Here we go again
A man stood alone on a busy sidewalk. He wore jeans and a white t-shirt. The cold rain beat against his skin and his short blonde hair was flat against his head but it didn't bother him. Being a god had its perks. He stared up at the tall building that stood before him. The Empire State Building stood tall among the skyscrapers that surrounded it. Lightning flashed and lit up the night sky.
"I'll never understand it, Jacob," A voice said next to him.
Jacob looked over and saw a man in a dark blue pinstripe suit standing next to him. The man looked middle-aged but his hair and beard were a stormy gray. He held a black briefcase.
"It's so small," The man said. "Everything they build is so small."
"Were you expecting something else?" Jacob asked, rolling his eyes. "It's not that important."
The man sighed. "Yeah but they could've built something better for the entrance to Olympus."
"You act like they know what's up there."
The man shrugged. "Maybe one day they'll know. I heard about your mission."
Jacob stayed silent. He had been hoping to deliver the news himself but things just can't seem to go his way.
"We'll talk about it in the meeting," The man in the suit said.
The man walked inside and Jacob followed behind him. The lobby was mostly empty and the air was cold. The man at the desk looked up when they entered.
"Good evening, Lord Zeus," He greeted.
"Evening, Jarod," The suited man said.
Jarod looked at Jacob, studying him. He frowned as he reached for something under the desk.
"I'm gonna have to ask you to leave," He told Jacob.
"He's with me," Zeus assured him. "I'll make sure he doesn't break anything."
Jarod nodded and pushed a button on his desk. A security gate opened at the far side of the room where an elevator was waiting for them. Jacob made his way to the elevator but Zeus stayed behind.
"Don't let him in unless I'm with him," Zeus told him.
He entered the elevator with Jacob and pulled a card out of his pocket. He inserted it into a slot on the button console and a new button appeared marked as "600". He pushed it and the elevator closed. The elevator was slow at first but quickly picked up speed as it rose higher and the Empire State Building only having 102 floors, the elevator ascended beyond that number. Hundreds of floors passed in minutes. At last, they stopped at the highest floor of the Empire State Building, floor 600.
"Come along, now," Zeus said. "I have somewhere to be."
The doors opened and Mount Olympus stood on the other side. The mountain floated above the city far below mountainside was covered in houses, temples, and marble streets. Larger than life palaces stood further up the mountain but the largest of all was at the top. An enormous white palace stood at the peak of the mountain, overlooking the landscape.
They walked across the bridge of solid clouds that connected the elevator to the mountain. Jacob looked back as he always did and saw a pair of free standing elevator doors with no structure around them. He watched as they closed and shot downward, towards the building they came from. They made it to the end of the sky bridge and passed under a large marble arch. They walked down the marble streets, passed the rows of houses. Most were made of marble but others were made of various materials; quartz, stone, granite, metal, wood, even a building of pure light stood among them. Jacob's skin smoked and turned red as they passed the house of light. They passed a few minor gods on their way up the mountain. While they looked human, Jacob knew they held some power. They eventually got to the top where they faced the giant marble doors that served as the entrance to the white palace. Zeus turned to Jacob.
"Don't go in until I tell you," Zeus told him. "I need to assemble the other gods."
The air around Zeus shimmered and he vanished. Jacob was left alone on the giant doorstep. He stared at the intricate carvings on the doors that he had seen countless times before. His anxiety grew as he stared at the massive building.
"It's just a meeting," He muttered to himself.
He'd been in this situation many times before and it didn't get any easier over the last few millennia. He stared up at the clear sky above the mountain. Millions of stars loomed above him. He could be at any of them but Earth was a favorite of his. Thunder shook him from his thoughts and he opened the doors. He walked in and faced the gods.
Saying the throne room was huge would be a severe understatement. The incredibly large room was occupied by twelve thrones that formed a U and a central hearth in the middle. Each god was around 20 feet tall. Zeus and Hera occupied the two thrones at the back and the rest of the gods spread out on either side of them. The male gods sat on the right side of the hearth. While the left side was mostly female, Dionysus was on the end of the row. A young girl in brown robes kneeled at the hearth and stoked the flames.
"Come on in," Zeus called. "Let's get this over with. I've got places to be."
"They should've made you the god of patience," Jacob said.
Lightning flashed in Zeus' beard. "Watch your tongue, boy, I'm sure the other gods don't want to hear it. We need to discuss your recent failure."
"I wouldn't call it a failure-"
"Enough excuses!" Zeus shouted. "Your father almost destroyed a dimension. You're lucky those ninja managed to stop him."
Jacob rolled his eyes. "Who says it was even my father? That guy called himself the Crystal King."
Lightning flickered in Zeus' eyes. "It was him and you know it. I'm not going to entertain your excuses any longer. Out of all the heroes, you are the worst. A punishment must be issued. Any objections?"
He looked around but no god raised their hand. The room was silent except for the flames."
"Attmoz might," Jacob said.
"Attmoz isn't here," Zeus said. "The Source left me in charge, not those puny Celestials. If Attmoz wanted to say something, then he can come here and say it."
A cold wind blew through the room. The fire braziers on the wall went out and the hearth nearly went out completely. The smell of ozone filled the air and lightning flashed outside. The gods looked around nervously. Thunder shook the room as the large doors blew off their hinges and fell to the ground. Standing on the other side was a being unlike any other.
It was over 14 feet tall and covered in purple skin. Its arms were long and slender with white fur on the forearms. It had three purple fingers on each hand. It had short legs that were covered in purple fur. Two tan toenails stuck out from its feet. A long, purple, furry tail came from the back and the fur at the end was tied up with a green crystal band. Its head had massive tan horns and a long, white bushy beard that flowed from its head. Its single eye stared in anger at the king of the gods.
"As you said," The being spoke. "Watch your tongue, boy. You never know who may be listening."
Zeus' hand shook as he grabbed a thunderbolt. "You're not welcome here, Attmoz. You weren't invited. Leave."
Attmoz stood, unfazed. "I go where I please. Being the Celestial of Wind has its perks. Besides, I came with a message."
"Say it and leave," Zeus told him.
"The Time Master wishes to speak with the prince."
Zeus glared at him. His plan of punishing Jacob failed once more. He'd deny the request but one would have to be crazy to defy the Celestials.
"Take him and go," Zeus said. "I don't want him anyway."
"But I thought you wanted to hear me talk," Attmoz said. "Isn't that what you said? I'll send him off but me and you are going to have a nice, long talk."
One by one, the other gods disappeared in flashes of light until only Jacob and Zeus were left. Zeus stared at the Celestial while Jacob stood to one side. The room was silent, including the flames. Not even they dared to interrupt Attmoz.
"Can I leave now?" Jacob asked. "I don't really need to be here for this."
"You may leave," Attmoz said as he waved his hand.
The wind picked up and Jacob shot out the doors. The winds carried him off into the sky. Attmoz returned his attention to Zeus.
"Shall we begin?" He asked.
As they began their discussion, another being watched from the shadows. Two purple eyes watched from the shadow of Zeus' throne.
I've decided to restart the story and give it another go. Hopefully, it'll be better this time around. This chapter is certainly better than the original.