The look on Apollo's face said more than he could have with words. He was going for the trifecta of his usual big feelings; disappointment, anger, concern. "You're in pain."

No shit, Sherlock.

"Life is pain."

"That's dramatic." He huffed, crossing his arms over his chest as he looked me over. "Even for you."

"You're annoying this morning, even for you."

"It's still night. I sensed something was off and after taking a shower, managed to find you all here and well." He motioned to the little group with me and Hades shrugged.

"You try telling her she isn't going back to Tartarus." Hades didn't hide his amusement from behind Apollo as he went to sit on his throne. Cain glared at him. "I'm sure she'd listen to you."

Apollo's jaw dropped at that and the silence that followed was nice too.

At least until Hades groaned. "Oh wonderful, more visitors."

I sensed Kara a second before I saw her, only for her then to be blocked from view as Cain made me sit. Short of being carried back to Hades lair, no one had really said anything since Zane and I reemerged from Tartarus and I think the time to enjoy that was fast running out.

"Why is everyone here?" Kara asked.

"I keep asking myself that same question." Hades sighed.

"Elise went back to Tartarus." Apollo answered, ignoring him.

"What?"

I closed my eyes, letting Cain take away the ache in my chest and what was starting to throb around my hips.

"Why are your knuckles bruised?" He kissed them better, yet as he caught sight of the mark on my arm, stopped. "And what is that?"

"His gift." I admitted. "Instructions are missing, but he seemed to think I'd know what to do with it. The Fourth is still a mystery. Gaia isn't willing to talk about it with anyone and since the last one died, she hasn't sought out another. Killing Nieve is still our goal right now, and she isn't able to be his Fourth, not properly so we're in with a chance."

He kissed my now healed knuckles again. "And how did you get all this information?"

"We discussed it."

Cain looked up at Zane for further explanation. "Mostly discussed it, but Sunshine, do you need to go and see a doctor?"

"I'm healed. Good as new." I smiled at him.

"Not what I was talking about."

"Explain." Cain ordered, ignoring the chaos behind us as Kara and Hades discussed something I couldn't be bothered paying attention to.

"Something happened, she could hardly breath and was clearly hurting." Zane blurted.

"Snitches get stitches, Zane." I rolled my eyes.

"Explain." Cain demanded, a little less patient this time.

"I had a cramp or Blueberry got a good kick in. You try having something the size of, I dunno, a pineapple kicking around your gut and see how you handle it. I still managed to get Tartarus on his back and make him bleed. It was a short term pain you fixed up easily. Not my greatest moment, but also-" I started yet a second later, I was being taken to the portal and then kidnapped to end up in Doctor Katie's office. My head was spinning as I took a second to catch up more so when I saw the doctor. "I am so sorry."

She sat in her office chair, a spoonful of cereal in hand as she jumped; spilling it everywhere as she looked around completely confused. Quickly tugging her dressing gown tighter around her body, she looked at us cautiously and quickly ran a hand through her hair.

"Everything okay?" Doctor Katie got her shit together quicker than I think I ever could in this situation.

"It's completely fine." I assured her, glaring at Cain.

"Elise." Cain growled.

"You do owe me a check up." She smiled, warily looking at Cain. "Maybe you could give us a second."

"No."

"Cain!" I groaned.

"You don't get to go to Tartarus, without me, to come back in that state with whatever that fucking mark is on your arm, acting like its all fine. Enough is at risk here, get your damn checkup if not for your own sake, then for his."

Doctor Katie pats the bed, retying her dressing gown before putting on some rubber gloves. Reluctantly I sit, and let her do what she needs to do.

"Is that, um, Tartarus, as in hell?" She whispers, keeping a cautious eye on Cain who is sitting in one of the patient chairs by her desk like he's on death row. "I have been doing a little reading on Greek mythology."

"Good for you."

Her smile wavers before she hands me a small plastic cup. "Go pee in that when we're done here."

"This just keeps getting better and better." I sigh, laying back on the bed. Forty minutes later I get the all clear and Blueberry is tracking perfectly. "Thank you."

"If what he has told me is true, be very aware that right now your body is producing a whole bunch of extra hormones. Relaxin and progesterone loosen ligaments and your joints, especially in the pelvic area as well as relax your muscles. This will make you more prone to injuries, so be careful. Any other Hunter would be told to go on maternity leave now and would already be actively avoiding any fights." I feel like she's trying to refrain from telling m e off more than what Cain already has when I mentioned the two fights I'd been in recently.

