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When she awoke, the first thing Maleficent saw was an eerie blue glow. It pulsed with a vibrancy that reminded her of the green fire she could conjure from her scepter. She felt drawn to that hue, as if it offered her even more powerful magic to wield.
Her eyes flickered, only to open wide when she realized she was no longer in the land of the dead. She gasped as air filled her lungs with renewed vigor, her heart starting to thrum anew.
“Looks like you’ve had a hell of a ride, Mistress of Evil,” a voice said – and it was familiar, like a song she hadn’t heard in a long time.
Her mouth curved upward. “How lovely to see you again, Hades,” she said. “May I ask why you revived me from my eternal slumber?”
The god’s forehead creased, his hair flickering silver and blue with the flames that were his signature. “It wasn’t exactly in the plan,” he said, “but I’m bound by a higher power now.”
“Oh? Since when does the god of the underworld take orders?”
Hades did not laugh, nor did he even offer a sarcastic remark. “Things have changed since you last walked the realm of the living, Maleficent,” he said.
It was only then that she felt it, the absence of – of –
Maleficent screeched as she realized she could no longer access the magic that had once pulsed through her like a second heartbeat.
*
“Talk about an overreaction,” Hades said as Maleficent raged over the loss of her magic. It hadn’t gone over well one bit when she learned that she had been brought back from the dead only to be imprisoned on an isle with no escape. The last vestiges of her magic flickered as sparks among her fingertips, but they were soon gone like flames doused by water.
Maleficent then turned her angry eyes to him. “You still have power,” she said. “Why is that?”
Hades shrugged. “Maybe they couldn’t contain all of my power,” he said. “I was a god, you know.”
The evil fairy narrowed her eyes. “So you like to brag,” she said, “but you’re trapped here just like all the rest of us.”
The god of the underworld bristled at that. “Watch your tone, babe, or I’ll show you even more of what I can do.”
Maleficent laughed, a shrill and erratic sound that would have made lesser villains quake. “Try it,” she dared. “Let’s see if you truly are a god to be feared.”
In one swift movement, Hades stood before the fairy who looked unperturbed by his threatening nearness. “Don’t. Tempt. Me.”
They stared at each other – before Maleficent’s expression turned to one of amusement. “Perhaps we should work together,” she said. “I do so enjoy a good lackey.”
Hades snorted. “Work for you? No. But thanks for the offer. It’s nice to know you appreciate more than just my bod.”
Maleficent’s green eyes stayed on his, and he could feel the pull of some – allure. His breath came out in sharp intervals, like his chest was being constrained by an invisible serpent winding its way around his body to wrap around his throat. Then, with a guttural sound of pain, Hades turned away as he broke the fairy’s almost-spell.
“That was a cheap move,” Hades gasped out. Each breath felt raw and ragged as it dragged itself out of his lungs.
The sound of cruel laughter met his ears. “But isn’t it ever so fun, Hades, darling?”
If he had still possessed all the powers of a god, she would have been a stain of blood on the floor within moments.
As it was, all he could do was glare at her with all the hatred in his heart.
*
At least my castle remains untouched, Maleficent thought as she observed the tall black spires from a distance. But her minions were scattered around the Isle – some too stupid to look for her, some too afraid to find her and face her wrath. Either way, she would be nothing on this Isle without some support.
“You look like you have a scheme brewing behind your eyes,” Hades said.
“I always have a scheme in progress,” Maleficent said, “even though that word is beneath me. I’m not a child who’s simply mean to the other children.”
“Yet you have the temper of a child,” Hades said – and Maleficent cut him another intimidating look.
“If we want to rule this Isle, then I need followers,” Maleficent said.
“We?” Hades shook his head. “I have no desire to be a ruler beside you.”
“What else are you to do?” Maleficent asked, running a hand from his throat to settle on his chest, right over the place where his heart beat. She even gave him a little pout. “It would just be a temporary arrangement. You get what you want, and I get what I want.”
Hades looked down at her hand before he looked up at her again. “And how do you even know what I want?”
“We have never been dissimilar, Hades,” Maleficent said. “You wanted to kill a god-child, and I wanted to kill a princess. The details matter not, but the heart is the same.”
“I don’t need revenge,” Hades said. “I just want to be free to do what I want.”
“As a god should want,” Maleficent said. Then she lifted her hand to his cheek. “We could be invincible together. Don’t you want to see what we could do? Won’t you reconsider my offer?”
Hades grasped her hand in a touch that was none too gentle. “I think you forget just who you’re dealing with.”
“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, yes?” Maleficent said.
For his part, Hades looked a sliver intrigued – but Maleficent knew she didn’t have him quite yet.
“If we team up—”
“If we team up, I’ll ensure you take Zeus’s spot as the head of all the gods,” she said.
Hades laughed, and Maleficent could imagine a time when the very earth trembled at the sound of that laugh. “Now you’re speaking my language.”
The mistress of evil joined in the laughter. “We’ll have that kingdom quaking at the very mention of our names.”
That was only the beginning.