Hephaestus had tidied up one of the spare bedrooms on the second floor for Kye to use in the coming years of his training. As he entered the room, he noticed that there were no funrishings besides the rather simple bed in the right corner of the room and a plain looking dresser for his clothes.

"Now young man, this is where you'll be living for the forseeable future. Sorry about it being bare but i'm not one for the luxuries of this world. I prefer function over form."

"No ma'am, thank you for letting me stay with you."

"Hmph, for a kid with your upbringing you've sure got good manners. I'm used to snotty brats who grow up having it all expect the very best."

Kye gave a wry smile.

"My parents always told me that no one was beneath me, because the only thing that matters in life are your accomplishments. I haven't done anything with my life yet, so I can't demand anything more than i'm given."

Hephaestus nodded and turned her head back to look at Ashton.

"Good to see that your success didn't make you egotistical and that you had enough sense to teach that to your kid."

Ashton smiled.

"I wouldn't be where I am today without the help of many people. Humility is an important part of power and responsibility."

"While I like that way of thinking, the kid is gonna struggle with that mindset in the Divine Academy. A little bit of arrogance goes far when trying to establish a presence."

"I believe that he will find his own way, just as I did."

Ashton looked at his son from behind. He saw a small child with a large back capable of carrying the extreme expectations set out by those who didn't even know him. While he and his mother would always love him and would proctect him in his hour of need, they both knew that the boy they cherished would be forced to grow up a lot quicker than others his age just to cope with the thoughts of those who would never know him. He would likely be secluded here for the next five years as he trained every day to try and awaken his powers. He would miss out on the socialisation aspect of pre-academy life, it was a fact that Ashton resented. Why did it have to be his son who had to go through all this hardship? Though he knew his grievances would never be answered, he still felt the need to ask questions. His thoughts were cut off by Kye asking a question.

"When can I start training?"

With a small smirk, Hephaestus replied.

"Tomorrow young man, Ares and Thanatos should be here by then."

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She turned to Ashton.

"Say your goodbyes, it will be some time before you'll see each other again."

Nodding, Ashton hugged Kye strongly.

"Be good son, make sure you do everything they tell you to do. If you ever need anything, just give us a call okay?"

Kye returned the gesture by wrapping his arms around his neck.

"Alright Dad, i'll be okay."

"I love you buddy."

"I love you too Dad."

They held the hug for a few more moments before Ashton finally released Kye and followed Hephaestus to the door. Kye unslung his backpack and began unpacking the very few belongings he brought with him. Ten minutes passed before Hephaestus came and stood in the dorrway of the room.

"Well Kye, lets talk about what I expect from you while you're living here. Your father has arranged that money will be made available to both of us, yours is for your own spending and the money i'm getting is for rent, food and utilities, though the rich bastard is overpaying, I know there's little point in giving it back so i'll be giving the excess to you. The thing is, I want you to save all that money you get and put it away somewhere safe. I'm going to teach you about economics a little bit while you're with me. I've been making equipment for the better part of 100 million years, so when I came to this world I expected people would be clamouring over themselves to get at my gear but much to my surprise, that wasn't the case."

Hephaestus sat on the bed and gestured for Kye to sit next to her. She brushed her ponytail back before continuing.

"Here's the thing about the market here Kye, it's not really about who has the best product, but who has the best marketing. I had to learn the hard way that simply producing a quality product wasn't enough to get by in this world, you need to know how to sell yourself to everyone. What I want you to do is create a market for yourself. Run a business or at least start the planning for it now. When you're in the Divine Academy, there isn't going to be much you can do to get your foot in the door as you're not gonna have the chance to interact with many people while you're training. So, we need to start diversifying your skills. If you start a business and it runs well, you'll make connections with people who will prove invaluable during your time at the academy."

Thinking about it for a moment, Kye nodded.

"So, I should make a business that deals with people not as a way to gain income but to make connections? So something like running a franchise of clubs or bars would work. Market yourself to all kinds and cast the biggest net I can, right?"

"HA, seems you've got your fathers head for business kiddo, good to see you're not some airheaded idiot."

She roughly ruffled his hair before going on about her expectations.

"Other than your training, I'll be expecting you to do some cleaning and cooking. Nothing extreme, but i'd like for you to cook at least one meal a day and keep your room and the bathroom clean. I don't know what Ares and Thanatos are going to tell you to do, but I would like for you to at least do that okay?"

"Sure ma'am, thats not a problem."

Hephaestus scoffed.

"Enough with the 'ma'am' shit alright? The name is Hephaestus. Or if you prefer to do things more politely then call me Master or Teacher."

"Okay Teacher, i will take care of those tasks. But i've never really cooked anything before so I don't know how it will turn out..."

Hephaestus smiled and shook her head.

"It's about learning Kye, failure teaches success."

Standing up, Hephaustus held her hand out to Kye.

"C'mon, lets go have some lunch, i'm pretty hungry."

Kye took her hand and followed her to the kitchen. Kye took a seat at the table and Hephaestus made some simple sandwiches. They both ate silently for a few minutes before Hephaestus spoke up.

"Right, now follow me Kye, i'm going to teach you how to forge."