Ch. 89: Greetings From the Fates
The slund had not come from the machine itself but from behind Hephestus.
I watched as Hephaestus and Hermes turned back, their eyes wide with shock. A black crack had appeared in the air a few feet behind them, as if the very fabric of reality had been torn apart by an unseen force. It shimmered ominously, and for a moment, everything in the workshop felt colder, darker.
"Dammit! Those damn bitches, they're here!" Hephaestus cursed over the whirring hum of the machine as it charged up.
Hermes staggered, his face pale as if the crack had somehow drained the strength from him. Hephaestus had warned me this might happen— that the Fates would appear if we tried to alter time. That's why I left behind the only two people I trusted to hold them off long enough for us to travel back.