Children of the Gods: Arc 2 [Game/Closed]

[Green Shoes]

Nike was surprised as Nicole listed off both her companions and her travels. She was both concerned and somewhat proud that her daughter had remained both physically and emotionally attached through it all. Noticing Etna at the door, she made a welcoming gesture, though she bit her lip. The girl had likely lost her mother.

"There have been many casualties thus far, and more are sure to come. Nicole is right, though; there is always hope."

Turning back to her daughter, Nike pondered over what to tell her. There was a lot going on that she may not be aware of. She didn't want to frighten her, though she didn't want her unprepared either.

"I have been...busy. Dionysos has rallied many Gods to his cause, and those of us who don't join him have been forced to fight. There hasn't been war like this in a long time..."

Taking a deep breath, she chose her words carefully.

"I went to look for Artemis at her shrine, to try and rally some more support. It was destroyed; desecrated, so I came back. And there she was, waiting. I didn't get a word out before she shot me and ran off. I never thought she would turn, honestly."

Smiling somewhat grimly, she spoke to both Nicole and Etna, lying herself across the bed. Her tone changed from maternal to somewhat friendly. Having lived her life watching conflict, she was somewhat desensitized to their situation.

"So you're off North? That sounds nice. What is it up there you're looking for?"

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Prometheus stepped out of the bathroom and retired to the loungeroom, where Remus appeared to be asleep. He studied him thoughtfully for a moment, before following suit and reclining on a couch. Stretching, he closed his eyes and decided on sleep, dressed in new, clean clothes.

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Verathragna looked at Steven, trying to cheer him up.

"You have been placed in an unfortunate situation, my friend. You are both tired and stressed; things will seem better in the morning."

He looked him in the eyes to reassure him; the God meant every word he said. Turning to Aria, his eyebrows were raised; he hadn't had much contact with the Northern Gods, though he had heard of Freya through numerous contacts.

"Ah, I've heard your mother is very wise. Perhaps you'll meet with her when you get there! I'm sure she can be of some help."

Watching Prometheus slink between the hallway and the loungeroom, he offered rest to the group, without pushing them. He was happy to stay and chat.

"Please, feel free to sleep wherever you want. Even my bed is available; I think I will be up all night anyway. If you're staying up, can I get you a drink? What about you?"

He looked at Able over in the kitchen, a broad smile on his face.

 

[Lunar Templar]

"Ah, I've heard your mother is very wise. Perhaps you'll meet with her when you get there! I'm sure she can be of some help."

"I'm more worried about weather or not she's 'nice'. Seeing as she's the only blood relative I know to be alive, I'd like to be able to at least, ya know, not hate her." Aria said, kinda sheepishly at the end. "Sides, I have some things I'd like to ask her."

 

[Not G. Ivingname]

"You have been placed in an unfortunate situation, my friend. You are both tired and stressed; things will seem better in the morning."

Steven looked up into those king eyes, then sighed. She was right, this wasn't normal, this wasn't him. He hoped.

"Please, feel free to sleep wherever you want. Even my bed is available; I think I will be up all night anyway. If you're staying up, can I get you a drink? What about you?"

"I will take that drink," Steven said, "I need a drink... You guys were talking about who your parents were right? For what it's worth, my biological father is Hephaestus..."

More anger welled up in Steven, remembering that this wouldn't of happened if the forge god hadn't taken advantage of his mother.

"I really need that drink."

 

[IFS]

"So you're off North? That sounds nice. What is it up there you're looking for?"

"Well a wolf I think, we think it Dio's plan might involve Fenrir," Nicole replied, "That's what Hades told us at least, after we helped him out by killing Ahriman."

She thought for a moment, remembering how Ahriman had simply collapsed when Vera struck him, part of it seemed too easy almost pathetic. Another part, well, he didn't seem like a god when he died, just a person. She shook the thought from her head and turned back to her mother. She felt a pang of understanding, her mother had seen things like this before, who knew how many times, certainly it made sense how detached Nike sounded when speaking about the conflict.

