After posting the initial chapter, I quickly got reviews and I'll admit they hurt slightly but I couldn't help but agree. After reading them, I went over my chapter in my head an realised I had rushed it and it wasn't good enough, especially after a long wait. So I decided, at 3am, to completely redo the second half. However, I do want to say a few things.
Even though it hurt, critiscm is valid and it helps improve my writing. This is your guy's story just as much as it is mine. I might've stopped if it wasn't for the support I'd gotten and I want to try and put my idea onto paper as best as I can. However, if you're just gonne comment "It was bad", please just save it. I'm doing this in my spare time, no payment and I'm on my final year of Uni/college. I understand the time between chapters ain't good enough but right now, this story isn't as fun to write, especially compared to my other one.
I know some come to this story wanting bloodshed and death but I can't do that every chapter. I need build up, to flesh out things more. Characters are important and right now, we are in a kind of low action part of the story. My other story 'The one left behind' is following an original story, with original characters. This story is limited to that I need to follow Canon as it is how I write it. Yes I could go wildly off canon and have Nathan kill all of them in a single night but that wouldn't be that much fun. Nathan needs to lose and win. This is a character that only learns through suffering. Freya always was going to get Bell, no matter how I wrote this chapter and Nathan is going to need to confront her before the actualy War Game and it won't be pretty.
Also, this isn't a book. I would very much like to post just books Like Oomiri but that would take years. Yes you get it all in a bulk but then you have to wait for even longer than you usually do. I'm limited to what I can do in many aspects when writing.
The chapter I posted wasn't good enough, not compare to what I've done and the anticipation tha builds up over the wait. That is why I've stayed up way past my bedtime and decided to rewrite it. I thank the ones that critqued it and made me realise it wasn't good enough. I hope this version is and whenever they get posted, the next chapter will be the last one before the actual War Game, fighting begins.
I want to make it clear, I'm not upset with this. This is just sleep deprieved me rambling, don't feel sorry, I needed this in a way. Hopefully I can kick myself up the backside a bit and get on with it.
"Hand over Bell to me, Hestia!"
"F-Freya!"
In a small street on the east side of Orario, a stand-off between the Goddess of the Hearth and the Goddess of Beauty and War. The street had emptied, Freya's charm had seen to that. Two completely opposing deities faced each other.
The Goddess Hestia stood alone, her twin pig-tails flapping slightly at her side as she tensed at the declaration.
The Goddess Freya stood tall, her high heels making her tower over the smaller deity. Behind her stood the mountain that was Ottar, her captain. And at her feet lay two people, knocked unconscious by the Warlord.
Bell Cranel and Ryu Lyon were lying on the cobbled street, having stood no chance against the level 7 captain of the Freya Familia, their weapons strewn next to them.
Hestia had cried her child's name when she saw him but now her azure, blue eyes stared up at Freya's purple.
"He belongs to me, hand him over," Freya repeated.
"Never!" Hestia retorted, trying to hide the shakiness in her voice.
"You will hand him over willingly or I will take him after sending you back to heaven. I will have him and I don't wish to hurt you."
It was the only level of mercy Freya was willing to show the Goddess. Hestia was struggling to breathe, the intense stare from the Goddess of beauty was suffocating. But Hestia knew it wasn't just due to the want of Bell. Freya was angry, her wrath had spiked to a level Hestia had never seen, and she knew why.
"You will also hand over the half-elf child. While I promise to bring no harm to Bell, that... boy will face punishment for what he has done to me!"
Freya's voice began to rise. It had only been a couple of minutes ago when Freya felt the loss of one of her blessings. Like a hot knife being twisted in her back, she felt a part of her ripped away. She had experienced this the day before, after losing her amazon to Nathan. But this one was different.
Her executives held a special place in her heart and the half-elf had taken one from her. She wanted to force Hestia's hand faster so she could send Ottar to deal with him.
