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March 15, 2021: Clash of the Titans (Review: Part One)

Please. Let me write a Greek mythology movie. I’m tired.

I am SO TIRED of Greek mythology being so...misused. Do y’all realize how much potential lies in an adaptation, a PROPER adaptation of Greek myths? Because it’d be fantastic if done well. Look, I’m not a writer, let alone a script or screenwriter, but I could write a better adaptation of Greek mythology, I swear I could.

Full warning, you might wanna skip this part. It’s gonna be...REALLY long.

So, yeah, this “review” is getting broken up into two parts. The first part here is really just a rant/hypothetical Perseus film that Id make if I had any screenwriting ability. Yeah, it’s basically a fanfic, so feel free to, like, not. Check out the Review here. Read ahead at your own peril.

You might be saying, “OK, bet; how would you adapt the story of Perseus?” Fair question, metaphorical yet judgmental person; how would I do it, exactly? Well, I’d mostly do it straight, to be honest. But you need to make this a cinematic adaptation, right? SO story changed need to be made, I get that. And I think that needs to start with the gods.

First up, you need Zeus, if for no other reason than to father Perseus. I do like the fact that he’s a patron for Perseus throughout these movies, but I don’t like Zeus as a straight-up dad. That’s for various reasons, but I’ll get there. Perseus’ main patron, instead, should be his half-sister: Athena.

Seriously, Athena needs to be a big part of this movie. She’s not exactly one of the biggest patrons for heroes, but she does like them. In the case of Perseus, she should sympathize with him. Perseus, after all, is one of the first major Greek heroes. Yeah, he really should be one of the first, and that needs to be fully acknowledged. Athena, in her LITERAL INFINITE WISDOM, should see the young demigod for what he could become: a bonafide hero. And so, she needs to be a part of this movie. One of her key allies should be...

Hermes should be, well, mercurial. Always moving, never truly still, because dude is CONSTANTLY busy. Not only is he a messenger, but he’s also the god of medicine, AND a psychopomp that escorts spirits to the underworld. Yeah, he wears a lot of winged hats. He’s also another extramarital child of Zeus, giving him sympathy for Perseus as well.

While he’s mostly a neutral god, he could also serve as a messenger from Athena to Perseus, delivering to him the gifts from the gods. He could even be the one who gets the Helm of Darkness from Hades, given his relationship to death and the Underworld. So, he’s gotta be in there as an ally of Athena. Hell, he could even be the one who finds Perseus and tells Athena about him in the first place. OK, Athena and Perseus now have an ally, so what about a villain?

Well, this movie had Calibos and technically Thetis, the 2010 had fuckin’ Hades (because of course they did), but no. Both are the wrong choice. The right choice here, in my humble opinion, is one that MAKES FUCKING SENSE.

Hot take: POSEIDON IS AN ASSHOLE. I realize that this statement has doomed me to a death at sea, but that won’t stop me from hiding the truth. Yeah, dude’s the god of the ocean, and of horses, but he’s also the father of countless monsters, nearly as horny as his younger brother Zeus, and the god of earthquakes. He’s a petty, tempestuous god, as angry and ever-changing as the ocean that he rules. And he’s ABSOLUTELY the right choice for a villain of a Perseus movie.

The movie would begin in the ocean, the source of all of the troubles in this movie. 20 years before the main events of the film, we emerge from the ocean and soar over an island, on which is a beautiful temple. Waves wash over the island, enveloping it. A woman’s scream is heard in the background, as we soar over the island, following an owl that is flying away from the island. As we fly over the ocean, narration tells us that this is a world of gods and monsters, and the owl flies over creatures in the ocean, like hippocampi and other such creatures. The owl flies over another island, which on screen text identifies as Argos. Here, a shower of gold dust flies up from a building. Perseus has just been conceived.

Cut to a day not too far afterwards, where King Acrisius is meeting with an unseen trio of women, in a cave on a mountainside. The king tells them that his daughter, Danae, has become pregnant, although he knows not by whom. The women reveal that Zeus is her lover, and that this will bring great ruin onto the kingdom of Argos, especially onto Acrisius himself. This is a big problem, too, as the kingdom of Argos worships Poseidon as their patron god. Acrisius, see, was planning on saving Danae for Poseidon, as a perverse offering to the god. But Zeus beat him to the punch, which has made Poseidon angry. And so, Acrisius sacrifices his daughter to Poseidon...by putting her in a box, which he casts out to sea.

Poseidon is about to destroy the box and Danae, who is still pregnant with her child. However, Zeus won’t have it, and in a battle between the two gods, a storm with golden lightning rages over the sea, and sweeps the box away, to the safety of an island where it washes up on shore, AWAY from Poseidon’s wrath. Zeus’ protection saves Danae, who has given birth to a son: Perseus. Poseidon, spurned of his revenge against his brother, makes a child of his own. But we only see its shadow beneath the waves. He’ll come back later.

Time passes, and a few things happen. The kingdom of Argos falls, and Acrisius is brought to ruin, as the mysterious prophetesses predicted. They are starved of fish, and the king is blamed, for condemning his daughter to death. He is driven into exile, and Argos is destroyed...by Poseidon’s mysterious child, who is only known by the name Cetus. The city still exists afterward, so that Perseus has a place to return to, but it’s wrecked.

Meanwhile, Perseus grows up, into a young man. He’s not particularly strapping, but he’s still surprisingly strong and hardy for his size. All the while, he’s watched over by a little owl, the same one we saw in the beginning of the film, flying over the ocean. Appearing below the owl is a rooster, which flies up next to the owl. Both of them watch the young Perseus, then look up when they hear the screech of a golden eagle, flying high in the sky above them. They look at each other, as the eagle flies up to the tip of a nearby mountain. The owl and rooster fly off, with the rooster flying higher than a rooster should be able to fly.

We follow them as they pass through the clouds, and they turn into their true forms: Athena and Hermes. They watch the golden eagle fly into a separate grand temple, as thunder and lightning appear. We’re not gonna see Zeus until nearly the end of this movie. Athena and Hermes discuss Perseus in Athena’s temple on Olympus. Hermes is a bit busy, so he’s off in a hurry, but Athena sits and ponders Perseus’ situation.

Perseus, meanwhile, has a different problem: surviving. Poseidon’s been particularly dickish lately, and the fish stock around Perseus’ island is low as FUCK. His mother, meanwhile, is older now, and struggling with her health. An old hermit walks into the village one day, and hears Perseus’ troubles. The hermit tells Perseus that the fish market is good near the nearby kingdom of Aethiopia, which includes a large and prosperous city that may also have medicine to help his ailing mother. Perseus decides to go on the journey there. As he leaves the hermit, we see the hermit’s eye color change to a sparkling electric blue.

Perseus heads onto the seas, with a fishing boat leaving for Aethiopia. The second that boat hits the water, Poseidon senses the blood of Zeus on his ocean. Being the petty asshole he is, he sees his chance to finally exact revenge on Zeus for stealing Danae from him. He sends his child, Cetus, after the ship to sink it. We don’t see the Cetus brings rough water with it. However, Zeus again protects the ship on its journey, and Poseidon’s SUPER butthurt now. He watches Perseus make his way to Aethiopia.

Aethiopia, in this movie, is a city that doesn’t particularly worship any one god. It’s not exactly the least theistic place in the world, though, because its residents will still fear any action that the gods take against them. That’ll come in handy later. Perseus lands there with the boat, and is immediately overwhelmed by the city’s grandeur. Additionally, he stands out here, as the people there are mostly, surprise surprise, black and brown in skin color. BECAUSE IT’S NORTHERN AFRICA!!! YEAH! Andromeda COULD BE BLACK, FUN GODDAMN FACT. Aethiopia was used to describe southern kingdoms below Libya, which was northern Africa! Come on, man!

While wandering blind through the city, Perseus bumps into a young woman, shrouded in plain vestments as she walks through the village. And it’s immediately love at first sight for Perseus, although the young woman seems somewhat nonplussed. This is the beautiful and radiant Andromeda, and YEAH! I’M RIPPING OFF ALADDIN A LITTLE! SUE MEI! See, Andromeda’s trying to explore her kingdom, as she’s been somewhat sheltered throughout her life, protected in the castle by father King Cepheus and shallow mother Queen Cassiopeia.

The two part quickly, but her visage remains in Perseus’ mind, horny Zeus’ kid that he is. He finds out who she is later on, considering what’s about to happen. See, there’s a festival going on, and it’s actually leading up to Andromeda’s 20th birthday. The overly clingy Cepheus honors his daughter unnecessarily, setting up an entire 2-week celebration leading up to her birthday.

During the nightly celebration, which Perseus attends, there’s a great feast. He bumps into Andromeda once again, and the two start talking. Andromeda is kind, if naïve, and wants to be a good queen to her people. However, she feels like a trophy, set aside for any given suitor wanting to win her heart. Perseus sympathizes, and feels a bit guilty, as her beauty was what struck him most at first, but has now begun to appreciate her as a person, over the course of this conversation. Said conversation is watched by Athene, in owl form once again.

The conversation’s interrupted by Queen Cassiopeia, who makes a speech about her daughter, and you know what’s coming here. She says that her daughter is beautiful, moreso than any of the Nereids, or anything that the sea could produce. And everybody laughs, it’s real funny, people agree...and then, we zoom over to a nearby fountain. The water begins to shake, and then, the ground itself begins to shake! Because Poseidon is the GOD OF EARTHQUAKES. COME ON, USE THIS SHIT!

Poseidon, pissed off, manifests from the water of the fountain, and we now see his visage in full for the first time, and it needs to be IMPOSING. He looks at the queen, and at Andromeda herself. He says that for Cassiopeia’s hubris, they are to be punished. Her child will meet one of his, the great Cetus, and then they’ll be able to compare “prowess and beauty”. This is certain death for Andromeda, obviously, and everybody knows it. This is to be done on her 20th birthday, or all of Aethiopia will fall. It’s then that Perseus steps in to defend Andromeda.

Poseidon looks at him, and says something like: “And look! As if to perfect this offering, Zeus’ bastard steps in the save the day! Well, child, do you offer yourself to me, after evading my justice for so long?” Everybody, INCLUDING PERSEUS, if totally shaken by this revelation. See, Perseus had NO IDEA that he was the child of Zeus. But he swallows his surprise, and offers himself in Andromeda’s stead. As Poseidon’s about to kill him there and then, he hears a hoot from the rafters, and sees the visage of Athena overlapping the little owl. Not comfortable with this situation, he offers a deal: if Perseus can complete a task for him, he will spare Andromeda’s life. Perseus accepts IMMEDIATELY, without hearing the task. And that task?

Kill the Gorgon Medusa, and bring her head back to Aethiopia before Andromeda is sacrificed.

Yeah, not good, and definitely unfair. Perseus isn’t exactly a warrior of any prowess, so this won’t end well for him. Poseidon laughs, and disappears into the water of the fountain. Silence befalls the hall, and all eyes turn to Perseus. Athena leaves, and flies up to her temple, angry and frustrated. She then decides that, if Poseidon is going to meddle in the affairs of the mortal world so strongly, then she will do the same. She finds Hermes, and the two start to conspire.

The next morning, Perseus heads out on the journey, although he has no idea what to do. Andromeda begs him not to do it, but he says he has little to lose. King Cepheus, humbled by Perseus’ intentions, promises whatever Perseus wants if he succeeds. Perseus states that he wants little, but will take assistance for his mother and village. It’s done. And Andromeda, to the surprise of her mother, almost offers her hand in marriage to her as well. But she stops short, still hesitant.

Perseus is about to go the distance, when a little owl catches his eye. Something tells him to follow the owl, and he does. Athena reveals herself, and Perseus is struck, not knowing what to do. She tells him to find the Greae, as they will tell him how to get to Medusa. He asks how he will get there, and Athena gives him his first divine item: Hermes’ winged sandals, loaned to him by the messenger god himself. The sandals will guide him to the location of the sisters. And Perseus accepts.

He makes his way to the sisters, the shenanigans with the eye stay about the same (it’s pretty solid in the 1981 film, not gonna lie), and from there, he finds out where to go. In the meantime, Athena’s and Perseus’ deeds are being noticed by the gods, eventually making their way to the three brothers. Poseidon is, of course, enraged at these happenings, considering them dishonorable to him, and also incensed as this is coming from Athena, a long-standing rival of his. Hades seems neutral about it. And Zeus...we’ll come back to him. Hermes, joined by Dionysus, speaks with Athena in Olympus, and delivers something to her to give to Perseus: Hades’ Helm of Darkness. He’s curiously chosen a side, but why isn’t known even to Hermes. Will that reason ever be revealed?

I have my reasons. Dionysus, also inspired by Perseus’ origins (which mirror his own as well), gives to Athena a wine-colored cloak, impervious to harm from all poisons and corrosive items. Inspired by this, Athena thinks on her history with Medusa. And, uh...remember that scream from the beginning? Yeah, Medusa’s “birth” coincides with Perseus’ conception. While Poseidon was...busy...Zeus went for Danae behind his back. And we’re going to sanitize Medusa’s origin...a little. But for Athena’s sake, specifically.

Poseidon raped Medusa. That’s a given. And Medusa was a priestess of Athena, but not a great one. Although Athena was angered at Poseidon’s actions GREATLY, the one who inevitably suffered for it was Medusa. Poisoned by Poseidon’s actions, she was transformed into her current form. And in this case, it’s not made clear whether or not Athena directly caused it...but it’s clear that Athena did nothing to stop it. This can be changed in some ways, but this is how I’m changing it for the movie. If you disagree, entirely understandable, I’m open to suggestions here.

OK, after that flashback, we see that Athena’s kind of ashamed of her actions, but not entirely. I realize that this is a stretch for Athena’s character, but this is a movie for wider audiences, so we’ll go for it. There’s a reason, I promise. Athena delivers the gifts to Perseus, which he finds once he’s left the cave of the Greae. That’s the cloak from Dionysus, the Helm of Darkness from Hades, and Athena’s offering, a mirrored shield. Perseus heads out to slay Medusa.

Poseidon, meanwhile, has his own ideas. He goes to speak with Hera, a shadow antagonist who’ll get her day later on. He persuades her to help take care of Zeus’ bastard son, and she reluctantly gives him permission to use one of her creations. What this is is left a mystery for the time being, but not for long. Perseus is busy flying with the winged sandals, and is thinking on how easy the journey has been. He’s getting a little cocky, in other words. But that’s quickly stopped when he’s blind-sided by something hitting him in the sky. He’s sent flying, and when he focuses up again, he sees what’s hit him.

