a wide and bleak place, ornamented with the usual and cruel torture devices for the wicked. (Nothing new there; half of everybody she knew had some.) The young Gorgon had no idea where to begin once she set tail on the sterile soil.
On her right, there was a cliff leading to Hades-knows-where, with an obvious carving on the side that contained something so clearly inappropriate the snake-haired female’s cheeks blushed a violent purple.
On her left, there was a small group of shades, indistinguishable from that distance.
Right in front of her laid a frozen sea with equally frigid shapes stuck above it.
A voice in the heroin's head seemed to chime: what do you do?
1. Go north
2. Go east
3. Go west

Immediately, the young monster replied out loud, “I shall go south!”
There was a silence.
“That’s where you come from, dumbass, it wasn't in your options for a reason. That one won't count. Try again.”
There was something disturbing about realizing she'd just been scowled at by a voice she wasn't even sure existed, but she got over it and made a wiser choice. "I shall go west, towards the shades!”
This turned out to be only marginally wiser than going east and jumping down that cliff, but for the time being she didn't know it was not the best idea.


Slithering towards the two dead creatures, she slowly came to recognize one of them: it was another Gorgon, slightly older, who shared her same deep green vipers on the head as she did. It was one of her older sisters, who had disappeared years ago.
The other shade was a disheveled male Siren that seemed vaguely familiar, but nothing more.
“My sister! My beloved sister who was so full of joy! What happened to you?” asked the younger one, utterly mind-boggled.
The older sister, who wasn't full of joy so much as full of lead and nails, rolled her eyes and replied. “It's embarrassing. Do you remember, like, Bog Morley?”
“Yes, that singer who died 5 years ago or so. Why, is that him?” asked the younger one, completely ignorant of popular music, pointing at the immobile figure near her sibling.
“What? No way, this is Jimmy Cockatrix. So, huh, when Bog Morley died, I went here to find him to get one last authentic autograph, right, and I bribed the guardian, but while I was looking for Bog, guess what, oh my gosh, I found Jimmy Cockatrix instead! So we chatted, and chatted, and when I looked at the time, we had spent one whole week talking, and it was too late.”
The heroin felt sad for her sister until she added:
“But now, I know how he came up with Voodoo Chili, and that's, like, worth everything. Even all those nails I was forced to swallow.”

More options popped up in the young monster's mind: what do you do now?
1. Hug the clueless fangirl in pity compassion
2. Ask where Medusa can be found
3. Explain the reasons of your presence and ask where Medusa can be found

This is where the girl made her second fatal mistake.
“... okayyyy. So, I was looking for Medusa, because my fiancé is dying and only she can help me. Do you know where she might be? I need to find her fast before MY time's up.”
“Your fiancé? Are you talking about Bradley?”
“Yes, that Bradley.”
“You're still with him? That jerk, he assaulted MY boyfriend! You should totally dump him.”
“He assaulted your a*****e of a boyfriend because he tried to eat Mom's dog...oh, forget it!” shouted the young Gorgon, throwing her arms in the air, going away quickly, remembering then why she never was really in good terms with that one sibling.
As she was going away, an intelligent spark lit up in the shade's eyes.
“Hey, let's go. I'll pretend I'm that little b***h. Come with me, Jimmy!”
For once, the male shade spoke up, indignantly rustling his feathers. “Hell no! I've never had a better audience than here. The living world is not ready for my newest song!”
“Screw you too, I'm going home! I'm sure nobody remembers you, anyway!”

The older Gorgon went past the Cerberus, still guarding three perfect golden apples. “Hi, I'm done with my stuff, thanks a bunch.”
She waved at the canine, who didn't seem too bothered, as he had a very hard time distinguishing Gorgons from each other-they all had scales and snake hair, didn’t they? “Oh, you're done already. Well, goodbye.”
Thinking he had kept his promise, he started eating an apple. Delicious!