"I won't give you either of them. You started this, Nathan is defending himself and my Familia!" Hestia stated, her fists clenched. How dare Freya say that it was Nathan who needed to be punished. She was sure if her friend Astrea was here, it would be Freya who faced judgment from the Goddess of Justice.
Freya didn't like Hestia's answer, her aura spiking even further. It infuriated her that Hestia was immune to her charm or else she would've done it without a second thought. She looked down at Bell and Ryu again. She hadn't wanted to hurt them but things hadn't gone her way, Syr had failed, she was no use anymore.
It was Freya's turn and she would get what she wanted in the end, she always did.
"OTTAR, PROTECT!"
Both Freya and Hestia heard the shout with Freya recognising Allen's voice. However, Ottar had already heard it and prepared his swords, his eyes scanning everywhere.
"UP!"
Freya looked up. It was a cloudy sky, the sun barely visible. She squinted as light passed over her eyes, holding up her hand to cover the rays of the sun. Then a shadow appeared, it was only for a millisecond but it blurred out the light. And then sparks flew in the air.
*CCCCRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH*
The sound of metal crashing against metal boomed through the streets. Windows shattered as shockwaves rippled from the impact. Both Hestia and Freya stumbled to the ground, not being able to withstand the power of the impact.
Freya hit the ground, her hand falling to the floor for stability. This meant nothing was obscuring the view. A view that would haunt the Goddess of beauty and war for the rest of her life. Hovering a metre above her were dark jade eyes, encircled by black. They directed hate straight at her soul as a feeling of dread and anger surged from the shadow. A smile that showed sadistic glee at wanting to hurt her while two swords fought with the only thing that had kept her on the mortal world.
Hestia watched as Ottar held Nathan with his giant sword, mere inches from cutting Freya's skull open. The half-elf hovered there, silent. Hestia felt the aura, she saw the smile and eyes. She too, was terrified. Then it was action, motion that Hestia could not keep up with. To her, it was a mere blur that lasted all but one second.
A silver spear aimed directly at Nathan's head while Ottar thrusted his arm out, hoping to grab the half-elf's arms. Both were avoided at the last second as Nathan pushed off Ottar's giant sword and then dived into a nearby shadow.
Allen Frommel quickly dropped down, bloodlust seething from his presence as he picked up his weapon and stepped next to his Goddess, ready to protect her with his life.
The street fell silent, only the sound of glass crunching beneath boots from the Freya Familia as one by one, the executives made their way over to protect their Goddess. Hedin and Hogni dove onto the street, covering Ottar and Allen's flank.
They all were pouring their aura out, increasing the pressure on their enemy. But they were being pushed back by the half-elf's wrath. He had now seen his captain on the floor, unconscious alongside Ryu Lyon.
"Nathan, don't fight!" Hestia shouted out, not wanting to see her child get hurt or have him hurt anyone else. Hestia knew the boy didn't want to hurt people and she hated how he had been forced into horrible situations. She didn't know if he had a choice to kill one of Freya's children but that didn't mean he had to be hurt. However, Hestia herself was running out of patience with Freya.
"Quiet Hestia!" Freya ordered at the Virgin Goddess. This earnt a spike in bloodlust from the shadows. "Hear me you insolent fool. I will have your blood from what you have taken from me. Come out now or I send her back to heaven!"
Freya's statement hung in the air for a second. It was not met with a reply nor did Nathan appear. In that time, the three remaining Gulliver brothers had made their way over. Grer was holding Berling, who was still suffering from his punctured stomach. They both subsequently dropped weapons on the floor, the steel crashing on the cobble. Lili's crossbow, Welf's longsword and Mikoto's katana. Hestia looked down at her children's weapons. Her patience began to dwindle further as her heartbeat quickened, tears stinging her eyes.
"Alfrigg, bring him to me."
