Hunter-I knew the alarm hadn’t called him away, plus it hadn’t been two hours of being chased yet. I also knew I was only a little more than halfway across the river.“He won’t come to this boat.” An older woman in her late eighties spoke with a gentle tone.Turning to look at her, I noticed she was the only one in the boat with me. She also had a kind smile with sparkling eyes. Since she didn’t seem as if she grabbed me to do anything more than save me, I relaxed.“Thank you?” I arched my brows and questioned her motive for saving me.“Those creatures won’t come to this boat. You will be safe here.” The lady said.“Why do you think they won’t come to this boat?” I asked as I scooted over to sit in the seat opposite of her.“Because I have already been judged, and I am protected.”“Protected how?” I asked as I looked around and saw the Fire Demon glaring at me in a nearby boat.“Because I am going there, which means a protective shield is around my boat.” The lady extended her arm ou
Hunter-When my boat came to a stop, resting on the shore, I hesitated before easing out of the boat and onto land. I wasn’t sure where to go until I heard something rumble inside a cave to the west. Thinking that was Cerberus snoring, I took my chances and continued in that direction.I didn’t know how I would get past him, as I imagined it was easier said than done. When I reached Cerberus, I stopped and tried to figure out how to get around him. I didn’t know how long I stood there, trying to figure it out, but when Cerberus flicked his tail, it moved enough to give me a clear path to the entrance.Careful not to make any sudden movements, I crouched low and snuck past him. To my surprise, when I was standing between Cerberus and the entrance, I realized that it really was easier done than said and not the other way around. If I hadn’t spent so much time trying to figure it out, I could have already had my hand on the Scepter.Shrugging, I straightened up and spun on my heel to ent
Kyra-“Did you find him?” I asked Zeus when he appeared in my living room.“Not yet.” Zeus shook his head.Hunter has been gone for a week and a half. Based on what Zeus told me, Hunter should have returned on the seventh day, but it was now the tenth day. I have been anxiously waiting for him to return, knowing it was driving everyone crazy.When Hunter didn’t return when he was supposed to, I demanded that Zeus search for him. Everyone tried to assure me that Hunter would be fine and that I needed to have patience. I knew they were right, but I couldn’t stop thinking that Hunter was lost or worse and I would never see him again.“I knew I shouldn’t have let you take him.” I glared at Zeus.“Calm down. I know you are upset, but you can’t talk to Zeus like that.” My mother said it in a calm but firm tone. “If it weren’t for his help, we wouldn’t have gotten as far as we have.”I knew she was trying to help lighten up the situation and my irritation, but her words only made it worse. “
Caleb-“I am sorry. Will you repeat that?” I asked Zeus when I didn’t think I heard him correctly. “Are you telling me that the ruler of the underworld has taken Kyra and refused to release her?”“If I knew he would do something like this, I wouldn’t have let him. When he arrived, I thought his intended target was Hunter. When I realized it wasn’t, I was too late to stop him from taking her.” Zeus answered.“Don’t worry, we will get her back.” Selene spoke, but her voice seemed shakier than her usual calm tone.“Well, I am not waiting for her to come back. I am going to get her!” I turned to leave, but Zeus grabbed my elbow before I could make it any further.“I got your back.” Alec said, and Zac echoed as they stood up from the couch.Grabbing Zeus’ wrist, I twisted his arm until he released me. “Don’t try to stop me.”“I need you to think this through.” Zeus argued but didn’t grab at me again. “If Hades left Tartarus to come take Kyra because of the Scepter, what do you think he wil
Hunter-Zeus and I explained our situation and why we needed the Scepter, but Hades hadn’t spoken a word since he arrived. Before Hades arrived, Zeus warned me not to say or do anything I might regret, regardless of how much Hades provoked me. Since we needed the Scepter and I wanted Kyra back, I had to stay calm and hopefully find a way to reason with Hades.In the worst-case scenario, I will take her back by force, but I don’t mind playing by the rules in the meantime. Staring at Hades as he remained silent and studied me curiously, I had a feeling that dealing with Hades wouldn’t be simple. Zeus and I spoke before Hades arrived, and he told me that he didn’t think Hades wanted Kyra.I also had a feeling that Hades might be after something else. I learned that Zeus and Selene had never had the chance to contact Archilles to guide me. Since Achilles had helped me, I wondered if Hades had been aware of my arrival from the start and intended to use my objective to his advantage.“I adm
Hunter-“What are you doing?” I demanded shortly after I took Caleb to meet Hades.“Doing what I need to.” Caleb’s tone was flat, and his eyes looked as if he was utterly defeated.“I told you what was going on, but I thought we were going to discuss things. I didn’t expect you to agree as soon as we arrived.” I grabbed his shoulder and tried to pull him away from Hades.Hades was holding a scroll that had been unraveled and had to be at least ten meters long. I knew Caleb would willingly sign the contract and give up his soul, but this wasn’t what I had in mind. As soon as we arrived, Caleb demanded that Hades produce the contract and they make the deal.Hades didn’t waste any time. A scroll suddenly appeared in his hand, and when he opened it, it dropped to the ground and scattered. The text on the scroll was in a language I couldn’t read, but I would need a magnifying glass even if I could.Without asking what the contract would entail, Caleb had stepped forward and reached for the