"Your blessing really helped down there, I don't know if we would have made it out otherwise," she said, considering what to ask next, it felt difficult to ask her mother for help but they needed every advantage they could get "Is there any way you can give me a more permanent boost like that? Or some new trick you could show me, or even just anything you might know that could help? We don't know where exactly we're going in the North, so if you know where the Norse gods are that would really help."

 

[DarkRawen]

"Please, feel free to sleep wherever you want. Even my bed is available; I think I will be up all night anyway.

"I'll be going then," Andrew stated, and got up. People were starting to get... well, emotional, and it made him feel uncomfortable. Besides, he was tired and it didn't seem like people would be discussing something important. If he had cared enough, he would have told the rest to go to sleep as well, they all needed it.

I'm not going to babysit them, though. They're all adults, at least I think they are, and they have a brain.

If they didn't go all mopey and decided to drink all night, at least.

Still not my problem.

He looked around for a short while, he saw both Remus and Prometheus sleeping on some couches, and decided to see if he could find a room where he'd be certain to be alone. Finally, he found something resembling a bed -there was a lot of pillows at least- and went to sleep there.

 

[Green Shoes]

"Hephaestus, eh? He was always a kind man; perhaps when this is over you can come and help in my workshop; I try my hand at tinkering, but I'm afraid I don't have the hang of it yet!"

Verathragna poured himself and Steven a drink; honeyed wine, potent and sweet, poured into large gilded cups. After downing it, the God smiled and began clearing the table, humming to himself. Yawning, he excused himself, making his way to his bed and settling down for the night.

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Nike clenched her palm and spoke to Nicole, a glimmer in her eye.

"While I don't know where any North Gods are, I can give you a small gift. To hone your skills. It's different though, from your blessing I mean. But I think you'll find it more useful."

Her palm glowed faintly, and she laid it atop Nicole's forehead. A small symbol glowed white hot upon her skin, the Greek letter Psi, and then it was gone, though there was something behind Nicole's eyes now; they were brighter; slightly more divine. She could feel a tingling in her toes and fingers, she was more alert, though the feeling began to fade as the symbol did.

"Instead of giving people energy, and courage; try interfering somewhat more directly. I'm sure you'll get the hang of it. Now..."


Looking at Etna, she frowned. She wanted to help the girl, but she had no idea of her powers, or the effects thereof. Still, a friend of Nicoles...

"Here Etna. Something for you."

Nike's wings spread out behind her as she gave Etna a symbol; the Greek letter Theta, on the side of her neck. It glowed hot like Nicole's then faded. Smiling at Etna, she hoped to give the girl some comfort.

"Whatever power you hold is now somewhat more...magnified. At least for a while. I hope that helps you; though perhaps not as much as a good nights sleep."

Turning away from Etna, Nike held Nicole's hands. She winked and kissed her daughters cheeks, moving further onto the bed, stretching out.

"I'm going to get some rest, as you should too. You're welcome to sleep here, or anywhere you want."

Lying down, she felt her eyes begin to flutter, though keeping track of Nicole, through her semi-conscious state.

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The Next Day

9:00 am

Verathragna opened the door to the kitchen with his leg, his arms burdened with many thinks clinking and clattering. Setting them down on the table, he began arranging them; 7 items in total. After setting them out, he lay a black sheet over them, and started preparing breakfast, setting out fruit, hot bread, spreads and cold meats out on the kitchen counter, with knives and hand-platters arranged next to them. He had changed into a grey pullover and black track-pants; the weather had dropped to a brisk chill.

Making rounds in the house, he roused the group and invited them back to the kitchen, offering food, though keeping the items hidden.

 

[IFS]

"Instead of giving people energy, and courage; try interfering somewhat more directly. I'm sure you'll get the hang of it. Now..."

Nicole felt a gentle rush of power flow through her, though the tingling sensation faded quickly a sense of the new power remained. She wasn't sure how exactly it worked but she had an idea how to tap into it. Before she could thank her mother though she had turned to give a blessing to Etna.

"I'm going to get some rest, as you should too. You're welcome to sleep here, or anywhere you want."

