She had never realised how banal her life had become.

Here she was, walking down the congested street, Starbucks’ macchiato in hand, scrolling down Twitter to check the daily news with the other, and fighting off a headache when the concept of it had been absolutely foreign to her less than a hundred years ago.

In a sense, she had become mortal indeed. Millennia ago her definition of fun were human adoration, enforcing peace and harmony wherever she went – especially funny if that halted a brawl or a battle, seeing the confusion in mortals’ faces when they stopped fighting was a treat – and wind surfing.

Now she was lucky enough she could afford to travel via plane if she wanted to move countries. Even if she couldn’t die – at least not to her knowledge – this life was the very definition of mundane.

Sometimes she missed it, her previous “her”, the life she forcefully left behind as humanity developed and progressed. The world now was sometimes too painful to bear, constant struggle, perpetual infighting between humans, their inexorable avarice being the root of their problems.

She is, or rather, had been the goddess of harmony, and witnessing the world as it was right now hurt her beyond belief.

She had learnt to let it go, however, as she realised she was not in a position to change things anymore, even if she sometimes wished for something greater than headaches and coffee.

And speaking of which…

“Ugh…”- What it felt like the force of a hammer being brought down on her skull assailed her for the umpteenth since she left the law firm buffet. It had been getting progressively worse the more she lingered outside, to the point it was getting impossible to push it to the back of her mind and ignore it.

She pocketed her phone and threw a glance down the street, crowded as always around the afternoon as she – and thousand other humans – left their jobs. At the rate people were moving, she’d be home in around half an hour maybe? Although…

She could always use the alleyways, less crowded, way filthier, but that’d reduce the walking time from half an hour to a handful of minutes, and that trade wasn’t one she was about to scoff at.

Mia hurried her pace, turning right and entering the street’s alleyways the first chance she had, instantly feeling respite as she left the cattle-minded workers behind, a feeling that lasted just as long as it took for the smell of week-old garbage and rotten food to assault her nostrils.

The goddess held back a gag, doing her best to hold her breath for as long as divinely possible, before making haste, drawing deeper into the dim-lighted suburbs, greatly aware that, from the moment she stepped into the place, three pairs of lurking eyes had been trained on her from the shadows.

They were looking to ambush her, no doubt, not that she was concerned in the slightest about it. It wouldn’t be the first time she had to deal with one or two thugs looking to mug her… or worse.

Their intent measured their punishment.

Or at least that was the case when she still had some semblance of power.

“Oi!”- One of them, clearly a man, called out from behind her.

And so Mia did, stopping, sighing, and turning around in that consecutive order.

“That’s right…”- The voice of a woman chimed in – “Give us your valuables and this won’t get ugly sweetheart.”

Muggers it was then. Two men and a woman, dressed in simple shirts and jeans, each handling a different type of pocket knife. The first one that talked was rather robust, more fat than muscle, yet clearly the alpha of the pack of misfits. He was sporting a leather jacket that was quite likely one size smaller, seeing at how it stretched to the point of almost tearing.

The woman was scrawny, pale and tattooed from head to toe. She held her knife with deft hands, twirling it around easily with a grace that was actually impressive.

“Oi! Didn’t you hear the girl! Valuables! Now!”- The third guy, way smaller than the first one, looked to be no older than sixteen. His hand was trembling product of the combined nerves and adrenaline, barely able to hold the knife which he pointed at her.

They didn’t look unorganized, in fact, they were probably on some local gang boss payroll. The girl was undoubtedly the brain to the first guy’s brawn, and then there was the new kid they dragged along to show him the ropes.

A classic, one she had no time to entertain.

“Listen, listen here, I’m aware of what you plan, and I’m really sorry you thought this was the best way of doing it, but I really REALLY should be getting home, I’ve got a killer headache and I’m not in the mood for this .”- She interrupted the talking man, surprising the trio, who stared at her with a confused expression. They probably hadn’t expected her to react so… naturally to the whole situation. - “Would you three accept a few hundred perhaps? Then we can all just turn around and go our merry way.”

The staring continued for a few extra seconds before the first two muggers erupted into hearty fits of laughter while the third just looked at them, mouth agape, his eyes indicating that he expected this to be a prank of sorts.

“I don’t think you know what you stand to lose”- Despite the previous great deal of amusement, the laughter died down quite quickly, and the leading man clearly wasn’t pleased. The mugger took a step forward, pushing the pocket knife even closer to Mia as he did. – “So, go ahead now, wallet and valuables.”

Mia couldn’t help but to roll her eyes, if she had kept count of the amount of times she had heard those lines this one would probably be in the thousands.

“… I’m going to repeat myself only one more time…” – She’d make an exception this time, seeing as she needed to tap into her powers reservoir – which wasn’t plenty to begin with – to make something up so they would bother her no more. – “Leave…”

The final word was accompanied with the bright and sudden yellow glow that permeated her hand, making it look like it was infused with fire, neat trick she pulled from a Netflix TV show. The muggers took a step back, bewildered, as she shortened the distance.