Hestia looked back at the Goddess as a prum in sand-coloured armour dropped down in front of her, cradling something. Hestia's eyes widened as she saw the adventurer hold his brother's dead corpse as he presented it to Freya, his expression hidden behind his helm.
Freya stayed silent for a moment as she watched Alfrigg lower his brother's body onto the floor. As he took a step back, she walked up forward, her heels clicking on the ground. The other executives followed, huddling around her as bodyguards.
Freya and Hestia just stared at the body. Freya had reached out to stroke the prum's hair but there was no head to stroke. Hestia almost threw up at the sight of the decapitated body. Freya retracted her hand, clenching it tightly. She fought to keep her composure, not wanting to release her arcanum on the city, not yet anyway.
"I swear I will have your head," She whispered into the shadows. Her purple eyes glowed into the rubble with rage.
"Not until I give you the rest of theirs."
The response came from behind her, making Freya jump back in fright but the statement only fuelled more anger.
"How dare you threaten me!" She shouted out. She waited for a response, her head swivelling in different directions, trying to anticipate where the half-elf was hiding. The Freya Familia executives were laser focused on a single direction, scanning any movement, not even missing the specs of dust in the air.
"Yours was a threat-" The response came from behind, the way Hedin was facing. He saw nothing.
"Mine was a promise."
Hestia had been silent through all this, her mouth bone dry. She had been looking in every direction, not knowing where her child was. Ever since seeing the headless body, she had begun to grow frightened. She started to crawl up to Bell, reaching his body. She found comfort in his breathing, the slow rise of his chest and the methodical beating of his heart.
"DON'T TOUCH HIM!" Freya yelled at her. "HE'S MINE!"
Hestia was taken aback by the Goddess' screeching. The Goddess that had always been composed, that had always looked to be in control. Her face was a mix of fear and anger as her usually perfect hair had become a bit dishevelled. Even her children had been surprised by her outburst. This only served to enrage them even more, not liking what Nathan was doing to their lady.
It seemed like the Freya Familia were ready to start destroying buildings, rooftops, balconies. Anything that created even a millimetre of darkness that the half-elf could hide in. They were ready to destroy the whole city if it meant they could kill the boy.
"WAIT!"
Hestia and Freya turned to face a small alleyway that the plea had come from. The Freya familia did not look, not wanting to put down their guard for a fraction of a second. Besides, they recognised that voice, they didn't think he would be much of a threat.
"Wait *huff* please." Out from the backstreet, wearing his feathered cap and his traveller's outfit, Hermes sprinted out into the main street. He quickly looked around, assessing the situation. He did a quick double take on the dead Gulliver's brother's body before moving over to Hestia and Bell.
"What do you want Hermes?" Freya asked with venom in her voice. She was in no mood to play games. She knew the God played the jester sometimes but he was one of the most cunning and smartest deities around. She would not have him get in her way.
"Just hear me out, please." Hermes took the silence from both Goddesses as a sign to continue. He raised his hands out as he continued. "I know tensions are high but..." Hermes took a second to compose himself, gulping a ball of saliva that had grown from nerves. "Freya, you can't have Bell right now."
He pre-emptively winced, waiting for the Goddess to tear into him. To be honest, Hermes had seen his children beaten and bruised. He had arrived just as the Gulliver brothers had left. All of them, even Asfi, were unconscious, their bodies badly beaten. He quickly assessed the Hestia Familia as well. All of them were alive but he saw a large pool of blood on the ground near the Renard. He knew that amount of blood was fatal if it came from a single body.
"What do you mean?" Freya asked, her voice a cold hiss.
"The boy has only been a part of Hestia Familia for half a year, he can't transfer to you even if Hestia wanted to. It would go against the rule of the Falna of having a God's blessing for at least a year."
Hermes' truth echoed around the large group. He saw Freya contemplate it for a second as Hestia looked over to him with gratitude in his eyes. Gratitude that he was about to throw back in her face.
"You don't need to send Hestia back. If you take Bell now and then wait, you will be able to transfer him over safely."
