Knowing that any day now the chaos gems would be taken back, the Merfolk had put them back in their boxes and onto the bedside table ready to return to Khaos. Now Izroulia was safe and in good hands with Haru, the next step was finding the pod.

They had a few ideas, follow lay lines since the pod would likely be around areas with stronger magic. Check each of the nearby islands off the coast of point break, as they were small and largely uninhabited. One of them was over run by seals and another by fairy penguins, so while those two may not be the place to look there were plenty of others.

And of course there was just going grid by grid on a map of the coast, although that would take forever as they'd found out when they tried that before. Either way, they had options. And when they found a lead they could just follow that which would make the hunt much easier.

They'd spend the past few weeks in Izroulia, aside from when the girls had to go to school and such. Finals were soon, so was graduation. Zagreus' family was already looking into moving back to Izroulia. Icarus was holding out for the one clue she needed about her fathers whereabouts to tell her mum everything. Pandora was still debating on telling her parents of her grandmother and Izroulia. And Aries was just glad to be home, spending time cleaning their childhood bedroom that had been left untouched when they left. Helping Momo with the orchid, and catching up after all these years. And of course, hanging around the castle with Haru and Micha.

They'd all agreed to get back to the human realm and pod hunting next week, giving the girls time to take their finals with no extra stress. As well as time for everyone to explore Izroulia more and help out Haru and Micha where needed.

Haru was hard at work drawing up all the new laws and regulations to better the land and undo the damage Agnemetra did. Micha was eagerly going through the archives and making sure everything in there was properly documented.

It was Wednesday, mid way through the week. The girls had been home in the human realm crunching the books in preparation for the finals, Zagreus had spent yet another day with Styxx at his lake. Aries was busy collecting grapes with Momo for the wine season all day. When the sun went down and it was time for everyone to head to bed, it was a warm night similar to the night they got the gems.

It night for the ceiling fans on and opening windows a crack. Kicking the blankets off, sleeping shirtless, breaking out the cropped summer pyjamas.

On the bedside tables and desks of the group, the chaos gems sat in their boxes ready to go home to Khaos. And tonight was that night. After they'd all fallen asleep, the boxes vanished in a small burst of sparks. But that wasn't all Khaos was doing tonight. They had plans to return the favour, has the gods did when mortals carried out a task for them.

So when Aries felt suddenly soaked, prompting them to wake up in confusion and found they weren't in bed anymore they knew something was up. When they opened their eyes they were met with a sky full of stars, like looking at one of those super high definition photos from a satellite. They sat in shallow water, seemingly over an endless void, too shallow to swim in. When they looked beside them, they were met with he other three.

"Hey- Zag... wake up" Aries said, poking the merman.

"Mhhh it's too early Styxx..." Zagreus muttered.

"Boy do I sound like your boyfriend? I'm not even a boy, wake up"

Zagreus stirred, sitting up and suddenly realising he was soaked. He opened his eyes, looked around and blinked in confusion.

"What the fuck...? I was just- I was just with Styxx how the-" He stammered.

"I think it's Khaos' taking the gems back from us. But I have no idea were we are. Can't be primordial chaos, no mortal can even convince of that..." Aries replied.

Zagreus reached over and poked the girls awake, the two of them awaking just as confused.

"What... am I dreaming?" Icarus asked.

"I think we are... in the same dream too" Pandora replied.

"For once I don't have an answer to this. I'd guess Khaos..." Aries added.

They looked around, only seeing endless stars with the occasional could. Nowhere to get out of the water and dry off, the water not deep enough to swim in either. They were simply stuck sitting there not knowing where they were.

That was until Icarus noticed something shrouded in a nearby cloud.

"What's that?" She pointed out.

They all looked over, trying to make it out. It looked like a bird bath, maybe a shallow cauldron. Unable to see when through the distance, they pulled themselves over to it. The water making it a bit easier to move around with a tail. Surrounding the object, they knelt up against it to examine it.

"It's a scrying pool... they're usually found in temples. This must be a Khaos thing, returning the favour for using the gems to restore peace to Izroulia" Aries explained.

"What does it do?" Pandora asked.

"Lots of things. Not sure what this situation is about though..."

"Can you guys see the moon in here too?

They all looked at Pandora confused. None of them could see a moon. The sky above them was just stats, there was no moon to reflect in it.

"No?" Aries questioned.

"A moon? I see bones" Zagreus said.

"Bones? Girl are you going blind? That's coins" Icarus replied.

"Coins? Ok we're all definitely seeing different things. I'm seeing like... swirls, like the hypnosis kind" Aries explained.

Clearly this pool was showing them all different things. Whatever this pool was enchanted to do, it was different for each individual person. Aries reached out and touched the water, it rippled but the reflection like image of swirls didn't disappear. When they pulled their hand out of it, it was covered in a glowing substance. Looking similar to bioluminescent algae.

"Woah, what did that just do?" Icarus asked.

"No idea... it's not painful or anything so I doubt it's dangerous" Aries replied.

Icarus touched the water as well, the same glowing substance being left on her hand. She looked down at it in awe, the glow mesmerising as moved her fingers.

"It looks like that growing algae stuff" Zagreus said, dipping his own fingers into it.

Pandora took a dip as well, feeling the consistency. It was just like normal water, the glow seemingly just the water itself.

"Doesn't really feel like anything... is this enchanted water or something?" She asked.

It was silent a moment, as the four tried to figure out what exactly this scrying pool was and what it was enchanted to do.

