Fantasy Pandemonium {closed to @offspring_of_athena}

[Kassandra Rose]

THE WAR OF THE GODS



“Knowledge can end a war, but war will never end knowledge” Alice Harrington, the Goddess Athena.


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[Kassandra Rose]

ATHENA’S ARMY ​

ALICE HARRINGTON ​

”I feared that I would never see you again”.
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For the first time, the statuesque nature of his expression was removed, leaving behind a man... a boy, even. His eyes were dropped upon the flickering of the flames, which glimmered, a soft coalesce of reds, oranges, and yellow. She knew there was little better way to describe Adonis than those very flames themselves, passionate and consuming, almost quite devouring, if you let it, and yet alone and starving, awaiting the air to fuel his campaign and fill his suffocating lungs.

“You look much different now than you did then, but as ever so... godly, and I wonder how that may be,” he commented, poking the stones along the fire, his head hoisted up by his spare hand, which elbow rested upon his thigh. “I remember, you see, every moment that you were here the last time. I was the only one who ever noted you true power. They all admired you, but you were not forged to be admired. You were made to evoke fear, awe, humility”.

At this, his eyes flickered up to her. “You told me as much yourself that you must stay away from the philosopher. Men try often and often to determine the virtues of life, to define them... and you did not wish for that. You did not wish for him to seduce you with sonnets and words, to define you. No, Athena, you came to me because you wanted something more”. His thick brows were furrowed, his brow heavy with fustration. Alice found her stomach sinking at his words, her hand reaching out to scoop the stray curls that had floundered upon his face. In the moment, she could recall it, what he spoke of.

​

The woman she saw was not herself by any means of physicality, but she knew the moment to be true. The two of them, as they were now: herself behind him, her hand itching towards his shoulder and him turning to face her so that their foreheads almost touched and lips almost brushed. “I’m sorry if I led you into this false belief that something could ever be between us, Adonis,” Alice struggled to get the words out from her throat. Her voice was soft, gentle, weak, not at all as she assumed Athena ought to be. “These memories... these actions... that were proclaimably me, they do not feel as though they are my own. Everybody talks to me of affections and friendships, all of which they expect me to upkeep, and how can I? I scarcely know a single one of them, and these feelings are hardly natural. Though I do declare that I hardly feel I am who you all say I am, is it not... wrong for a goddess to lay with a mortal man, for them to partner with them? If I am who they say, I am immortal. I shall never die and live only to see the man I love grow old”.

“It was not about what made sense, Athena. It didn’t make sense. Sense and wisdom is for old men and philosophers. It was about the physicality. The way you felt. The way I feel”.

Before she knew it, he was leaning in, just as he had before. No. She couldn’t allow this to continue on. Her old self may have made these foolish and reckless choices, but Alice would not. “This stops, now,” Alice shot back, standing abruptly. “And if you threaten me one more time, I will ensure that your tongue burns to a crisp within the realms of your mouth for all of eternity. Who do you think you are? To threaten a god?“ a bitter scoff engulfed the air. “You are not my lover, you are my general, and you shall do your job, no more and no less”. That being said, Alice made her way to the tents, to find Emilia.

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DARIUS OF ATHENS​

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“So they tell me,” he smirked back at her, though his eyes remained gently vulnerable. Emilia had always been a weak point of his. Though they’d largely remined frends, with him writing to her and her brother when he could, her always ardently admired her. It could never be. He knew that, had always somewhat understood that even before he began to grow affections for her. Athens would never allow a Spartan to be at the arm of their ruler. The philosophers and senators were so particular there that they’d probably find something to criticise if he took Athena herself as his wife.

“Emilia, there is something that I wish to talk to you about-“ he didn’t have a chance to finish his sentence, with the oncoming footsteps of somebody else. This was not a conversation that he wanted to be overhead. The fact was that he was to be married, once the wars had concluded, to the daughter of the consul, Sariette Lucretia. It was a marriage that his father had arranged with his council, one that would keep the Athenians content and the crown prosperous.

