Chapter One
Nightmares about my pantheon were never shocking.
I'd had nightmares about them since the day they were brutally betrayed and slaughtered without so much as a goodbye. A race so powerful that even the Romans whispered in awe when they told stories of us, legends that lived on even today in a purely modern world. A race so powerful that most humans passed it off as a mere fairy tale, when they had no idea of the continent that had once dominated the Mediterranean.
Atlantis.
My home, my people, my family, my everything. In one vicious mistake caused by a bunch of bratty siblings, the entire continent along with its pantheon had been broken up and plunged straight to the bottom of the sea where it now lay in ruins. My siblings had never been nice people. Seriously. They were downright cruel, especially to my brother, Anexius, or as he was called now, Callias. They'd brutally raped and slaughtered his lover, the Atlantean prince, Dexius. Fed up with their treachery and cruelty, Callias had called upon the Source and struck a deal that resulted in our entire pantheon being put out of existence, their powers sucked back into the Source.
As payment for his actions, Callias was forced to suffer eternal damnation in slavery to whomever gave him a new name. As for myself, I'd been cursed to serve those who called upon me for help, a deal maker. And there was a third surviving member of our pantheon of mixed blood, Hannibal, who was also cursed with immortality-- you'd think it wasn't that bad at first until you actually met the hybrid god. Then you'd wonder how he hadn't gone insane by now with all that he'd suffered.
And that was all that was left of a once great and powerful nation.
Three cursed gods, living and reliving the death of our pantheon, night after night after night.
The screams of innocent mortals ringing through the air, infants wailing, children sobbing, families torn apart and forced to die the slow and painful death of drowning, with no way to reach out to them and save them because your brother was using the last of his free will to keep you trapped on the shoreline with no choice, but to watch your beloved people perish.
Yeah, it was definitely something that kept me up at night.
But nothing like the headache that struck me that morning as I sat at the breakfast table, pressing the heel of my palm against my forehead, teeth clenched together tightly. It sounded as if a million people were screaming in the back of my skull. Only this time, instead of mournful sorrow, it was the sound of rage. Pure hatred being let loose in the worst war cries I'd ever heard, and they chilled me to the bones as a shudder wracked me.
"Kitty, are you okay?" I blinked past the pain to peer up at Dorean, who stood off to the side of the small breakfast table out on the patio, his silver eyes twinkled like the glitter that coated his silky blue tank top. I offered him a small smile, not wanting to worry him.
"I'm all right, just a bit of a headache." I assured him. Being the astute imp he was, Dorean didn't buy the excuse as he cocked his head and wrinkled his nose up as if he didn't like the smell of my lie. As an imp, they were pretty good at picking up on how people truly felt about things. Not quite as strong as a fae's ability to read emotions, but close enough.
"You get headaches a lot, but I don't see you cringe like that." He pointed out. I shrugged, still pressing the heel of my palm to my forehead to alleviate some of the pressure caused by the screams inside my head that still rang out in anger.
"It's just.... I don't know. Something feels off."
"A summon?"
"No, it just... I don't know, maybe. Listen, I'm gonna drop by Callias's today to see if maybe it has something to do with the curse." I said, moving to get up, but Dorean pushed on my chest so I was forced to sit back down and he moved a plate of pancakes and bacon on the table in front of me.
"Not yet," He told me sternly, "You have to eat first. Then you can do the running around thingy. Also, need to stop by Styx to grab more groceries. Adrian's coming over." I nodded at that and touched his soft hand on the table, giving him a reassuring smile and sending a small pool of power through our touch so he could teleport himself wherever he needed to go. He leaned over and gave me a kiss on the temple before returning to the stove inside to avoid burning down the house-- again.
The first time had been an accident.
I watched him go, relieved that he didn't seem too worried about it, but he was used to me having headaches. It was probably my mentioning Callias that made him relax. He was always excited to see me go visit Callias, even though it galled me to do so. I'd rather choke on squid tentacles than go anywhere near my brother, but I had no choice. Something about those angry screams, which continued to wrack my brain, told me this went beyond a simple hangover or severe night terror. This felt a little deeper than that.