"Yes, well if you want to keep this pretty little world in one piece, and don't fancy seeing Tartarus's monsters roaming the streets, you'll save your breath and let me get on with it." I look down and spot her pink fluffy slippers. "Cute. Are we done now?"

"Thank you. We are, but I'm actually not due to start until ten today. Any chance you can send me home?"  She asks hopefully.

"See you next time." She's gone before I can do it, and looking at Cain he is the definition of what I don't want to deal with right now. "Crisis over."

He says nothing, and slipping back through the portal, I am well aware of him following me even if he keeps his distance. I find Kara in her room, and climb into bed beside her hoping this will keep everyone else away for a little while.

"Everything okay?" She asks, putting down whatever book she was writing in.

"Perfect." I huff.

"All I am getting from you is some major pissed off vibes."

"I had her, Kara. I had Nieve a breath away from death and I fucking lost her." I'm back out of bed, pacing around her room. "Tartarus only confirmed that she was our first step in ending this and who knows when I'll get that chance again."

"We will work it out, Elise." She sounds too hopeful, too light as if this was a simple task and she still believed that the power of a positive thought would see us win. "What else happened?"

"Nothing. It was mostly a waste of time." Time we didn't have.

"Come and lay down if you want to hide here, or go to your fiancé. Sleep. Tomorrow will be here before you know it." Kara looks at me in a mixture of pity and concern, two things I didn't want right now. "The Valkyrie will be here and you don't need to be cranky and tired for that or for when Ares returns."

"You're right. I'll see you later."

I leave before she can say anything else and end up back in the forest where I'd crossed paths with Nieve and Uranus. It's quiet and dark which makes me instantly frustrated because it wasn't as if she would be here waiting for me to reappear for round two.

"I knew I'd find you here."

"Quit following me." I closed my eyes before slowly turning around to face Cain. "Like finding me was hard."

"I wasn't using powers to find you, not completely. As soon as you left Kara I had an idea on where you'd go." We slowly circled each other and I didn't dare go closer to him. I wanted to hold onto my anger. "What are you doing out here?"

"If you're so smart, you tell me."

"You're looking for another fight, a second chance. Probably answers. It's what you always do, going back to the places that took something from you." His tone was way too matter of fact, with a side of knowing it all. "The field at the Academy. The beach at Merlin's cave. Here, where you lost your chance with Nieve."

He came closer with each location, my mind drifting with his words as those all too familiar places came to mind. Now it was pure stubbornness that kept me angry, this time at how well he knew me.

"You will have your time with Nieve." He promised.

"You can't know that." I protested, pulling my hand free as our fingers entwined. "I don't want to hear things to make me feel better, and to be made to think that tomorrow will be the miracle we've been waiting for because that's not how things work."

"Then feel angry. Be disappointed. Give me your worst." He challenged. "But deal with it now, so you can keep a clear head for next time."

"That kind of takes some of the enjoyment out of it." I pout, instantly confused when he stands with a long silver blade that glows neon in the moonlight. "What is that for?"

"I told you, give me your worst. Or your best. I'll be the judge of that when it's over." Cocky Bastard. "I promise I won't even hold back."

"You will and I don't want to fight you. I want Uranus. Nieve. The Fucking Furies."

Instantly we're in the bright light of the arena; a place I hadn't been back to since Thor crashed the party. It looked unchanged, and standing in the middle of the arena with Cain we started to circle each other again.

"I'm starting to think Apollo is right, especially after whatever happened in Tartarus. Like the good doctor said, Elle. Any other Hunter would be taking a break by now. You can't fight. What do you think will happen if you get a cramp while facing Uranus?"

I stopped walking. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"I know exactly what you're doing." It's what I did to Nieve; get your opponent angry enough to go in blind. "This is training, and I am done wasting time and energy on things that don't matter."

"No, this is you proving to me, you are still capable. What are you so afraid of? That I'm right, and you can't go into this fight, that you need to take it easy and rest and slow down because you're-" He paused, clearly enjoying himself.

"Don't you dare say it."

"Pregnant." Oh, he said it. "Pregnant. Pregnant. Pregnant. With my baby, which makes me locking you both away make so much sense."

"Cain." I warn.

"Elise." Gold cuffs appear in his hand. "You think you can stop me?"

Fuck it all.

Those cuffs were like a red flag to a bull and I charged.