Nicole smiled, there was still a lot she wanted to talk about with her mother but it could wait now. There would be plenty to share after this journey was over after all. She could only hope the blessings she and Etna had received would be enough, and that the boost would make Etna feel better.

"Thanks mom, sleep well," she said, turning to leave the room and find somewhere to sleep, soon discovering one of many empty pillow filled rooms and quickly drifting to sleep.

The Next Day

Nicole found herself woken by Verathragna, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, stretched and quickly got up. After he left she dressed herself in fresh clothes and headed to the kitchen to see what the day had in store for them, grabbing a plate of food soon after entering.

 

[Terratina.]

"There have been many casualties thus far, and more are sure to come. Nicole is right, though; there is always hope."



Etna simply sighed at that remark, holding back a retort. Just how naive could they be? Of course, they weren't affected by the lost of two of the Morrigan. They were of a different Pantheon, after all. Not to mention to fact that Nike seemed a bit relaxed about things, however, she was the goddess of victory. Maybe she had seen their victory somewhere? Nevertheless, those words came back to her: "Victory In Death". But something interrupted those thoughts.

"Here Etna. Something for you."

"What? I don't n--" Etna said flatly. Her neck was burning. She hadn't asked for this or needed it. Like Etna wanted her powers amplified. The act of kindness and what came over it only made her feel worse. She got out of there as quickly as she could and buried her face the pillow. It it were only as simple as killing Dionysus, but killing a god wasn't a simple task, anyway. Etna made a mental note to ask Prometheus some more questions and gradually fell asleep.

The Next Day

It had been a light sleep and Etna still felt tired. She wasn't particularly glad of Verathragna's little alarm service. She mindlessly went about her morning routines and crammed some food into her mouth. Hopefully, this was the end of their little 'holiday' at Nike's.

 

[DarkRawen]

The Next Day

Andrew never did appreciate people waking him up, not unless he had gone to bed with them the night before. However, he simply replied that he was awake to whoever it was that was there, and spent some time waking up when that person was gone. With his mind more collected, he realized that he was at Vera's father's place, and that the Persian god had been the one to wake him up.

And offer me breakfast. Makes me wonder if all the guy do is making food and offering people drinks.

That would explain why he was hanging around here, instead of out there, fighting. Of course, of all the gods who "supported their cause", how many had actually done that? Giving them a little guidance? A place to rest?

Wouldn't it benefit them more to actually act?

Perhaps they were afraid of getting killed. Andrew would have ruled out the possibilities, they were gods and all that, but considering how he had seen some of them act, it wouldn't surprise him if it was for that reason. He gathered up some clean clothes and went to take a shower, before changing into them and going to eat breakfast. He wasn't the first one there, but he didn't greet anyone, just got some food. Andrew found himself, yet again, having much more of an appetite than he could remember having.

I haven't even used my power today.

Of course, he decided not to care, all that they needed to do was to eat until they were full, get as many weapons as they could, and... find a way out of Turkey. Great. Andrew grabbed an extra apple, and started cutting it into pieces in order to pass the time until the others woke up and finished eating.

 

[Lunar Templar]

After dinner broke Aria found a couch with a blanket in the study and curled up there, and tried to get some sleep.

Her sleep was troubled by the visions the Wraith showed her, particularly those of her family, The sounds of their torment, and them blaming her for it forced her to awake long before anyone else, and though she tried to get back to sleep, the nightmares still haunted her and she gave up sleep, instead she drew a bath and got cleaned up a bit before returning to the study to attempt to find something she could read till the wake up call, which was fortunately not long after her bath and headed to the kitchen to wait while the others arrived.

 

[Deu Sex]

When Remus woke up, his head felt like it was split open. He grimaced, pressing his eyelids together in an attempt to keep the harsh light out of his eyes, as he tried to get out of bed. He failed and rolled over onto the floor, banging his elbow and grunting in pain as he left a deep indent in the floor.