Part of me was tempted to go see Hannibal instead, but Hannibal's curse didn't come from the fact that he was one of the three remaining Atlanteans. No, his curse came from one of the worst places-- my aunt, Lea, the Atlantean goddess of curses and battle. While I couldn't ever remember my aunt being cruel enough to curse her own son, I didn't know the full story. All I knew was that the Greek Titan, Iapetus, had attacked her and no one else spoke of it; otherwise, Lea would kill them.
Besides, bringing up the Atlantean pantheon around Hannibal always made him bristle. He didn't want to discuss the pantheon that had abandoned him to his bitter past, and I wasn't cruel enough to torment him with it.
Oh yeah, and his master, Akin, hated my guts because the last time Hannibal and I had done a mission impossible stunt together, Hannibal had come home with some new scars and Akin was furious that I'd damaged his pet while Hannibal just seemed okay with it all... probably because Akin cuddled on him more so than usual, if that was even possible.
I shook my head at their silly relationship before I returned to breakfast, savoring the spices in the pancakes Dorean had added for my pleasure. I finished it up, gave Dorean a quick kiss in the kitchen before I teleported from my home in the barren Atlantean realm to Olympus.
At one time, such an action would have been extremely dangerous and would be an immediate threat to the Greeks, calling for all out war. However, now that the Atlantean pantheon ceased to exist, my presence here was tolerated... barely.
Zeus hated my guts, but I couldn't care less. He didn't dare attack me when we both knew I held some pretty nasty things over his head.
Like the fact that he'd attacked his own brother, Hades. Something I hadn't discovered until recently, something Hades didn't even know I knew, so I kept it to myself. Or at least, between Zeus and I.
Olympus was much more beautiful than the Atlantean realm at the moment. My realm was a breezy desert surrounded by ocean for miles upon miles. Olympus, on the other hand, was a gorgeous mountain coated in thick green forests, sliced through with crystal clear creeks home to naiads. Beautifully designed temples spotted the mountain, with Zeus's holding the top place with the largest temple made entirely of white marble and a vain statue of himself near the entrance. But it wasn't his temple that I was interested in.
I moved to the left down a cobblestone path that wound around a small group of trees before opening up to a brightly lit clearing, as if the sun favored this temple the most and it should, considering the gold and white temple belonged to none other than the Greek god Apollo. The front entrance was carved with Doric columns and his realms of rule, the sweet smell of flowers filling the air and dainty music wafting through the columns. I made my way inside toward the throne room where Apollo seemed to be absent. The music came from a harp that was playing by itself beside his marble throne adorned with plush gold stitched pillows.
I didn't have to go very far, however, before the air rippled with a familiar ancient power, and a few feet in front of me, Callias materialized in a small puff of smoke.
Callias no longer looked like the Anexius that I'd grown up with. Anexius had dark hair and white eyes, as was customary for the Khalians, or the Atlantean term for our gods, similar to the Greek's "Olympians" and "Titans". Callias now had knee-length flowing blood red hair that he kept into a high ponytail decorated with gold tinsel and laurel leaves, his bangs framing a pretty masculine face, and indigo eyes that flashed white for a moment when he saw me before returning to normal. He was dressed prettily for Apollo, a white Grecian gown that had been tailored to suit Callias's masculine figure.
"Xenon." He murmured, his eyes showing relief at seeing me, but the rest of his face stoic. He'd learned not to show how he felt around me, because it was obvious how I felt about him.
Despite knowing the truth behind Callias's betrayal, I still couldn't help loathing him. I'd struggled over the years to try and accept it and move on, but I couldn't. My family was gone because of this person, and while my family was never the kindest, they were still my family... a family that I loved and loathed for their cruelty.
I cleared my throat uncomfortably at Callias's intense stare.
"Sorry for not calling earlier or anything, but something feels a bit off." I admitted, frowning as I folded my arms over my chest. Callias finally showed some kind of emotion as he frowned.
"You feel it too then." He stated. I narrowed my eyes.