YUP. HARPIES. Now, at this point, you may be saying: “365, you hypocrite! That never happened in the original story of Perseus! You sonuvabitch!” To that I say:

This is supposed to be a movie, and it’s gotta be a little exciting.

The origin of the harpies is entirely unstated, and Hera loved her some birds, so it makes sense that she would have some. In fact, I kind of want to make them women that Hera punished with this form, possibly for their association with Zeus at some point.

I’m setting something up, just trust me here.

Harpies as a concept are a familiar enemy to most audiences.

They’re cool, and an aerial battle’s even cooler here.

Perseus needs some mortal peril, because of something that’s about to happen.

OK. With that, the Harpies attack Perseus, and Perseus realizes that he doesn’t have a weapon to fight them with. He’s forced aground, on a seemingly desrted island. The Harpies fly off for now, ready to pick Perseus off later. Perseus, now stuck on the island, wanders around. At the same time, Zeus, sees this, and turns into an eagle once again. He flies off to a volcano, as an irritated Hera looks on. At the volcano, he flies into a cave, lined with veins of many metals. This is Hephaestus’ forge.

Hephaestus is another of those gods that I feel like never gets his day in court. There are many reasons for that, to be fair, but I’d like him to have a role in this story. He’s a relatively neutral god, mostly caring about his work at the anvil, moreso than anything else. I also like the idea of having him almost be a running joke in his scenes, in that he always comes up with devices far beyond their time. Like, at a certain point, he offers something for Zeus to give to Perseus, which he calls a “thunderblast”. And it’s a fucking CANNON, YEARS ahead of its time. You also see sketches for smaller versions, which are just straight up guns. But, y’know, eus will refuse that.

Speaking of that, THIS is the first time that we’ll see Zeus’ true face, lit by the light of the forge. And there are a few reasons for this, one of which being that Zeus’ casting should be a big name, and a surprise in marketing. But other than that, Zeus’ really shouldn’t have too much import in the story, outside of Perseus’ creation. However, looking at Hephaestus, who is himself a cast-out and neglected offspring of the gods, Zeus actually manages to eke out a little guilt for his actions for one. He asks Hephaestus to make something for him and Perseus. Hephaestus is hesitant, but agrees upon hearing about Perseus’ origins, because Hephaestus is ALSO HIS HALF-BROTHER...in this movie. Hephaestus’ origin has changed in different tellings, but I want him to be Zeus’ kid. So, yeah, Hephaestus agrees to make something...simple.

Perseus is on the island. There, he’s being watched by YET ANOTHER mysterious figure. Because, yeah, that’s how these people should work. See, there’s another benefactor for him that I want to bring in for various reasons. This island appears to have been inhabited at some point, but was abandoned for unknown reasons. Perseus wanders around, and stumbles upon a ruined Great Hall, open to the sky. He wanders in, nervously. But then, to his surprise, he sees a great feast before him, as a fire roars in the hearth at the end of the hall. He looks at the fire for a moment, and sees a woman tending it. But as the fire bursts, it produces a flash of light, and the woman is gone. Who was she, though?

The LEAST used and talked about goddess in all of pop culture. An unofficial/occasional Olympian, and far less popular than Dionysus, who usually takes her seat. I actually want her to have given Dionysus her seat, as she will be wandering the world, bestowing blessings on the households of those worthy mortals who honor her. To Perseus, she gives this gift, and this hall with maintain this gift in the future. This goddess is Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth and Home.

AND YES I AM AWARE OF HESTIA IN THE ANIME DANMACHA. Doesn’t goddamn count, because that obviously isn’t Hestia. The Greek goddess deserves some respect, as she’s literally the oldest of all of them, and was VERY respected in Greek culture, by LITERALLY EVERYBODY. So, yeah, Hestia’s going to appear here, ever so briefly.

The other reason for this is...well, the Harpies show up, as Perseus eats. They perch on the roof of the Great Hall, and watch him eat. He notices them, and as he reacts, they come down to take the food and attack him. Perseus realizes that the food has revitalized his weary body, and he runs. However, the Harpies prevent egress, and he still has no weapon. Until...

Thunder clashes, and lightning strikes in the middle of the Great Hall! The fire goes out, but light is coming from something in the center of the table, as Perseus and the Harpies look on. With the lightning bolt, there traveled a harpe, a type of sword, which is embedded in the table. But this is no ordinary sword, as it chines silver, almost blue in hue, as electricity arcs off of it. This is a divine sword, forged by Hephaestus on the order of Zeus himself.

But the sword is nameless...for now. Perseus uses the flashes of the sword to fend off the harpies. When one of them lunges at him, he quickly moves in response to it, and strikes it just, slicing off a wing. The other Harpies fly away in fear, but not too far. Perseus takes the opportunity, and leaves the great Hall, maybe grabbing some food on the way. Now armed, he has a way to kill Medusa, and to take her head. He heads to the island, with new purpose.

Meanwhile, in Aethiopia, the people are starting to panic. Remember when I said the city wasn’t particularly religious before? WELL THEY ARE NOW, since they’ve realized that they’ve profaned Poseidon with their arrogance. The vain Cassiopeia is now terrified, for herself rather than for her daughter. Cepheus is terrified for Andromeda, and Andromeda...well, Andromeda is putting hope in Perseus, but she is also prepared to sacrifice herself if necessary. But deep down, she doesn’t believe it will be, because she oddly believes in Perseus.

However, Cepheus won’t be able to hold off the hordes forever, It’s been nearly a week, and Andromeda is to be sacrificed soon. And if Cepheus won’t do it, the newly religious Cassiopeia and the crowd will.

Poseidon realizes that his plan with Hera’s Harpies didn’t work...perfectly. Damn, he’s still alive. Plus, the Harpies won’t get off of the island now, especially seeing that food seems to be magically appearing every night, due to Hestia’s gift. Maybe and island with magically appearing food beset by Harpies will, I dunno...come backcoughcogchJasoncoughcoughArgonautscoughcough. Nevertheless, Poseidon hatches another plan, a back-up plan to get revenge on Zeus and Perseus. He tells a nymph to “find him”. We’ll get to “him” later.

However, this is a problem for Perseus still, because he’s been thrown WAY off course from the island of Medusa. Even with the sandals, he’d be cutting it close to get back to Joppa with Medusa’s head. And that’s if he gets back with the head. Still a big if, that. In any case, he’s headed there to do what he must. He’s already faced the Greae and the Harpies, so, hey! Not too bad so far, right? Just Medusa next, and then a giant sea monster! Hahaaaaaaaaaaaa.

Well...whatever. For Andromeda, and for something else, he’s going to do it. Perseus looks at the sword, and wonders what’s up with the whole “Zeus is my dad” thing yet again, but shakes it off as he continues flying. Above him, an eagle flies. Said eagle is soon joined by an owl, and the two share a look as they follow Perseus. He’s close to the island, and Medusa’s island is prominent on the horizon, shrouded in a dark eerie fog.

Perseus lands on the island, after hovering above it for perhaps too long. This is, unsurprisingly, the same island from the beginning of the film, now in ruins. He gears up, and this includes the Helm of Darkness this time. He creeps into the temple, and is struck by surprise when he sees a Gorgon slithering next to him. OH SHIT

On first glimpse, the invisible Perseus notes that the creature is indeed monstrous, standing 6-feet tall, with snakes for her short hair and fang-like teeth protruding from her mouth. And while there are some details not actually in Greek mythology, I do like some details given in the films. Firstly, this Gorgon is armed not only with her looks and teeth, but bows and arrows, as seen as she takes an arrow, and coats in in poison dripping from her teeth.

Perseus realizes the danger that he’s in, but also doesn’t realize that this ISN’T Medusa. YUP. This is one of the Gorgons, but not Medusa. He approaches the creature, confident in his invisibility. However, he isn’t careful enough, and accidentally kicks a pebble. The Gorgon looks directly at him, into his EYES, and he’s paralyzed! But...he isn’t turned to stone, curiously. This is how he figures out that this isn’t Medusa, but simply another Gorgon. He also realizes how careless he’s being, and takes care to avert his eyes from the Gorgons and Medusa.

He gets over his paralysis eventually, then carefully makes his way to the main temple. On the way, he encounters another Gorgon, completing the trio of Gorgons present in mythology. He walks into the temple, and as he does, a door slams shut behind him. Now the Gorgons up until now have been monstrous and fairly tall women, with snakes for hair and hideous visages, but also with mostly humanoid bodies, with legs that they can walk upon. Medusa, though...Medusa’s different.

As the door closes, Perseus is clearly unnerved. The temple seems empty in front of him, but he also sees statues littered around it, clearly those of mortal men turned to stone by Medusa’s gaze. He walks carefully, and as he does, he hears a voice call out, asking who’s there. She can smell him, sense him, and he is not completely invisible to her. Perseus says nothing, as not to completely give away him position. But he is TERRIFIED, and the audience should be as well. Because we see glimpses of her throughout the temple. You ever see the new version of Disney’s The Jungle Book? Remember how they first showed Kaa?

In the same way, coils of a snake’s body are seen, slithering around Perseus, who’s looking for Medusa. All the while, a hissing voice speaks to him from the shadows. She recognizes that his patron is Athena, her former priestess. She explains her rage, both at Poseidon for what he did, and for Athena for abandoning her and condemning her to this terrible fate. She asks why he’s come, guessing that it’s to kill her. He confirms this, but upon hearing her story, expresses his doubts.

But Medusa...Medusa doesn’t really care. If this is a favored beneficiary of Athena, as she used to be, she wants him fucking DEAD. And she doesn’t care who he is, or what his mission is, or about his feelings. he’s going to turn him into stone, and display him in her collection, so that Athena can see something she loves turned into a monstrous form. And now, we see Medusa in full. And I gotta say, Harryhausen had it right. So did Warner Brothers in adapting it.

Half snake, half woman, with long, LONG snakes for hair, and a long snake body as well. She’s also surprisingly beautiful, as I actually do like the idea of keeping her beautiful, in a way to remind her of what she used to be. She’s armed not with a bow and arrow, but with a stone spear. And she’s BIG in form. Her head is still human-sized, but she was clearly a tall woman when she was human. She uses her body to rear up to terrifying heights, though, and Perseus can only see glimpses of her as she reveals herself.

She attacks him, and Perseus has to think fast. In the original myths, he gets her in his sleep. In the movies, it’s a combination of luck and mirrors. But here...here, it’s going to be different. See, we’re going with the old fallen pillar gag. Perseus enrages her, and tricks her into knocking over pillars of the temple that they’re in. She attacks with the spear, with statues thrown by her snake body, with her snake body, and also with an addition: spitting venom, like that of a spitting cobra.

But he manages to either dodge it, or block it with the corrosive proof cloak. All the while, he avoids her gaze, but his helmet is knocked off in the process. She can see him now, and that’s bad news. But only one more column needs to fall. Perseus tricks her into knocking the temple down around her, and she’s trapped in the rubble.

Perseus escapes, and the other Gorgons outside are knocked out by the debris. However, Medusa’s definitely not dead. He stumbles across her, under the rubble, and still enraged. She’s trapped now, though, and he can kill her easily. She actually asks him to, and he refuses at first. But Athene, in owl form, lands on a still standing pillar, in Medusa and Perseus’ eyeline. They see it, and they know that it’s a sign of what Perseus needs to do. Perseus closes his eyes. And he swings.

The blood washes over the sword, smoking. Now christened in an act of mercy and strength, the blue-silver turns to gold, and a name appears on the blade: Chrysaor (and yeah, I know Chrysaor was a dude, but I am TAKING CREATIVE LICENSE HERE). But Perseus is upset by this, feeling that he wasn’t a great hero at all. But Athena appears, and notes that mercy is also a quality of heroism. Something even the gods could learn (referring to herself, and her actions in reference to Medusa). He looks at her, unsure of what to think.

Not that it matters, since he’ll never get back to Aethiopia in time to save Andromeda. And then...the rubble begins to shake. Perseus arms himself, and he points the sword at the rubble, expecting to fight a Gorgon. But instead, an unexpected creature springs up from the rubble: Pegasus.

YUP. I’M STILL DOING IT! I realize that Pegasus is NOT Perseus’ mount, but he is actually linked to the myth via Medusa. So, yeah, Pegasus is born of Medusa. Perseus looks at Athena, who notes that Pegasus looks swift, and seems to be a way back. Pegasus is also pretty grateful to Perseus, as he’s technically responsible for his freedom. So, yeah...he gets ONE ride.

Perseus puts the head of Medusa in the cloak of Dionysus, and gets on Pegasus. As Perseus takes off with Pegasus and Chrysaor, Athena looks at the body of Medusa. Zeus, as the eagle, looks on, and follows Perseus to Aethiopia. Athena stays behind, and then is joined by Hermes. He notes that he’s here for Medusa’s soul, as Hades has been waiting for her soul this whole time. There’s his ulterior motive. But Athena tells Hermes that she’ll be accompanying them. She will speak to Hades.

But enough of that, because Andromeda’s set to be sacrificed! The angry mob has hit a fever pitch, and it’s day before her birthday! Cassiopeia, now fully in the cult of Poseidon with the rest, brings her daughter to the rocks to be chained up. Cepheus tries to stop this, but the mob stops him instead, imprisoning him on the command of Cassiopeia. Andromeda is also taken captive, set to be sacrificed to Poseidon to gain his favor.

Perseus gets to Aethiopia, and lands near Joppa, the capital city. Pegasus takes off, bidding goodbye to Perseus, who thanks him. Pegasus has a date with a kid named Bellerophon. And Perseus is finally feeling confident. Although, he’s not entirely sure what he’ll do when he gets there. But he’s got the head, so what could go wro-BAM!!!

He’s blindsided, with a hit to the face by a rock! And here, we get a bit of an aside from the myth to add something. See, Perseus wakes up, as he’s been out for a WHILE. As he wakes up, he sees an old man, clearly bedraggled and haggard. The man notes that he’s awake after all, and Perseus notes that he has the sword and Medusa’s head in the cloak. This old man introduces himself as an old banished king. He explains that he is there to kill Perseus, on command from Poseidon. You see, he’s been given a chance at absolution, for offending him via inaction many years ago.

The two have a heart-to-heart of sorts, about the expectations of the gods, and Perseus asks why he hasn’t killed him. The king doesn’t reveal his full reasons, those being that Perseus is, of course, his grandson. But Perseus asks him to let him live, in order to save someone with the item in the bag. Curious, the old king looks in the bag...

