After 2,000 Years, Hades Finally Decides to Let Sisyphus Go by Hagan Maurer

What does this job mean to me? Well…I mean everything. It taught me so much. This rock is my life, my everything. I push it up, down; the shit we go through together man.

Oh definitely! I even named him!

Heh, well, Roundy. I know, I know, it’s stupid, but it’s really what stuck. Humor is a big thing for me, ya know? Keeps me going. I don’t have much, but Roundy and I, we keep each other going. Day in, day out…

Ha! Oh man, a-bunch-a crazy shit! Most people think my days were the same and yeah, I definitely had a routine, but I mean… This one time I was halfway up and this bird just comes out of nowhere. Really gunning for me. It sucked! By that point, I’m in my groove, ya know? Roundy and I are on the same page and then boom! A bird fucks it up; starts pecking at my arms, fucking annoying as hell. Heh. Get it? Sorry. Where was I? Oh yeah, I tried fighting it off, but I could barely keep Roundy up. I had to make a decision, Roundy or the bird. I’d never let Roundy go before the peak before. I always tried to keep one hand on Roundy, no matter what. It seemed important to me…

I mean, I guess. But it seemed significant, ya know? I’d never let him go like that before. I just didn’t understand that there’s always another day, ya know? I looked at Roundy and I said, “I’m gonna have to let you go; we’ll get ‘em next time.” And I watched him slide down the mountain all the way to the bottom. Bird still pecking me and shit. It was heart-breaking more than anything. It was the first time I had to let him go…

The bird? Oh well, we actually talked for a while. He was kind of homesick. Had been down here for like 5 years? Cute little thing really. Part of the Prom Squad. Like Prometheus. But yeah, no one ever thinks about the birds. They have to peck and peck and suffer the screaming day after day. Awful stuff, really. He said they don’t even get to swallow. Anytime they tear flesh they have to open their beaks and let it fall out of their mouths. They get a lunch break instead! I know right? A lunch break, with a job like that. Guess I should consider myself lucky.

My first day was definitely the worst. I’d just gotten here; all hell-lagged and shit. I mean, I’d just died. I couldn’t really remember much, but they said, push that boulder up the mountain. I mean they were fucking scary demons like really hellish. I said, why? They said, you’ll see. I started pushing and pushing and fuck, I was out of shape back then. It took me two days, but I got it up there. I remember the pride. Oh damn, I was so fucking proud of myself. They came up and said, push it down. I said, I spent two days on this shit! Eventually, I got it. That was the best day. I said, oh, that’s it! I named my rock Roundy and ever since, yeah, that’s been how it is—But yeah, it’s over now…

I asked them that! Begged them really. They said, you should leave. Can you believe that? I want to stay and they said, you should leave. I just don’t know what will happen to Roundy, ya know? We had a connection. I mean he means everything to me.

I don’t know. I’ve really no idea. I’ve been here for 2,000 years! But what can you do? This is Hades after all; you do what they say. They said, you should leave. But I can’t!

I’m gonna talk to them tomorrow…

Hagan Maurer is an undergraduate at Drake University studying Creative Writing and Philosophy. He currently lives, works and studies in Des Moines, Iowa. His work has been published in the Drake University on-campus journal, Periphery. Hagan enjoys writing flash-fiction, micro-fiction, short stories, poetry and plays. His works often contain elements of satire heavily influenced by the philosophies of Jean-Paul Sartre and writings of Samuel Beckett.