The Oracle popped open the takeout container and picked up his chopsticks, preparing to dig into his noodles. He had just poked them in when he heard someone approaching.
"You're earlier than I expected." He didn't look up, opting to take advantage of the fact that his food was still hot.
"And you're as observant as always, old friend. Tell me, what's got you working on a street corner?" The tall, well-dressed man probably would have drawn more attention had the people around him known that he wasn't human, but as it was, not a single person paid him any mind.
"I'd rather some of my more," The Oracle tilted his head just slightly enough for the man to see the swirling vortexes hidden behind his glasses, "important customers be able to find me if they need me. I've had a few too many landlords upset about damaged doors over the years. Besides, people pay for accuracy." He swung the hand that held the chopsticks over his stand, gesturing at the newspapers and magazines. A small swivel rack on the opposite end of the table held his latest business venture; books. "So, what can I do for you? Or did you break out just to make me miss lunch?" He took a bite of his noodles, not concerned at all about possibly offending the man.
"Come now, Oracle. You know I couldn't possibly care less about your food. No, what I want is to know if there are any out there who could stand in my way. Anyone who could pose a threat to my plans for vengeance." He clenched his fist and slammed it down onto a stack of magazines.
The Oracle sighed and slowly lowered what was about to be his second bite back into the takeout container. "You damage my products, you pay for them." He popped the container closed and set it aside, turning to face the man. He removed his thick round glasses and looked up, meeting the other's eyes. "I see your plans. I see the time and effort you have put into them." The man's grin widened in excitement. After four thousand years… after everything he had been through and endured and survived, finally finally he would have his reven-, "I also see that the Gods have some new toys they've been saving for you."
"What? What new toys?" Just like that, a crack appeared in his plan. He had expected resistance from the Gods. A fight even. But what kind of new obstacle stood in his way now?
"Seven children. The Gods have been watching over them ever since they were born. They assumed that the alignment of the planets in ten years would be when you'd make your escape." He held out his hands, old bony fingers curled in slightly, palms facing each other. There was a green flash, and the man could see the images of seven young children going about their lives.
"Ch-children? Are you serious? This one here is still small enough that his father is carrying him." He gestured incredulously at one of the images.
"Don't let that fool you. The Gods were planning on having more time to train them. And this one here," He twitched his fingers slightly and the image of the boy that had been pointed out zoomed in. "is the direct descendant of Jason." The pair grew silent for a long moment. "What will you do, Chronos?"
He wasn't surprised in the least when the god moved his hand and summoned a small scythe from nothing. "If the Gods have been preparing some new toys for me, well, it would be rude of me to not play with them, would it not?"
/10 years later/
Jay held still, listening. The forest was hard to navigate at night, even with his night-vision goggles pulled tightly over his eyes. He held one hand out next to him, resting it on a tree trunk. He didn't hear any more footsteps, and that worried him. Archie knew what he was doing and knew the trees like Jay knew the stars. His other hand clenched his sword hilt tighter. It hadn't been activated yet, but he was ready for anything. He crept forward to the next tree and paused again. Still no sign of Archie. He scanned the surrounding area again, everything appearing bright green through his lenses. Nothing moved at all. He was about to make his way over to some nearby boulders when he heard leaves rustling above him.
Jay had just enough time to jump out of the way as a metal leg brace swung towards him. Letting go of the tree branch, Archie hit the ground and lunged at Jay. His bullwhip snaked out and wrapped around Jay's leg, but the leader was already rushing forward. He managed to catch Archie off guard enough to land a solid tackle on him. That bought him just enough time to kick the whip off his leg.
"Where's the rest of your team? You really thought you could take me on by yourself?"
"Oh, you're one to talk." Archie flicked his wrist and brought the rest of his whip back to him. The boys, each brandishing their own weapons, started circling each other. "You're so confident you can beat me that you ditched Herry?"
"Careful with that ego, Arch. We might have to start calling you 'Neil'." Jay grinned inwardly at the scowl his taunting got him.
