"I think it was a mistake." Percy said as soon as he flashed back into the forge, throwing the take out bag at Hephaestus who gave a thankful grunt in response.
"You're overreacting." The War God didn't even look at him, his attention fully on his black book.
"I looked in his eyes, Ares. I saw what he's going to do. I could feel it and it was thrilling."
"I know, I felt much the same when I spoke with him. Our personal deficiencies aside, it needed to happen."
Percy's face puckered. "Are we… Are we on Kronos' side and no one told me?"
Ares threw a massive battle axe at his head in response, Percy narrowly avoiding having his skull split. "Ooookayyy. I'll take that as a no." He said, slightly miffed.
"Hey, I gotta question." He asked a minute later, the silence in the forge driving him wild. Even Hephaestus was quietly drawing up blueprints in the corner. It was maddening.
Ares grunted in response.
"You said that you felt the same way when you talked to Luke. Does that happen often? Do you- do you ever feel like you're fighting a part of yourself?" Percy asked, a little desperately at the end.
Ares raised his head and met Percy's eyes before closing his book. A chair appeared opposite of Ares'. "Sit."
Percy did so hesitantly, not sure whether he was going to be scolded or comforted. Ares kept his eyes on him, blood red gleamed in the embers of the forge.
"Do you know my domains?" Ares asked suddenly.
"Uh, war? And… battlelust?" Percy said, drawing on Chiron's class once more.
Ares nodded. "War and battlelust. And courage. That is what I embody, as ordained by The Moirai. I spent lifetimes thinking that I was only the first two. I gave myself excuses." He leaned closer to Percy, his voice dropping. "Do you know how easy it is, Destroyer, to attribute every terrible action I have made in my existence to fate? To delude myself into committing atrocity on top of atrocity? To think that I was born to be hated? Born to embrace it? As you said, I lived in a cycle of torment brought on by myself and no other." Ares' eyes burned, the pockets of melted flesh on his face seemed to writhe in terrifying harmony. "I killed and pillaged and razed and this I called duty."
"What changed?" Percy asked, because clearly the Ares who was in front of him was no longer that god.
The War God allowed a glimmer of a smile to shine through. "Change? Nothing changed. I reflected on myself for many centuries, living as a man. I went from conflict to conflict, seeking war from the perspective of a mortal. I found that I had done a grave miservice to my domains. I thought that as the embodiment of war, I understood it completely. I was wrong. I saw the peacefulness that follows war, the joy of soldiers coming home, the bonds of men forged in battle. I saw the righteousness of rebellion and the greed of dictators. I found that war was a tool that could be used properly or misused as I did for millenia." Molten blood swirled as he spoke. "More than war, I finally found courage, Perseus. A tool that I also misused. I have not changed. There are times that call for death and carnage, but there are also times that call for peace. We are not men. We are more complicated, multifaceted in everything that we do. So we must be better. And we must understand when the time has come to lock parts of ourselves away, and have the courage to release the monsters when it is needed."
Percy stared back at Ares. "Is it really possible? Can it even be contained?" He asked, cursing himself for letting his fear bleed through. It seemed impossible to keep that part of himself contained when it seemed like everything was pointed towards needing it.
Ares put his hand on Percy's shoulder, it no longer felt as if it might burn him. "It must be. And you must trust yourself when it must be unleashed. The consequences of action or inaction are rarely inflicted upon us, but on others. That is failure." He gripped Percy's shoulder tighter. "The only individual you can fail is yourself. Do you understand, Destroyer?"
"Yes. Thank you, Ares." And he felt like he did. There was a time and a place to let the sickness out. For now all he could do was contain it, and to a lesser extent coexist with it.
Ares grunted in acknowledgement, leaning back in his chair and opening his book again. "Good. Nothing else is planned for today, though we have contemplated another move tomorrow. Be prepared and don't do anything stupid."
Percy nodded, standing up from the chair. "So I'm good to go out and… do stuff?"
Ares nodded absentmindedly as Hephaestus swiveled in his chair to stare at him. After a minute he grinned. "This is about a girl." He said proudly.
