Chapter 6
Asterios
O-O-O-O-O
A rugged man stood atop a wall surrounding a vast city between two great rivers. In the distance, a massive dust storm kicked into the sky, combining with the darkening storm clouds above, as if the Earth and Sky were being reunited once more.
A gust of wind blew by the human man as another figure touched down beside him, seemingly having transformed from a flying shape.
"No good. G**al*n**'s not falling for any of the traps we've set, and I require a more powerful form to face him in." The figure beside the man was shaped like a human, but it very clearly was not. Their form was constantly shifting, taking on the form of a thousand beasts at once, all compressed into the basic form of a man. One moment they had the horns of an ox, then a tail like a scorpion's, the wings of a bird, the scales of a dragon, the eyes of a spider, and a body made out of wind.
The man grunted in response. "So, you're saying that there's no other way to beat him other than straightforward confrontation?" The man asked the figure.
"Well yes," the figure affirmed. "But Gilgamesh, you have to understand. *ug***nn* isn't anything like my brothers were. He's far beyond even Humbaba and Pazuzu. His mere breath erases mountain ranges. His hooves create canyons with each step he takes. And now, with Ishtar's orders, he will not hold anything back."
The rugged man simply laughed at his friend's warnings. "You worry too much!" He clapped his friend on the back and drew a mighty golden axe. "When we're together, we can conquer any foe, no matter how powerful they may be." Then, the mirth in his eyes was replaced by a steely determination. Beside him, his friend relaxed, taking comfort in the fact that Gilgamesh was going to take this seriously.
"Come, Enkidu!" The King of Uruk roared. "It's time to bring down the Bull of Heaven!"
The skies screamed as Vajra ripped through the air, the Heavens illuminated by the King of Gods' authority of thunder and lightning. As the flying mace struck its target, the earth buckled and shattered, entire mountains blasted to rubble and flung into the air, the sheer force exerted from the mighty blow of Indra's weapon liquifying the ground into molten lava.
Vritra screamed in rage and pain, the trump card of the thunder God still not enough to kill her, but she knew she was very much defeated. Mustering the last dregs of her strength, she blew forth a mighty torrent of dragon's breath, using the cover to scamper away to the safety of her mother. Indra made no attempt to follow, knowing that the dragon would not dare to ever show her face again while he lived.
The King of Gods surveyed the lands around him with pity. A molten wasteland, devastated by his conflict with Vritra. It would remain a permanent scar on the world, and the mortals that lived upon it would be forced to live amongst such a barren, unforgiving land. That is, they would, unless…
Just on queue, the thunderclouds summoned by Indra during his battle thickened, and rain began to pour. The fires below him were extinguished, and the broken earth began to mix into sludge, molding back together. Soon, greenery began to bloom from the mended earth, trees, flowers, and vast plains of grass. The rain was healing the broken world.
"Lord Indra, I thank you for my rescue. I am forever within your debt."
Indra turned around to face the God who had appeared behind him. The God barely looked to be a man, still in the body of a boy approaching adulthood. He was slender and elegant, contrasted to the muscular, sculpted Indra. From the boy's head, two large horns grew.
All in all, such was not the form one would expect from the God renowned as the Bull of Heaven, bringer of rain and fertility, and the father of all living beings.
"You need not indebt yourself to me, Par**n*a. The rain you bring is a boon to all who live beneath the Heavens, and I could not stand for your abduction at the hands of that vile serpent."
The young(?) God chuckled and began to ascend to the rain clouds. "Ever the hero, aren't you Indra? My dearest wife is not so happy about the damage you wreaked upon her during your spat with Vritra, so I shall set to repairing her."
The Bull who brings storms ascended to the sky, bringing forth the rains that cleansed the earth.
"...and he took the body of a great white bull, carrying me across land and sea until I arrived here. When we did, he revealed his true identity as the King of Gods, Zeus, and declared that I was to be the Queen of Crete, his homeland."
"Woah…" the small boy looked up to his mother with large, shining eyes, completely enraptured in the tale she told him. "Then what happened?"
The mother smiled as she stroked her child's hair. "Then? Then we had you and your brothers. When my time in the mortal world was to come to an end, you all would be there to take my place as the ruler of all Crete." the mother gazed upwards at the vast night sky wistfully, remembering the days of her youth. "We parted ways after that. I became queen and he returned to Olympus. I married your father, and he returned to his wife."
"That's sad…" the boy murmured as he sunk deeper into his mother's embrace. It was getting late, and the young boy was tired. "Why couldn't you stay together? Didn't you love each other?"
"The love between a mortal and a God is never supposed to last." the mother sighed. "Even when two find true love in each other, our people are just too different. One may live forever, but the other must eventually die."
The boy hugged his mother gently. He could sense the sorry in her voice, and he wanted to do anything he could to ease her pain, even if just by a little.
She smiled at her son's efforts. "Come now, it's not all tragedy," she reassured. "Look up," she gestured towards the stars that decorated the night sky, illuminating Nyx's cloak. "When I die, I'll return to him. Zeus had put the form of the great bull that carried me here up in the stars, immortalizing him." She wrapped her arms around her son. "I'll always be watching over you, Minos. Once more mounted on the Bull of Heaven."
"Asterios…" the woman murmured, holding her baby close. "After my husband's father and the great Titan of the star signs. My son…"
"Asterios?"
"Of course, Asterios!"
"You'll always be our little kid brother, Asterios!"
"Asterios… the ruler of the stars."
"Just trust your big sister, okay Asterios?"
"That's more like it! Show me what you've got, ASTERIOS!"
"Asterios!"
"Asterios!"
"Asterios…"
Asterios…
Asterios…
Asterios.
Was that what his name was?
