Superman, Son of Hippolyta - A T-Rexcellent Reviews Fanfiction
I of course own no DC Comics properties or characters and make no money off of this, I am merely a giant DC Fan who wants to share my stories with all of you.
Chapter 24: Coming to the Crossroads
On the Island of Rhodes, inside the Museum of Ancient Greek History…
Apollo knew he should not have frozen like he did in that moment, no differently than a Actaeon Stag caught in the sights of a pack of hungry Orthrus Hounds, the Sun God knew he shouldn't have been so affected by hearing the name of a women he once loved so dearly be whispered into his ear by this seductive stranger, and yet, it did affect him and it did make him freeze up where he stood.
At least, until Alectryon decided to peck in him in the side of his handsome face, anyway.
"Ow!" Apollo said as he rubbed his sore ear and shot the Rooster on his right shoulder a dirty look before turning back to look at… Daphne.
Daphne…
Now Apollo was beginning to understand why he found this woman so dam enthralling, aside from a few obvious physical differences, this human woman did indeed greatly resemble the young forest deity he had desired above all others back in his Nymph chasing days to an almost unsettling degree.
"Is something wrong Apollo." Daphne asked in somewhat concerned tone of voice that still somehow managed to sound like flirtatious music to his ears, especially his sore one. "You look like you've seen a ghost?"
"Yes-No, I mean, I'm fine miss… Daphne." Apollo said after an embarrassingly long moment of fumbling for the right word to say, which was so very unlike him, that it made him want to hit himself. "It's just… that you remind me of someone… I used to know, that's all, my lady."
"I bet I do, though I would certainly remember meeting someone as good looking as you before, Mr Sun God." The raven-haired beauty said in a sultry tone and with a truly disarming smile as well, as Apollo instantly found his uneasiness with her disappear as quickly as it had appeared. While this 'Daphne' might not be the same women he once loved back in his youth, she was certainly just as enchanting as the Forest Nymph he had fallen so hard for, maybe even a little more so in fact.
"As would I, my lady." Apollo said as he regained his confident demeanour and stepped closer to this strange, but seductive woman, who he was now fully intent on bedding this evening, uncanny resemblances to his past be dammed.
The Fates and his visions of the future could wait until tomorrow as far as Apollo was concerned at that point. Who knows, perhaps sleeping with this modern day Daphne would finally allow him to let go of some of his grief over the old one… and hopefully, some of his guilt as well…
SSSQQQWWWAAARRRKKK!
Only for the Sun God to forget about the Rooster on his shoulder, as Alectryon suddenly decided to squawk as loudly as he possibly could, thus drawing quite a lot of attention to the two of them before flapping off the disguised deity's shoulder and chicken running it right out of the gallery as fast as his two drumsticks could carry him.
A very long, very awkward moment passed as people just stared in the direction the runaway Rooster had gone clucking off in, before looking at Apollo expectantly, who ironically, found himself not enjoying being the center of attention for once in his life.
Eager to get out this embarrassing spot his feathered friend had just put him in, Apollo loudly cleared his throat and spoke as charmingly as he could to the staring crowd. "My sincerest apologises ladies and gentleman, my pet Rooster has always had trouble keeping his big beak shut, I'll go see what has gotten his feathers ruffled… and maybe pluck a few of them out while I'm at it."
"I'll go with you." Daphne said, putting down her glass on a nearby table and moving to follow him, but Apollo quickly stopped her, Alectryon only ever did something like this in public when he wanted to talk to him… specifically in private.
"No, my lady, please, I must insist you stay here, for your own safety." Apollo said. "My feathered friend can become quite spur happy when he gets like this, we shall catch up later though, I'm sure." With that said, Apollo then as quickly and discreetly as possible, went off after Alectryon, while Daphne just watched him go with narrowed eyes…
"I'm sure we will… Mr Sun God..."
A little while later… inside a random broom closet…
"Well, it's about time you got here, pretty boy." Alectryon snapped as Apollo joined him inside the broom closet as discreetly as possible, his taloned feet tapping impatiently against the floor. "You'd think the twin brother of the Goddess of the Hunt would be able to track down a single, squawking bird a lot faster, what took you so long?"
