[21 DAYS LEFT]

Etho's POV:

I don't have anything out for Eurydice, she seems nice enough for my senses not to be screaming. Her husband on the other hand?

Chills man. But let's start from the beginning.

We were just digging around without a single care in the world, it's been a few days since we started, and we uncovered... two.

Two shards of the hourglass.

I muttered some curses to myself, it's God's way of thanking us... maybe. It still doesn't make it any better though!

Magic is no help either, the glass doesn't give off the magic of its own (very surprising) and its temperature is the same as the sand. Don't even bother to try and find air pockets underground, it's sand and it sinks.

"Wonder why the glass shards don't give off energy? Even my dagger gives off lesser amounts of magic from time to time." Grian asked himself, throwing away another rock he found.

False was the one on guard in case anyone would dare charge at us while our hands and knees are on the ground, Ex was spreading a rumor that the queen just didn't want to get dirty. ("If he ever says that to my face again, I will pull off his head." False replied.)

"Maybe, it's one of those magic items," False said, waving her arms in an arc motion.

"Oh! Like it won't work unless we have the user of it with us? I don't like the idea of asking the Fates for a deal." Scar shot up from his digging spot.

I nodded along with Scar, one thing you learn from being a Demigod; the gods are... greedy in a way. If we wanted a favor from them, they would want something in return. Like the magic barrier, we head back home.

Home... the thought of it feels like a distant dream, someplace where I was safe from anything? Fat chance. But still, the cabins were built by our own hands, the faint smell of warm food. That was our home, and it will never change.

Even at Mari's place, the smell of the evening cool air and the bright smile she wore on her face. I missed all of that.

"I hope the others are having more success than we are. Wonder what new things they have found." Beef rubbed his beard.

Then something curled in my chest, my mouth froze at its place, and just... the feeling of something is off just screamed in my soul.

Eurydice had sensed it too, once she was off to the side and not speaking at all but now, she stood tense, her eyes widen to see any movement.

I subconsciously patted my belt where my sword had been, a white Chakra Sword. (And a few darts just in case.)

"Head's up. Something is wrong." False growled from her stand.

Silent winds brushed against my hair, I closed my eyes and feel a stab of cold, frigid air in front of us.

Heavily Breathing even as air stopped entering my lungs, a small figure appeared.

He looked at us, Orpheus.

Black braided hair spawned from a Greek-style crown, simple red clothes with a belt, and a pair of loose-fitting pants, he would have been a normal person.

But the freezing coldness that leaked out of his dead body, the grey bit of hair hung from his head, the way his clothes stuck onto his skeleton-like body, his eyes that seemed glossy at all times.

He didn't look alive. He didn't look at he's here at all. All that was left was a hollow husk tasked with the world in his hands.

I disliked the first time I saw him, the mind that now has Orpheus's; a mind filled with hot air.

"Orpheus..." I had heard Eurydice hold a choked breath as she now stared at her husband, but the problem is that her husband is dead. Who is this stranger?

Orpheus just continued walking towards us, not blinking nor speaking.

"I'm missing two pieces. Can you help?" He said, soulless and without emotion. He looked at us, a blitz of faces unwilling to confess to any empathy.

He was lost in his majesty of fantasy protecting only himself from tragedy.

I felt my grip tighten on my sword. What's worse than a mad man is a mad man with nothing else to lose.

One side effect of charmspeak is if you use it only for one person for the whole of their life. They become lost, in charmspeak, you mess with their head and make the brain believe in your lies as if they are facts. It was never really magic; the magic just breaks through any type of block in their brain between fiction and fact. So, if a person solely believed in lies... everything that was reality will penetrate to no avail to their unreality. An elaborately designed, privately owned spiral galaxy.

"Orpheus, you're alive! Please come with me!" Eurydice's voice cried with joy; she won't see the totality of understanding.

The dead man walking stared at her, his mouth agape but no recollection of Eurydice could be seen; "Please, help me."

The rest of their hermits still haven't let down their guard, it was a petty trick that villains used all the time.

Appear weak, ask for help, get trust, then attack.

"Eurydice! Stay back from him." Cleo stood firm, her frown never leaving her face.

It may not have been charmspeaking, but the flinch from the dryad forced her back. As a wide snarl formed on Orpheus.

