Chapter 2
It was a peaceful afternoon, it was still winter and there was a little snow in streets, but it wasn't going to last long, the weather was getting crazier and the sun more intense to the point that it didn't even warm but burn, fortunately two people didn’t have to worry about that.
Not for now.
Jorge still couldn’t believe the impact that EPIC how do his life and the lives of many others. He gained several followers since he launched the first drafts on TikTok, but as he launched every saga, more and more people started to joined and deep down he was always grateful there wasn’t toxicity on the fandom and now that everything has finished he could see the real impact of his musical.
And he really put his heart and his soul in EPIC, all those hours composing melodies, writing lyrics, the times he had to discard songs because it wasn't what he was looking for and when he thought he had finished writing EPIC only to realize he had to write the ending again (something that he doesn’t regret) in the end it was all worth it.
Asides not everything was that bad, he met incredible and talented people, had wonderful times and spent so much time together that at this point he already consider them part of his family.
And of course he could not miss her.
Talya, his super lovely girlfriend that if it wasn’t for EPIC maybe they would never met each other, her voice was so marvelous that when he heard her he know that she has to be in the musical yes or yes, he asked her for an audition for Circe, they record her part, become really good friends, one thing lend to another and now he was dating the girl of his dreams.
Even with the stressful moments good things have come out of it. He couldn’t complain, life has been good for him.
“What are you thinking about?” her arms wrapped around his waist behind him and he took her hands between his.
“A lot of things, in the last months, in EPIC, in us”
“Us?”
Talya had her head on his shoulder and for him she was so cute he couldn’t resist give her a kiss on the cheek. She smile for that.
“Don’t be like that when Troy arrives, you don’t want to make him feel like the third wheel”
Oh, right. Troy was coming today.
“I’ll try” and he gave her another kiss.
Talya rolled her eyes playfully and looked what he was holding in one hand.
“Those are your sketches of EPIC?”
He opened the notebook that was full of melodies and notes
“Yeah, some of the first melodies I composed”
He found his old notebook which, if he remembers correctly, he got when he was still in college, it was large, with the pentagrams already printed, even with that it didn’t take him to long to fill it up and even full he didn’t want to throw it away. After all it was part of his beginnings.
Talya give him a kiss on the cheek and pulled away from him.
“I have to go for some stuff, I’ll be right back”
“Okay, be careful”
“I’ll have it”
“Love you” they said at the same time.
She left the room and the house.
Jay still had the notebook in his hand and even if he wanted to read a little more, he knew he had things to do. He left the notebook on the edge of the bed and left the room, but just before he close the door he felt a gaze behind him, he turned around just to find nothing so he closed the door.
There really wasn’t much to settle he just has to make his living room look presentable for when Troy arrives.
Jorge didn’t see the cast very often, but they all keep contact and those who lived closer visited each other. It was a surprise when Troy called him saying that he have to take care of some business nearby so he would take the opportunity and pay him a visit. He didn’t refuse.
Soon what he had to settle was settled and now he had nothing to do, he decided to sit on the couch and rest for a bit.
Until EPIC was finished, he didn’t realize how accelerate he was, so he rested all he couldn’t rest in the past years. Long ago he used to think that when the musical finished it would pass a few months and the world would forget about it, he realize how wrong he was, even two months later the fandom made clear that they wouldn’t let the musical die for a long, long time, asides he was still uploading EPIC content and the original audios from the Ithaca livestream, so yeah the fandom had a lot of content for a good time.
He enjoyed the breeze that blew through the open window, the warm that it feels inside the house and the silence just interrupted for the naughty laugh that sounded at the end of the corridor, all was peace and calm.
“Wait what?”
Jorge opened his eyes when he realized he was alone and even like that someone was laughing, he stand up and tried to hear the noise again without success, he attributed to his imagination.
Until he heard it again.
For a moment he thought Talya had arrived and was playing a joke on him, but if that was the case he would have heard her arrive and the laugh of his girlfriend doesn’t sound like that, it sounded more like the one Troy use for Hermes, but he’s friend wouldn’t arrive for another hour.
He slowly looked down the corridor that leads to the rooms, place where he heard the voice, he walked slowly to tur last room at the same time he feel a weird sensation of being observed. He opened the last door, looked inside and…
Nothing.
There was nothing out of the ordinary.
Everything was as he left it, although he didn’t remember left the window open, he didn’t take importance, he saw the room as if someone was about to materialize out of nowhere and frighten him, but nothing happened and it was clear no one was there, it would be visible.
“Maybe I’m more tired than I thought”
He left the rooms and closed the door, he checked quickly the rest of the room and the bathroom just in case and as the first room he found nothing, he returned to the living room confused about what happened, but he thought it was his imagination.
He didn’t notice the pair of eyes that observed him outside.
——— … ———
Just as he said Troy arrived an hours later.
He told them about what he had done, like his horoscope saga, his channel on Twitch and other future projects. Jay tried to enjoyed every time he saw any member of the cast because he didn’t when would be the next time they see each other and generally that was months later.