"Well, I'm so sorry for making you wait, Alectryon." Apollo sarcastically spat as he glared down at his feathered friend who immediately flapped his way back up onto the Olympians shoulder. "I was little busy you see, asking every random gala-goer if they had by chance saw a crazed chicken come screaming by, they pointed me in every possible direction, including up and down flights of stairs for Rhea's sake."
"Yeah, well I had to make sure we weren't being followed Apollo, now, didn't I?" Alectryon snapped back defensively whilst Apollo just sighed and rubbed his forehead and gave a growl of irritation.
"Okay, Alectryon, you have exactly ten seconds to explain why you did what you just did back there or I'm going to give you to my uncle Hades to be Cerberus and his brothers new chew toy." Apollo said, looking at his friend with a very angry glare on his handsome face. "And it better be good, I was this close to what looked like a wonderful evening with a gorgeous goddess of a women and getting some much-needed closure as well, I mean seriously, did you see the look she was giving me, Alectryon?"
"You know what Apollo; I actually did, believe it or not." Alectryon said in a rather sarcastic tone of his own, right before descending into a more serious one. "I'm very familiar with that look, it was the same look a Fox gives a Rooster… right before it kills it."
There was something about the bird's exact choice of words that made Apollo forget his anger for a moment and choose listen to what his friend had to say. "What do you mean?"
"I mean Apollo, that women is NOT women." Alectryon said pointedly to his Olympian friend. "That women is a Fox."
At this rather dramatic statement though, the disguised Sun God just gave his Phoenix familiar a particularly pleased smirk. "Hm, yeah, tell me about it."
From his divine perch atop the Greek God's shoulder, Alectryon shot his friend a truly Dread Queen Persephone worthy glare. "Okay, I can clearly see which one of your twococks you are listening to right now and for the record pretty boy, it is not the one who can talk. Listen to me Apollo, that women is a Fox and this scenario, YOU are the Rooster, not me for once."
"Alectryon, could you PLEASE skip the barnyard analogy and just tell me what you mean in plain Greek already." Apollo said impatiently, starting to get annoyed with his bird friend again. "Are you trying to tell me that you think she's married or going to try and steal from me or something, because if so Alectryon, you should know by now that I don't really care."
"Apollo." The Rooster began in his usual dry, snarky tone, but Apollo quickly cut him off before he could get started again.
"This was just going to be a one-night tryst for me Alectryon, okay, I wasn't planning on sticking around the next day for her to steal from me as I sleep or face her angry husband when I wake up, and even if that did happen, it would be well worth it, I mean, come on pal, that women was perfect." Apollo finished his tirade with great emphasis on the final word of his tangent.
"Yeah, she's perfect, a little too perfect." Alectryon said suspiciously with narrowed eyes. "In fact, this whole evening encounter feels just a little too perfect if you ask me."
At this, the Sun God raised a well-trimmed, blonde brow at the bird. "Your point?"
"My point is Apollo; didn't you say you felt like we were being watched since we left Themyscira?" Alectryon asked with a raised red feathered brow as the Sun God considered his friend's words. "With that in mind, doesn't it feel just a little coincidental that on the night we decide to go back to Rhodes, you get approached by some random mortal woman that everyone in your pantheon would easily recognise as being your type, and her name also just so happens to be Daphne."
Apollo opened his mouth to argue as usual, only to stop as his words died on his tongue, his mouth closing as his eyes widened in realisation.
"Coincidence?" Alectryon asked, ruffling his feathers as look of realisation crept upon his Olympian friend's face. "Yeah, the Fates don't believe in them, and neither do I, think about it Apollo, that woman never actually told you her real name, she just said to call her Daphne, probably because she knew it would have an effect on you."
"You're saying that she knows who I really am?" Apollo asked as he began to see the logic in Alectryon's words and cursed himself for not seeing it earlier due to his own aroused obviousness. "That she's some kind of spy specifically tailored to my particular tastes in women?"
"I mean, she did call you Mr Sun God after all." The Phoenix added dryly with a deadpan look while Apollo continued to mentally kick himself. He should have known that suddenly sneaking off to Rhodes unnoticed would be next to impossible for them after their surprise visit to Themyscira and that a woman that perfect was way too good to be true, especially for him.
If Helios was here, he would have called me a horny Nymph chasing hotshot and forced me to take one of Demeter's ice water baths to remind me not to act like a stag in rut every time I see a pretty face come walking by. Apollo thought to himself, shivering as he remembered his mentor's favourite form of punishment whenever he did something foolish, which in his younger years, was a lot.
