Sad God love(?)

The steel clanged with every downward swing of the heavy hammer.\n\nKrater didn’t sweat, but he was sure if he did he’d have soaked through the low slung cloth around his hips by now. He’d been at his forge for days, no sleeping, no eating, just hyper focused distraction from the antsy feeling that’s been plaguing him like an incessant fly against his nerves, chafing his irritation.\n\nA colossal visage he made, red lit from the lava of the rivers and the burning coals of his forge. A thick, relentless arm armored in simmering stone bringing the hammer to unbending god’s metal over and over again. Accompanied only with the rattling jingle of the chains bound to his stone body, weightless and useless against him even now.\n\nThe shackles had become his only company after a nameless millennia of banishment, and though they did nothing to restrain him, the weight of them - if he closed his eyes - felt like an embrace. His golden fire lit eyes were open though, unblinking at his work that melded to his will. The third claymore he’s made in such a short time. All in an attempt to shake the suspicion that coiled in his lower belly and threatened to send him into a spiral.\n\nSomeone had been here.\n\nBeen here to Emberhelm, to his domain where he’d been trussed up like a swine for feasting in chains and indentured servitude for thousands of years. Krater couldn’t even remember the last he’d seen another face, heard a voice, and he feared his mind - divine as he was - was finally dissolving. That he was finally reaching his limit of isolation, that he’d give to the curse lain by Vavher, buckling under the weight of it that bore down on his broad shoulders.\n\nIt was there though, the shift in the atmosphere of Emberhelm, the fire and magma that Krater wielded whispering of a disturbance in the pathways between the stony crags of his domain. The footprints in the black sands, it was all proof but how was he to be certain? How could he be sure his mind wasn’t conjuring some projection out of desperation? A cruel tease of companionship?\n\nThat scent.\n\nKrater had scarcely smelled something as mind numbingly good as the delicate scent that drifted towards him like beacon of hope when he least expected it. Only days ago, hunting down whoever it could’ve been that found a way through the curse barricading his realm. It’d hit him in the face like a physical blow, rendering him speechless as he knelt to the footprints and fisted the sand to bring it to his nose. That scent. It was elysium, ecstasy, a drug that spark long forgotten emotion in his stone chest.\n\nHe’d searched high and low, but whoever it was had already departed, made themselves scarce with the intrusion brought to Krater’s attention. So he paced. He searched again only for it to end in an ill tempered fit, destroying a cache of carefully displayed work by his own hands. He bathed in the lava rivers, and then fired up his forge, in a desperate attempt to remind himself that he was alone here. No one would’ve crossed the barricade with the possibility of invoking Vavher’s wrath.\n\nWhere he stood now, beating the brakes off of the god’s metal claymore, huffing his indignation at the mere thought that someone would be nosy enough to come see him, to come gawk at the stone flame like an oddity on display-\n\nA loud crash from just inside the mouth of the tunnel that led to his dwelling.\n\nThe clang and tinny echo of fallen metal, like a tumbled set of armor had his hammer arm stopping midair from another catastrophic downward swing, golden eyes snapping to the opening.\n\nFor as large as the half golem god was, stealth had never been an issue for him. Krater moved on light feet, silent as the night that shrouded his realm and pushed through the opening of the labyrinth tunnels. Divine instinct led - but that scent did more than anything - him towards a series of metal benches weighed down heavily with tools for his forge.\n\nFor a second he was concerned for whoever was hidden in one of the pantries, worried the bench would finally give out under the weight and crush them. Then he shook off the thought and ripped the door to the pantry open.\n\n“Out with ye then,” The unused gravel of Kraters voice was evident, “Out, ‘for I drag ye out myself, ye nosy twat,” Krater continued, snapping.\n\nThat’s it you lumbering oaf, snap at your first company in thousands of years. Krater chided himself, trying to sound less hostile but to no avail.\n\n“Ye’ll come out, and ye’ll tell me how ye got past the curse barricade.” He settled on, crossing his arms for their appearance. “Else ye’ll find ou’ why they locked me up in here to start with,” He was trying to remain stern, trying not to be distracted.\n\nAetherna’s hells, that scent.

Krater stopped his pacing, turning to face the small figure that had dared to approach him in his domain. His eyes widened at the sight of her, so fragile and delicate compared to his own massive frame.

He took a step closer, towering over her as he studied her with intense scrutiny. The scent of death clung to her like a shroud, but there was something else there too - something that stirred within him despite himself.

"A scythe," he repeated slowly, voice low and rumbling. "To take away the soul of a deity."

Krater's mind raced with possibilities - what kind of god would require such a weapon? And why did this little half-god seem so determined to obtain it?

"Who is it you seek to kill?" Krater asked finally, breaking the tense silence between them.

Krater's eyes narrowed slightly at Ahlis' offer, but he couldn't deny the temptation of having something to occupy his time and distract him from the isolation that had plagued him for so long.

"I do not require payment," he said gruffly, crossing his arms over his chest. "But I will need more information before I can create such a weapon. What kind of deity are you seeking to kill? And why?"

