I watched as Hera levitated a wounded man on to the bed. She began shouting orders at the other Gods and Goddesses of Olympus, but I didn't hear what she was saying. I was too focused on the black haired, dark blue eyed man laying on the bed, writhing in pain. I felt a pull on my heart, telling me to go help him, but I wasn't sure how. I didn't know anything about healing. I didn't even know what was wrong with this man. I could have made things worse if I tried to help, so instead I stayed out of the way and watched as the Gods and Goddesses tended to the wounded man.
Something about him was different. But I wasn't sure what it was. Who was he? I turned and walked away, needing to get out of there and see my Dad. Maybe he'd have some idea about who this mysterious man was and where he'd come from.
I found him in the library of Olympus. He was sitting on a couch with my Mom curled up to his side. He'd removed his winged helmet and it was sitting on the table next to him. There was a fire burning in the fireplace and it made the room feel inviting.
I spotted the winged sandals sitting by the fireplace and fought the urge to roll my eyes. My Dad was fast enough without those things, but they'd been a gift, so he wore them out of courtesy. I guess it was pretty clear as to who my Dad was. He was Hermes, the God of Trade, Wealth, Luck, Fertility, Animal Husbandry, Sleep, Language, Thieves, and Travel. He really needed to stop exploring his options and pick one or two things to oversee. In addition to his many areas of expertise, my Dad was also the messenger of the Gods and an Olympian.
"Hey Dad," I greeted him. He and my Mom looked up and smiled at me.
"Hello Avalon," he greeted me. That was me. Avalon Winter. Now some may find it odd that I had a last name, since I was the daughter of a God. But I wasn't a Goddess, I was a demigod. My birth Mother was human. And the woman curled up to my Dad's side? That was Aphrodite. She was basically my Mom. She'd helped my Dad raise me and been there for me for most of my life.
"What's wrong sweetie?" Mom asked me, "You look a little worried."
"I just saw Hera and Artemis bring a man in," I told them, "He was hurt really badly."
"What did he look like?" Mom asked curiously.
"Black hair and dark blue eyes," I replied.
Mom's eyes widened and she sat up. She looked at my Dad with fear in her eyes.
"You don't think...?" she trailed off, unable to finish.
"I hope not," Dad replied.
"I need to go see Hera and find out what happened!" Mom exclaimed as she jumped up and rushed out of the room.
I looked at my Dad curiously.
"What's wrong Dad?" I asked, "Mom looked pretty worried."
"She is," Dad replied, "That injured man you saw might be one of the Moirai."
"The Four Fates?" I asked.
"The very same," Dad told me.
"I thought they lived in the Underworld," I stated.
"They used to, but they went to the human world a few years ago and decided to stay there," Dad explained. I nodded in understanding. "Come on," he told me, "We should go and eat dinner."
I nodded and followed him out of the library.
Dinner was a quiet affair, which was odd. The Gods were usually so animated and happy, but not tonight.
"Hera," Dad spoke, shattering the silence that was suffocating the table, "How is he?"
"He's...he's stable," Hera replied.
"Stable doesn't mean okay," Dad stated, "Are we going to lose a Fate, Hera?"
"We can't! The prophecy clearly states—" Pheme began, but Hera cut her off.
"I'm well aware of what the prophecy states, Pheme," Hera replied, then she turned to my Dad, "We won't know how bad it is until Apollo arrives."
"Where is he anyway?" Dionysus asked Artemis, "It's not like the sun is up."
"I think he's on his way here," Artemis replied.
"Well he better get here soon," Hera stated, "I'm not sure if our guest can take much more."
"Could I...maybe...go see him?" I asked. Everyone froze and looked at me. I blushed.
"Why do you want to see him, Avalon?" Hera asked, but there was a glint in her eyes. She knew something I didn't. What was it? Was there something going on?
"I don't know," I admitted, "He just...he looked like he was in a lot of pain when he got here. I guess I just want to make sure he's okay."
"Very well," Hera replied, satisfied with my answer, "You can go see him after dinner."
I was used to asking Hera for permission to do things. She was the Queen of the Gods after all. She was the one that had let me stay on Olympus with my Dad. Zeus had been angry about it, but there was nothing he could do. The Council had been swayed by my Dad, Aphrodite, and Hera, and voted in my favour.
"Hera we still need to fill Zeus and Ares' spots on the Council," Hestia told Hera.
"Yes, I know," Hera replied, "But that's something that can be dealt with later. I'll call Hades up from the Underworld and ask him to temporarily claim a permanent Council seat until we figure out who we want to fill those spots."
"You're not going to offer Lord Hades a permanent seat, My Queen?" Nike asked.
"My brother in law has made it very clear that he prefers to stay in the Underworld," Hera replied, "He only comes to Olympus when he is needed. He does not want a permanent place among the Council."