“…”- She eyed them from head to toe, both the woman and the youngest were trembling, having long dropped their weapons, only the leader looked composed, although he was betrayed by a nervous gulp. – “I said LEAVE”

A strong gust of wind blew past her, almost pushing the trio back before they could begin to scamper off hurriedly, tripping with one another as they ran into the streets. A few seconds later and she was completely alone in the alleyways again.

“Hmm… Looks like I haven’t gotten that rusty, ha!”- The stream of wind ruffled her hair, refusing to keep it down as she fought a contented smirk from arising, she shook her hand, dispersing the small visual effect she had conjured with the power she gathered. Muttering small congratulations to herself she prepared to set off again when she noticed something weird.

The wind had started to pick up the pace, was this her doing?

Her smirk was erased, leaving a confused frown in its wake. She glanced down at her hands, the magic that was previously there having completely disappeared already as she cancelled the spell, how come it was still that windy?

And to top it all off, her headache had returned, multiplied tenfold from the last time. She turned around, almost willing herself to break into a dash home before she was stopped by force of shock alone. Her eyes widened like platters, watching as a hole the size of a car had appeared in the middle of the alleyway, ripping the fabrics of space apart as its insides, dark as night, bore an ocean of pure, black bubbling darkness into the real world.

She tried to look inside but couldn’t, feeling her skull cracking under the pressure of something out of this realm, feeling the panic get hold of her as the sensation of dread reached a crescendo, threatening to make her entire body go into shock.

The alleyway began to darken, the chasm absorbing all the things it came in contact with after it pulled them to it. It had a gravity of its own, and the more time it remained there, the closer the sound of a laugh was heard. It had started slow, guttural, resembling that of an abomination, before taking a much girly and gigglier sound. Mia’s soul felt constrained, like a huge pull was tearing it outside her body, to the point the actual pain was unbearable, overloading her senses, leaving her seconds away from passing out.

Black wings emerged first from the tear in reality, protecting a body almost like a cocoon. Mia saw the slim tanned legs finally touching the floor before the wings extended in all their glory, pushing back, creating a small gust that ripped the portal back to its own reality – ending both the darkness and the magnetic pull it had on the nearby objects – and shoved the contents of the alley away. Her headache suddenly disappearing as she was allowed to breathe yet again, launching into a coughing fit, doubling over as the pain slowly receded.

The tanned lady released a moan that sounded almost seductive, either ignoring her or unaware of her presence there. Her eyes were closed as she breathed in and out rhythmically, as if savouring the breaths of fresh air.  She her lower lip before she finally opened her eyes, black as midnight, no pupil, though Mia knew she could see nonetheless.

Her jaw started trembling, she was scared, the aura of the girl in front of her was overwhelming to the point she had trouble thinking rationally, her mind losing any semblance of cohesion and levelheadedness.

“Er…”- The name died down and Eris finally pinned her gaze on her, now aware of her existence, she let out a delighted chuckle.

“Oh…”- Her feet made small splashing sounds as she walked along the remnants of the black ooze the portal had exuded - “How many years?”

“It’s…”- Words couldn’t even begin to form in Mia’s throat. Each time Eris took a step, it felt like she was one closer to death.

“Doesn’t matter, we are here now… you and I.”- Eris had finally reached her, making Mia gulp as she kept her head down, unable to see anything but the goddess’ legs, who was taking her sweet time examining her surroundings. - “Curious… this place is nothing like how I remembered things…”

The moment she finished saying that, shadows extended from her feet, travelling everywhere, slithering across the floor like snakes, quick and lethal. Mia instinctively closed her eyes and braced herself for impact, but no shadow touched her, steering clear from her frame.

Then they all contracted just as suddenly as they had erupted from Eris, curiosity making Mia lift her head to no avail, as an explosion in her immediate vicinity forced her to clutch her legs. Eris had blasted a nearby wall, leaving a gaping hole in it that allowed them to see the interior of what it looked to be some shady bar, currently unoccupied.

“Hmm… weaker than I expected…”- The dark goddess was looking at her right hand, puzzled, as she stretched her fingers. – “But I suppose this ought to do…”

Then she set her eyes on Mia again, and the grin that had been there a second ago resurfaced.

“You know, one of the things that kept me sane in that void back there was the thought of what I would do to you when I finally managed to gather enough energy to leave…”- Her voice dripped with honey, yet it made Mia’s entire body turn to stone. - “I just didn’t expect the Moirai, the weavers, to be so kind to me…”

“I… Listen… there’s no need for… whatever this is…”- Mia willed the words out, but her usual eloquence was nowhere to be found, not when she glanced up at the goddess that had sworn revenge at her.

“Oh but is there not?”- Eris abnormally big smirk grew even further, turning predatory. - “Wouldn’t you want retribution if you were so unjustly slain?”