Not literally, my hips weren't quite back to one hundred cent and I did want to lay down to give my feet a break, but mentally I was there. His defence was new, interesting as I circled him and what protection he had in place. I had a flicker of a memory of Hades hiding behind a similar shield and realisation helped me see clearer in the haze I had been slipping into.

"Hades shared his power with you." I gasped.

Cain laughed. "Not quite, but I got a glimpse. Not a bad distraction while you were off, discussing things with Tartarus. I'm getting closer to working it out."

"Good luck with that."

"No help from my fiancé?" He taunted, and I had to go on the defensive as this new style of his power I wasn't used to facing pushed at my boundaries.

"I think it's important for us to have our own interests. We don't want to be that couple, you know, always together which is almost cute but you just want to hate them, sharing food, a toothbrush and supernatural abilities." I went deeper, testing how much he did know which only showed me how quick of a study he was. But he was still learning. "Finishing each other's sandwiches, I mean sentences."

His blade met mine as I suddenly swung out. It sparked to life, and the glimpse of the jewels took me back to another era, of a fight that had been brewing for years thanks to a vision from a dead friend.

"Zeus's sword." I whisper.

"Focus." He ordered.

Our blades clanged, again and again and the force of each hit vibrated down my arms. My shoulders burned and ached, so did my back as I tensed and braced myself in this new dance we started. Cain had been serious, he wasn't going to take it easy on me, yet I also knew I wasn't getting his all. Like the first time our blades met we each had a point to prove, yet it wasn't a fight we wanted. If I stumbled, he was there to keep me balanced; if my blade got to close he'd pull back. It was the downside of being so extremely aware of the other person, I could preempt his next swing, and he knew where I'd position my feet yet I was still giving him what he wanted. My anger.

"I've barely broken a sweat, losing your touch?" He taunted. "I could do this all day."

I was breaking a sweat. I was sweating in places I didn't know I could sweat and keeping space between us, I shook the front of my shirt in an attempt to find relief. "Me too. This is just a warm up."

"Glad to hear it."

Fuck. You. "Love you."

"Love you too." Yeah right; jerk.

When we faced each other this time, I had had enough. Regret about not going to bed started to creep in, and after the last couple of days, I was now close to running on empty. So did I bow out gracefully, admit defeat, risk the chance he may actually cuff me and lock me away to prove a point I hoped he had no intention of actually making - no. I raised my sword as he did his, and yet that wasn't where the attack came from.

He'd made a good copy of Hades' protection. It was deep, and grounded, finding energy and life with the world around to fuel it, but it was also weak and new. An imitation copy that I had shattered, and rebuilt around him not as a defence but as a prison. I lowered my sword, using it more like a crutch as I kept a hand on my damp stomach and smiled.

"To be honest, I'm done with the warm up and I am finally feeling like I can rest now, so thank you. Point made."

"You're giving up?" He asked cautiously, instantly reassessing the situation.

His powers brushed against mine, hidden within his own like a wolf in sheep's clothing. A saw the twitch of a smile, the subtle long release of breath as he thought his defence held. Relief surrounded him for the briefest of seconds.

"Completely. Cuff me now and make it hurt, babe." I winked.

Cain lowered his sword, yet the second he took a step, his movements froze. Closing his eyes, defeat was obvious and as I raised my hand, my powers brushed against his skin, sliding up his leg, across his stomach and around his neck before gently caressing his face.

"How?" He groaned, his eyes darkening and that fleeting moment of relief destroyed as he looked at me now.

"I'll never tell." I stand in front of him grinning, before tilting his chin down to face me. I kiss him, his mouth not responding to mine which only makes me laugh. "Victory feels good."

I wasn't expecting him to break free of the hold I had on him, and his powers grew heavy around us as if they were Deimos shadows, blocking out the arena as he grabbed the hem of my shirt and tugged me closer.

"I agree." This time his lips were rough against mine; claiming a victory in return for the one just lost. I bit his lip, earning a throaty moan in response. "Truce?"

"Truce." I agreed, smiling against his mouth as I let my hands slide over his shoulders. "Neat trick."

"I wasn't the Dark King because of my amazing diplomatic skills. It's always about Power here."

"I thought it was because of your dark sense of fashion. How much black on black can one person constantly wear?"

"You got distracted." He lightly scolded, ignoring that comment. "I'm impressed that you didn't lose yourself to your emotions though, or get too confident. Your style is evolving."

"I feel more confident, especially with my powers." I admit.

