I awoke one morning, not too long after opening the Nymphaeum, and sighed. I knew that today would be the day. Since I had separated from Poseidon fully, I had felt the call to return to Olympus properly.
“Ok, Amph…you can do this,” I told myself, and made my way to Poseidon’s dive bar to let him know I was returning.
“Damn, Amph, you look…” He left the sentence hanging, which left my heart pounding for him to finish.
Instead, I smiled and twirled a little. “What, this old thing? I’m fond of the dress,” I stated simply. Poseidon looked like he was going to move forward, but he stopped, respecting my wishes. “I’m heading up. I know you have a portal, and I would like to use it, please?” I asked politely. Some things were bred into me. I could have whirlpooled over, but with having been away for so long, I didn’t trust the connection to the family to be that strong. I needed to have my feet on the ground at Olympus before I could fully reignite that bond.
Poseidon cocked his eyebrow, and those sea-green eyes I loved so much grew bright for a moment before he stepped aside. “Of course, Amphitrite, you can use it whenever you need to. Just know, the destruction up there is terrible.” As I walked in front of him, Poseidon placed his hand on mine, and I looked up at him. Even this new mortal body stood below the towering sea god.
“Yes, Poseidon?” I asked, my voice hitching slightly.
Poseidon took a long breath, I could see his neck bulging a little, and that meant he was trying to control some aspect of himself. “Be careful up there. There are gods and beings that haven’t been seen since long before the fall and have returned to Zeus’ command. By the way, does he know that you’re coming?”
Poseidon let go of my arm, and I smiled brightly. “He knows that I’ve returned, I’m sure, but if I’m coming up? I don’t think so.” Poseidon led me into the back, and to his portal to Olympus. I knew that it could also lead him home, though it seems he’d given up being King of Atlantis. “Thank you, my friend,” I said softly and kissed his cheek. Poseidon activated the portal, and I stepped through without hesitation.
When I exited the portal, the devastation surprised me. Sure, Poseidon had warned me about it, but to witness the lingering carnage? I felt tears well up, and I had to wipe them away. It would be no good, going before the King of the Gods crying. I had an image to uphold, anyway. I saw a man running towards me and looked at him. Mortal security on Olympus?
“Excuse me,” I called out, and he stopped in front of me. “I’m looking for Zeus, do you know where he is?”
The security guard eyed me seriously, and I could tell through the uniform that he was well built and suited to the task at hand. “Who are you, and how did you get here?” he demanded.
While initially affronted by his tone, my smile settled into a cool temper, and I looked him dead in the eyes. “My name is Amphitrite. I am the consort of Poseidon, which makes Zeus my brother-ish. Now tell me,” I widened the smile to show off a line of shark teeth I rarely used unless someone was really pissing me off, “where my family is. I have been gone for a very long time, and I wish to see them.” I didn’t need to tell the man that Poseidon and I had separated, even if it was only just this week.
The security guard blanched when he saw my teeth and stood at attention. It was the little things in life that brought me such joy. “Ma’am,” I clicked my teeth, and he sputtered, “Lady Amphitrite, everyone has moved down to the God Complex HQ. I would suggest you start there. But ma’am,” I growled a little, not feeling as young as the body I was in suddenly, “Lady Amphitrite, sorry, but you may want to make an appointment with Hebe first, before seeing Lord Zeus.”
I nodded and smiled again, my teeth returning to normal. “Thank you very much, mortal, for your help. I can take it from here.” He nodded and waited for me to leave. I set up a wall of water, not knowing my destination was tricky, but with family, there was always a bond connecting us all together. And now, once I was here and felt the current re-establishing itself, I knew I could follow it. I stepped into my wall of water, focusing on Zeus’ signature and allowed the current to take me to him.
“I’m sorry, miss, but you can’t go in there,” Hebe called out as I strolled past her desk. Was this going to be the theme if I returned? I stopped and looked at her, my crystal blue eyes radiating annoyance.
“Hebe, was it?” I looked over at the nameplate on her desk. She nodded and barred my way. I had to give the girl credit. “Well, Hebe, I’m new here, and I haven’t seen my brother-in-law in over 2000 years, and I would very much like to.”
Hebe’s eyes opened wide, and recognition dawned. “Lady Amphitrite, I’m sorry. Lord Zeus told me that if you were to return to give you access to your floor.”
“My what?” I asked curiously, moving to the front of Hebe’s desk so that the assistant could return to her duties.
She looked me over and smiled sweetly. “Your floor, here within the Headquarters. I believe…” Hebe trailed off as she scrolled through her computer. “Yes, here it is, floor 27 belongs to you.”
I fell into one of the chairs and looked startled. “I have a floor all to myself?” I guess I was more out of touch with Olympus than I had previously thought. “But, my hotel…”
Hebe just smiled and nodded. “Yes, and we can mark that down as well. A hotel you said, what is it called?” she asked as she passed me the key to Floor 27.
“Nymphaeum, because,” I began.
Hebe picked up on it. “Yes, because you’re a Nereid.” I nodded. “And where is it located?”
“A few miles away from The Mermaid’s Tail,” I replied, anticipating her response.
“Ah, so then you’ve already run into Poseidon.” I nodded again, trying to keep the tension in my voice to a minimum.
“Yes, he stopped by the hotel a couple of days ago, he said he liked the name.” I could hear in my voice, that my feelings for him weren’t quite gone yet, but what could you expect after millennia of being together, even when we weren’t? Hebe just nodded and put the information into her computer.
Looking up, she smiled at me. “I see it here. You’re open for business?”
“Yes. We’ve had a few customers in already, but I need to focus on marketing to get more people in.” I replied, beaming at the prospect of having a full hotel.
Hebe stepped in and smiled. “Well, we can certainly help you with that. Most of the gods who have returned have started their own businesses, and we will help you, however we can.” She shook the key at me again and smiled. “Now, I believe you have a floor awaiting you and a business to run.”
I chuckled as I registered the polite dismissal. Normally it would set my teeth on edge, I was the Queen of the Sea, but the way she said was more matronly than condescending. “Yes, Hebe. Will you let Zeus know that I’ve returned, officially, and that he is always welcome to come to visit the hotel?” Hebe just nodded at me, and I smiled as I left, making my way to the elevator to explore this floor 27.
Natalie Bartley is a Canadian Adult-Fantasy author. Natalie has been writing for most of her teenage and adult life but started publishing those stories in December 2019 with her first book, Love and Pain in Zion. Natalie’s faith as a polytheistic witch leads her to many storylines involving the gods which surround her. She lives with her partner and stepson in Bowmanville, Ontario and is also completing her clergy status with the Correllian Nativist Tradition. They hope to one day open their own Pagan store together.
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