The three brothers cherished the campfire, their expressions showing enjoyment of its warmth.
"Why does the Abyss absorb emotions?" Tike asked curiously. "Does Tartarus want to give birth to a personality like Gaia?" She paused, observing the deep darkness thoughtfully.
The three brothers exchanged glances, Tike's question clearly beyond their comprehension. Argus lowered his voice. "We don't know why the Abyss needs emotions, but it's time for us to leave."
Carefully extracting unburnt branches from the fire, Brontes peered around, mimicking his brothers' hushed tones. "Never fall asleep. The Abyss pays special attention to beings lost in dreams. Our Hecatoncheires brothers were trapped in dreams and couldn't wake up, forever tormented by Tartarus." He shivered, covering his ears fearfully and curling into a ball, as if to block out the giants' wails.
"Huh?" Brontes blinked in confusion, his huge eyes filled with surprise. He excitedly asked his brothers, "It seems I can't hear their voices anymore."
Argus and Steropes also grew excited, looking towards Tike by the campfire.
The giants stared at Tike with pitifully large eyes. Tike couldn't help but rub her arms, turning her head away from their gaze.
The eldest, Argus, asked cautiously, "Noble Highness, how did you come to be here?"
Tike pointed to the fire in front of her. "Fortunately, you made the fire. Otherwise, I would have had to spend more time looking for you. I've never been here before; who knows how long it would have taken to find you!"
The youngest, Steropes, couldn't help but exclaim, "You weren't exiled to the Abyss!"
"Of course not, I jumped in myself."
Tike found the dullness of these simple-minded creatures both exasperating and amusing. Upon hearing that Tike had come to the Abyss voluntarily, the three brothers lowered their heads in surprise, examining the goddess. Argus asked incredulously, "Why would you come to the dangerous Abyss?"
Tike was speechless. After a long moment, she replied weakly, "Didn't I just say? To find you."
Before the three brothers could ask further questions, Tike spoke proactively. "I need you to craft something for me. In return, I will make your time in the Abyss easier."
The goddess unfurled the silver veil from her shoulders, and the light fabric quickly expanded, enveloping the giants.
"This is a treasure I obtained from the River of Fate. Anyone wearing it can hide all traces. As long as you don't foolishly attack the Abyss's tentacles, Tartarus won't be able to find you."
The giants gently stroked the silver veil. Argus exclaimed with delight, "Yes, yes, we have never seen such a special treasure. The divine power of fate constitutes its body. Noble goddess, are you a goddess of fate?"
Tike directly revealed her glowing white eyes. The giants' joyous cheers made Tike's ears ring again, the echoes reverberating in her ears. Tike quickly told the giants to stop. The three brothers immediately fell silent, their eyes filled with a delight that made the goddess's scalp tingle.
Raising an eyebrow, Tike instantly thought of the question the giants most wanted to know. The goddess smiled and asked, "Do you want to know when you can leave the Abyss?"
The three brothers nodded vigorously, looking eagerly at the suddenly appearing goddess of fate. Tike nodded decisively under their expectant gazes. "In the not-too-distant future, someone will release you."
The giants became even more attentive. They turned and huddled together, loudly discussing how to thank this kind goddess of fate.
Tike calmly waited for the three brothers to reach a conclusion. Argus, on behalf of his brothers, expressed their gratitude to the goddess. "Kind goddess, you can count on our help anytime. We are happy to serve you."
The giants' simplicity evoked a flicker of guilt in Tike's heart. It was rare to encounter such guileless beings among the gods. The goddess coughed lightly, feeling a little embarrassed, and took out a sword sheath, asking the giants, "I want to repair this. Can you help me?"
Argus carefully took the sword sheath, which was only good for use as a toothpick, from the goddess's hand. The three brothers crowded around, their single eyes examining the sheath closely.
After a while, Argus lamented with pity, "What a beautiful treasure! How could anyone bear to harm it?"
Brontes shook his head, indicating their inability to the goddess. "Kind goddess, we cannot repair it, only forge a new body for it."
Tike felt a pang of disappointment. Seeing the uneasy giants, she quickly asked, "I can accept this outcome. I believe you will forge the most suitable body for it. The craftsmanship of the Cyclopes is renowned among the gods."
The three brothers finally smiled. Steropes leaned in and said, "We need the fire of the sun and your help. The sun's fire will be used to melt its body, and your divine power will protect its soul."
"Do you need any other materials?" Tike asked Steropes earnestly. The giant sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "It would be even better if you could provide us with a hammer."
Tike nodded, acknowledging the request. She quietly departed under the giants' expectant gazes.
Obtaining the sun's fire was easy for Tike. Since Kanna didn't need to guide the sun during this period, Tike ordered the wind god to retrieve a spark of the sun's fire from Helios's chariot. Kanna, unaware of the reason, rode the wind to the Temple of Radiance and immediately returned after obtaining the spark. Tike, with all preparations complete, returned to the Abyss. The long-awaited giants immediately began their forging work.
The broken sword sheath melted into a soft, misty form in the sun's flame. Tike carefully protected the beautiful miniature world, watching as the giants condensed the light blue mist back into a solid state. Before long, a round shield with a blue enamel base appeared before Tike. The giants spent time meticulously crafting intricate patterns on the shield's surface.
Within nested circles, lakes with blooming shores were sculpted from gold. A goddess emerged from the azure lake. Tike raised the round shield, caressing the ornamentation with satisfaction.
The enamel's shimmering light flashed and vanished. The dreamlike, beautiful world returned to its new body. The subtly glowing round shield was clearly pleased with its new form.
Leaving the invisible cloak and bidding farewell to the giants, Tike felt a fondness for these simple beings. If it weren't for the fact that taking them out of the Abyss would endanger herself, Tike would have gladly set them free.
The rules of the Abyss dictated that prisoners could not escape, only gain release through exchange. Tike stood at the edge of the rift, looking at Tartarus, who seemed to have never noticed her arrival, and offered a meaningful smile into the deep darkness.