We waited for any sort of attack from him, but he just kept speaking and speaking; that is very unnerving for all of us.

"Wifely... wifely, where are your manners. Master has been worried sick." He projects his insecurity until the intensity is weaponry.

Eurydice's tendency to dwell, seething over missed connections forced Grian to act.

"Must you care for nothing more than yourself?" Grian's usually calm demeanor broke, he was mad, and he is going to show it. He didn't like it when people used charmspeaking or in this case, soulreaping, to control the whole being of a person, to use a person as a hallow husk for a sick and twisted plan. "Orpheus, I don't care about what your master wants. But I know it will end the world as we know it!"

The dead man walking hummed faithfully to himself, his eyes had a sort of shadow over them; "I'm afraid you are mistaken, sir."

"Orpheus..." Eurydice hugged the bit of fireweed that clung to her chest, emotions all over her sleeves revealing the insanity of her thoughts and feelings.

"My love? Please come with me... I'm alone... I'm so cold." His voice dropped a bit displaying something more honest, the small hope that Eurydice took, his normality affects her agony of rationality.

But that suddenly hope disappeared as fast as it appeared, he let out a wide grin (it was blinding), sighing "Work with me... we can together again."

Eurydice took a step forward, tense muscles as she wondered if this was that good of an idea.

"I... But..." She looked back and front between us and her husband. Biting her lip to decide whether to leave us behind or not.

"Eurydice, I don't trust him at all." Xb breathed through his nose as his magic settled down a bit, now no longer thrashing around in the air but now just calmly surrounding his fist. "I can't make the call, and I doubt you will change your mind about us."

Eurydice gripped her fist a bit harder, her fist nearly white now, and closed the distance between the two lovers.

"Orpheus, please... I can help you. I want to..." Eurydice rested her head on his chest, the scene would have been cute if Orpheus didn't look like... well a zombie. (No offense Cleo, love you baby)

Orpheus looked at his wife with a soft surprise, we tensed as his arm moved.

Then he shoved Eurydice hard, she stumbled onto the ground; tears building up as she lets out a wet gasp.

We moved in to surround him, sword raised and bow ready, but Orpheus just curled into his stomach like he was punched there, letting out animal-like screams and shaking his head wildly.

"No! You don't... I HATE YOU. ALL OF YOU. LET ME BE!" He screamed at no one, but the anger was all the same, the charmspeak was there.

For a moment, I froze, I believed him; after all, this was our fault and he had every right to be furious at me, I was selfish in the fact that... I wanted to have a normal life. (Was it that selfish? He also had the same dreams as me so what about it that made it feel like he was selfless?)

Do I dare admit the fraught thoughts resorted in inner-directed mourning for the part of me that thought this quest is selfless but left without a warning?

But it wasn't selfish if we wanted the world to live just a little bit longer, right? Right, I was under the charmspeak! These aren't my thoughts, I needed to see the bigger picture, but I won't see anything with just myself in my vision.

I broke from my sudden train of thought and looked out at Cleo's green eyes; of course, she didn't get affected by the charmspeak and was helping me out from the voids of my brain.

Orpheus was on the ground just shaking with fear, a part of me feels terrible for his current state.

"Orpheus? It's me..." Eurydice ran to her husband and pulled him into her clasp, where he was muttering things that didn't make sense.

"Eurydice, I don't think that's a good idea," Cleo said while holding Hypno up (who seemed to have fallen asleep to avoid the charmspeak, that... is dumb but really smart at the same time.)

"I think it's ok now, the soulreaping... it takes a lot out of you," Eurydice spoke in a much softer and relaxed tone; this is the happiest I have seen her in a while. (Orpheus's words remain, craving themselves into my brain, though it has lost the added effect of Charmspeaking, it creeps into my every thought)

We looked at each other uneasily, while it is true that most people can break out from charmspeaking without any long-lasting effects. Soul reaping was literally banned. No records of someone ever using it existed.

"I think we should keep an eye on them. We don't know what happens if someone was soulreaped." Grian said, staring at Orpheus's shaking body.

He looked even sicker when he's staying still, his hair stuck to the beads of sweat on his head, his eyes were opened but he had not responded at all, the only signs that showed that he was alive was the slow and shallow exhales and inhales.

"He's alive, I think he's in a coma-like state." Scar felt for his heartbeat.

