The roots surrounding Deter recoiled toward her like a swarm, enveloping her in a golden cocoon that burst forward in the form of living projectiles. Dozens of sacred wooden spears, pointed like arrows, streaked through the air toward Hades.
The god did not move.
Around him, the ground split open, revealing a circle of shadows. Spectral arms erged from the abyss, faceless figures that spun like a funeral dance, intercepting the roots one by one. Where they touched, the sap froze, life withered. Deter's projectiles shattered and crumbled into dark dust before reaching their target.
Then Hades extended his spear.
"You don't want to understand," he murmured, pointing at his sister's chest.
A ray of pure darkness shot out from the tip. This was different from the shadows the god had produced so far. I didn't know why, but it seed as if Hades had unleashed the very essence of oblivion from his spear.
The ray struck Deter with such force that the remaining columns shook. The field of roots receded from the shockwave, and the goddess was thrown several ters back, sliding across the ground with the sword still firmly in her hand.
She fell to her knees, but she wasn't bleeding. Her skin seed to be trembling, covered by a black frost that tried to cling to her flesh.
With a cry of rage, she plunged the golden sword into the ground.
The response was imdiate.
From the cracks in the marble, columns of living earth sprouted, not roots this ti, but columns of stone and fertile fire, as if the heart of the world were responding to her anger. In seconds, the hall beca a battlefield where spring fought to break through the dead of winter.
Deter stood up. Her hair waved, but not in the wind; after all, there was no wind in the underworld. It seed to be waving from the sheer power boiling around her. Her eyes shone like suns. With every step she took, the ground blossod... only to wither imdiately under the pressure of the Underworld.
"You will not take my daughter from , Hades!"
"She has already decided, Deter. Get over it," he roared, lunging toward her with a leap of several ters, his spear raised and shrouded in a kind of spectral mist. The impact was brutal: spear against sword, the clash of power unleashed an expanding circle of energy that caused the doors of the hall to disintegrate. Even part of the ceiling collapsed.
I could barely stand. Even Hecate, normally unflappable, had to plant her staff firmly to avoid being swept away.
Deter and Hades spun around each other like colliding kites.
Every ti the golden sword touched the ground, trees sprang up and died instantly.
Every ti Hades' spear rose, the shadows took the form of wolves, fallen warriors, specters howling forgotten nas.
Deter leaped, her sword spinning above her head with such speed that it beca a circle of light. She fell upon her brother like divine judgnt, but Hades raised an arm and muttered in a language only souls understand. The darkness of the hall condensed and enveloped him like armor.
The sword struck.
An explosion of energy shook everything and threw various things into the air—dust, rock, and even green fire. The floor split, and both gods fell to the lower level of the palace.
Without hesitation, I ran to the edge of the open hole. Below, the two continued to fight among the crypts, among the tombs of ancient heroes. The tombstones fractured with each blow, the walls weeping will-o'-the-wisps.
"Stop!" Hecate shouted, descending after them. "If you continue like this, you will destroy all of Hades!"
But no one seed to heard her. And if they did, they didn't care.
anwhile, I watched from the edge of the hole, my muscles tense and my heart pounding so hard it felt like it was about to burst out of my chest. The confrontation was... sothing beyond anything I had ever witnessed. Primordial powers clashed before . It was not a simple fight. It was a war of wills, of entire ages, of mythologies crossed in flas and shadows.
And I...
I had done nothing.
Since we arrived in the Underworld, I had been a spectator. A useless companion to ancient gods.
What good was a new god if he did nothing when the chips were down?
What good was he if he couldn't protect, if he couldn't prevent those around him from being consud by their own pain?
"I'm useless," I had told myself several tis during the journey through the Styx. "I'm just here to watch."
But when I saw Deter wounded, her back hitting a carved sarcophagus, her sword slipping to the ground as Hades descended toward her with his spear ready for the final blow...
Sothing inside burned. I knew I had to intervene.
Even if it wasn't courage what I felt. It was more like necessity, the need to prove myself to these divine beings. Where did this co from? I don't know, maybe it was the helplessness of the mont, maybe the system influencing my judgnt, or maybe I just didn't want to admit that I had gone mad.
Without further ado, I jumped.
