33 The Goddess of Warmth

I was, well, I was just dumbfounded. I didn't think that there would be someone able to use void save me.

"Wait, you think Hestia trained me?" Plamya had this 'Duh' look on her face. "Why would you think that?"

"Uhm, because you need the blessing of the torch, something that only she can give, to use void. Wait, are you saying you didn't get blessed by Lady Hestia?"

"Nah, I didn't. I'm guessing we're meeting Hestia, since I'm too lazy to explain so I'll let her do it." She kept trying too get me to explain but I just sat down on the floor and observed what was going on in the lobby.

After half an hour Hestia came out of the elevator. She was shocked to see me here. I just calmly waved at her.

"What's he doing here, Plamya?" Her voice contained a hint of anger.

"I want answers, so I brought the thing I needed an answer to the most here, him."

She sighed. "I guess you both deserve to know. Now Plamya, he isn't my student like you, nor was he blessed by me. Leo, why don't you help me explain."

"Oh no, this is your mess and although I only understand half of the problem, I don't fix other people's messes."

She looked like she wanted to gut me. "Plamya ask your questions."

"I would like to know how he is able to use void without being blessed by the torch."

"Oh, that is the one question I myself do not know the question to, although I can take a guess."

"Ok, second question, I didn't notice this untill being in here for a while with him, but he is on the path ascension to godhood, if you haven't trained him then who has?"

"My niece trained him." Plamya looked at me in surprise.

"Weren't you the only surviving god?"

"I was, but during the godly war, Hephaestos did something that nobody could've expected. He gave all of us a special artifact, once we'd been hit with an attack that would destroy our soul, it would protect it by letting the attack cut the connection of the soul to it's body and then putting it into our personal artifact.

The interesting thing though was that the artifact he uses has a goddess' soul inside that belonged to one who died before Hephaestos did it, so I don't know how she survived."

I looked to Athena, silently asking if she knew. "I think I know yes. When we got married he said that I ..."

"Wow, wow, wow. Hold the phone, did you say married? Didn't you take an oath to be a virgin forever?"

I had said this out loud, not taking into account that Plamya was here and would be extremely confused.

She looked at Hestia with a questioning face. Hestia explained that I was talking to the spirit that resided inside my pen.

She chuckled. "Didn't Zeus take an oath to be faithful when he married Hera? Gods and Oaths don't go mix well.

Anyway, as I was saying before you so rudely interrupted me, when we got married, Hephaestos gave me the pen and said I'd never need to fear death again, I thought he meant that in a 'this pen is a symbol of my protection' kind of way but now I'm guessing he meant that literally."

Hestia repeated everything Athena said so Plamya got the whole picture.

She nagged at me because she wanted to know what god was inside the pen but I ignored her. "Hestia, next time it's necessary for her to know something about me just tell her."

I wanted to leave but Plamya stopped me. "Before you go, you should know that because of you surviving missions above A-rank, you can rise in rank to C-rank, you could've risen to D-rank after your first mission but we have a policy to at least wait two missions before ascension when someone is E-rank."

She touched her ID and mine vibrated. I checked and saw this golden message. 'ID:666 666 666, holder has been approved for ascension to a higher rank. Next ascension test to C-rank is in 2 days, please prepare accordingly. To make sure that the holder isn't on mission, you have now been blocked until the test has been conducted, enjoy.'

"Why the enjoy?"

"Oh, that was Strongarm's idea, don't ask."

With that I left.