The courtyard of Dreadspire Academy buzzed with quiet life.
Students moved in clusters, some laughing, others arguing over spells or training results. It was a strange contrast to the battles that seemed to follow Ares everywhere.
He stood still among it all.
Unmoving.
Observing.
"Hey—wait up!"
Ares didn't turn.
He already knew the voice.
Odyssey jogged up beside him, slightly out of breath, one hand clutching a book to his chest while the other adjusted his glasses.
"You walk… fast," he muttered.
Ares glanced at him briefly. "You are slow."
Odyssey gave a small, awkward laugh. "That's… fair."
Before either could say more—
"Ares!"
Aphrodite approached, her presence soft but bright enough to draw attention without trying. Ignis followed just behind her, posture straight, eyes already assessing.
They slowed as they noticed Odyssey.
A brief pause.
Aphrodite tilted her head slightly. "Oh… hello."
Odyssey stiffened.
"Uh—hello," he said quickly. "My name is Odyssey."
Ignis crossed her arms. "You're the one who keeps getting chased around."
Odyssey winced. "I wouldn't say keeps—"
"I would," Ignis replied flatly.
Aphrodite shot her a look. "Ignis."
Then she smiled gently at him. "It's nice to meet you, Odyssey."
He relaxed slightly. "Nice to meet you too."
Ignis studied him a moment longer, then sighed. "If you're staying near Ares, try not to die. It'll be inconvenient."
Odyssey blinked. "…I'll do my best."
Ares said nothing.
But he didn't move away from Odyssey either.
Which, for him, was enough.
They gathered beneath a shaded stone arch, the noise of the courtyard fading into the background.
For once—
No urgency.
No danger.
Just conversation.
"So," Odyssey said, trying to fill the silence, "how old is everyone?"
Aphrodite answered easily. "I'm seventeen."
"I'm eighteen," Ignis added.
Odyssey nodded. "Sixteen."
Then all three of them looked at Ares.
A pause settled over the group.
Ares didn't respond immediately.
"I do not know," he said.
Odyssey frowned. "You don't know?"
"I have no memory of birth," Ares replied calmly. "I appeared… in battle."
Silence.
Even Ignis didn't interrupt right away this time.
"That's…" Odyssey started, then stopped. "That's not possible."
"It is," Ares said.
Ignis stepped closer, her expression sharpening—not hostile, but focused.
"…No," she said slowly. "It's not normal."
She began circling him slightly, studying him like a problem.
"No origin. No age. Appears in the middle of a battlefield…" she muttered.
Aphrodite watched, concern soft in her eyes. "Ignis…"
"I'm thinking," Ignis replied.
Then she stopped, facing Ares again.
"I'll research it," she said. "There has to be something. Records, ancient magic, anomalies—something that explains you."
Ares didn't react.
Aphrodite smiled gently. "We'll figure it out together."
Odyssey looked between them all.
"…You all say things like this very casually," he said.
Ignis shrugged. "You'll get used to it."
"I'm not sure I will," he admitted.
After a while, the group began to drift apart.
"I'm going to the archives," Ignis said. "If there's anything strange in this world, it's written down somewhere."
Aphrodite nodded. "I'll come with you."
She turned back briefly, giving Ares a small smile before following Ignis.
Odyssey lingered.
"I… should study," he said, lifting his book slightly. "If I fall behind here, I'll actually die. Not metaphorically."
Ares gave a small nod.
Odyssey hesitated.
Then—"Thanks. For earlier."
Ares said nothing.
But he didn't dismiss him either.
Odyssey took that as enough and left.
Ares walked alone through the quieter halls of the academy.
Older stone.
Fewer students.
The air felt… different here.
Then—
A voice.
"…if he is active again, then we are already behind."
Ares stopped.
The voice came from a nearby room, the door slightly open.
He approached without sound.
Inside—
Zeus stood before a floating mirror, its surface rippling faintly.
Within it—
Another man.
Broad. Powerful. Indistinct, yet overwhelming in presence.
"…you assume too much, brother," the man said.
Zeus' gaze was firm. "And you assume too little."
A pause.
"…if what you're sensing is true," the man continued, "then things are already in motion."
Zeus' expression hardened. "Then we prepare."
The mirror stilled.
The connection ended.
Silence returned.
"…Ares."
Ares stepped forward.
"I was not hiding," he said.
"I know," Zeus replied calmly.
He studied Ares for a moment, then gestured inside.
"Come," he said. "Sit."
The room was lined with books, old and worn.
Zeus poured tea, setting a cup in front of Ares.
They sat across from each other.
"You have drawn attention," Zeus said.
Ares remained still. "That was not my intent."
"It rarely is," Zeus replied.
A pause.
"You haven't lost control recently ."
"Yes."
Ares said nothing.
Zeus leaned back slightly, watching him carefully.
"I have high expectations for you."
Ares' gaze lifted slightly. "You should not."
A faint smile touched Zeus' face.
"And yet," he said, "I do."
Silence settled again.
Not empty.
Just… unresolved.
"You are changing," Zeus continued.
Ares looked down at the tea.
"I do not understand myself."
Zeus' voice softened, just slightly.
"That is not unusual."
A pause.
"But you are not what you once were."
Ares' eyes flickered.
Zeus noticed.
But said nothing more.
When Ares finally left the room, the academy felt the same as before.
But something had shifted.
Connections forming.
Questions growing.
And somewhere beyond all of it—
Something had begun to move.
Unseen.
Waiting.