"Alectryon, are you sure about this?" Apollo quietly asked his feathered friend one last time, wanting to be absolutely certain at this point.
"Apollo, please, just trust me on this, when you've been on the other end of the food chain long enough like I have, you learn to sense when you're in the vicinity of a dangerous predator that wants to eat you." Alectryon explained matter-of-factly, punctuated by a shudder of his feathery shoulders. "And from the moment that women walked up to us, my flight instincts were kicking in like crazy, that's why I squawked and ran away back there, so you would get away from her."
And I think I am starting to be very grateful that you did, my feathered friend. Apollo admitted privately to himself, before his mind became filled with more and more troubling thoughts. But if your right Alectryon, who could this 'Daphne' be spying for? The Sun God scratched his beardless chin as he ran through the list of possible suspects in his head.
This is not Athena's style of surveillance and besides, she does not know how to flirt to save her life. Aphrodite knows I'm immune to all of her charms and she's too proud of her talents to send some random follower to do her seduction work for her. That just leaves Hera and she must realise I would see this coming from her about a mile away so soon after publicly visiting Themyscira. But if isn't any of them, then who could it be?...
"Apollo? Is that you? Are you in there?" Apollo's train of thought was cut off as a female voice that WAS very familiar to the Sun God spoke out from behind the closed closet door, moments before it was pulled back and the divine duo were once again exposed to the rest of the gala going on around them, as well as the women who had apparently been looking for the pair.
Fortunately for the two of them though, it was not the women they had been discussing.
"Apollo! There you are!"
"Dr Kapatelis?" The disguised Sun God said in genuine surprise as the short, blonde haired, glasses wearing curator of the Rhodes Museum of Greek History stared at them in surprise after uncovering their impromptu hiding place.
Luckily though, Apollo was as usual, quick to regain his cool composure as he confidently stepped out of the broom closet like it was a completely normal place for him to be and quickly closed it behind him. "Julia, my dear doctor, we must stop meeting like this, otherwise people will begin to think our relationship isn't entirely professional."
"Very funny Apollo, my guard at the gate told me you had arrived not too long ago; I've been looking everywhere for you." The smartly dressed archaeologist said, completely ignoring his typical trademark flirting, which caused Apollo to smile.
For some still unknowable reason, this intelligent, mortal woman was among the few females who were immune to the Sun God's charming powers, something that had secretly fascinated Apollo to no end about her since the day they had first met.
He always loved a good challenge of the female variety and they were so hard to come by in this day and age. Even if she was not the usual sort of mortal women he went for, more handsome then beautiful, Dr Julia Kapatelis, like so many mortal women he had met over his long, long life still found a way to utterly captivate him, another thing my father and I unfortunately have in common…
But alas, no, her interests in him, unlike so many others of her gender, remained solely in his vast wealth of Ancient Greek myth and historical knowledge, which was very easy for Apollo to supply, since he was actually there to see most of it happen in person or was the cause of it…
My half-sister Athena would like you Julia, Apollo thought to himself, still smiling at the mortal women, Smart, professional and above all, dedicated to your work, the two of you would sooner take a book to bed before a man or even another woman, how you even managed to take time out of your studies to have a daughter with your late husband is beyond me, my good doctor.
"Was someone else here Apollo? I could have sworn I heard you talking to someone in there?" Julia asked, glancing around Apollo to peer back into the open closet, as if expecting to see another person suddenly appear out of thin air while Apollo and Alectryon just shared a knowing look.
"No, no one else Julia, just me and Alectryon, chatting away like usual, that's all." Apollo said with awkward honesty while Alectryon gave a rather unconvincingly caw in agreement, Dr Kapatelis gave the unlikely divine duo a rather odd look in return, but thankfully did not pursue the matter any further.
"Well, anyway, I'm just glad you decided to come to the gala tonight, Apollo, I have something I want to show you and some people I'd like you to meet." Then before he could even attempt to agree or refuse her request, Apollo found himself being pulled out of the curtained corner and dragged across the museum by Dr Julia Kapatelis, who had her arm wrapped around his in a near death grip, tighter than that of Seven Headed Hydra constricting its prey.