“Yes… NO, I mean- “- Mia felt her speech returning, little by little, as she forced herself up. She was still weakened from the killer headache that had been there not too long ago, but maybe she could work to get herself out of this, as long as Eris remained open to negotiations... which, admittedly, didn’t sound like something she could depend on. - “We can talk, just not here, humans… this area is densely populated, so… uh… using your… OUR powers… ah…”

She scanned the place, the alleyway was deserted, and she doubted neither Eris would be held back if somebody else was watching, and even if they did it wasn’t like they could lend her a hand against the power of a god…

She took a step back in spite of that, her head already thinking of bolting around and making a run for the end of the alley. Eris’ gaze was still running around the place, her face switching between confusion and disdain every so often, now was her chance.

She turned around, taking advantage of the momentary distraction, only to find herself face to face with a smiling Eris, a sight that was nothing short of terrifying.

“Leaving so soon?”- She puckered her lips, clearly amused at Mia’s attempt to escape. - “Weren’t we going to talk about how you murdered me in cold blood?”

Mia didn’t bother responding, her arm reaching back as she tried to effectively command the winds once again, looking to push Eris back. Her efforts didn’t go as planned, as Eris answered with cat-like reflexes – apparently not quite dampened by the millennia spent in the afterlife – hitting her chest with an open palm with enough strength to send her reeling back a few meters.

“H-how…?!”- She caressed her right arm, raising to her feet before attempting to flee from Eris once more as the girl cackled in sonorous delight. It didn’t make sense, not in the slightest, how Eris powers seemed to remain mostly unaffected to the fundamental reality.

Her feet raced and so did her mind, searching for an answer so clearly out of her comprehension. Her magic was just too weak to answer back in kind, so the best option was getting out of there, provided she could outrun a goddess with wings and out for revenge.

She gulped, better not think about that particular point.

“Not so fast!”- Her race was brought to a sudden halt as she was forced to duck to avoid a flying kick that came out of nowhere. Eris glided, laughing every now and then as she aimed kick after kick, her shots picking up both in intensity and strength the more Mia dodged.

Eventually one managed to get her right in her chest – accompanied by a small joyous giggle from Eris – and she felt her entire body being roughly dragged through the cobble before coming to a stop as her back collided against some trash cans that were located to the side of the alley.

She held back both a whimper and a retch, ignoring the pain and the awful, stale smell that permeated the air and that would surely cling to her for the rest of the damn day, and only IF she managed to avoid the murderous lady in front of her…

She doubled her efforts as she watched Eris walking towards her, her eyes catching sight of a nearby fire escape ladder. She dashed towards it with all the speed she could muster, her body metaphorically groaning in pain, unaccustomed to receiving beatings like this one.

No sooner had she started climbing the damn thing that she felt a tendril of darkness grab hold of her foot, forcing her back down as she lost balance, her knees taking the brunt of the slam before giving out.

“This turned out to be good fun!”- Eris chirped – “Joy like this almost makes me forget about the whole “murdering” business… keyword being “almost” …”

Mia didn’t answer. She was panting, bruised, and she doubted her legs would cooperate any longer.

Why did it have to end like this? She was once strong, respected, resilient. Now she was just a mortal, was that it? Had she truly fallen so low? Yes, it was frustrating, being treated like such a joke, made it even worse by the fact that Eris didn’t seem to have her powers fading like she was, or why in the name of Zeus she had had the good fortune of appearing here, right where Mia happened to be.

It made no sense whatsoever, it had been three whole millennia since Eris died, gods never took that long to come back… She would’ve thought Eris to have been reborn somewhere else around two thousand years ago.

“Gkh…”- She grunted, her hands clenching to the point it hurt, a fickle spark of yellow light shrouding them.

No, she wouldn’t give her the satisfaction, she still had her dignity, her honor as a goddess, she wouldn’t be striped of that too!

“Oh ho…?”- Eris muttered, interested, as she stopped whatever clever monologue she had been preparing the moment she noticed the ever increasing yellow glow Mia was exuding. – “Finally decided to make this an actual challenge?”

Another taunt, just like back then, she wouldn’t fall for that again. Eris had a knack for underestimating people, she would be underestimated no longer!

She was going to show her what she was all about!

 “You said you wanted a challenge!?”- Mia’s head snapped backward, a look of pure, seething anger barely contained in her glare. Her arms launched forward, stopping mere centimeters from Eris’ body as the goddess watched, her intrigued expression turning to apprehension for the briefest of moments. - “Then. Take. THIS! HA!”

A small stream of greenish energy ignited from her hands, engulfing the dark goddess within it as the subjugating blast leeched every single drop of strength in Mia’s soul, plowing through everything in its way until it collided against an alleyway’s wall. It slowly melted the concrete, yet was unable to breach it, lingering for a few seconds before Mia succumbed to her own, mortal flimsiness and was forced to call it off.

Her next breath was more akin to a choking gargle as she struggled to contain her racing heart within her chest. The dust made it almost impossible to see anything in front of her, but the stillness of the place somehow filled her with calmness.

Had she done it? She sure had! Showed that braggart of a goddess