"Kairoosssss…"
I dragged its name purposely. I did it so I can tic off the little fur ball, which was now known as "Kairos."
"So, it's short for Karen or something?"
Kairos groaned, shaking its head.
"No, it's 'KAIROS.' K-A-I-R-O-S. No, it's not short for Karen, it's not pronounced as KARos, and it's not a nickname for anything related to Karen! Stop relating my name to such a useless, undervalued title! IT'S KAIROS AND IT'S PRONOUNCED AS 'KAIR!'"
I never expected someone so small to have such a terrible temper. I can't help but laugh at my own baiting tactics. I can be annoying when I choose to be, only when it's for a purpose. The purpose was the little fur ball being a jerk the first time I met it, and it trying its attempt to attack me. Actions have consequences kids!
"I don't know, I just don't believe it. You seem too tiny and puny for such a interesting name. I think 'Apasmara' would fit."
"Apasmara," in Hindu mythology, is portrayed as a demon-dwarf in which symbolizes pettiness, ego and ignorance…This little fur ball seems to fit the description. I can hear Kairos grumbling and muttering underneath its breath.
"Say, you appear to be rather a bit feminine for such a masculine name."
Not that it's a bad thing, of course. It's just common to see a woman have a feminine name, while a man have a masculine name. I don't have problems with it being the other way around. I wouldn't judge Kairos if it identified as a woman.
"Finally, something WORTH answering to."
"Well, not really." Kairos murmured.
"But if you are DYING to know, I'm a male. The king of all wishes. The Lord of giving."
I really don't care for that.
Well, he must've been a toddler or something aswell. The way he sounded was too high-pitched for a grown furry. That also goes for his appearance too alongside with his attitude. Though, if I asked how old he was, he would probably be the type to find it offensive since he was an unknown phenomenon.
However, that raises my third question: how many phenomenons are out there? I only met Kairos, who had claimed to be an unknown phenomenon as well, so there's a possibility that there might be other phenomenons instead of myself. Or there could be a fifty percent chance that he was probably lying…
'…But even if he was lying, then how would he know what a phenomenon is?'
I stopped in my tracks. Kairos gazed up at me, his unharmed wing twitched curiously as to why I stopped so suddenly.
I stared down at Kairos, hard. I was scanning every single detail that I could've missed. The white fluffy fur, the bunny-face structure, and the claws and wings. He couldn't be a phenomenon because most of the time it's either high tier creatures who take on the similar characteristics that Kairos have, or it was goddesses or gods who take forms like Kairos or humans, so that anyone or anything can comprehend it.
"Hey, Kairos, if you're a phenomenon, then why is it that you're not receiving any missions that I've shared with you?
…
He went silent. He only stared at me with his eyes widened.
I recall that I've mentioned that nobody wouldn't see the missions I received unless I gave another permission? That's what I've been doing all this time throughout the journey. In the cave, I unlocked a mission. A mission that was sent right after I managed to get Karios to be my ally.
"Back in the cave, I received a mission update…"
["Ugh. I'll do that. One who speaks will be given. I'm only doing it because I wanna gain my power."]
"[Whatever you say." ]
[-!DING!-]
[-MISSION UPDATE: YOU HAVE MET THE "ONE WHO SPEAKS, ONE SHALL GIVE.-]
[-YOU HAVE NOW BEEN GIVEN PERMISSION TO SHARE MISSIONS WITH YOUR ALLIES. SHARE LIMIT: 100.-]
"…And I've wasted at least two or three shares with you. So, why is it that you're not acknowledging it? Surely, it would've gave you a request button, no?"
We weren't even going the right way to the destination either. I was heading somewhere random—a spot that wasn't marked on the map—I was going the opposite direction on purpose just to see if he would acknowledge the mission requests I've sent.
Turns out he didn't if he wasn't saying anything, right?
"Oh, that was you?"
Huh?
Kairos sighed. He looked rather disappointed than annoyed. I was confused: was he not a phenomenon?