Nike nodded. The Goddess of Victory had sworn loyalty to Hera after Zeus' death.
The Gods fell into silence as we all finished our meal.
I entered the guest room and looked around. The room was white and there were stone pillars in the corners of the room. The bed was massive and had white and gold sheets and the frame was made of light brown wood.
I spotted a nymph sitting next to the bed dabbing the mysterious man's forehead, and I felt a bolt of anger shoot through me. Why? She was just helping him. I shouldn't be bothered by that, but for some reason I was.
"I'll take it from here," I told the nymph. She nodded, bowed, and scurried away. Being the daughter of Hermes has its advantages I supposed. The nymphs listened to me.
I sat down next to the man and placed a cool compress on his forehead. I felt something wrap around my wrist. His hand. A gasp escaped my lips as he opened his eyes.
"Are you real?" he asked, "Am I just hallucinating?"
"I'm as real as anyone else in this palace," I told him.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"Avalon Winter," I replied, "Who are you?"
"Ryder Mortane," he replied.
"Are you a Fate?" I asked curiously.
"How did you know?" he asked.
"Everyone's talking about your arrival," I told him, "How do you feel?"
"Like someone set me on fire," he replied.
I flinched. That was an unpleasant thought.
"Apollo should be here soon," I told him, "Maybe then you'll start feeling better."
"I hope so," Ryder told me.
It was silent for a moment and then Ryder spoke again.
"You're a demigod, aren't you?" he asked.
"How can you tell?" I asked, surprised that he'd figured it out so fast. Most people assumed that I was a Goddess because I lived on Olympus.
"I can feel it," he replied, "How did you end up here?"
I looked away and felt tears well up in my eyes.
"I'm sorry," Ryder told me, "That was way out of line. I shouldn't have asked."
"No, it's fine," I assured him as I spotted Apollo approaching the open door, "I see Apollo coming this way. I should go."
I rushed out of the room and went to my Mom's rose garden. I sat down on a bench underneath an apple tree and buried my face in my hands. I began to sob.
I felt a couple of arms wrap around me and then I heard a soothing voice.
"It's okay, little one, we're here," the voice assured me. I uncovered my face and saw two sets of kind baby blue eyes looking at me. Their platinum blond hair shone in the moonlight. Eros and Harmonia, two of my Mom's children. The God of Love, Lust, Sex, Eroticism, and Sensual Desires and the Goddess of Harmony and Concord.
My Mom had a few children, but I was probably the closest to Eros and Harmonia. They were like the older siblings I'd never had, but always wanted. And they loved me like a younger sister. It didn't matter that we had different Dads or even different Moms, we were siblings.
"What's wrong, little one?" Harmonia asked. Little one. They had been calling me that ever since I arrived on Olympus. They claimed it was my nickname because I was small, but mighty.
Truth be told, I didn't feel very mighty at the moment.
"It's nothing, Harmonia," I assured her.
"Right, because you sobbing is never a sign that something bad happened," Eros said sarcastically.
"Tell us what happened, little one," Harmonia told me.
"I don't know," I admitted, "I was with that man today. The one who was brought here. And we were talking and he asked me how I ended up on Olympus. I just...I couldn't handle it, so I ran. I know it's not his fault. He didn't know."
"That doesn't mean he should have asked," Eros stated, "Who is this guy anyway?"
"Ryder Mortane. He's one of the Four Fates," I replied.
Harmonia and Eros gasped.
"What?" I asked, "What is it?"
"Nothing it's just that, they hardly ever come here," Eros stated, "I've only seen them on special occasions."
"Why?" I asked.
"I think when Zeus ruled the Gods, he didn't want any children of Nyx staying here for too long," Harmonia replied, "He was scared of her, you know."
"I know," I replied.
"I still can't believe he's gone," Eros stated, "I mean, it's good that he is. He was an irresponsible King. But he had Nike. How could Hera have managed to kill him?"
"Nike wasn't with him that day, Eros," Harmonia replied before turning to me, "Anyway, the Fates don't usually come up here unless they have to. Besides, from what I've heard, they're kind of busy dealing with Eris."
Eris. The Goddess of Strife and Discord that was responsible for plunging the human world into chaos. I had heard that the Fates, Nemesis, and four others were doing their best to stop her. But I didn't know the whole story.
I knew the Fates were in a middle of a war against their sister, Eris. And yet, something was telling me that there was more to the story than that.
"Have you heard anything else?" I asked.
Harmonia shook her head and Eros' eyes widened. He knew something!
"Come on Eros, what do you know?" I asked.
"I...I have to go see Mother," Eros said quickly as he got up and rushed off. Something was definitely going on. Eros was hiding something that was for sure. But what? I knew that I had to figure out.
AN: Want to read more? Go check out Designate!