"It shows, but you don't let that dictate what you do and how you do it. I saw you with Uranus, and I can only imagine how it went with Tartarus." He inspected my knuckles briefly, looking at me knowingly. "The girl you were is an important part of who you are now. You will need more than powers and only being a Hunter is not going to be enough. I am proud to stand beside you, nothing I said I actually believe."

"I know. I guess I'm not completely in control of those emotions." I sighed, holding onto him. "But I feel better. It wasn't the fight I wanted, but I needed an outlet. Thank you."

"You will get that fight, and I will be right there with you." He held me tighter. "Please tell me you'll get some sleep now and eat something real, not just doughnuts or burgers in the bath?"

"I promise."

And I did, somehow sleeping until noon. By the time I took a shower, ate the healthy and freshly made food the palace staff seemed to be waiting to give to me the second I stepped out of the bedroom - I felt refreshed. The last weeks worth of heaviness was lifted from my shoulders and as I passed by one of the outside terraces, the shadows that flitted over the ground made me pause. Looking up, three Valkyrie circled the space, another sitting on the balcony railing in the upper guest rooms. The pressure of what was coming came back to me, only it no longer felt heavy or unwanted.

I turned, ready to find Kara and instead, nearly walked straight into a lion.

"Hello, Simba." The animal snarled, yet dipped his head to rub against my legs, nearly knocking me over a second time despite the fact I am sure he is smaller than the others. "I'm sorry, I have no idea which one you are."

"Glaucos." Circe answers, smirking as this Glaucos licks the top of my foot. "Careful, he has a foot fetish."

"Not even going to go there." I decide, stepping away from him. "What are you up to?"

"Just off to admire the view. You're welcome to join me."

The way she said it had me intrigued so I went with her. We head downstairs, through the labyrinth that formed the lower levels of this palace and into an area I had never been before. Circe walked with a confidence that you'd expect if she'd been here her whole life and as the familiar sounds of metal on metal and grunts of a fight echoed down the passage, I shot her a curious look.

All she did in response was put a finger to her lips and as went through another doorway, there was a small arena set up below us. Cain and Apollo were up against Hermes and Ares, an odd pairing yet I had never really seen Hermes fight like this. We sat in a small recess, overlooking the space and Circe relaxed into the overstuffed seat, clearly familiar with this place. The lightning bolt artwork engraved into the head of the chair above her, and the flower shape in mine didn't leave a lot of questions over who or what this had been designed for.

"Have you ever regretted your choices, Elise?" Circe asked, her eyes fixed on Apollo. "No judgement, but it would have been a hard choice to make."

"No. No regrets and it wasn't hard. Apollo and I had something different to what I have with Cain. It was right when it was right, until it wasn't. We broke up knowing that was it for us. He left, and we both survived."

"I'm intrigued by your devotion. Hermes broke my heart, and it hurt but I see him for what he truly is now. As you said, we survived the end of our relationship. What if stops being right with Cain?"

"Then I don't think either of us will survive."

Circe opened her mouth but soon closed it as we watched the battles below. It didn't last, her usual flair returning.

"I once had brothers fighting for my affections. I solved the issue and had them together. It was the greatest week of my life. What a shame you never got to experience what it would be like to be worshipped in such a way." She finished breathless, clearly reliving some of those memories. "I heard you are a twin flame, so that has to have perks of its own and I doubt any chance of sharing is gone now. Still, I'd give anything to experience them together. Hypothetically of course. I know where I can and can not touch."

"Be sure you do." I warned. "You seem, friendlier, with Hermes?"

"He isn't above groveling. It's as annoying as it is endearing, yet we will never be what we were. I don't want it either. I was young and a different person to the one I was back then. He only sees me how he wants to see me. He is yet to change even now. I stopped caring about what other people wanted a long time ago. Especially men like him."

It was then Ares knocked Apollo down. I missed the first blow, but it had Apollo clutching his throat and the next was to his exposed gut. Dust from the floor rose up around them as he fell hard and skidded from the force of the hit. He didn't get up or move.

"Ares!" Cain growled, running to Apollo as I stood and went to the edge of the balcony.

"Smell the testosterone." Circe bit her lip, looking down beside me. "I'll never tire of their brutality."

"Why isn't Apollo getting up?" I ask, ignoring whatever she had going on right now.

"He hasn't changed, still weak." Ares huffed, holding out the staff to stop Hermes from going over to Cain. "You're on my side."

"If he's hurt." Hermes warned, their voices quiet and thanks to them being practically underneath us we could hear them. "You're dead."

"The King will heal him." Ares grumbled.

"At what cost?" Hermes snapped.

