Perseus' plans
Ascension of the Fallen: Chapter 3
Perseus sighed deeply as he sat on a rocky cliff overlooking the sea, his legs dangling rather dangerously. His spies, which were mostly discontent minor gods he had built relationships with, reported that Poseidon and Hestia seemed to be in an eternally bad mood. The god of darkness, time, and mountains desperately wanted to inform Hestia and Poseidon of his return, but he knew Poseidon wore his heart on a sleeve; his mood would instantly change to happy, making that lightning god suspicious. Even though Hestia was usually ignored on Olympus after she gave up her throne for the insufferable wine god, she conversed with Poseidon much of the time. Perseus loved his sister, but she wouldn't be able to keep his return a secret and not leak the news to the god of the seas.
His friends also reported that Apollo and Hermes frequently went out to drink, having children with various mortals and feeling terrible. Artemis was secluded even more so than before, and Athena practically lived in her library. Perseus had wrinkled his nose at this information and scoffed. The former king of Olympus couldn't bring himself to have sympathy for his nephews and nieces; they deserved what they got. Although Perseus did see a potential ally in that poor god Hephaestus. Aphrodite was reportedly cheating on him all the time, so that made him miserable. Perseus just about expected that. No one seemed to like the forge god all that much, so that made him a prime possibility for an ally. His mother didn't seem to care for him whatsoever, and most of the Olympians ignored the forge god, save when they wanted something from him. The Olympians were a pretty pathetic lot in Perseus' objective subjective objective opinion. The main problem was now the titans.
Perseus stood up from his lone ledge near the sea and flashed away to the border between Alaska and Canada. The god stilled his breath and watched the brutal Alaskan blizzard, ignoring the slight pounding in his heart as he came to terms about what he was about to do. He summoned a beautiful sword, made of an alloy of imperial gold, celestial bronze, and mortal steel. This sword could cut any creature, mythological or mortal. The god summoned a coat to warm himself, as well as proper lightweight armor and more knives; one would never know when you needed them. A shield was not essential; Perseus thought it would only weigh him down, and as a mortal, he would need to carry lightweight things. An enchanted bag of food was summoned by the god, and with that the god of time stepped through the border, into the land beyond the gods.
Instantly, the former god felt his powers dip drastically. He took a knee to stabilize himself. He could no longer feel the strands of time he often pulled on, nor could he feel the shadows in the forests behind him. After standing up again, his mortal knees wobbled from the power of the blizzard; the blizzard was brutal to a mortal. The former god could not hear anything through the blizzard, not even himself muttering. Perseus cursed himself for being so weak. The god-turned-mortal turned his beloved blade upside down and used his sword like an old man's staff, wading through the blizzard and into the distance.
Time skip
Several days later, the new mortal arrived at a lone castle, built of stone and ice. Sculptures of ice stood around the castle, and the gates were at least fifty feet tall. Perseus moved to open the gates, but an imposing figure appeared in front of him. At least six feet tall, the figure somehow stared down at the taller former god. Perseus shivered. Whoever was in front of him had such a suffocating aura that it would make any lesser god bend to their knees. Perseus was not any lesser god however, and in a testament of will, the god-turned-mortal stood to face the figure, his eyes roaming over said figure. The figure's eyes could not be seen through the hood, and the armor he wore was a shiny black. The former god narrowed his eyes, opening his mouth to speak, but the figure moved lightning fast, simply punching Perseus in the chest with a crushing force.
Perseus felt excruciating pain as he was flying; several of his ribs had shattered, and the former god landed painfully on a random rock sticking out of the snow, many yards away from where the entrance of the gate was. Perseus slid down the rock, feeling his broken clavicle from crashing chest first into the rock. At least four of his ribs were shattered or broken, and a fifth one seemed bruised. Instead of finishing him, however, the figure turned his back around and simply walked back to the gate of the castle, ignoring Perseus.
A deep, animalistic growl appeared in Perseus' throat. The former god did NOT appreciate the arrogance of that... that thing. Perseus grit his teeth, slowly standing up and retrieving his sword. Once he was within throwing distance, he threw a knife from his belt, hoping to score at least a slash. The figure merely tilted his head to the side, allowing the knife to fall uselessly into the cold snow. The figure turned around, cocking its head, as to say, is that all you got?