“I’m happy you’re doing great Troy”
“Thanks Talya, How about you? How’s it going?”
“You know, working here and there” Talya respond first.
“Still checking things bout EPIC and processing all that happened”
“I get you, I feel like everything is happening so fast”
“Tell me about it, I can’t believe I did it, but what can I said I’m fortunate”
At the moment.
“Definitely”
Suddenly the window opened for a strong wind that strike the window, Talya stood up faster and closed the window.
“Did you opened it?” she asked Jay.
“No, it was cold and I closed it, I’m sure”
“Weird”
Talya looked through the window how many trees moved violently cause of the strong wind.
“Why there’s suddenly so much wind?”
“Weather has been crazy recently” Troy said “when I was coming here there was so much wind and it makes weird noises, I even imagined that I heard a laugh”
Jay tensed when he heard that.
“A laugh?”
“Yeah, it scared me when I heard it, it sounded like if someone would laugh next to me, of course that wasn’t possible I was driving alone”
“And how it was?” Troy looked confused “The laugh”
Talya stayed next to the door looking the strange conversation.
“Well it sounded like the laugh I do for Hermes”
Jay was spinning the subject in his head, it was possible that was the same laugh he heard?
“He also heard it” he said in low voice.
“What’d you mean with “also”?” maybe not so low.
The doorbell rang.
The three looked to the door confused, although Jorge was also afraid.
“I’ll go” Talya said as she walked to the door.
“Wait” Jay stood up quickly.
For Talya and Troy, Jay was acting weird and it was starting to worry them.
“I’ll go”
Talya wasn’t sure about it but even with that she ceded.
“Okay”
Before Jay opens the door, he looked through the peephole but he didn’t saw anyone, he opened the door and as he saw before the entry was empty as well as the street, there was no one there.
“Who is it?” Talya asked inside.
“There’s… no one”
Jay’s nerves started to increase, something was off.
“Maybe it’s a kid trying to scare us”
The wind stoked the window again, this time Troy closed it.
“Why it opens?” Talya asked.
“It was opened”
“But how? I’m sure I closed it”
“What’s going on?”
A hit was heard from the last room of the corridor. Everyone fell silent, it was impossible that a noise come fro, there , if the three were alone, they look each other and for a moment they thought it was nothing, until they heard it again.
The tension in the room started to grow, Jay look through the corridor, he walked slowly to the last room, he felt someone was observing him, someone different, he was so concentrated in the door that he didn’t notice Troy was behind him, Talya didn’t took to long to follow them with a pan that she took from the kitchen. Just in case.
When they were in front of the door Jay took the doorknob and started to turning it slow, he felt a sensation of tension and fear, but deep down he also felt something familiar and known, somehow he knew he felt this before, a part of him told him that he didn’t have to fear what was behind that door and he didn’t know it, but Troy and Talya felt the same.
He opened the door and…
Nothing.
Nothing out of normal, everything was there, there was no one.
The room wasn’t so big for someone to hide there, the possibility that someone had entered the house was ruled out and they assumed that the noise came from the notebook and the guitar lying on the floor next to the desk.
"There’s no one"
When he said that, Troy and Talya release the breath they didn’t know they were holding, the tension decrease immediately and they could be more relaxed.
He walked to his guitar, which he assumed he had left poorly propped against the wall, and pick it up.
“Those are from EPIC?” Troy asked pointing the notebook that Talya was holding.
“Yeah, part of the first drafts”
“Wow” Talya hand him the notebook so he could leaf through it “You had everything planned”
“A lot of that didn’t make it to the cut, but it’s the bases”
Troy flipped through the pages and humbled some of the notes, he continued until he recognized a melody with no name.
“I didn’t know you wrote “Wouldn’t you like” since then”
Jay looked at him confused.
“I didn’t, first I wrote “Dangerous” and that was much later”
Talya looked the score and Troy checked the notebook in case there was a mistake, there was not.
“But Jay, the melody’s here”
“He’s right” Talya looked as confused as him.
When he was going to check if it was true he noticed something by the corner of the eye, something that wasn’t he’s, a sunglasses with brown and orange colors similar to the ones Troy used to play Hermes.
“That was always there?”
He took it and looked at Troy.
“It’s yours?”
“What?”
“Then sunglasses, It’s not yours?”
Troy leaved the notebook on the bed and came closer to see the sunglasses.
“It looks like mines” he examine it, at first glance it looked the same, but the lens were darker and on the sides it had golden details that resembled as a pair of wings “But they’re not”
Talya got closer, still with the pan in her hand.
“I don’t remember buy this ones” now she took it while she tried to remember if she even saw it before “Looks from the 70’s”
“You mean the 80’s”
The tension reappeared immediately. The three looked at each other scared, none of them said that, they turned back slowly and saw the stranger who talked to them as again they felt something different, like if they lived this before, like if something inside them told them not to fear him cause he’s not gonna hurt them and for a moment they truly believed in it… Until he talked again.