"Wha-" Percy sputtered. "You don't know what you're talking about. Shut up."
Hephaestus' smile never wavered as he walked over to him. "I know that look. You've got that look in yer eyes where all you can picture is her face. She pretty?"
"Pretty?" Percy replied incredulously. "Oh my gods, Heph. She's beautiful. I mean, she's just so…" He gestured wildly with his hands. "She's just so…" He tried again, fumbling with the zipper of his jacket. "Her." He finished quietly, unable to do Calypso justice. How was that fair to him? To contain her, how she made him feel, in the form of words?
Hephaestus cackled, sounding like an unhealthy car motor. "D'you hear 'em Ares? He's got it fucking bad." Ares gave an affirmative grunt, keeping his eyes firmly on his book. Hephaestus' face suddenly hardened as he glared at Percy. "S'not my wife, is it?"
"No!"
"Good. Get out of here then." Percy began to flash, but was stopped when The Smith suddenly grabbed his wrist. Percy looked down at him, taken aback by the iron in his eyes. "Word of advice, though, since yer getting into her domain." His bronze eyes that normally blazed were dim and dull. "Don't make it obvious, don't let it burn too bright. You don't want her attention." His grip tightened, the smell of sulfur wafting into his nose as hand began to blaze. "And if she takes notice, you pray. To every god in every fucking mythology, that she'll show mercy. The other Olympians, they don't take 'er seriously, and she likes that. But I've seen it, what she can do." He released his wrist, leaving it charred and mangled. "So think with yer brain and not yer cock." Hephaestus said before stalking back to his chair, sinking into it with a heavy sigh.
Percy reeled, not even worrying about his wrist. What the fuck? Fear had dripped from Hephaestus' every word, fear of his wife. Of Aphrodite. What could have possibly happened to make her so feared? Percy caught Ares' eyes, The War God only giving him a nod, as if corroborating everything Hephaestus had said. Percy nodded back shakily, forcing himself to get his breathing under control.
It was time for a break.
Picturing Ogygia in his mind, and more importantly, Calypso, he felt the forge melt away as the tide roared in his ears. He could feel his heartbeat begin to level as he walked along the beach, scanning the dark horizon for her. He found her beside the logs they had eaten at before, a chicken roasting in the bonfire. He caught her gaze and she smiled dazzlingly at him.
His heartbeat began racing once again.
He picked up his pace, hoping he didn't seem too desperate. Approaching her, he dropped to the sand, leaning against her. She began running her fingers through his hair as if it was an everyday routine. He closed his eyes, embracing the tranquility of the night, soaking up everything, all of her.
"Should I be flattered or worried that you're back so soon?" Calypso said teasingly, though he could hear real concern in her voice.
"Flattery, of course." He said, hoping to soothe her worry. Tilting his back onto her lap, he smiled at her. It was effortlessly easy, she bled happiness from him. And gods, she was just angelic.
"And how was work today, darling?" She said, impossibly soft fingers dancing around his face.
"Oh, same old, same old. Just gave a nineteen year old with an inferiority complex a weapon of mass destruction. Just your average tuesday." Percy said sarcastically, hoping he didn't sound as bitter as he felt.
"You're concerned." Calypso's eyes crinkled as her hands fell to his shoulders, kneading out knots he didn't know existed. "Tell me, dearest. You worry that you've made a mistake."
It wasn't a question, she could just read him that damn well. God of Lies he may be, but he couldn't help but wear his heart on his sleeve around her. Domain or not, he didn't think he could ever lie to her. "Gods, Cal." He sighed deeply, closing his eyes. "I looked in his eyes, I saw what he wanted to do, what he will do. Destruction like no other." He laughed humorlessly. "I think I just found my first apostle."
Calypso cupped his face, pressing her lips to his forehead. "And why are you so certain he'll succeed? You planned this, yes?"
"That doesn't mean it's a good one." He replied. "And It's not like I was included in the actual planning process."
Calypso looked at him curiously. "And that doesn't seem like an oversight to you, my love? Yours is a plan of deceit, and you are deceit. I would think your contributions would be heavily appreciated."