Stone. And thus, Acrisus’ prophesied downfall is done. Shocked and saddened by this, Perseus nevertheless takes the head, his sword, and his sandals. and takes off to save Andromeda. More time’s been lost, and Andromeda’s lost her hope in Perseus, as has everybody else. By the time he gets there, Poseidon’s released Cetus, who can look however, but I will say I think the incarnation in the 2010 movie was pretty solid. Cetus heads off to kill Andromeda, under the watch of Cassiopeia and her cult of Poseidon.

But then, Perseus shows up to present the head, and sees Cetus having arrived to devour Andromeda. Instinctively, he presents the head to Cetus, and turns him into stone (because I think that’s a cool way for him to go). Andromeda is saved, but Poseidon is PISSED THAT HIS PLAIN FAILED. He rears up from the ocean, complete with earthquake tremors, ready to kill Perseus himself. BUT ZEUS IS FUCKING DONE WITH HIS BULLSHIT.

He steps in the way of Poseidon, and screams that there’s been enough damage done! At the first full appearance of Zeus, EVERYBODY in Aethiopia reacts. While everyone bows in reverence, Cassiopeia’s so freaked out that she runs away. She’ll be leaving the city altogether, and when she does, she’s watched over by a cuckoo (or a peacock). This is Hera, and as a god of women AND OF MOTHERS...she’s going to be punishing Cassiopeia for her deeds.

Zeus and Poseidon speak, and the two come to tentative peace. This is settled in the courts of Olympus, where everybody involved comes together to speak about this affair. They note that, despite Poseidon’s petty bullshit, something unique has happened. A mortal child of a god, spurned on by their actions, has managed to outsmart and defeat countless obstacles. And now, celebrated for saving Andromeda and the city of Joppa, Perseus is celebrated. Zeus predicts that he will be made king, with Andromeda as his queen. And this pleases Zeus greatly. Poseidon, still angry, is not convinced. But Zeus directs his attention away from Perseus’ celebration, and towards one of his children: Pegasus.

A new age is now dawning in the world of man, and in the world of gods. As Pegasus flies over the oceans, he flies over an island, as Zeus narrates on the nature of this new age of heroes. And as Pegasus lands, we see the city of Corinth in the distance. The narration concludes, as we are introduced to a young man, a prince named...Bellerophon.

Cut to black.

Well...almost. There’s a mid-credits scene, where a newly crowned Perseus goes back to his island with a fleet of ships to see his mother, and bring her to Aethiopia to live happily. And then, there’s an after-credits scene, with Athena. She’s looking at the mortal word, and looking forward to this age of heroes. She sees that some divine intervention may be needed in the land of Boeotia. She asks her attendant to fetch her shield. And Medusa, saved from the Underworld by a penitent Athena, brings her the shield, Gorgoneion, now adorned with the image of Medusa’s former self, as a reminder to Athena to be merciful. And off she goes, to help another burgeoning hero: Cadmus

AND SO THE AGE OF HEROES BEGINS

Alongside a theoretical franchise, of course.

If you read this nonsense, then...wow, why? But also, thank you! Mostly for putting up with my mad ravings. I’ll be putting the the straight-up review of this film later today, but...I really needed this off my chest. Any thoughts? Any ideas? Any criticisms? Any petty insults? I’ll take it, whatever it is! THanks again for putting up with this.

See you in the ACTUAL REVIEW!!!

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littlesparklight · 3 years

Text

A thought experiment, so if you don’t like the idea of genderswapped Hera and Zeus, don’t read on below.

Something I've been vaguely thinking about for a while, and which I vaguely incorporated into my Femslash February fic that's a Rule 63!AU for Ganymede and Zeus, is Zeus and Hera's relationship dynamic, and how it would honestly be worse if you Rule 63 them. Now, regular Zeus and Hera are a product of the culture and time they come from, of cultural attitudes and sexual mores, which is reflected in not just their relationship, but their personalities. If you flip them completely, you just get the regular situation between them, just the names swapped around basically. If you flip them while allowing them to keep what we do have of their personalities, even when these are at least partially coloured by gendered societal expectations and sexual mores, you get something more interesting.

Now you have a male Hera who, contrary to all cultural expectation, is monogamous but still in possession of all of female Hera's (righteous) anger over being cheated on. You also have a male Hera with far more licence to do whatever the fuck he wants in retaliation for his wife's cheating, and here is where it gets depressing.

Even if you put aside any threats of domestic violence (Zeus, for example, threatens violence both to Hera and others, but never goes through with it), Hera's favourite methods of retaliation are madness, transformations, and death, and some of these because the women need to survive to at least give birth to the children. There's no need for any such meta-textual consideration to be paid when Zeus is the one pregnant. Hera can instantly punish any mortal man or god Zeus has slept with (see, for example, Zeus killing Iasion for sleeping with Demeter, this is basically what has a high likelihood of repeatedly happening). I figure Zeus is often going to be handing babies over to their grandparents or uncles instead of their fathers.

Or, if Hera doesn't lash out any more times in this version of mythic reality than she does in regular mythic reality (which isn't actually a lot, only, like, 9-11 times), I figure Zeus herself would bear the brunt more often - probably Zeus would get repeatedly locked up? As a way to try and contain her. As for female Zeus, again, contrary to all cultural expectation, she has a libido and wants to sleep with anyone she wishes to. In that, she would be much like Demeter. They'd probably have a lot in common, here! The problem is just that female Zeus is a woman, she is married, and as a woman, and a married woman, she has no similar freedoms as when she is male. An ancient Greek married woman was supposed, contrary to the man, to be faithful and chaste, which Zeus very clearly is not.

Why marry at all, then, you say? If we let Zeus still be the youngest/oldest, and the one who gets hidden away, she's grown up with a sense of freedom and responsibility, and she would probably want to keep as much power for herself as she can... and if that means marrying the king of the gods (because it's not like Zeus was in the running for one third of the realm or the overall kingship, as a woman), then by Heaven and Earth she will. She just probably feels she should be able to do what she wants, when the married men can do so. You don't need to keep this order of things, Hera could well now be the youngest son and hidden away on Crete, because Zeus can still be much like Demeter, but personally I like the idea better of keeping the general flow of the early myths/Zeus' birth and the general birth order. Thinking of the children from Zeus, either Metis is now a river god instead of an Oceanid, or she's still female and we go with the version where Zeus alone engenders Athena - just with no head chopping in this version, unless that's kept for the extra wtf when Zeus as a woman very much can give birth to Athena the normal way, but perhaps, because she was created from Zeus alone, she still comes from her head? Which would still piss Hera off and off he goes to have Hephaistos, things proceed as normal there. I'd honestly only switch Hera and Zeus in terms of gender/sex here, so Persephone will get the distinction of being a magical f/f preg baby, because by god, why not? Demeter is Zeus' only experience with a woman until Ganymede (because I'd keep this a same-sex relationship, even outside of the specific context of my femslash february fic). Persephone can of course not be given away by Zeus in this version, so Hera is her closest male relative - Hades undoubtedly goes to Hera, and since I don't see why Hera can't keep her "deity of marriage" title (because Zeus is considered one of the deities of marriage in regular Ancient Greek religion), he has double the "reason" and "rights" to give Persephone away. Only difference is that you probably get two pissed off mothers. Maybe Zeus refuses to let shit rain on top of Demeter's famine/refusing to let things grow. (Honestly though, Zeus would probably not be upset at Hades specifically as the groom, just, like Demeter, that she wasn't informed.) Among the mortal women who would now be men that Zeus sleeps with, the only one who really presents a problem is Semele, because of the necessity of Dionysos' double-birth. You could borrow the "getting ripped apart after being born" method, and Zeus sticking whatever surviving piece back inside and baking a new baby Dionysos from that, which would work nicely and easily allow Semele to be male. If we keep closer to the basics and ignore Orphic variations, Dionysos could always be our second miracle f/f preg baby (I mean, why not), and you still get the saving of infant Dionysos from Semele's burning corpse after Hera tricks Semele into asking Zeus to come to her as she does while having sex with her husband.

Or, if you make Hera a little closer to a “classic” Ancient Greece man to the tune of Zeus and Poseidon (and, in a much more milder version, Hades), though that honestly feels more OOC to me than having Hera as a culturally atypical man, then what would happen between him and Zeus is a spiral of “fuck you for cheating”, “no, fuck YOU” and they keep lashing out at each other’s lovers in jealousy haha.

#greek mythology #hera #zeus #greek myth thoughts

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the-truest-sentence-i-know · 3 years

Text

Rogue Demigod - Chapter One

Fandom: Percy Jackson & the Olympians

Pairing: Annabeth Chase x Percy Jackson

Summary: Two years after Luke Castellan's demigod rebellion was ruthlessly crushed by the Olympians, Annabeth realizes that a string of attacks against minor gods across the country might be the actions of another half-blood. Determined to not let history repeat itself, she leaves camp to meet them. Au where Percy never went to Camp Halfblood.

Word Count: 3.5k | 1/?

ao3 ||| ff.net ||| wattpad ||| quotev

As Annabeth walked into Chiron’s office in the Big House, she noticed the shimmering remnant of an Iris message. Behind the glimpses of rainbow that hung in the air, Chiron’s face was grim.

“Another attack?” she asked.

Chiron nodded wearily. “A minor god in Texas, not far from Houston. Tyche, goddess of luck, destiny, and fortune.”

“Did she see what attacked her?” Annabeth sat down on the edge of Chiron’s desk.

He shook his head. “Same as the others. A sudden deluge of water, which got her off-guard as well as temporarily blinding her. But she swears whatever it was had a celestial bronze weapon.”

“Maybe it’s not a monster,” Annabeth suggested, putting a pin in Houston on a map already covered in pins.

“What else would it be?” Chiron asked. “All the Titans were accounted for, as well as the other minor gods and goddesses. Besides, they would have been able to do a lot more damage. Tyche was shaken and a bit injured, but not severely. It is entirely possible that a monster happened to have a celestial bronze weapon that it got from a previous fight.”

Annabeth stared at the map, unconvinced. There was something weird about this.

“With camp starting up again this week, we’ll be able to send out a quest,” Chiron said. “Then we will know more about this, and hopefully be done with it. The gods are growing impatient with our inaction.”

Annabeth frowned. “And of course they can’t do anything about it,” she muttered.

Chiron looked at her reproachingly.

“I didn’t mean that,” she said quickly, then sighed. “So, who are you going to send?”

“Not you, Annabeth,” Chiron said, kindly but firmly. “You know the gods wouldn’t approve of you going, and besides, I need you here.”

“Of course, I didn’t mean me,” Annabeth said. “I was just curious. If this thing can take on minor gods, we need to send someone who can handle it.”

Chiron nodded. “I’ll ask for volunteers and choose from them.” He watched as Annabeth continued to look at the map. “Can I have your word that you’ll focus on getting the camp up and running and not on this?”

Pulled out of her thoughts, Annabeth quickly turned away from the map. “Of course,” and she quickly left the room.

Something about this was nagging at her though. There was something odd about this case.

Back in the Athena cabin, she pulled up the local news for Houston on her laptop. The main story was of a freak wave on the coast – the attack on Tyche. But further down, there was a story about a large, burly man rampaging in a bar before being pulled out into an alley by someone no one saw and disappearing leaving signs of a struggle. The description was how Annabeth imagined mortals would see a minotaur through the Mist.

These two events happened not an hour apart, and Annabeth could not help but wonder if it was the same thing that was involved in both. But she had never heard of monsters attacking each other.

There was only one logical conclusion here, and as Annabeth investigated previous attacks, it became clearer and clearer, but she did not want to think about it.

The attacks on both minor deities and monsters, seemingly indiscriminately. The fact that it never pursued or even attacked demigods. The celestial bronze weapon.

Annabeth closed her laptop and leaned back in her chair and wondered if maybe she was reading too much into it.

The first week of camp was a flurry of activity. Campers arrived, old and new. Annabeth helped to show them around and did not have a lot of time for her own research.

Thalia arrived at the end of the first week. While Annabeth had decided to hold off on college for a year, Thalia had gone last year.

She hugged Annabeth tightly. When she pulled back, she smiled. “How have you been?”

Annabeth’s relationship with Thalia was a bit odd. Although they were now kind of the same age, they had not always been. When they met, Thalia was five years older than Annabeth, but now, due to some magical shenanigans involving a pine tree and the Golden Fleece, they were basically the same age. Nonetheless, Thalia still felt the need to protect her.

“I’m alright,” Annabeth said. “Keeping busy.”

Thalia nodded. “Me too.”

“I actually need your perspective on something. A… research project I’ve been working on.”

Thalia rolled her eyes, smiling, “Of course you would do a research project for fun. I’m forced to do that shit for classes.”

“Don’t swear around the younger campers,” Annabeth said absentmindedly as they headed to the Athena cabin.

In the cabin, campers were unpacking. They all nodded hello as she and Thalia entered. A few stole glances at Thalia in particular. In addition to having once been a tree, she was one of the only two children of the Big Three gods – Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades.

She and Annabeth had also been close to Luke Castellan. Before.

As they approached Annabeth’s bunk, Thalia spotted her bulletin board with a map of the US with the pins of the attacks. Thread connected them in chronological order and cut-out headlines pinned alongside them.

“Wow,” Thalia said. “and I thought you didn’t like conspiracy theories.”

Annabeth frowned. “It’s the attacks,” she lowered her voice so that the other campers could not hear. “They’ve been happening all year, more frequently lately.”

“I’m sure Chiron’s got a handle on it,” Thalia said. “Why do you need me?”

“Chiron thinks it’s a monster and is going to send out a quest to kill it.”

“But you’re not so sure.”

“Exactly.” Annabeth pointed to one of the pins and the headlines pinned near it “April fourth, attack on a group of satyrs in Sacramento. Two days later, an empousa was killed in Concord, which is on the way to San Francisco, where to next attack happened.”

“And monsters don’t generally kill each other. They’re attracted to demigods.” Thalia sighed. “Annabeth, if Chiron thought it was a demigod, don’t you think he’d be handling the situation differently?”

“I didn’t tell him what I thought, because he wouldn’t believe me.”

Thalia studied to board again. “If it was a demigod – and I’m not saying I think it is – why would they be attacking minor gods and satyrs?”

Annabeth raised her eyebrows meaningfully and Thalia sighed again.