By my grandmother's Rhea's Grace, Julia, you are stronger than you look, there are times where I think you might actually have some Amazonian blood running through your veins, Apollo to himself as he half allowed himself to be pulled along by the female professor, with Alectryon being carried along for the ride, snickering quietly on his shoulder, this certainly being one of them.
Eventually though, the deity dragging did come to an end as Julia finally reached her apparent destination, a rather new looking wing of the museum that Apollo did not recognise, where two rather good-looking gentleman that Apollo most certainly did not know were apparently waiting for them.
Both men were looked about the same height and age, and both carried an aura of charm and success with them, not unlike Apollo's own. But beyond those similarities, the two were as different as black and white, quite literally, at least concerning their respective attires anyway.
The gentleman on the left was dressed in a black blazer suit, along with black shoes and pants, underneath the blazer he wore a white buttoned up dress shirt with a yellow vest and around his neck was a well knotted bow tie, along with a pair of white gloves on his hands and a rather magnificent black and white top hat on his head, finally a well-trimmed moustache adorned his handsome face along with a pair of deep blue eyes.
While the man on the left wore an outfit that was very much the inverse, a white jacket, along with white shoes and pants, with a black buttoned up dress shirt underneath with a red handkerchief, gold rings over each of his fingers on both hands, his eyes were an emerald green and he had a thick mane of brunette hair, not unlike like a Nemean Lion's which was accompanied by a well-trimmed beard.
Oh Julia, perhaps I was wrong about you only being interested in books, Apollo thoughts with a surprised smile, looking between the two other well-dressed gentlemen in the room, and here I thought I was the only good-looking man in your life, my dear doctor.
"My apologises, gentleman, it took me a little longer to track him down than I thought, he can be quite elusive when he wants to be, I swear, I don't think he even owns a phone." Dr Kapatelis said as she finally released Apollo's arm from her own, before hastily introducing the disguised duo. "This is the expert Delphic historian I was telling you both about, Mr Apollo Sol and his emotional support bird, Alectryon."
Not the most dramatic of introductions Julia, but I'll make it work. Apollo thought to himself before quickly straightening his attire and stepping forward to greet the pair, who he could tell upon closer inspection, were definitely not from Greece. "Gentlemen, good evening and a warm Rhodian welcome to you both, any friends of our darling Dr Kapatelis are friends of mine."
"Huh, you were telling the truth, Julia." The bearded man said smirking in apparent amusement, his accent clearly identifying him as American. "He really does walk around with a Chicken on his shoulder."
Apollo fought to keep his charming smile from falling at the man's apparent jest even as he felt Alectryon's feathers ruffling as he in turn struggled to keep himself from giving an angry screech at the mortal man who had just unknowingly insulted a Greek God and his animal familiar. "He is a Rooster, actually my good man, and his name is Alectryon, but an otherwise astute and brilliant observation there, Mr…?
"Luthor, Lionel Luthor." The long haired, bearded man said in an extremely proud and self-satisfied tone of voice before continuing. "CEO of Luthor Corporations, Brilliant Inventor, Master Fencer, Artifact Collector, Extreme Entrepreneur and a Nineth Level Intellect, some men call me the Machiavelli of the Modern Age, others the King of the Corporate World."
Narcissus, eat your heart out, you have officially lost your title as the Most Arrogant Mortal to have ever Lived, Apollo thought to himself, but still, the Sun God could not quite resist the uncomfortable feeling that went right through him as he saw how this Lionel Luthor's well-groomed beard was barely able to conceal the smug smile on his face as he said those boastful words…
…Just like how his fathers did whenever he was loudly proclaiming himself before the rest of their pantheon in their glorious past, Lighting Crown on his head and Thunderbolt Blade in hand. "But then again, I'm sure you already knew that Mr Sol, no doubt you've heard of me before this evening."
"No, actually, I haven't." Apollo responded casually and in a pleasant enough tone of voice, but with a small smile that broadened ever so slightly as he saw the arrogance practically melt from the mortal's face, replaced with a look of genuine shock and disbelief at his words. "Not even in the slightest. My apologises, but I am afraid that your reputation does not quite precede you where I come from, Mr Luthor, still, my sincerest condolences to your wounded pride, sir."
Apollo smile broadened into a smug smirk as he saw the shock morph annoyance on the man's face and for the briefest of moments, Apollo pretended it was his father's face instead and revelled in the petty victory, I do have a way of dethroning rulers, even with just my words…
Before things could escalate however, the other gentlemen intervened with a clearing of his throat.