“Athena,” he nodded, coughing to disguise his awkward nature. His hands moved to his hips, where he stood valiantly, legs apart. “I had not expected your presence,” he tried to change the subject, before Emilia brought the topic up once more. “We were having mere idle small talk. Is there something you wish to talk about?”

“No, by all means, I don’t wish to intrude,” her hands flew up in an almost surrendering notion. “I can come back”.

“No need, no need,” he brushed away her fretting with a wave of his hand. “I was just about to leave. I must attend to my duties. After all, this war will not win itself. Lady Emilia,” he leant forward and took the Spartan’s hands brushing it against his lips. “My Goddess,” he repeated the same to Athena, bowing gently before beginning his descent down the hill towards the camp. Bloody timing! Then again, was there eever a right time for such a notion? He was afraid not, but the longer he waited the worse it would be.

APOLLO’S ARMY​

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ALEXA OF ARGOS​

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“Must you doubt me so?” Her arms crossed before her chest. Her arched eyebrows furrowed, almost cascading her eyes. It was the truth, and she knew it. Once they implemented Zeus’s will, Apollo would be no more. Peace would ensue to the lands, and their family would be richer than any Grecian that had came before them. They could rule the entirety of this realm, with the God of the Gods upon their side. Whereas, this mere childish affection could offer little but a warm glow inside and a ruined reputation.

“I know what I must do, and I will not hesitate when the time is right. You know that our army and mission means more to I than any other. You sound almost Athenian with your sexist presumptions that my gender would have any sort of influence on my susceptibility to manipulate or to be manipulated. I say once more, that I know that I am capable doing this. So, do not fret so much, or your panicked manner will give us away”.

To kill a God was another thing entirely... never mind a man that she loved. Who was to know the repercussions of this? In spite of her soothing words, Alexa’s mind was not at all at ease. “Has Zeus bequeathed the weapon to us yet? Do we know of the location?”

BELEN OF DELPHI

Belen heaved a sigh of relief. To hear Apollo speaking something of sense again, finally slotting the pieces together allowed him to breathe for the first time in so long. “My lord, that is great!” He was a little crestfallen that in regaining Apollo’s memories, he had lost his good friend to the femme fatal that was Alexa of Argos. That woman was trouble. Belen was almost certain of it, but how did he break this to his friend who was almost blinded by love and admiration, still, even now?

“That is perhaps the best news we have received in so long. In fact, we must make haste. I shall pack our belongings whenever you wish and we shall leave at once. If we go now, we may make it before day breaks,” fumbling over his words, the squire had began to stumble around in search for things that ought to be packed. “Do you wish for me to alert some of the others?” He hoped the God would say no. There were a few that could not be trusted by any means within this camp, and the squire was not too certain of how deep the corruption ran. Bad fruit often infected the rest very quickly.

 

[Offspring_of_Athena]

Athena’s Army​

Emilia of Sparta

The closeness of their bond alerted Emilia to an underlying issue, something was troubling her dear Darius. Her brow creased in worry. She tilted her head ever so slightly to try and get a better glimpse at the streams of moonlight that lit his face. The normally strong voice of the man of her affections was laced in worry and she found her concern growing.

“Yes, what is it? You can tell me anything Darius,” she softly assured him, trying to catch his gaze. There was no time to finish their conversation as Athena approached them. The two jumping apart like two children caught playing with fire. Her eyes flickered to Darius, all worry falling to the wayside. In a true high born fashion, he was able to fix his face into an emotionless mask.

Turning her attention to their guest, Emilia smiled. Darius perhaps thought that the goddess was unaware of their relation, but he would be mistaken. However; this Athena may not recall the events of old. Back in the day, she had been her only confidant in matters of the heart, now those secrets were lost to the wind and time.