Perseus growled again, and went on the offensive, raining blows left and right. He hacked and stabbed furiously, only to be blocked by the figure's shield or to be parried time and time again. Never had he been countered this effectively. The mortal had never overextended or gone ape shit mad; his technique was perfect, but he was countered each time. Perseus eventually slowed after several minutes, panting from fatigue and the pain of the broken bones, and the figure sprung on the offensive. Perseus was backpedaling for several minutes, trying to find the opening for a counterattack. The figure suddenly tried to bash Perseus' head with his shield, which caused the figure to overextend with his shield. Perseus immediately capitalized, stabbing the figure with a knife he had quickly drawn from his belt. The figure angled his body so as to minimize damage, but Perseus ended up scoring a thin cut along the figure's torso.
His blood was... silver?
Perseus paused in confusion, trying to get a closer look at the figure's blood and confirm that it was indeed silver. Before he could have a thorough examination, however, the figure chose to punch Perseus' shoulder, launching him across the battlefield and causing him to land in the snow rather ungracefully. His left humerus (AN: bone of the upper arm)was now shattered, but this did not discourage Perseus in the slightest. After all, he had suffered many injuries before. Perseus managed to stand up with pure will and began to fight the man again. Back and forth it went, with neither side gaining a hand. The former god knew he had to defeat the man soon, otherwise he would faint from the pain and fatigue. His muscles felt like they were on fire, burning with an intensity that surprised Perseus. The former god laid a trap for the man, fake over-extending, and the man fell for it. The mortal smiled to himself, instantly capitalizing. The former god immediately tried to stab the man with his other hand, but his shoulder was kind of broken, as two of the three bones that make up the shoulder had been broken by the figure. His arm was just a little too slow, and his opponent grabbed his left wrist, stopping it dead in its tracks. Perseus slammed his skull into the man's nose, breaking it with a sickening crunch. The man stumbled back, and Perseus immediately went on the offensive with one arm, bashing the man furiously with perfect technique. Every counter the man desperately tried to make was quickly dodged or parried. Perseus distracted the man with his strikes while he painfully maneuvered himself to sucker punch the man in the throat. The figure backed up even further, and the former god could tell he was hurt. Perseus went to finish him off with a downwards stab but the new mortal found himself frozen, unable to move. He forced his groaning muscles to move, but to no avail. His entire body was frozen except for his eyes.
The man stood up, and with a snap of his fingers, both Perseus' and his own injuries were given accelerated healing. Perseus watched in fascination as his shoulder mended itself, albeit painfully. Even that stupid sun god's healing took at least several days. Various other injuries that Perseus did not know he had healed themselves as well. The man snapped his fingers again, unfreezing Perseus and flashing the armor off his body.
The man was... rather old to put it frankly. He looked frail, and if one looked into his golden eyes, they would be transfixed rather quickly. His smile reached his eyes, crinkling them as the old man waited for the former god to formulate a response.
Perseus narrowed his eyes, was this his father Kronos? He sure got old if it was. Perseus snickered quietly to himself, but the frail, old man interrupted his thoughts, "No, I am not your father Kronos."
The man chuckled heartily, "Though that is an amusing thought."
The new mortal scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. Who was this being? The man was clearly immortal with some of the fastest reflexes Perseus had ever seen. Perseus had never been stalemated in a duel for so long before, by an old man nonetheless, and to admit that hurt his ego a bit. Granted, he was a mortal, but the being clearly didn't use any powers until the healing bit.
Perseus spoke to the figure as he observed the blizzard had stopped sometime during their fight. He remembered the strange color of the blood, "You are a protogenos, a primordial, no?"
"Bravo! Bravo!" the old man's smile somehow got even wider, and now the lively old man started to do a little dance in the snow, "I expected that of you, eldest of Kronos."