"I think what the Great Lionel Luthor means to say, sir, is that it is likewise our pleasure to make your acquaintance this fine evening." The moustached man said with echoes of an Italian accent, holding out his hand with a smile for Apollo to shake, which Sun God took, smiling pleasantly back at him-
-only to feel the shocking and unmistakable sensation of magical residue touch his divine skin as he shook the man's hand.
Stunned, Apollo looked up into the man's deep blue eyes and saw the tell-tale signs of arcane irises within his pupils, whoever this man was, Apollo knew one thing for certain, he was a Sorcerer and a rather powerful one at that.
The Sun God knew powerful magic when he sensed it, both the light and the dark kind… he had vast experiences with both, most of them unpleasant ones, especially concerning the latter…
Still, unlike certain other magical beings he had met in the distant past, Apollo did not sense any innate darkness or corruption in the man before him and so, remembering his confident, charming persona and putting his shock aside, the Sun God widened his smile again and clasped the other man's hand more firmly before shaking it. "I'm sure it is, Mr…?"
"Zatara, Giovanni Zatara." The arcane, accented man said before taking off his top hat and giving the Olympian a showman's bow. "Master Magician, Lord of Illusions and Artist of the Arcane, though my friends usually just call me John, at your humble service."
"Ahh, another patron of the arts, I see, how wonderful." Apollo said with delight, for despite his negative experiences with magic, Apollo always enjoyed being the presences of his fellow artists, no matter their passionate profession. The last memorable one I met was that backwards writing fellow, Leonardo da Vinci, what a magnificent artist he was, a mortal man whose talents for creation rivalled that of the Great Primordials themselves… Apollo thought, smiling fondly at the memory of the eccentric, one eared man he had met during his travels outside of Greece after the Fall.
Come to think of it… Leo was Italian, just like this Giovanni gentleman, I wonder if there is a connection between them… Apollo wondered briefly before getting back into the current conversation. "It is always a pleasure to meet a fellow performer, my good magician, and may I just say, I like your style, Giovanni." Apollo said in his most complementary of tones, referring to both the man's cool charisma and his fashion sense.
"Likewise, and thank you, sir, but please… call me John." The Italian man complement in return with a touch of his top hat.
At this trademark sign of respect amongst fellow performers, Apollo's grin just broadened. "An ordinary name for an extraordinary man, very well John, but I must insist you refer to me as just Apollo then, as it's only fair." The disguised deity said before the two men shared a good chuckle at each other's eccentricities.
Then she walked in…
"What is this? The Great Greek God of the Sun getting on first name basis with mere mortals?" A new female voice suddenly asked from right behind Apollo, as the Sun God in question felt his and Alectryon backs stiffen as they both turned to see the women who called herself… Daphnewalked back into their view. "What has the Olympian Pantheon been reduced to?"
The very thought that is always on my family's minds, especially my father's as of late, Apollo privately thought to himself as he cast his eyes once more upon this unnervingly familiar female's very attractive form as she saddled up next to him, no longer beguiled by her Nymphish beauty and with added value of Alectryon's insight, now fully suspicious of her and her intentions towards him, But I am sure you already knew that, didn't you Daphne? Or whoever you really are?
"You didn't think you were going to get away from me so easily?" The beautiful women said, a playful smirk upon her gorgeous face as she had bested him at his own game. "Did you, Mr Sun God?"
"Apparently not, my dear." Apollo said charmingly enough, not trying to give away that he was now onto her act and whatever scheme she was plotting, even if he still did not know exactly what it was yet. "Apparently not."
"Apollo?" The Sun God turned to see Julia, John and Lionel starring at him with expressions ranging from curious to mildly amused. "Care to introduce your… lady friend?"
"Of course, of course, please forgive me, my dear Doctor Julia Kapatelis, my magnificent Mr Giovanni 'John' Zatara and let us not forget the infamous Lionel Luthor, everyone, this is… Daphne." Apollo said, trying to sound as an enthusiastic and eccentric as possible, but still could not quite hide how even merely saying her name aloud made him feel very uncomfortable now, get a hold of yourself Apollo, she is not your Daphne…
"Smooth introduction there, handsome." The Daphne whispered in a deadpan, snarky tone that Alectryon would have approved of if he wasn't currently already giving her the Rooster equivalent of a death glare from his perch on Apollo's shoulder, his avian instincts still telling him that there was something very wrong about this mysterious women. "A little anticlimactic, but I'll make it work."