“Hi”
“AHHHHHHHHH”
The three of them screamed and Talya, on reflex, stamped the pan in the stranger’s face.
The guy staggered back and hold his face to cover the possible injury he had, Jay didn’t know in what moment he stood in front of the guy, took the pan and move Talya behind him.
The boy didn’t last long in recovered the strike, Jay thought his sight was failing, because instead of see an injury he just saw a little scratch on his lip and instead of blood he saw a golden liquid.
“Uff, she’s strong” he said pointing Talya “If I were you, I wouldn’t make her angry”
“Who are you?!” Jay was pointing him with the pan in case he tried to do something.
“Oh apologies, Where are my manners? I introduce myself” he cleared his throat and said the words that marked their future “I’m Hermes, messenger of the Gods, Greek God and part of the Twelve Olympians”
…
“Great, some crazy broke into the house”
The guy was stupid if he thought they’re gonna believe him.
Jay saw how Troy slowly took his phone out of his pocket to call the police, he had to give his friend time.
He noticed better the dude in front of him and the more he saw him, the more he thought the guy was insane, he looked a bit younger than him, tanned skin, black hair with a cut that makes one side more longer than the other, although it was covered by a helmet which in front appeared to have a star of four peaks and in the top an emblem of golden wings, he couldn’t see his eyes the helmet held him back, he was wearing a cape that was holding by a necklace, the cape cover his shoulder and part of his arm, the other side of the cape was holding by a bracelet, a part of a tunic that was covered his lower part to a little above the knees and sandals with white wings on the sides (very realistic indeed). Definitely the guy took his time in his cosplay.
Even if he can’t see his glance he know it was one of full mockery, but the smile in his face looked more genuine, he really looked like he was really happy to see them, as if he knew them since forever, but even with that happy something was off with him, another feeling was in there but they couldn’t say what.
Troy was calling 911 as he moved behind Jay so the stranger couldn’t notice what he was trying to do.
“How did you get in here?” Talya dared to ask
The supposed Hermes let go a tired sigh.
“You didn’t hear what I said? I’m a God, I can enter anywhere”
“How? Everything was closed”
Hermes could saw clearly that they didn’t believe him, but they would, he took some steps closer and even with the pan to protect themselves, they stepped back in case.
“I don’t need an entry to come in”
Troy completed the call and hope it won’t take long to answer.
“911 What’s your-?”
Hermes moved his hand and the call was cut.
“What?”
“That’s not gonna work darling”
Troy hated to admit it, but the guy was starting to scared him.
“You hack my phone?!”
“In fact no, but I have to admit is so easy to manipulate your little things for a God like me”
“STOP THINKING YOU ARE A GOD!” Jay wasn’t expect to shout but the situation was overwhelming him “Get out unless you want me to kick you out”
Hermes let out a loud laugh, now he was seriously mockering.
“I’d like to see you try”
“I’m serious”
“So am I darling”
For some seconds that feel eternal, Jay held his gaze with the “God”, he was a bit scared but he couldn’t show it, the guy was the first to look away and again he sigh.
“You know what? This isn’t lending to anything so I’m gonna show you”
They didn’t understand what he mean with “show them” until they saw him rise some centimeters from the ground.
“What the-?”
Suddenly he grabbed Jay from the shoulders and he rise him as he spin in the air.
“Woohoo, Isn’t this amazing darling?”
Jay was paralyzed for de shock and the fear of seeing someone flying, he didn’t understand how he was on the ground and now he was spinning with a crazy guy, he didn’t last long to react and he tried to separate Hermes from him.
“Let me go!”
“Why? If we’re having fun”
Talya, who was also in shock, reacted and took the pan Jay let go when Hermes rise him.
“Hey! Let him go now”
“Okay, but don’t get mad” he stopped spinning around and pushed Jay away from him “Anyways”
He let go Jay and although it wasn’t a great height, he didn’t expect to be dropped suddenly, Troy stopped looking the flying guy and went beside Jay.
“Are you ok?”
“I think so”
The three looked at Hermes still floating in front of them, they saw his wings flattering now knowing that they are real, again in his face was that stupid and absurd smile.
“And well? Now you’re gonna belie-?”
He was interrupted by Talya who throw the pan in his face, but the helmet protected from the impact this time.
“Why was that for?!”
“What the hell are you?!” shout Talya in respond.
“First of all is not “What?” it’s “Who?”” Hermes descend till his feet touch the ground “And secondly, I’m Hermes, Messenger God, one of the Twelve Olympians, you didn’t hear me the first time?”
The three were the most away they could from him while they process all the information. A God? A Greek God making act of presence in the midst of the 21st century? It was illogic, impossible, and yet they have him in front of them.
Jay didn’t know if he had to fear him or no, Gods are known for their terrible punishments if they feel offend, but this didn’t seem to be the case for Hermes, he didn’t come with the intention to hurt them, he would already done it if that was the case and yeah he scared them but just for fun. Jay didn’t trust him but for now he feel safe.