“My lady,” she gave a courteous bow of her head. Athena, polite as ever, tried to excuse herself but the moment she had interrupted had come to pass. “Yes, it is fine we were finishing exchanging stories of home and war.” Emilia’s brain itched with the desire to know what Darius was about to say, but she would leave it for another time. He was home now, they had plenty of opportunities to catch up.

Her eyes outshined the stars when Darius’s lips ghosted her hand. “Thank you again,” she whispered for only him to hear. She gripped the cool length of the blade in her other hand. Once his retreating figure was out of sight and more importantly earshot, Emilia turned back to Athena.

Emilia glanced over the goddess’s shoulder searching for Alexandros. “Where has my brother run off to? And what has transpired near the fire? You seem riled,” she inquired, voice painted in worry.

Apollo’s Camp​

Aiden Walsh


A breathy laugh passed between his lips. Stepping back from the map, he retrieved two glasses of wine for them to celebrate the discovery. “Yes it is great news isn’t it,” he practically bragged at his achievement of memory recollection. Returning to the map he set the chalice down in front of Belen, with a sip of his own. “Aren’t I clever, hiding it by the sun on a map,” he chuckled fully aware that it was in fact not clever at all.

“Yes yes we will make haste, but first we drink this wine, enjoy the warmth of this tent, and all our amenities before we leave them.” He reached down to snatch up a ukulele that lay near the table. He fiddled with the knobs at the end, strumming it intermediately to check the tuning. With the first in tune strum, he finally concentrated back on his friend’s words. “Hm? Oh yes no let us keep this our little secret…” He winked, beginning to strum out a soft melody. “Even from Alexa.”


Cato

Alexa spoke with such defiance to him, when only moments before she was putty in the fake God’s hands. He doubted her with every ounce of his being. Cato was no stranger to love. Long ago he too had loved someone the way Apollo and Alexa did. The stolen glances cast in the other’s direction when their attention was drawn elsewhere. How their eyes sparkled, their demeanor becoming flustered and twitchy. Apollo had loved this girl, he was sure of it from the way he smiled at her. Cato had caught the subtle differences in the way he looked upon her compared to the other girls. The corner of his mouth twitching just so, highlighting his fancy for her.

He took a step toward Alexa, grabbing her wrist with his hand to pull it from her chest. His grip was firm, inflicting some pain. “I do not make these presumptions based on your gender. I make them based on the way melt in his presence,” she snarled at her. Dark eyes bore into her with a dangerous warning.

Cato flung her hand away in a disgusted manner, turning on his heel so that his back now faced her. “It has. Zeus has left it just outside Apollo’s temple. It will be a hard path to travel, but you will take it. I can not go myself for fear of suspicion, however, no one will blink if you are missing. Back your things you will part tomorrow at dawn. I will disclose a map to you and any further details then.” He glanced over his shoulder at her. “Is that clear?”

 

[Kassandra Rose]

ATHENA’S CAMP​

ALICE HARRINGTON ​

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“Alexandros left for-“ her mind stumbled in search for a lie, and yet she knew it would be unwise to tread so. “-For Adonis,” she admitted sheepishly, her hand promptly moving to rub the back of her neck. If she were ever going to win this war, she needed at least a few people whom she could trust, and Athena was almost certain that Emilia was one of them. “I had been avoiding him,” she confessed, a hot sigh escaping her lips, hissing like gas freed moments before the pressure erupted in an unforgivable explosion.

How did she explain the circumstances? Well, there was always the option of truth — and yet, given the past relations Athena had built with her confidantes brother, this seemed an unwise thing to do. Alice could scarcely expect her to withhold such a matter, could she? Would Emilia not be capable of doing so for a few days? “He talks to me of love,” she admitted, as her back turned. Though her companion could not see, her eyes rolled skyward. Wirh another sigh, she picked up the bottle upon the side and began to pour two chalices, ensuring to fill her own to the brim.