Hunter-Caleb and I returned home a few minutes later, but Zeus didn’t follow. As soon as we arrived, we explained that Kyra would return before midnight. We didn’t tell them about the deal Caleb made, but thankfully, they didn’t ask too many questions.Instead of sitting around and waiting, we all started working on trying to discover how the Scepter worked. I didn’t pull it out again since Hades warned me it was dangerous around the others. I did take out the book, which I had tucked inside my coat, but we didn’t find anything useful inside. It seemed that I would need to figure out the Scepter on my own.Before we knew it, midnight was upon us. “Where is she?” I asked when I checked the time.“We still have a few minutes before midnight. Maybe he is waiting until the last minute before returning her.” Xureus said as he propped his feet on the coffee table.Instead of gathering in the library, we stayed in the living room to discuss the only book we had regarding the Scepter. As exp
Kyra-The first three days after Hunter left went by rather quickly as I was able to keep myself busy. Since there wasn’t much I could do other than wait, I spent much of my time helping Caleb with issues that had come up in other Packs. When I wasn’t assisting Caleb, I was in my art studio.Although I was worried about Hunter, my father, and my brothers, I had plenty to keep busy. Mostly, I was concerned about Caleb. He wasn’t gone like the others but had acted weird since Hades allowed me to return.In my state of absentmindedness, as I tried to analyze what happened to Caleb, I reached out to dip my paintbrush in more paint. Instead of dipping the brush, I accidentally knocked over the tray and barely managed to catch it before a paint disaster ruined the floor. The paintbrush fell, but I managed not to spill all the paint.Shaking my head, I picked up the brush and arranged the tray so it didn’t tip over again. My attention adjusted to the canvas I had painted on. To my surprise,
Caleb-Over the duration of a week, everyone was on edge. Kyra was the worst, as she was worried about Hunter, who had yet to return. She worried about Artemis, who was nowhere to be found and hadn’t made another move. She was also hovering over me.Since I heard about our previous lives and that I was the son of Cronus and not a descendant, my mind has been going through a whirlwind. It was bad enough that I have spent hundreds of years battling inner demons. I finally thought I had a handle on things, but now it was worse.Everything I thought I knew about my life has become a lie. My parents were my parents, and apparently, I wasn’t a werewolf either. Xureus explained that I was Cronus's only child who could shift into any animal, and I had control over time, just as my father had. The only difference was that I never mastered it. At most, I could reset time within myself, which is how I reversed my life.My mind was a complete disaster as I thought about everything and tried to di
Kyra-I wanted him to tell me what he meant by his words, but he wouldn’t wake up no matter how much I tried to wake him. At a loss for what to do, I looked up at our mother standing nearby with tears in her eyes. I was about to ask her to do something, but a man suddenly appeared beside her.I didn’t know who he was, but he seemed oddly familiar. He almost looked like an older version of Xureus. Without saying a word, the man knelt beside Xureus, placing a hand on his shoulder. Blinking away the tears in my eyes, I looked at the man and realized he was a God.I remember seeing paintings of him in the books I studied, as well as a picture of him where my mother lived. I didn’t know his name, but I had a suspicion that he was Xureus’s father. Pain etched on his face as he looked at Xureus, along with a hint of guilt.“After I am done, help them forget.” The man spoke.“Done with what?” My mother asked.“Although I couldn’t be there for him while he grew up, I should at least do somethi
Kyra-Hunter was the first to rush out, but I was quick to follow. I wasn’t sure why she came, but I had a feeling it was because she figured out Hunter had returned to Purgatory. Standing a few yards from the porch, she was alone, with her arms crossed over her breast.“Give it back.” Artemis demanded, her eyes practically burning with rage as she glared at Hunter.“Give what back?” Hunter asked as he extended his arm to prevent me from moving past him.“You know damn well what I am talking about.” Artemis’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t think I didn’t sense you when I returned. I thought you had come to your senses and returned to me until I heard from one of my pets that you hold the Scepter.”“What Scepter?” Hunter feigned ignorance.“Don’t play games with me. We both know what I am talking about. Give me the Scepter or else.” Artemis stepped forward but froze when Xureus walked past us and toward her. “What are you doing here?” She seemed startled by Xureus’s presence.“I should be askin
