Det. Kyle was seated in his partner's living room and quietly tapping his right foot. It wasn't the first time he'd been there, but this was the first time he's been sneaky about it. He had been missing from work for two days straight. He and John had been trying to piece together every detail they could get about the assassin who made an attempt on his life.
So far, they've managed to come up with two suspects. Kyle's biggest suspect was obviously Raymond. After all, Kyle had been investigating him, and Raymond was also the last person Kyle had been involved with that would have a motive to come after him.
John, on the other hand, had another perspective. He proposed that there was a shadowy organization that kept everyone in the dark. As much as John's 'Men in Black' theory was absurd, there was a sense of truth in it.
In fact, not long after Kyle was rescued, a drone stationed right above his house caught several concealed men sneaking into his house the following night.
This incident supported John's theory, but while the theory was sound, there was still the matter of proving it without getting 'erased' as John put it. That's what brought him to his partner's house. Kyle needed to stay hidden for as long as he could without causing too much suspicion at work.
When Kyle joined ISI (Intelligence and Supernatural Intervention), he had a clear picture of what was going on and understood the need for secrecy. This meant that he couldn't use his authority as a local police detective, nor could he use the Department's resources without breaching the confidentiality agreement he signed.
That was where his partner came in. Kyle needed a believable cover story for his absence and who was a better accomplice than his partner. John had protested about it; he couldn't give a better alternative.
It was during Kyle's wait that he felt an overpowering urge to find all his enemies and anyone whom he'd ever disagreed with and set them straight. He was startled at first, but at each passing second, that feeling grew stronger; it was like the feeling was moving towards him. Kyle was confused, but not for long.
A very tall and completely naked woman walked through the front door. Kyle's confusion cleared, but only because something more powerful took over him, he shuddered, and his knees gave out. Using his arms, Kyle feebly dragged himself away from the naked woman.
The naked woman turned her gaze towards him, and at that moment, Kyle felt his whole body go numb. "Interesting, I've even forgot how satisfying it was to expose myself to mortals."
A guttural voice spoke. "Get up, Kyle!"
Kyle stopped dragging himself away. Something about the voice of the naked woman was familiar.
"That's better! Sorry about earlier, I tried as hard as I could to pull back my power, but some of it still slipped past my control. I guess am a little rusty." Eris then paused and turned her head from side to side as if looking around. "At least only this neighborhood is affected."
"What are you?" Kyle asked after finding part of his spine.
"Oh! I love this part…" Eris giggled and tiptoed to one of her couches before taking a seat, cross-legged—completely unperturbed by her nudity.
"…Your ancestors called me the Merchant of Disaster, despised and equally feared to the bone…" She smiled and had a faraway look. "…Made Ares jealous. You see, unlike me, he's the real deal."
"To the rest, I'm an Olympian, a goddess too, but you know me as Detective Lucy Ross," Eris replied.
Kyle's head spun. Nothing made sense, but, in that turmoil, there was something new that nagged him, and he couldn't help but ask. "Did you order for me to be killed?"
After that question slipped out, several others fought for a chance to be heard. Kyle's face became a bundle of emotions. There was perplexion, doubt, anger, then finally—realization.
"It's nothing personal. Believe me, even if I didn't, someone else would," Eris didn't deny it.
Kyle slowly stood up; his face darkened. "Well, you failed! And now your secret out. Humans won't be in the dark anymore."
Eris laughed. "And this concerns me why? Or did you really think we're afraid of you?"
"Why hide then?" Kyle asked, while his hand reached for his waist and unholstered his gun.
Eris never made a move to stop him. "Things are a lot more complicated than you think."
Eris then went into deep concentration, as if recalling an old lost memory. "There was this beautiful young woman—she was hands down the prettiest. Many men lusted after her. Her whole existence revolved around fending off an endless supply of suitors.
"Fortunately for her, she ended marrying a king. But unlike how most good stories have a happy ending, her's was just beginning.
