A suffocating pressure filled the air as the figure descended before me. His pristine golden curled hair illuminating with a deep glow; his face clean shaven and almost perfectly symmetrical, with only a few wrinkles strewn across his face to show some sign of his age.

A golden sash pinned above his right shoulder wistfully cascaded down and around the left side of his waist sitting comfortably atop a deep red tunic. Muscles bulged from his chest and legs as he knelt down to the lifeless body of Agreus.

"My son..." He growled from behind clenched teeth. His eyes met mine radiating with yet more golden light, forcing me to squint. "You... How could you have done this?"

The pressure exuding from this man forced me to retreat several steps. Despite my victory over Agreus, I knew I stood no chance. My knees buckled, reminding me that my time was running short. Lucifer's manifestation would kill me if I did not release it soon, yet if I did so now, I would be incapable of mounting any form of meaningful defense. My body would enter a comatose like state needing days to recover...

"Now is the time to flee, Desmond. We obtained our victory. Now go!" Lucifer seemed to regain his own sense of priority, his bloodlust immediately dissipating. He knew as well as I, that another blow against us now would be both final and fatal.

"You dare to murder the son of a god?" The man rose from his son's corpse. "Once I am finished with you, I will show Yarhibol the might of Apollo. None who partook in this plot that has caused the demise of my kin shall survive this day."

Needing no further prodding to take my flight, I spun on my heels and leapt away as fast as my enhanced feet would take me. Jumping off the tiled roof of the taverna, I landed in a tight alleyway behind the large structure. My legs groaned with the effort, threatening to give out.

Steeling my will I pushed on knowing that death was the alternative. I ran with everything I had, turning right, then left then finally right again I emerged on another main street. My momentum stopped as I considered which way to go.

The hair on my neck bristled and I swerved to the left instinctually. A golden arrow cut through the air just where I had just been, a crater blew apart the earth where it landed.

"Keep moving, do not stop!" Lucifer shouted as I ran down the empty street. Anyone who appeared quickly ran indoors or into another alleyway. Arrows split the earth around me with rapid succession as I sped onward, I did not dare to look back. I could not hope to save Theseus if I was dead...

*****

Sprinting hard with lungs that gasped for air, each arrow missed by mere millimeters. Small nicks and grazes had begun to cover my flesh. Each one a testament to my reflexes, but more importantly my luck... Which was slowly running out.

With each minute that passed, the pain would grow more unbearable. Divine white light had begun to shimmer from below my skin, cracking and breaking with iridescent ooze. My feet slid in the gravel as I turned sharply around a corner, only to find a dead end.

"Shit.." Cursing I considered attempting to turn back, but heard the 'thwung' of another arrow being fired in my direction. Dashing onward I did the only other thing I could think of; With a full sprint I leapt forward arms out, as If I was diving into a pool, crashing through a small square window and landing hard on the floor. A young woman yelped as a bloody half naked stranger landed on her bed.

I had not the time to apologize for the intrusion, nor the danger I had likely just exposed her to... Instead I simply broke through her door and into their hallway, barreling into what was obviously their living room. Several more people were here and all gasped aloud at my presence before barking curses.

I ignored them, rushing for their door and pulling it open. Dashing out the other side I found the one thing I hoped I would not.... Apollo and his drawn bowstring, floating off the ground before me.

"Listen..." I announced with raised hands, each word spoken between ragged gasps for air. "I was only defending myself." I had decided frantically in that moment that my only way out was to hope that he could be stalled or perhaps reasoned with.

"This isn't going to work, Desmond. But it can buy us time I suppose..." Lucifer declared, but I could feel him struggling to think of an alternative.

"Defending yourself? Of course I know that!" Even from the fifty yards distance between us, I could see his nostrils flare with anger. "I was the one who sent him to kill you!"

"Vacuus" I mumbled quietly under my breath, keeping my hands raised. The spell activated without any fanfare. I willed it to remain as small as possible while I continued my efforts to keep Apollo engaged.

"So if you sent him to kill me, and he failed, how is that my fault?" I called out, realizing too late the err of my poorly chosen words.

The bow snapped and an arrow carved through the air with homicidal intent. Deftly, I leapt backward, bringing my arm down and increasing the density of the void orb and creating a shield that quickly ate the golden arrow.

"Hey! I would happily be on my way if it wasn't for you and your son!" I added, hoping to at least logic my way out of this, sarcasm and attitude aside.

"I really do not think your words are helping, young Desmond." Lucifer growled.

"They don't need to... They just-" My vision dimmed again as I struggled to maintain consciousness.

"Ah, at last you loose your strength. Finally, I can put an arrow through your heart... Again." Apollo sneered down at me from above, his words laced with poisonous intent. I heard the faint sound of him drawing his bowstring and waited for the final blow, instead only to hear him grunt in a pain.

"Over there Ace!" I had never been so happy to hear Lilith's voice in all my days, a smile crept across my face as I fell to the ground, too damaged and exhausted to stand for even a second more.

Asterion's arm deftly scooped me up and threw me over his shoulder, trotting away with ease.

"Hey big guy, what took you so long..." I mumbled deliriously from his backside, craning my neck to see Lilith and her brilliantly black wings dancing through the sky with Apollo. My eyes refused to focus, but I knew their battle was intense as they darted around each other.

"I am sorry, Desmond. We came as fast as we could when Lilith sensed Lucifer manifest." His deep monotone voice set my heart at ease as I pulled myself further into his body, feeling his warmth.

"Ingenious! You were stalling for time in hopes that Lilith would find us! My dear boy, you do manage to impress!" Lucifer's praise felt good as well. After I had refused to listen to him earlier, it seemed like perhaps I had earned some level of his good graces back in my favor.

"Would have been great if they were faster though..." I answered Lucifer dully in my head, barely managing to stay conscious. I needed to sleep now, but there was one more thing that needing saying.

"North-west... Temple.... Theseus." I grumbled painfully as I felt the manifesting divinity finally dissipate from my body, gagging me with an all too familiar hurt.

"Thank you, my friend. Rest now, we will handle the rest." I felt Asterion pat my back gently as he ran, the sincerity of his voice cracking through each word. Relief and sleep finally washing over me.