Alectryon's animal animosity, however, went completely unnoticed by Daphne, who then proceeded to introduce herself to the rest of the group, stepping forward to shake everyone's hand, just as Apollo did. "It's a pleasure to meet you all, Dr Kapatelis, Mr Zatara and Mr Luthor, I've heard so much about all of you."
"The pleasure is ours miss Daphne." Lionel Luthor said as she shook his hand last and although he was certainly smiling at her as he spoke, his eyes were most definitely not focused on her face, Apollo could see that as clear as day as the bearded man's green eyes lingered around the women's lovely female form, his lustful gaze once again reminding Apollo far too much of his own father whenever he saw an attractive mortal woman he liked, which for the record, was a lot.
"Thank you, sir, and may I just say it is an honour to be in the presence of the Legendary Lionel Luthor." Daphne said in the exact same flirtatious tone she had used on Apollo mere minutes ago. "I must say, you are the spitting image of a judge I once knew back in Crete."
"Thank you, I'll take that as a compliment." Lionel said, his pride clearly being restored by this beautiful women's unusual flattery. "And may I just say, you are truly worthy of your Nymphish name, my dear."
"So, miss Daphne, where are you from, exactly?" Julia asked as a waiter came by offering them glasses of champagne from his tray, which they all took. "I can tell your accent is definitely Greek, but I can't quite decipher the region it comes from, dear?"
What an excellent question Julia, Apollo thought as he swirled his glass of champagne before taking a sip, silently congratulating Dr Kapatelis on her very well timed and helpful question in helping solve the mystery of this Nymphish women. Where are you from? My dear, deceptive Daphne?
"Actually, I'm originally from here, in Rhodes, although I haven't lived here in a very long time." Daphne explained as something seem to flash across her face, some sort of memory from long ago and clearly an unpleasant one given the way she frowned at it. "My mother and I were forcefully evicted from our ancestral estate on the island, along with the rest of family and friends. After a rival claimant to our land had spread false rumours about our societies… private affairs."
Private affairs? Now I wonder what those could be? Apollo thought suspiciously, not believing the woman's words for a momentas he narrowed his eyes at her, but still wishing to know more about her and whatever it was she was planning.
"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that, dear." Dr Kapatelis said, empathy clearly visible in her glasses covered eyes.
"As am I, miss Daphne." John said, his smiling moustached face now formed into a deep frown. "My wife and I also know what it feels like to be forced from your home in the face of great prejudice."
Yes, I am sure a Sorcerer disguised as a mere mortal Magician and his probably equally Sorceress wife would know plenty about facing prejudice by those who have a fear and hatred of magic, Apollo thought as he cast a quick glance at John, understanding the deeper meaning to the man's words that those around them did not.
He himself was no stranger to facing prejudice, but that had been a long time ago, when he was still just a boy and merely the God of Music and Light, when he was still most famously known to the Greek world as Zeus's Nymph born bastard and not much else.
Before he had slain Python the Constrictor with nothing but gold bow and a single well placed silver arrow, before Helios had taken him on as his apprentice and before the Siege of Mount Olympus, where he had won the day for the Greek Pantheon and his father had finally acknowledged him as his son…
"Yes, truly, those who would dare to make their ambitions a reality will always face opposition from prideful fools who are desperate to hang onto their power at all costs." Lionel declared passionately, though as a literal patron god of the arts, Apollo could tell Luthor was clearly phoning it in, a lot in fact. It also was not lost on the Sun God on how well that description of power-hungry people fit the CEO of Luthor Corporations himself, well, isn't that just the Crow calling the Raven black?
"If you're interested Daphne, I have some friends in high places who might be able to help you get recompense from the ones responsible for your family's misfortune." Julia said, offering her help in that truly sincere manner that always reminded Apollo of his aunt Hestia, minus the flaming hair and divine good looks, of course.