"I don't know about that." He murmured, leaning into her thigh. "I think these domains might be The Fates' first prank. Maybe they lied about them and I'm actually the god of depressing hindsight."
Calypso laughed, making the world a little brighter. "Epimetheus would have been thrilled. But no, darling. You underestimate yourself. It's a dangerous habit, distrusting yourself. It can make the greatest look like fools."
"Yeah." Percy mumbled, thinking of Ares. "So I've been told."
Her face softened as she kissed his forehead once more. "You worry me, Perseus." She said against his skin.
He turned around, grabbing her hands as he knelt at her feet. "Don't be. I'm just out of it right now, but you shouldn't worry. I'm fine." He said, smiling as wide as he could. "Really, I'm fine."
"Oh, darling." Calypso said sadly, lowering herself onto the sand as she drew him into her chest. "That's why you worry me. You don't always need to be fine."
"I feel fine when I'm with you." He said against her breast, feeling a trickle of perversion run through him.
"Yes, I have no doubt about that." She said with a cheshire grin, clearly aware of his position. "Get up. We're going on a walk."
"Why?" He asked, immediately missing her warmth as she dragged him to his feet.
"Because you need to clear your head. I'm still quite cross with you about your ridiculous oath, so I'd rather you were in a better mood to scold you." Calypso said, entwining their hands as she dragged him along the beach.
"That's… nice of you?" He said, unsure exactly how to feel.
"I'm a merciful mistress, darling."
"You've no idea how wrong you are." He mumbled to himself.
"Did you say something, my love?" She asked sharply, her hand suddenly becoming a vice grip.
"No, dear." He said, pressing his lips to her cheek. "I think you might have a temper that rivals my own."
"That… might not be an inaccurate guess." Calypso said sheepishly, sending a shy smile toward him. "My siblings always said I played too rough." Her smile turned lascivious. "Though you might not see that as a problem, my lord."
He blushed a deep golden as he stared into the sand. "You have entirely too much power over me and it is terrifying."
"Oh, isn't it?" She giggled, her eyes more vibrant than he'd ever seen them. "I rather like being in control for a change. It suits me. Don't you think so, darling?"
Percy stared at her in reverence. "It does. And I am learning a lot about myself right now. Wow." He mumbled.
Calypso's fingers trailed dangerously across his chest. "Are you having impure thoughts, my love? You need not be embarrassed." Her nails bit into his skin beneath his shirt. "Mine are very much the same when you're around."
He looked into her viridescent eyes, her pupils overtaking the green to the point that he believed he saw stars in the black expanse. Unsurely, but with so much need, he placed his hand on her waist. "I really hope you don't expect me to be very good. Or to even know what to do." Vulnerability leaked from his words, he wanted what she wanted but gods he was so terrified to fail. To fail her.
Calypso laughed to his surprise. "Who said anything about expectations, darling? What I expect is for you to love me and primal nature will take care of the rest." His hoodie dropped to the sand as her sinful hands fluttered across him.
Of course. She was too good, too fucking perfect to ever be so cruel and he hated himself for ever thinking of her that way. "Okay." He said, pulling her flush against him. "I wouldn't be opposed to you telling me what to do, but I think you know that." He hadn't smiled like this in forever. The affirmation that she didn't have any expectations for him, that she just wanted him.
Inferno.
She kissed him, rougher than she had ever before. Full of carnal need and want and just gentle enough that he felt her love shining through. He reached up to cup her face, feeling more alive than ever. He didn't notice his hands start to glow that same murky orange of his eyes.
As soon as his hands made contact, everything changed.
Threads of different colors entwined in a core at the center of a black. Red mixed with purple and blue and a hideous black. The most vibrant colors that he could imagine, pulsing like a heartbeat. Like they were alive.
"Perseus!"
He could hear her, her voice reverberating around like echo. He didn't think he'd been transported anywhere. So what was this? Looking closer at the threads, he gasped.
"Perseus! What's wrong, my love? You're scaring me!"
The gold thread read 'Immortality', the purple 'Magic' and the black 'Curse'.