The tears from her eyes finally broke down as he sobbed into her husband's shoulder as if he was awake, it was a heartbreaking scene to witness.

So, Impulse being Impulse just ran up and hugged her from the back, it seemed to have stopped the sobbing a bit and with Impy lightly guiding her to vent out all her emotions. I can believe that Impulse will get the first bit of full trust from her.

Maybe it was finally time to be something more than just allies out of need.

"I think we should ask Joe for some help." Cleo looked at Orpheus' unresponsive state and as if proving a point, she waved her hand in front of his face.

"I think a psychologist would be of more help here," Ex whispered under his breath, and shapely turned to Impulse. "By that, I don't mean hugging me half to death, Mister CEO of Happiness. Step back."

Impulse bit his lower lip as he lowered his hug-ready arms to Ex, "Was I that obvious?"

I laughed good-heartedly at their bickering; it was a sense of normal that I haven't felt in a long time.

Orpheus had been ripped away from the normal for a long time now, if I am missing it after a few days... what is he feeling about this?

"I just don't like hugs, your dork." Ex crossed his arms, refusing to look at Impulse.

Impulse stretched himself so that he was just a bit taller than Ex, "Well, you never even had a hug before. Come on! Just try it!"

With that, Ex made a hissing noise, "You never had my fist down your throat as well, you should try that." (That's what he said.)

"We had just been married the week before my death." Past Eurydice said, her smile tired.

She hoped for a peaceful life, she had once thought about the future she wanted.

"We had plans for kids..." She stared in the red ambers of the sunset, longing for the past that was torn away in a heartbeat.

I looked over at the two lovers, Beef followed them as Eurydice sat her husband upon a rock. She looked at peace, even with the dried stains of tears on her cheeks and the black bags under her eyes... since when did she even have black bags?

"Worried about him?" Iskall asked me, their robotic eye scanning the deeps of my soul.

A flower died, it had frozen over, and the petals dropped as I stared at my hands which were freezing over at an alarming rate back then, and had decided that I was a monster. I had taken the life of a living being.

I hummed thoughtlessly to myself, "Worried for Beef or Orpheus?"

Iskall shrugged a response, their good eye switches between me and Beef who was trying his best therapist sona for Eurydice's sake. "Kind of both at this point. I'm keeping my eye on them."

I nodded to their response, "You're a good guy, you know that Iskall?"

I looked over and finally looked eye to eye with Eurydice, she gives a hearty thumbs up and drew a fist in the air and put it on the area where her heart is then pointed at Orpheus.

"I think, she's letting us know that Orpheus is still alive." Iskall's grin just grew a little wider.

Hundreds and hundreds died, the imbalance of nature that Grian made when he got us out of the Underworld:

"It's not your fault Grian, please don't blame yourself. It was already imbalanced when Nyx woke up." Xisuma said the still injured Grian, but he won't listen.

"I make it worse! I could have thought it out just... It is my fault, Xisuma!" It was the first time that he actually pronounced his name correctly, but not a single soul noticed in the panic and chaos.

"Gods! I should have died that day... I should have... It's my fault..."

"I don't think we say that enough, do we?" I chucked to myself; we blame ourselves for things out of our limited control.

Iskall hummed and clicked their tongue, a silent response which meant that Iskall was deep in thought; Oh, of course, they agreed that other hermits were good people but...

The same logic can't be put onto ourselves...

"I think we should let Orpheus be fully healed before telling him anything." I walked up to Eurydice.

The ancient woman stood strong and nodded, her beloved husband lay asleep next to her. Even though she has told us that Orpheus was just asleep and not nearly dead, it still didn't calm my nerves.

"I think it will be best when he wakes up seeing a similar face." Joe listed, giving Eurydice the last of the water as well. "I don't know how dehydrated he is... but hopefully this helps."

She gave a great smiling beam and went on to try and wake her significant other up.

"...My fault" I had once told myself.

The once summer field had been frozen to ice; the hermits already knew me at that point, but I didn't believe their tall tales of Greek Gods.

Of course, I didn't believe them. I had blamed the whole accident on them at that time, I had yelled to the world that they were witches.

Two were injured. One in a coma.

"My fault."

"We need a plan," Ex said, naturally taking the role of leader that was usually filled by his twin brother.