“Why are you here?”
“Oh, good you ask darling”
Hermes disappeared from their sight and the guys look for him.
“Behind you”
They scream again and stepped away from Hermes.
“Chill, I don’t bite”
“Just tell us what you want” Troy was fed up with the situation and the attitude of the God.
“Pretty good” Hermes held the notebook of the drafts, the three wondered in what moment he took it “They’re all pretty good songs, I’m not an expert as Apollo, but I’m sure he would tell you the same”
He closed the notebook and throw it to Jay that barely catch it.
“That’s why you’re here? Cause the musical?”
“Yes and no”
“We didn’t offend anyone, right?” Talya had her time were she loved Greek mythology and she hoped none of the Gods would feel offended, specially some of the Twelve Olympians.
“Not that I know, at least not me”
“Wait, Zeus didn’t send you?”
With the only mention of Zeus, Hermes made an expression of disgust, but they could notice his gaze of fear and anger.
“No, I haven’t seen him since years ago” for some seconds he didn’t say anything, thinking in what he was doing now that he know what he did, the guys noticed this and he smile as if nothing happen “But what a coincidence that you mention him, he is one of the reasons why I came here, tell me, How much do you know about the Gods?”
Even if the guys like Greek mythology, many of the facts they knew were basic information.
“Just the basic and one or two myths”
Hermes shuddered when he heard the word “myth”.
“History” Hermes corrected “It has nothing of a myth”
That surprised everyone, especially Jay.
“Wait, so you’re telling me that all the monsters, places, Gods, everything is mentioned in Greek mythology, it’s real?”
“Well you have a Greek God in front of you, What more proof do you want?”
The brains of Troy and Jay were zapped after too much information, so Talya keep asking.
“But if everything is real, Why everything disappeared so suddenly?”
“It wasn’t so suddenly and it wasn’t because we want it” Hermes didn’t want to talk about that, it was a hard time for the Olympus and the mortals, but he had no choice “It’s a long story, but is necessary you know it, I know this is weird for you but let me talk first and then you tell me what you think”
They looked at each other, they weren’t sure if they should trust him but it seemed like there was no option but to listen what he had to say.
“Then if you tell us bout what happened and why are you here, then you’ll leave us alone?” By that moment Jay just wanted him to go away.
“Well that depends on what you choose”
“Choose?”
He didn’t get what he means, but if that was the only way that the God could go, then they’ll do it, at least it was better than a punishment, they sat on the bed and wait for the God to start his tale.
“Thank you, I assure you that this would be exciting”
To make his tale more interesting he floated a few centimeters from the ground, it would take them a while to get used.
“Okay, then lets start from the beginning” and he started his tale
——— … ———
Before the Gods could existed there were other beings in the world, they were known as Titans, immense beings with a huge power that represented the immensities of the Earth or the space, between Titans there was also a wars, the most known between Uranus and his son Kronos, one represented the sky meanwhile the other represented the time, vast and infinite for him, in some manner indestructible, Kronos emerged victorious from the battle and before he could lock up his father in the very depths of the Tartarus, Uranus dictated a prophecy where Kronos would be defeated by one of his descendants, took his throne and banish him to the Tartarus just as he did with his own father. Kronos, jealous of the idea of lose his power took a decision, as soon as his children came out of the womb of his wife, he would eat them, and he did it one by one, until his wife Rhea got sick of see her children die at the hands of her own husband, she tricked him with their last son, instead of the baby she gave him a stone cover in blankets and hiding her son in a cave, her son Zeus.
He was raised in secret and trained to fight his father, it wasn't easy, but with the help of Metis, daughter of the Titan Ocean and the Titanide Tethys, he managed to gave a potion to Kronos forcing him to vomit his brothers, getting everyone to fight him, a war was formed that lasted 10 years better known as The Titanomachy. After battles and battles they could finally defeat Kronos who was banished to the Tartarus, destined to be prisoner of unbreakable chains and guarded by ferocious monsters, alone and almost forgotten.
Zeus took his place as King of The Olympus, the world was divided between his brothers, Zeus would protect the earth, Poseidon the sea and Hades the Underworld. Then many centuries would pass, many histories, many heroes rise and others fall, monsters were created and others destroyed, the mortals were becoming stronger to the point of daring to challenge the Gods, to the point of stopped being man’s to become in something more.
Zeus sometimes wanted to kill them all, for being, according to him, incompetents but as much as he would want to he couldn't, in the end we need them, because the only way to kill a God is to completely forget that God, that there is not devotees, nor histories, nothing to let the world know the existence of their being. Maybe to be forgotten is one of the biggest fears of a God.
So even with their faults, he let them live or just punish them for a while, you know for fun and have a good time with their suffering. Yeah I admitted Zeus sometimes used the mortals as his entertainment, but he knew to be fair when it was necessary, at least most of the times. The other Gods also committed some mistakes with mortals, many of them learned their lesson and many others don't, in the end our relation with the mortals stayed peaceful.