Our heroine then found herself on the frozen sea that held skeletons and fish prisoner without any hope of seeing the light of a flame again. She completely ignored the poor schmucks. (She was a bit of a jerk herself, really.)
The only thing that caught her attention was a cold silhouette. As she approached, it turned out it was a still-moving Gorgon, but not Medusa at all: this one had unique bright yellow eyes, which meant one thing.
It was her oldest sister.

She cried: “My sister! My most beloved sister who was so full of s**t! I mean, joy! What happened to you?”
Hearing a familiar voice, the shade turned her head; she was so cold her scales were turning light blue. “Oh, you’re here. What a surprise.” She had always been a cold monster, and to be fair, her voice almost sounded warmer now she was in an environment colder than it. Almost. “Listen to me and don't laugh. If you laugh, I will rip your snakes off your head.”
“I won't laugh” promised the youngest one.
“Alright. Your brain might have registered the fact our father has been stuck here for three years since he tried to get our mother back, after she died of grief, when someone ate her dog, Patchworm.”
Huh, that sounded somewhat familiar.
“And you tried to save them both?”
“What? No. Dad went away before he could tell me the code unlocking his safe, you know, the one full of gold and Hesperides apples.”
“Err, I wasn't aware, no.”
Awkward.
“ANYWAY. I didn't want to waste time looking for something I wanted to get in the first place, so I just dropped apples in golden paint and bribed the Cerberus with them. He tried to eat them before I was done. It didn't go too well.”
Awkward, bis repetitas.

More options flashed before the heroine's slitted eyes, with the same ethereal voice booming: what do you do?
1. Remark you at the very least made the effort of fetching REAL golden apples
2. Be as cold as the shade, and ask outright where Medusa can be found
3. What? You want another choice? Want fries with that, too, you greedy snake?

The girl decided to make things even more awkward.
“So you thought that was a brilliant plan? I made the effort to go to the Garden of Hesperides, at the very least, and I will get out, unlike you. Why exactly did you think it might work?” she asked.
“I'm going to claw that dumb look right off your face, sis.”
“Hey, I didn't laugh at you!” whimpered the youngest sibling.
“No, no, you didn't listen, the punishment for laughing was ripping the snakes off your head! Completely different. Now stay still...” whispered the oldest Gorgon.

More options appeared: I shouldn't even have to ask what you want to do.
1. Attack the lvl. 12 Frigid Shade
2. Run away
3. Stay still and have that dumb look clawed right off your face

Surprisingly for once, the girl made the right decision, and vanished before the other had a chance to touch her.
The icy gorgon wasn’t fazed by her sister’s cowardice, as she now knew exactly what to do.

The Cerberus swallowed what was left of the first apple whole as he watched the other Gorgon slithering in his direction and shouting, “Hey, you, let me go!”
He raised an eyebrow, and then chuckled softly. “Hell no! You already got out.”
Deadpan, the dead female replied, “Obviously I didn't. You let the wrong one out.”
The Guardian raised his other eyebrow. “You should really consider proving your identity then, miss.”
Without flinching, she said with a death glare: “I gave you those apples to get in. See? That can only be me.”
He wasn't known for his wisdom or intelligence, so his expression shifted to pure horror as the realization dawned on him. “Oh! Hell! You're right! I'm sorry! Please, go, before my boss sees you. Ohhhhhh shiiit I let the wrong one out…”
As the oldest Gorgon left the world of the dead, she whispered one word to no one in particular: “Sssssstupid.”