Was he... Asterios?
"Time to wake up, Minotauros."
"GAAH!"
Asterios bolted awake, nearly goring the man leaning over him with his horns. Fortunately, the man was able to jump back in time, avoiding a particularly messy end.
"Well, it's about time you woke up. You must have taken quite the beating to have been out cold for so long." The man remarked, not seeming all too fazed about nearly being impaled. Asterios looked wildly around the room, his vision now much clearer than before with the massive gash in his mask. "Well, it's about time we head out. Come with me."
The man turned and walked away. Asterios hesitated for a moment before standing up and following him, scooping up Labrys on the way. Although he had not gotten a good look at it before, Asterios knew he was not in the same room he had collapsed in, owing to the lack of staircase that led outside to Seattle city. Whoever this man was, he had brought him somewhere else in the Labyrinth.
"Who... you be?" Asterios questioned.
The man looked over his shoulder with an eyebrow raised. "Who I be-? That's not important right now. You'll find out soon enough anyway."
The two continued down the tunnels, weaving through countless passageways. "You know," the man mentioned. "The boy did mention that he had met you. He sold his entire pitch about recruiting you into the army." The man's impassive face twisted into a sneer. "But of course, he failed. He even gave away such a valuable bargaining chip just to let you go free." He glanced at Asterios' axes.
Following the man's gaze, Asterios held his weapons up. "La...brys?" he realized who the man was referring to. "Half-blood?" he questioned.
"Yes, yes, the Demigod boy." the man affirmed. "But where he failed, I have succeeded in recruiting the mighty Minotaur into the Titan army's ranks!" he preened, clearly proud of himself. Asterios was just puzzled. He hadn't agreed to join anything. He was just following this man because he had nothing else to do.
At last, the two arrived before two large stone doors, held open by thick chains. Beyond the doors was a vast room, comparably to the places of worship in the modern-day, those "cathedrals". The room's occupants looked up to the newcomers, all of them seeming to recognize the man, and seemed wary of Asterios.
The occupants were all monsters, most of them outfitted with elaborate armor and armed to the teeth. Laistrygonian giants, Dracanae, Empousai, and Centaurs all made up the warriors waiting in the room. The way they carried themselves, the way they clutched their weapons, the hawk-like glares they shot each other, everything about the monsters in this room screamed "veteran warrior".
As Asterios looked around at the monsters, he hadn't noticed the man leave him behind and climb up upon some old crates at the center of the room.
"If I may have your attention please?" the man called out. All the monster's eyes were drawn to him, and any murmurings they had quieted down. "Thank you. The final applicant for the test has arrived, so we may now begin."
Asterios was alarmed. Was the man referring to him? What test? What was he talking about?
"Of course, none of you were given details on what the test is, so allow me to elaborate." The man hopped off the boxes he stood on, having already gained the room's attention. "My name is Dr. Thorn. Rest assured, I am a monster like all of you, though seasoned warriors such as yourselves would have been able to tell such by my scent." the man-Thorn, began to stride forward leisurely, and the crowd of monsters parted for him. "I have been tasked with recruiting exceptional fighters to serve as elite troops within the army of Kronos, the Titan king." Thorn continued to walk, bit by bit making his way to the doors, not that anyone paid attention. "For that, I have gathered you all here. Powerful monsters, hardened by experience and tempered by time and bloodshed. All of you have what it takes to serve as a high-ranking member of this army on your own." Thorn now stood at the massive open doors, turning to face the crowd behind him. "However, I have decided to initiate a test of sorts, in order to filter out any possible, ah, underqualified individuals. In my first life, I had traveled far and wide, visiting land far beyond our common home of Greece. I have learned many fascinating practices and cultures from abroad, and I do believe that one of them will serve me very well in this situation." Thorn spread his arms wide as if invoking a blessing from a deity. "What I will be using to test you today will not only cull the weak, but serve to make those who succeed stronger and wiser. This is a practice that was known in the southern regions of ancient China as Gu, or the gold silkworm ritual."
Within the crowd, an older Centaur, who himself had traveled across the world, felt his heart sink. Drawing his bow, he knocked an arrow and burst from the crowd, roaring.
"DON'T LET HIM GET PAST THOSE DOORS!"
Before any of the warriors could act, Thorn leaped backward, the Centaur's arrow missing him by a hair. A spined tail sprouted from beneath his suit, and the loud clattering of chains being severed could be heard. The massive stone doors, enchanted by the same magic as the rest of the Labyrinth, swung shut with a resounding boom, sealing the monsters within.
As the echo of the doors slamming shut faded, there was only silence among the monsters. Though only the old Centaur knew what the Gu ritual was, everyone could understand what was meant to happen in this sealed room.
Chaos erupted.
Cing Krimson's Qringe Korner: Jesus, how long was I asleep? TWO WEEKS?!
Anyway, sorry. I guess I underestimated how long it would take for Asterios to get completely back to canon. Give it another chapter or two, I suppose. If I don't accidentally procrastinate on them...
A nice reviewer added some nice words of encouragement that helped me get off my ass and continue this story. Unfortunately, when they posted that review, I was debilitatingly sick and couldn't stare at a screen for more than 15 minutes without puking. Then, when I got better, I was like "Hey, why don't you hold off on writing for a bit so you can post on the fourteenth and get that sweet, sweet five-second gratification of having posted exactly two weeks after the last."
Unfortunately, my dumbass thought that the last chapter was posted on the 31st, not the 30th. So now I've just posted chapter six fifteen days after chapter five, which is not exactly two weeks. So, yeah. That didn't pan out as I had hoped.
Sorry for the sporadic updates and all, and I hope you'll keep reading and enjoying The Bull of Heaven.