"Fuck..." he muttered, grabbing his head and rubbing it. Remus could barely see or think as he scrambled along the floor. His hand eventually found a desk and he used it to push himself up. In addition to his aching head, Remus' gut was starting to feel awful. He fought back the urge to throw up as he dizzily made his way to the kitchen.

 

[Not G. Ivingname]

Steven dazzle woke up from the seat in the kitchen he had slept on. The headache and the empty bottle instantly before him gave the answer as to why. He dragged himself and sat at the table Verathragna was setting up.

"Do any of your godly powers involve getting rid of a hangover?" Steven asked, rubbing his head, "Or summoning black coffee?"

 

[DarkRawen]

"Do any of your godly powers involve getting rid of a hangover?"

Not only Steven, who had been the one speaking, but also Remus seemed to be pretty hung over. Andrew sighed, obviously annoyed. So, they needed rest, and had somehow figured that getting wasted was the way to go?

Nevermind the thing about being adults. I would say brain as well, but they both seem to have a headache.

He supposed he should help them out, but he wasn't wasting his powers on trying to cure a hangover, that would be stupid. Not only because part of it was caused by dehydration -he could still have helped ease the pains a little- but because there was a lot of causes, some not really looked into yet. And, he still felt a bit unsure about what had happened the day before, even if he didn't like admitting it. Besides, if they suffered the whole day, perhaps they would--- okay, who was he kidding? Of course they wouldn't learn a thing. He didn't know how old they were, Remus were a couple of years younger than him, at least, and Steven looked like he was something like 10 years older than Andrew.

Sure, he had been drunk too before, and he had gotten hangovers as well, but not very often, and not before or during something as important as this.

Morons.

"I'm not even going to try to heal you," he told them, voice somewhat hushed, and while his tone wasn't friendly, it lacked the regular hostility. "I doubt I'd manage to do much good. Just drink water. A lot of it. Orange juice is perhaps even better. And eat what you can manage to eat, whatever should be fine. I did use to have some painkillers, but I gave those to Vera when Aria was hurt. Besides, most brands tend to just make the hangover worse in one way or another."

Andrew didn't feel like telling them what he thought about them getting drunk like this, it wasn't his business, and he had no reason nor desire to give them a lecture about it. he then added; "Also, Nicole, if you don't mind, could you give them a boost when we need to leave? Last thing we need is something else slowing us down."

He glanced over at Etna and Aria, and added; "Actually, you should probably give those two a boost as well." They didn't look as if they had slept very well, at least. "It's up to you how to use your power, obviously, so I'm not going to make you do it."

 

[IFS]

"It's up to you how to use your power, obviously, so I'm not going to make you do it."

Nicole looked over at the people Andrew had pointed out, they all did look tired but her blessing would be a temporary matter at best. It might help but really they should just take a nap or get some coffee or something. Still I should see if any of them want the boost.

She turned to them "Any of you guys want a blessing? It won't last forever but it could help."

I suppose they could also get a boost from Verathragna or my mom, that would probably last longer anyways.

 

[Lunar Templar]

"Any of you guys want a blessing? It won't last forever but it could help."

"Nah, I'll try and grab a nap once we hit the road if I need one" Aria replied as she found a seat. "And if something happens and we get jumped again, which is likely, a fresh buff at the start would be better then one that could be about to wear off." she added before grabbing and crunching into an apple.

 

[Green Shoes]

Prometheus' eyes flicked open as Verathragna returned to the kitchen. Stretching, he got up slowly, enjoying the feel of a fresh change of clothes. Joining the others in the kitchen, he began eating in silence. Remus and Steven appeared to be hungover; he would have laughed if it wasn't going to be a considerable hindrance.

Catching Verathragnas attention, they traded words in whispers, before he handed Prometheus a set of keys. Smiling, the Titan left the house, spinning the keys around his fingers.

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Verathragna stood behind the veiled table and caught the groups attention as soon as the Titan left.

"Good morning everyone! Hope you all are rested and ready. As promised, I had a hunt in storage, and have found a few items; things I hope will help you."