“He means to convince me that we were in love, Emilia,” she reiterated once more, as though the entire notion of such infatuation was beyond comprehension. “And for sure, I can see, as I do sometimes, a thousand tiny flashbacks of something that was, of which I could not possibly explain”. Clearing her glass within a hearty gulp, she promptly moved to fill another, waving the servants that scuttled by away. She was capable of doing so herself. The entire notion of being waited on, hand or foot, day or nigh, was beginning to take its toll. It was freaky. It was ridiculous. And, frankly, she just wanted to be back in her two up-two down terraced house in good ol’ England.

“And yet, I have him telling me of these emotions I do not feel, and you reminding me of affection that I shared with Alexandros - your brother - and I, myself, certain that I ought not to be as ridiculous as to feel any kind of such affection for anybody, for- well, the entire concept of a goddess and a man is just unwise, and that is not me- not Athena, who for some reason everybody seems to think is me, and I assure it is not. No, this is some kind of freaky, weird ass nightmare — weird, weird, weird — and I’m going to go to bed tomorrow, and awaken, and all will be back to normal. I’ve just had too much to drink. I’ve dranken too much-“ glancing, disgusted, at the chalice, Harrington flung it to the ground, spraying the floor with a thousand crimson droplets, and fell to her knees, scrumpled in a bundle like one’s neglected, worn clothes.

“I’ve had too much to drink,” she almost whispered, “and I shall awaken, soon, at the hotel pool. That’s all this is. That is all this could be”.

APOLLO’S CAMP ​

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ALEXA OF ARGOS​

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“No one will blink if you’re missing”.

Alexa could not refrain from visibly wincing, but withheld the toxic words that consumed her mind from airing but promptly biting her tongue. Apollo would. He would miss her — if they did not keep him, and that wretched squire of his, busy in the meantime. “Forgive me, uncle, if I have given you the wrong impression,” Alexa made a point of spitting his relation to her, as a reminder that if he did not respect her as a fellow fighter, and member of his team, that they were still bound by blood — which, in spite of everything, was always going to be thicker than water, and whatever sweetness he may find from the God’s demise.

“If I have suggested to you that I — ahem — melt in his arms, through any of my actions, I assure you this means not that I am failing, but only that our mission is as steardy as ever; for, my acting must’ve decided even you, our *great*-“ her teeth grit, the words hard to spill, “-general. Rest assured. I shall gather my belongings and leave, steadfast. Although, be aware. Although I am no great general, nor mighty soldier, the God has taken to my presence and, I assure you, if he his nimble hands are not kept busy then he shall almost immediately be aware of my absence”.

How much of this was truth, and how much was pathological lying, Alexa was not too certain herself. Unlike many women of Greece, she had never been lost, uncertain of self. It was one of her greatest strengths. She had begun this mission clear of mind, and sure of heart. Now, she wasn’t even sure what either of them meant when they both contradicted one another, never mind which to follow.

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BELEN OF DELPHI ​

In truth, Belen didn’t think Apollo any brighter for his “great” location; hiding an Apollo-related tool where the sun was perched upon the map was not very top secret at all and, frankly, given the nature of this, quite dangerous. However, it was far too late to change such circumstances now. Indeed, there was very little to be done at all about the whole scenario, and so the squire bit his tongue, and kept his disgruntled words resigned to his own mind. “Yes, sire,” he agreed, just thankful that his mightiness has chosen to, at least, keep the mission between the two of them.

“How many days should I pack for? What do you make of the distance? Is it much, quite far or a mere days passing?” He attempted to peak over Aiden’s shoulder, though a great deal smaller than his Lord. It was, as one could guess, to very little avail — accomplished nil but a stumble upon his feet, and a crash into the table which, by luck, he caught with a swift grasp from its demise.

“I could make do with the assistance of extra hands, should you be able to provide with some help,” she replied, crossing her arms before her chest armour, not moving her eyes from her stern glare of retaliation, “then, if all is fine, everything is perfectly clear”.