“Annabeth, this is why I thought you should go to college too, and not stay cooped up at camp. You need to move on, not try to find a second chance at saving Luke.”

They had not said the name in months, but Annabeth never went a day without thinking about him. “It’s not that –”

“Yes, it is,” Thalia said. “We couldn’t save him and now you think you see someone like him, someone you can try to save.” She put her hands on Annabeth’s shoulders. “We need to let him go.” Annabeth could see the pain in Thalia’s eyes. Luke had meant as much to Thalia as he had to her.

“Chiron’s right,” Thalia said. “It’s just a monster.” She smiled again. “I’ll see you at the campfire.”

When Thalia left the cabin, Annabeth noticed that a lot of her siblings were glancing at her cautiously. She quickly straightened her shoulders and took a breath. She was the head counsellor of the Athena cabin and basically Chiron’s assistant, she had to at least look like she was keeping it together.

She looked back at the board. One thing she hated was feelings clouding judgement. It made plans and conclusions unsound and unreliable. She always tried to approach problems with an unbiased eye. Hadn’t she done that here?

She had not suspected the attack was a demigod until she had looked into it. After that, every new piece of information seemed to fit into place. Nothing else made sense.

Because she had tried other explanations. Whatever Thalia thought, the last thing Annabeth wanted was a demigod attacking gods. She did not want to have t deal with that, much less try to save whoever it was.

If there was one thing Annabeth was confident in, it was her ability to research and come to logical conclusions. She knew she was right.

She just had to convince someone of it.

As the sun started to set, Annabeth made her way across the strawberry fields. At the far end, nestled between some trees, was a small cottage.

She knocked on the door.

“Who is it?” a voice called from inside.

“Grover, it’s me, Annabeth!”

Annabeth heard the various locks click open before the door opened. Grover looked tired, as he always did these days. “Hey, Annabeth.”

She smiled as she stepped inside. “How’ve you been, Grover?”

“I’ve been alright,” he said. “It’s nice to hear all the campers around again. It gets so quiet during the school year.”

The cabin was small, just one room, with a bed in one corner and a couple of lazy chairs in the other. A cabinet of cans stood at the far wall.

Annabeth sank into a chair. “I saw Thalia earlier. Has she been by yet?”

Grover nodded. “Briefly.”

“I’m sure we can all catch up at the campfire tonight,” Annabeth said hopefully.

“Oh, I don’t – I wasn’t planning on going,” Grover said.

Even though she wanted to, Annabeth knew better than to pressure him. “Grover, I need your expertise on something.”

“My expertise?” Grover asked incredulously.

“Yes, as a Searcher.”

“And a great Searcher I was,” Grover muttered.

“Come on, what do we keep saying about the negative self-talk.” Annabeth sighed. “I think I may have found a demigod, but I’m not sure. You have the instincts for this.”

Grover sighed. “Okay, how can I help?”

Annabeth pulled out her laptop and showed him the digitalized version of the bulletin board. It would be more efficient to have it digitalized and not physically, but Annabeth liked to think with her hands.

“These are the monster attacks,” Grover said cautiously.

“Yeah, but not just on gods and nature spirits. I found attacks on monsters that fit into the timeline.”

As Grover surveyed the connecting headlines, Annabeth saw the realization cross his face. He immediately stepped back. “No.”

“What?”

“I am not getting involved in this.”

“Come on, Grover, I just need your help to convince Chiron, so he doesn’t send a quest to kill the person doing this.”

“Annabeth,” Grover said. “This is a demigod attacking minor gods. If the gods got wind of this…? It’s the last thing we need; repairing our reputation is hard enough as it is without there being a demigod fighting gods.” His voice rose to a bleat at the end.

Annabeth put a hand on Grover’s arm. “I know this brings up a lot for you, it does for me too, but maybe we can help this person – it’s just one person.”

“Luke was just one person too, and he led hundreds of demigods against Olympus.”

They were both quiet for a good moment. Annabeth closed her laptop and stood up slowly. “I’ll see you later, then,” she said, smiling softly.

“Yeah,” Grover said, grabbing a can and nibbling it nervously. “Later.”

As Annabeth closed the door behind her, she sighed. She had known that Grover would not be happy to hear it, but at least he did believe her. Maybe with more time, he would back her up to Chiron.

But she didn´t have time. She suspected that Chiron would call for volunteers at the campfire tonight.

Annabeth made her way down to the campfire early that evening, hoping to talk to Chiron before too many campers got there.

Chiron stood talking to a few satyrs who had recently brought in new campers / probably asking if their changes seemed particularly promising. He saw her coming down the earthen steps that doubled as seats around the fire pit and quickly finished his conversation.

“Annabeth,” he said. “I actually wanted to talk to you about the attacks.”

“Don’t worry, I ‘m sending out a quest, they’ll be on their way by morning.”

“But that’s exactly what I’m worried about.” Annabeth took a breath. “I don’t think it’s a monster. I think it’s a demigod.”

“What?”

“I did research – in my free time – that I can show you.” She could see that Chiron was wholly unconvinced. “Grover thinks so too.”

“Grover is hardly a reliable source.” There was an exasperated edge to his voice.

Annabeth huffed. “Grover was one of our best Searchers.”

“Exactly: was. He has not left the camp in over a year and a half! I care about Grover, but I couldn’t be surprised if his instincts have dulled a bit.”

“Come on, Chiron. Surely you see there’s something weird going on.” Annabeth looked at him imploringly, but he did not budge.

“I’m sending out a quest. That’s final.” Chiron turned and made his way to his regular spot on the far end of the fire pit.

Annabeth sighed. This was really not going how she had planned. She had hoped that this summer would be the one everything would go back to normal. The camp had been her home since she was seven and she hated how it had changed.

There were still traces of the battle that had taken place two years ago. Burn marks on buildings that Annabeth had been working to slowly get fixed. New scars on basically every camper. And so many empty bunks. The missing kids were not all reflected on the Wall either.

The Wall of Valor was in the Big House and was engraved with all the names of the demigods who died in battle. But only those fighting for the gods – rebels did not count, so they were left off and did not receive pyre burnings.

Annabeth had tried to argue for their names being included, of course, but had not been successful. She had argued unsuccessfully for a lot of things in the aftermath.

She remembered standing in the throne room of Olympus, the gods and goddesses towering above her. Trying to stand tall, she spoke as loudly and confidently as she could muster. “We request that the gods and goddesses claim their children within a reasonable time – at thirteen or fourteen, for example. Many of the rebels –”

“Traitors,” Hera spat.

“Traitors,” Annabeth amended quickly. “Many of the traitors were unclaimed and felt forgotten and neglected. Claiming them could prevent this from happening again.”

“So, you’re blaming us for this?” Zeus asked.

“No, of course not, Lord Zeus,” Annabeth said. “I’m just saying, there were contributing factors that could be eliminated to lessen the chance of this happening again.”

“This is absurd,” Hera said. “Your camp rises up against us and now you are making demands?”

“Not our whole camp,” Annabeth said, trying to keep her voice calm. “We fought against them – for you.”

“You were a close friend of this Luke fellow, weren’t you?” Demeter asked.

Annabeth turned to her. “Yes, we were close.”

“Why didn’t you stop him?”

She blinked. “I – I didn’t know until it was too late.”

Annabeth pulled herself out of the memory and sat down shakily. It had been a lie. She had known – at least that something was going on.

Other campers had started to filter in, and Annabeth quickly turned Thalia and they sat together. She did not pay much attention as the Hephaestus kids started the fire and the Apollo kids started up the sing-along.

Food was served and Annabeth ate silently, staring into the fire. She could see no way to convince Chiron or anyone of authority. And she could not go to any god with her theory, they would strike the rogue half-blood dead first and ask questions later. Annabeth wanted to help them.

Maybe Thalia was right. Maybe this was just a second chance for her. But that did not mean that it was not true. Whatever her motivations were, she wanted to help.

An old plan from years ago began to reform in her mind. Back before she went on her quest two years ago, she had been very impatient to leave camp. At one point, she had gotten the idea in her head that Chiron would never let her go and that she would have to do it herself. The main tenets of that plan could still work.

Annabeth looked around. If she left tonight, she would have a head start. And besides, she knew about this person’s movements and habits. For one thing, they tended to travel up to New York every couple of months and were due for another visit soon.

Across the fire pit, Chiron rose. “Good evening everyone. I trust you have all had a good week back. A special welcome to all the newcomers. We hope you come to see this place as a home away from home, as many here do.” He smiled warmly. “Now, as I am sure many of you have heard, there have been a large number of monster attacks all over the country over the past year. We believe they are all the work of one creature. These attacks have escalated in recent months and therefore, I am sending out a quest.”

Whispers erupted among the campers and the enchanted flames jumped green and yellow, reflecting their excitement. There had not been any quests last year.

“We do not know what kind of creature this is, so this quest is not for the faint of heart. However, I believe there is a candidate for the job.” Chiron turned to a group of Aphrodite kids. “Olivia Marcelin, daughter of Aphrodite.” He inclined his head slightly to her. “Will you undertake this labour?”

Olivia, petite but muscular, had arrived at camp just before the rebellion. She was thrust into battle situations at fifteen and handled herself well. She was a good fighter, skilled in multiple weapons, and benefitted from being underestimated. Annabeth would have to be smart if she was going to beat her.

Olivia, although first taken off her guard, quickly straightened and smiled. “I would be honoured.”

“And who will you choose as your companions?” Chiron asked.

She looked around. “Adam Flavius.” Her brother, another son of Aphrodite. Unassuming, but had wickedly good aim with throwing knives. “and Sabine Stentz.” No surprise there. Sabine, daughter of Demeter, was Olivia’s girlfriend. Like all children of Demeter, she had power over plants, but she specialized in the art of offensive plants. Annabeth had seen her in action and would hate to have to tangle with her.

“Very well,” Chiron said. “Tonight you will go to the Oracle and prepare, for you leave at first light tomorrow morning.”

“But first,” said Michal – a child of Apollo. “More sing-along.”

As they strummed the opening chords of ‘She’ll Be Coming Round the Mountain,’ Annabeth turned to Thalia. “I think I’m gonna turn in for the night,” she said quietly.

Thalia looked at her with a little suspicion but nodded. “Sleep well.”

Annabeth slipped away quietly. In her cabin, she quickly packed the essentials in her backpack: ambrosia, nectar, change of clothes, a few drachmae, and everything else needed for a last-minute quest. Before she hurried out, she stuffed a pillow and extra blanket under her sheets, so it looked like she was asleep. The longer head start she could get before people noticed she was missing, the better.

Even though it had been a solo plan, Annabeth found herself knocking on Grover’s door.

“What is it?” he asked when he opened the door, looking like he had been sleeping. Then he saw her backpack and the sword that joined her dagger that was normally on her hip. “Whatever you’re doing, I do not want to be involved.”

“Grover, I need your help.”

“I am not going on your redemption quest, especially not if it’s a non-sanctioned one.”

“I have a better chance if you come along, you know that. You can track demigods.”

“I also know that I haven’t left camp since… you know, and I’m out of practice.”

“If we don’t do this, there’s a pretty good chance the demigod will be killed.”

“So what? Maybe it’s better that way.”

“Better that way? Are you hearing yourself?” Annabeth tried not to lose her cool. “This is a demigod who needs our help. Finding and protecting demigods is supposed to be your job, as a Searcher.”

Grover just shook his head.

“Look, I know that you feel like you failed Luke, like what happened was your fault, but that was on all of us, okay? But maybe we can make it right, by helping this person.” She squared her shoulders. “But whether you decide to come or not, I’m going.”

Grover sighed and closed his eyes. “Fine,” he said through gritted teeth.

Annabeth sighed a breath of relief. While she had been ready to go along, she hadn’t like the idea. She hadn’t had to survive along since before she met Luke and Thalia after running away from home.

“I thought you said this wasn’t to make up for what happened to Luke,” said a voice behind her.

Annabeth jumped and spun around to see Thalia standing behind her.

“Thalia, I – we –”

“I can’t let you two dumbasses go along, and you seem pretty hell-bent.” She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Fuck it – we’re all going on this unsanctioned quest – which I still don’t entirely approve of.”

#percabeth #pjo #pjo fanfic #fanfic #annabeth chase #percy jackson #【ｒｏｇｕｅ　ｄｅｍｉｇｏｄ】#ao3 #ff.net #wattpad #wattpadlife #quotev #amwriting #writing #my writing

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flightfoot · 4 years

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What's your favorite Rick Riordan series between Percy Jackson, The Kane Chronicles, Heroes of Olympus, Magnus Chase and Trials of Apollo? (or like, if you can't choose, what do you like about the series you've read?)

Trials of Apollo, no contest.

I liked Percy Jackson a lot, it was VERY well done. Percy was hilarious and relatable, but also just super awesome, his dynamic with Annabeth was fun to read, along with his dynamic with Grover, the quests had a lot of entertaining encounters, and it had some well-executed themes that tied in with the overall conflict nicely, mostly about how parents’ and adults’ negligence and even abuse can harm their kids, the overall effects of that, and just... generally trying to get the parents to shape up, as well as the effects of not respecting others in general, like with how the minor gods and by extension, their children, are treated by the Olympians. It comes up with Percy’s relationships with both Gabe and Poseidon, and most of the campers’ relationships with their godly parents, and that’s a MAJOR cause behind the entire conflict, and one of the major things that Percy tries to make better at the end of the last book.

Kane Chronicles... it’s been awhile since I read it. I don’t remember it having as prevalent a theme as Percy Jackson did, though there was definitely social commentary on racism, with how Carter was sometimes treated, and with how people had trouble comprehending that Carter and Sadie were full siblings, since while both are mixed, Carter’s pretty dark-skinned, while Sadie looks White. It was more of a background thing though, not a major plot point. I liked the characters and the plot fine, they were entertaining, and it was good overall - but it’s not a series I’ve felt a pressing need to reread either. Only real complaint I have about it is the romances centering around Sadie. Her and Anubis were kinda cute, but it would’ve been a lot cuter if she was older than 12-13, and he wasn’t a 4000-year-old god who looked, acted, and was treated as a 16-year-old. And then the whole thing with making it a love triangle with Walt who’s ALSO 16 and Rick’s method of “solving” the love triangle... look honestly I just would’ve been a lot more ok with the romantic shenanigans there if Sadie wasn’t a middle-schooler throughout it. Overall still good though, I’d be down for an adaptation of it, but it’s one of the few cases where I hope something IS flat-out changed to make the romances more palatable.