Reaching underneath the cloth, he first retrieved a short bow with a deep curve in the middle. It was a deep oak colour, and came with a short, black quiver with 8 arrows. He offered it to Andrew.

"I retrieved this bow from the Crusades; it belonged to a rather keen archer. I'm sure you can make use of it."

Folding the cloth back, he next retrieved a small, glass lens, handing it to Aria.

"This disc will focus your somewhat...unorganized power, if I've heard correctly. Unfortunately, it is a one-use offer. I hope it serves you well."

Pulling out a black ledger, he handed it to Steven. It had a small, silver clasp of intricate design; a deeply complicated locking mechanism.

"This is all the notes I have on binding magic, and similar conditions such as yours. I'm sure you'll enjoy the lock!"
He winked at Steven, hoping to cheer him up.

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Nike awoke with some discomfort in her shoulder. The wound had healed, though it had left a distinct mark on her shoulder; a deep, brown scar. She padded silently to the shower, slipping past the group in the kitchen. Though she didn't want to miss her daughter's departure, she was dirty and blooded, and sore to the bone.

 

[Lunar Templar]

"This disc will focus your somewhat...unorganized power, if I've heard correctly. Unfortunately, it is a one-use offer. I hope it serves you well."

Aria took the lens in hand "A Glass Cannon eh?" The lens was actually rather pretty "Shame, it's rather pretty, but one shot at the right spot or target is worth a thousand fired at random, or least I think that how Grandpa said it.." she added as she wrapped the lens back up and stowed it away for safe keeping.

 

[Not G. Ivingname]

"I'm not even going to try to heal you. I doubt I'd manage to do much good. Just drink water. A lot of it. Orange juice is perhaps even better. And eat what you can manage to eat, whatever should be fine. I did use to have some painkillers, but I gave those to Vera when Aria was hurt. Besides, most brands tend to just make the hangover worse in one way or another."

It was crystal clear that Andrew was annoyed with this situation, and Steven couldn't really blamed him. At least he wasn't yelling.

"This is all the notes I have on binding magic, and similar conditions such as yours. I'm sure you'll enjoy the lock!"

Steven took the notes. He was about to explain how the forge God's powers would ruin any challenge that the lock could give, until he touched it. He was shocked when it didn't trigger his powers. It was as inert as a rock, his powers gave no clue to how to open it, yet it was crytal clear to his eyes that it was mechanical device.

Still, there were more pressing issues at hand, and Steven looked over the notes.

Spoiler: OOC

CAn I have a transcript of the notes? I don't want to assume anything here. >_>

 

[DarkRawen]

"Good morning everyone! Hope you all are rested and ready. As promised, I had a hunt in storage, and have found a few items; things I hope will help you."

Finally someone doing something useful. Even if it was just looking through some items in a storage.

When Andrew saw the bow, he felt somewhat pleased, not only because he had a way of attacking now, but because he enjoyed actually using a bow. Besides, this meant that they had another way of attacking, it had been useful enough down in Hades.

"I retrieved this bow from the Crusades; it belonged to a rather keen archer. I'm sure you can make use of it."

The bow was old and the shape was a bit different from the bow Andrew had used, but it would be easier to use than the former bow, as well as lighter to carry. There were 8 arrows altogether, not the largest amount, but with the right amount of skill and with a little poison, it was enough. Besides, arrows could be collected and reused, so 8 arrows didn't mean 8 shots.

"I'll take care of it," he told the Persian god. He felt the balance of it with his arm. "Is there anywhere here I'd be able to take a few test shots? I want to make sure I'm able to use it well before risking anything in a combat situation."

 

[IFS]

Nicole noticed her mother slipping past the group and heading off into some other part of the house, she looked tired and dirty. Probably going to shower or something, I'll have to be sure to say goodbye before we leave, remind her that we should talk more once all this is over.

She turned back to the rest of the group and watched as Verathragna began handing out gifts to them, notes for Steven, a bow for Andrew, and a lens for Aria. There was still four gifts covered with cloth, not enough for all of us then. She hoped there was a weapon of some sort among the gifts for her, and she wondered who would be the one to not receive anything.