"Feel what?" I asked, unconvinced. Callias had been known to bullshit me on purpose so we could have a conversation. The masochist was so desperate to try and talk to me that he'd made several false calls and even kidnapped Dorean from time to time to get me to come over here.
"The screams," Callias murmured, then paused to glance to the side, cocking his head as if he were listening to something before he drew closer to me, making me tense, "You can hear the screams."
"I always hear screams, thanks to you."
"I'm not talking about those," Callias snapped impatiently, making me arch a brow as he took a deep breath to regain his cool before he met my eyes, and this time, it was clear in his eyes that there was a fear I should be addressing, "I'm talking about the.... the anger behind them. Xenon, it sounds like..." His voice trailed and he stepped back, dropping his stare to the floor. I stiffened at his meaning.
"They're dead," I said in a hard voice, "They're dead and you know it. And even if by some miracle they came back, and I'm just speaking hypothetically since there is no such thing as a miracle, they have no idea it was you who betrayed them. So why would they be angry?" Callias scowled suddenly, revealing one of the rare times when I pissed him off.
"I don't know, Xenon. Go talk to Hannibal, find out if it's just us, or if he's also affected by the screams."
"He's a hybrid. He didn't even grow up with our pantheon."
"That doesn't change the fact that he carries our blood."
"Fine," I answered flatly, "But I'm not coming back here. I'll just call you."
"Apollo won't let me use a phone."
"Excuse me?" I asked in disbelief. Callias returned to being utterly stoic, the only emotion showing was his clenching fists at his sides.
"I'm not allowed to use a phone. Or Internet. Or television. Look, just go speak to Hannibal and come back here and let me know. If he hears it, then there's definitely something wrong if it's strong enough for a half-blood to hear."
"And what could it possibly be?" I asked, rolling my eyes skeptically. Callias didn't answer. Just continued to stare at me with that uncomfortably intense stare that made me grimace. So I stepped back, snapped my fingers, and vanished from Apollo's temple, teleporting all the way to the city of Hell where Lucifer and his children also made their home.
In seconds, I appeared outside a beautiful high-class apartment building, sleek and modern with tinted windows and a call box out front where Akin's name was printed. I hit the button beside it and watched the black LCD screen flicker as the speaker rang him in. A second later, Akin's face came into view on the small screen. The second eldest son of Lucifer, with a striking resemblance to the archangel, Akin was very fair skinned with white-blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. Something about him was extremely feminine until he opened his mouth and his voice was a deep tenor with a bit of a happy bounce to it. Or at least, when it was anyone else but me.
When Akin saw it was me, his face dropped and suspicion glinted in his eyes.
"Oh, Xenon. Didn't know you knew where I lived." He said, sounding less than thrilled. I frowned.
"Sorry to bug you, but this is extremely important. Is Hannibal in?" I asked. Akin's eyes glowed with menace.
"Not for you, he isn't. Last time you guys hung out, you got him hurt."
"I'm not here to take him anywhere, Akin. I'm here to talk to him."
"He's sleeping."
"Fine," I said through clenched teeth, "Then answer me something... Has Hannibal been having headaches? Hearing voices maybe?" I knew the moment Akin's eyes flickered worriedly that he knew what I was talking about. He nibbled his bottom lip hesitantly, then sighed reluctantly and reached his hand out, hitting a button to end the call. For a second, I thought he'd hung up on me until I heard the buzz that indicated he was opening the apartment building door for me. The locks clicked open and I entered the building, forced to use the elevator because of the barrier on the building preventing teleportation.
Being a god, I probably could've forced my teleportation, but I decided against it. I went all the way up to the top floor where Akin's penthouse was and made my way down the narrow silver decorated hallways to Akin's door, which was already open with Akin standing there in a pair of Gothic Hello Kitty pajama pants and a matching t-shirt, his blonde hair done up in a hair clip and a Hello Kitty hair barrette holding his bangs off to the side of his face.
Without a word, Akin gestured me in and I gave him a grateful nod, stepping inside as he shut the door behind me and led me through the hallway into the side open living room area that was separated from the kitchen by a breakfast bar. A quick glance around the room told me Hannibal really was still asleep and Akin hadn't been lying to politely tell me to fuck off.