Gem and Pearl being the newest of the Hermits looked at each other kind of weird, which I get it; I mean:

Look at Ex, he is a dude with crimson red armor and just looks like the cartoon description of an evil twin, and that same dude taking the role of a leader?

"Am I dreaming or are you just talking over Xisuma's place?" Gem asked, a bit confused.

I smiled to myself, we had planned this a long time ago but, in the event, if we were to ever get separated; we had a system of names that will become the leader for the time being, and the Hermit next to Xisuma was TFC who isn't here now, so the honor went to Ex.

"Yes, it's a system we do. I forget that they are newbies..." Ex grumbled something in a low tone but switched to looking at us with an unreadable expression.

Pearl's face was the classic loading emotion as she wanted to open her mouth to object to being called a noob, but she silently shut herself up. (Haha, NOOB)

"But, yes back to the topic at hand. What do we do now?" Ex asked, it has always been like this in the Hermit's team; as to how a pesky little Grian has said in the past: If we go down, we are going down together.

"I say we get out of this gods-forsaken desert. It would be better if we have doctors that know what to do when someone is in a coma-like state." Joe put forth his idea.

I agreed with Joe's decision because we're must basically put on an uncertain stop to the quest if we had to stay. Which has, may I remind you, a timer.

And 21 days is short if you think about it.

"Aye, any disagreements on that?" Ex asked the group before Beef lifted a hesitant hand as if he was back at school asking for a bathroom break.

A few words of encouragement from Xb after and Beef finally spoke up, "Not really a disagreement, but more of a concern."

Ah, Beef. Champions of Hestia are naturally warm and welcoming to everyone, which makes sense considering that Hestia is the Goddess of Family.

But oh boy and girls and peeps in between, Beef is one of those people that will hug a total stranger, and that stranger will melt into the hug.

"Go on..." Ex waited for Beef to voice out his concern.

"Even if one of us is unsure about a decision, that decision will not be made," I remember what Xisuma had told me once when I was just starting the whole Demigod thing finally.

I wasn't sure of my powers back then and had craved myself into a bit of a depressive mess, so when the other hermits allowed me into their place of safety; I was unsure.

"Xisuma... you don't have to do this for me... I'm fine out in the streets, I would be much better off that way." I whispered to myself, shy and incredibly quiet.

"Nope, we are sure about this." Xisuma then turned to give me a wide smile, "Welcome to the Family, you wouldn't be leaving for a long time."

"What if Orpheus's condition got worst on the road? I mean, last time I checked he still looks pale." Xb raised a particularly good question, one that Ex doesn't have the answer for judging by the look on his face.

Pearl purred a bit to herself, then suggesting; "If worst comes to worst, I can send out an emergency signal from my earpiece as legally I am still in the case of the thefts."

Grian smacked himself a bit, "Oh wait, that's genius, Pearl! I forgot you are a cop sometimes."

Pearl smirked meekly at Grian, "Sometimes I forget that myself."

Pearl does be having the best deal of this, she gets paid while saving the world; that's basically the best. I know that I can get money from the whole ice-cream cart thing that Grian essentially dragged me to, but like sales are rough when the world is crumbling apart.

Impulse gives us a big smile, "Well, should we write to the other Hermits back in the cave? I'm sure they will be delighted to see that Orpheus is safe... and mostly unharmed."

Cub picked this moment to snap his finger while shamefully making me jump just a bit, "If my memory is correct, wasn't Orpheus pleading with us for the last two pieces of the hourglass?"

I nodded, at the very least, we got what we came here for. So that was a successful mission.

"Yes, oh. We want to take it from Orpheus so that the third member doesn't have all the things that they need! That's genius Cub!" Scar excitedly tapped his feet.

Cub flashed a proud smile as he walked to the resting log of Orpheus, silently he pleaded that Eurydice won't object too much from taking the hourglass away.

Ex looked at the setting form of the sun and once again asked another question, "From where the sun is right now, I say that we have an hour or two of the day left, should we cover some ground or just stay here?"

Only nearly twenty days left, and we have only one of the three items... but again we don't have to have all three, we just need the third member not to have all three of them then in which, we already succeeded.

And I'm tired, digging in a desert non-stop for like three days takes a lot. And Iskall's yawn answered the question for me.

"I think we should get an early day in; I'm feeling a bit woozy." Iskall rested their head in their hands.