But mortals are also greedy, vengeful and sometimes ungrateful, many of them plotted against the Gods, we didn’t know what they did, but whatever it was it doomed the Gods forever. Suddenly the mortals stopped believing in us, in the laws of The Olympus and they started to rise above all, they killed innocents, they destroyed our temples, offending the Gods and becoming tyrants. We tried to contained them the most we can, but there were too many, every time we descended to the earth instead of giving us respect, they considered us a threat. Zeus felt this as a betrayal and he forbidden the Gods to help the mortals in any way, things were turning worse, wars, plagues, earthquakes, droughts, storms, everything was starting to fall apart. The mortals stopped believing in us as they saw we didn’t make an appearance and when we noticed everything was over.
Rome conquered and Greece fell.
The Gods could only watch how they massacred their devotees one by one, some of them sacrifice their lives in order to keep our stories alive, even with that it wasn’t enough, less devotees, less prays, less power. It reached the point that not even the Olympus considered us worthy enough to step on it soil and gradually it banished all, first the lower Gods, then our sons and daughters and last The Olympians. We lost a lot, Ares lost his strength at combat, Apollo his ability to heal, Athena couldn’t transform in her owl form as well as her combat was also affected, I couldn’t fly.
The writings that survived and the few devotees we had was enough to keep us alive, we were still immortals, but with no power, nor dominion, not even with the right to called ourselves Gods.
It stayed like that for a long time, for some time now the Greek histories have become more relevant, stories were rewritten, the adventures and songs were narrated and the Gods were known once again, for some time I really believed it would be enough to recovered our glory, I just wanted a little bit of power to reascend to The Olympus. I was wrong, most of the stories were erroneous, even the most antique writings were altered, there wasn’t a reliable source not to mention that most authors wrote what they want thus generating lots and lots of versions of the stories, portraying us as something we are not or with actions that we don’t cause, we got tired and we lost the hope that someday we would be what we once were.
A day ago something happened, a bunch of divine energy was released and my powers awaked once I absorbed it, I haven’t feel such a power since centuries ago, perhaps for millenniums and it gave me enough energy to change objects and to fly again, but I knew that it wasn’t normal, I mean I was happy of course, but it was abnormal such amount of energy so suddenly, I needed answers and in part that guided me to you.
——— ... ———
The guys were confused and with so many questions running through their minds, but Jay had a special one that he was excited to ask.
“Wait, so you’re telling me that my musical was the reason why you recovered your powers?”
Did his musical really have such an impact to bring back the gods? So much energy released by his creation? He wasn't self-centered , but knowing that you achieved something as big as that, at least in celestial terms, meant it was something special.
“Oh no, your musical wasn’t the reason” well at least he believed it for a few seconds “It was just a little part of the reason”
Jay had to admit, it hurt him a little that Hermes said that, Troy and Talya noticed this, Troy put a hand on his shoulder in emotional support and Talya gave Hermes a stroppy look, he realized what he caused.
“Don’t get me wrong, your musical helped so much and I’m really grateful with all of you for this opportunity” although he had made a mistake they could tell his gratitude was sincere “But I’ll be honest that energy wouldn't have been enough for me to fly, it would have only given me a little more strength and speed but nothing more"
Jay still felt a little offended by what Hermes had said, but he also understood that he was grateful for his job, even if it only gave him a little energy. But then there was still one question to answer.
"So if the musical didn't give you back your powers, what did? And what do we have to do with this?"
Hermes sighed heavily, he knew he had to tell them the reason for his visit and even though it was difficult for him to recount the fall of Olympus, strangely now this seemed more difficult to say.
"Well, before coming here I had to go somewhere else, to a place that had been waiting for me for years"
——— … ———
It had been a few hours since he flew again, but for him were some of the longest and happiest hours of his eternal life, feeling the wind in his hair, the wet sensation of passing through the clouds, the warmth of Helios against his skin, he had been so long glued to the ground that he had almost forgotten what flying felt like, it could only be described as pure freedom.
He wondered if Aeolus was flying like him and had returned to his island in the sky, if Apollo had recovered his healing and prophetic abilities or if Ares and Athena had regained their battle skills, he didn't know yet but something told him it wouldn't take long to find out.
He could have used his speed and taken the shortest route, but he honestly didn't want that. He wanted to enjoy it as much as he could before eventually touching down again. He even took the time to see some ancient monuments from above upon reaching Greece.
Greece, his home, the place of his people. It pained him to see most of the active palaces and temples in ruins, the statues that once adorned them incomplete, either due to time or mortals who vandalized them. The Greece he knew died long ago, but the energy of what had once been Ancient Greece was still felt, weak but persevering. He had to continue on his way, wondering what the rest of the Gods would think if they were there? What would his many brothers and sisters, cousins, and uncles think about what happened to their people?
