Ch. 73: Going To See The Genius Inventor
“What… me?” I repeated, incredulous. “A god?”
The look she cast my way was enough to make my skin crawl. She wasn’t joking. She actually believed I was a god. But what in the world had led her to that conclusion?
“Oops, just forget I said that.” Talos sank back into her seat, her brows furrowed, lost in her own thoughts. Who knew how fast her mind worked? I could almost hear the gears turning in her head. “You did it again, though,” she added, glancing at me sharply. “You trusted me. Why? You don’t seem like the type who trusts others easily.”
I hesitated. Should I tell her the truth? After a moment, I settled for a response that was close enough. “People have died for trusting me. It’s as if their trust was their final gift, and I owe it to them to carry that forward. I guess… I wanted resolution. From the darkness in my life.” I paused, weighing her reaction. “So, are you going to help me or not?”
Talos stood up, crossed the room in a few swift strides, and returned with two cans of Coke. She tossed one to me and sat down next to me. “It’s… fine. I’m in, I guess.”
“That doesn’t sound like you,” I said, narrowing my eyes. I had expected her to be cocky or sarcastic in her acceptance, but instead, her tone was subdued. Almost… downbeat.
“Do you know why I came to save you?” she asked suddenly, staring at her unopened can. “It’s because I had to win a bet.”
I choked on the soda I had just taken a sip of. A bet? That was typical Talos. Her bizarre sense of humor made her unique, but also unpredictable.
“Talos, I don’t know how much time I have before things spiral even further out of control, but I need to act. Now. I don’t believe in time travel, but it’s starting to feel like that’s the only way to prevent this.” I swallowed hard. “There *has* to be a way.”
A silence fell over us, thick and oppressive, like the calm before a storm. Just as I began to consider whether I should leave, a voice interrupted from the shadows behind us.
“I know a way,” Hermes whispered, creeping into the room with his usual mischievous grin. “What if we used a time machine? Or a magic portal?”
His sudden appearance made me frown. There was always something unsettling about the messenger god’s ability to appear whenever he pleased, unannounced. And yet, there was another problem hanging over us— an already dead god walking around in the guise of a quirky teenager. If anyone discovered the truth about Hermes’ current state, it would reveal the presence of the otherworlders, and that would lead to a catastrophe.
I glared at Hermes. “Aside from your natural stupidity and overall nonsense, you really are similar to him in terms of your your hyperactiveness.” My voice softened, though. He had that effect— equal parts irritating and endearing. “You ever wonder if a god dying from black amber is the trigger to being reborn?”
Talos clicked her tongue, her mood shifting into something lighter. “The otherworlder is right, you know. There might be a way to go back in time, though it’s… unconventional.”
Hermes gasped in excitement. “Wait, what? I was right?”
I couldn’t help but be suspicious. What was Talos aiming at?
“I know a guy who dabbles in machines,” she said, getting to her feet. She rifled through a pile of old clothes and assorted tech, unbothered by the mess. “He made a device for time travel once, but it didn’t quite work the way he intended it to. He’s our best bet as things stand.” She glanced at me briefly before resuming her search.
“Our best bet?” I repeated, stunned. I never thought she’d use the word— our. Was she actually serious about this?
“We’re an alliance now, aren’t we?” she said, not even bothering to look at me this time. Her tone was casual, but the implications hit hard. It wasn’t like her to place trust so easily. Something had shifted, and I wasn’t sure whether that was a good thing or a terrible omen.
Hermes leapt to his feet, practically bouncing with excitement. “Who are we going to meet? Who is this guy?”
Talos paused, standing still for just a moment, before saying, “My father. Adopted, of course. Hephaestus.”
I stared at her in disbelief. Hephaestus? The god of craft, metalwork, and fire? The blacksmith of Olympus, one of the Twelve? If what she said was true, then we weren’t just going to see some random tinkerer. Hephaestus was a genius beyond comprehension, a creator of wonders— uet also a god known for his rejection by his own family. I wasn’t sure whether to be excited or terrified.
“Word of advice,” Talos added, her voice dropping to a warning, “Hephaestus doesn’t like people. At all. Try not to piss him off.”
I gulped. It sounded more like a warning than advice, and that only made me more uneasy. If we were meeting the Hephaestus, the stakes had just been raised.
She tossed a couple of outfits at me and Hermes. “Change into these. We’re heading out. And yes, they’re unisex. I can’t be seen dragging around a one-armed god already labeled as a terrorist and a walking corpse of another god. This is why I hate god-business. It’s always a load of work.”
I snorted. Despite her complaints, Talos had just given me the edge I needed. If Hephaestus could build a functioning time machine, I might have a real chance of stopping Calamity Zero before it ever happens. Yet, before I could finish changing, Hermes raised a crucial question that had slipped my mind.
“So… are we just going to leave a corpse in our bed?”
The casual way he said “our” made me pause. I hated the idea of leaving Hecate like that, her fate unresolved. But we had no other choice. There were bigger problems to handle first.
“We’ll be back for her,” I said, more to reassure myself than anyone else. “Now, let’s go meet Hephaestus.”
If I revive a magic castle I will mass release 10 chapters