Kyra-Instead of returning home to tell everyone about what I learned, I stayed with my mother and the children for a few more days. Until Hunter returned, there wasn’t much that could be done. I also thought I could get more answers from my mother than from the library.After two days, though, I didn’t get any helpful information. On a side note, I was able to relax and bond with my children. I learned that Ryleigh and Cosmo were very much in love and had significantly progressed in their relationship. After everything was over, they wanted to get married, which had been the highlight of my visit.I was also able to let go of the self-doubt crawling through my mind. After everything I had encountered, I realized I needed to trust myself and those around me more. If we can overcome everything we have, dealing with the rest shouldn’t be impossible. There was no need to keep myself locked in the library all the time to find answers.I’ve come to understand that I wasn’t doing anyone any
Kyra-I watched as Hades and Persephone’s eyes slowly widened. “It might work.” They muttered as their gaze turned to me.“If Hunter can deal with her, the contract will be settled once the curse is broken. However, if the curse isn’t broken, I keep the contract.” Hades spoke.“I don’t agree. If the curse isn’t broken, I still want you to end the contract.” Persephone told Hades.“That won’t happen.” Hades shook his head. “If Caleb dies, he will come to Tartarus until the curse is lifted.” His eyes focused on me. “The only way I will agree to release him is if the curse is broken. I won’t watch my brother go through the same pain any longer. Considering your life cycle this time, you can figure out how to break the curse and keep yourself alive in the meantime. Only your death will restart the cycle.”I thought about it for a while and wondered what the chances were that killing the Goddess who created the curse would break it. I understood where Hades was coming from, but the idea of
Kyra-“First, let me explain that Caleb’s name is originally Zatyx. He was one of Cronus’s children and had the closest relationship with Hades. When…” Persephone began, but I held up my hand and cut her off.“If he was Cronus’s child, why haven’t I heard of him?”“You’ll know when I get to that part.” Persephone pulled my hand back into hers. “When Cronus was overthrown, Zatyx decided he wanted nothing to do with the issues in the family. He decided to live an ordinary life and become a farmer and trained warriors.”My eyes drifted as I tried to imagine the life Persephone talked about.“He lived many years living a peaceful life. Many people admired him, and instead of keeping the crops for himself, he offered them to others who were struggling. One day, while delivering goods to help a family, he came across a female who was running away from home. Her family was trying to sell her to someone twice her age so their son could buy a house for his new family. That woman was you.”My e
Kyra-“Then you know why I am here.” I slowly turned to face Hades.“I do, but I won't give you what you want.” Hades’s jaw twitched, but his features weren’t expressive of emotion.“Why can you all leave us alone? We haven’t done anything to anyone. All we want is to live a peaceful life or at least as close as we can get.” My voice rose slightly, but I remained calm.I was starting to regret learning who I was. If I could go back and start over, even if I had to give up the family I currently had, I don’t think I would want anything to do with Gods. If anything, I wish I could go back in time and stop my father from making a deal with Artemis.It seems like it has been one disaster after another since then, and I wasn’t going against other werewolves or even Lycans. I was going against the Greek Gods. I might be part God, but this was going above and beyond my abilities.“I am doing this for your own good, as well as Caleb’s. If you knew the truth, you would understand.”“I don’t kn
Kyra-The first three days after Hunter left went by rather quickly as I was able to keep myself busy. Since there wasn’t much I could do other than wait, I spent much of my time helping Caleb with issues that had come up in other Packs. When I wasn’t assisting Caleb, I was in my art studio.Although I was worried about Hunter, my father, and my brothers, I had plenty to keep busy. Mostly, I was concerned about Caleb. He wasn’t gone like the others but had acted weird since Hades allowed me to return.In my state of absentmindedness, as I tried to analyze what happened to Caleb, I reached out to dip my paintbrush in more paint. Instead of dipping the brush, I accidentally knocked over the tray and barely managed to catch it before a paint disaster ruined the floor. The paintbrush fell, but I managed not to spill all the paint.Shaking my head, I picked up the brush and arranged the tray so it didn’t tip over again. My attention adjusted to the canvas I had painted on. To my surprise,
Hunter-Caleb and I returned home a few minutes later, but Zeus didn’t follow. As soon as we arrived, we explained that Kyra would return before midnight. We didn’t tell them about the deal Caleb made, but thankfully, they didn’t ask too many questions.Instead of sitting around and waiting, we all started working on trying to discover how the Scepter worked. I didn’t pull it out again since Hades warned me it was dangerous around the others. I did take out the book, which I had tucked inside my coat, but we didn’t find anything useful inside. It seemed that I would need to figure out the Scepter on my own.Before we knew it, midnight was upon us. “Where is she?” I asked when I checked the time.“We still have a few minutes before midnight. Maybe he is waiting until the last minute before returning her.” Xureus said as he propped his feet on the coffee table.Instead of gathering in the library, we stayed in the living room to discuss the only book we had regarding the Scepter. As exp