He stepped into the light—and the world vanished.
The portal swallowed Megumi whole, pulling him from the mountain winds and Ava's voice into a blinding vortex of divine energy. For a moment, he floated. Disoriented. Weightless. His wings flared, trying to stabilize him, but the magic warped space around him, bending gravity and time into a spiral of gold and judgment.
Then came the pain.
A bolt of celestial lightning struck him in the chest.
Another lanced through his shoulder.
Megumi screamed—but the sound didn't echo. It vanished into the void as his vision blurred and everything faded to white.
⸻
Olympus – The Sky-Prison
When his eyes opened, the first thing he felt was cold.
Not the chill of wind or night, but the sterile, soul-sapping cold of divine stone—crafted not just to hold, but to break.
He lay on his back in a prison carved from starlight and storm, the walls lined with celestial chains and runes that shimmered faintly every time he moved.
He tried to sit up—but his arms wouldn't budge.
His wrists were bound in thick cuffs glowing with Olympian script, tethered to the floor with chains forged from Zeus's own thunder.
His wings were gone.
His aura muted.
His halo flickered like a dying flame.
And he was alone.
⸻
Footsteps of the Divine
He heard them before he saw them.
Sandaled footsteps echoing down the polished corridor beyond his cell.
Then came her voice—calm, composed, but laced with quiet authority.
"Hera," he muttered.
The goddess of marriage and Olympus's queen stood before his prison, her golden eyes cool and calculating as she observed him.
"Megumi Valentine," she said softly. "The mortal boy who rose too high, too fast."
He didn't answer.
Hera stepped closer, her robes flowing like liquid moonlight.
"You're dangerous," she continued. "Unpredictable. A creature of chaos masquerading as a savior."
"I'm trying to stop a monster," Megumi growled. "The one who murdered my sister. The one who almost killed Ava."
"And in doing so," Hera said, folding her arms, "you've torn the veil between mortal and divine. You struck Erebus down. You've taken powers that do not belong to you."
Megumi's voice cracked with restrained rage. "They chose me."
She tilted her head. "That's what we're afraid of."
⸻
The Judgment of Olympus
Later, he was dragged from his cell.
A golden chariot of light carried him—still in chains—through the white marble halls of Olympus, past towering statues of the gods who now saw him as a threat. He was led to the throne room.
The twelve Olympians stood in a perfect circle, robes billowing with power, halos bright and cruel above their heads.
Zeus stood at the center, arms folded, eyes like storms.
"Megumi Valentine," the thunder god boomed, "you stand before Olympus accused of divine trespass, destabilizing the realms, and wielding forbidden power."
"I did what you couldn't," Megumi spat. "I protected the people you ignore."
Ares stepped forward, armor clanking. "You disrespected the gods. You killed Erebus."
"Erebus tried to erase me," Megumi said. "He almost killed Ava."
"Your personal attachments don't justify chaos," Athena said sharply. "Even noble intentions can lead to ruin."
Zeus raised a hand.
The room fell silent.
"You are to remain imprisoned," he declared, "until the gods decide your fate."
"And if I refuse?" Megumi challenged.
"You don't have that choice," Zeus said coldly.
Lightning arced across the marble floor.
⸻
Alone Again
Back in the cell, hours later, Megumi sat in silence.
The walls pulsed softly with divine energy, reminding him that even gods could be cowards when afraid.
He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.
They feared him.
They should.
But fear wasn't what drove him now.
He remembered Ava's hand in his. Chloe's laughter.
Their faces kept him grounded.
And then… something stirred within him.
A whisper.
Faint.
Echoing inside his mind.
"You don't belong in chains, child."
Megumi's eyes opened.
"They fear you because they see what's coming. You will not die here. You were never meant to kneel."
His heartbeat quickened.
A second voice—darker, ancient—joined the first.
"Accept us. Accept the throne they tried to bury."
The stone beneath his chains cracked slightly.
His halo flared again.
Megumi clenched his fists.
And whispered:
"I'm done waiting."
Megumi closed his eyes and thought about Ava he heard her voice tell him to not give up
megumis halos glowed when he opened his eyes they were glowing gold