Heroes of Olympus is where I originally fell off of the Riordanverse. There was just so long between books and I could barely remember what happened between them, and with most of the books being like parts of the same quest (especially books 3, 4, and 5), unless you were constantly refreshing your memory of them via fandom, they were hard to follow, especially with several main characters and different character dynamics to keep track of. When I went back and read the whole set of them though, getting back into the series, it was WAY better, since I could read them as a coherent whole. I could tell he was struggling to juggle all the characters, but I thought he did a fairly decent job of it for what it was. I ended up liking all the characters - ESPECIALLY Leo, I thought he was great and relatable and funny, but I also wanted to hug him - and while the quest could drag on a bit at times, there were some interesting parts there. And Percy and Annabeth’s journey through Tartarus was GREAT.

The themes for Heroes Of Olympus overall were pretty much the same as with Percy Jackson, but with less emphasis I think. It was mostly just “the gods (mostly Zeus, really) are being crappy again, but this time we have enough support among ourselves to manage, except for when a god is technically required to defeat a Giant”. A lot more emphasis was placed on individual character arcs and circumstances, which I think was a good choice, since with so many main characters, they needed more concentrated character development in order to put them up to par with Percy and Annabeth. Plus it allowed Rick to still go into some different themes a bit, like racism with Hazel, trauma with Leo, insecurity with Frank, etc, in a way that felt natural and relevant. It helped that they were broken up into different books for their introductions, so not everything was dumped in at once.

The ending of Heroes of Olmypus... yeah the final battle with the GIants was lame as all hell, and honestly the quest ended up feeling a bit like busywork, but screw it, I did LOVE one part of the ending. The imagery of big, bad Gaia, who even Zeus is so scared of he just wants to hide away with his head in the ground, physically manifesting and being about to take everyone out, everyone losing hope... and then screaming as Festus appears and snatches her up into the sky as Leo gives a shit-eating grin and hurls fireballs at her while insulting her the whole time is just GREAT. I always giggle, and I honestly found it a lot more memorable than the Kronos fight, even if it was technically less epic. It seemed fitting for her to be taken out in such an embarrassing way, by the boy she’d personally taken the most from.

Magnus Chase... yeah that’s the only one I didn’t finish. Quick note: its been over a year since I tried it, so I’m operating off of memory here. I wanted to like it, and after reading through Heroes of Olympus (which i originally stopped reading after Mark of Athena) and Trials of Apollo, I was all hyped up for more Riordanverse... and was disappointed. The basic elements were there, and the writing itself wasn’t bad, but... well, I never really got attached to most of the characters this time, I didn’t find the quest very interesting, and... well, you see how I mentioned about the themes in the earlier reviews? I thought Rick bit off more than he could chew with Magnus Chase, at least with the first book. (I slogged through the first book, got a hundred pages into the second book to see whether Alex, who I’d heard a lot of hype about, could save it, thought Alex was only ok but not someone who saved the book, and called it quits).

So in Magnus Chase, Rick went DEEP into the social commentary on a lot of disparate subjects, trying to really tackle homelessness, child abuse (because no duh, that’s pretty much a staple, I think the only of his series that DOESN’T have major themes around that is Kane Chronicles), Islamophobia, ableism, and... I’m having trouble thinking of the exact term for it, but Blitzen was heavily looked down upon and derided for wanting to make fashionable armor and just being into fashion in general, so... I think it’s supposed to commentary on making fun of people for having interests that are generally seen as feminine? I guess? I dunno, it was definitely social commentary on SOMETHING, but I think the dwarves having their own particular culture here hurt whatever Rick was trying to say, since social commentary is very much tied to the culture it’s in, and we only have a small taste of dwarven culture, at least in the first book.

In any case, all these things are fine to do social commentary on, but when you’re trying to go in-depth and really address them, it helps if they’re more tied in with the overall conflict in the book, and if each issue has room to breathe. As it was, it kinda felt to me like the characters were being paraded from location to location to confront some different social issue. I just thought it was too much, too crammed into one book, and the overall conflict had pretty much nothing to do with that. Like, at the end of the book Rick tried to tie it together with some sort of “we’re a band of misfits” message, and... well, a message based on NOT fitting in with society, isn’t one that’s very satisfying or cohesive. And the individual issues, while there’s certainly cross-sectionality between, aren’t intrinsically linked, so... they just don’t mesh together very well. Not so many, all mashed into one book. Plus I just didn’t care for any of the gods, and the only characters I liked were Magnus and Sam. Blitz and Hearthstone... they were just sort of “there” for me.

I can see why people like Magnus Chase, and it’s not BAD by any means, but it just wasn’t for me. Maybe I’ll take another crack at it at some point, but I’m not super optimistic about it. As it was, I just ended up looking up the parts where Magnus met with Annabeth and read those.

Trials of Apollo though, I ADORE. Apollo was hilarious (along with the books in general), it had a pretty focused message about child abuse and abuse in general, along with how a privileged position can blind you from the travesties that are going on around you, or that you yourself cause, and I just thought the themes worked very well. Rick went more in-depth this time on the exact consequences of child abuse and the ways that a parent could abuse and manipulate their child, something that wasn’t covered as much in his earlier series, as those were more based around neglect. I’m a sucker for a good redemption arc, and I was really impressed with how it was kinda slipped in with Apollo. Like, he didn’t even know he NEEDED one, and the good guys weren’t especially pressing him on that point, it’s a realization he slowly came to over the course of several books. And you can clearly tell that he’s conceited and has issues, but isn’t actually malicious... and slowly the reader comes to the realization that he has hidden depths, that not even HE knew he had. It’s really interesting how he did some pretty bad things (or DIDN’T do, a lot of it has to do with inaction and just being uncaring), but he never comes off as being like, evil. He comes off as being an arrogant, narcissistic person at first, but then slowly finding out that beneath that is a lot of pain and trauma, and part of that persona he’s built up has been to deal with this. Watching him slowly change and grow and discover himself during the series, in a way he never had before... it’s just amazing to read. Also puts a nice cap on the Greco-Roman saga, in that the past two series had a heavy emphasis on how the gods didn’t care enough and had to have their hands forced a lot, and Apollo sort of acting as a stand-in for those other gods, showing that yes, they CAN change for the better - something that most of the gods, and even other immortals, didn’t think was possible, even as they did it.

Well that was super long. But yeah, I have strong feelings on the Riordanverse, and Trials of Apollo is far and away my favorite.

#ask #long post #percy jackson #heroes of olympus #kane chronicles #trials of apollo

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arigatouiris · 5 years

Text

daughter of artemis // p.p — [05]

c h a p t e r f i v e

Pairing: Peter Parker x Demigod! Reader [Female pronouns]

Warnings: swearing; angst [a lot of it]; greek mythology rewritten [completely my interpretation of it, oops]; slightly based off the games god of war and assassin’s creed odyssey; hurt/comfort; cliche; fluff [on later chapters sometimes]; mentions of sex and gore; slight alternate universe

Follows events after Endgame, but Tony, Natasha, Steve, Loki are alive in this universe.

Author’s Note: For all those who left notes and messages, thank you so much. It means a lot to me that people read and appreciate this story, because this is so close to my heart. I’ve been harboring this in my mind for years now, and I can finally write about this. Anyway, any guesses who her father might be? xD

Also all of what’s mentioned here (prophecy and deification) are all fictional. I made it up. So, disclaimer alert~

Word count: 4943

05 // στοργή familial love

❅

“How dare you?”

(y/n) looked up to see Marina slap a man across his face. Her eyes widened and she immediately stood up, wondering what happened. (y/n) had always known Marina had a short temper, as someone who came around only after the decimation. Marina was a tall woman, long black hair, face peppered with freckles, which added to her attractiveness. However, she didn’t speak to a lot of people, and (y/n) had noticed that ever since she came to the shelter, considering Marina came after (y/n), Marina only did things on her own. She cooked for everyone, but never stayed to eat with them.

“Marina, is everything okay?” (y/n) asked.

Marina scoffed and walked away, while the man on the ground simply sighed.

“I just asked for her number, man. I didn’t even say anything inappropriate. She could have said no, and I’d have walked away.”

Blinking, (y/n) watched as Marina headed upstairs. She’s confusing, she deducted before getting back to what she was doing.

TV reports stated that school would reopen late this year. (y/n) thought of her own schooling when this was mentioned; having been tutored at her own quarters in Olympus, none other than Athena herself. She knew her mother would have wanted her to continue, but she didn’t have any parents here or anyone to help. Apollo, someone she considered dear now since their relationship was improving, would perhaps not even be aware.

That evening, when (y/n) headed upstairs to train, Apollo stood there, with a brochure. (y/n) blinked before noticing how he waved it at her, a grin on his face. It was strange to see her uncle grinning at her, wearing loafers and a yellow tank with a smiley on it.

“You are so weird.” She mumbled, walking over to the God of the Sun.

“This is a brochure for this school, which I think you need to go to starting November. It’s perfect. All of these courses remind me of what Athena used to teach you—”

“How did you know Athena would teach me?” (y/n) asked, suspiciously.

“Uh,” Apollo gulped before saying, “Artemis told me.”

“No, she didn’t. You spoke to Athena, didn’t you? You’re the one who told her to include Arts and—”

“Shut up. Go to this school. End of conversation.” Apollo’s face, when turned red, was dead obvious.

(y/n) chuckled. Taking the brochure from his hand, she read the name of the school—’Midtown’. The school looked like any regular school, but apparently it was for students who were a bit smarter than average. There were a lot of college prep classes involved here. Thinking about college, and her own education, made her miss her mother more. The smile on her face died instantly, and this fall in emotion was something even Apollo noticed.

“What’s wrong?”

“Thinking about all this… College and studies and stuff, sure, it’s something mom would have wanted for me. I can’t deny that. But… But, this prophecy and with the way things are going, everyday is unpredictable. I can’t afford to—”

Placing both his hands on her shoulders, Apollo stared directly into his niece’s eyes.

“Artemis would have never wanted you to use the prophecy as an excuse to skip studying. You and I both know you want this, as much as your mother would have, so please. Don’t leave this behind.”

(y/n) huffed before leaning back and closing her eyes. Apollo straightened himself and cleared his throat, “I... can be your guardian. You can move out of here, find a place to stay. People won’t be suspicious. You can have a proper life, (y/n).”

“This form is already filled out!” Reading the name of the guardian, she scoffed, “Alec?” (y/n) asked, scrunching her eyes.

Apollo rubbed the back of his neck, “Artemis and I had human names. I called myself Alec, and she was Arianna, Aria for short.”

She inclined her head in wonder. “So, I should call you uncle Alec?”

“Don’t call me anything. So, what do you say?” Apollo snapped.

“I’ll go.”

When school began in November, (y/n) found it incredibly hard to speak to anyone. Having been home-schooled her entire life, it was strange; seeing so many kids her age, move and speak to each other. However, unlike what she had thought school life would be like, kids were a bit too morose regarding even attending classes.

It must be the decimation, (y/n) thought entering class on her own. Apparently, since she was a newcomer, the teacher introduced her as a foreign student, having her stand up and introduce herself.

“My name is (y/n). I’m from Phocis, it’s a region in Central Greece. I, uh, it’s nice to meet you all.”

Her face turned red and she sat down immediately, not used to the attention that came her way. She could feel fire on her ears, and when the class murmured to themselves, it was as if they had created a wall that separated them from her. This was how it was going to be, she wouldn’t talk to a soul and finish high school and get out. However, she had her own plans; she had things to do, prophecies to fulfil. Things would get hectic for her in the future years.

As each class dragged on, (y/n) understood that this would become her routine. The grind had begun. Each morning she would wake up, do her regular morning stretches and worry about getting to school on time. The breakfast available at the shelter was always cornflakes with milk, a taste that started to feel like chewing on blocks of cement. She’d attend school, eat lunch alone, listen to things alone, read in the library, read on her way back, and continue reading at home until it was time to train and she’d flip daggers and make arrows with her hands.

She could feel herself growing, each day. Each day felt ridiculously long, and almost as if she was living a double life. However, small changes were in order. Using the influences that a God could, Apollo rented a small place for (y/n), and she wouldn’t have to worry about a thing. Considering how she was still considered a minor, the house was under his human name, and that he’s the only living guardian she has, and the process was easier than otherwise.

(y/n) moved out of the shelter rather easily, considering she didn’t have too many things that she brought with her. She was teleported to New York basically wearing her mother’s clothes. Everything else was something she took from the shelter. An old woman gave (y/n) clothes that belonged to her daughter, who was around her age, and this was perhaps all she had.

The house was small, but this would do. There was a small fire escape, with a grilled balcony that let her see the sky at night. Apollo made sure everything was in place and in order when she moved in. There were a bunch of books on the table, courtesy of Apollo, which caused the girl to smile softly on sight.

One night, having stayed back in the school library for long, she was reading this novel ‘Goldfinch’ and couldn’t put it down, (y/n) walked back on her own. She sometimes heard kids talking about Spiderman having been turned to dust too, a fact that caused a tug in her heart. After that dream she had about Spiderman, things have been different whenever she thought about him. He was about to take his mask off, and she knew it was just a dream and there was no way she could link it to reality, but she wondered if she knew him. Spiderman’s voice was familiar, but she didn’t know what role he would play in her life. Maybe, she assumed, that her mind was making things up since he was the first one to help her after her arrival in New York.

She also realized that she’d never know.

As she walked, she heard footsteps behind her. (y/n) was normally more perceptive than people gave her credit for, and this was something very easy to spot. A moment later, the footsteps turned fast, but she didn’t run. Turning around, she grabbed the man by his collar and pushed him down, kicking him on his chest and keeping him there. However, before she could even react, the man’s eyes turned white—glowing white—and his mouth fell open.

Stepping back, (y/n) gasped. She looked up to see Marina walk out from the alley, and suddenly, the whole street was empty.

“What the—?”

“I know Apollo is helping you.” She said, her face straight, unimpressed.

(y/n)’s eyes widened. “What?”

“Don’t be stupid, child. You sure you don’t know what’s going on?”

(y/n) observed Marina. Her hair was pushed behind her, she was wearing a long lilac colored dress, unusual for choice of clothing in the night, her eyes were dark, her skin shone, her face cold. And the peacock pendant stood out over everything else. Eyes widening slowly, (y/n) gulped before coming to a kneeling position; it was instinct.

“Your Highness.” (y/n) said, to Goddess Hera, who was standing right in front of her.