Perseus racked his head for protogenoi who had golden eyes; the former god facepalmed as Chronos, the primordial of time laughed at the mortal. Perseus had a dumbstruck look on his face. The fact that he had almost beaten the primordial in a mortal form astounded the god. Perseus made to bow, but Chronos waved the gesture off. "Your teeth are chattering from the cold after you lost your coat. Let me get you inside." Perseus didn't protest, and Chronos quickly brought Perseus into the large brick and ice castle, closing the large doors shut. The primordial of time snapped his fingers, and the two immortals were seated in a cozy room with a fireplace burning nicely. The chair was comfy, Perseus thought, as his mind wandered to various objects of interest around the room. Chronos had taken off Perseus' coat, and two steaming cups of hot tea were on the table in front of him.
Perseus took a sip with the cup, but Chronos gestured panickily, causing Perseus to spit out the tea in his mouth before putting the cup down. The primordial of time grinned at him, "You're supposed to hold it like this." He gestured with his left hand to his right hand, which was holding the cup of tea. Perseus groaned, "Why'd you have to make me spit out my drink for that?"
"You were holding it wrong," Chronos stated with a cheeky smile.
Perseus rolled his eyes, "You, Chronos, the protogenos of time, care about a pinky being held out when you're drinking tea?"
The primordial gave a shit-eating grin at that statement from the former god, "Yes."
Perseus rolled his eyes again at Chronos' strange antics. Chronos continued, "Anyway, I'm sure you know that I know why you're here. Let's cut to the chase. You're here for the staff of Aesea."
Perseus scratched the back of his neck, sporting a sheepish grin.
"Of course, I can give it to you; granted, I don't really use the staff of Aesea all that often, as even I cannot control it very well. Perhaps you can. You have earned the rights to the staff, as you have proven yourself by defeating me in mortal form. The staff of Aesea is yours for eternity, as long as you never misuse it to promote evil."
Perseus nodded gratefully, and a massive seven-foot pole appeared in front of him. Intricate gold patterns lined the primarily black spear, lacing all the way to the end of the pole. "The staff can change into a halberd and a spear at any time," Chronos explained, "just not a sword or a dagger or any other weapon that doesn't have a long stick in it."
The two immortals shared a hearty chuckle at that, while Chronos continued, "The staff of Aesea is not to be trifled with. Any lesser being, immortal or mortal, will be consumed by the very power of the staff, thus feeling the need to wreak havoc upon the world. That is why I guard the castle when I am notified of anyone approaching. This staff significantly amplifies your powers with time, as well as increasing the power reserves you have in general."
Perseus nodded, "Thank you for the staff, I promise I won't let the power consume me."
"I'm sure you won't," Chronos paused and grinned, "now go wage a war on the Olympians and Titans and kick ass for me, yeah? Tell me how it goes. Buh-bye!"
The protogenos of time snapped his fingers, and a blinding gold appeared all around Perseus, as Chronos faded into the receding background.
Time skip
Deep in the forests of the Rocky Mountains, two immortal beings were duking it out in an open clearing.
A man ducked beneath his opponent's spear, retaliating with a lightning-fast jab towards the opponent. His opponent took a step back, and Perseus pressed the advantage.
The god opted to forgo using any precise, calculated strikes, and bashed his opponent repeatedly, raining blows on Pallas' shield. The titan knew he was going to lose grip on his shield soon, so he tried to surprise the god by flinging his shield straight at Perseus' head, threatening to take it cleanly off. The eldest of Kronos dodged underneath the shield, pressing the advantage again.
Pallas cursed at his foolish mistake. He furiously backed up, parrying blows with his spear, although several strikes slipped through. After all, a spear was not the best weapon to counter a sword.
Pallas spun his spear viciously, using it as a staff on both ends to parry Perseus' quicker but lighter blows. As the titan went to block a strike Perseus made, he realized halfway it was a feint, and tried to bring back the spear's blunt end to block the sword. The god quickly stepped inside the titan's guard, bringing his sword quickly to Pallas' throat.
For the twentieth time in a row, Pallas had lost.
Pallas groaned, "Why is it that I, titan of warcraft, cannot defeat a puny god?"
"You tried to surprise me with that shield throw," Perseus chuckled in amusement, his dark eyes shining with mirth, "but you should've kept holding the shield."
"Well," Pallas cleared his throat, "I thought you were about to knock it out, and I tried to surprise you. I used it like that mortal in the movie Captain America."
Perseus looked confused at the reference. "Never mind that reference," Pallas chortled, "I remember you were in the Pit for longer than I was."