"Hermes!" Hestia protested but Hermes sole focus was on Freya and the darkness behind her, the wrath being thrown his way.
"You only have half a year, that's nothing to the likes of us."
Hermes hoped his message went across. He knew what the boy's view of God's were. How they viewed mortal lives as nothing because of the difference in their perception of times. Half a month was nothing to a Goddess but everything to him. Only a slight decrease in bloodlust was enough of an answer for Hermes right now.
"I... can accept that, for now." Hermes, and Hestia, breathed a sigh of relief. "Only on one condition. The half-elf will face punishment for what he has done, for what he has taken from me. If he does not show himself, I will send Hestia back to heaven."
"I don't accept this. Don't do it Nathan!" Hestia screamed out. Hermes didn't know what to say. He did not want to give Nathan over to Freya. He could only imagine what she would do to him, and he didn't like what he thought of.
Hermes looked at Hestia, then back at Bell. He had come to believe Hestia was best for the boy's growth into being the last hero the world so desperately needs and if it meant Nathan would be taken captive for Bell to have a chance to remain with Hestia, he knew which choice he would make, the same choice the half-elf would make. He wondered what Nathan was thinking, hiding in the shadows.
Hermes knew the boy was unstable right now. From the reports he'd gotten from Asfi and what his Familia had learned from eavesdropping, Nathan was not in a good place. Hermes wouldn't be surprised if Nathan wanted an all out war right now. In the streets of Orario, he could hide anywhere and it's not like the boy showed any sympathy for the people when he was fighting Allen Frommel. Hermes needed a way out of this. There was always a way out things.
Hermes needed a way for the Freya Familia to cease any further action, this meant either capturing Nathan or having him leave the city. He was sure that Freya wouldn't risk sending any of her children after him. But how could he get Nathan away. The main issue was Bell and Hestia.
He was certain that if he somehow got the half-elf to escape for the time being, Nathan wouldn't want to leave either Bell or his Goddess in the clutches of Freya. While he might get away with getting Hestia to safety, if he took Bell. Freya would send her entire Familia after him, she might even charm the city and send the whole population after him.
Freya began walking over to Hestia, her executives surrounding her from all sides. There was nowhere for Nathan to attack. Every direction was covered, even the sky and not a single flank was left unseen.
Nathan was somewhere here but there was nowhere to go. Unless the half-elf saw something the God didn't but with the way Freya walked so confidently, Hermes knew that she was covered.
"Last chance," The Goddess of beauty said, her tone icy and ladled with venom. She had said she hadn't wanted to hurt the Goddess of the Hearth but it was clear that she would derive some form of enjoyment from it.
A blade of wind flew out from the left of Freya, aimed directly at her skull. It was quickly deflected away by Ottar. It only halted the Goddess by a second before she smiled. The attack almost seemed comical in how pitiful it was. Why attack Ottar's side?
Nathan was getting desperate. He had done a pointless attack, hoping something would come from it. If it hit then that was a win or maybe it could draw someone to his position again like it had worked with one of the Prum's but no one fell for it this time. At the very least it had stopped Freya for a single second.
Nathan was lost. He was beginning to panic. There was nothing he could do. He had darted around the circumference of the area at least 10 times now, not one blind spot. Him killing Dvallin had backfired. They were all on high alert. How stupid was he that he had actually underestimated the Freya Familia. Just because he held Allen Frommel to a draw, that didn't mean squat with others there, not to mention Ottar.
What was worse, his anger was slowly fading, being replaced with desperation. He could feel the skill that increased his stats through anger was slowly losing its potency. What could he do. How could he protect Hestia, Bell as well as everyone else.
Bell had done it so many times already, why was he struggling so hard. He glanced over at Hermes, who was looking in his direction. He was almost begging the God to help him.