"Unknown to her, forces beyond the young woman's comprehension turned her into a chess piece. I think you know how the story goes." Eris stopped staring into space and looked right into Kyle's eyes. Her glowing yellow eyes and feline-like pupils still unsettled Kyle. The hair behind her back also seemed alive and cascaded down her back like ocean waves.
"Hellen of Troy," Kyle stated. His face was gaining some color as the seconds ticked.
"She was indeed a beautiful woman. But that is beside the point. You see, this poor woman was the highlight of not one but two conflicts. She quite literally stole my thunder…and me? All I ever got were the consequences."
"The gods had a conflict too." Kyle's eyes narrowed as he came to a conclusion.
"Very astute. Too bad, I ruined you." Eris pitied Kyle before her demeanor changed from nonchalant to stone cold. "It's always the little things that cause the biggest upset. During the Trojan war, many Olympians took sides despite Zeus forbidding it and almost caused another civil war.
"But in the end, order was restored, and the culprits behind it were punished. You could say that this was Zeus' last straw and, since then, forbade all interaction between gods and humans without his approval. It wasn't until his death did some gods start taking liberties."
"So, you're saying the gods are protecting us?" Kyle found that scenario weirdly comforting.
"Since the beginning. Humans have always managed to find a protector. It started with Prometheus, then Athena picked up the slack. Throughout time, plenty of protectors sprang up around the globe—each leaving a memory that your kind worshipped—but ultimately, your race gained the ultimate protector, Zeus. But Zeus did it mostly out of self-interest."
"Why tell me all this?" Kyle asked. He was almost back to his old self, but he still had the urge to go after all his enemies.
"I can't help it. It's my nature," Eris shrugged.
"Are you going to go back?" Kyle asked. He had so many questions, and now he wanted answers.
If he hadn't been scared of Eris, then he would have long dragged her back to the Black Site and have her properly interrogated. Now he was worried Eris would leave and mentally slapped himself for not recording everything he heard.
"If only that were possible," Eris sighed. "I was banished for almost instigating an all-out civil war among my kind. Nobody wants me around. I can't say that I blame them. I'm a walking disaster magnet."
Kyle couldn't help it when his heart began racing. "You could always come with me."
"Haven't you been paying any attention at all! I just told you whenever I go trouble follows." Eris was exasperated.
"We'll work everything out," Kyle pushed on, nonetheless. If he could get her to talk and gather as much evidence as possible, then his task will be accomplished.
"Really? Just like how your career worked out." Eris snapped, causing Kyle to shrink back. "Even without actively using my abilities, I still influenced you. You went from being the best detective the Department ever had to being put on probation. You're currently one strike away from being dishonorably discharged."
Kyle remained silent, part of him didn't want to admit it, but his career…and life were hanging in the balance. This is also why he came to his partner for help. Now his partner—whom he trusted—just told him his life sucked because of her.
Kyle couldn't help but feel numb. He felt worse now than he did before he came to Eris' home. He decided to take a seat. His first thought was to call John, but John might bring in a team to capture Eris.
If everything that Eris made him see and feel were real, then that would end up in a disaster. Not to mention, Eris was still a cop. One missing detective was bad enough. Two would make headlines.
As for whether the headlines would be about two missing detectives or mass murder of federal agents and a cop, that was a gamble Kyle wasn't going to take.
"I have answered your questions. I'm hoping you will answer some of mine?" Eris asked after seeing Kyle had no more questions. Frankly, she didn't care much about the turmoil Kyle was currently experiencing. The road ahead of him won't exactly going to be smooth from here on.
Kyle looked at his partner for quite a while, sighing. "You want to know how I survived?"
"Yes. I'm very curious. I didn't expect a normal human to survive an encounter with a Silent One."
Kyle had no intentions of telling Eris anything about ISI. "I got lucky."
"Fine! Keep your secrets." Eris stood and looked Kyle in the eye. "I hope your luck doesn't run out because you've caught the attention of a very powerful entity. They will be coming for you, and not even the Department will be able to save you."
After that, brown mist spread around her body, and in the blink of an eye, Eris disappeared.