A Crucial Item

What is a *demerodi?*

The demerodi is a fruit that grows only in the Underworld. Specifically in only one location in the Underworld, King Hades private orchard, known as The Weeping Orchard.

After the Titanomachy the brothers drew lots and the Underworld fell to Zagreus. At that time he spoke to Nyx, one of the primordials that still occupied that space, and it was she who dubbed him *Aides* that later became *Hades.* (?)

The kingdom inherited by Hades looked very different than the one discussed in *The Underworld Chronicles.* It took many years as Hades traveled his kingdom and found its energies, as well as uncovered its secrets, before he shaped and crafted it into the land we recognize today. It was also during this time, as he discovered the majesty of many veins of precious minerals and ores, that Hades also took on the mantle of *God of Wealth & Prosperity.* to him these natural outcroppings were reminders of the beauty of his kingdom. Such is the way of a deity who has no need for riches.

The demerodi came about as Hades, the eldest king and by far the most bookish, began experimenting and applying some of the arcane knowledge he already taught himself to the surrounding environment. He searched for a way to bind himself to the Underworld and unlock its formidable energy in such a way that he could use it. The goal was to create a conduit that would allow him to draw on the energy of his kingdom, or push energy into the land when needed.

To this end he created The Orchard, later known as *The Weeping Orchard.*

Starting with nothing more than mixture of his own blood and tears, Hades added to and mixed in many other components to a cauldron of *brew* over 28 days and nights. Each night he would bleed himself into the mix, which he kept steaming over a bed of coals in its pot. Thanatos arrived every morning with an unblemished femur bone from a mortal who died that night. Hades laid out a grid 4 x 7 and each night he 'planted' the bone Thanatos brought him and anointed it with his brew, the brew made from his own body.

Every night, through every nuanced phase of the moon, a mortal bone was planted and anointed with the blood of a king and this bound them together for eternity. At the end of a month the entire orchard was full, 4 x 7, and had a planting for all the moon phases. Four weeks with seven days and all aligned perfectly. On the the 29th night, the dark night, Hades repeated the process one last time. Thanatos brought him a femur and he anointed it with the last of his brew, the dregs and the sediment from the bottom of the cauldron. This bone he placed outside the orchard in a location known only to himself and his trusted auxiliary, Thanatos. Furthermore, only the two of them know it even exists. This bone, this final bone, is the most powerful of the lot and holds the essence and the being of Hades that cooked and enchanted the longest. And like the dregs any pot it contains all the essence, the power if you will, that collected on the bottom over the 28 days. If the orchard were ever destroyed, Hades would be crippled. But as long as this one remains? Then he can recover. ***That tree is hidden at Hate House and is the reason he later forbids Dinlas from snooping around there.***

After the last night of planting, Hades was exhausted. He bled himself for 28 days and during that time took no rest, but rather worked to produce his perfected brew. When he finished he threw himself into bed exhausted, and slept. When he awoke a day later the orchard was complete.

From his balcony Hades stood and admired the 28 trees, perfectly symmetrical, growing in the orchard. Tall and stately, they rose as single trunks that towered over all the vegetation surrounding them, dwarfing everything. At their crowns the trees broke into a weeping habit, like a cherry, with long trailing, whip-like branches that reached almost to the ground. Spaced on the entire length of those branches were deep red fruits, the size of a man's fist, that reached almost to the ground.

The trees had grown to full size and fruited overnight.