........ Is A Guaranteed Loss

"How?"

Newt scrambled over to the board, looking at the two competitor's sides. Seeing Nike's cards, he shut his eyes and shook his head, disappointed at the outcome.

"You managed to save enough and acquired the big ones."

"In summary, yes," Nike agreed. "Now I believe you owe me a favor."

Looking dejected, Sharina remained hunched over the table, nothing escaping her lips. She looked too shocked to believe she had been outsmarted by a two-thousand-year-old god with years of experience and strategy on her side.

"Well fuck it," she huffed, looking away from the board. "What favor?"

Thinking hard, Newt interrupted Nike before she could speak, agitating the Victory goddess slightly.

"You said you were going to your master's side?"

"Of course, I'm indebted to Zeus."

Pinching his nose, Newt squeezed his eyes shut, frustrated with himself for having not foreseen the outcome. Then again, he blamed Sharina for senselessly jumping into a game she had a fifty-fifty chance of winning.

"Just tell us what you want us to do," Newt said, deciding not to openly push the blame on Sharina.

Facing Nike, Newt ignored Sharina's glare. She had been expecting him to have reacted with an i-told-you-so manner but was put off by his casual sweeping aside of her loss. He had decided to put the situation behind them and complete whatever task they had to do quickly so they could rescue their friend and self denounced leader.

"My siblings." Nike sighed, sitting on the table with the board and pieces still on it. "Bia, Kratos, and Zelos were captured by Kronos forces upon his arrival."

"And you want us to save them," Sharina finished, taking her eyes off Newt.

"Of course," Nike agreed. "I would love to accompany you both, but I cannot risk leaving Zeus' host unguarded. Assuming you manage to free even one of my siblings, I will join you in saving the rest."

"So we're proving ourselves?" Newt thought aloud. All the myths he read usually included a mortal hero attempting to gain the favor or aid of a god by going through trials to prove their worth and devotion. He had a feeling the victory goddess was no different.

Shaking her head in disagreement, Nike stared out the window, as if lost in thought. "If I go with you now, the host of Zeus would be in grave danger. You'll need one or all of my siblings by his side if you're going to get the cure for whatever the Aeternae put in him."

"Whatever they put in him?"

"You weren't aware?" the goddess looked surprised but gathered her shock within seconds. "Maybe because you haven't fought more brutal beings, but your regenerative abilities should be obvious by now"

"Oh wow," Sharina remarked, subconsciously rubbing the spots where wounds had formed from the last battle. "Who knew what a little sleep could do?"

"You would still require treatment though, but your healing process is reasonably faster than the average human. The stronger the connection you have with your host, the faster it repairs your wounds." Pacing back and forth, Nike continued. "The Aeternae that shot my master's host traced its horn tip with gorgon blood, which would kill a normal human or even a minor being, but channeling the power of Zeus must be preserving his life."

"The lightning he controls is somehow neutralizing the poison?" Newt guessed but was met with an odd look from Nike.

"You humans have weird ideas," she muttered, though rather loudly. "Zeus' power is simply preserving the boy. There's no in-depth explanation to it."

Silently fuming over his idea being swatted aside and practically stomped on by Nike, Newt faced Sharina. "So we have to save three gods."

"Yes," Nike replied, finally coming to a stop. "I presume you know your way to the immortal realm?"

"We were supposed to find Janus," Sharina spoke up, now turning to face the victory goddess. "Any tips?"

"Janus?" Newt cut in. "That's where we were going next?"

"Yeah, Hades said it was the only way to crossover to their plane or whatever. Didn't pay much attention to the details."

Nodding in agreement, Newt figured the god of doorways would be an ideal choice for accessing wherever they were going to.

"But if he's in charge, how come Kronos was able to send the Aeternae here?"

Scowling, Nike hissed. "You underestimate the power of the Titan Kronos. Even in his weakened state, you must run away if you happen to cross paths with him."

"Avoid Kronos, got it," Sharina noted. "Now, back to Janus."

"He's not on the island."

Freezing for a brief second, Newt tried to grab the information thrown at him. Unlike Sharina, he had never stepped foot outside their island. And while he was eager to explore the outside world, the thought of heading out sincerely frightened him. Comporting himself, he managed to swallow down the nervous lump that lodged in his throat. Thankfully, Sharina picked up the conversation.

"So you expect us to leave everything behind and head out? What would we tell our parents?"

"That is your problem," Nike said bluntly. "You asked for information and I gave it to you. Janus is currently running a business somewhere in West Africa."

"Why do I feel like you left out the illegal?"

"Because it is Africa?" Nike frowned. "Sounds racist."

Flustered at her poor choice of words, Sharina tried to correct herself. "I meant something illegal would suit Janus more. Hades called him a two-faced prick."

"Nice of Hades to compliment him," the goddess chuckled. "Do be careful when you meet him. He can be crafty, but he submits to power."

"Sounds like fun," Sharina grumbled sarcastically. "When do we leave?"

Newt was sure Sharina referred her question to him, but Nike took it as hers and answered.

"Right now." Waving a hand across the air, in the direction of the duo.

Newt stepped forward to correct the mistake, but he realized his mouth had vanished. And so had his legs. Panicked, he frantically searched for Sharina, only to find nothing but a wisp of grey smoke. Facing the goddess, he went for a vulgar hand sign, but luckily, his hands had faded into grey wisps. All he could do was give Nike a malicious glare before his face shimmered out of her sight.

"Try not to die."