He saw Hermes was thinking just as much as he was for a way out of this. The last thing he wanted to do was expose himself. He wanted nothing more than to fulfil his promise and slice all their heads off but he would only get one, if he was lucky, before Freya sent Hestia back to heaven. Then what? He'd be powerless and Bell would be free to be taken.
Freya was only a couple metres away from Hestia and it was clear that she was more than willing in seeing through her threat. This enraged the half-elf but what angered him more was his powerless.
His mind was a mess. He had figured out that his mental fortification had been fading for a while. It had been the only thing for the past 2 years that had kept him somewhat stable. Without it, he was sure he would go mad.
He might have had a chance of tanking Freya's charm, with the combination with his absolute resistance and his mental fortification. But now he could tell, his instinct was telling him. He stood no chance.
He noticed movement. Hermes was rummaging in his pockets. Nathan noticed him pull something out of his right pocket and grasp it tightly. He wasn't sure if the Freya Familia saw it but he saw it and knew what it was.
Hermes glanced up and made eye contact with Nathan. The half-elf wasn't sure if Hermes knew where he was or it was just luck but there eyes met and it told Nathan everything. Nathan glanced down once at Bell. He had done the calculations in his own mind. He knew if he took Bell as well as Hestia, it would only have Hestia in more danger.
"NATHAN, NOW!"
Hermes shouted from the side alley as he threw down a cluster of black smoke bombs on the ground. In an instant the street was smothered in a fog of black smoke that encompassed the group.
The Freya Familia acted immediately. Without missing a beat, Ottar grabbed Freya and jumped up as high as he could while blocking her with his body. The others simply put up a defence, hoping it would work.
Allen too had jumped up and with a swift motion from his spear, he swept the content away, clearing the area. The smoke had only been alive for less than a second and the Freya executives had acted as soon as the knew what was happening. The only thing is, Nathan knew what was happening before it even happened.
They all started to assess if anything had happened. The Gulliver brothers, still traumatised from losing one of them earlier, quickly spotted each other. Relieved they realised that none of them had been hurt they turned back and grimaced.
"Hogni!" Hedin shouted as he looked at his dark elf counterpart. Hogni fell to the floor, clutching the stump where his right arm once was. Blood spurted out as his dark-skinned arm fell to the floor with a thump. He muffled a cry of pain as tears sprang to his eyes.
The others looked at Hogni, their eyes wide in shock. But the one that shocked them the most was the street next to Hogni.
Laying on his own was Bell Cranel. No Goddess Hestia, no Gale Wind. In that fraction of a time, Nathan had sliced of Hogni's arm, picked up two people and escaped. They all turned to the side alley and their eyes narrowed into viscous slits.
"Sorry about that," Was always Hermes said with his cheesy smile before he was quickly knocked unconscious by Alfrigg, who had to refrain himself from beating the God to death with his boot.
Ottar soon dropped back down with Freya who only stared at her child's injury. The sound of her teeth gnashing together brought frustration to the executives.
"Find them," She said through gritted teeth. "Don't let him escape the city alive."
As soon as her order finished, all of them split off. Even Hogni darted away, more intent on delivering his Goddess' orders than healing his wound. Only Ottar stood by her side as Freya turned around and looked down at Bell. She saw Hogni's dismembered arm and then Dvallin's corpse, then back to Bell.
She almost started to wonder if it was worth it. But she had come this far now, and she would see it out. She wanted her Odr and she always got what she wanted.
/
Orario had been walking on eggshells ever since the fight between Nathan and Allen had wrecked a portion of the housing district, taking the hero's bridge along with it.
The population that had succumbed to the loss of their belongings were being ushered away by Guild employees and the Ganesha Familia.
The Loki Familia had remained in the Manor, most of them still recovering from the Knossos battle. The ones that weren't hadn't done much with their time apart from think. Finn Deimne and Gareth Landrock shared a small drink while contemplating the best course of action while the younger executives brooded around the mansion, waiting for the next orders and not knowing what to do in between. They feared that they would miss something if they went dungeon diving, even the strength hungry Kenki was in no mood to fight right now.