At this kind offer though, Daphne just smiled good naturedly and shook her head. "Thank you, Dr Kapatelis, but you needn't concern yourself with my personal matters, I no longer have any interest in reclaiming my family's former home on Rhodes and besides." Daphne paused to take a long sip from her wine glass and the shot a satisfied smile in Apollo's direction, which just confused the Sun God and made him even more suspicious than before. "That fool has long since paid for what he did to me and my kin."
"Yes, well." Apollo said clearing his throat to relieve the awkward silence that followed Daphne's statement as he realised for the second time that evening, that all eyes were now on him and he was for once not really enjoying it, Daphne's in particular, the disguised Sun God suddenly finding her formerly seductive gaze very unnerving. "You know what they say, my dear, revenge is sweet."
"Why yes." Daphne said calmly in response, never breaking her soul staring gaze at Apollo even as she drank from her champagne glass. "Yes, it is."
Okay, I am starting to think this woman might be obsessed with me and not in the good way either, Apollo thought, feeling surprisingly nervous for once as for the life of him, he could not figure out what this woman issue with him was, who in Tartarus name is she?
"So… Apollo huh?" John asked suddenly as he turned to address the Sun God who was immensely thankful for the distraction from Daphne's unrelenting eyes. "I take it then that your father is Zeus then, King of the Greek Gods?"
At this Apollo, just laughed like it wasn't true and barely noticed how Daphne's smile turned into a frown at the mention of his father's name. "Well, he certainly likes to think so, but my stepmother and the rest of my family would strongly disagree with him on that nowadays, I assure you John."
"Ha, your stepmother sounds a lot like my ex-wife, she was a real firecracker as well." Lionel said, chuckling at his own words, as did everyone else, if only to be polite.
Well, the term firecracker is certainly one way to describe the Queen of the Heavens. Apollo thought to himself with a small smile. Not so sure how Hera would respond to being called that though, but knowing her, probably very poorly… I might actually have to try that sometime…
"Still, I can understand having high expectations for your children." Lionel continued. "My own son Lex, is named after Alexander the Great, the Ancient Greek King of Macedon and Conqueror of Entire Countries." The CEO declared grandly. "Luthor's are natural leaders and with a name like that, I expect many great things from my boy and I know that one day, he will make it his own."
Yes, because doing that certainly won't give your boy a complex or two. Apollo thought to himself whilst trying to repress an eye roll at the man's obvious arrogance, whilst feeling just a touch of sympathy for the mortal's son in the process. If anyone understood what it was like to be the son of a powerful and overly prideful man, one who expected the entire world serve and worship him like the great ruler he thought he was, it was Apollo.
"I can relate Lionel; my daughter Vanessa is only twelve years old and she is already learning at a high school level." Julia said with clear pride in her voice. "At this rate, shell be attending college before she's even halfway through her teen years."
"Very impressive Dr Kapatelis, my own daughter Zatanna is also doing exceedingly well in her own… artistic studies as she travels with her mother and I around the world." Giovanni chimed in. "At the rate she is going, I have no doubt she surpasses both her mother and I in no time and be a
It's funny, you three remind me if my mother and her Nymph sisters when they would boast about their children to other deities, usually in the hopes of securing a future marriage pact for their own children, Apollo thought to himself, mildly entertained by the ongoing conversation whilst thinking back to the all the times in his youth when his mother would march him and his sister out in front of a family of visiting Gods, whose own sons and daughters would noticeably perk up upon seeing Artemis and himself, like they were prizes they thought they suddenly had a chance at winning, I charmed every divine daughter that was presented to me just long enough to bed them whilst Artemis immediately chased off every God's son who attempted to do the same thing to her.
"What about you two?" The magician suddenly asked, turning to both Apollo and Daphne. "Do you have any children together?"
This polite, but wholly unexpected question caused both Apollo and Daphne to automatically glance at each one another with wide eyes, before quickly averting their gazes from the other.
"NO! no, no, no, no, we don't… we aren't… like that." Apollo awkwardly insisted, his usual calm confidence all but non-existent at that particular moment.
"Definitely… not." Daphne muttered under her breath and looking like she was suddenly fighting the urge to gag, something Apollo took notice of, as her admiring mask began to slip from her attractive features, all but confirming to him that Alectryon was right and this women's amorous interest towards him were very clearly false, looks like I owe both Alectryon and you, a thank you, John.
"Oh, my apologises, my friends." John said apologetically, looking slightly embarrassed for his mistake. "I didn't mean to presume the two of you were… together."