As he drew closer to Greece, he felt his divinity awakening more and more, and he sought to locate the Palace of the Gods. It wasn't until he was almost at Athens, the capital of Greece and formerly protected by his sister Athena, felt a tug within him that made him stop. He saw the clouds above him, and something deep inside him knew he finally found it. He soared above the clouds with speed, hoping to finally visualize the place that had expelled him so many years ago and now awaited him with open arms.
There above the clouds, reflecting the last rays of the sun, stood imposing The Olympus.
Hermes felt an immediate connection with the place and, at first glance, nothing had changed; everything was just as he remembered it, at least physically.
Their wings fluttered and flapped strongly, they felt the connection too.
"I know, we're back"
He flew to the edge where the marble floors with gold details began, going at great speed, but stopped inches from entering Olympus. He didn't want to touch the ground, not when he had been in the air for so little time, but Olympus itself welcomed him and invited him to come closer to what was his. Hermes felt divine energy run through his body as soon as he landed on the marble floor.
Once again he was welcomed on Olympus.
He began to walk through the Olympus corridors, running his hand along the walls as he passed them, remembering how everything was a long time ago and although his wings were still he felt his excitement of being there.
Olympus could only be considered a magnificent place, not even the most skilled of builders or craftsmen could make or replicate a work as grand as Olympus itself. Everything was made of solid marble, but there were golden patterns on the floor and on the walls were carved the stories of the exploits of both Gods and heroes, Hermes touched the carvings feeling the relief of the marble against his hand, seeing how it lit up as soon as he touched it knowing that a God was present. The pedestals stood imposing even if they only held small structures since on Olympus there was no roof, due to the lack of clouds above it never rained, during the day they could see Helios rise and warm with his powerful light, he illuminated the gold ornaments making them reflect on the walls and floors making them look more beautiful than they already were and at night you could see the starry mantle in all its splendor, thousands of constellations and stars in a black mantle while the dim white light of Selene illuminated the silver objects and gave a light that generated peace and tranquility. It wouldn't be long before they could see the stars beyond the sky again.
He walked through the vast corridors and saw the enormous gardens filled with all kinds of flowers and plants that, regardless of the season or how high they were, never lost their vitality. He saw the crystal-clear fountains with beautiful details and inlaid stones. At the top of some of them was a statue of a God, Goddess, or creature. He was so focused on seeing every detail he could that he didn't realize where he was going all this time.
In front of him was a huge mahogany door, on it was carved one of the oldest stories ever written, The Titanomachy, the war between Gods and Titans, specifically more about the fight between Kronos and his children, you could see how Poseidon wielded his trident and controlled the seas, Hades wore his helmet that made him untouchable as well as wielding his bident about to stab a Titan, Hestia even being one of the most peaceful threw bursts of fire towards the Titans, Demeter captured them with vines and forced the Titans to prostrate themselves on the ground, Hera held her golden sword and even if she didn't have much experience in combat she was strong, she had enough conviction to wield her sword against the Titans and in the center Zeus with his lightning bolt raised about to throw it at Kronos who stood above them all, even if it was only carved wood it looked threatening. Hermes never liked that door, just seeing the figure of Kronos gave him chills, he ignored the discomfort and opened the gate.
Just as he remembered, the room was huge in the shape of a circle surrounded by pedestals that held a transparent dome, the only roofed part of Olympus, the floor was made of gold and silver, the pillars were covered by vines and flowers and the walls had precious stones inlaid that resembled the sea and the land, at the bottom on two semicircular steps were twelve marble thrones and behind these, stained glass windows where part of the domains of the God to whom the throne corresponded were shown.
For Hermes this was paradise.
He looked at the two central thrones, those of Zeus and Hera, King and Queen of Olympus, Zeus always on the right and Hera on the left as his companion, Poseidon on the right of his brother, Demeter next to her sister, to the right of Poseidon was Ares who by his side, of course, was his wife Aphrodite, next to Demeter was Athena, next to her Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, to her left her twin Apollo, on the left edge Hephaestus and on the right edge Dionysus, in the middle of Dionysus and Aphrodite was his throne, with a stained glass window that had a figure that resembled his shape, winged, with a bag full of scrolls and in the background the vast sky.
Without thinking he approached the thrones, climbed the two steps and stared at his throne, he was nervous, he knew what it meant to sit there, but that was what he wanted most, he touched the top of the throne and felt Olympus telling him not to fear, that this was and always would be his purpose, he decided to believe it. He turned his back on the throne, rested his hands on its sides and sat on it, immediately he felt how the contact with Olympus grew, the connection previously lost was reestablished. When he entered he only considered it a guest, now he saw it for what it was.
A God.
He wanted to enjoy the moment of belonging to Olympus more, but something else called to him, something strong but odd. He noticed the energy coming from the private room of the Gods, a place where topics related to mortals were discussed, and sometimes about certain Gods, Demigods, and other creatures, incredibly, they almost never used it, but now the energy it gave off was very powerful, more powerful than ever. He rose from his throne and headed to the room.
