In the Cold, I'm Warmest With You

The Disappearance of the Maiden

"LOU... DOVIKOS...!"

The King of the Gods jumped in his seat, startled and alarmed, hearing his sister-queen shout with a frightening growl that reminded him of their father. He hesitantly turned to see her standing at his door, frowning and arms crossed. He quickly regained his composure, greeting her with his usual winner smile.

"My dear little sister..." he sighed as he stood up. "You know this isn't how you interrupt your big brother while he's working."

Loudovikos only received a cold glare, her eyes saying, 'How dare you mock me at a time like this?' prompting him to get into serious business.

"Okay, what's wrong?" he asked in resignation, approaching her and putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Have you heard the mortals' desperate prayers?" Herana asked back with urgency, placing her brother's hands away.

"Uh... no...?" he replied with uncertainty, looking back and forth between her eyes and elsewhere. "What's going on?"

The Queen of the Gods groaned as if suffering from a long-term migraine. "They're starving, their crops and water have dried up, and the trees are dying! Some have even died from hunger!"

"Wait, what? How?" The God of Thunder questioned in genuine horror.

"You tell me!" Herana turned angrier, thinking he had pulled off some apocalyptic prank, but her face slowly matched his after digesting his expression.

"I'm serious!" he reaffirmed.

She sighed, quickly calming down. "I know you don't have the heart to..." she mumbled. After a moment, she asked, "Where's Kayre?"

"Oh, she's probably in the Underworld with Dames right now," Loudovikos answered innocently.

Her eyes widened. "Why is she there when she was supposed to be in the Mortal Realm?" she subtly seethed.

"'Cause he's interested in her, he called her to his realm."

Herana only nodded. 'He should've come to me about that...'

"He went to see me here and asked for advice on approaching her." Loudovikos elaborated.

"All right," Herana nodded again. "How long has it been since that day?"

"I think..." The King of the Gods took a moment to count with his fingers. "It's been nine days?"

"NINE DAYS?"

Loudovikos stepped back, startled again, but quickly began to contemplate. 'The earth dying in nine days... How could that happen?'

"We have to get Kayre back to the Mortal Realm!" Herana grabbed his shoulders, snapping him back to reality.

"Wha- Why?"

"So that the earth can turn green again, you idiot!"

"This doesn't make sense!" The King of the Gods cried out in sincere distress, pressured by her stress. His sister knew him to be someone who often doesn't take many things seriously outside of work, but this time, he wasn't waving her off casually as usual. She only stood silently, waiting for his words.

"S-Sorry..." he whispered, seeing how frightened Herana was. "I seriously don't get it. Didn't we have, like, Mother Nature? She should be able to get the earth alive and growing again."

'Oh, so that's what he meant.' The Queen of the Gods thought long and hard. "Things don't work like that anymore, Lou."

"Huh? Really? So, she's not in charge of the earth's health now?"

"Yeah, since the Second Rebellion."

"How could our fighting back against Dad make her not in charge of the earth's health anymore?" At this point, Loudovikos was genuinely confused.

Herana calmed herself down so that her brother could jog his memory again. "Remember what Dad said when we won? He admitted defeat, and he allowed us to create a new system so that we could shape the world on our terms. 'We, the old generation, will step back for you, the new generation, to show what you have in store for the universe.'"

Loudovikos mulled over her words. "Kayre is the Goddess of Verdure..."

"And verdure means 'lush, green vegetation.'"

At long last, the God of Thunder finally put two and two together, expressed with a long gasp, his eyes widened, and his hands on his head melting down his face. "Ffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck..."

"And now you understand why we have to get Kayre back quickly, you forgetful buffoon."

"I'M A FORGETFUL BUFFOON!" Loudovikos wailed as he ran to a wall, banging his head once on it so hard that it cracked, and let out quiet sobs.

Herana saw his pitiful state and immediately approached him.

"There, there. Don't be so hard on yourself." She patted his back in awkward discomfort and genuine sympathy, letting him cry over his mistake for a while.

"Get Uncle Hermon to..." he sniffed, still facing the wall and waving his hand. He tried to get the words out yet failed as self-loathing overtook him and turned the rest of his sentence unintelligible.

"Of course. UNCLE HERMON!"

Not even a millisecond had passed, and the God of Speed arrived at the door. "Yes, Mini Lucius?" he answered half-heartedly.

"Go down to the Underworld and take Kayre back to the Mortal Realm immediately," the Queen of the Gods ordered.

"Right, and what do I get from this?" Hermon cocked his eyebrow. "You're making me work during a break-"

"Get her back, now," A smile formed on Herana's lips as she cut him off, but one wouldn't say the same for her eyes.

The messenger of the gods yelped and swiftly left the mountain in a familiar fear, grumbling right after.

"I can never escape him, can I?"