This will be the last update before I plunge right into my exams, I can guarantee that I will not have time to give this story much attention until February, but once theyre gone I WILL complete this story. and whover noted that Pan was a bad babysitter, he didnt abandon them, he took them with him! Beats being destroyed in the apocalypse ya think? ;)

Jay:

There was a harsh wind in the late morning air, it blew into my hair, as if it was trying to pull me away by it. Looking down from my courtyard, there was a mad rush to get armor, weapons, and supplements before the war horn was blown. There was a fast moving line into the forge and a line moving out armed with impressive black and gold armor of celestial bronze. Each soldier was given a spear, a sword, and depending on the type of beast, a special weapon like a bow or massive war hammer. Herry would have liked one of those. It was unusual, taking the place where I once stood before without two companions at my side. Regardless, my eyes looked upon my soldiers. There were beasts from every corner of the world.

From the north, many formations of dwarves, who have laid unknown to the mortal eyes, as their homes were deeper than any mortal mine had ever size lived up to the legends, and so did their ferocious attitude and strength with heavy weaponry.

From the plains and valleys below the mountain came centaurs, there were also colonies from the plateaus of China that had outrun the Darkness here. My experience with the beasts let me know well that they had excellent eyesight and even the most humble of them could bull's eye a target from 300 feet away. They had a long, and lasting friendship with the Gods of Olympus, which was why so many had come to the call to arms. They would defend this city to the last breath.

Satyrs had come too. They were not made for war like the dwarves or centaurs, but they were fast on their hooves and, like their horse cousins, were loyal to the Gods. There were men in the ranks too, but very few. They were but the ones who survived the onslaught and knew the truth of what lay upon the peak of Mount Olympus.

Pan had called upon any living thing to us. We had, as well as the "civilized" men and beasts, there were creatures of the wild. Lions, rhinos, leopards, tigers, you name it, if it had claws or teeth, it was here.

But the most stunning of the ranks were the griffins. Under the command of Hermes, they were organised, and deadly. And their intelligence was not to be underestimated either. Along with these many types of soldiers, there were countless other unknown beasts. Giants, cyclopses, minotaurs, you ame it we had one. Unfortunately I knew we were not the only ones recruiting. Many giants and harpies had joined the enemy, not to names the thousands that have been lost to history.

Our greatest defence, was the city. I remembered when it was a janitor's closet, then it seemed to morph into the city. The city seemed to be alive, and it adapted to the user's needs. Massive wass had grown on the perimeter made of marble and stone. It glistened white in the sunlight. The courtyard had grown in size to host a high number of troops and the buildings had raised in elevations, requiring stairs to reach them. The highest building of all, was the throne room. Where the old man still lay. The only way to it was up two sets of steps from the front. One from the left and one from the right. They almost met in the middle. The rest of the platform where the building stood was blocked by sheer drops. It was our last line of defence, if all else would fail, those steps would have to be held. The city had adjusted to our needs quite appropriately.

I walked back into my room. The time had finally come. I moved up to my bookshelf and pulled the book of basic potions for beginners. The bookshelf creaked and slid to the side. Behind it, was a gleaming hallway, and at the end, was a glass case. It was still there. The bronze armor looked as polished and new as the day I got it. The symbol of the pheonix had not lost it's fierce position upon my breast. The Shield was glistening with the reinforced bronze with the carvings of the victory in New Olympia. On the border lay the name of all seven of my teammates in ancient greek. Athena had given it to me as a gift when I joined the gods. That goddess always did have a soft spot for old friends. The helmet still had it's featherings of purple and yellow, but there was a chip in the shape of a slash from just above the left eye hole and ended on the left cheekpiece, Given to e by no less than Cronus himself. I remembered when Hephaestus offered to fix it for me, I declined. I like the scar on the helmet. It reminded me of the dangers ahead, and of the past.

I placed on the equipment. The boots, the tunic, the chestpiece, the gauntlets, I then moved to it; my old sword; Xiphos. It gave off a blue tint in it's case, it was still as sharp as the day it bore into immortal flesh. I gripped it tightly, then slowly drew it from the sheathe. I looked upon it like an old friend and turned quickly around. I slashed the air, 30 years after putting it away for what I thought would be eternity. I slashed again,and again. the blade moved through the air like music, as if the sword and I were one. Looking back to it etchings on the side, I smiled.

I still had it.

My thoughts were interupted by the noise that starts the adrenaline, one that makes the hairs on the back of the neck go on end, the noise I wish I would never hear.

It was a horn, low and booming. It could be heard for miles. It was the battle horn. They were here.

I sheathed by sword, put my helmet on, and ran outside to the Throne platform. The gods, the leaders of the races, and my friends were there. As I looked out to the horizon, the darkest clouds I had ever seen were dropping dark rain on the far field. From the rain, the armies formed from above and from below, as massive cracks in the earth brought the hordes of Hades. They were on the far side of the valley, preparing to march here. The soldiers of Olympus were lining the walls. Every man and woman knew their job, as did I. I looked back to my companions. Atlanta was bearing Aegis, the gift given to her by the gods 30 years ago. Her bow was tuned and ready. Archie had his whip and a one handed axe. His armor was black and gold with a large shoulder pad on his right. Odie was clad in leather armor as he was before, but there was no dynamite this time, he held an automatic crossbow and a lengthy dagger. Niel was well armored in bronze, holding a sword and shotgun in each hand. he was also wearing garlic, convinced that there were vampires among the enemy ranks. We all thoughtit was an old joke, however, he seemed rather serious about it though.

I looked to them.

"The time has come. Remember your jobs, and watch each other's backs. Archie, where are your kids?"

"Theyre in the caves below the Throne hall, like you told to put all the children."

"Good, if we get through this, they will be needed. protect them with your lives. All of you. Including me." I replied.

They all nodded. We all put our hands together, and parted. There was no time. The magical barriers had been made, the traps were set, the army was in position, and the enemy was approaching.

The battle of the world had begun.