I've barely commenced Persephone's neck rub when I hear a strange noise. Upon hearing it, she lifts me from her neck and I quickly realize that Nyx has arrived. She places me by the lift lobby and walks off. Now that I have my own communicator, I can get straight into a call with Althea.

Even though I've personally witnessed Althea kill several humans, I still think that she's a nicer character than Wayne – which is strange. She doesn't appear to show any remorse, but Wayne does; that's if his brother is to be believed. And yet I still hate him somehow.

There's so many shady people our here on the fringes. The Angels, Nyx and Eris especially, dare I say it, make even the most vicious of the pirates seem like decent people. So hopefully we can put things right and I can be back living with my own kind. Not that I don't like the hospitality I've been shown here. Speaking of...

"Mummy told me Nyx is coming today," she says to me, in her typical cheery tone, "So I waited for ages for you by the lifts. I never get to play with you. Mummy is always stealing you."

I hadn't contacted her yet. It's like she was anticipating I would descend from Persephone's bedroom right about now. How long was she waiting here for me?

But never mind that. That's an odd choice of words she's just used. Does she think that I'm simply an object for her own amusement? Is that all I am to her? I best not press on that now though – especially if I want Jasmine to fully heal.

"What would you like to do?" I ask, trying my best to hide my frustration at being compared to an object, "I don't know how long your mummy will take. Though she did tell me she was going to try and convince Nyx to give her Wayne."

She looks at me, clearly angered by the revelation. Her hands clench into tight fists, and I feel like she could lash out at any moment. Just when I think she's about to punch something, as she is raising her right fist, she takes a deep breath and stops herself.

"Why didn't she tell me about this?" she says, trying hard to mask her rising anger.

"Er, well," I answer, wanting to sound conciliatory, "I did explain to her what the doctor said about him."

"Yeah, but if Wayne knows all these things about Eris, then he could kill my mummy."

So she figured it out too. Maybe Wayne will want Persephone dead too. Or maybe he won't?

I wonder what he thinks about this. If Persephone 'saves' him, will he change his mind about her? I'd like to think that she can redeem herself, but will even helping to kill Eris be enough for all of the pain inflicted upon the various human groups?

"Do you think he could kill mummy?" Althea prompts, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I look directly into her eyes, now welling up. It's easily to see Persephone means a lot to her. No matter which way I answer, I know it'll make me feel terrible.

"I don't know," is all I manage to reply, my eyes shifting towards the pink wall to my left.

For all of her flaws, Persephone isn't such a bad individual I suppose. But the human eating has to stop – especially if she wants more worthwhile company from humans. I'll need to train her.

"What's wrong Hercules?" Althea asks, correctly detecting my unease at the situation.

"It's fine; I was just thinking about things we could do. Do you think we could go and see Jasmine for a while?"

"But, Hercules, I want to play with you. What's Jasmine going to do anyway? She's too weak."

That's because you made her weak damn it! Even if the other humans are just playthings or, dare I say it, livestock, to you, you still need to treat them well. Back on Mars, Maxine and I always made a point of buying only the best meats, from well looked after animals. We were never ones for the synthetic meats.

Oh, who am I kidding, I'll never be able to convince either of them to behave more like humans. They may not be Eris, but their goddess-complex is still too strong. Maybe I should just accept my fate as amusement for them.

"Okay, what did you have in mind?" I ask.

"I thought that I could test your strength," she exclaims gleefully.

Haven't I already proven myself? Fuck, what have I just put myself in for? Nothing that involves tenderising other humans hopefully.

We stare at each other for what seems like an eternity as I try to think of something witty to say. Unfortunately, no words manage to come out of my mouth. After a while, obviously tired of waiting, Althea grabs my arm and I reluctantly accept her lead.

Just as we're beginning to make our way down the corridor, away from the lifts, we hear a muffled thump. That doesn't sound good. Apparently agreeing with my thoughts, Althea comes to an abrupt halt.

"Do you think your mummy is alright?" I ask.

"I bet it's Nyx's fault!" she growls, "I'll show her!"

"I really don't think we should go up there."

"I thought you were brave Hercules."

I hate being guilt tripped like this. What does she expect to do against Nyx? She can't do a thing against that damsel of distress. Those immortal words suddenly come back into my mind: There's bravery and then there's stupidity.

"There's bravery and then there's stupidity," I inform her.

No response. She tugs me in the opposite direction, back towards the lifts. Why do I allow myself to be dragged around like this? I really am like a children's toy now, like a much loved teddy bear perhaps.

"Come on Althea, be reasonable."

"You be reasonable Hercules. My mummy could be in trouble."

As soon as she presses the button for the lift, the doors open and we're off. What should be mere seconds, start to feel like minutes in the lift. Time seems to slow down as several competing ideas wrestle each other in my head.

What could have caused such a loud noise? Are Nyx and Persephone fighting each other? Did Wayne do or say something one of them didn't like?