Akin went to pour a mug of coffee before handing it to me and I nodded my thanks, leaning back on the counter and cradling the mug in my hands.
"So what's this about," Akin asked suspiciously, "This isn't going to result in another bloody mission to torment whoever, is it?" I shook my head slowly, taking a sip of coffee before taking a deep breath.
"Something's up with the balance. The past couple mornings, I've woken up with severe headaches and the sound of people screaming. I went to see Callias," I explained, watching Akin arch a brow in surprise at that and I ignored it and went on, "He's having the same issues. He told me to come here and check on Hannibal to see if he was having the same issues."
"And if he is?" Akin asked uneasily. I frowned.
"Not sure. Callias seems to think that Atlanteans could return, somehow." I responded. Akin paled.
"Please tell me he's just being a paranoid freak. I don't need anymore in-laws coming here to terrorize my baby." He said. I almost smiled at Akin's concern for Hannibal. Callias may have gotten a shitty deal, and Hannibal did, up until he met Akin. He deserved this kind of lover, one who actually gave a shit about him. I shook my head at Akin, taking another gulp of coffee.
"I think he's just freaking out for no reason. I mean, it's kind of concerning, but I don't think our pantheon can return. If they could, why didn't they in the past? It just doesn't make any sense." I explained. Akin frowned curiously at that, scooting up onto a bar stool with his coffee, reaching up to tuck a lock of hair behind his ear.
"I still don't even get how it was possible for your entire pantheon to be wiped out. Wouldn't that cause the whole universe to rupture?" He asked. I tensed at the subject, but I suppose I owed it to him for harassing him once more, so with a heavy sigh, I shrugged.
"Callias struck some kind of deal with the Source. Maybe the Source just absorbed the powers, or maybe Callias did, or maybe their powers are being harbored somewhere. All I know is they're dead and the only ones left are Callias, Hannibal, and I."
"Hannibal's only half-Atlantean." Akin reminded. I shrugged.
"Callias seems to think that half or not, Hannibal is still connected to our pantheon and he could be affected by the same thing that's affecting us." I responded. Akin frowned thoughtfully at me before his eyes shifted to something behind me and his face brightened. I looked up to see Hannibal coming down the stairs, looking a bit wobbly, his black hair hanging over most of his face and over his left shoulder, his black sweatpants surprisingly a bit on the large side so it showed the V of his hips.
The moment I saw him, I was suddenly reminded of the hybrid god I'd fought in the past. That god was nothing like the one who stood before me now. Hannibal was unguarded, sleepy looking, almost human. When we'd met, he was a wild animal that my brothers insisted we kill on sight. The second time I'd come in contact with the hybrid, he'd almost ripped my head off.
The day had been scorching hot and the sand beneath my feet practically burned right through my leather sandals and I remembered stupidly ripping my breastplate off my armor because I couldn't stand it any longer. I'd thought I was safe as I sat on the beach, breathing hard and wiping my face with the back of my hand, smearing blood from a cut on my cheek that I'd received from the battle that had taken place on the beach just hours before.
The sand was soaked in blood, turning the churning tide red as it licked at the shore, cradling the corpses of fallen enemies. At the time, I'd been with Anexius on the beach while my siblings had fought further down. We'd stupidly thought we'd wiped out the entire fleet that'd been sent after us.
But I felt the prickle on the back of my neck that meant someone was watching me. It was followed by the thick stench of bloodthirst. A power so potent that it sizzled in the air crept around behind me and I clenched my teeth, twirling around and snatching up my sword, waving it out in preparation for another attack. I waited with baited breath, eyes frantically searching the foliage lining the beach.
And I had prepared to back down again when something shot out of the trees and slammed into me so hard that the air burst out my lungs and I slammed into the hot sand. I choked, gasping for breath as my sword flew across the sand. I jerked my head up to see Hannibal seated on top of me, bringing a curved dagger back to cut my throat, his mismatched eyes glowing with murderous intent. I snarled and bared my fangs, reaching up to grab his wrist, twisting the dagger away from him so it fell into the sand.