"Calypso." He said, having no idea if she could even hear him. "I can see… all of you."
"Darling, your hands and eyes are glowing. Please be more specific."
He laughed, despite the situation he was in. "You, Cal. Threads tying into each other and making up this… core. The core of who you are. I can see the curse." Threaded delicately around the gold. "It's tied to your immortality."
"Well, that's lovely."
"But that won't do. I'd rather you stick around for a while." He had no body, no hands to pull with. He concentrated on the black thread, feeling a searing heat in his chest.
"You're getting hotter, Perseus. Temperature wise, I mean. Those eyes though…"
She was trying to distract him. The flame grew hotter, churning in his breast, writhing around like a rabid dog. It hurt. The black thread pulsated faster now, each time clapping like thunder. He wanted it gone. He wanted the curse dead.
He wanted it destroyed.
He heard himself grunting in exertion. It was fighting him. They had never intended for Calypso to go free, not without one last punishment. Her immortality, swirling around the black in hideous knots that made the fire in his chest burn even hotter.
This was his dominion. Everything was to a point. If it had been created, it could be destroyed. He was God. It would kneel. It would break.
Bow.
It waned, small pieces of it tearing off, turning to dust.
Bow.
Someone was screaming. It sounded like him. Doesn't matter. Need. Her. Forever.
Bow.
The black thread shattered like glass, and then he was back on the beach collapsing onto the sand.
"What did you do?"
He took a moment to gather his breath, smiling haggardly as Calypso dropped to the sand. Shaking, coppery hands ran through his hair as she lifted his head to look at her.
"Oh, my sweet boy. What did you do?" Tears ran down her face as her chest heaved unevenly. Pressing his forehead to hers, he wiped her eyes with his thumb.
"It's gone." Percy said, feeling his own tears welling. "It's gone."
She shook her head back and forth. "No. No, that's not how it works. I'm trapped you stupid, beautiful boy. I'm trapped." Her eyes were shut tightly, too afraid to be wrong. Too afraid to hope.
"Calypso," She had truly never thought she'd ever leave, and now? Now it must have seemed like a dream. A dream to be forgotten in the morning with only the feeling of despair to ever mark its existence at all. "The curse is gone."
"No. You don't understand." She gasped as her shoulders shook. "How? How?"
He smiled, trailing kisses down her beautiful, despondent face. "I destroyed it. That's what I do, my lady."
"No. No you don't get it!" Her eyes opened, as mad and dangerous as he'd ever seen them. She gripped his face and shook it as she spoke. "This doesn't happen! It's not supposed to happen! It's impossible! You're impossible." Her voice broke as the deluge of tears continued. She looked utterly broken, four thousand years of gentle torture showing their effects in her horrifying agony. "You're not supposed to love me. You're not supposed to be here." Her wild eyes softened as she peppered his face with butterfly kisses. "Darling, you were a wonderful dream. The best I've ever had. I love you, Perseus. I adore you. But I'd like to wake up now. Please let me wake up." Her head fell to his neck as her tiny fists beat his chest with surprising force.
"I swear on The Styx that not only am I real, but your curse is broken."
Thunder boomed over the black sky. Calypso snapped her head up, staring at him in wonder. "It's gone?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Nodding his head, he felt his own dam of tears break. "It's gone. You can leave, go anywhere you want. I'll take you there right now."
"No." She whispered, taking his hands and dragging him to his feet. "No. Not yet."
"What?" He asked, looking at her in confusion.
Calypso merely grinned at him, drawing her arms around his neck as she lept and pinned her legs around his waist. "That's for tomorrow, my love." She nipped at his earlobe. "Tonight, you're going to take me to bed." Hands roughly pulling his hair. "Tonight, you will be rewarded." Her tongue working down his neck. "Tonight is for us."
And then her lips were on his and the fire that had started in his chest expanded across his entire body. He didn't know when his feet had started moving, carrying her into the general direction of the oikos. He only knew her name and the feeling of his blood vortexing inside of him as her lips graced his own.
"Perseus?" She had asked, somewhere between the doors and the stairs.