"Hey-," As soon as Archie lowered his guard (and whip) slightly to respond, Jay threw his sword, spinning it at his opponent. It hit the loose sleeve of Archie's hoodie, yanking his arm back. He yelped and stumbled backwards, already off balance when he took the full force of Jay's tackle. The warrior was face down in the dirt, hands wrenched behind his back before he knew what was happening.
"Archie's down." He heard Jay click his PMR shut right before he felt his bullwhip be yanked out of his hand and wrapped around his wrists.
"You forgot something important, flawless leader." He grinned, still face down, when he felt the whip stop. "You may have Odie, but I grew up with him just as much as you did." He reached into his back pocket and withdrew a small object, which he grabbed with his other hand and snapped before Jay could stop him. Instantly, the surrounding area was lit with harshly glowing green light.
Jay yelled in pain, falling back and ripping off his night vision goggles. Archie rolled over and kicked out with both feet, knocking his blinded leader to the ground. He shook the whip from his wrists, already up and running. He pulled out his own PMR and flipped it open, knowing that Jay would be right on his heels. "Archie is not down." He laughed in victory, sliding the device back into his pocket and taking a running leap onto a high branch of a nearby tree. He jumped from there to the branches of another tree and ducked into the shadow of the trunk, hiding from sight as Jay ran by.
Yyyyy
Atlanta grabbed Neil's sleeve to get his attention and nodded her head to the left. She had seen something move. The pair knelt, hiding in their surroundings, and waited. Sure enough, a minute later, a figure wearing a familiar red hoodie emerged from behind a tree. Odie glanced around quickly, making sure he was alone, before hurrying on.
"Must be trying to make a run for it." Neil muttered to his partner, already taking off in pursuit. Atlanta, surprisingly, matched his pace wordlessly. He raised an eyebrow at her.
"I don't see Herry or Manny anywhere. I say we follow him to see where he's going."
"Good idea."
A few minutes later, making sure to pause and duck whenever Odie stopped to check for pursuers, they reached a clearing. Neil and Atlanta ducked behind a large fallen log to watch and decide what to do. Odie walked out to a boulder in the middle of the clearing and sat with his back against it. He opened his backpack, pulled out his laptop, and opened it up.
"How much do you want to bet he's placed cameras around the woods?" Neil gleaned around suspiciously.
"Yeah. Which means we need to make a move now." Atlanta jumped up and over the log, Neil following her lead. "Freeze, Odie!" She demanded, lowering her spear at him.
"Now!" Neil backed her up, scanning the tree line for any signs of a sneak attack. He had found a sturdy enough tree branch and was brandishing it like a baseball bat.
"Oh, no!" Odie jumped up, shutting his laptop and sliding it back into his bag. "You've caught me! Drat. If only I hadn't been wandering around out here all alone." The sarcastic tone he was using made his captors glance at each other in fear. They had walked right into a trap. "Hey, Manny." Odie secured his bag to his back and smiled wickedly at them. "Would you like to give me a hand?"
"Atlanta, run!" Neil grabbed her arm and practically threw her, reacting just a bit faster than her.
A massive dark shape rose up and leapt over both the boulder and Odie with ease. It landed snarling and let out a panic inducing roar. It's giant bat wings spread wide, hiding its small human friend from view. Odie ran forward and, with smooth practiced movements, grabbed hold of the mane and swung himself onto the manticore's wide back, just ahead of the wings. Atlanta and Neil had just left the clearing as he tapped his heels against Manny's sides.
"Let's go."
"Atlanta, go!" Neil saw that Odie was catching up to them, but Atlanta was still matching his pace, not wanting to leave him behind. "Use your speed!" He grabbed a long branch and pulled it until it was about to snap, then let it whip back into Manny's face.
"You realize that just made him angrier, right?" Atlanta grabbed his wrist and sped up, making him have to sprint to keep up with her.
They had barely made it a few yards before the ground was yanked out from under them. Or maybe they had been yanked off the ground. That made more sense. Neil gasped and spun, trying to get his bearings and see if Atlanta was still with him.