We're about to find out. The lift doors open and we see the legs of the two giantesses in the distance – beside the pink wall on the far side of Persephone's bedroom. Perhaps strangely, the medical equipment is nowhere to be seen.

As I scan the room, Althea grabs my arm again. But this time I manage to resist her. She lets out an audible huff, but I remain firm.

"Come on Hercules," she says, now trying to pull harder on my arm.

"What Wayne says is blasphemy!" we hear Nyx scream, "I need to kill him!"

I wonder what Wayne did to elicit such anger. We see Persephone's foot stamp in anger, causing another loud thump, which manages to cause tremors in the floor beneath our feet. So maybe that's what the sound we heard was?

It's staring to look an awful lot like we may never be rid of Eris after all. If their fighting continues then there's no way that we can defeat Eris. How can such grandiose beings be so childish?

"We can't kill him," Persephone responds, her anger clearly rising further, "Hercules doesn't want me to."

"Hercules? Who is this? Another meaningless human you love? Why are you taking orders from weak, pathetic, humans?"

"You take orders from humans too."

Above us, we hear a slight impact. Like one of them just slapped the other. Although I couldn't say for sure. Then Persephone starts crying.

"Idiot! None of us take orders from humans. You can keep Wayne for all I care," Nyx bellows, "He was a useless peon anyway. I'm going to go back to my ship and you can think about your actions just now. I expect a full apology before we can start talking again."

I see Althea itching to go and comfort her mum, but I hold her wrist tightly in restraint. This means that she can't do anything rash, much to her annoyance. She looks at me with one of those "I hate you" faces Maxine always used to do when I told her I was going on another mission. Deep down, like Maxine those times, I know Althea knows I'm doing the right thing, whether she realizes it or not.

What could she do against that monster Nyx anyway? I doubt her pistol will do anything. Nyx probably won't even feel it.

As Nyx walks off into the distance, apparently towards whatever is connecting her own flagship to Persephone's own, Persephone drops to the floor. From our vantage point we can only see her the parts of her body below those two immense girls of hers. But we don't need to see her face to tell that she's in terrible distress.

Sandwiched in between those two globes is what looks to be Wayne, the cause of all this commotion. If he can see me at this distance, I'm sure he's able to tell that I want to exchange a few choice words with him. I will put everything his brother told me to him.

But that'll have to wait. Even though Nyx is no longer in view, I still don't think that it's safe to go out there. Who knows what Persephone could do when she's this upset. I stand in sombre silence, waiting Persephone to move, until Althea snaps me out of my trance.

"Hercules, Nyx will be done going through the corridor to her ship by now," she says in that typical whiny voice of hers, "You can let go of me now."

"How can we be sure?" I ask her.

"Althea, Hercules, is that you?" Persephone asks, still sobbing.

We both perk up upon realizing that she has finally noticed us. She has good ears. I can't believe she managed to hear us from all the way over there.

"Yes," is all I reply.

"Don't come in here! I think Nyx might have managed to break the thing hiding my face."

"I bet you have a lovely face."

"You're just a human Hercules. I am definitely not. Humans aren't allowed to see my face."

"Why not?"

"I...I don't know."

I guess that makes sense. All this time, the only reason us humans are given is that we're not worthy. Has Persephone really thought about why this is? Or has she simply been following Eris and Nyx's orders? It's so tempting to just walk out there to finally get a glimpse of her face. But who knows what she'll do to me if I do.

"If it really is broken, you can't hide yourself from us forever. How can I work my Martian Magic on you if you won't let me come in?"

Hopefully that'll work. I know she enjoys spending time with me. Is her face so important that she'd give up on orgasms just to hide it from me?

"I think I can still hide myself. You'll see."

Apparently I wasn't clear enough. Or does she all of a sudden not like being pleasured anymore? Althea looks at me like: "What is this Martian Magic of which you speak?"

"What would you say if I promised to work some of my Martian Magic on you right now?" I yell, this time being more assertive with her.

Silence. She slumps down, leaning her body against the far wall – revealing her shoulders and neck, but still not her face. I wonder what she's thinking about. We wait for a few seconds until Althea finally understands what I might have meant by Martian Magic.

"Mummy, are you saying you don't want Hercules to make you feel good?" she shouts.

"I really like Hercules, but..."

"Come on Mummy, Hercules isn't usually this eager to please you."

"I guess you're right. I want you to take Wayne down to the stupid humans so I can focus on Hercules. I need to talk to him."

Persephone gets up and slowly walks towards us. When her feet arrive at the lift lobby, she bends down to place Wayne beside the entrance. He looks visibly shocked, and weak – perhaps from Persephone's pheromones, but he won't be getting any sympathy from me.

I sneer at him. He looks briefly at me and then lowers his head back down, seemingly in shame. Althea promptly takes his arm and leads him into the lift, allowing me to focus on Persephone.

She sits down in front of the entrance, as is usual when she's invited me into her bedroom. She offers me a hand, which I cautiously accept. I edge towards it, unsure of what I might see when I look up.

