(1 day till the start of the war...)
It's strange, how silent power can be.
Hecate's palace wasn't loud with guards or bustling with servants. It just pulsed alive with ancient magic, a heartbeat of stone and shadow nestled between realms. The torches burned with violet flame. The walls shifted with faint whispers, like secrets scratching to be heard. And above us, stars moved wrong in the sky.
I stood by the arched window of the chamber. Not out of nervousness, but more like necessity. I needed the cold on my face and the night air to clear the haze of weight settling on my chest. Tomorrow, the war begins. And tonight, we choose the shape of it.
"Look who's already brooding." Zagreus's voice slid up behind me, a teasing edge in every syllable.
I didn't turn, but I could feel the smirk on his face. The son of Zeus carried himself like he had nothing to prove, and yet everything to win. But my first thought on that moment was, what is this fool doing here?
