As the last ember of heat faded from her armor, Kurai's form flickered. The ominous black and athyst plates dissolved in wisps of violet mist, retreating into a single shimring sigil that pulsed briefly before vanishing entirely. In their place, a slender black choker adorned her pale neck, the tal band etched with faintly glowing arcane runes. At its center, a small onyx gem swirled with a faint violet light, like a captured storm.
Helios eyed the choker thoughtfully, smiling faintly despite the soreness in his body. "A perfect accessory for you if I do so say so myself."
Kurai's gaze narrowed dangerously, though the faintest quirk of her lips betrayed that she wasn't truly angered. "Careful, Helios. Complints like that might make think you're growing sentintal."
Before he could answer, Hephaestus' booming laughter reverberated through the forge. Sparks leapt into the air around him as he swung his massive hamr down on a glowing bolt of lightning with godlike force. The crack of tal striking energy sent shockwaves rippling through the molten rivers surrounding them.
"Ahaha! Mortal boy, you never fail to amuse ." The god's voice was like stone grinding against stone, yet carried warmth. He leaned heavily on his hamr, his fiery purple-red beard catching the forge's glow. "And you…" his molten-gold gaze fell upon Kurai, "…will either be the end of sothing great, or the beginning of sothing terrible."
Helios dipped his head deeply, his tone formal and reverent. "Thank you for your ti and skill, Lord Hephaestus. I'm indebted to you twice over."
"Bah! Formal words from a mortal who drags from my work twice and lives to tell the tale. You're lucky I like your audacity." Hephaestus smirked, his expression softening ever so slightly. He pointed a soot-stained finger behind them. "The witch's door awaits."
As if on cue, a dark door materialized out of nothingness, standing unsupported in the open air of the forge. The sa faintly glowing glyphs that marked Hecate's earlier portals shimred across its surface.
Hephaestus turned back to his work, already lifting his hamr. "Now leave , mortals. I've lightning bolts to shape and storms to ta. And don't bring another job unless it's worth your life!"
Helios chuckled quietly. "We'll try not to."
Together, they stepped through the door.
The world shifted violently. The sound of the forge was replaced with a crisp mountain breeze.
When their vision cleared, Helios, Kurai, and Skuld stood on a grassy plateau high on Mount Olympus. Below them, the marble columns of Thebes glead in the afternoon sun, birds wheeling lazily through the sky.
Helios exhaled and ran a hand through his silver hair. "Huh. That actually went off without a hitch for once. I was expecting the usual chaos."
Skuld smiled brightly, a spark of relief in her erald eyes. "Then maybe our luck is finally turning around. I don't think I could've handled another disaster."
"Luck has nothing to do with it," Kurai said coldly as she began walking down the slope. "We got what we ca for. Now let's leave this place before sothing else goes wrong."
Skuld frowned and crossed her arms. "Do you ever not sound like you've swallowed a dagger? You could try being happy for five seconds."
Kurai didn't pause as she replied in her usual frigid tone. "Happiness is a luxury for creatures of light like yourself. I deal in logic, not joy."
Skuld's lips pressed into a thin line. "Maybe if you weren't so cold all the ti, you'd actually understand what joy feels like."
Kurai shot her a glance over her shoulder, eyes narrowing. "And maybe if you weren't so insufferably naive, you'd live long enough to stop asking stupid questions."
Helios sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he followed them. "You two have been at each other's throats for days. Could you pretend for five minutes that you don't hate each other?"
Skuld huffed and looked away. "It's not my fault she acts like I'm the dirt under her boots."
"Better dirt than dead," Kurai muttered.
"Is that a threat!" Skuld shot back.
Helios let out a low chuckle despite himself. "You're like oil and water. Maybe that's why you clash so much—you're too similar in your stubbornness."
Both won glared at him in unison but said nothing.
Helios smiled faintly as they approached the base of the mountain. "Still… it's good to be back on solid ground. For once, no one's trying to kill us." ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ Novᴇl_Fire(.)net
"Yet," Kurai said flatly.
Skuld rolled her eyes. "Why do you always have to be so dramatic?"
"Because the world is dramatic," Kurai answered, her voice as calm and cutting as a razor's edge. "You'll learn that one day, little girl."
Helios stepped between them, his tone amused but firm. "Alright, that's enough. Let's get ho before I'm forced to separate you two like children."
Kurai's eyes softened—barely—as she looked at him. "Fine. But the sooner we leave, the better."
Skuld muttered under her breath, "If you ask , she just doesn't like admitting she's likes being around you."
Kurai heard but didn't respond. Instead, her long hair fluttered in the wind as she walked ahead, her presence as sharp and unyielding as ever.
Helios shook his head with a faint smile. "And yet… sohow this works."
They continued down the mountain, the sunlight catching the faint violet shimr of Kurai's choker. Though her armor was sealed, there was no mistaking the quiet, coiled power that lingered around her like a second skin.
For now, the shadows had settled—but Helios knew better than to trust the calm.
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