Our heroine, meanwhile, still fleeing in fear, left the frozen sea and could only be stopped in her tracks by a pit; she almost fell inside it. It was home to many reddened vines with sharp thorns, and one presence that called for respect, despite her very deep wounds.
Medusa!
“Medusa! I am so relieved and full of joy to find you! You need to help me!” exclaimed the inexperienced Gorgon.
The more experienced one didn't waste her saliva. “Help me first get out of there, and we'll talk.”
The girl looked up, as if expecting a list to magically appear before her. Alas, nothing happened. That meant the course of action should be extra obvious. She therefore leant on the edge of the pit and advanced her hand for Medusa to catch. She used all her strength in her reptilian body to lift the mythic shade out of her trap; thorns tore more gaping wounds in the old one's flesh, but she held on until she was safe.
Or rather, safer. You never know in Tartaros.
Catching her breath, the girl spoke first. “I beg you... to help me…” she broke for a long wheeze; obviously she was in pretty pathetic shape, “my fiancé is dying of an unknown disease, and...ugggghhhh...only your blood can save him...”
The woman tilted her head. “We can do it the fast way, or the efficient way. I need to know how many days you have left before you can't leave anymore.”

One penultimate time, the heroine was given another occasion to make an important choice: think fast, what do you do now?
1. The fast way
2. The efficient way
3. Explain the whole situation to Medusa so she can decide the best course of action

“Actually, I gave three golden apples to the Cerberus to let me in, and if I'm not mistaken, I have one day left. What do you think I should do?” asked the young one.
Medusa tilted her head to the other side. “You don't have much time left, then. The fast option is the best option.” She looked around herself apathetically; there was a puddle of dark blood. “Well, help yourself. The thorns are hollow, just pick one to use as a cup to collect my blood.”
“Thank you, wise Medusa!” she said with endless gratitude. She leaned once again over the pit to snatch a thorn with precaution. But when she turned around, her benefactor wasn't here any longer.
You see, while it was stupid to make the decision, and not to make it (especially when an ethereal voice asks you to make a choice), for once; the girl could not have prevented what had just happened. In fact, for the mythical creature, there was only one way of doing things, and she had planned all along to take the girl's place in the world of the living.
However, by being honest, she sealed her destiny, as we are going to see.
“...and now I have no idea where to go to find the entrance. Crap.”

The Cerberus, still worried about the discovery he was a lousy guard dog, watched Medusa arriving with increasing distrust. The dog, not the snake.
“Don't tell me I promised to let you out too,” begged the beast.
She grinned widely. “I do.”
“No, seriously, that is not going to fly. I'm gonna have problems, you know? BIG problems. If you can't prove your identity, you're not going out, no, don't even think about it, don't even think about NOT doing it either.” He hoped that other Gorgon wouldn't pull off the same stunt. Why was it that they all looked alike, anyway?
Her smile exhibited many sharp fangs. “I gave you the apples you are holding between your paws so I could get in, with the promise I could get out.” A silence. He didn't seem convinced. “And I can tell you're a glutton, because I gave you three apples, and there are two left.”
His face distorted like melting rubber. “Oh no, you're right! I'm so sorry! I should never have let you in in the first place... ooooh damn. Please go. Just go. Oooohhh boy, I'm so gonna get fired…”
And this is exactly what happened shortly after Medusa joined once again the world of the living.

We're reaching the end of this detailed part as, after much wandering, our heroine found her way back, but was welcomed by another Cerberus. But much like the hellish dogs towards her, she was unable to tell the difference. The three canines were pretty similar in some aspects to the snake sisters.
So, you can guess what happened when she was refused access to her homeworld.
She flipped her s**t.
That, and a last choice appeared before her eyes: do you:
1. Throw the thorn-cup in his general direction and shout bad insinuations about his mother's professional activities
2. Scream “curse your sudden but inevitable betrayals!”
3. Flip the bird.
4. Yell things that this website won't allow us to repeat.

With a brief moment to wonder about the ‘website’ mentioned in the fourth choice, the Gorgon decided to do all four things. Obviously, it didn’t turn out particularly well…

(The pink-‘haired’ girl takes a breath and closes her eyes, tired by the long story.) “You see, that’s the actual story; although few other gorgons care to repeat it. They prefer glory to honesty. However…we do not. But if others knew we’d told you, they would have us beaten in groups before we could say anything.”

(And she moves towards you, eerily calm; the two other sisters doing the same.)

