For a brief moment after the dragon fell, the mountain felt… still.
The wind carried ash and heat away from the corpse of the Black Dragon, its massive body cooling against the stone. The tension in the air loosened, like a bowstring finally unpulled.
Hercules rolled his shoulders, letting out a slow breath. "That's it, then."
Ares said nothing. His gaze lingered on the fallen creature, as if expecting it to rise again.
Then—
The ground shifted.
A faint cracking sound.
Then another.
Hercules frowned. "…you hear that?"
The stone beneath them fractured.
Bones forced their way through.
Hands first—skeletal, clawing upward—followed by arms, then skulls dragging themselves free from the earth as if the mountain itself had been seeded with the dead.
Dozens.
Then more.
Then too many to count.
Ares' expression sharpened instantly.
"…undead."
The skeletons rose fully now, empty eye sockets fixed on them, rusted weapons forming in brittle hands.
Hercules cracked his neck. "No rest, huh?"
They moved back-to-back without speaking.
This time, there was no hesitation.
The first wave came.
Ares' weapons formed mid-air, cutting through bone cleanly, shattering skeletons as they surged forward. Hercules met them head-on, fists and raw strength breaking bodies apart, sending fragments scattering across the mountain.
But for every one that fell—
More climbed out.
"They just keep coming," Hercules muttered, smashing another skull beneath his heel.
Ares moved faster, his strikes precise, efficient. "They're not the threat."
Hercules glanced at him. "Then what is?"
Ares' gaze shifted briefly to the ground.
"…whatever is raising them."
But there was no time to search.
The numbers pressed in, forcing movement instead of strategy. They cut, crushed, and shattered their way through wave after wave until, slowly, the tide began to thin.
Not gone.
But manageable.
And then—
Just as suddenly as it began—
It stopped.
The remaining skeletons collapsed where they stood, lifeless once more.
The mountain fell silent again.
Hercules exhaled sharply. "Alright. I'm starting to think this place just doesn't like us."
Ares didn't reply.
But something in his expression lingered.
A question without an answer.
—
They didn't stay.
The return to the academy was quieter than the journey up.
Less tension.
More thought.
—
Back at Dreadspire, the halls felt smaller after the mountain.
They stood once more before Zeus.
He listened as they reported.
The dragon.
The fight.
The aftermath.
The skeletons.
At that, Zeus' eyes narrowed—just slightly.
But it was gone as quickly as it appeared.
"You've done well," he said simply. "Better than expected."
His gaze lingered on both of them again, that same quiet evaluation beneath the surface.
Then he turned away.
"That will be all."
Hercules stretched lightly. "Guess we're done here."
He glanced at Ares. "Next time, we don't hold back."
Ares gave a small nod.
Hercules left first.
Ares followed soon after.
—
The academy had returned to its rhythm.
But something in Ares hadn't.
As he walked the halls, his thoughts didn't linger on the dragon. Nor the skeletons.
They circled back—
To the field.
To the moonlight.
To her.
Aphrodite.
He hadn't seen her since that night.
Not once.
His steps slowed slightly.
Just enough to notice.
Just enough to think.
—
Elsewhere—
Aphrodite turned a corner quickly, just missing a group of passing students.
"Okay," Ignis said from behind her, arms crossed, expression unimpressed. "That's the third time."
Aphrodite blinked. "The third time what?"
"You avoiding him."
"I'm not—"
Ignis stared at her.
Aphrodite's voice faded.
"…okay, maybe a little."
Ignis sighed. "You disappeared after the party. Now he's back, and suddenly you're busy every time he's within ten feet of you."
Aphrodite looked away.
Her face warmed.
"I just…" she hesitated. "I don't know what to say."
Ignis raised a brow. "You kissed him. That usually narrows down the conversation."
Aphrodite flushed deeper. "Ignis—"
"I'm just saying," Ignis continued, dryly, "running away isn't exactly a strategy."
Aphrodite looked down at her hands.
"…what if he regrets it?"
Ignis paused.
Then shrugged lightly. "Then he'll say it. He's not exactly subtle."
Aphrodite let out a small breath.
But she didn't move.
Didn't turn back.
—
Somewhere in the same halls—
Ares stopped walking.
For no clear reason.
The sounds in his mind stirred faintly again—the distant echoes of battle, always there, always waiting.
But beneath it—
Something else lingered.
Quieter.
Unfamiliar.
Not war.
Not blood.
Something harder to name.
He stood there for a moment longer.
Then continued walking.
Unaware—
That just a few corridors away—
The person he was looking for—
Was doing everything she could—
Not to be found.