The rest of the city tried to enjoy the final day of the festival but there was an uncomfortable atmosphere over the celebrations. Mama Mia saw this as she looked onto the west street. She hadn't opened today, her girls needing to rest from their encounter with the Freya Familia. She worried about the elf that was still missing. She had been keeping an eye out in case some of those idiots from her old Familia thought the fight wasn't finished. She would make sure they understood if they came for round two.
"There's a bad feelin' in the air," the hostess muttered, not liking what she was feeling. She could tell something was about to happen, something big.
The ones in the town square, where the Goddess pillars resided, were the most jovial in the city. They felt safest within the protection of the deities, though it seemed one was missing, the Goddess Freya.
Demeter still took charge and held praying sessions and the people enjoyed it. Underneath the shadow of the Tower of Babel, there they felt some peace that the rest of the city didn't have. The sense of unease was minimal in the town square.
They were ignorant to what was about to occur. Standing high above them all, a silver-haired girl in a brown cloak stood above them all at the top of the structure that held back the monsters below. There she announced to the world, an announcement that only the Boaz man behind her would hear. Where she proclaimed her love, her sorrow and apathy.
Her eyes scanned the city, wishing to find her target. She had already had Bell delivered back to Folkvangr and now her main priority was finding Nathan, who had taken Hestia and Ryu with him.
Nathan darted through the streets. He held Hestia under his left arm and had slung Ryu over his right shoulder. All of a sudden his instinct ability kicked in and a shadow flew overhead. He recognised that scent and knew Vana Freya was nearby. As much as he wanted to, he couldn't risk fighting, not out in the open and not with Hestia with him.
Hestia had remained deathly quiet, not uttering a single word. She wanted to speak to her child, ask him all sorts of questions but she knew that now wasn't the time.
After a few seconds had passed, Hestia covered her ears again as wind rushed into them at an alarming speed. Nathan flew threw the backstreets of Orario. He didn't care which direction he went; any direction was a way to the wall that skirted around the city.
He wasn't sure if Freya would risk sending her children after him or even if any of them would voluntarily follow. He gritted his teeth in frustration. He had been given a golden opportunity to take out another executive but he knew he only had a brief moment of time to get Hestia and Ryu and then escape. He had tried to slice Hogni's stomach open while he bent down to pick up Ryu but the dark elf had turned to draw his sword just as he got there. So he adapted and sliced of his arm instead with a quick up slash. If he was lucky, then Hogni would bleed to death. Very unlikely but he had seen less injuries kill.
Nathan cursed as he came to a dead end. He pivoted on his feet as he made a sharp turn left and kept running. His nose was telling him Allen had gone the other way so he ran, hoping to put as much distance between himself and the others.
'What next?' He thought. After he had gotten both Hestia and Ryu to safety, what then? Would he leave them somewhere and then rush back to the city. Who knows what kind of state it would be in by the time he got back.
Then he felt it. His instinct ability practically screamed at him to escape. It was one of the worst cases he had ever experienced. He could sense it too. He knew it must be Freya and she was about to do something cataclysmic.
Nathan stopped wasting time, pulling Hestia closer, he started charging through buildings. He knew it would kick up dust, make noise and alert them to his presence but right now he didn't care, his instinct was demanding he get as far away from the city as possible.
With this new tactic, he made it to the wall in just under a minute. The giant stone wall mere metres away from his face. How long would it take him to climb it and hop over to the other side. Anything longer than a second and it would be too long. He didn't waste that time, putting his left shoulder down low and barging his way through the thick layer of brick.
Nathan didn't realise how thick the wall was. It took just as long to force himself through the wall than it would've done to get to the top. But that didn't matter now, he was out of the wall and out of the city but his instinct still screamed at him.
He didn't take the time to take in the sites or even assess which side he came out at, he just kept running, holding Hestia as close to him as possible.
