Grace stood at the center of the arcing arrangement of chairs, the chamber perfectly balanced on either side of her.
To her right sat Odin, Loki, Zeus, and Athena. To her left sat Vlad, Mike, Aster, and Rosalba. Between them, they carried enough titles, rankings, and accumulated influence to reshape entire regions of the Ancient World and even the real world.
However, she could not have cared less about any of it.
She watched the final countdown in silence, her expression neutral, her hands still at her sides. As the last second clicked to zero, she smiled, bright and warm and entirely practiced, the previous gloom washing away from her face as cleanly as if it had never been there.
"Welcome back, Dear Ancients."
Her voice carried the particular quality that had made her the most watched host on the platform, warm enough to feel personal, clear enough to reach millions of screens at once.
