Transcendent Odyssey [Coffeepen]-Chapter 57: When Mortals Refuse to Kneel

PREVIOUSLY-

Poseidon’s eyes narrowed.

"No."

He surged upward — the chains snapped, the wires snapped —

—but not before Nyx roared and latched onto Poseidon’s shoulder again, forcing his aim wide.

BOOM!

A blast of water ripped through the side of the temple.

When the steam and debris cleared, Poseidon was gone. In his place stood one Deep Leviathan, four Stygian Crabs and a dozen Oceanborne Colossi.

WHAM!

--x—

The Leviathan brought its tail down like a warhammer from the gods.

CRACK!

The ocean buckled. A towering wave, thick as a city wall, crashed into Sigmund and sent him cartwheeling through the brine like driftwood.

"Lira!" he barked, wiping sea-silt from his eyes as he steadied himself atop a cresting surge. "You sure you said this was hard difficulty?!"

Lira, skating the wave’s arc atop a metallic grey surfboard shaped from solid lead, shrieked as she narrowly avoided being shredded by a ring of coral spikes.

"I think I might’ve... misread the difficulty glyph!"

Her voice cracked. Her eyes welled with panic.

"I’m sorry! Maybe... maybe the difficulty scales with how many people enter?!"

Sigmund twisted in midair, narrowly avoiding the jagged swing of an Oceanborne Colossus — a mountain of drowned sludge and rusted iron. Its anchor-axe carved the wave in two.

"That actually makes more sense," he muttered, landing back on the surface, the water beneath his boots solidifying with aura tension. His blade hummed beside him.

"It’s alright, Lira," he called, glancing her way through the spray and stormlight. "Even if it was hell difficulty, I would’ve stepped through that door."

A pause.

"Mistakes are human."

Colour rose in Lira’s cheeks, despite the cold saltwater and crashing waves.

’He’s... kind,’ she thought, a little dazed — as if that kindness cut deeper than the monsters did.

Nyx landed beside Sigmund in a spray of foam, his fur soaked, pupils narrowed.

The leopard scanned the battlefield with that predator’s stillness. He saw it all —

—The Deep Leviathan, its serpentlike body coiled around the ruined temple dome. Its head was a grotesque bloom of jaws, each layered within another, fangs spiraling inward like a whirlpool. Its rib-like fins glowed with abyssal light, pulsing with mana.

—The Stygian Crabs, black as shipwreck iron, their rune-carved shells etched with curses from a dead age.

—The Oceanborne Colossi, heaving titans of silt, ghost-bone, and shipwreck timber, dragging rusted anchors and broken mast-spears like toys.

This wasn’t a mere trial.

This was a divine purge.

Skaleg’s voice rang inside Sigmund’s skull like a sigh through iron pipes.

"Sigmund... leave that girl behind. You’ve seen the direction Poseidon fled."

Sigmund’s eyes darted to Lira. She was waist-deep in floodwater, flailing — conjuring spears of mercury in frantic bursts. One grazed a Stygian Crab’s claw. Another missed entirely. She was terrified. In over her head.

"She needs help," Sigmund replied, voice quiet but firm.

"She looks like someone who doesn’t want to die."

The sea fell eerily still.

No roar. No crash. Even the Leviathan halted mid-thrash. Water froze mid-air, suspended like glass. Time itself held its breath.

Skaleg drifted across the water, feet making no ripple, toward the frozen figure of Lira. Her face locked in mid-panic, eyes wide, fingers half-formed into another spell.

"She’s raw,"

He muttered, scratching the side of his head,

"But not hopeless."

He reached out slowly — carefully — and tapped a single finger to her temple. A touch like a ghost’s memory.

"Let’s leave her a little gift."

Skaleg turned to Nyx. The leopard met his gaze.

"If she can use what’s inside her... she might survive."

Sigmund’s shadow swirled faintly behind them,

He gave a low, gravelly nod.

"He is enough."

SNAP.

The world resumed.

The wave exploded. Monsters roared. The Leviathan screamed. The trial was not yet over.

But the moment had been planted.

And if the girl could awaken what slept within her...

