Chapter 86: Byzantine, 1090 CE
[Hagia Sophia, 1090 CE]
In a dimly lit room beneath the Holy Wisdom, two men were working on something that could possibly destroy the entire building. A small blue cube was floating on top of the two men, with chunks of metal also floating in front of them. One of the men that had dark skin had golden energy wrapping up his hands, focusing on the metal in front of them.
“You know this is a terrible idea right? The entire castle would explode if we did something wrong, not to mention, this is the space stone.” said the man nervously.
“It’ll be fine.” rolled the other man who had purple eyes.
“If you count the entire empire collapsing because the emperor and his heirs are dying because of the explosion, then yes, of course it will be.” said the dark skinned man, who is Phastos, sarcastically.
“Are you that unconfident with my skills Phastos?” asked the other man, which is Pluto, in amusement. “I have magic, remember? I could just teleport us instantly anywhere if it comes to that.”
Phastos scoffed. “Magic, the solution to everything these days.”
Pluto just chuckled, and both of them continued to work on the metals in front of them. Occasionally, the cube would create beams of energy that melted the metals, and Phastos would shape it to the shape of a spear, slowly but surely.
“How’s the emperor?” asked Pluto, making some small talk.
“The Pechenegs invaded Thrace again,” said Phastos darkly. “What is it with humans and their wars…”
“You lived with them for centuries, Phastos, surely you know by now.” Pluto answered calmly, continuing on beaming the metals.
Phastos hummed, but he didn't elaborate. He then continued to make small talks with Pluto. “So, how’s Anna’s study?”
“She is still seven years old, but I could tell, she’s quite a bright girl.” answered Pluto softly.
Phastos groaned. “I could tell this is going to be some kind of Helen’s situation again.”
Pluto chuckled. “Not really… but she looks… similar… to her.” murmured Pluto. “Perhaps she’s Hermione’s descendant? Who knows.”
“Now that would be a stretch.” stated Phastos. “But it's possible.”
Pluto just hummed, and diverted the conversation. “So how about your mission, giving them any technology that could burn entire kingdoms?” said Pluto sarcastically.
Phastos scoffed. “No, Ajak wouldn’t allow me, I did give them some theories about the earth and Physics though.”
“What kind of theory?”
“That the earth is round,” said Phastos nonchalantly. “Apparently, people believed that the earth is flat, so I gave the theory to someone that the earth is round.”
Pluto hummed. “What else?”
“Also timezones.” added Phastos. “While people know that in different parts of the world the time of day is different, no one’s written about that, so I just gave the guy the idea.”
Pluto sighed. “Well, good, at least you’re not giving them more weapons ideas…”
Phastos frowned as he heard Pluto’s words. “What is it with you trying to stop me from teaching humans technology?”
“Don’t get me wrong Phastos, I’ve had no qualms with it.” shrugged Pluto. “But someone might.”
“Who?”
“Druig,” said Pluto. “As you know, he seems to hate human wars. And technology could very well increase the casualties of wars.”
Phastos was silent for a little while, before answering. “While I could see that my technology somewhat has a negative impact on human beings, the positive impact dwarfs the negative impact, so in the end, it is worth it.”
Pluto sighed. “Well, it is your job, and it is your responsibility, I just hope that you won’t be burdened by the consequences.”
As the room went into a comfortable silence, the two kept working on the metals in front of them, their hands moving as if they were weaving threads, the beams of the blue cube lit up the place periodically, and slowly but surely, the metals took shape in the form of a spear.
“Eh… maybe let’s make it a bident instead?” commented Pluto, making Phastos annoyed.
“Are you kidding? A bident is not an effective weapon, it is made for moving hay Pluto, not killing deviants!”
“I know, I know… but I was just attached to my old bident you know…” Murmured Pluto. “How about making the spear tip wider, and make a small gap in the middle, so I could shoot my beams between it?”
Phastos sighed, and did as Pluto asked. Spear tip went longer and wider, and in the middle of the tip, a gap appeared.
The spear is now done.
“Try it.” shrugged Phastos.
Pluto hummed, and grabbed the spear that was floating in front of him. As he touched the spear, the enchantments activated, the spear glowed red, heat coming off of it.
“Neat.” Pluto commented. “What should we name it?”
“It’s your spear, you name it.”
“But you helped me make it.” refuted Pluto. “I’ll ask you to name the spear.”
Phastos then thought for a second, before snapping his fingers. “How about Persephone?”
“What? You want to call my spear ‘Bringer of Destruction’?” questioned Pluto in amusement.
“Hey, I’m just saying, you destroyed a kingdom, I don’t know if you will destroy another one.” Shrugged Phastos.
Pluto chuckled, “Fine, let’s call it Persephone then.”