"Yes, love?" He'd heard himself respond, nipping at her neck.
"Those people you spoke of. The music." She gasped out as he threw the bedroom doors open. "Show me it?"
He'd laughed, throwing her onto the massive bed. "I'll show you the world. And if it's not to your liking, I'll break it."
And the moonbeams kissed the sea.
The sun hit his eyes at the most precise, unbearable angle. Opening one eye, he hissed as agonizing, untamed light went through him. Almost immediately, a slender hand pulled his face to the left, rewarding him with a sight that left him breathless.
Calypso's auburn hair, pulled out of her normal delicate braid, laid wildly across the perfect silk pillows. Her green eyes sparkled in the morning sun, emeralds that seemed to shine particularly for him. Cinnamon and fir wafted in the air, almost sensually massaging his senses. Blinding white teeth creating a dizzying smile that only seemed to grow as he looked at her. Her perfection was inhuman, almost to the point of discomfort. Almost, as he'd looked in the mirror after his transcendence and had noted his similar lack of imperfections.
"How are you this fine morning, lover?" His goddess asked innocently, as if somehow unaware of how her mere presence brought him to his knees.
"I am…" he struggled to find the words that would properly convey his joy at the picturesque beauty displayed before him. "Perfect." He settled on, though even that seemed somehow underwhelming.
"Yes. Yes I'd say you are." She beamed as her hands once more found his chest. "I think I'd like to marry you."
He blinked rapidly, knowing that he should feel more surprised, more baffled at why she would even say that. But he doesn't, and all he can think about are more mornings like this. They were moving fast - he knew that. But he was just so damn certain.
Call it godly intuition.
"Just like that?" He breathed out.
"Yes. Just like that." Her smile faltered for a moment as anxiety marred her graceful features. "Unless I'm being too forward." Her voice was barely a whisper, and he began to realize that her self assuredness seemed particularly frail when it came to him.
"No. No, let's do it." Percy said, matching the grin Calypso gave him.
In an instant she was straddling him, the comforter falling in a way that felt as sinful as the view before him. His breath hitched as his hands fell onto her hips with no real conscious thought. "And what shall your vows be, darling?" Her smile was the definition of serene, staring down at him with more love in her eyes than he had ever thought possible.
"I promise to love you." His brain was on autopilot, letting the words flow out of him. "I promise to protect you, to take on all your pain, your problems and your struggles as my own. I promise that no other will share my bed or take your place in my heart for as long as you'll have me. I promise that my eyes will be for you alone. I give you my soul, to hold as your own for as long as you desire it. I give you my power, which reaps by your mercy." He was breathless, as unshed tears welled in Calypso's eyes. "I give you all of me." He finished.
He was impressed with himself. More than impressed - he was fucking ecstatic. He'd never been good with words unless they were insults or witty comebacks, and he'd never really cared, but he was extremely grateful for his domains at the moment.
Calypso took a shaky breath before composing herself, her smile still perfectly in place as she took his hand from her hip and threaded their fingers together, giving him a tight squeeze. "I promise to love you." She echoed as he laid there, spellbound by the divinity of his lover. "I promise to ease your pain, to offer you relief no matter how brief. I promise that no other shall share my bed or take your place in my heart for as long as you'll have me. I promise that my eyes will be for you alone. I give you my heart, to meld with your own for as long as you desire. I give you my divinity, for if a time ever comes where you would no longer have me, I would sooner embrace death than wander through this world alone." Her tears fell freely, unable to contain them or maybe not caring anymore. He could feel the wetness of his own, trailing down like rain onto his chest. "I give you all of me." She said, looking at him like he was the most important thing in the world.
Squeezing his hand once more, Calypso released his hand. Holding out her own, forest green smoke wisped and writhed in the shape of a sphere. For a moment, her eyes glowed the same shade before fading as an ornate silver ring appeared a few inches above her outstretched hand, dropping delicately in her palm. At his questioning look, she laughed. "Titan magic, darling."