She wouldn’t just survive.

She’d rewrite her fate.

"Lira!"

Sigmund’s voice cut through the roar of the sea like steel through silk.

"I’m going after Poseidon! Nyx will cover you!"

Lira’s eyes widened. Her hands trembled, fingers clenched tight around her carved wand. A mercury spear shimmered to life in her off-hand, its surface unstable — flickering like a broken mirror.

"...O-Okay!"

She managed, voice a squeak swallowed by the tide.

SPLASH!

Sigmund leapt — vaulting off the slick carapace of a Stygian Crab. One of its pincers snapped at him mid-air, but he twisted, stepped on the claw, and used it to launch himself forward like a spring.

"KRAAA—"

The Leviathan shrieked, its tail slicing through the temple like a scythe through sea grass.

SHK!

Steel wires burst from Sigmund’s vambrace, snaring the Leviathan’s fanged maw like a bridle.

"Hup!"

He yanked himself into a somersault — flipped over the serpent’s yawning mouth — and

CLACK!

His boots landed on a submerged marble pillar. Without missing a beat, he sprinted toward the open corridor where Poseidon had vanished.

I can’t waste another second...

Behind him, chaos still churned — and in its centre stood a single girl.

Lira.

Alone.

Trembling.

The mercury spear in her grip quivered just as much as she did. Her heart pounded like war drums in a bone cage. Every monster — every colossus and crab and eel-thing — had turned toward her.

"P-Please..."

She raised her wand.

"Please go easy on me...?"

WHAM!

An Oceanborne Colossus slammed its rusted staff into the floodwater, splitting it in half with a concussive shockwave.

"Eiiik—!"

Lira stumbled backward, slipping on the wet stone, her spear dissolving mid-cast. Tears welled and spilled instantly, no time for pride.

"M-Mom!" she wailed, like a child in a nightmare.

Everything went silent.

Even the monsters blinked.

All at once.

As if... taken aback.

"Waaaah!!"

Her crying grew louder, unfiltered and ugly — the kind of sobbing that made gods pity and demons cringe.

A moment passed.

Then — from the edge of the chaos — a single Stygian Crab stepped forward.

Its massive claw reached into its shell.

And drew out... a white handkerchief.

Delicately embroidered. Suspiciously clean.

It offered it to her, pincers extended like a butler at a funeral. Its massive, runed eyes shimmered with something suspiciously close to empathy.

Lira hiccupped.

"Sniffle... th-thank y—AAAH!"

Her mercury spear reflexively snapped forward, jabbing the crab directly in its crystalline eye.

SPLURT.

The crab flopped over sideways with a stunned blink, one leg twitching.

Silence.

Even the leviathan looked away in embarrassment.

Lira stared at the spear. Then at the twitching crab. Then at the handkerchief still floating in the water.

"...I-I didn’t mean to!"

She cried harder.

Nyx looked at her with a blank face, words engraved on his face-

’Rewrite her fate? Is this what sarcasm means?’ fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓

"KRRRONGG!"

The crab rose.

Not just stood — rose. Its towering shell gleamed with salt and runes, pincers cracked like thunderheads, and its eye — now oozing silver ichor — burned with primal offense.

SPLASH!

It lunged.

Twin pincers sliced toward Lira’s neck like twin guillotines, fast and precise despite the crab’s bulk.

CLANG!

A mercury orb — spiked and rotating like a medieval flail — crashed into its face. The impact launched the beast sideways, where it smashed against a half-toppled column, stone shrapnel raining into the water.

Lira stood in place, panting.

"...S-Sorry," she whispered, as if unsure whether it was the crab or herself she had offended.

TAP.

Something soft and warm nudged her shin.

She looked down.

Nyx.

His paw lingered on her leg. His golden eyes met hers — steady, calm, unblinking — and then he exhaled. A soft, deliberate breath.

Lira blinked.

’Is he... telling me to breathe?’

Another breath. Her own, now.

The world, for one stolen moment, stilled around her. Even the tide seemed to wait.

’Calm down, Lira.

Remember what you learned...’

