I stood in my small room, off the side of the main hospital in the city of Sparta. Nikias was resting on the cot that was set up in my make shift work-room. He was breathing deeply as he slept, his muscles rippling as his chest went up and then down slowly. It was strange to think that we were something so different, but when I paid close enough attention to him, it is only possible that a god sired this beauty.
I had set up my statues of all the gods that I worshiped on a regular basis. I was in the presence of eleven statues, Apollo's was absent, because I had melted it seeing as he tried to kill Nikias and myself. I knew that my mother and Nikias' father were at least on our side, whatever that meant, and I figured that I would try to appease the others just in case.
Nikias stirred in his bed and sat up slowly, blinking as he looked around the room. He looked dazed and confused, but after a few more blinks he regained his normal facial features. His dark eyes narrowed as if he was constantly contemplating something. His slender nose peaked right over pair soft lips that could melt a glacier if he would ever smile. He grinned at me as he saw me arranging the remaining gods. I lifted the statues of Athena and Ares to the top of my altar, and the other nine remained below them.
Nikias walked over to my side and put a hand on my shoulder, strength flooded through my body, I reached up and returned the touch to his hand and felt power flood toward the touch and into him. We couldn't use each other's abilities but we had begun to learn that we could at least share energy. It had been about a week since the scene with Apollo, and we were sort of in hiding with the help of my Athenian Master.
"Did you sleep well?" I asked up to him.
"Yes your concoctions really are wonderful." He grinned down at me.
"Thank You, but I think that it comes with my territory...or destiny...or whatever." I said slowly returning my gaze to my statues. Out of the corner of my eyes I saw the fire in our pit roar to life from the nearly dead coals. Flames erupted as tall as myself, and burned for a minute and then went as quickly as they had come, leaving a man behind. The ugliest man I had ever seen in my life, his face was scared so only about half of it was even remotely normal. I almost knew who this would be just from the stories I had grown up with.
"Welcome Hephaestus." Said Nikias from beside me, apparently he had the same assumption I had.
"Thank you, and before you get worried by no means am I here to harm you. I saw what you did to my nephew, and I don't know whether to laugh or thank you. It's about time someone wounded his ego, although how you did it is still a mystery to most of us." He bowed his head slightly and then took a seat on the hearth that he was standing on.
"What brings you here honored lord." I said with as much reverence as I could.
"Please call me by my name, as the fates would have it, you are as honored as I am, or will be soon. While we are on that subject, I have to come to warn you that, Apollo is not the only god that will make an attempt on your life now that the prophesy has been made known, and the others are far better killers than him. Their weapons will be mighty; for I forged them, but that is another reason I have come, to give you boys' a few gifts." He snapped his fingers and the fire roared to life again this time it branched three times around him. "Please sit."
I moved so I was sitting cross-legged in front of him and Nikias knelt in front of him. The two outer flames lurched forward and scorched the ground in front of us, neither of us jumped, we were used to the parlor tricks of the gods. When the two flames returned safely to the pit there were shinny metal objects in front of us.
"Nikias, for you I have forged a pair of wrist bands, imbued with the most powerful Ruby and Sapphire that I have ever crafted. The bands themselves are made from quicksilver and will always protect you when you use them, and the stones themselves will allow you to manipulate fire and water, bending them to your will, to use in combat." Nikias lifted the gauntlets slowly and slid them on one at a time. The gems glistened in the center of the silver, reflecting the light. I noticed him shiver, I wondered if the power had slid across him, or he was just excited.
"Solon, for you I have crafted a belt quicksilver belt. If you notice the markings across it, they are the shapes of a variety of throwing weapons, Stars crafted after weapons from Chin, silver darts used by many, and metal spheres that maybe small but will be lethal. They are just engravings, but when you wear this belt, and touch one of the engravings a true weapon will fall to your hands, and I think, combined with your ability you could make any of these lethal.
I picked the belt up and ran my hand over the engravings, nothing happened. He had said when I wore it that it would work. The silver glistened in my hand and I felt the power resonate from them, knew now why Nik had shivered.
"Lastly, I grant you a third gift, a silver coin engraved with my insignia, when the time comes that you face opponents from Olympus and beyond, know that I will rise up to fight with you." The last tendril of flame twisted above our heads and with a pop a silver medallion fell from its depths. Nikias and I both reached out to grab it. Our hands rested one on top of the other as it fell into our open palms. We stared first at the coin and then at each other. When our gaze finally found the hearth again, Hephaestus was gone and the fire had returned to nothing more than embers.