"You seriously led us from one trap into another?" She sounded both impressed and annoyed.
"Yeah. I'm actually pretty proud that it went off without a hitch." Odie, still astride his manticore, sat beneath where they were both dangling upside down from snare traps. "Are you two alright up there?"
"Oh, you know what? I was just starting to feel a bit peckish. You wouldn't happen to have some cheese and crackers, would you?" Neil snarked.
Atlanta was already trying to saw through the rope with the tip of her spear.
"What do you think, Manny? Ready to get going?" He ruffled the fur between Manny's ears. The beast responded with a short, deep growl of approval. "I agree, buddy." Grinning up at his captured foes, he pulled out his PMR and flipped it open. "I took out Neil and Atlanta. Making my way to Chronos now."
Yyyyy
Theresa floated about two feet off the ground, legs crossed and eyes closed. She didn't need them open, what with her mind's eye sweeping the area. She knew she wasn't alone, but she couldn't quite get a read on who was near or where they were. She furrowed her eyebrow in frustration and tried to push herself to see farther into the trees. The problem there was that her visions were never very clear in the first place and pushing to see farther only made her able to see vague, watery shadows of things that may or may not actually be out there.
She heard a sound nearby and gasped, pulling herself out of her vision and dropping to the ground. Just in time, too, as Herry grabbed the air right where she had just been.
"I almost didn't sense you in time. You're getting good at that." Theresa praised, rolling out of the way and leaping to her feet in a fighting stance. She had landed flat on her back and wanted to divert his attention away from that fact.
"Thanks. I've been practicing with Manny. Do you have any idea how sensitive his hearing is?"
"Yes, I do. I tried to sneak past him once while he was dead asleep." She chuckled humorlessly at the memory. "Never wake a sleeping manticore." She jumped towards him, just barely missing him as he dodged her kick.
"Yikes. Been there, done that, glad I'm the one with the strength." He caught her hand as she threw a punch and used it to pull her off balance. She stumbled forward and fell to the ground. Rolling over and jumping to her feet as quickly as she could, she was almost surprised to see that Herry hadn't moved a muscle after grabbing her.
"Herry?" She wanted to be sure he wasn't tricking her before she got any closer. "Did-did I do it? Did it work?" She walked up to him and waved her hand in his face. He didn't react. She stepped back, out of reach. "Herry, um, do a backflip." Herry squated, then swung his arms up for momentum and executed a perfect backflip.
Theresa grinned widely. She was getting better at mind control. "Herry, follow me. Odie's already on his way to Chronos, so we don't have much time." She turned and started running, Herry right beside her.
Yyyyy
Chronos sipped his coffee and leaned his arms against the railing of his front porch, observing the dark forest. He had purchased a cabin pretty far in the woods years ago, and it had been a perfect place to raise and train his army. Agnon grunted behind him, not coming out of the house, but still letting Chronos know he was there.
"Beautiful night, isn't it?" He took another sip from his mug and scanned the tree line. "Are you placing your bets on anyone in particular?"
Agnon thought for a moment, then grunted again. He could understand English perfectly, but his vocal cords were more suited to the language of the giants and Chronos understood him.
"Archie? You really think so? Hmm." He was about to take another sip of his coffee when he spotted movement; a figure had emerged from the tree line. "We're about to find out if you're right." He set his mug down on the railing and cracked his neck, all business. "Stay inside. Don't interfere."
Agnon grunted and shut the door, peeking through the small window at the top. Sure enough, as the figure got closer, he could see the boy's signature blue hoodie; Archie was making his move.
As soon as Archie left the cover of the trees, he knew he had to move fast. He sprinted for the god, swinging his whip as soon as he was close enough. He didn't like the way that Chronos kept smiling, but he had to keep his attention so his teammates could launch their attacks.
Chronos stepped off the porch and had just raised his hand to deflect the whip when a spear flew past his head, through his sleeve, and embedded itself in the porch behind him. As he hadn't managed to deflect the whip, it wrapped itself around his other arm. Archie skidded to a stop and pulled the whip as tight as he could.