"I was choosing 'decline.' I can't accept it without the mentor's permission first."
He stated, pointing his claw at me. He snapped his neck to the other direction huffing through his nose as he do so.
Was I reading into it that much that I let those thoughts come over me?
"Then—why didn't you tell me to shut up or something? I thought phenomenons were allowed to share their missions freely with everyone with the phenomenon's permission?"
Kairos only laughed. He snapped his head back up at me, his wings fluttering with a bit of excitement yet annoyance.
"You do know that your mentor has to accept YOUR permission first before you do anything else above that?"
'Wha..'
"Gosh, how could you be a phenomenon that wants to help the world but doesn't even know what to do with your job?!"
Kairos fell on the ground, laughing with his legs kicking and his sharp teeth visibly sticking out of his huge smile.
'I thought…I could share it with anyone, as long as if I gave them permission… what the heck is a mentor?…'
I can feel my cheeks becoming heated. Was I overthinking that it made me look like a fool? I just completely embarrassed myself in front of another phenomenon that I so (partially) excited about …now there that phenomenon was; laughing at me because of my own stupidity and lack of knowledge of the missions.
Please stop laughing…
"I d-don't understand. How come you are a phenomenon, but you don't look like me at all?"
That's when his laughter began to die down. Kairos lets out a soft, huge sigh before sitting up and clearing his throat to regain his posture. I only let out a confused hum.
"..it's because I was cursed."
?
'After such a long time being free, the three sisters of fate decided that it was my time to overturn my own fate.'
'I was someone who was born exactly like you. I had beautiful smooth tanned skin that would be admired by others, I had long, thick black hair that I would take care daily without rest, I was able to move and fight while being free—as if I was a bird in the sky with my wings all opened all day and night.'
'Until; those days were now over.'
"YOU DARE CHALLENGE THE QUEEN OF OLYMPUS?!"
'Her cold fury was no match for me. Well, that's what I thought.'
'I laid there, cold and bloody. My sword was no longer in the grasp of my quivering hand. Her majesty stood before me. Those ox-eyes gazed down upon me, like I was no longer a human but a piece of flesh that she can toy with.'
"You isolent wrench. I would like to kill with the palm of my hands, but since you are merely a child who displays a sense of ignorance that I find deeply interesting, I will only punish you by turning you into something small."
'She leaned down, grabbing chunks of my hair since the rest of it was burned to a crisp. The voice; gentle yet cruel echoed inside of my ear. Her words made me feel dead inside.'
"Because that's what you're always gonna be. A small, childish bunny."
'I've developed a form that took an appearance of a weak bunny. Who no longer can feel its skin, nor the long hair that once was its beloved.'
'A curse that would never be lifted. No more matter who tried.'
'And those who tried, will meet the Queen's cold wrath.'
"…And that's how it all ended up like this. So you could say I was already a phenomenon, just not one who took up for the position to save humanity yet."
I can only stare endlessly at the grayish sky above us, my finger tapping on the soft cement on the rubble that we were seated on top of. The words that slipped out of Kairos's mouth hit me like daggers in my heart. The way he spoke about his history just made me feel a huge shockwave of emotion that I couldn't stop the itching sensation forming into my throat.
'Smooth tanned skin….long, thick black hair….free…bird in the sky….
…three sisters of fate…'
A tear rolled down my cheek.
I removed my palm from my chin, wiping the tear away from my face before he can notice it. It seemed that Phoenix must've been listening too since she had grown quiet for the past couple minutes now. I was trying to think of some words of reassurance. Kairos sounded too sincere that it just felt right to believe him. He can't be possibly lying if he expresses it with such raw emotion like that…
"…you know, I can only say something that I believe can bring you a new sense of hope."
I said, glancing at him for a second before looking back at the sky.
"There's always a new path to take. What if the form that the Queen of Olympus has cursed upon you, is much more important than you think?"
I sighed, praying that I was at least making some sense.