I felt the air hit my face as I also felt the divine tingling activate under my skin. My vision focused: Hades, lowering his spear, Deter barely raising her arm. In that eternal second, I felt every vibration of power.
'[Activate: All Skills]'
I activated every skill I could activate at the sa ti. I didn't knew if it was possible to do it but I was gonna try it, if I endured Hades strenght then I would know it worked.
Hades' spear collided with the blade that Hephaestus had given , and although it was difficult, I managed to resist the god's strength and, most importantly, the impact didn't kill .
The impact dragged a few ters. I felt so pain, but I didn't give in.
I held the weapon with both hands, trembling, my feet digging furrows in the cursed earth.
"Enough!" I shouted, in a voice that didn't sound like my own. "No more!"
Hades' eyes were fixed on . Cold. Surprised. Almost... curious.
Deter, from the ground, opened her eyes with a mixture of surprise and fear.
"What are you doing...?" she whispered.
"Nothing," I replied, keeping my eyes fixed on the King of the Underworld. "I just felt like facing a god."
Hades didn't respond imdiately.
He just stared at with that inscrutable expression, as if weighing my words, assessing whether I was even worth the effort of confronting .
The silence grew heavy. I noticed that Deter tried to sit up, but her body was still sluggish while Hecate stood to the side, watching, part surprised... part expectant.
I took a step forward.
The hilt of the sword remained firm in my hand. The heat of the divine steel throbbed against my skin, vibrating as if the blade itself shared my fury.
"That sword... Hephaestus gave it to you, didn't he?" Hades muttered at last, with a barely visible smile. "The old curmudgeon is still making dangerous toys."
He planted his spear in the ground with a fluid motion. A shadow rose like a cloak of ink... and then disappeared.
The helt.
My Divine Eye barely caught the distortion before it was upon .
CLANG!
The impact was brutal. His spear collided with my sword at an impossible angle, and the force was enough to knock back. My feet left gouges in the black stone. I could barely contain the urge to fall. My arm felt numb, as if the shock had torn my shoulder from my body.
And then I felt it again.
He was behind .
I turned just in ti to block the next attack, a thrust aid directly at my neck. Hades beca visible again, just for a second. His face was so close that I could see his eyes like bottomless pits.
He wasn't going to stop.
I spun backward and responded with a horizontal slash that left a trail of fire in the air. The blade grazed his side. It was a shallow cut, but still enough to make his smile twist slightly. A line of smoke rose from the charred fabric.
"Well, puppy. Let's play."
His spear struck the ground, and the Underworld seed to react to it.
I saw cracks opening beneath my feet, and from them erged specter-like shadows, skeletal arms, and living chains that tried to grab by the ankles and arms.
However, I concentrated my power, the energy form my Dominion spreading from my chest to my sword. A circle of flas expanded around like an explosion of will. The specters scread on contact with the divine light and crumbled like ash in a strong wind.
But I had no ti to celebrate.
Hades was already descending, his spear shrouded in liquid blackness. The shadow itself obeyed his will. Every thrust he made was like a sentence: it left no room, showed no rcy.
I defended myself as best I could, deflecting blows, taking others with the flat side of my sword or my arm wrapped in energy. Sweat blinded , and I felt my breathing beco irregular. I was pushing my body to the limit just to hold on.
And yet... I was still there.
And I was facing him.
"Why do you keep getting up?!" Hades roared, his voice finally raised as he seed enraged. His spear collided with mine with such force that I felt my arm crack.
I spat blood and smiled.
"Because soone has to. You can't groom soone else's daughter and not expect there to be people willing to kick your ass."
I charged as I knew there was no technique, nor strategy on my attack. Just strength and a little of faith.
I channeled all my power, the divine energy my followers offered from Kaeron in the mortal world. The sacred bond that anchored to them vibrated intensely.
And I felt my blade burn and its iron-gray color mutate into a rainbow of red, white, and yellow.
I slashed vertically with all my weight, and Hades blocked it with his crossed spear, but the impact created a shockwave that shattered the ground beneath our feet.
And for a mont, for a single mont... I noticed his knees buckle.
I was pushing him back. That was my cue to keep pressing on, hoping that after a ti he would be tired enough to give up.
I thought hopefully as I clashed again with the King of the Underworld.
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