“And everyone tells secrets. So the only way to keep them from getting out is to make sure you can’t tell anyone…”

(There’s a flash of scales and fangs, and before you know it, your vision begins to go black. The middle Gorgon is the last one you will ever see. And she simply says one thing smile
“Where do we hide the body this time, sisters?”

TEAM SCOTT PILGRIM!
Melodine Cantus, Nothing Yet, Orestae



The guardian of hell watched the retreating back of the gorgon disappear into the depths of the Underworld before turning back to the apples at his feet. He had been stunned when the monster had offered them in exchange; he knew of their existence, but had never seen something as beautiful as they were. He lived in Hell, after all, where everything was bleak and dark. Even as he was used to the murky depths, it still gave him some cheer to see something so bright, and it piqued his wonder...

He had been staring at the apples so intensely that he was barely paying attention to anything else, and thus, was startled when a soft, heavily accented voice interrupted his reverie, "E-excuse er me, sir, would you kindlee tell me where I should go next?" At this, Cerberus jerked up, a snarl upon his lips, which immediately died away upon seeing the owner of the voice.

She was a kitsune, recognizable by the multiple tails that emerged from her back, swishing back and forth as she regarded him nervously. "Sumimasen, I did not mean... the boat rowing man did not say anything..."



Charon. He realized. Pssh, how could one be such an irresponsible ferryman when you were carrying souls across the rivers of Hades? Especially one who was so lovely? He made a mental note; next time he saw Charon, he would admonish him for being unhelpful, or even report to the Lord of the Underworld himself. "Do you know," he spoke carefully, "where you are?" Sometimes, souls who had approached him seemed not to know that they had ceased to live.

"I theenk," she said quietly, raising her eyes to his and he was taken aback by the tears brimming there, "he killed me. It was sudden, but I... remember he is chasing, he shake me and ask me where sister ees..." She then paused, trailing away in her speech and wrung her hands. "Did you... do you see any one else like me pass..."

"No." He said, quick to assure her. "No kitsunes today, except you."

She breathed a sigh of relief and gave him a grateful smile. "Then sister ees safe! He did not get her, like he did when he shake me and then pain! I look down and red bleeding everywhere, and I then not know how I get in the boat." Kitsune's smile turned sad and her tails drooped. "He must have keeled me, oh! He will be after sister next! You will soon see kitsune next!"

Something, he didn't know what, perhaps it was the way she had said it, but something in her story made him feel her grief too, and Cerberus tried to not look as menacing as he was supposed to usually be. "What exactly happened?"

She stared at him, as if unsure if she should continue or just keep silent. Eventually, her words poured out, imploring him for help. "He love sister, but sister no love him! Sister not care for such things, married will break us apart. I only have sister, sister only have me, and so, he try find sister, but only find me. I not know why, but sister not know too, he very angry and say I must hand sister to him. I say no, I not force her do what she not want, and he look! He give scary look, say I do what he want." Kitsune sighed, trembled, then fell to her knees. "He keel me, will keel sister. Maybe best."

"No!" Cerberus argued, and her head jerked up to stare at him with wide frightened eyes at the loud bark, and he placed a paw on her shoulder. "You can't give up. Will you be really happy if you see your sister here?"

"I nothing can do..." She explained sorrowfully, but he cut her off. "I can help. There is a way for you to go back and find your sister and flee from this horrible man before anything happens."

"Death cannot return to life, is that not?"

"There is a way. A Spirit." He told her, gesturing to the golden apples he had gotten from the gorgon. "And I can use this as payment."

It was a terribly risky thing, to leave his post and risk incurring the wrath of Hades himself, but when she looked at him and thanked him, even saying that she would be willing to come back once her sister was safe, Cerberus had made up his mind to help her.

"Come." He said, "There have been others who have escaped from the underworld before. You shall be one of them."

And even if Hades hollered and whipped him, he would forever remember that bright smile, so full of hope, which outshone even the golden apples he carried in their journey.