The first thing he noticed was that the door was half-open. He didn't know what had happened since he was exiled from Olympus, but something told him it shouldn't be that way. He saw the golden light streaming through the door, a light he knew didn't belong there. He was cautious when he opened the door. He didn't know if whatever was inside was alive, and he didn't know that it was important, very important.
The room remained as it had been left, a circular stone table with twelve thrones simpler than the previous ones, there was no center on the table to create a space where one could enter, generally Zeus was the one who spoke there, but what caught his attention the most was the golden sphere that floated in the center, it was the size of a melon and seemed to have a golden liquid inside, Hermes rarely saw one of these so close, but he knew what it was and how dangerous it could be, a call of destiny.
"A prophecy"
He walked towards it and touched it, as soon as he touched it the liquid inside began to move and it told the prophecy.
——— … ———
Gods rise once again
The glory returns to Olympus
The world has been changed
But the magic it's still in you
Whoever who accept it, will have it.
Whoever who don't, will just follow
The Olympus rise once again
Maybe this time will last
——— … ———
Hermes calmed down upon hearing those words. Perhaps Gods would never be considered as they'd been a long time ago, but he regained some of his powers and Olympus accepted him. That was much more than he had ever hoped for.
But the prophecy didn't stop there.
——— … ———
The Titan of time must be release
His revenge has to be achieve
Gods that once feared will be by his side
So their glory would last at the end of the time
Even with the conflict that’s approaching
The Titan will not defeat
he will
The Gods are safe
they are not
——— … ———
What?
Did he hear that right? Was it talking about… Kronos? The mad Titan who devoured his children just to maintain his power?
All those questions swirled around in his head, but what troubled him most was that echo. A prophecy has to be clear and concise about the future, but this one wasn't. The last time there were those kinds of prophecies, he lost almost everything.
——— … ———
Past souls return to the game
New destinies are trace because of them
For succeed, they have to fight against him
If they want to return to what they called home
If you are fast, not all will fight.
all will fight
If you are smart, not all will fail
all will fail
If you are trustful, they will not doubt
they will doubt
If you are lucky, they will not end
they’ll all be dead
Fate not only depends on the Gods
The mortals are becoming stronger once more
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Find what everyone think it’s a myth
With it your destiny will be a success
In the end the decision is yours
Your future is yours
But destiny is written
NOT YET
——— … ———
Hermes was in shock for a long time.
He knew instantly which mortals the prophecy was referring to, but one thing is to want to investigate why the musical had a good portion of divine energy and another to tell them that they would have to fight against gods and titans, it was crazy, they weren't warriors and yet he needed them, but why? The prophecy didn't make that clear to him.
Also, that warning…
But the real question was, what God would be so freaking dumb as to make a deal with Kronos? It was clearly a damn trap. Who would be so desperate for power as to do something…?
Oh no
"Zeus"
——— ... ———
"Well, that's what happened"
…
"WHAT?!"
"Speechless, huh"
Jay was having a mental breakdown, just a few hours ago he was living his happy and peaceful life and now he had a God telling him that they are part of a prophecy and they had to help him or a crazy titan would come back and destroy the world.
He prefered his life a few hours ago.
"Look, I know it's a lot to process, but this is something serious, not only for me, but for you too" that made the three of them react and pay attention to him "You are part of a prophecy, I think you know what that means, it's practically destiny, it can hardly be changed, no matter what has to happen, it will happen, believe me, it's better that you accept it once and for all than try to stop it"
A prophecy had chosen them and the future partly depended on their decisions now.
"But they don't always happen" Troy spoke after everything they knew "Some haven't come true, right?"
Not even Hermes knew if this prophecy was completely accurate, he did not want to mention the strange echoes in it, nor the possible fights, as the prophecy said if this was fast there would be no need to fight or involve more mortals.
"There have been cases, but they are very few, and even if they are not fulfilled, that does not mean that we are free from any threat, especially the threat of a Titan"
He was right, Odysseus was proof of that, perhaps he avoided the prophecy of being killed by Hector's son but in exchange it took him ten years at sea to return to his land.
"Listen, if we do this quickly, we won't have to involve the others"
Jay looked up at that.
“The others?”
"When you say “the others” you mean…?"
"The entire cast, or at least the majority of them"
"Okay, this is gonna be a disaster"
Jay agreed with Troy, this would be a disaster.
But did they even have a choice? Why did fate choose them? Why did they feel like there was more than just the musical?
"Do you know why it chose us?"
Hermes did not expect that question, he didn't want to answer it .
"I guess it's because of the musical"
Liar
"And if we go with you, it would be dangerous?"
"If there's danger I'll protect you, but I doubt anything bad will happen"
Liar
"And one more thing, this is more of my curiosity"
He had to ask this, something inside him told him he needed an answer to this question.
"You said something happened and mortals stopped believing in the Gods… Do you know at least something about what caused it?"
