"I know you're not dead, useless child of Zeus."
He twitched. Lightning cracked down his arm, sparking from his fingers. The moment he touched the shadow beneath him, it exploded—shattering like liquid glass.
But the shards didn't vanish.
They stretched, pulled thin like black threads, twisting midair into sharp, noodle-like strands that lashed down and wrapped around him, sealing him to the ground.
Kael didn't even blink.
His red eyes locked onto the others. His voice dropped—dark, steady, echoing like it had come from something deeper than the earth.
"Now… let's start from the beginning," he muttered, releasing the bind.
They stepped forward, one by one.
The first moved too fast for someone who'd just been bound. His chest was high, but his feet hesitated.
"Zeor. Son of Zeus."
Kael didn't blink. The boy's voice almost cracked.
The next tried sharper.
"Posra. Daughter of Poseidon."
There was pride in the way she stood—but it didn't reach her eyes.
A third, calmer.
