Page 78 of Crimson Skies

Cassius’s perturbed expression told her he was thinking along the same lines.

Hypnos indicated the empty space around the fire with a friendly gesture. “Please, sit.”

They folded their legs and settled uneasily on the ground. A strained silence befell them.

Hypnos broke it. “Loki said he was lost.” He smiled politely. “Are you lost too…?”

He studied them expectantly.

Atropos hesitated. She pressed a hand to her chest. “I am Atropos.” She indicated Cassius. “He is Icarus.”

Hypnos didn’t react to their names.

“Hello, Atropos.” He dipped his head solemnly. “Hello, Icarus. My name is…” His voice tailed off. “My name is…”

His shoulders sagged, his expression growing despondent.

“It is Hypnos,” Cassius said quietly.

Hypnos brightened. “Oh!Thank you, Icarus.”

Atropos stilled. There was a childlike quality to Hypnos’s voice. One she’d never heard before. It filled her with dread.

She’d tried to use her powers to divine her future after she was dragged into the Abyss but had found she could no longer do so. The question that had filled her thoughts before meeting up with Cassius blazed at the forefront of her mind once more.

Was that why I couldn’t foresee Icarus’s fate beyond the Abyss opening?Because we were destined to end up here?

Cassius’s voice jolted her out of her dismal contemplation.

“To answer your question, we aren’t lost, per se,” he told Hypnos sedately. “We just don’t know where the way out is.”

“Oh.” Hypnos’s face fell. “Are you afflicted with the same condition as me?”

Cassius’s gaze turned probing. “What condition would that be?”

Hypnos scratched his cheek.

“I have the most terrible memory,”he confessed sheepishly.“I’ll probably forget your names in a while.” He fiddled with his fingers, not quite meeting their eyes. “Does that mean you intend to leave?”

Atropos’s chest tightened at his strangely bereft look.

“Yes.” Cassius’s tone had turned gentle. It seemed he’d picked up on Hypnos’s guileless demeanor. “I’m afraidour friends are waiting for us. They’re in trouble and we have to help them.”

“Oh.” Hypnos blinked. “I’m sorry to hear that.” He pondered Cassius’s words for a moment. His jaw set in a determined line. He bobbed his head curtly. “I shall ask Grandfather if he can assist you.”

Ice filled Atropos’s veins. Cassius and Loki froze beside her.

“Grandfather is so kind, I’m sure he’ll be able to help,”Hypnos continued, seemingly unaware of the trepidation thrumming through them. His expression saddened. “He’s told me who I am more times than I can count, and how I ended up here, but I can never remember his words.” He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Isn’t that awful?”

A stark realization struck Atropos.

The reason Hypnos sounded so young and naive was because he had regressed. She knew then that Elios’s twin had lost his mind after using his divine powers during the War in the Nether, when he’d erased the memories of all who had been there.

Grief tightened her throat. Atropos rose, went over to Elios’s twin, and pulled him to his feet. “No, it isn’t awful.” She cradled his face and stared into his startled eyes for long seconds before pressing a soft kiss to his brow. “It isn’t awful at all, brother.”

“That tickles,” Hypnos mumbled, his ears reddening.

He gasped when Atropos hugged him. Tears swam across her vision as she listened to the steady beat of his heart.

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