He could only imagine the many stories she had told about golems, and was curious. Sometimes it was nice to just hear a story for the sake of enjoyment. Already he knew his children would be eager for the stories of his travels, as they always were, but he hardly did them justice. Speaking in literature was not his strongest suit, and such tales usually ended with them playing on the floor reenacting some of the adventures he and his wife had gone on. “Warning and caution…I definitely understand that.” After all, the golems came from a civilization that had crumbled. Whenever you reach towards the sun there’s always the risk of being burned. The former inhabitants of these skeletal ruins knew that lesson well.

“I’d love to hear one of your stories some time.” he smiled, his words true. “In my youth I would read every day, but rarely was it ever fiction.” He turned towards her when she permitted him to cast something greater on her, and he slowly moved his hands towards her. Heat resonated from his palms and he hovered them over her shoulders, watching as golden threads of light began to snake around her. The tendrils gently embraced her: he was blessing her, but spoke as he did so, “My parents, they didn’t give much time to ‘trivial’ things like stories and make believe.” Even though some might see that as cruel, he smiled. It’s just how his family was, and he loved them all the same,

“I guess I can see where they were coming from, but they always did tend to go a little extreme in most of their lessons. I wasn’t allowed to be alone with a female until I was eighteen. All the years prior, my brothers and I had to be accompanied by a chaperone if we were with a woman.” It still amused him, especially since he knew their reason: they didn’t want a distraction in his mind, and to them that was the possibility of romance with a woman. Unfortunately for them, he had always fancied both men and women, so if anything it just made his focus stronger on the former.

He pulled his hands back and the golden glow receded into her skin: she would carry the blessing with her now, “That was many decades ago though.” He continued their trek, his eyes out once more to make sure no danger could approach them unseen. “That blessing will last for a few days, enough to keep you safe from harm and to deter anything with evil intent. If you’re friends with anyone belonging to the undead then I suggest not touching them until it wears off…” He looked back over at her, “You’ll feel its absence once it’s gone.”

She chuckled and said, "Whenever you want to hear a story of mine, just ask. They're always fun to tell and watch other people's expressions." She watched him as he put the blessing on her. She widened her eyes and squeaked in surprise. She watched it for a while and listened to what he said.  She looked back at him and tilted her head. "Sounds like you had a very interesting family."

When it was over and couldn't help but shiver. "Wow. That felt….honestly pretty strange." She chuckled. "Luckily for me, I don't have any undead friends. I personally prefer to stay away from them and keep other friends."

He chuckled as they walked, nodding slowly as he replied, “That’s a word you could use to describe them.” It was a little odd talking about them with someone for whom he had no personal connection to. At times, he felt as though he were describing another person’s family whenever he brought them up, and the proof of their distance was made all the more apparent each time. Since Echo had given birth he had seen more of his brothers than he had in the last few years, but his parents…They still kept a safe distance, usually favoring a visit in some public place and not the temple. Prejudice was hard to break.

“Yes it can be a little…intimidating to some.” he was of course speaking about the blessing he had placed. He looked back over at her as he continued, “So what do you say?” A smile crept at the corner of his lips, only aiding in making him look younger in the face than usual, “The lightning will strike, but I think we can make it to the ruins safely if we keep light feet. Pun not intended.” So far he hadn’t heard any footfalls that would lead one to believe a golem was nearby, but for all he knew they were lying dormant at the remains of the old buildings. It was a thrilling possibility, and already the urge to hunt was returning.

“I’m hoping to gather a few things from the golems and if luck is on my side I can come back with a power source. Even if it’s long since gone dead, it would still be useful for information alone.” His eyes rose to the heavens, watching the muted veins of lightning as they pressed behind the bruise shaded clouds. Another strike would be upon them soon. He returned his gaze back down towards her and nodded at her in indication, “You’ll be kept safe with that blessing, but I would understand if it seemed too dangerous.” His smile returned, much more playful than it had been before.

She thought for a while and said, "I thought it was pretty interesting. I mean, I've never seen anything like it, but it was comforting."  She chuckled and said, "It felt like a kinda warm hug." She looked towards the field and curiously tilted her head as she briefly looked back at him. "Sounds good. I take it you will lead the way?" 

She lightly shook her head and said, "Don't worry, I can handle it. I'm usually not too risky in the face of danger, just tell me how else I can help you." She looked up at the clouds, watching for the lightning. She was willing to follow him out at any minute whenever he said it was a good time to cross.

He chuckled, his eyes moving out to the vast landscape. Even from here he could see the ruins, but with how often lightning struck he knew there’d be at least one hundred crashes between here and there. His speed and abilities kept him from being struck, and his immortality kept him from dying every time he did happen to feel that sharp electricity, but he knew not everyone held the same strength. Still, that didn’t mean you couldn’t have fun in the face of danger, even when he was a mortal he would have risked these lands.

They would have been excellent for training and he was amazed that none of his instructors had thought to bring him or his brothers here. Probably thought it was too dangerous, and no one wanted to be responsible for the death of a noble family’s son or sons…even if it was unintentional. Nonetheless, he started out with a brisk walk, his strides long and strong,

“Well, right now we need to listen for the thunder claps and watch the strikes. If we maintain touch I can teleport us forward every so often.” Of course he could easily go the entire way in a blink, but he still had the remaining eggs in his satchel that he wanted to charge for his children, “Though at that point we’d have to be quite close.” He laughed gently and started to jog, gradually easing into a run that soon became a sprint. His lungs were used to this and he called out to her should she follow,

“One of the eggs in my satchel has already been struck, so I’m nearly a magnet to the strikes right now. Should one seem too close, it’s best to crouch and lean forward!” His voice rose as another round of thunder boomed overhead. A strike had to be coming soon, and he moved his hand under the leather flap of his satchel and found one of the crystal eggs that still needed charging. At the very least he’d be able to direct a strike away from her since he would be absorbing it completely. “Of course, if you prefer, I can take us the entire way there and do this dangerous bit of business on my own later!”