"Xenon!" Anexius's frantic cry pierced the air and I only caught the sight of him out the corner of my eye as he ran for me, only to have someone else come barreling out of the trees to body slam him into the water where I listened to the splashing struggle. I cursed, twisting one leg around Hannibal's and throwing all my weight to the side, drawing Hannibal beneath me, moving for the dagger while gripping his throat with the other hand.
Hannibal writhed and thrashed like a wild dog, snarling and baring his fangs at me before he managed to wedge one leg up between us, kicking me in the solar plexus and sending me flying back against the ground. I cursed and shot to my feet as he rolled for the dagger, snatching it up first. He spun around when I reached him and I felt the blade slice into the skin of my throat. I gasped, stumbling back just in time to avoid a really serious injury.
Instead, it was a hairline cut that quickly healed as I watched Hannibal lean back on his elbows in the sand, breathing hard and glaring at me furiously.
"What are you?" I demanded. Hannibal spat at me and kicked his leg out, but I caught it and twisted him over onto his stomach, scrambling on top of him and wrenching the dagger away. I was about ready to pin him and threaten to kill him if he didn't come peacefully as a prisoner, when someone grabbed a handful of my hair and jerked my head back and I found myself glaring up at the Greek Titan, Menoetius, who scoffed.
"Look at you, whoreson, you look like a pinned bitch." For a moment, I'd thought he was speaking to me until I realized his words were directed at Hannibal, who breathed hard. I watched Hannibal's eyes flash in anger before he tore away from me and shot to his feet. Menoetius smirked and went to jam the dagger into my throat, but I was stunned when Hannibal slammed Menoetius into the ground away from me. I shot to my feet, baffled as Anexius managed to run over to me, breathing hard and bleeding heavily from his battle with Menoetius earlier. We watched as Hannibal struggled to pin Menoetius down before Hannibal glanced over his shoulder and met my eyes before speaking in Atlantean.
"Go now before I change my mind!" He snarled at me. Anexius had grabbed me and dragged me away before I could even protest. All I'd managed to see was Hannibal slug Menoetius in the jaw before scrambling away from him to avoid his wrath.
And now, the deadly god that had managed to pin both myself and a Titan down, looked like one of those kittens you saw on Internet videos.
"Aw," Akin purred, moving from his seat at the bar and drifting over to stand in front of Hannibal so he could cup his face in his hands, "I'm sorry, sweetie, I didn't think it'd be that bad. I won't use the big one anymore if you're still sore like this in the morning." Hannibal didn't seem to entirely register what Akin said, but he just leaned down to brush his nose against Akin's anyway and Akin gushed, kissing him all over his face before stepping back to brush the hair back from Hannibal's face worriedly.
"Say, baby, do you still have that headache?" He asked. Hannibal frowned at that, tilting his head before he seemed to notice me for the first time. Instantly, his guard returned, not that it mattered. I wouldn't hurt Hannibal. We'd only fought those few times because we'd been forced to. Now, Hannibal was one of the only people left in the world who carried the blood of my pantheon and wasn't on my personal hit list, like Callias. As far as Hannibal was concerned, we were kindred spirits.
"Yes." Was all Hannibal said, but his expression asked what I was doing here and what this whole thing was about. I sighed, pushing off the counter and setting my coffee aside.
"I've woke up with a severe headache the past couple days and it sounds like there's a hundred voices in my head screaming at once," I explained, watching Hannibal's eyes flicker in recognition, which meant not only did he have headaches, but he must also be hearing the voices, "Callias is suffering the same thing. He seems to think that the Atlanteans are returning." Hannibal's expression twisted at that.
"That's impossible." He stated flatly. I frowned.
"That's what I said. But whatever it is, it's disrupting the balance. I can feel the rift." I admitted. Hannibal paused, cocking his head as if listening to an inner voice; although, he was actually reaching his powers out to the Source from where he drew some of his powers from as well. Actually, he probably drew more from the Source than I did. He was a hybrid god, a god with blood from two of the most powerful pantheons in the world. It was like pouring Red Bull into your coffee in the morning. And the Source was probably more than eager to give him a helpful boost.