It took a gruelling 5 seconds to make it to the nearby trees that littered the landscape beyond the city. One of the longest 5 seconds of Nathan's life. That was plenty of time for the Freya Familia to hear the noise he made, see the dust and debris fly up from the place he smashed through the wall and begin the chase.
His instinct was of no help. It only ever focused on one thing, the most important thing. And that was still the same thing that was screaming in his mind to run.
He made it to the treeline without incident and he decided to spare a glance back. Just a single glance back was enough to make his blood boil.
Stood on the top of the wall were 3 figures. The Gulliver brothers all looked down at him from atop the giant wall. He could sense their bloodlust and he made sure to pay it back in full. But that wasn't the worst of it. In an instant, his instinct flipped. It went from screeching about whatever Freya was doing to something else. It shouted at him to dodge.
Nathan felt the spear graze his cheek as Allen lunged at him. It had taken the cat-man less than a second to get to him from the wall. In that instant, Nathan's instinct was the only reason he was still breathing.
Nathan and Allen stared at each other. To the pair, time slowed. In that single moment of eye contact, both fighters displayed their carnal desire to rip each other's throats out and drain every last drop of blood from their opponent's body.
Allen still intended on doing that. He quickly got back into position and lunged at the half-elf, who went to avoid but cursed in his mind. Allen was smarter than Nathan had thought, his silver spear aimed directly at the spot where if he dodged, Ryu would be forced to take the hit.
Instead of dodging, Nathan kicked backwards in an awkward direction. Simultaneously, he hooked Ryu's body underneath his arm, putting her in the same position as Hestia. But it wasn't enough to avoid the attack entirely.
Nathan had to grimace as he chanted his short wind spell just as Allen's spear stabbed into his right shoulder. It didn't pierce all the way through but it had hit it's intended target.
"Gift me the power to control the wind around me, so I have the strength to survive another day."
Just as Nathan finished his chant, Allen stabbed at his head. Nathan ducked underneath, only to receive a boot to the face, a boot he couldn't block.
Allen sent the half-elf flying backwards. A smile graced his lips, only for it to turn into a sneer as he watched Nathan use his momentum that had Allen had given him. He pushed off a wind platform and started darting in the air.
Nathan made random movements, hopping from one to the next, dropping occasionally so Allen wouldn't risk throwing his spear and even though Nathan gained a small victory from escaping with Hestia and Ryu safe, it was hollow. He had abandoned his friends and his captain. He had fled from a fight he had intended on finishing with the Freya Familia dead.
He felt a large pulse of arcanum rattle behind him. It almost made him fall as it reverberated in his bones. Whatever Freya was planning on doing, she had done it. He had lost
"-six months."
The time frame rang in Nathan's mind and as he raced across the afternoon sky. He listened to those words that Hermes had said. It cleared his mind, helped him concentrate. Having realised he had gone far enough and was comfortable knowing Allen was no longer following him, Nathan looked for a safe and secluded place to land.
'They won one battle, not the war,' He said to himself as a form of comfort.
As Nathan landed, he felt movement from his right arm. It seemed his excursion in the high turbulent wind had woken Ryu up. If it had woken a level 4 adventurer up from a knock out, what had it done to a blessing less Goddess.
As soon as Nathan dropped down in a small opening surrounded by a thicket of bushes and brambles, he dropped the pair he was holding. Not so elegantly letting Ryu down, Nathan immediately went to check on Hestia.
"Lady Hestia are you-" Nathan was quickly interrupted by the Goddess jumping on him. He felt his shoulder begin to get wet as her muffles vibrated against his stomach. Nathan failed to return the hug, his arms swaying limply by his side. He had failed her.
He heard Ryu murmur awake; he'd deal with her later. Now though, he let his Goddess cry into him. He didn't know what for or why but he knew he caused it. His eyes narrowed like slits in the direction of Orario.