"Headache Iskall?" Joe asked, being the ever-helpful doctor.

Then a rather loud gasp from our back; thinking that it is a monster, we spun around with swords up.

Then we saw Cub and a fully formed Hourglass in his hands.

But Cub looked... uh. Younger almost, his once grey mess of hair straighten out into black, and sunken eyes are now nothing but faint bags while his outfit is still the same lab coat with a blue shirt, somehow it looks cleaner; finally, his grey-almost black eyes hid a storm of lighting blue.

"You know what Joe, either my headache is getting worse, or is Cub looking much younger?" Iskall moaned and rubbed their eyes to look again, and again when the younger image of Cub did not change.

Cub said nothing, his mouth just opens in shock as he set down the hourglass as he was holding a poisonous snake, then he just weakly touched his face and looked even more surprised that his hand didn't faze through his face.

"What the f-aa." Xb cut himself short of a curse, and shook his head, "Ok, someone please do me a favor and slaps me."

And Ex took that offer with a cheerful grin, and the sound from that slap can be heard from a mile away. For someone that refuses to train with us in our spars, he is kind of strength not going to lie... I wonder if TFC or Xisuma gives him one on one sparing matches.

Xb squeaked and cupped his abused cheek, "Ok not a dream... Ow."

I looked back and stared at the group as a whole, "So, does no one object to us writing a letter to the other Hermits? I think this is newsworthy enough for our fellow time expert TFC."

The group gave a dead smile as if they were saying: Yes Etho. Stop being a sarcastic pain in the neck. But Scar spoke first.

"I don't know about anyone else, but I think I need a twenty-four-hour nap, we've to deal with time magic and hourglasses in the morning because I'm tired." And there is one unspoken rule within the Hermits: If Scar is tired, we all are going to bed cause a grumpy Scar is an even worse prankster than Grian is.

So, we switched to our nightly routine of setting up a tent and more sleeping bags than we ever needed because Hypno packed too many (He said that it was because of a mistake that he made while packing... sure Hypno.... sure.)

"Come on Cub, I'm sure that you won't die from touching the hourglass." Scar nagged Cub who was socially distancing from said Hourglass.

"If you're so sure, why don't you pick it up yourself!" Cub huffed, squirming just a bit farther from the seeming radioactive Hourglass of Doom. (Courtesy of Iskall)

"That's because I'm perfectly cozy sitting right next to you and I don't want to stand up." Scar crossed his arms to look mad.

"Your logic is flawed; you know that right?" The younger scientist sighed and finally decide to suck it up and walked over to where the hourglass is.

Meanwhile, Grian and Iskall argued over night-duty. It ended with Grian just straight up cheating by using Charmspeak and Iskall grumbling that Grian cheated. (Grian now claims that he wanted night duty because he hasn't done one since he escaped the Underworld.)

Iskall still gets some of their dignity back by schooling Grian on what to do if a monster attacks or something like that. But something tells that Grian wasn't listening at all, allowing poor Iskall to talk on and on.

"Grian, can you guard this as well?" Cub asked, handing over some rubber gloves and the hourglass.

Grian sniggered at the fact that Cub was wearing some duckie pattern rubber gloves but took his word very seriously, taking in the hourglass with great care.

Without the gloves and grinned widely as Cub freaked out over nothing happening.

"Cub, it's a one-time thing. But do keep the gloves, they look great on you." Grian winked and walked over to the front of the tent.

I felt my eyes getting heavier while looking at Cub's perplexed reaction.

Though I do have to agree with Grian, those duckie gloves are a chef's kiss on Cub.

...

[20 DAYS LEFT]

We woke up to panicked talking.

My body sluggishly raises from its dreamless slumber, contrasting the panic of millions of thoughts running at once.

It was one way to get my brain awake, I suppose.

Even though my brain was running seven math equations at once, I only manage to mumble out a barely audible "...what." before letting out a huge yawn.

All the other Hermits (and Eurydice) were on the same not-so-awake brainwave as me, as half of the time we would be all awake and searching the nearest areas for the distressed voice.

... Half the time and that day was not today.

The screaming came from one of the newest additions to the family, Gem. As she covered her mouth to stop herself from talking too loudly, her deer ears now raised and shoulders tighten, just listening and waiting.