Hera revealed her true form, her hair visible, her crown on her head, her white dress was backless but shone even in the night. Hera might look like a cocky yet beautiful woman, but she was one of the strongest goddesses in Olympus.

“Pity I can’t kill you myself. Stupid oath your mother made us all take before you were born. We cannot hurt humans no longer.”

Perhaps, that’s because you went around killing all of Zeus’ mortal lovers, (y/n) thought in her mind but would never dare to say.

“What brings you here, your Highness?”

“Oh? I like watching you, is all. I was, let’s say, curious to see how a puny girl like you would dissolve Olympus.” Hera said, smirking.

Hera brushed her palms together, still continuing to watch the girl as she eased from her position. Standing up, (y/n) shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket. It was cold that night in New York. Cold and lonely.

“I’m not going to—”

“You’re curious about Artemis, aren’t you? Of how she died.”

She froze instantaneously. It was as if hearing her mother’s name come out of Hera’s tongue caused a chill go down her spine; it was unnatural and she didn’t like it one bit. Her eyes turned to slits as she glared at the Goddess, angry at how casual it was for her to bring up Artemis’ death.

“I’d lower my gaze if I were you.” Came Hera’s warning.

“You know how my mother died?”

“Silly child,” She folded her arms as she continued, “Your mother killed herself.”

Confusion struck (y/n)’s features, which made Hera laugh out loud. Not just confusion, but a weird bit of betrayal as well. There was no way her mother could have ended her own life. What purpose would that serve? Was someone after her and she had no choice? Or did someone make her?

“There’s no way. S-She couldn’t have—”

“She came to me a few days before your ridiculous prophecy and tells me she needs to speak to her father. Zeus, as usual, was busy fucking some whore back in Mykonos, as he always does. So I asked her what the urgent matter was,”

(y/n) straightened her standing position, watching Hera intensely. As beautiful as she was, Hera could be easily hated for how bitter she was as a woman. And despite being the Goddess of marriage and family, she didn’t harbor love for anyone but herself or her children.

“She says, to save the world, we’d have to dissolve Olympus! What a joke! As if I’d ever give up this throne.” Hera spat on the ground beside her.

“What do you mean?”

“Because your filthy mother can never be as worshipped as I am!” Hera exclaimed, furious.

(y/n)’s eyes were wide in shock. She could not believe a word that came out of Hera’s mouth. Her mother? There was no way in all of Midgard that Artemis would ever be jealous of Hera. Artemis had everything Hera didn’t, a loving family, people who revered and worshipped her out of love and not fear; and yet, Hera was here spewing nonsense. (y/n) knew well that her mother didn’t care about being a Goddess, and that she loved the mortals and wanted them to thrive.

“Artemis was always jealous of how I had more rule over Olympus than she did. She wanted to see it gone! So she comes to me with a ridiculous story of how Earth was going into a state of pause for five years. Imagine my surprise when some part of it actually came true?”

Hera’s gaze was cold. It sent shivers down (y/n)’s spine.

“She was feeding me such bullshit that this was all because she wanted to save you,”

It felt as if her mouth was sewn shut. Tears filled her eyes when she thought about her mother, of what she had to go through to even consider taking her own life—if at all any of this was true and could be held accountable. Looking away from Hera, (y/n) quickly wiped her tears away.

“She knew you would bring about the dissolving of Olympus, so she came to Zeus to have it done beforehand. That idiot husband of mine listens to everything Artemis says, she knew it was possible. Everything would have worked out so well if it had gone along with what she wanted it, wouldn’t it? You two would be alive and Olympus gone. That’s what your bitch of a mother wanted.”

The anger welled inside (y/n), with nowhere to go. She could feel it eating away at her. She knew if she didn't find a way to release it, it would destroy her.

“Artemis’ own jealousy and her foolish love for a mortal are the reasons she is dead and you are here, living like a street rat.”

It was quick, the way she moved, her hands were fisted as tightly as she could and she moved with every intention of hurting the Queen. However, a strong grip grabbed her wrist and held her back; with the realization of who it could be, tears fell down her eyes, and she held back her sobs.

“She may have been foolish, your Grace, but I am the national divinity of Greece. People worship me more than they fear you. You might have to back down before I decide to go against you.” Apollo’s voice had never sounded so cold before.

Hera rolled her eyes a second later and let out a weird sound of disapproval.

“Leave my niece alone. You of all Gods must know a prophecy interrupted will lead to worse repercussions in the hands of the Fates.”

Apollo pulled the girl back and held him near his chest. (y/n) was distraught, though she tried as hard as she could to not let it show. Looking at her with the corner of his eye, he turned again to Hera to see what she had to say. However, no answer or reply came his way, as Hera simply turned into Marina and walked away.

❅

Artemis didn’t care too much for prophecies. However, when a peculiar knock happened on her door one evening, revealing a worried Oracle on the other side, she knew her life was going to change; and that there would be no going back.

The prophecy that would be delivered in the great hall would be incomplete. There was a bit, which involved Artemis herself, and this would go unsaid. The words slipped out of the Oracle’s mouth rather easily, but were cold to hear nonetheless. It is not a God that sets the Fates moving, it is but a house rat. Artemis didn’t know how she had understood, but she knew that this had to be her doing.

The rest of the prophecy revealed that it would be her daughter who would dissolve Olympus. Gods were turning selfish, Greece suffered economically, and there was strict unhappiness—people were no longer turning to religion, and with the power the Gods possessed, they did nothing to better their citizens’ state of affairs. Artemis understood that it was pollution that was killing the forests and the animals that dwelled in it, but with a structure like Olympus, Gods could not do any good.

I have to tell Zeus, she thought as she ran towards Zeus’ chambers. She knew her daughter was in the temple at the moment, she could sense (y/n)’s presence. However, just as she reached Zeus’ quarters, Hera stopped her.

“You seem like you are in a hurry, Artemis.” Hera spoke, casually.

“I need to speak to my father—”

“He’s not in, at the moment. What do you have to say?” She looked inquisitive.

Perhaps, this was the only mistake Artemis made in executing this. If she had waited and told Zeus herself, perhaps, things would be different.

“The Earth is going to go on pause for five years, your Grace. Zeus has to dissolve Olympus, to save it—”

“Do you even hear yourself? Dissolve? Artemis, I knew you were rebellious at heart, but this is far too extreme. I advise you to return to your chambers and never speak of this again.”

Artemis knew she had failed right at that second. Hera now would make sure she would never reach Zeus, a soft, bitter smile played on her lips as the thought appeared. Turning back, she recalled the entire prophecy, from scratch:

The Goddess of the Hunt is the moon of human lives; as the moon sleeps and rises, so shall Earth and so shall she. The first moon will sleep and wake as a rat that does the deed. As Artemis sleeps, her daughter will rise, the new moon she will be, with fate and the sun at her side; and when Clotho stops spinning the thread of fate, Lachesis and Atropos go into a slumber for five years;

The slumber lasts five solid years and Gods are mere rain; It is not a God that sets the Fates moving, it is but a house rat. And once the slumber ends, then shall arise the new moon, who completes her final hunt, ending Zeus’s fate as King. All his henchman made of blood and stone will erode at her hunt, and Olympus will no longer be a land for the gods.

(y/n), she thought as she rushed to the temple. (y/n) is the key. Perhaps, Artemis knew what she had to do was no easy task, but the faith she had in her daughter was substantial. If dissolution meant murder, then so be it. One of the things Artemis was best at was the fact that she never sided with her daughter just because of their blood relation. She knew (y/n) was a fast learner, agile and quick on her feet, strong in her hands and mind; her skills would sharpen, and the prophecy states that the sun would be on her side.

On reaching the temple, she saw her daughter reading a book, which was a souvenir from Apollo. Artemis knew his conflict. She had asked him to keep the father’s identity a secret, even from (y/n) herself, for learning who it was would be easy if the information came from a mortal. Apollo wasn’t comfortable with (y/n), but never hated her.

She is far too much like me for him to hate, Artemis thought with a smile.

Approaching her daughter, with the dagger in hand, Artemis knew she had to roll the dice now. (y/n) turned to her mother and smiled, confused slightly with the speed Artemis was approaching her with.

“(y/n),” She spoke, handing the girl the dagger, earning a mixed reaction, “Tell no one I gave you that dagger.”

“Okay. But, what is this for?”

“One day, you may have to use this. For a hunt.” Artemis grinned, knowingly.

“But, I don’t know how to use a dagger—”

“Shh, my fawn. You will learn.”

Kissing the girl on her forehead, Artemis held tightly to her daughter. Never had she realized how much she could love a soul as much as she loved (y/n). Their hearts were one. Pepper, I hope she finds you first, Artemis thought before pulling away.

“Head back to your chambers now. I’ll come there later.” Even though there was a lie, Artemis went along with it.

“The prophecy is today, right?”

“Yes. Go now. Don’t let anyone see you with that dagger. Not even Apollo.”

(y/n) was slightly scared, but nodded. Her mother always had reason to do things. Once (y/n) was out of the temple, and on her way back to Olympus, Artemis knew it was time. Slowly, she began to sing; she sang a song of sorrow and one that marked everything she could feel, as tears spilled down her cheeks. She summoned a stag to appear in front of the temple, one of her biggest symbols.

Smiling down at the stag, she whispered sweet nothings to herself, and prayed to protect a certain man in America, and a certain woman who would be with him. Pressing her forehead to the stag’s, Artemis shut her eyes for the last time, before turning into dust. This dust was not dark, but gold—soft in texture, and breathed warmth around where it spread.

Artemis had not died, but was in the queue to be reborn.

❅

Pushing Apollo aside, (y/n) brushed past him in anger. Tears spilled down her eyes and her chest ached with the newfound knowledge she had learned from none other than Hera. (y/n) believed she knew enough, but she knew nothing even close to the truth. Artemis had made sure this remained, but Hera’s explanation made (y/n) believe this was all that there was.

Apollo followed quickly behind her, holding her hand and making her stop. Letting out sobs, the God held his niece in an awkward hug, letting her cry. He knew he had to cry as well, since these facts were about his sister, but there was more to it than that.

One thing he knew about his sister was that she would never do something without a reasonable explanation. Hera’s story lacked just that.

“Do not listen to Hera, (y/n). She runs on envy. She can’t be trusted—”

“I know!” Apollo was taken aback, and considering that they were in the middle of the footpath, people might think differently. He silently ushered her away from the area, holding her hand the whole time, rubbing small circles on the back of her palm.

“Let’s go back to the house. Let’s talk there. Please.” Apollo had never pleaded before, his ego had always gotten in the way.

“I know not to trust her. I know not to trust her and her snake tongue. I know!” (y/n) cried, just as Apollo led her inside the house.

Snapping his fingers, he turned on the light, being the God of light himself, and watched as she collapsed on the ground. Letting out a sigh, for the first time in perhaps a long while, Apollo did not know what to do.

When someone is sad, you hold them, he heard Artemis’ voice out of nowhere, causing his eyes to widen. Moving almost hesitantly, the God wrapped his hands around his little niece, provoking her to cry some more. He didn’t understand if this would help, but for some strange reason, holding her at that moment felt right. Sitting beside her, he held her, listened to her cries, matched his breathing with hers. She was so little, it broke his heart.

“Artemis is no jealous woman. You know this better than anyone else.” His voice was low.

“I know.”

“Don’t listen to the Queen. She is poison. This is how she made sure Hercules died, and never became a God. This is how she does most things. This is how she is.”

“I know.”

And then there was silence. Apollo looked up to the ceiling and let out a shaky breath. He missed his sister, for he knew she knew best what to do in these situations. She was always more feisty, more independent. Apollo never admitted to anyone but he admired her the most, more than anyone he had ever met—and only she had seen through every face he ever put up.

“Mom knew about the prophecy,” Apollo turned to his niece and listened, “Mom knew that I would be the one rising as the new moon or whatever rubbish. She knew I was to dethrone Zeus. She wanted to stop that.”

After crying, a child’s voice turns hoarse. It is unusual, and for someone filled with parental love for the child, it sounds like the worst thing you could possibly hear. Apollo understand that small aspect of parenthood at that moment.

His grip on her tightened just a tad bit as he continued, “Because she loved you.”

“I will kill him,” Came her reply, shocking him. “He tried to have me killed. He tried to kill me without even considering the prophecy.”

Or the fact that you’re his granddaughter, Apollo thought bitterly.

“I’ll kill them all. Hera, Zeus, his henchmen. All of them. Others who don’t step down too. I’ll die trying. I’ll become a God and turn their lives around. I’ll make the prophecy happen. It was my mother’s last wish, I’ll make it happen.” She cried, clutching her uncle’s hands as if her life depended on it.

Despite how much Apollo hated where this was going, he knew he could do nothing to change it. Blinking away fresh tears, Apollo pressed his nose to the side of his niece’s head, breathing into her. As Artemis sleeps, her daughter will rise, the new moon she will be, with fate and the sun at her side, he recalled that line of the prophecy before shutting his eyes. There is anger in him he cannot show, he cannot risk this anger being a God himself.

“I won’t stop you, (y/n). I’m with you. Now and till the end.”

❅

A few weeks before her first day of Senior year, (y/n) finished reading the book The Catcher in the Rye. She had heard it was a classic, and even in school as they taught other books, she had never gotten around to reading it. Having read it at last (and not having understood a few more things about the book, and considering how difficult it was to read it), she felt at ease, and allowed herself to read any other book, which may relatively be easier to grasp.

As an 18-year old, all she ever wanted to do was read. And train. And wait for the Fates to begin moving again.

She occasionally met her uncle on random days in between months, when it was easy for him to take a break as a God. He would tell her about new things she could practice, and suggest new books for her to read. In fact, it was his copy of The Catcher in the Rye that she was reading. She hadn’t heard from Natasha, however, and missed the red haired woman’s company. Natasha was a good companion, and there were so many things (y/n) wanted to tell her, now that she was confident.

But patience didn’t suit (y/n) well. Waiting for a plan to happen, waiting for five years for the Fates to wake up, sometimes made her forget Hera’s threat, and her anger with Olympus. That day was a Sunday, and it had been three days since she had trained last. She spent those three days reading books, even though she thought it was time well spent. Getting up from her spot, she decided some coffee could relax her mind, and grabbed her coat before heading out.

She felt stronger in mind and body, however, with these five years. Her hair had grown out, her features changed, her personality changed. She was far more confident now, she felt cautious but aware. There were people who wondered about her, labeled her the curious Greek girl who always had her nose buried in one book after another. And if it wasn’t books, it was music. She was always to herself, but whenever she conversed, she knew people around her wanted more.