As I clamber into her hand, my head springs upwards. But all I get is an anticlimax. Her breasts are once again blocking my view of her face. Before I have a chance to move across her hand, she holds me close to her belly, directly underneath her breasts.

"I just messed up big. I'm sorry for all of the mess I've made Hercules," she says, her other hand coming in to stroke my body, "Now we may never defeat Eris."

"It's not your fault," I say, trying to reassure her, "There must be a way to we can defeat Eris. We have Wayne with us now."

It partly is her fault really. Although I'm kind of limited in what I can say to a huge mass of woman who doesn't know her own strength. I don't think she'd set out to kill me, but I suspect that she'd come very close.

"Let's go to my bed. Now that you can see my face, we might as well make the most of it."

I wonder what that could mean? Before I have a chance to really mull over what she just said, I'm violently hoisted upwards as Persephone turns and slides onto her bed. What I see when I get my bearings again amazes me.

My eyes follow the soft skin of her arm and meet with her actual face for the first time. Two big blue eyes and luscious brightly coloured pink lips are the noteworthy features of her face. They are surrounded, of course, by that messy shoulder length blonde hair she has apparently always struggled to tame. At least makes an effort to cut it though, even if it's not very well done.

Honestly, I think that she committed a crime by hiding such beauty. She really is an Angel. To think that she was hiding this angelic face all this time. How dare she!

"You know this is hard for me Hercules," she says, somehow making me focus directly onto her lips, "But I trust you. You're not like the other humans."

"Oh, uh, yeah..." I say, trying desperately to form a coherent sentence.

"Now how about showing me your little boy. It's the only way I think I can repay you."

"Huh?"

"Get on my bed and show me that little boy you've been hiding!"

She's getting frustrated; I had better not disobey her. Could it be she wants to give me a...no...is she serious? Only one way to find out...

As I begin to remove my clothing, Persephone leans in close, in anticipation. Well, aren't we eager? I hope that I don't disappoint her. Here goes...

"Oh my! Oh Hercules...that's wonderful! Now I can show you some Persephone Magic. No need to be afraid. I'll take care of you and your boy."

Persephone Magic? Please don't eat me? What the f...oh! Oh fuck! I knew it! She wanted to give me a blow job.

Her lips close in and begin to suck vigorously on my penis. And oh...oh fuck. I can feel myself melting away into the mattress. My legs are so weak right now.

She has barely started when I begin a gradual collapse onto the soft fabric below. Not discouraged by my fall, she leans in further, as I'm slowly descending, her teeth now stroking my now erect penis. I can feel my whole body quivering with pleasure.

But, now that I'm about to release, she suddenly stops. It's as if she knows I've almost reached my climax. Why? Why tease me like this?

She quickly moves to kiss me on the chest. I then feel a finger stroking my head, a far more delicate movement than I'm used to from her. I grab her chin, trying, to no avail, to shift her lips back down to my penis.

"Nuh, uh, Hercules," she breathes, "First you gotta do something for me."

Please, anything to stop this madness! Please just finish what you started! Stop being so silly.

"Argh, what do you want?" I cry, clearly distressed by her pause.

"Promise me that you won't try to go back to Mars," she says as she places another quick kiss on my torso, "Then I'll make your little boy scream. Deal?"

"I...I...c...c..."

Realizing I'm struggling, she lowers her lips to give a quick lick the underside of my penis, teasing it further. The tip of her tongue then lingers on the tip of my penis. Just as I'm about to explode she removes it, again denying me. She looks longingly into my eyes, obviously thinking carefully about her next words.

"Your little boy wants to scream, Hercules. Don't be so mean to him..."

"I'm not..."

"Say it with me: I promise you Persephone, the prettiest girl in the entire universe, I won't try and escape. Come on, that's really easy to say. Do it for your little boy."

"N...n..."

Before I have a chance to find the words I want, she stops me with a peck of my penis. My boy is once again brought so annoyingly close to...screaming! Argh! Please just get on with it.

"Why is it so hard for you Hercules?"

I try to hold back the tears. Why is she being so stupid like this? Why can't she make this easy? I did lots of nice things for her.

"I love you...and Mars..."

"That's not what I told you to say. Come on, they probably think you're dead by now. You even said that after what you've done they won't like you anymore. So why is it so hard to commit to me?"

She has a point. Well, two, actually. And she only said I wouldn't be allowed to go back to Mars – and nowhere else. Okay, fine, boy, I'll do it. This is too much!

"I won't try and go back to Mars."

"I'm not stupid like the humans Hercules. Promise me that you won't try to escape to anywhere else either."

Damn it! I thought I had her. I said what she wanted, didn't I?

"Or anywhere else."

"Say it properly: I promise you Persephone, the prettiest girl in the entire universe, I won't try and escape to anywhere. Come on."

"I promise you...Persephone, the prettiest girl in the entire universe, I won't try to escape to anywhere."

"Good. Now where was I?"