This greeting was created by kmaysing.

One Month Earlier

The sky deepens into a bruised purple, the color of something wounded and festering. Clouds gather fast, thick, heavy, and churning, forming an ominous wall that stretches across the heavens like a warning.

A sudden crack of thunder splits the silence, and I whirl toward the sound. Wind howls through the trees, yanking at my clothes, tangling my golden hair into a wild, shining mess. Dust and debris whip through the air, stinging my eyes as I shield my face with one arm.

I need to find it. Them. Time’s running out. Then I see it.

There, at the edge of the abyss, where the world falls away into shadow, a lone figure stands. Cloaked in dusk, they stretch out a hand toward the impossible. My stomach lurches. Are they opening the Gate to Tartarus?

Panic surges through me like wildfire. “No!” I shout, voice swallowed by the wind. The figure turns, slow and deliberate, their eyes locking with mine through the storm. I know that face.

I bolt upright in bed with a gasp, drenched in sweat. My chest heaves. The blankets are twisted around my legs like chains. I blink rapidly, trying to pull myself back to reality. “A nightmare,” I whisper, running a trembling hand through my tangled hair. “It had to be just a dream.” I pause. “Right?”

But my heart isn’t convinced. I sit in silence for a long moment, the air around me still heavy with dread. “No mortal could open the Gate,” I say aloud, trying to ground myself. “The Titans are sealed. That kind of power... it's ancient, impossible.”

I force myself to lie back down, closing my eyes tight. There’s no way.

Present Day

The blood drains from my face. I freeze, locked in place as the world keeps moving around me. Mortals chatter and laugh, unaware. But I can’t hear them. All I hear is the thunderous pounding of my heart in my ears.

You’re here. Alive and walking among the other mortals. My gaze cuts through the crowd, tracking you with laser focus. You weave between people effortlessly, unaware of the divine eyes fixed on you.

There’s something about your movements. They're too familiar, like a song I wish I could forget. “Please…” I murmur under my breath, voice cracking. “Don’t be them… don’t be the one.”

But then you turn and I know. Time stops as our eyes meet. The dream crashes back into me like a wave, your silhouette at the edge, the Gate yawning open behind you, the shadows of the Titans rising from the deep.

You. You are the one...it wasn't a dream...no it was a vision. I feel cold all over. My knees nearly give. “No…” I whisper, stunned. “It’s true.” I can’t look away. I won’t. Not now because I know what happens next. You will open the pit...you will set hell loose and dooms us all.