As they traveled, she took delicate, cautious steps on the hot brimstone, following in tow of Cerberus. Her care to not harm herself - even after enduring agony and death - brought a small, rare smile to the Guardian’s lips. Hades was not a place for such endearing creatures of perfection. Even in death, Kitsune was still so full of life, so starkly contrasting with the miserable, looming underworld that threatened to envelop her for an eternity. She seemed filled to the brim with hope, trust, and light - things scarcely found in these depths were shining up at him through wide, thankful eyes.

He didn’t speak as he reached to place his paw over the one that gripped his arm. She graciously filled the silence, hoping that it would prevent the darkness from choking her.

“Why...why no leave? No family in life?” Her gaze fell, her voice grew hushed, and she continued, embarrassed. “No love?”

Cerberus glanced at her, curious. It wasn’t a strange question for her to ask, by any means, considering how frightening and unappealing her current journey had to be. But this was home. This was comfort, in a sense.

And since Kitsune’s arrival...it felt like this was home.

“I have family,” he responded, pressing gently on her paw with an attempt at comfort. They stood before a crumbling stone bridge, colossally large, albeit worn very thin from place to place. Flames lapped at the edges of the rock, bubbling over into holes where the bridge couldn’t sustain itself any longer.

“I-” she began, but the Cerberus stopped her once again. “I’ll be here with you. I’ll be here the entire time.”



He felt her relax, felt her claws retract. Taking a slow step towards the bridge and the overwhelming heat of the fiery river, he continued his answer, hoping to distract her, to give her a bit of calm. Perhaps talking about his own family would coax her to speak more about her sister, thus keeping her focused on their goal.

“I have two brothers. We are sons of Cerberus, bearing his family name, destined to guard the gates of Hades. We’re close in our own way, I suppose, but nothing like you and your sister.” He chuckled. If someone demanded that one of his brothers hand him over, he was sure that they wouldn’t put up any sort of fight.

They neared a part of the bridge where the path grew thin, flames curling around its edges, turning layer upon layer to an ashen dust. Cerberus felt Kitsune’s fear through tense fingers. A growing worry for the poor spirit curled and knotted in his stomach. He did his best to distract her, even if the subject matter was a bit melancholy.

“You said that your sister was all that you had...what happened to your family? Is that what made you grow close?”

“Family killed in great flood - Gods unhappy. We suffer.” Respectfully, Kitsune bowed her head in their memory. She hated to think that there were here too, somewhere in the endless sea of souls, swirling in a permanent state of unimaginable distress for an eternity. “But sister...no. Long as remember, sister ees important for me. Close always.”

Cerberus offered her a warm smile that went unnoticed, Kitsune’s determined stare fixated upon the stone that passed beneath her feet. It was probably for the best; he would never have been able to suppress the pity that oozed through and overtook the intended sentiment.

“I-” The sound of cracking rock was so loud and significant that it could be felt to the bone. The wide, fearful eyes of Kitsune looked up at him, her mouth open in silent panic.

He realized that she was slipping away.

The flames waited hungrily beneath her, hoping to swallow up the wandering soul. Ceberus was sure that his heart stopped beating, overwhelmed with dread. With one quick motion, he caught the spirit around her middle, pulling her towards him, away from the fault in the bridge and the fire below.

They stood in stunned silence.

Then she smiled, and he could breathe again.

“Arigato,” she said softly, voice (and fragile little body) still shaking. Standing on tip-toes, she leaned against him as though she meant to give him a kiss; instead, she gently nuzzled his cheek, dropped slowly back down to the flats of her feet, and remained close to his arm for support.

“Come on,” he urged, gently leading her ahead. “There is not much more to travel.” They kept their sights focused upon the end of the bridge, and what appeared to be an entrance to a great lair at the landing where it completed its descent.

At the end of the bridge, Kitsune paused, shifting her weight to give Cerberus more to bear.

