Title: Reborn as Hades
Chapter 1: The Birth of a God
In the void between life and death, a soul drifted. Its memories were fragments, shattered glass reflecting a world that once was—anime, games, manga, fiction, the vibrant passion of a lifelong otaku. He had died young, tragically, but with a heart full of dreams. When his eyes opened again, it was not in a hospital bed, nor in a fantasy school. It was in the dark, primordial depths of Chaos.
From the moment of his rebirth, his name was no longer his own. He was now Hades—god of the underworld. But unlike the myths, this Hades was forged from a new thread in the loom of fate. The Fates spun differently this time.
Zeus emerged first, a storm in human form, thunder cracking around him. Then Poseidon, his essence dripping with the salty breath of oceans. And then Hades—quiet, composed, but heavy with power. A god of balance, of judgment, of consequence. He did not speak when the others roared. He simply watched. Listened.
When the brothers drew lots to divide the realms, fate did not tremble. Zeus claimed the skies, Poseidon the seas, and Hades… Hades took the underworld. But it was no punishment. No curse. It was a throne.
While Zeus was granted the Thunderbolt and Poseidon the Trident, Hades stepped into the depths of Erebus, where time twisted and the dead murmured.
There, he found it. Or rather, it found him.
A staff of black stone and silver veins, humming with unearthly authority. Not forged, but born from the shadows themselves. When Hades' hand gripped it, it pulsed with ancient power.
"You have accepted your role," whispered a voice from the staff. It shimmered, then glowed.
And from the void around it, a being emerged—neither male nor female. Pale, translucent, and fluid, the being opened their eyes and smiled.
"I am Taylor," they said. "I am born of judgment, of balance, of law and mercy. I am your will, Hades. Your guide, your warden."
Taylor would not age, nor change. They would walk beside Hades through eternity, a spirit that answered only to him.
As Olympus stirred above, and the gods bickered and warred, Hades descended. Down past the bones of giants, deeper than the roots of the Earth, he stepped into his new kingdom.
There, he would build not just a domain—but a system. A realm of punishment, of purification, of cycles.
For the world of the living would one day bow, not to fire or lightning, but to silence. To the laws of the dead. To him.
To Hades.
--- End of Chapter 1 ---