’Three states of mercury. Lead core control. Gas state for diffusion. Liquid for versatility. Solid for precision.’

A memory stirred — hazy at first, then sharp as glass.

A white-haired man stood before her — tall, confident, eyes like polished ice. A figure from another life, back when her wand was still two sizes too big for her hand. Back when the classroom smelled of chalk and lemonwood desks.

"Mrs. Rivers," he had said, voice calm but electric.

"You have an excellent affinity for mercury manipulation."

Ten-year-old Lira flushed. Her feet curled in her sandals.

"B-but... my father said it’s u-useless..."

The man had laughed — not mockingly, but with warmth. Like someone remembering their own first doubts.

"Then," he smiled, raising one hand,

"It’s time we prove your father wrong."

A vial rose into the air — not with force, but grace. The cork popped open, and mercury poured out like ink into the wind. It didn’t fall. It danced.

Around him, it whirled — liquid metal tracing glowing rings in the air like it had a soul.

"With imagination," he said, "skill, and creativity—"

The mercury re-formed. A teddy bear. Then a flower. Then a sword, then a shield.

"—any magic becomes powerful."

Little Lira had watched, breathless.

"Mr. Merlin..." she had whispered.

"Can I... can I become as strong as you?"

Merlin had tilted his head.

"No."

The word hit like a slap. Her face fell.

But then he leaned closer, eyes shining with quiet fire.

"You can become strong enough to kill a wyvern with just a flick of your wrist."

Her breath had caught.

"How?!"

He had placed one finger on her forehead.

"Treat mercury like clay. Like your own muscle and blood. Don’t just cast it. Wield it."

She’d nodded, fiercely.

"But I-I can only stab hay bales and wood targets..."

Merlin had chuckled.

"You’ll understand," he said, rising to leave,

"When your body holds enough mana to believe what you’re shaping."

Lira blinked back into the present.

The water rippled again. The Colossus lifted its anchor. The Eelborn Thralls hissed, electricity crawling up their arms.

And Lira — small, shaking Lira — took a deep breath.

Then another.

She looked at her hands. At the mercury swirling around her wand.

And for the first time, it didn’t tremble.

SWIRL!

Lira’s eyes opened in shock.

’What is this absurd amount of mana?!’

WHAM!

An Eelborn Thrall lunged at her, electricity coursing through its veins.

BITE!

CRUNCH!

Nyx tore off the monster’s head. His size had increased to the size of a bear.

"ROAR!"

He ran towards the other crab, eyes glinting with a predatory confidence.

SWISH!

SLIP!

Sigmund stormed into the sanctum, boots splashing through shallow water that hadn’t been there seconds ago.

The altar loomed ahead — marble cracked, its gold inlays tarnished by brine. But Medusa was gone.

He turned, breath ragged.

"Where is he?!"

A priestess near the column flinched. Her robes were soaked, her hand trembling as she pointed toward the side hall.

"T-The west chamber... H-he took her..."

Sigmund didn’t wait.

WHAM!

He slammed his boot into the wooden doors. They splintered inward, crashing off their hinges.

Inside, torchlight flickered across wet stone.

Medusa lay slumped on a pew — her robe torn at the shoulder, chest heaving, serpents writhing in silent panic. Above her stood Poseidon, the sea god’s massive form haloed in steam. His hand hovered near her throat.

"L-Lord Poseidon," she gasped, voice frail as paper, "This is... Athena’s sanctum. Please—don’t—"

He didn’t even glance at her.

"Athena?" Poseidon said with a lazy smirk. "Then let her come. Let’s see how far her justice swims."

CRACK!

A boot smashed into Poseidon’s jaw — full force. The god reeled back three steps, crashing against a pillar. His eyes flared in disbelief.

"Mortal..." he growled, spitting seawater, "you dare strike a god again?"

Lightning sparked at his fingertips. A trident hissed into being, forged from brine and fury, water spiralling around the shaft like a whirlpool caught mid-spin.

"Twice now, you’ve raised steel against me. Let’s see what kind of rabid mutt you are."

Sigmund stepped forward. His sword shimmered with wire-threaded steel, blade stained with dried ichor.