The god of time grumbled to himself and mumbled something.
"What was that? I couldn't hear," Pallas stated, holding a hand to his ear and turning his head towards Perseus. He was barely holding back a would-be satisfactory grin.
"I said, I can't believe you escaped from that stupid Pit faster than I did!" Perseus roared with anger and some amusement.
A full-blown grin appeared on the titan's face at Perseus' admission.
The titan of warcraft patted the god on the back, imitating a cyclops. He grunted, "Puny godling. You'll never hope to defeat me."
Perseus facepalmed at his antics, as Pallas chuckled at his own horrible joke.
Pallas suddenly had a realization, "Hey, if we're in the forests of the mountains-"
"The idiotic goddess won't find us. The bitch is busy in Maine trying to collect my brother's children. I've also shielded us," Perseus responded.
"Ahh."
"How could you forget about that?"
"Uhh..." Pallas scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. Perseus shook his head, "Regardless, I need you to obtain my symbol of power. It's my sword of time, mountains, and darkness."
Pallas grinned with barely disguised glee, "Happily. Where is it?"
Perseus proceeded to give specific instructions to the titan, "In a glass case in the hall next to the throne room. Here's its copy, it looks exactly like my sword. You will also need this special glue Hecate gave me. Sneak in, Hestia will be there. Utter the phrase, 'the sun has set, soon it will rise.' She'll know. Be careful, there are eyes all over Olympus. Take this knife and cut all the ropes attached to the sword. Then reattach the ropes using the glue. I'm sure the Olympians," Perseus spit on the ground in disgust, "were far too lazy to change the security system. I'm sure it is still primitive. Replace the sword with the fake and get out of there. Go to DOA Recording Studios in LA, California and get into the underworld. Go ahead and converse with Hades, he's on my side."
Pallas nodded, asking no questions, and glowed white, flashing away to do Perseus' bidding. Perseus, in turn, imploded in a flash of darkness.
Line Break
Pallas appeared stealthily in a.... thorn bush, of all places. The titan groaned to himself, silently picking out the thorns that had pricked his clothes.
Obviously, he wasn't the best choice for a stealth mission; after all, he was a hulking seven feet tall. The titan snapped his fingers, and some shades appeared on his face.
He summoned a mortal sweater and pulled on the hood. The hood was rather comfy, why didn't he wear it more? Pallas had no idea.
Pallas strolled into the Olympian halls in broad daylight. The shopkeepers and buyers of the numerous stores nearby didn't even blink an eye. He chuckled quietly to himself. They probably thought he was Apollo or something.
The Olympian halls were pretty impressive, Pallas had to admit. The titan broke into a casual jog, somehow running by Zeus, who was being reprimanded by Hera about something again. Zeus hunched away from the goddess of marriage and flashed away.
Pallas rolled his eyes and continued jogging.
There it was. His brother's sword was at the end of the hall. Pallas quickly reached to cut off the ropes tying the sword down, only to get his hand burnt.
The titan looked up from his burnt hand, finding the goddess Hestia looking at him with an expectant expression on her face.
Pallas rubbed the back of his neck in a sheepish smile. He rose from his crouching position. "Uh... the sun has risen, soon it will set. No, the sun has rosen, soon- what? I don't even know proper grammar," The titan mumbled to himself.
Hestia disregarded the titan. The goddess of the hearth nearly exploded in happiness; her suspicions were confirmed. Her brother was back.
The goddess of the hearth interrupted the titan of warcraft and asked eagerly, "Where is he? I mean Perseus."
"Uh..." Pallas cleared his throat awkwardly, "I don't know."
"Please," Hestia's lower lip trembled, "I need to see him. I need him to forgive me."
"He has already forgiven you," Pallas rumbled in a sincere tone.
Hestia shook her head sadly and flashed away in a bright flash of fire. The titan let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding and proceeded to silently cut away the ropes.
The titan quietly pulled off the glass case, wincing as it somehow creaked, and replaced the sword with the fake. He placed the glass case back on and reattached the ropes using the special glue.
The titan turned around, quickly jogging through the Olympian hall and exiting the place, throwing his hood back on and strolling once again through the streets of Olympus, remaining undetected right under the noses of the Olympians.