She followed his lead curiously. She easily caught up, taking a few hops forward whenever he got ahead of her. She was used to a good run and helped others whenever she could. She occasionally looked over at him, tilting her head. She was extremely curious how this would go, but regardless how it would end up, she was determined to help however she could.

She lightly nodded and said,  "Alright then." As he began to run across the field, she broke into a slow run. Eventually she sped up, managing to keep up. "Don't worry, I think I've got it." She said with a small nod. She listened for any nearby thunder and followed his guidance. She shifted his position as she ran, just in case a strike was too close to her for her liking.

They were over half way there when the closest strike came: it was only ten feet to his left and he laughed as he pushed on faster. The next one would be even closer still, and he’d try to dive into it if he could, but he had to wait and be patient even as he ran, “I like your spirit!” He called out to her, “We should meet up again after all of this is said and done!” He was always drawn to those that weren’t afraid of a little danger and out for adventure. The ruins of the city came closer and closer and he felt the air around him thicken. Another strike was coming.

Not wanting to miss it, he quickly ran forward, following that surge, and pulled the second egg from his satchel just in time for the lightning to strike. His feet spread apart and he held the egg above his head, letting the strike run in at the top and all the way through. It spread out along his body, and while the egg absorbed most of it, he still felt the rush of power and electricity run through him. His white markings shone brilliantly with their boost of power as well as his body working to keep him safe, and he laughed when the strike was done.

Looking down at the egg, he smiled wider from the small veins of lightning that still passed along it before it was completely cooled down. That was two down, one more to go, though he doubted he’d get another strike any time soon. He instantly continued on with his sprint, feeling more rejuvenated from that surge, “Nearly there!” When at last he arrived it was to one of the many dilapidated buildings. His chest rose and fell quickly as he caught his breath, though he hadn’t stopped smiling as he looked through a crack in the stone to the streets of the city.

Discarded limbs and other useless parts of the mechanical golems littered the streets along with debris. They would be interesting to look at, but he doubted there’d be any actual power source dead or working in something as simple as a limb. Perhaps a head…He looked over at her, eager to keep moving, “Ready to go in?”

She softly chuckled and called back, "I've been through enough to keep myself going!" She ran after him, easily keeping up. She swung her hair away from her face and kept low, just in case and for her own safety. The thunder and lightening made her on edge a little bit, but she didn't want to show that she was nervous. She wanted to keep going and help in any way she could.

She ran after him again, lightly nodding as she heard him call. She started to slow down and stuck by his side. She looked over at him, and got her bow free. She lightly nodded again and replied, "I'm ready whenever you are ready to go. Its gonna be pretty tough, but I think we can handle it!" She gave a small smile before looking straight ahead.

He smirked when she readily drew her bow and nodded once, sharply, to her words, “We can definitely handle it. Let’s go!” With that, two white orbs appeared around his hands. Light wisped from them like smoke and trailed around their bodies to leave a thin layer of protection before he moved around the wall and more into the open. It was quiet, that kind of quiet where it felt practiced, and he knew that they weren’t the only ones there. His eyes swept from side to side as they ventured through, stopping every so often to inspect a piece, but so far not pocketing anything,

“So tell me,” He said as he knelt down and ran his light covered fingers through a metal shell that closely resembled a torso, “What’s the most terrifying thing you’ve ever done?” Being a traveler and storyteller like she was, she had to have seen her fair share of things, despite her youth. There didn’t seem to be anything of use other than what could possibly be the casing of a power source. Just in case, he moved it into his satchel and stood back up, dusting his hands off on his pants.

“No matter how old I get I still find things that make my back straighten faster.” It wasn’t often that he was afraid per se, his mind preferred to find a solution rather than linger, but that didn’t mean he didn’t hold a healthy respect for anyone or anything that could cause harm or be considered a threat. He kept walking, both fascinated and disturbed at how little lightning was striking in the ruins now. The old myth of lightning not striking the same place twice was discredited, but he couldn’t figure out why this patch was more dead in comparison to the open space around it.

She followed him with her own small smirk. She couldn't help but think it felt so strange to be fighting and traveling alongside one of the deities. She pushed the thoughts away with a small shake of her head, regardless this was going to be an amazing story, one children would especially love to hear. She listened carefully as they moved, looking over whenever she thought she heard something different.

She softly chuckled and looked back towards him. "I've done many things, some stupid and those that nearly cost me my life. I think one of the most terrifying things I've done is gone into a orc's camp to claim back some treasures that belonged to a village. When I went there, I thought the orc was going to be asleep and that it was gonna be an easy job. But I underestimated it and narrowly escaped with my life.  But, I did manage to bring back some of the town's treasures." She shivered at the memory, though it was a good story, it was too close of a call.

She looked over the area of dead grass as well. She lightly frowned and knelt down beside it to get a somewhat closer view of it. "Definitely interesting." She murmured to herself.