"Neil, now!" Atlanta called. She was still a ways back by the tree line, but with her speed she was at Archie's side in seconds. She grabbed hold of the whip and helped her teammate hold the god still.
Chronos smirked as he watched Neil, Atlanta's bolos swinging in his hand, sprint towards him. He had just let them go when a massive crashing sound could be heard from the woods. The blond changed directions to get out of the way so fast that he almost lost his balance, but he was just quick enough to avoid getting crushed by a very angry manticore.
"I've got Herry, Odie, and Manny taken care of!" Theresa shouted to her teammates, making sure to keep a safe distance away from the fight.
Manny spun in circles, thrashing and snarling, trying to dislodge Herry's grip on his tail, while Odie held onto his back for dear life.
"Herry! I swear, if you don't let go right now," Odie let the threat hang in the air, opting instead to focus on not losing his grip.
"Well, this has been fun." Chronos effortlessly pulled his arm away from the porch, removing the spear like it had been as secure as a toothpick. Before he could fully turn his attention on the two teens still holding his other arm, though, he felt a sharp point dig into his back. He moved to turn around, but the bolos had wrapped themselves around his ankles tightly. Seeing him stumble, Archie and Atlanta yanked on the whip as hard as they could, sending him to his knees.
Before he could do anything, he felt a weight on his back and a blade at his neck. "Surrender, Chronos." Jay demanded.
Chronos couldn't help himself. He laughed. "Alright, alright. You win. Let me up." Jay grinned and got off, while Archie and Atlanta walked over, letting the rope go slack. "Theresa," he called, "let Herry go. Training's over."
She nodded and released her mental hold on Herry, who immediately let go of Manny's scorpion tail and dropped to the ground. "Whoa, I don't like it when you do that." He stumbled back and put a hand to his head.
"Sorry, Herry. But after seeing you bench press fridges at the junkyard, I didn't really want to get into a brawl with you." Theresa grinned sheepishly, already helping Odie calm down Manny.
The four of them followed Neil in joining the others. Chronos brushed his suit off and retrieved his mug from the railing. "You all performed well. As Jay won, his team gets partial credit." He took a sip as Jay blinked in confusion.
"Partial credit? But the assignment was to defeat you. You surrendered."
"Yes," Chronos set his coffee aside and approached the young hero. "Partial credit. You had a goal. You reached it. That's the only reason you're getting any credit at all." He didn't look away as he walked closer, holding the other's gaze. "You went into this mission with a team. You saw that your teammates were in trouble, and yet you still chose to attack me rather than help them. Blindly rushing after your goals with no regard to those you're supposed to be working with will only lead to defeat." Jay frowned and looked down. "You're still young. You'll be a great leader someday. Just as soon as you learn to lead."
Agnon grunted from the doorway, getting everyone's attention.
"Alright, everyone. You heard him. Time for dinner." He stood aside and ushered his kids inside. Jay brought up the rear, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. "Hang back a minute. You've been acting a bit distracted lately. Is there anything I should know?"
Jay hesitated, looking over to be sure the others were out of earshot. "No. There's nothing going on. I'll be better next time."
"That's not what I said. You're in training. I expect you to make mistakes. I expect you to screw up and make the wrong calls and fail. But you've been acting like you're hiding something lately. I'm not telling you to be a perfect leader. I'm asking if you're alright." Chronos picked his mug back off the railing and took a swig, waiting for Jay to respond.
Jay bit his lip and looked down, scuffing his shoe against the side of the porch step, pretending to be really invested in cleaning the dirt off of it. "I," he paused and looked up, quickly looking away again when he saw that the god was gazing intently at him, waiting for him to continue. "I guess I have been in my own head lately. I was just so focused on getting to you that I didn't even consider Odie and Herry. It won't happen again."
Chronos waved his hand dismissively. "As I said, that's what training is for. What, exactly, is going on?"
"I guess," Jay rubbed the back of his head, turning slightly further away. "I met someone."