“U-um, not sure can...can go longer...” she trailed off, apologetic, still fixated upon the entrance before them. To Cerberus, it was nothing but a few long strides through the underworld, a place to which he was very accustomed. To Kitsune, it seemed miles and miles away, through the most oppressive environment she had ever known. Her hope, admittedly, was wearing somewhat thin.

This didn’t stop her light from shining so brightly to the guardian. “I can help.” He picked her up with the same care one might give to delicate glass, supporting her with both strong arms and adoration. And with her head tucked gratefully beneath his chin, he began to close the distance that stood between them and her freedom from the underworld.

The lair was a deep, open cavern, fading away into blackness that masked the back wall. It was impossible to tell just how large it was, but the way every sound echoed suggested that it was far larger than one would initially believe.

“Yeeeeees?!” Came the deep, hissing voice from the back of the cavern. It grated on Cerberus' eardrums like nails on a chalkboard, rising until he saw Kitsune with her nose pressed to the ground, paws pinned tightly against her own ears. It came again with the same long, stretched syllable, until he too was forced into a position of submission. The sounds faded away only to be replaced by that of a dozen sharp, spidery legs scraping along the wall. From the darkness the Spirit emerged, dragging his grublike body along the floor with two humanoid arms, both too long and too thin to have ever actually belonged to a real man.

In fact, everything about the Spirit seemed borrowed – or more likely, stolen - as though his body had been thrown together from spare parts and black stitching. It was several times again the height of Cerberus, with a long, sectioned body like a centipede. Each of twelve sections had a set of spidery legs that seemed to stick to the stone with unnatural strength. However, Cerberus could not focus on the Spirit's body, as his attention was focused entirely upon the creature's face and the torso that held it. From chest up it was almost human, though clearly starved and unnaturally white. The neck was gone, curled up into thick creases as though the weight of the bulbous head had caused it to cave in. The skin crawled and bulged, the grubs that writhed beneath it occasionally escaping out of four deep, black holes where it's eyes should have been. Even without them, Cerberus could feel the Spirit watching them, it's mouth pulled up into a wicked grin.



“What,” it paused to pick a grub from it's own cheek, dropping it into a maw with far, far too many long, thin teeth, “do you want?” the Spirit demanded, clearly bored, before mashing it's teeth together. The squelch was sickening, but Cerberus forced himself to stand proudly, to demand the respect his station should have been afforded.

“I ne-” Cerberus paused. This particular spirit was infamously tricky, a greedy monster who would take and take and take and give back only what he absolutely must. He could not need anything. “I desire your aid, Spirit, in returning Kitsune to the mortal world.”

“How dreadful,” it responded, smile fading as it realized that there would be nothing new this time. Just another wanderer looking for a free ride to the top. It's body drooped and rolled along the floor, until the thing was laying on it's back and staring at them upside down, eleven appendeges folded along it's stomach. The free one drummed upon the floor, and he opened his mouth to deny the request- and saw the apples. “Ah! Ah ah ah!”

“She was killed before her time-”

“Yeeeessss. Poor thing, poor thing,” the Spirit cooed with sudden interest, upon on its feet and climbing up the wall. Two rear hands grasped the ceiling, and it draped it's long body down to gently caress Kitsune's cheek with one long, sharp finger. She shuddered and shied away, stepping behind Cerberus. “I will need those apples- Just a taste of their power, boy! Just a taste. You don't free spirits on an empty stomach, do you!”

Cerberus hesitated; he had let that snake-headed girl through for those apples. Of course, he had left his post for Kitsune. Could he abandon her now, and let the world be deprived of her beauty? She was good and pure and wonderful; could he let her be stolen away from all eyes forever, so unjustly murdered? No. He could not. He pushed the apples forward, “You will return her,” he said, trying to make sure that it did not sound like a question.

“Of cooourse, of course,” the Spirit sang, collecting them in a spindly hand, “Come now, my dear. Come, come!”