This was a trait Artemis had. People loved her everywhere she went, and (y/n) could see what being related to Artemis felt like.

As she walked to the coffee shop, something felt strange. It felt as if people around her were unusually happy, and double in number. People were hugging and crying, and as (y/n)’s footsteps paused, she turned around and noticed there were more people than any other day. Her heart raced instantly, and her legs carried her to the coffee shop, which was closed. Her hand shot up to her mouth as she realized that it had been five years—five years as the prophecy had demanded.

Only one thing could bring her the clarity she needed; rushing to the shelter, where May Parker was five years ago, (y/n) paused on the entrance and saw May Parker herself, sobbing, looking dazed and people gathering around her.

Slowly walking inside, there was a TV on blast. Apprehension swallowed her whole as her eyes darted from one channel to the next. News anchors saying people were back after being gone for five years.

Her face stiffened. Time was moving again.

❅

series taglist:

Those I could not tag, I’ve added your urls here!

@maddie-laufeyson, @mscoloneldanvers, @https://dancing-flame.tumblr.com, @daughter-of-stark, @spider-mendes, @nerdyandproudofitsstuff, @someonekeepstakingmyusernames, @alina-margaret, @yourwonderbelle, @viarogers, @https://huangsushii.tumblr.com, @eridanuswave @oliviaisnotlistening @mizpotatobiscuits @editsbyjenny @abbieroseb @justtrynagetthroughlife @secretlittlewonders @missmulti @shallowshawnshallowshawn.tumblr.com @eunoiametonia @adistiany @justletmesleeptillidie @ppunderoos @myheartonthemove @heir2chaos @honeybutterparker @truthdaze @mvmakki

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aeon-wolf · 7 years

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Betrayal - Chapter 2

Now that Lena has joined her father and the Titans against the Gods, her loyalties made clear. Her betrayal of all she once held dear haunts her every day. But she made her choice and as the war between the Gods and Titans draws near, Lena’s allegiances will be put to the test. Does she help bring about the end of the reign of the Gods? Or will her love for Kara Danvers and the friendships she made along the way be enough to stop the daughter of Hyperion.

A PJO inspired Supercorp series. Part Two: Betrayal.

Read it here on AO3

“C’mon Kara,” Mon-El urged. “We’ve got a meeting in ten minutes.” Kara looked up from her book, signing but nodding nonetheless.

“I’ll meet you there.” She said, her friend deflating a little bit, but not pushing the issue. He closed the door to her dorm room. Kara shut the worn book, running her fingers down the cover gently. “I know you’re still out there. And I promised you that I would never give up on you.” She whispered to herself, gingerly setting the book back in its place on her shelf, getting up from her chair.

The last two years had not been kind to Kara Danvers. Sure, her life generally hadn’t changed that much, but Lena’s absence had still left a hole in her heart. In fact, the entire dynamic of their little group had changed. Kara opened her bedroom door, heading out into the hallway, making her way out of the Zeus dorms. She trudged up the stone path out of the living quad towards J’onn’s office.

Things were different, even though nothing had really substantively changed in their day to day lives. Alex and Maggie went on to graduate then Alex followed through on her dream and went on a three-month vacation to Greece with Maggie. The couple had loved it there and Alex had gotten down on one knee in front of the Colosseum, a ring in her hand, proposing to her girlfriend of over three years. Tearfully Maggie had accepted and the couple had come back to Demos engaged.

Everyone had been overjoyed for the couple, no one more so than Kara. The blonde loved her sister and she loved Maggie. But her heart clenched each time she saw the couple kiss or share an intimate moment. Because it reminded her of what she had lost. Kara walked up the steps of the admin building, dragging her feet. She really hated these meetings. Ever since Lena’s defection, the Gods had seen fit to keep the five halfbloods relatively in the loop. They received intel reports from J'onn and authorized him to tell the five. They all knew because of their ties to Lena, the Gods wanted to keep them close.

Kara reached J’onn’s office, pushing the door open, her four other friends sitting around the office, waiting for her.

II.

“We should strike her down now,” Zeus argued with the rest of the Olympians. “This news that Hyperion’s daughter has joined the Titans is troubling. They are clearly planning for war. The report from Kara and her friends is clear. The demititan is a powerful weapon, as we all knew. The power of a Titan combined with the freedom of humanity.”

Athena and Ares both nodded in agreement. Such a combination was unheard of. Until now. Hyperion had done the unthinkable. “We cannot just destroy her Zeus. That is beyond us. We are forbidden from simply striking down a human.” Apollo argued, his sister Artemis agreed with her twin.

“We don’t yet know what her role is.” She reasoned, but Ares intervened.

“They will train her as a weapon. There is no doubt of that. The Titans will not be strong enough to strike at us for another couple of years. They don’t have the means or the strength to challenge Olympus. But with Hyperion’s daughter, they are a true threat.” He said.

“We need a way to match her strength. Hyperion is a brutal Titan. I do not envy his daughter. She will go through much hardship in the coming years.” Athena said. “But we need to think of our own protection. She made her decision. At full strength, no halfblood will be able to stand against her. Her power will be too great.”

“My daughter,” Zeus said, sitting back in his throne. “She could grow strong enough to defeat Hyperion’s daughter. We still have the Titan’s siphoned powers locked away. Granting her some of that power could easily be enough. Kara is strong already being my daughter. But with the combined power of a God, a Titan, and the humanity to match Lena, she could overpower the girl and end the threat she poses.”

“No,” Apollo said, jumping in. “Kara will never be able to kill Lena.” He insisted. This time Aphrodite, who had remained silent for most of the conversation, agreed.

“Kara Danvers will never be able to strike down Lena Luthor, my lord Zeus. To believe she would even entertain the idea is foolish.” She argued. Zeus sighed but bowed his head in defeat.

“Then we prepare for war. We keep the five halfbloods that returned from the quest close. They will be valuable assets in the coming war. We keep the word of Hyperion’s daughter quiet. The last thing we need is more defections. Hades, rally our forces in the Underworld. War is coming. We need to be prepared.”

III.

Kara sat down in her chair. “Good, you’re here Kara. Now we can begin.” J’onn said, placing his hands on his desk. She just nodded. She hated these meetings. They were always about potential ways to prepare for the coming war. And it always came back to Lena. Over the many months, everyone else eventually lost faith in her

Alex was the first. She had always been wary of the young halfblood, ever since she had been found out to be Hyperion’s daughter. It hadn’t been hard for Alex to treat and talk about Lena like she was the enemy. That hurt Kara a lot more than she was willing to admit. And one by one, everyone else followed suit. First, it was Winn. Then Maggie. Then Mon-El.

Kara always fought for Lena though. She never gave up on the young halfblood. Somewhere in her heart, she knew that there was more to the story. She refused to believe that Lena would betray her like that. She knew that Lena had feelings for her and despite the agonizing years since she had last seen Lena, she still loved her. She could still sometimes feel Lena’s lips against her own. Taste the tears that had run down both their cheeks. Hear Lena apologize to her. That memory was still as vivid as ever, even after two years.

“The Gods are sending Conner on a quest. There is a group of hunters that live in the forests on the Olympic Peninsula. He is going to try to recruit them to our side. Before the Titans get there. He’s bringing Alira and James with him.” Kara’s attention perked up at the mention of James.

He was the only one of their group that was left out of the loop. Soon after they arrived back at Demos, the Gods had decided to spread word the Lena had died, rather than turned. And they were all made to swear oaths on the River Styx to never tell a soul. Even their best friend James. Most of them were torn up about Lena’s defection that it hadn’t been much of a stretch for the narrative that Lena had died to spread. And spread quickly.

James took particular interest in Kara after he found out. And in the coming years after. He had cared for Lena, maybe not as much as some of the others because he hadn’t had as much interaction time with her. But he had still seen her as the little sister of the group. But he noticed that when they had come back, Kara was far more depressed than the others. He had suspected that Kara had more than friendly feelings towards Lena weeks before the two had left on their quest together. And Kara refusal to move on was further proof.

“When are they leaving?” Alex asked, always the down to business one.

“Tomorrow. This is a matter of speed. Our spies tell us that the Titans are being to mobilize. Their armies are vast, larger than originally projected. We need all the help we can get. And we don’t have a lot of time. We don’t yet know when they will launch their first attack, but things have been unusually quiet.” J’onn said grimly. Mon-El and Winn nodded.

There had been an uptick in the number of monster attacks in the last couple of years. Perhaps the Titans. Perhaps not. But everyone was wary of what it meant. But they hadn’t had any reports of attacks in the last few weeks. “Do we know if…” Winn trailed off, glancing at Kara, who tightened her jaw slightly. “Lena is… uhm… involved in planning or anything?”

J’onn looked cautiously at Kara, as did everyone else. They all knew Lena was a touchy subject for Kara. She still believed that Lena wasn’t evil, though all the evidence pointed to the idea that she had completely given herself over to the Titans. She was their enemy. But Kara refused to believe it. J’onn sighed. “No. We have little information about her. Our spies are not highly ranked enough to interact with her regularly. They’ve caught glimpses of her, exchanged swords with her a couple of times. That is all.”

“How good is she now?” Mon-El asked, genuinely curious. Lena had a lot of raw talent, but when they had been friends, she was untrained for the most part. She knew the basics, but she wasn’t a refined swordsman by any means.

“From the information we’ve gathered, she’s an expert now. I can’t say I’m surprised. She always was the talented one. Must come from her father.” J’onn said. Everyone nodded in agreement.

“She’s always been great. But that’s because she’s naturally talented, not because her father was good.” Kara interjected. Alex rolled her eyes.

“Kara, you’ve got to stop sticking up for her at some point. If she had a big master plan to screw the Titans, don’t you think she would be back here, in your lap by now? Wake up, little sister. I love you Kar, but it’s time to move on from this idea that Lena is still the same person we all thought she was. Because she’s not. “ Alex lectured. Kara groaned, shooting her sister a dirty look. She stood up abruptly.

“If we’re done for today, I’m leaving,” Kara said, storming out of J’onn’s office before anyone had a chance to stop her.

IV.

Kara headed to the quad and laid in the grass, a favorite pastime of Lena’s. She lay still for a few minutes before a shadow blocked her view. Kara looked up to see Mon-El standing above her. “I loved her too you know.” He said, sitting down next to Kara. The blonde sat up, propping herself up on her hands.

“Then you wouldn’t have given up on her.” Kara huffed. Mon-El sadly looked at Kara.

“Kar, don’t you think I wish every day that she would come home? Come back to us? Because I do. Nothing is the same without her. Maggie and I miss her like a little sister. James does too, I know. He told me. Alex doesn’t want to admit it, but she’s so hostile to Lena because she’s mad. Both at Lena and at herself. She’s mad that she couldn’t stop Lena. And she’s mad that Lena hurt you. And Winn misses his little tech buddy. We all want her back Kara. But it’s time to face reality. Lena is a threat. We know she’s training to destroy Olympus. And it’s going to take destroying us to get there. We’re the first line of defense. We’ll see her again Kara. But we all have to be prepared for the reality that she isn’t the same baby halfblood we took in. She’s dangerous.” Mon-El said, rubbing Kara’s back.

“I just… I can’t believe that Mon-El. How can I? I still love her. How can I believe that she doesn’t love me? That she's forgotten about me, even after two years. I can’t believe that she’d hurt me.” Kara said, her voice cracking. Lena was always a sore topic for Kara, it was difficult to talk about her for any length of time without crying. And she was trying very hard not to.

“Maybe she won’t Kara. She did love you. I’m sure of that. But that doesn’t change the fact, from what our sources say, she’ll do anything to destroy the Gods. And even if she doesn’t, her father will. And he has been rather brutal to her from what we understand. I know you refused to sit in on that report, but…” Mon-El said, but Kara cut him off.

“Don’t.” Kara sobbed. “I can’t…” Kara said, tears rolling down her cheeks. Mon-El shut his mouth, gathering Kara up into a hug.

“I know it hurts Kar. And I wish I could fill that spot for you. But we both know I can’t. But you have to try to move on. Heal your heart.” He said as she cried into his shirt.

“I can’t,” Kara whispered through her tears. “She’s still in there. I promised her I would never give up on her. I’m not going to break that promise.” Mon-El elected to stay silent, just holding his friend who he knew was in agonizing pain. Not of the flesh, but of the heart. And that was often more damaging than a knife to the gut.

Kara lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling when she heard a knock at her door. “Come in.” She called, the door opening and Alex stepped into her room. Kara glanced at her sister, before looking back up at the ceiling.

“Kar?” Alex said, sitting down in the chair by Kara’s desk. Kara remained silent. Alex sighed. “I’m sorry about earlier. Mon-El told me what happened. I didn’t… I didn’t mean to hurt you. You know that’s the last thing I want. I just... “ Alex tried, running her hand through her hair, frustrated. “I just want to protect you. You haven’t been yourself since… yeah. I’m just worried about you. Mom and Dad are too. I just want what’s best for you.” Alex whispered. Kara looked over at her sister.

“Trying to get me to get over her isn’t what is best for me Alex. I made a promise to her. Everyone else might be willing to throw her under the bus, but I’m not.” Kara said with a tone of finality in her voice. Alex got up, moving over to sit on the bed next to Kara.

“And that’s one of the things I love about you Kara. You always look for the best in people. You always want to help. To believe that they can be good. I just want you to be careful. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. You may believe in her, but does Lena still believe in you?” Alex asked carefully.

“Yes. She has to. She promised me.” Kara said, a little angrily.

“I know, but Hyperion has…” Alex started, but Kara cut her off.

“Her father isn’t her. She may be living with him and training under him. But he can’t make her do anything. I know she still cares about me. There isn’t anything he can do to make her forget me.” Kara said confidently. Alex sighed, running her hand through Kara’s blonde hair.

“I hope you’re right. Because I get the feeling we’re going to find out. Sooner, rather than later.”

I admit, I almost teared up a bit writing that exchange between Kara and Mon-El. Almost. So that's what Kara has been up to really. Just going about her normal life with a hole in her heart. I wanted to draw a bit of a contrast between what Lena and what Kara have been going through. And I don't want to say Lena hasn't struggled emotionally. Because she certainly has. But Lena's also had an ugly time physically. And she hasn't had a lot of free time to stew on her emotions like Kara has. So they're both hurting over each other, in different ways.

