How-not to be an Olympian God!

Alex searched around in his eyes for a good spot.

He found a secluded sandy beach that was entirely surrounded by cliffs and it looked like the perfect place.

He slowly lowered his altitude and they gently landed.

The sand was warm and fine and the soles of their feet left footprints on the beige sand.

Alex removed Incarnation and he and Crista sat next to each other.

"It\'s been 3 months, huh?" Alex remarked.

"Yes. It was eventful, but something was missing." Crista looked at him in the eye and smiled.

Alex thought she felt different from the past.

\'It\'s like...she grew up...\'

Alex himself didn\'t notice that he grew up a lot during this almost one year he\'s spent in Olympus.

"What have you been up to?" She passionately asked him.

"I participated in the divine council, and let me tell you..."

"Then that happened....and I angered this goddess...."

"And now, I have a cult following like all of the other gods.."

"We saved this woman from Hera...."

Alex summarized everything he had gone through and returned the question back to Crista, "And you, what have YOU been up to?"

The two were unconsciously holding hands, and Crista recounted her time there too.

"I\'m now under the tutelage of Hades and Persephone. They taught me a lot." She said.

"That\'s why you seem-

"Calmer? More collected? That was the first thing they taught me!" She chuckled.

Even though it has been a quarter of a year since they haven\'t seen each other, it didn\'t feel awkward and they picked up right where they left last time.

"I\'ve been learning a whole lot of new skills and honing my music and handicraft.." She spoke.

When Crista mentioned handicrafts, he remembered he brought something with him.

"Can I show you something?" Alex said.

Crista nodded in approval.

Alex took out the bronze camera and inserted a spare film into it.

He placed it a distance away and came back running, after which he whispered to Crista, "Don\'t move."

They stayed in a hugging position for a minute or so.

Alex went to see the results.

He took out the film and gasped when he saw the picture.

He and Crista were sat on the sand in an amorous position while in the background, the waves rolled onto the coast and the white seafoam in the air was held still by the camera.

A lone bird was flying behind them and its passage was also imprinted onto the film.

\'It\'s beautiful...\' Alex thought.

He showed this to Crista and her eyes widened.

"This is...magical..." Everyone from this unadvanced era who saw the camera was, of course, stricken aback, and Crista was no exception.

Alex cherishingly pocketed the picture.

"I\'m in for a little swim, do you want to come?" Alex removed the stiff toga that he realized he shouldn\'t have worn.

Crista was wearing a light attire and kept it on as she followed him to the waters.

The waters were cold and the smell of sea salt assaulted their senses.

They held on to each other\'s hands as large waves hit the shore.

They swam around and played in the shallow sea before leaving it, all laughs.

"My ancestors were people of the sea, I understand why they liked it so much." Crista giggled.

After that, they(he) flew away and they landed on a tall mountain peak.

Alex was curious and asked, "Crista, if we could communicate at all times, wherever we are, would you like that?"

He still didn\'t use his Link ability, and using it with Crista, whom he didn\'t see too frequently, seemed optimal.

"We can meet in real life though, right?" Crista replied.

"I\'m going on a trip...a long trip, three weeks from now.." Alex announced the news about his diplomatic trip to China.

Crista\'s eyes\' drooped a bit, but she said, "Well, take care of yourself, will you?"

"Of course." The two held eye contact.

The two stared at each other, and they hugged tightly.

Unbeknownst to Alex, an ability of his activated itself passively.

Empathy, which could allow him to sense the emotions of a consenting target.

Funnily enough, Alex didn\'t feel any difference, because Crista\'s feelings towards him were roughly the same as his.

They liked each other and they moved forward knowing that their feelings had the potential to become more than what they currently were.

In simple terms, they had chemistry.

"Let\'s...go home," Alex said.

He carried Crista and flew in the direction of Olympus.

Crista wasn\'t immortal like him, and it seemed like today tired her out, as she went to rest.

Hermes wasn\'t home, strangely.

As he walked around the empty corridors, he heard some noise.

When he approached the source of the noise, he identified it as the screaming of Hades and Persephone.

The two were arguing.

"Hades, we\'re finally here! Last time, you used the excuse of the divine council, but what\'s your excuse this time?! Go speak to Zeus, fix this problem, it\'s been two centuries, d*mn it!"

Alex never heard Persephone speak like this, and was astonished.

He didn\'t want to eavesdrop, but his morbid curiosity overwhelmed him.

Hades exclaimed in response, "My queen, you know very well that we can\'t, we CAN\'T RECOGNIZE HIS EXISTENCE!"

"You think you\'re doing me a favor, but this is only harming me, and harming HIM, Hades. I cannot, I just cannot spend winter with you like this!"

Following that, Alex heard a banging sound and saw Persephone storming out of the mansion, and she was weeping.

Hades came out into the hall and noticed him.

Alex was caught in the middle of his act and stuttered, "I-I-

"You eavesdropped, that\'s what you did." Hades was cold.

Alex thought he was in extreme trouble, but Hades\' next sentence surprised him.

"It\'s okay. I thought my queen and I could move past that and pretend nothing happened. But I realized we can\'t."

He continued, "Alex, Olympus is not the place you think it is. We all have secrets we want to hide, and with you here, I think we all felt like we could have a fresh start, but it\'s impossible."

"It\'s impossible to escape your past."