“I stay,” Kitsune whimpered, bumping her small head against Cerberus side. The message was clear; she did not want to go. She did not trust the Spirit anymore than she trusted the mortal world not to send her right back, perhaps to find a guardian less inclined to help her, “Much wrong in him.”

“Wrong?” The Spirit seemed appalled, and put on his best smile. It was not reassuring. “Only can send her back, boy. I don't have an eternity-” a pause, followed by the most terrible laughter Cerberus had ever heard, “Ah- I suppose I do. Come now, come!” He reached his hands out towards Kitsune, who looked up at Cerberus, doubt filling her eyes.

“You will be fine,” he said sadly, hating to see her go, “You don't belong here.”

“For you,” she said, and gently pressed her head against his, “I do this.”

“Go on,” he stepped back, knowing that a moment more of her contact would leave him begging her to stay.

“My dear, my deeeear,” the Spirit seemed elated, overjoyed as he made a cage of his fingers around Kitsune, and her body began to glow. It was dim at first, but grew to nearly blinding as the Spirit separated her soul from the body that held it. She looked heavenly as she floated up towards the mortal world, and Cerberus could see her smiling even though she shone like the sun. She opened her mouth, as though to thank him.



All that came out was an agonized scream.

It was worse than anything Cerberus had heard in all his years in the Underworld. No longer was she floating up to where she belonged, but into the gaping, yawning hole of the Spirit's mouth. It's jaw had come unhinged, and hung open in waiting. The light of her soul, pure and innocent, illuminated the inside. The rotting teeth, the bulbous tongue that stretched out towards the light and lapped at her essence like a bowl of milk. The more he consumed, the more he grew. Kitsune screamed and twisted, and Cerberus found himself running. He hit the shell of the Spirit's ancient body, bit at the hands that held the apples and was smacked away, clear across the cavern.

“Freeeeee,” the Spirit hissed as the last of the light vanished into his rotting throat, illuminating his body. Cerberus was up, fighting with the tangle of arms and legs, but could not get the apples away. They disappeared – one, two, three – down the Spirit's throat, and then it was drifting upwards. In consuming a pure, willing spirit, it had gained the power to free itself. The Spirit clawed it's way through the caverns as it's body fell apart. Section by section it came away, leaving a trail of legs and skin as it's soul was released. That terrible laughter rose again as it clawed it's way through the cavern ceiling, pulling down rocks and dust and shrieking it's joy.

Then, it was gone, free to terrorize the world above.

Cerberus was dazed by the blows, but urgency pushed him to his feet. He searched out the room, eyes wide as he spotted the yellow form. She was there! She was still there!

“Kitsune!” He yelled, and ran towards her as quickly as his exhausted limbs would allow. Oh, she was there! He could still save her. He could find another way. “Kitsune, I'm so-”

Cerberus stopped as though he'd hit the realization like a wall, skidding to a stop only a few feet away from the small, motionless form. Blood soaked the golden fur where the fingers had pierced her through, and pooled beneath the single ray of light that came in through the hole in the ceiling. It covered her like a blanket, though Cerberus knew it could not bring her any warmth now. This was a true death, from which there could be no return. There was no Underworld for those whose spirits had been consumed, no Elysian fields in which she could find comfort. She was gone forever, and the thought of it tore at Cerberus heart until he could do nothing more than let out one loud, mournful howl.

Tired and defeated, both his love and the apples gone, he laid down beside her.



The banishment came as no surprise, and Cerberus took it without argument. He had failed. Failed at his post. Failed to protect his love. He left Hades for the last time, forbidden to return, with his thoughts focused on one thing: the gorgon. She had given him those apples. She had caused the trouble that had gotten him expelled! If not for her, Kitsune would have passed to the Elysian fields to rest peacefully for all eternity. It was her!

All Cerberus took with him from Hades was a heart broken by sorrow and filled with hatred.

He would have his vengeance, if it took a thousand years.