"Grian? Cleo? Oh gosh... no." Gem muttered ambiguously under her breath.

Grian? Cleo? What about them, I looked around for the two charmspeaking masters and...

Oh. They aren't here anymore, so is Orpheus.

"Quick! Check our surroundings! Report back if you find a trail!" Ex finally commanded before rushing out of our man-made tent.

That finally awoken my brain, as my body shot up and searched the area that I last saw Grian walking to.

It was a nice lookout point; I must give that to Grian. A medium-size rock that Grian can easily scale up and down, and with the flat sands of the desert, he could look on from miles and miles. Maybe even more if he had a spyglass.

But that wasn't why I was here to do it. I mentally slapped myself and climbed up the rock.

A small machine lay in one of the hooks of the rock, recognizing the small machine. I panicked and let out a small string of magic.

Yellow wings spread out from the machine.

Grian's flying machine.

"Grian would have never..." I touched the magical feather, it spread a cool calming breeze through my whole body.

"Etho?" Iskall turned around at the corner, their eyes looking into mine with a sort of sad look.

Iskall and Grian have been friends forever it feels like, I remember the three of them walking into our home back then.

Grian was a bit shy and nervous around us at first, always clinging to Mumbo and never really talking.

And Iskall was that extroverted friend that was the one that adopted all as their children, was always lovely to just be around.

Mumbo was the balance in the trio.

Three different birds on the same wire.

I would hate to feel what Iskall is feeling now, as much as I talked with Grian when doing odd jobs; we weren't close, but Iskall and Grian were basically high school friends.

"Any luck here?" Iskall's voice wavered, looking at the empty desert next to us. Their eyes look a bit watery.

Of course, Iskall would naturally go to Grian to vent about their feelings as the demigod of commutations seemed to be a natural at playing the role of a therapist.

This turned into an inside joke between the two hermits as one of them would quickly go, "You know I'm not your therapist, right?" before allowing the other to vent.

So, I did the same; swiftly looking at Iskall and saying, "You know I'm not your therapist right?"

I grinned to myself as I watched Iskall laughing to themself, breaking from almost sobbing to bitter-sweet cheerful.

"Yeah, yeah I know sir Not-Quite-G-Man." Iskall gives me a small smile.

"Then what about E-Man?" I suggest, clicking my tongue to sound cooler.

Iskall shook their head at the idea, "Sorry, Etho... it just doesn't roll off the tongue as well..." they took a deep breath and sighed "... I guess I'm just too stressed out at the current moment."

"Make sense. I'm pretty stressed myself." I looked back at the small machine in my hands, and closing the wings, and gave it to Iskall, "I think Grian would love for you to have it."

Iskall scanned it with their robotic eye carefully but pushed my hands back to me, "No, I trust you to keep it safe for me."

Looking at the foreign apparatus in my hands, I decided to pocket it and protect it for whatever may come.

"I think we should tell the others about this; we absolutely need a letter to the other group about this." My voice hardened into a colder tone.

Iskall nodded, "With two of the three items they need and two of our hermits gone, that third member wants to get onto our bad side."

I looked up at the blinding blue sky, to be revealing my innate ability to never fully comprehend that I was watching the third member as they achieve, their secret social mission.

All I cared for at those moments was where in this spiral galaxy was Grian and Cleo.

TLDR:

We have one of the three items and Orpheus in our hands! Wo! Oh wait... maybe spoke too soon. Welp, back to square one.

Author's Note:

"Cub's skin changed. Really? Cub! I am not redoing the whole of Book 1 for this... alright, random bullcrap in time magic- GO!" -Tree

Oh yes, Cub's skin (and Scar's and B-dub's) is now updated, I don't think I can do Ren's updated skin because... come on look at it! Unless I decide that Ren will be the next Hermit to nearly die then his current cyber dog skin is not canon... Unless >:)

And no shapeshifting Xisuma here, I don't think there is anything in Greek myths about shapeshifters. (If there is, please tell me.)

And for Jevin... well you'll see. (Or not, my brain is in impulse mode now. I may think this idea is the worst in a few days.)

(So, one of the many mistakes from the first book is that I confused Cronus/Cronos/Kronos, Father of Zeus with Chronos, God of Time. So yes, TFC is the son of Chronos, not Cronus/Cronos/Kronos.)