"So Pandora sees a moon, Zagreus seems bones, Icarus sees coins and I see swirls?" Aries asked.

The three nodded in approval, all of them confirming what they were seeing.

"Moon, bones, coins and swirls... what does that- oh... OH!"

The human borns perked up, very interested in what this all meant. Aries being born and raised in Izroulia knew a lot more about magic than they did, they all turned to the siren for answers to things they'd didn't know.

"The Chthonic gods. They're all the ones who reside in the underworld and a lot of the are direct decent of Khaos. Khaos must have had them grant us boons as thanks for our work with the gems. All the past gem holders reported being given boons" Aries explained.

"Which ones though?" Pandora asked.

"Well... moon is probably Nyx. She's literally Kahos' daughter. And the moon is a symbol of night" Aries guessed.

Pandora looked back down at the pool and the moon she was seeing, putting two and two together.

"So what we see correlates to what god we get a boon from?" She asked.

"I think so. Couldn't tell you why they picked who they did, but since there all direct descents of Khaos AND we literally have a guy called Zagreus in our group, makes sense why it'd be the Chthonic ones" Aries said.

Nyx probably picked Pandora due to her tendency to be up late at night, as well as her name being from the first non god woman made in Greek myth. Associated with Devine femininity, just as Nyx was. Nyx was an incredibly powerful goddess, not only the night itself but a mother, fighter and powerful female ruler.

"Who's bones? Hades?" Zagreus asked.

"More likely Thanatos. Hades is the god of THE dead. Thanatos is go of death. Also child of Nyx which put him in the group of gods that would be close with Khaos. Not to mention you're named after the god he always found fascinating..."

That was both really cool and kind of scary to the merman. What did the god of death pick him for?

"I'm going to die am I?" Zagreus nervously laughed.

"No, it's probably your name that made him pick you. Also you're an earth element. And where to all bodies go when they die?" Pandora said.

"The earth... oohhhh I get it now"

"Wait what is coins then?" Icarus asked.

They all thought for a moment, there were a few gods that coins were linked to, but given the circumstances it seemed to be one in particular.

"Probably Charon. Older brother of Thanatos and child of Nyx. He's the boatman of river Styx, the coins are probably the fare you have to pay him to be sailed down the river" Aries explained.

Icarus felt like she knew why she was chosen by Charon. She was basically the messenger between Izroulia and her father when he was found. As well as between her parents when she found him and told her mother in the future. Just like Charon was a messenger, a psychopomp. Not to mention she was named after the guy who flew too close to the sun, someone associated with travel.

"And you?" Icarus asked.

"Probably Hypnos. He's Thanatos twin, sleep incarnate. That'd explain the hypnosis swirls. Maybe he's sick of my shit sleep schedule and wants to fix it" Aries replied.

"So... how do we use them?" Zagreus asked.

"... don't know. I guess we'll have to just wait and see what happens"

While not knowing things could be frustrating and scary, it also meant adventure. Problem solving and trail and error. They'd have to test things like when they first got their element powers, just see what happens. It'd be interesting, and likely the last bonus powers they'd ever get in their lives. Stuff like this was incredibly rare after all. They were four in a million.

"I feel so tired all of a sudden. Did you figure out your boon already?" Icarus yawned.

"Not me. Must be us waking up back home, I'd guess this place is a dream like realm" Aries replied.

Before any of them could ponder any further, they all felt themselves get heavy and slip back into a slumber, flopping back into the water. As soon as they touched it, they immediately woke up back in their beds.

Looking over at the bedside tables, the boxes were gone. That confirmed it, Khaos took back the gems and granted them with boons from their family. They didn't feel that much different, none of them could figure out what their new power was yet.

While the girls couldn't tell their families about this just yet, Aries got out of bed and walked into the kitchen where Momo was already awake baking bread.

"Ah good morning sleeping beauty, you slept in" she said.

"I think I just for a boon. The gem is gone and I had the weirdest dream... well... dream like experience" Aries replied.

"Oh wow, which god?"

"Hypnos I think. The scrying pool had these hypnosis like swirls on it, the other's probably got his family as well"

Momo tilted her head, finding it interesting. Usually people who got boons would get it from a a god they were in some way connected too. Weather it be a family history of worship, a power they had, a hobby they enjoyed etc. Hypnos picked Aries for what reason? The name Aries is a star sign as well as the god of war, it hardly had anything to do with sleep.

"Well you did have night terrors as a kid. Maybe this is his way of saying oops, sorry about that" Momo shrugged.

"Hm... guess I'll just have to wait and see" Aries replied.

Across the river and by the lake, Zagreus stirred awake and sat up finding himself in Styxx's bed. He'd stayed over the past few nights, he could really get used his bed.

"That was triply as hell man..." he muttered.

Styxx stirred awake hearing Zagreus was up, he brushed the hair from his eyes and sat up, stretching out.

"Weird dream?" He asked.

"I think I just got a boon"

Styxx immediately woke up properly, looking over at the nightstand where the box was now gone.

"From who?" He asked.

"Thanatos I think... ironic. My name is Zagreus and I get a boon from Thanatos. I'm an earth element were all bodies go when they die..." Zagreus explained.

"And your boyfriend is a guy named after the river full of souls. Yeah I think he picked you because of that connection to the underworld and death"

"Probably. No idea what the boon does though"

"You'll just have to wait and see"

The Naiad placed a kiss on Zag's cheek. He smiled, so full of puppy love for him.

"I suppose only time will tell..."