"Yeah," Hannibal said at last, a frown working onto his face, "It's there. It reminds me of the rift that hit just before the Titans attacked." I nodded grimly in agreement.
Two years ago, the Greek Titans had broken free from their prison in Tartarus and wreaked havoc across the realms. They'd torn apart the Greek Underworld of Hades, ransacked the cities, literally built a twenty foot wall with the corpses of their victims, and swept across Helheim, shredding it before they reached Hell and beat the living crap out of them. If it hadn't been for Hades and his brilliant ideas, we'd probably be dead.
But I'd never tell him that. His ego was big enough without my help.
Anyway, during that time, a huge rift had shot through the Source, unsettling the balance and alerting all the death gods that a huge catastrophe was about to happen. A rift in the Source was basically that little tingle that let the death gods know that they were about to be loaded with souls to carry on to the afterlife.
"Wait," Akin said nervously, "You don't think it's the Titans again, do you?" Hannibal shook his head, rubbing at the back of his neck.
"As far as I know, there's no way for the Titans to break free. The only reason they did last time was because of Rhea and Cronus. They'd bought their time, but now they have none. It's something else... Something bitter." He added under his breath. Akin looked at him worriedly, then looked at me.
"Can you figure out what it is and get back to us as soon as you can? The last thing we need is more drama. Not after the wedding." He said with a tone of bitterness. I offered them an uncomfortable smile.
Akin and Hannibal had gotten married six months ago, and the wedding was private for obvious reasons. It had started out all nice until Cain came looking for Abel, who had gone as Akin's best man.
Let's just say that most of the white turned red that day.
"I'll get back to you. In the mean time, keep track of your headaches and see if you can pick up on what the voices are saying. If you hear anything or if anything changes, let me know as soon as possible." I told Hannibal, who gave me a curt nod. I nodded back before teleporting out of their apartment returning to Olympus in Apollo's temple where Callias stood the way he had when I left him.
I scowled at that.
"Have you been standing there the whole time I was gone?" I asked. Callias appeared confused.
"Where else would I go?" He asked. I shook my head, rubbing at my forehead where a headache started to form again, but this time, it wasn't the creepy voices. I cleared my throat, dropping my arm to my side now.
"Never mind. Anyway, yes. Hannibal's experiencing the same thing." I told him. Callias paled and I frowned.
"What?" I asked. Callias shifted uncomfortably, moving away from me, which made me narrow my eyes. He always did that when he had something to say, but didn't want to say it because he knew I would get angry. That always baffled me considering I was always angry with him, but I wasn't here to play his avoidance games, so I pursued him as he made his way toward the Hyacinth Garden.
The garden was a tribute to Apollo's favorite ex-lover, Hyacinth, a Spartan prince who'd been murdered in cold blood by a jealous wind god. The garden was a light with hundreds and hundreds of brightly colored hyacinth flowers, and a large fountain sat at the center, spurting streams of crystal clear water into the air around a statue of Hyacinth himself.
"What're you thinking, Anexius?" I asked, using Callias's real name to let him know I wasn't going to play games. Callias hesitated at that, looking over his shoulder at me before rubbing at his arm uneasily.
"I made a deal with the Source. That's how I got our pantheon to vanish."
"You mean killed."
"I never said killed," Callias said slowly, making my eyes widen as I stopped dead in my tracks, "I just said I made them to go away. By making a deal with the Source. I made a deal in which the pantheon would be sucked back into the Source, while I was cursed into eternal slavery."
"Wait," I said sharply, moving toward him and Callias instantly moved away to avoid me, "Are you telling me, for eleven thousand years, you led me to believe that our pantheon was dead?"
"Xenon, don't get angry--"
"Oh, I'm not angry. This is not angry, Anexius, this is I'm contemplating your death right now so you better run as fast as you fucking can. What the fuck do you mean they're not dead?" I snarled, moving toward him. Callias went to move behind the fountain so it was between us, but I was tired of his shit, so I teleported in front of him and he gasped, taking a quick step back, but I grabbed the front of his gown and jerked him closer.
