“I’m all ears, big guy.”
The flames extinguished from his hands, but they lingered in his eyes. Remaining on his feet, he leveled his fiery glare at me. “The Nephilim Council enforces their laws for a reason.”
I rolled my eyes like a bored teenager listening to his algebra teacher drone on about the importance of not cheating on a test. It was one test, Mr. Borton! And guess what, I couldn’t even tell you what it was on anymore, nor could I say that I have ever used those equations again.
Hephaestus continued his best impression of a burnt-out high school teacher. “Each university is dedicated to three Nephil at the most. How many students receive a pact at the end of the year? Do you know?”
I bit my lip. The only thing missing from our meeting was my tired, pissed-off mother to scold me for my poor behavior. “One for each Nephil,” I mumbled.
“At most,” he corrected. “At most, one student per the dedicated Nephil receives pact. Which means that three students per year, per university, at most, receive a pact—at most.”
“I understand the math,” I said.
“The Nephilim Council enforces that structure for a reason. I receive, if I choose, one follower every year. The process allows me to keep tabs on those I have imbued, to make sure they are following the created laws. It also prevents me from gaining more power than my brothers and sisters.”
“Excuse me,” I said, raising my hand. “Not to interrupt or anything, but do you not get much people time? I mean, in a world of smartphones and Netflix, our attention span has dropped to below that of a goldfish. I’m fading fast here, so…” I circled my hand, gesturing for him to get on with it.
He narrowed his fiery glare at me. “Do you know why, of all the candidates, I chose to imbue you with my power?”
“Bad grades?” I offered. “Laziness? Apathy? Is it because I had nowhere to go after graduation, nothing to do?”
“You exemplified everything a soldier should. You cared, Joseph—for those weaker than you. You fought for those who needed fighting for. I ignored your disrespect, as I do now, because I knew it was only a mask you wear. You are afraid to show the world your true face. But I see it. I do. That’s part of why I chose you. I also had to protect this world from you.”
“Wait. What? Protect the world from me? What the shit does that mean?”
“That’s why you’re still alive. Why I haven’t decided what to do with you, yet. The law states that you report to me, that you take assignment from me, that your magic is used for me. As a mortal, your judgment is limited, clouded by what some of you call ‘sin.’ Using your powers without my guidance could create an unbalanced world. You broke that law, among others. You disappeared for five years.”
“Can we rewind and go back to what you said before… that thing about protecting the world from me. Kind of a big truth-bomb to just gloss over.”
The fire in his eyes dimmed, though it didn’t stop burning. “Until I decide on what to do, you can’t leave this shop.” He paused, allowing me to digest that statement. He knew I needed to leave, that I had business elsewhere. So, he dangled that over me for a reason.
“What do you want?” I asked, crossing my arms.
“I am fair, Joseph. Look at me.” He gestured to his deformities. “You think I can’t empathize with struggle and pain? Humans are not a complicated species. You are all inherently good, yet you do bad things out of desperation. Sometimes that desperation is selfish in nature, and sometimes it’s truly justified. So, before I decide your punishment, I need to hear your story.”
I licked my lips. Did this Nephil really care about my story? Or was he a sadist relishing in my misery to get over his own? The almighty Nephil, in my limited experience, were no different than us—driven by ego and pride. They were, after all, half human.
“Okay,” I said, playing his game. “Do you know Hecate?”
The fire in his eyes rekindled, burning deeper. “Yes. Is she why you disappeared?”
I bit my lip and thought about my next move. He obviously meant to dole out justice for my actions. I couldn’t avoid that. Should I come clean and present him with my sob story? Or should I accept whatever punishment he thought right, then move on to find Mel—given he left me alive.
I went with the casual, “You know what? Fuck you.”
Hephaestus flinched at my response.
“And fuck this magical council bullshit the Nephil have set up.” I shook my head, fury rising in my chest. “Seven years ago, I came home and found my wife murdered. I spent the next two years trying to avenge her. Could I come to you? No. It’s against the fucking rules for a Nephil to directly interject themselves into human affairs. So, I had to do it on my own. After two years of dead ends, I decided that revenge wasn’t worth losing my daughter over. So, I retired from the magic business and hid to protect her. About four, five hours ago, my daughter was kidnapped by the same bitch who murdered my wife.”
Hephaestus didn’t say a word. He closed his eyes and slowed his breathing.
After about a minute of his stoicism, I said, “My educated guess is that Hecate killed Callie and kidnapped Mel.” I scratched at my neck. “I accessed my power to fight some Empousa, then I
