The Immortal Echoes

Chapter 1: Hephaestus

Hephaestus had found Harmonia after being on Earth for roughly a month. Zeus had sent him to the state she was living in, Oregon. He knew gaining her trust would be a difficult task. There wasn't any way around the task. Hephaestus had applied to work at the same company as her, he got the position fairly easily. Hermes brought him all the correct documentation for a mortal to work in the United States.

When Hephaestus first began working alongside her, Harmonia had joked about him giving her a cursed necklace. Hephaestus did his best to stay calm and not just up and tell her the truth. They had grown close as they worked for a activist group who had been trying to help anyone who asked from any state.

"Heph? Why don't you talk about your family?"

"Honestly I was wondering when you would ask. My father and mother never loved me. They claimed to, but my leg tells a different story. I have multiple half-siblings because my father is a man whore. There is just way to much drama."

"Could your life sound any more like the actual life of Hephaestus? Well, we Greek names have to stick together."

Hephaestus laughed and was happy to see her smiling. Since he had joined, Harmonia's eyes seemed brighter than before. In all of the lives he watched her, never once had she felt as bright like she once had with Cadmus. The memory alone caused his smile to falter. Harmonia would be devasted if she remembered. He had debated telling her a story close enough to the truth and asking for advice, but he was scared she would figure out who he was. She had always been more observant than others would have liked. Which in turn made things harder since Hephaestus had grown to truly care about her. The thought of giving up and leaving occurred more than he wanted to admit.

"Hey, are you in your head again?"

"Sorry just thinking about a deal I made."

Her face lit up. Harmonia had learned to love drama and gossip, though she never sought it out, only listened when it was brought up. Hephaestus was starting to like that about her.

"My father and I struck a deal. I had to do something on my own and he would do something for me, but if I failed I would be stuck here. Honestly the ladder doesn't sound as bad as it did when I was younger."

"Hephaestus Olympian, you can do anything. Tell your dad to get the stick out of his ass or put one in there to loosen him up."

Hephaestus couldn't hold in the snort and burst of laughter which left his throat. He hadn't heard anyone say something in regards to Zeus since Prometheus took the fire. The two of them talked about random things until their lunch was over and they had to return to their respective desks.

Hephaestus was working on a case where a child is in an abusive household and isn't sure how to leave. His boss, Abigail, had been assigning abuse cases which involved children to him. He seemed to have a way with the kids, whether they were teens or small ones. However the one he was working on currently hit a little too close to home for him. A small boy had been thrown out of a two story window by his mother at his father's request. The boy had shown signs of both physical and mental disabilities.

Harmonia was usually the one who helped him when he was stuck on a case, but Hephaestus felt the need to do this one on his own. The boy, who was around nine now, had been brought to a group home. It was the safest place for him until either he was placed with family who could protect him or a foster family who wasn't in it for the money. Just the thought of those who manipulated the system angered him. Eris had to have a hand in the faulty systems of the US.

He let Harmonia know he would be back, or if he wasn't he would stop by her apartment with pizza. The ritual had become part of their daily lives not long after Hephaestus' arrival in Salem. Hephaestus drove down to the Albany area to speak with the boy. Though he feared scaring the boy, he knew a conversation was needed.

Hephaestus arrived roughly an hour later to the group home. The head of the home greeted him and showed him where to go. Alone, waiting to knock on the door, Hephaestus felt like a small child again, watching his parents fight about him over and over again. Knocking twice, a small voice allowed entry.

"Hello, I'm Hephaestus, but everyone calls me Heph. What is your name?"

"David. Are you here to talk about my mom and dad?"

Hephaestus nodded. Not wanting to get the topic out quickly, they talked about the good things about David's parents. However. the list was shorter than Hephaestus would have liked for a boy so young. Slowly the conversation moved onto other people in the family who may want to take him. Unfortunately, he was more unwanted than Hephaestus was.

"I'm gonna suggest you be placed in a foster home. I will check out any potential parents who might take you. David, I won't let any harm come to you if I can. No child should be harmed by those who are supposed to love you."

Hephaestus rubbed his leg as he spoke. Talking about his family multiple times in one day has put a toll on his mind. The two talked about what sort of placement David might want and those he wouldn't. Hephaestus would work alongside David's social worker and hopefully make this happen sooner rather than later.

Around six-thirty, Hephaestus finished up with what he could of David's case. Harmonia lived in Albany, he grabbed Little Caesars'. It was quick and he really didn't want to wait at Pizza Hut or Dominos. He made his way to her apartment, something about today felt different.

Harmonia opened her front door not long after Hephaestus' car park, he still had issues with driving a modern vehicle, but Area had taught him to drive a motorcycle in the eighties roughly. Cars where different and felt wrong. On his approach, there was something off about Harmonia. Without dropping the pizza, Hephaestus rushed to her side and guided her into the home. Upon closer inspection, she had been crying. The only time he had truly seen her tear stained face was the day she begged to join Cadmus as a serpent.

"What happened?"

"The girl whose case I was working on, she.."

Hephaestus didn't need to hear anything more. He knew she had lost someone. Not caring about the pizzas, Hephaestus made quick work of gathering Harmonia's form in his arms. There was never a day he thought Harmonia would show weakness around anyone, she had always been one of the strongest goddesses he knew. Seeing her now, after the pain she has been through, Hephaestus realized she had been holding in the pain she had felt for centuries.

"Har, you did everything you could. Sometimes people aren't able to handle the pressure." Hephaestus took a breath, "I had contemplated suicide more times than I would care to admit. The only thing which stopped me, my friends. Without them I wouldn't be here."

Harmonia held onto him tighter. He never meant to share his past feelings about self-harm, but Harmonia needed to hear people can survive their trauma with the right amount of support. They slowly migrated to the couch, the pizza long forgotten while they held each other and calmed down.

While they sat on the couch, Hephaestus began to truly look around the apartment. His main focus had been locating Harmonia and gaining her trust. Her small two bedroom apartment, which she had gotten for a decent rent before Covid-19 made the rent increase ridiculous, felt homey yet distant. The living room was painted a taupe shade with minimal pictures hanging on the walls.

Harmonia's apartment was close to the historic district of Albany—essentially the downtown area—Hephaestus had done his research on the town and learned about the Monteith family who helped found the town. He knew living somewhere with a history helped her feel some connection even if it wasn't one with her specifically.

The more he looked around a realization occurred to him, Harmonia didn't have any pictures of her foster families or her friends. Just her alone or with her coworkers. His naivete cursed her with isolation. There had to be more than work for her. Nothing could have prepared Hephaestus for the harm her had caused her involuntarily.

"Can I ask you something?"

Harmonia nodded, "Of course."

"Why aren't there more pictures? I mean, I come over everyday and have for the last three weeks and I am now just noticing."

Hephaestus noticed the tension increase in her shoulders. Had he hit a nerve? Nothing made sense to him anymore. The Harmonia he once knew wouldn't have felt fear about talking about something like this.

"Can we talk about anything else?"

"Har, what happened?"

"Drop it."