"Anexius, you better start talking or our pantheon is going to be the least of your concerns. Now, tell me again... What. Do. You. Mean. They're not dead?" I demanded, putting emphasis on each word to let him know I was dead serious. Callias swallowed nervously, and his indigo eyes actually turned to their normal white shade.
"You can't kill a god that's fully connected to the Source. It'll rupture the natural balance and cause the Source to implode on itself, causing a--"
"I know all about the Big Bang Theory, Sheldon, now shut the fuck up and get to the point!" I barked in his face and Callias flinched.
"When I made the deal, I didn't kill the Atlantean pantheon! Their essence was locked in a prison inside the Source, a prison that can only be unlocked by finding the key."
"Key? What key?"
"W-Well, it kind of looks like a Rubix Cube, but to trigger it, unlocking the prison, you have to place the blood of your lover on it to open it up and-and--"
"And what happened to the fucking key, Callias?" I demanded, my anger rising. The flowers around me trembled and the clouds overhead began to creep across the sky, hiding the sunlight and a cold bitter wind picked up around me. This hadn't happened before; losing my temper badly enough to affect the weather, but what Callias was telling me chilled me to the bones.
All these years, I had lived my entire life with nightmares of what had happened to my pantheon, with the bitter agony that they were dead and would never be returned to me, and they were merely locked in a prison.
"I don't have it anymore," Callias croaked out tremulously, "I had to get rid of it. If any of my masters found out I had something personal, they'd take it away from me and I couldn't let that key land in the wrong hands, Xenon, I couldn't!"
"So where is the key?" I snarled, giving Callias a violent shake. He winced.
"I don't know," He cried helplessly, "The last time I saw it, I'd tossed it into the sewer!" I shoved him so he stumbled and fell back into the flower bed, breathing hard. Rage crackled in the air around me and I felt the hairs on my arms standing on end as I fumed.
"You threw the key to our entire pantheon in some shithole?! Where?!"
"Styx!"
"You idiot!" That tiny word didn't even cover how pissed I was. I wanted to grab Callias up and snap his neck, but because this bastard was still technically connected to the Source, I couldn't do such a thing. But that didn't mean I couldn't strip his flesh from his bones and watch him weep in agony. I reached out to grab his throat when gold smoke screamed into the garden, twirling around the fountain for a moment before shooting to get between Callias and I.
A second later, the smoke dissipated to reveal the god Apollo standing there, looking less than pleased. Over six feet tall with thick auburn hair that was swept back from a clean shaven handsome face like his Greek statues, and wearing only a pair of tight bleached jeans, Apollo was Callias's current master.
"Touch him and I'll make you wish you were dead." Apollo warned in a deadly tone, his blue eyes flashing red for a split second. I curled my lip.
"Get the fuck out of my way, Apollo. I don't give a shit who owns that bastard. I'm going to rip his heart out and feed it to him." I sneered. Apollo just scoffed and that only ticked me off further.
"You can't hurt me," He said arrogantly, "Touch me and you'll start a war. My dad may be a pussy now, but with the whole pantheon backing him, even you aren't stupid enough to start something." I clenched my teeth so hard it was a miracle they hadn't shattered. I seethed, then glared past Apollo at Callias, who sat in the flower bed, staring up at Apollo's back before he met my eyes. I saw the tears create a film over Callias's now indigo eyes before he blinked them away.
"If you ever fucking come near me or Dorean again, you will be begging me to punish you the way you'd punished our pantheon." I threatened Callias before flipping Apollo the bird, and vanishing from Olympus before Apollo could zap me with a god bolt. I teleported back to the Atlantean realm, breathing hard as I stood on the sandy beach that lined the small island that the gods had called home, an island realm parallel to the mortal realm where the island Atlantis had once sat.
I sucked in a sharp breath, standing there and letting the salty sea air whip around me, plastering my jacket to my body. I waited, reached out with every fiber of my being to see if I could feel any remnants of our pantheon having ever been there, but I felt nothing. The only difference in the world I felt now, this one and the others beyond, was that painful rift that indicated something was coming.
Something cold.
Something deadly.