"Leave him, let's finish this." Ares instead ordered, earning a death glare from Cain.

Cain shook his head and a second later Apollo came back with a loud gasp that turned into a coughing fit as he still held his throat. Only once he was standing again did I manage to sit back down.

"Ready?" Ares taunted.

"That was out of line Ares. This is the third time I warned you." Cain told him, his voice calm and deadly. "What are you trying to prove? Is your ego that damaged-"

Ares charged Cain, who was ready for him and as the two fell Ares got a punch in that had Cain groaning and a sickening crunch that made my stomach roll.

"It's usually more interesting than this." Circe seemed ready to apologise, clinging onto Glutens mane as she watched with less desire and more caution. "More man on man in a good, delicious way."

She seemed to wilt, the mood feeling awkward between us now where it hadn't before - despite the fact she was close to drooling over Cain and Apollo each time either of them moved.

In seconds Ares was on the dirt, and Cain stood as victor. Apollo came to stand beside him, laughing as he held his arm up. Ares' face was scrunched in pain and Hermes stood back not going to his aid at all. We couldn't hear what they were saying now, and as Cain glanced up in our direction I had a feeling we weren't as discreet as we thought.

Apollo tossed a stick at Hermes from a rack by the wall, and slipping off his shirt he wiped his brow before throwing it to the floor. Hermes had always been smaller than the others, his body not as toned or as fit as the trio he was currently with yet he mimicked Apollo, his vest gone which had Apollo shaking his head before getting his own stick. Without warning they started to spar, and it wasn't long before Apollo had Hermes on his back with a stick at his throat.

Ares disappeared, and Hermes went to sit the next round out looking tired and grumpy. The order of no powers was heard by everyone this time, and as Cain and Apollo circled each other I was just as enthralled as Circe.

"Okay, it's a little delicious." I smiled at Circe.

Her confidence returned and bloomed as she returned my smile.

We both jumped as Kara appeared, the fight below forgotten as she took a second to look around. Catching sight of what was going on below she looked for a second too long, causing her cheeks to redden slightly.

"I'm not going to ask." Kara looked again before shaking her head. "Everyone is starting to gather in the main hall. Are you ready for this?"

"No, I'm going to need at least twenty minutes alone with him before I do anything else." Kara's cheeks go a deeper shade as Circe giggles.

"Seriously Elise?" She groaned.

"It does make sense. She does not need any distractions and having her lover so close yet so untouchable is bound to be a big one." Circe winked, making Kara groan again. "I can just imagine the frustration it would cause."

Kara looked at Circe, unimpressed. "Please don't encourage her."

"I doubt she needs encouragement." Circe shrugged, stroking Glutton's mane idly.

"She does have a point." I whisper to Kara.

Kara's serious face eased as she couldn't stop the smile that followed. "I came to tell you Brynhild would like to see you before the feast."

"Feast?" Now I'm confused.

"It's tradition. Just how they fed us when we went there, we are to provide a welcoming feast." Kara explained.

"Oh." That was news to me.

"Valkyrie know how to feast, well the couple I have crossed paths with." Circe added, making Kara roll her eyes. "I've never been to one of these gatherings before. How exciting!"

"Do we get drunk Deimos again?" I ask hopefully.

"Who knows. Will you meet with her?"

"Of course." It's the least I could do.

"Find me when you're ready, and we'll go together." Kara left us a second later.

"I'm glad you two are on equal ground again. It's been horrible being around so much angst and frustration. The mood is shifting." Circe commented. "Perhaps victory is not as impossible as you think?"

"I know victory is possible."

"No, you are prepared to buy it. I never saw you as the type of person to give up when it gets hard."

"I'm not and I'm not giving up. I've just-" Given up? "I've died before and yet here I am. Death doesn't bother me anymore. That's all."

Except for Tartarus's threat or maybe it was more a warning to Zane lingered in my mind just how the feeling of it being so final felt like a hole in my chest I hadn't been able to get rid of since seeing Matt's vision painting. If I did die again, this time I wouldn't come back.

Circe put her hand on mine. "Find a truth to comfort yourself with, not a lie. It gives you something to believe in. Going into battle already on your knees will not yield the same results as if you go in standing tall."

I looked down at her hand, for the first time noticing the thick silver scar that started near her thumb joint and went up across the curve there.

"What happened here?" I ran my thumb over it without thinking, imagining the blood covering her hand.

Circe hesitated, and looking up at her she didn't look bothered but oddly curious. Her eyes were wide and her smile seemed a little odd. If this was a sex scar, I wasn't sure I wanted to hear her answer anymore. Like what could she have been even doing?

