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Chapter Thirty-Three

Hebe

P rometheus stiffens at my touch, clearly startled, but he doesn’t pull away. And I have enough passion to make up for his passivity. Not that I have the experience necessary to compensate, but I’m devoted to learning every single thing I can— starting with what my husband tastes like.

I pull away when I cannot go without breathing a moment longer. But I still cling to Prometheus— because I wish to and not because I need to, since the power in my limbs has only grown stronger.

My husband gapes at me. “That was . . . different from the other kisses.”

Giggling, I run my fingers through his hair, finding it silkier than I imagined. “There is so much I have yet to teach you about our mortal bonding traditions.”

Prometheus smiles, but it’s softer than I expected, with none of his usual eagerness to learn. Instead, he cradles my face with one hand, tracing a finger down my jawline— likely following the path of his glowing power flowing through me..

“What should we call this process?” I ask, restlessness making me want to rush off to the next discovery since apparently Prometheus isn’t as excited to learn new skills as I am. But it would also be a great sin to pull away from my husband while he gazes at me like I am the one treasure he’d never give up. “Since no one’s ever bonded like this before, that means we get to name it, right?”

“Right.” Prometheus ducks his head, pressing a kiss on my neck where he bit me to begin the process. “I want to call it a ‘Kiss.’”

“But that’s already a mortal term.”

Prometheus proves my point by pressing another kiss to my throat. “But the Primordials should have their own kind of kiss, too. And it’s not like the two are incompatible . . .”

Giggling, I pull away from him and twirl, all the new power surging in me turning into nervous energy. “Primordials . . . Tell me, how do you take on other forms?”

My husband frowns, looking confused. Then understanding dawns and he nods. “My Kiss must have bestowed my innate curiosity.”

“I want to know everything!”

“And I want to give you everything.” Prometheus takes my hands in his and grins like we aren’t standing in temple ruins.

Temple ruins . . . “Where’s Atum? How is he?”

Prometheus scowls. “Atum is with Dionysus. He will recover after the temple rebuilds itself, but that doesn’t matter.”

“ Rebuilds itself?” I glance at the half-collapsed structure that hasn’t changed since last I gazed upon it.

“Olympian temples weren’t built by man and cannot be destroyed by them.”

I turn back to Prometheus. “Mortals did this?”

He pulls me back into his arms, tucking me beneath his chin. “Zeus apparently had the same idea we did to bypass temple protections by using mortal servants. I tried to warn you, but I wasn’t swift enough.” Prometheus’ fingers claw into my back, like he’s frightened the mortals will return for me.

The horror of the experience washes over me, and I forget my new power for a moment as I tremble in my husband’s arms.

Prometheus kisses my temple. “But enough about that. They are no longer important, and neither is Atum. We are all that matters now, and didn’t you ask to know how to shapeshift?” He pulls away enough to grin at me. “Let’s see what this bond is capable of now that you’re . . .”

“Bonded to you?”

Shaking his head, Prometheus gently caresses my face as darkness hovers in his gaze. It’s clear that he’s remembering when I was like a corpse in his arms before I— “Awoken,” Prometheus whispers. “You’re Awoken now.”

“Am I . . . immortal?”

“According to the Tablet, your life is now bound to mine, and I intend to live forever, so . . .”

I stagger away as I consider the consequences.

I’ll outlive Puraltas. I’ll outlive his daughter and his daughter’s daughter who isn’t even born yet. Everyone I’ve ever known will fade away.

Or they will be wiped out because I failed to steal Zeus’ Fire before Prometheus had no choice but to Kiss me. Am I now barred from Zeus’ temple? Have I proven to be an unworthy sacrifice for my people, and now their lives will be forfeit?

My legs buckle, and I crash to my knees.

There has to be another way. I have new power surging within me. Mayhap if I can discover how to manipulate it, I can find another way to steal the fire. And, failing that, I can defend my village, at least.

“Hebe, look at me.” Prometheus stoops down to cup my face and force me to gaze up at him. “Whatever haunts you, banish it from your mind. All that matters is you and me. I’ll l keep us safe. I’ll keep you safe forever.”

I stare up at him, desperation to help warring with my desire to learn. But the last hope of the former is the latter. “Your ability to change forms . . . I want to know if I can do that now, too.”

It won’t change my being part-Primordial now. But if I can find another mortal to steal the fire, I can aid them better if I can take on other forms. It will also make it easier to check if I truly am barred from Zeus’ temple.

More than anything, I must know.

Prometheus must sense my desperation, or else he’s just relieved I’ve moved on from my failure. “We can only take forms of animals or people that we have seen; our abilities are limited to our existing knowledge.”

“It is a good thing you are always seeking it.”

He grins. “Yes. Though I suppose it’s true that you can take the form of something you have only imagined. Just don’t expect it to match something else if you were trying to blend in. Oh, and we don’t just take on forms— we take on properties associated with those forms. Well, to an extent. If I take any other Primordial form, I still have only my abilities, not theirs. The new skills are available only when becoming new species.”

“So, when you are a bird, you can fly.”

“Exactly! And I instinctively know how to do so as well.”

I move to a crouching position and lean forward. “How do I turn into a bird?” Birds are certainly useful forms to be able to take.

“Let’s start with something simpler first.”

“Well, I wasn’t saying I had to transform into a falcon .”

Prometheus pats my hand. “Let’s start with a mouse, and if you have the ability and the energy, we’ll work up to a bird.”

Biting my lip, I nod. With the strength flowing through me, I doubt that will be an issue. It’s possessing the ability at all that’s my concern.

I must know for certain. “Tell me how.”

Nodding, Prometheus releases my hand and stands back. “Close your eyes and imagine a mouse.”

Obeying, I think of one of the little pests I’ve had to chase out of the hut.

“Once you have a clear mental picture, imagine yourself shrinking into a matching form.”

I do, and my skin tingles. Air rushes past me, and then I’m on my hands and feet on the ground.

Opening my eyes, I find myself in semi-darkness, something pressing against me. Panicking, I duck away, scurrying toward the light.

The moment I can see, everything around me looks much larger. Except for my hands, which are ridiculously small and pink.

I wiggle my nose in confusion until my giant of a husband kneels in front of me, far larger than I’ve ever seen him before. He scoops me into his hands and draws me up to his eye-level.

Prometheus beams at me. “Congratulations, my Awoken bride. You have taken your first form.”