"I am the Iron Hound of Leonhart."

’Damn that was cringe...’

Poseidon scoffed, lowering into stance.

"Leonhart? Some forgotten kennel?"

CLANG!

Sigmund’s blade came down hard in a diagonal arc — not elegant, not pretty — but with the force of someone who knew nothing but forward.

Poseidon parried, trident crossing steel. Sparks flew. The floor cracked beneath them.

"Are you going to bark all day?" Sigmund spat.

"Or can you actually fight?"

Poseidon grinned.

"Very well, Iron Hound—"

CRACKLE. SPLASH. SIZZLE.

A typhoon surged from beneath them, swirling into a vertical column of boiling saltwater. The very air thickened with mist and heat.

Sigmund jumped—high. His boots found the edge of a shattered window frame, then the dangling chain of a chandelier.

He swung.

WHIRL. THUD.

He landed beside Medusa, water lapping at his ankles.

She looked up at him, dazed, her eyes brimming with fear and something else... shame.

"I’m fine," he muttered.

"Just keep breathing."

From behind them, Poseidon’s voice echoed with fury.

"Third strike, mongrel. I hope you understand... you’re not leaving this temple whole."

Sigmund raised his sword again, wires slithering behind him like restless tendrils.

"Try me."

CRACKLE!

The world flashed white as a thunderous roar split the air.

Poseidon’s trident sliced through the chamber like lightning made solid.

SPLAT!

Sigmund’s left hand hit the floor with a sickening wet thud; fingers still curled around air.

"AAARGH!"

He staggered, collapsing to one knee, clutching the bleeding stump at his wrist. Blood poured like ink from a shattered quill.

Poseidon chuckled, eyes gleaming with cruel delight.

"What now, mortal? Are you afraid yet?"

SLIK.

Sigmund said nothing. His jaw clenched, veins bulged in his neck, but no cry escaped.

Instead, he reached down with his remaining hand, seized a length of steel wire, and wound it around his elbow — tight. Flesh hissed. The blood slowed to a rhythmic drip.

His eyes... turned crimson. Not from magic, not from rage — from pain endured.

And even so — they held that look.

The look that made even gods feel cold.

The look of someone who would rather die than kneel.

Poseidon’s smile faltered.

SWISH!

Another trident exploded toward Sigmund — faster this time, crackling with frost.

But Sigmund moved like a ghost through the blast.

CLANG!

The sword caught it mid-flight.

He didn’t stop.

WHAM!

Boot met pew. The shattered wood launched him upward.

FWISH! FWISH! FWISH!

Tridents of solid ice lanced toward him midair — one, two, three.

CRACK!

He kicked the first into shards.

He twisted past the second, coat fluttering like a torn flag.

The third—

CLANG!

His sword slapped it aside, redirecting it into the temple wall where it embedded like a frozen javelin.

Poseidon blinked.

"Oh...?"

SPLASH!

A geyser erupted beneath Sigmund, a sudden tide of wrath—but he was already gone.

BOOM!

A bolt of liquid mercury punched through a colossus’s forehead.

The creature fell like a felled monument.

Hovering above the chaos was Lira — no longer trembling.

Her body was encased in armour: lead plates formed from her mercury, moulded to her like a second skin. Light caught the curves of the metal, rippling as if alive.

Her eyes no longer shivered.

A Eelborn Thrall screeched and leapt.

WHAM!

A mercury hammer slammed into its skull mid-lunge, flattening it with a wet crunch.

Lira exhaled.

Every breath steadied the storm inside her.

Blood slithered down the shell of a nearby Stygian Crab — not dripping, but crawling, twisting away like a sentient thread trying to flee its owner.

"ROAR!"

From the shadows, Nyx struck — white fur streaked with red, eyes glowing with fury.

SPLURT!

The Oceanborne Colossus barely had time to turn before its chest split open in three precise arcs.

It collapsed backward into the tide, unmoving.

WHAM!

The Deep Leviathan, enraged, slammed its tail like a siege whip. The temple floor cracked. Water exploded outward in waves.

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