…
"No"
LIAR
LIAR
LIAR
Jay wasn't satisfied with that answer, but he accepted it, for now .
"Can you give us a few minutes? I think it would be better if we discuss this alone"
"Um, sure, no problem"
They locked themselves in another room, even though they were sure Hermes had his ear to the door. No one said anything for a minute. They still had to process everything they'd been through: Gods, prophecies, Titans, it was crazy. Jay broke the silence.
"So, what do you think?"
Troy was the first to respond.
"I say no, it's not our problem"
"But it will be soon" said Hermes from behind the door.
Troy banged on the door and yelled at the God on the other side.
"Hey, don't you know what means privacy?" he sighed heavily and looked at his friends "Do you really trust him?"
Jay didn't know whether to do it or not, Hermes was deceptive by nature, but he was sure he wouldn't play with something as serious as this, he sounded very worried and he would even say scared, even so he felt that he was hiding something from them, something important, he didn't know what to think. He saw at his girlfriend and realized that she hadn't spoken at all for a while, she was still thoughtful and indecisive, but he noticed that she was more confident than him.
"Talya?" he called her and she seemed to react, she wasn't sure of her words, but she still dared to speak.
"I doubt this is one of his jokes" he agreed with her "And I doubt he would name Kronos just like that if this wasn't serious" she didn't want to say the next thing, but she had to "If what he says is true and Kronos seeks for revenge, then no one will be safe"
Hermes had already said he only wants to see blood shed and they doubted he would show mercy to anyone, if he returned everything they knew and loved would be destroyed.
The three of them knew what the Gods were capable of, they didn't want to know what a Titan was capable of.
"Jay, what'd you think?"
He thought this was crazy and maybe a sure death if they agreed, but...
"He's right about one thing, if there's a prophecy involved, whatever has to happen, will happen" and although a part of him didn't want to do this, the other part told him he had no choice "What's the point of resisting right now if it will happen later?"
They thought about it, analyzed their options and there weren't many, there were never many when it came to the Gods, but something kept repeating itself in their heads.
“If we do this quickly, we won’t have to involve the others.
That's what he said. If they did this quickly, they probably wouldn't be in much danger. They weren't sure about their decision—no one was—but maybe it was the best for everyone. They looked at each other, guessed what the other was thinking, nodded, and opened the door.
As Jay guessed, Hermes had his ear pressed against the door and almost fell over when he opened it.
"I wasn't hearing or something"
For the God of deception, that was a terrible lie.
Jay was the first to speak.
"How quickly will this be over if we go with you?"
Hermes showed a smile as soon as he asked the question, it was undoubtedly one of happiness.
"You will? Thank you, thank you, thank you"
He wanted to hug Jay, but Jay stopped him.
"First answer the question"
Hermes walked away a little discouraged, but he still kept his smile.
"Well, at least three days
"Three days?!"
"Or maybe four… or five"
It crossed their minds to refuse to go, but Hermes was quick to convince them.
"Please, this will be simple, just help me gather the rest of the Gods and get the artifact that will not only prevent Kronos from returning, but will also give me enough power to continue flying for many more centuries"
Well if he says it like that it sound easy, but nothing is easy with the Gods "Wait, what artifact?"
Hermes let out a groan of exhaustion; he was getting fed up with having to explain everything.
"It will take me longer if I explain it now, I prefer to do it on the way"
Jay was regretting this, they knew almost nothing about what was happening and Hermes seemed to be hiding important information from them, Hermes knew they were hesitant, he knew how to read people's behavior, a skill more his than divine.
"Please trust me"
Trust.
Very difficult to have and very easy to break. They didn't fully trust him, but they just hoped he wouldn't break their trust as soon as he could.
"Okay, we will"
As soon as he said that he hugged the three of them tightly.
"Thank you, really thank you"
In part the hug was warm, it even felt familiar , but Hermes forgot that he had a superior force.
"I can't breathe," Troy could barely speak as he hit Hermes' shoulder to get him let go.
"Oops, sorry" he separated from them and they began to cough due the lack of air, Hermes made the frying pan appear and handed it to Talya "Your weapon my lady"
Talya was still recovering from the choking, but she didn't deny him the pan.
"Thank you"
Hermes just gave her a smile.
"Well, let's go"
"Wait" Jay said as soon as he caught his breath "There are a couple of things to clarify first, first we'll only do what we have to do and you'll return us here, second if we see that this turns too dangerous you'll return us immediately and lastly, as soon as we finish this you'll leave us alone and stop bothering us, deal?"
Jay extended his hand, hoping the God would accept his terms. Hermes' expression was confused; he couldn't see his gaze and didn't know exactly what he was thinking, but in the end, it didn't matter. He gave him his mocking smile again and extended his hand.
"Okay, it's a deal"
And so they sealed their deal, perhaps something much important than a simple deal, but that would be seen later, for now they both hoped they had made the right decision.
We'll see how long they last like this.