Sitting up, he mirrored Calypso by holding out his own hand. Screwing his eyes shut, he searched his mind for the same feeling that he'd felt when he'd created the pocket watch. He felt his fingers twitch as the familiar electricity seared into his nerves. Feeling the weight drop into his palm, he smiled. Gleaming silver, a diamond encrusted serpent eating its own tail with a sparkling emerald for an eye.
With shaking hands he took her left hand, gently straightening her ring finger. His eyes never left hers, staring directly into her soul as he slid the ring into place. He saw galaxies, whole universes uncovered in her eyes.
Calypso did the same, taking his hand with tremors of her own. Flowers carved all along its edges with an orange amber, the same color as his eyes, at the center of them all. The ring sliding onto his finger was like a piece of his soul being completed. A feeling of jubilation washed over him and looking into her eyes, he knew that Calypso felt the same.
Cupping his face, she pressed her forehead against his as she so often loved to do. "You may now kiss the bride." She whispered, her swirling gaze transfixing him.
And so he did.
It was mesmerizing and horrifying. The way she could turn all his senses into utter bedlam with a look, and how she could do so much more with a kiss. He would kill for her. More than that - he would slaughter entire pantheons if she asked. He'd give everything for the simple sweetness of her laughter. At that moment, he knew he was trapped. Caged by his lover, his wife, for all eternity.
What a magnificent feeling.
"What a wonderful union."
Thráfstis was in and out of his hand before he could think, throwing Calypso behind him as the claymore abruptly changed direction and embedded itself into the wall.
The Fates simply smiled.
"Why?" He ground out, unable to formulate any real question. His mind was working at a thousand miles a minute and their delirious smiles did little to put him at ease. What the hell did they want?
Calypso, seeming completely at ease, placed her chin on the crook of his shoulder. Rubbing small circles on his back, she beamed at the three crones. "Good morning, my ladies."
Their piercing eyes never left his own, their smiles raising a few inches being the only indication that they heard Calypso at all. "We simply wished to congratulate you, godling. We bear witness to all monumental events, whether we are noticed or not." Their voices formed a terrifying harmony making the hairs on his neck stand.
"Monumental how?" He silently cursed himself for continuing the conversation and not asking them to leave.
They cackled for a moment, crescendoing at a horribly high note that made his ears ring. Calypso's steady hands were the only keeping him sane, The Fate's emitted an aura of total control and authority making him feel completely helpless. There were few things he hated more than that feeling and feeling it as a god was so much worse than he imagined.
"Do you hear that, sisters?" The middle one said.
"Mother never mentioned how entertaining he would be." The one on the left spoke next.
"She does enjoy surprises." The one on the right replied.
"You've chosen your path, Lord of Broken Things." They spoke as one again.
"Very few events have ever matched the magnitude of this one. Why, I can't even remember the last we witnessed." The one in the middle spoke again.
"When Paris bestowed Aphrodite with the apple." The right crone answered.
"Oh, but he was so dreadfully dull." The left crone retorted.
The sick smiles on their faces never so much as twitched while they spoke, even as their tones varied emotionally. He was going to explode if they didn't leave, they made his blood boil with hatred and fear that he didn't think was possible.
"Okay, cool." Percy said slowly. "So if that's everything, could you guys… get out of here?"
The Moirai laughed once again, seeming genuinely amused by him. Shimmering silver covered his left arm and in a flash of light, a gleaming golden aspis was strapped onto him. "A wedding present. Krísi. It will serve you well." Gritting his teeth, he bowed his head in thanks. The more polite they were the more infuriated they made him.
The Arbiters of Fate's smiles widened.
"Farewell, Destroyer. Mother sends her congratulations." Bowing, they vanished in the air. The scent of ashes being the only indication that they were there at all.
Immediately, Percy slumped back against Calypso. His heart wanted to jump out of his chest as the adrenaline began to fade, the searing rage beginning to dull as well. "Jesus fucking Christ." He mumbled. "What the fuck…"
"It's been so long since I've seen them." Calypso said, removing the aspis from his arm. "Always so dark and mysterious. I adore them." Turning the aspis over, it revealed intricate artwork of slaughter, beheadings and similar murderous acts on a battlefield. The very center was engraved in greek.