"You tell me."

"Ah, what do you mean?"

"Tell me how it happened." She put my hand back on hers, before looking at me expectantly.

"You cut yourself?" Obviously. "It would have bled a lot? I'm not sure what you want me to say."

Her smile fell, and she slowly nodded. "I cut myself on a bottle while making a potion. The bottle nearly fell off the table and as I reached for it, I stumbled. My hand shattered the bottle and a large wedge of it, left me with this. A silly mistake."

I felt like I was missing something she didn't want to say and watching as Apollo and Cain upgraded their weapons, I instead wondered if Apollo knew how easy Cain was taking it on him.

"Yours fights well." Circe broke the silence.

"He's always had to." I looked back to Circe's hand, thinking of her potions and whatever else Hecate had taken the time to teach her. I had a feeling she had been there, removing the glass from Circe's hand; bandaging it. "What did Hecate tell you about the elements? You mentioned them when I first came back from Tartarus."

"Earth, water, air, fire. Hecate believed that these are the foundation elements that Gaia first formed before whatever she did next to create, everything. She had so many theories around them, and an element of each is included in every potion or spell that I create."

"I wish I could make this make sense." I sighed. "I'm just not putting the pieces together fast enough. Any theories that might relate to our current situation or any of your own?"

"I've been thinking about it. She once thought that powers were a side effect of our souls and the body or vessels joining. Powers, and to a certain point, immortals, are different to the Others, you know the mortals and the humans. Our lineage and creation vary since the beginning and so do our abilities or lack of. She also seemed to believe that the ones with powers relating to the elements were the strongest as they are the ones most connected to the initial source of all life, which goes back to Gaia and the first creations of those four elements. Not only that, where you are positioned in the great order of things would further influence those abilities."

"The Titans were overpowered by those that were essentially their kids, so shouldn't they have been too powerful for them to ever defeat?"

Circe shrugged. "Did a mortal not kill Zeus?"

"I wasn't mortal when I did that. I was," I paused quickly trying to make sense of it. "I was The Third. And Cronus killed me."

"From what I heard, he got a lucky shot in and you'd only been the third for a day. You wouldn't have even known what Powers were or how to use them at that point." She shrugged. "Besides, it's not like Zeus and his friends were weak. They also had their own armies and allies to help in these battles. How do you think they ended up in Tartarus?"

"Mystery flight tickets?" I looked at the rope tattoo, wondering if Tartarus had mentioned something I'd overlooked but came up blank.

"I'm not entirely sure what that is, but it would make you question if some had picked sides back then much like how they are picking sides now?"

I rubbed my forehead, feeling the headache coming. "I'm not smart enough to work this all out, especially in the timeframe I have to do it."

"Maybe you're overthinking it."

"We haven't known each other all that long, but I can assure you, overthinking is something I am very, very good at." I groaned, hiding my face in my hands. "Why are they always so damn cryptic?"

"It's about the journey, not the destination."

"You sound like a fortune cookie."

"I'm not entirely sure what that is either." Circe seemed to think it over before giving up.

"Something delicious." I laughed, making her smile. I held my hand out and one appeared. "It's a thing from my world. There is a little message inside."

She cracked open the golden shell of the cookie and failed at hiding her excitement at seeing the little piece of paper. "Is this it?"

"Yeah. They're always generic and I'm sure it's where Ailin gets all her words of wisdom from. You know, like one door closes so another opens, or be yourself. I once had one from this cute little Chinese takeaway that simply said, that wasn't chicken. Really made me question all of my life choices." Circe did not understand, which only made me laugh.

"It says, buy a dolphin, it will give your life porpoise." We looked at each other before laughing again. "Do you do what the fortune says?"

I laughed harder. "No. It's like a joke, people just make things up to put in them."

"Oh, I understand. I think I need more to show everyone back in my room." She smirks.

"Have fun with that."

"I intend to." We laugh again, yet it dies as another fortune cookie appears on the small wooden table between our two chairs. "Did you do that?"

"I was really hoping you did."

Hesitantly I picked up the cookie, pausing as the rope on my arm tingled at the closeness of it. That was not a great sign, and holding my breath, I cracked it open to pull out the paper - letting the cookie pieces fall wherever they wanted before Glaucos licked them up.

"What does it say?" Circe whispered, glancing down to where the others were now laughing and finishing up their session. "Elise?"

Let The Reckoning Begin