There have been other small tidbits of information (especially in regards to other characters like James, Winn, Maggie, Alex, etc) that have gone on in the last two years, but a sufficient amount has been covered to where we can really start digging in on the plot. Any additional information on the last two years will be worked in when it needs to be. But I think we've all got a good sense of where our favorite couple is at the beginning of this coming war. Kara, as in canon, refuses to give up on Lena. And Lena, while twisted and abused by Hyperion, still holds Kara (and her other friends) in her heart. But things are never simple. Especially when you're the daughter of a Titan.

#supercorp #lena luthor #kara danvers #supergirl #betrayal #pjo inspired #story #fanfiction #update #chapter 2

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demonstarfish · 5 years

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Them gods (Part 2)

Part one: https://demonstarfish.tumblr.com/post/182891239135/them-gods-part-1

Artemis: Daughter of Zeus and Leto. Twin sister of Apollo. Hera was furious at Zeus and Leto so she told Leto that she could not give birth in a place which could see the light of day. So Leto gave birth on the little island Delos. Artemis was born first and immediately started helping her mother deliver her brother. She is considered a protector of women in childbirth. Goddess of the hunt, wild animals, the wilderness, chastidy and later on goddess of the moon.

Demeter: Daughter of Cronus and Rhea. Mother of Kore/Persephone. Nr.1 drama Queen. When Erysichthon cut down trees in her holy garden she cursed him with insatiable hunger, he ate and he ate but he never got full….like me on a friday. Goddess of harvest, growth and nourishment.

Aphrodite: Created when Uranos chopped off balls landed in the ocean. She has a bunch of kids that I'm not going to list. Zeus realized how irresistible she was and knew it would become a problem so he married her off to Hephaestus. In retaliation she had affairs with both gods and humans. Goddess of love, beauty and fertility.

Athena: Daughter of Zeus and Metis. Zeus was tired of Metis and tricked her into transforming into a fly and just then he transformed into a spider and ate her. Metis did not die though, she literally got into Zeus head and in the head of him (more precisely his forehead) Athena grew. When eventually she had to get out of there either Hephaestus or Prometheus (People can't seem to decide which) took an axe and made a slit in Zeus's head and out popped Athena in full armor. Goddess of knowledge and war.

Hermes: Son of Zeus and Maia who was one of the Pleiads. Messenger of the Gods. He was seen as a protector of thieves and merchants. He did not follow the same rules as the other gods as he could cross the three worlds (The Gods realm, The humans realm and the Death realm) freely.

Dionysus: Son of Zeus and Semele. Zeus, for reasons I don't feel like checking, burned Semele to death with his lightning bolts. Dionysus was ripped out of his mother's uterus and the fetus was sown into Zeus's thigh. He was later born again as he was ripped apart by the titans and then resurrected by Athena using his still beating heart. God of wine, and madness.

THAT WAS THE OLYMPIANS THANK….god (?).....I'M DONE WITH THAT. Now on to some of the other gods and goddesses…aka the ones I like he most.

Hades: Son of Cronus and Rhea. King of the Underworld. Deserves better than what we give him. Has a three headed dog named Cerberus...which basically means ``Spot´´. Most Faithful husband you are gonna find among these crazy ass Gods. Married to Persephone. He is NOT the god of death. When Herakles needed Cerberus for one of his quests Hades agreed to let him borrow the three headed dog on that the condition that Cerberus would return unharmed. God of the dead (NOT DEATH) and riches.

Persephone: Daughter of Zeus and Demeter. Queen of the underworld. She was born with the name ´´Kore´´ which means ´´Light bringer´´ but was later changed by Zeus to ´´Persephone´´ meaning ´´ Destroyer`` which he felt suited better. In the older stories Hades did not kidnap her. She simply walked into the underworld met Hades who was like ``Who tf are u???´´ and she was like ´´I like it here….I'm staying`` and ate six seeds of a pomegranate, since that was the only thing that could grow in the underworld, to make sure she could stay. Hades and Persephone fell in love. (If you eat anything in the underworld you can't leave….there is a lot of different versions but this is my fave so fight me) Her mother, being the drama queen she is, threw a fit and wouldn't let anything grow until she got her daughter back. So Zeus had to go down there and had to come to an agreement with Demeter, Persephone and Hades that she would stay in the underworld for six months a year and the other six with her mother. Goddess of the spring.

Nyx: One of the oldest of all the deities. Her beauty and strength made even the most fearless of the Gods afraid. Goddess and personification of the night.

Eris: Daughter of Nyx. Best known for starting the Trojan war by throwing a golden apple, in to a crowd, inscribed with ``For the most beautiful´´ and so Athena, Hera and Aphrodite started to fight for it or whatever. Goddess of strife and discord. (One of my absolute favourites)

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philipeisagoldengod · 6 years

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DO ALL OF THE ASKS, BBY - Alexandre

OKAY HON I WILL!!! MME. HIBBINS WOULD DEFINITELY APPROVE OF MY ANSWERS!!• Anubis: How do you feel about death?

o Oh, death? I guess it’ll happen when it’ll happen, y’know? I’m not too worried! I’d just rather not die painfully through like an infection or poison or something like that.

• Atum: What are your greatest imperfections?

o Nothing, I’m perfect :)

• Bastet: Do you have any cats?

o Yes, one deplorable character called Nestor, who always somehow finds a way to pICK A FIGHT WITH ME

• Hathor: What brings you joy?

o Everything beautiful and bright! But more specifically, pretty girls, puppies, children, curly hair, science, plants, sunlight, makeup, glitter, and bracelets.

• Horus: What is one thing you've had to fight for in your life?

o Hmm... not much, to be honest. But, I’d have to say Victoire, ma belle rose, the love and light of my life~ Circumstances just wouldn’t let us be together, until finally we could!

• Osiris: Do you believe in the underworld?

o But of course! I don’t think of it as hellish, though-- rather, I prefer to believe in a more neutral setting where the deceased wander aimlessly and think of their life. Or, reincarnation may be an interesting theory!

• Ra: Do you have any major responsibilities or importance?

o Oh, of course. I am central to my household. They would do nothing without me. Maybe cry.

• Thoth: Do you like to read/write?

o I love both! I consider myself a fabulous writer, although my brother does say otherwise… But I believe in myself!

• Arawn: What is the most terrifying thing you've ever done?

o Ooh, this is hard, since my whole life has been quite an adventure! I’d have to say sneaking into Victoire’s house that one time she was mad at me and I wanted to make it up to her. I… I still have nightmares about Alphonse *shivers*.

• Bran: How is your health?

o I am in perfect health! Really! I have a ridiculously sexy body. And I always make sure my skin, hair, nails, lips, and teeth are properly cared for~ The only issue I might have is that my stomach often gets upset. But I don’t think you want to hear any details about that!

• Brighid: Tell us about your relationship with your father.

o Oh… My father? I mean, I didn’t know him all that well, since he died when I was very young, but he seemed nice, I guess? My mother used to tell me that I was just like him! The one thing which stood out to me about him was the story my mother told me of my name; she and my father had both wanted to actually name me “Philippe,” but come the day of my birth, my father had drank an alarming amount of absinthe and was in the hospital himself while my mother was in labor. When the time came to name me, my mother asked my father to sign it, and unfortunately, he spelled my name as “Philipe” instead.

• Cernunnos: What is your favorite animal?

o I love puppies! They are so loyal, friendly, warm, and loving, traits which I feel are of utmost importance for a pet.

• Danu: What is your relationship with your mother?

o My mother was probably one of the most important people in my life. She was really caring and gentle, and really stayed firm despite anything that happened to us. She wasn’t just laid back, either—after my father died and his estate went to our uncle, Antoine’s father, she managed to convince him that we would manage it well and was able to fight for us to keep it. In addition, she raised us on her own in a city foreign to her and never wavered or showed any regret for our presence. She and I were… very close. I really do miss her still, since she passed only about six years ago.

• Morrigan: What do you think happens when we die?

o Didn’t I answer something similar? I believe in a fairly neutral underworld, possibly reincarnation. Oh! But you know what would be great? An afterlife where I’m surrounded by hundreds of buff, ginger, bearded men all wearing revealing outfits and caressing my cheek as they praise me and sing me poems they’ve composed for me!

• Olwen: What is your favorite flower?

o I love so many, it’s hard to choose! My favorites are probably a tie between roses, lilies, and lavenders—I love them all equally!

• Rhiannon: Have you ever been betrayed?

o Hm… my brother has turned his back on me many times, but I wouldn’t count that as betrayal, more bitter teenage angst. So no one, I guess; everybody loves me!

• Bragi: What kind of music do you listen to?

o Oh, I looooooooove Gregorian chant! It’s so hip, so cool, so nouvelle, so swell and popular with the kids~~

• Freya: Have you ever been in love?

o OH BOY DO I NEED TO ANSWER THIS??!! YES!!! VICTOIRE!! LISETTE!! RANDOM UNNAMED GIRL FROM PROVENCE WHO I FORGOT!! ROBERT!! JOSEPHINE!! ALAIN!! ANATOLE!! EUGÈNE!! DELPHINE!! MICHEL!! HORTENSE!! LISELOTTE!! LUCIEN!! BENOIT!! AND MANY OTHERS, I’M SORRY IF I LEFT YOU OUT!!

• Freyr: Do you have any children?

o I have two beautiful, perfect, outstanding, brilliant, bright children, who I treasure more than life itself. Louis Chevalier, a brave and gentle soul who loves all and creates, never destroying, and Henriette Chevalier, a bright fiery ball of passion, dedicating to leaving the world better than when she first encountered it.

• Hœnir: Are you a silent or talkative person?

o I’d like to consider myself a brooding, silent romantic hero, but Victoire always says I open my mouth too much and ruin my image :(

• Iounn: How old are you?

o That’s for me to know and you to ponder about, my dear ;)

• Loki: What is the best trick you've ever pulled on someone?

o Oh dear! I’d have to say it was that time when I was mad at me brother for letting his hair grow soooooooo long his bangs covered his eyes! I didn’t know what to do, since our stylist was out sick, so I asked Mme. Hibbins to work some magic with her gardening shears and… well… it was magic, all right.

• Odin: What is your family like?

o My family is like the solar system, and I am the sun! Let’s see… Mercury would probably be Céleste, since, like the god Mercury, I always sends her running around on errands and to carry messages and such! Venus would, of course, be Victoire, because her seductive allure and dazzling splendor just could not keep me away! Earth would be Dorian, since he would cry if I separated him from his precious vegetables and because he appears very… fecund. Mars would, of course, be my brother, because of his belligerent spirit and desire to be as cool as I am (spoiler alert: he’s not). Jupiter and Saturn would be my lovelies Henriette and Louis, since they are the biggest things in my universe

• Thor: Would you consider yourself pretty powerful?

o Oh yes, I’m a Philipe-shaped bottle of raw, rough power! (That sounded better in my head, oh well!)

• Tree: What have you done with your life? What are you going to do with it?

o I… uh, what have I done? I mean, I have a nice house? And I love my family! So I just plan to spend the rest of my life basking in my own glory, I guess.

• Aphrodite: What do you think of yourself?

o I consider myself the hottest thing alive since the burning witches in Salem :)

• Ares: Are you an easy person to anger?

o I mean, normally I’m not, buuuut… sometimes, when I do get angry, I lash out very easily and say things I don’t mean.

• Athena: Would you consider yourself an artist?

o But of course! This self-portrait just says it all:

• Apollo: Do you play any instruments?

o I play the electric triangle! And yes, Raphaël, that is a real instrument, stop laughing at me!!

• Dionysus: Do you drink?

o I mean, I drink a little wine or champagne in moderation, ignoring the engagement party absinthe, but generally I never drink too much—seeing what it did to my father has deterred me from indulging in excesses, you know?

• Hades: Do you have a bad reputation?

o Of course not, everybody loves me!

• Hekate: Have you ever tried to communicate with the dead?

o What? No! Maybe Mme. Hibbins did that one time in the local cemetery late at night in September, but I wasn’t there! I didn’t dig open a grave! I didn’t pour in a sack of moldy potatoes! I swear!

• Hermes: Have you ever stolen anything?

o Everyone’s hearts~ ;)

• Poseidon: Are you a moody person?

o Yes, I am fairly prone to sudden changes in mood—like, one moment, I’ll be at the dinner table thinking about how hamsters blink one eye at a time, and the next, I’m filled with emotion and want to have sex with Victoire on top of the church roof. I know, I know, I won’t do it… I guess…

• Zeus: Are you a confident person?

o I would say I’m pretty humble, but Raphaël keeps hitting me when I do, so for my own safety, I’ll have to say yes.

• Jupiter: Would people say that you are intimidating or fairly approachable?

o I think people think of me as fairly approachable! I’d hope so, at least!

• Pluto: Where do you think we go when we die?

o I’VE ANSWERED THIS QUESTION TWICE BEFORE

• Apollo & Dianna: Do you prefer to be up during the day or at night?

o I like sunshine and brightness, so the day! Although, I do enjoy… my nightly activities… heh

• Mars: Have you ever gotten into a fight?

o Yes, a few times. Not a physical altercation, but I’ve fought with pretty much every person I’ve ever met. Wow, is that an accomplishment?

• Minerva: Do you generally give good advice?

o I think I do, but whenever I give advice, Céleste sighs, Victoire shakes her head, Raphaël leaves the room, Dorian closes his eyes and pretends he’s not there, and basically everyone in my family acts like they don’t trust me, I’m very hurt.

• Proserpine: Have you ever felt trapped?

o One time, Victoire handcuffed me to the bed, but the key fell behind the radiator and the curtains somehow caught fire. We had to call the fire department, while I was in a burning room handcuffed to a bed naked. It was… an experience.

• Plutus: Do you have a job?

o Nah, not really; I don’t need to if I have enough of an inheritance to support myself. Most of my income comes from the property I rent out, anyway.

• Venus: Have you ever had your heart broken?

o Mine? No, not really. It’s hard for me to feel broken or hurt by things like romance. Usually, I’m the one who leaves, but if someone leaves me, I’ll either persistently nag my way back to them or just move on.

• Vesta: Do you like being home or do you try to get out whenever you can?

o I try to get out, I love going outside!

• Morpheus: Do you daydream often? Of what?

o I daydream… of things which are too obscene, even for me, to speak of! Let me just say one involved a bag of autumn leaves, my naked body, a man from the future named Nicolas Cage, and a 5 meter tall bottle of Cheez Whiz.

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