'Για έναν άνθρωπο με πλούτη και γούστ'
"For a man of wealth and taste…?" He mumbled before realization dawned on him. Closing his eyes, he counted to five.
Didn't work.
"I'm going to kill them." He murmured. "I'm going to rip out their spines and impale them with it."
"I don't understand." Calypso said, furrowing her brows as she studied the shield closer.
"It's from a song." He mumbled, massaging his temples, trying to will away the rage fuelled headache that was on the horizon.
"What's it called?" Calypso asked, trying to bend the shield in half with her bare hands.
"Sympathy For The Devil."
"Well they've always been very clever, darling."
"They are insanely powerful and they're creepy as hell and I think they like me for some reason." He said, totally exasperated.
"Like you?" Calypso said incredulously, seemingly satisfied with the aspis' durability. "They love you. I don't think I've ever seen them smile before." She shuddered. "It's quite unsettling now that I think about it."
"They're terrifying and I hate them."
"But they're so much fun! You should've seen them during The Titanomachy, big bronze clubs raining down on anything that moved. It was rather amusing once you got past the fact that they were carving through whole armies by themselves."
He snorted at the image. He couldn't help it, she just knew exactly how to cheer him up. A question itched at the back of his mind however. "Who's their mother?"
"Lady Night herself." Calypso's lips drew into a thin line. "Her attention is unsettling, but not altogether unwelcome. A powerful ally if she found herself inclined, though to her we're all just children fighting over old toys."
He took a deep breath, trying to calm his mind. Nyx. Primordial of Night and mother to all kinds of dangerous deities and monsters. It was hard to imagine a scenario where her involvement wasn't a very, very, very bad thing.
"This isn't good." He summarized out loud.
"Just be polite if you ever come across her. She likes you if her daughters are any indication." Calypso placated, though her eyes betrayed her own worry.
"I'm more concerned with why. And how she's even aware of my existence, come to think of it." He said as he massaged his temples. It was quickly becoming a habit.
"The Old Ones are born of mystery, my love." She shrugged, no more satisfied than he was by her answer. "Just promise me to be careful. It would be a terrible shame if my husband were to be jailed in Tartarus for eternity, leaving his poor wife alone to fend for herself." She said, batting her eyelashes at him.
"I promise." He smiled before sobering up. "I need to get back to the forge. War said something about making another move today." He said tiredly, wishing desperately that he could spend the entire day in bed with her. "I'll come back as soon as I'm done and we'll get you out of here?"
His wife (that was going to take some getting used to) smiled, "Perfect. It'll take me some time to gather everything to take with me." Her face twisted with disgust. "And even longer to burn everything else."
He chuckled, getting out of bed and stretching toward the sky with a groan. "Let me know if you need any help with that." With a thought, he covered his naked form with a pair of jeans and a blue 'Weezer' t-shirt, smiling as Calypso groaned with disapproval.
"I'm the wife of Destruction, darling. Have faith in my abilities." She said, getting out of bed languidly. It was practically the scene of a renaissance painting, more grace and confidence in her pinky than any other he'd met in his life. He couldn't take his eyes off her if he wanted to, and he knew she absolutely loved that. Stalking up to him, she took his face in her hands. "I love you." She said, her eyes unfolding before him like a blossoming rose.
"I love you." He said breathlessly.
She kissed him before pushing him away. "Now get out of here and do whatever wretched terrors of Olympus do." Her harsh words were betrayed by her wide smile.
"Until tonight, my lady wife." He said as he bowed, a crooked smile on his lips.
Giggling, she curtsied back to him. "Until tonight, my lord husband."
And with that, he flashed into the forge, Calypso's laughter ringing musically in his ears. "Oh, what you do to me." He sang to himself as he made his way into the main room. "No one kno-"
His voice broke as he entered. Standing with Ares and Hephaestus was a tall man with skin as pale as a corpse. A black suit that seemed woven of darkness clung to his muscular frame. Shoulder length hair framed his sunken cheekbones and pointed nose, and his eyes were as black as the night sky.
"Oh, I like this one."