"A drastic change can mean drastic accomplishments. Even if you don't want to accept this new form of change, you must learn to anyway if you want to make a difference."
"Sometimes, things are just the way it is. You don't need to blame anyone else for it."
I wasn't too good at comforting others. I'm mostly taking on of what my older sisters would say for reassurance and encouragement.
It must've not worked. I can see how Kairos still looks disappointed. From what I've noticed so far, I assumed that Kairos wasn't that type of person to spill out any trauma to anyone. He would act so stuck up that sometimes you had to question if he was doing this to act tough or annoying…
…but now, he just looks vulnerable. He looks as if the trauma that he was holding really made him feel helpless inside. That trauma was hidden so well that Kairos felt comfortable enough to tell me that.
"Yeah, I guess."
I blinked.
I snapped my neck towards him.
Was he crying?
No, only a few tears. He was beginning to cry.
Kairos sniffed. His pink nose twitched as his wings flared down. I saw Phoenix wiggling out of the bag to come up towards him. I thought she was going to take this advantage to charge at him—
—but she curled up into his lap.
My eyes could only soften with pity. I scooted over closer to him. I gently wrapped my fingers around his furry shoulder, pulling him next to my thigh. I can hear the sniffles and cries coming from him.
It's better to be quiet. It's the least I can do.
-the author decides to fast-forward the scene due to the emotional impact that it caused. Mahina and Kairos are shifting a new leaf in their relationship. Kairos has requested Mahina if she can help him with gaining his powers back, making a deal with Mahina, who asked for him to stay by her side at all times. 'One who speaks, one shall give.' A quote that doesn't only imply to one person, but two people who speak their wishes and each will receive their wish. Mahina has given her respects and determination to Kairos's wish that he had spoken.-
-Remaining back to the scene.-
That was certainly a lot. Phoenix has grown tired by comforting the emotional Kairos. Phoenix was sleeping peacefully in the bag, while I was here holding Kairos in my hands because he has also grown tired crying his eyes out.
'Why do I feel like some sort of nanny?'
I asked myself, groaning as I realized how nannyly I've been acting towards these two wild beasts. I've managed to be the only person who have seen their most vulnerable state. Well, in different ways, but still. You cannot afford to be vulnerable in a place like this.
Though, I can't help but feel uneasy about Kairos's background. He was once a human too…but he challenged the Queen Of Olympus, one who's been heavily feared because of her relentless and vengeful nature—
—Hera, The Queen Of Olympus and the wife of Zeus.
Even I don't wanna come across her. I shivered even imagining about it. Hera was the second, or at least third, strongest Greek goddess in Olympus that you should think twice before messing with her.
'But, as a kid, I remember that she was afraid of—'
My thoughts snapped back to reality when I felt the ground humming underneath my feet.
I froze. What did Gia say again when she was gonna do this? How could I forget?!
'Crap! Whatever it means, I need to hide!'
I held Kairos close to my chest, grunting while whipping my head from left to right trying to find something like a ditch. The humming underneath my feet has grown quiet, leaving me alone in my own thoughts and my heavy breathing. My feet were too afraid to move on their own—this was the feeling I was experiencing back then—when I first arrived at the Menin Gate, I had a sense of paranoia constantly weighing my body down. I knew that something was bound to come.
But I don't know what—
WOOSHHHH!
WOOSHHH!
Those sounds. They were causing the ground to shake at such high frequency that it made the sound waves travel up my body. It woke up Phoenix and Kairos.
"Ugh, what's happening? Did you grow fatter or something?…what's up with the—"
WOOSHHHH!
A shadow hovered above me.
I turned my back slowly. My hair was softly swooshing in my face because of the winds forming from the impacts of the giant's slithering. Phoenix meowed in an alarming manner, while Kairos gasped loudly with his body tensing and his fur becoming fluffy.
"…A-TIER.."
I muttered, my eyes locking on the soft hue of the giant snake's yellow eyes.