A Break In Eternity
It was hard work but it had been so worth it. The boulder was heavy but he had no regrets. A smile spread across his sweaty face as he remembered the first time. He almost forgot to steer around the tree root on the left side of the path, because he was laughing inside.
If you can be tricked into putting on your own handcuffs and be locked away, you do not deserve to be god of the underworld. That is what he thought. He was almost to the top now. The last bit was steeper, though, so he bent down deeper to push from underneath rather than the side.
It had been good times, though, a little messy because no one could die. Most people had thanked him. The boulder rested on top for a moment before it rolled down again. No point in rushing after it, he had an eternity, so he lit up a cigarette.
As he blew out the smoke aiming for his sandals, he thought about how Hades eventually had come out of the closet, angry as a bull in a hornet swarm, and ordered him to report to the underworld as soon as possible. It was hilarious.
Like he was going to do that. No, the rules were there to be bent. His wife was not too bright but she had understood to just leave him on the side of the road and walk away.
He flicked the cigarette butt into the bushes and began trotting downhill again. Persephone had of course listened with both horror and sympathy to his sob story and let him go back upstairs to get buried with money for the ferry ride. Her and Hades were the poster couple for gullibility.
That bought him another decade of partying before Hades’ henchmen hauled his ass down below. Third time had no charm. Now, he was stuck here, but that was okay.
Sisyphus, you had a good life, he thought as he started up the hill with the boulder one more time.
This is the first story of the 31 Days Of Ninja Writing Challenges by Shaunta Grimes. Pair it with No Regrets by Robbie Williams and enjoy!