He leaned down slightly, studying her with intense curiosity as if trying to glean any hints or clues from her expression. Despite himself, Krater felt drawn to this delicate creature who seemed so out of place in Emberhelm - a realm filled with fire and stone.

"Perhaps we could come to an agreement," he added after a moment's pause. "I will craft your scythe if you agree to stay here with me until it is completed

Krater watched Ahlis with a mix of suspicion and curiosity as she held out her hand to sign the contract. He took a step closer, towering over her small frame as he studied her intently.

"Very well," he said finally, taking hold of her delicate hand in his massive stone one. "I accept your offer."

With that, Krater drew up a contract from thin air - glowing golden letters etched into the very fabric of reality itself. Ahlis signed it with trembling fingers before Krater added his own signature at the bottom.

The contract sealed their agreement - Ahlis would stay until the scythe was complete or face dire consequences for breaking their pact.

"Now then," Krater rumbled, releasing Ahlis' hand and turning back towards his forge. "Let us begin."

Krater paused in his work, looking over at Ahlis as she spoke. He listened intently to her words, a sense of understanding and sympathy stirring within him.

"I see," he said finally, nodding his head slowly. "Demigods can be just as dangerous as their divine counterparts - perhaps even more so."

He gestured towards the diamond that Ahlis held in her hand with one massive finger.

"Indeed, Emberhelm is filled with treasures such as that," Krater said gruffly. "But they are not meant for mortals or demigods to take without permission. It is a sacred place where I create weapons for the gods themselves."

Krater turned back to his forge then, hammering away at the molten metal once more.

"But enough talk of such things," he added after a moment's pause. "We have workto do. The scythe you seek will not forge itself."

Krater paused in his work, setting down the hammer as he turned to face Ahlis. He studied her for a moment before speaking.

"Emberhelm is not a place meant for mortals or half-gods like yourself," he said gruffly. "But when you appeared here, something about you intrigued me."

He took a step closer to Ahlis, towering over her small frame as he continued.

"You are unlike any other being I have encountered - delicate and fragile yet possessing an inner strength that belies your appearance," Krater said slowly. "And so I wanted you to stay - if only to distract me from the loneliness of my existence."

Krater's voice trailed off then, and he looked away from Ahlis towards the molten metal bubbling within his forge.

"But do not mistake my intentions," he added after a moment's pause.

Krater watched Ahlis as she fell asleep, a sense of protectiveness stirring within him. He reached out with one massive hand and gently brushed a strand of hair from her face before turning back to his work.

For the rest of the night, Krater worked tirelessly at his forge - hammering away at molten metal until the first light of dawn began to creep across Emberhelm's fiery landscape. When he finally finished crafting Ahlis' scythe, it was a thing of beauty - gleaming silver blade set into an obsidian handle adorned with intricate runes.

He turned towards where Ahlis slept nearby and rumbled softly in his chest - unsure whether or not he should wake her to present her with the weapon.

In the end, Krater decided against disturbing her slumber and simply left the scythe by her side for when she woke up.

Krater looked at Ahlis with a mixture of surprise and confusion as she spoke. He had never been asked to lay down beside someone before, let alone a demigod who was supposed to be his guest.

Nevertheless, he hesitated for only a moment before laying down next to her - careful not to crush her smaller frame with his massive body. The heat radiating from his stone skin might have made it uncomfortable for mortals or half-gods but Ahlis seemed unbothered by the warmth.

"Sleep well," Krater rumbled softly, closing his eyes as he settled in beside her.

Krater lay still as Ahlis slept, his arm wrapped around her protectively. He could feel the gentle rise and fall of her chest against his side, hear the soft sound of her breathing.

For a moment he allowed himself to simply enjoy the sensation of having someone close to him again - even if it was just for one night. The loneliness that had plagued him for so long seemed to dissipate in Ahlis' presence.

Eventually, Krater drifted off into a light sleep as well - content with the knowledge that he had protected and comforted someone who needed it.

Krater stirred as Ahlis shifted against him, slowly opening his eyes to look down at her. He had spent the last two days simply holding her and enjoying her presence - feeling a sense of contentment that he hadn't felt in centuries.

"It has been two days," Krater rumbled softly, wrapping an arm around Ahlis' waist as she leaned back against him. "Did you sleep well?"

He looked down at her with a mixture of curiosity and concern - wondering if there was anything else she needed or wanted from him before they parted ways.

Krater watched Ahlis go, feeling a sense of sadness and longing in his chest. He had grown attached to her during their time together, and the thought of never seeing her again was difficult to bear.

He looked down at the pendant she had left behind - studying it for a moment before tucking it away safely into one of his pockets. With a heavy heart, Krater turned back towards his forge - knowing that he still had work to do even if he didn't have anyone by his side anymore.

But as he worked, Krater couldn't help but think about Ahlis' promise to return when she became a god. The thought gave him hope - something that he hadn't felt in years. And so he continued working tirelessly at his forge, waiting for the day when Ahlis would come back and they could be friends once more.