"It is… quite alright Mr Zatara." Daphne said after a brief moment, quickly regaining her charismatic and alluring personality, Apollo had to reluctantly give her credit for it, whoever this woman was, she was a remarkable actress, the sort he would have instantly hired back when he was the Archon of the Orpheus Theatre. "I actually do not have any children biological children of my own, although, I do work with both an orphanage and a battered women's center, many of the young ladies there look to me as a sort of a surrogate mother figure and I've transformed the lives of many of the children that have been brought to me over the years."
Yeah, I do not buy any of that for a second, Apollo thought, resisting the urge to roll his eyes at this woman's clearly false profession, but still chose to nod and play along with all the rest, who were all praises and compliments to this mysterious woman they knew very little about, while he just swirled his champagne glass, taking another sip for added effect before saying. "How very motherly of you, though I must admit, I am quite surprised, for you do not strike me as the maternal sort, Daphne."
"Well, you know what they say Mr Sun God, looks can be very deceiving." Daphne said, smirking at Apollo before glancing at the out of place bird on his shoulder. "Isn't that, right? Alectryon?" She asked the Rooster, who only gave an unconvincing cluck, but otherwise, wisely chose to keep his big beak shut for once.
"Agreed Miss Daphne." Lionel said suddenly, gaining the group's attention once more, it was obvious to everyone now, but to the Olympian most of all, that the arrogant mortal man was still hoping to charm this mysterious, Nymphish woman into his bed tonight and saw the Sun God as a threat to making that happen, given the way he was looking at the two of them, her with desire and Apollo with clear jealousy for being the source of Daphne's attention.
Not that Apollo really cared at that point, as far as the Sun God was concerned, the Great Lionel Luthor was more than welcome to have this lying Siren in his bed, better his than mine.
"Speaking of kids, how about you, my divine friend?" Lionel asked, looking at Apollo with a thick raised brow and slight smile barely hidden beneath his beard. "Have any little Gods or Goddess waiting at home for you after the gala tonight, any Apollo Juniors to carry on the family legacy for you?"
Apollo could feel the world slow down around him as time came to a slow crawl near the end of Lionel's condescending question, Apollo felt his eyes flash red and his body pulse with explosive, fiery heat before subsiding as the Sun God quickly got a hold of himself again before anyone in the room could notice the sudden change in temperature.
Still, he had to fight to resist the urge to crush the cheap champagne glass filled with not-so cheap champagne in his hand, if the arrogant little mortal only knew just how close he was to being burned alive in that moment, the man's words causing images of the past to come flooding into his mind at that moment.
"At long last." He said, looking down at his newborn son Asclepius, who looked up at his father's smiling face and smiled back at him. "A little warrior to carry on my legacy."
The memory always brought a tear to Apollo's eye, one of both joy and sadness, as images of his son flashed through his mind, first as babe in his arms, then as a young Demigod, before finally standing before him as a grown Olympian, a God in his own right…
But other memories also came, more recent ones, ones featuring a beautiful royal woman and her daughter… and her son as well…
"Apollo." The Sun god looked up as he heard Julia say his name, he saw the empathy in her eyes, even behind her glasses, unlike the other three there, she knew at least some of his family history, the edited parts of it he had shared with her over the years, she knew how painful this topic was for him.
"I'm fine Julia, really, but if you must know Lionel, like you, I had a son, his name was Asclepius." Apollo explained to the group, trying to ignore the feeling of fury and grief that always came to his mind whenever he discussed this particular subject. "Like your Alexander, he was a bright boy, even from an early age, he surpassed all my expectations for him and became a doctor, a healer who saved many lives, including my own once, he was a hero… and he died like one too." The Sun God did his best not to get choked up as he finished his short but tragic tale.
"Oh, I am so sorry for your loss, my friend." John said sincerely, a sad frown having formed over his moustached face whilst Julia nodding agreement, her eyes full of pity, Lionel meanwhile just looked slightly taken aback by his unexpected response, which Apollo unfortunately could take no solace in, he did, however, take solace in Alectryon's warm, feathery wing wrapped around his shoulder.
Daphne however said nothing, she simply stood there and staring at him like she had all night…
"Thank you, John, Julia, your condolences are much appreciated, truly they are." Apollo said with a sigh before taking a deep breath and once again addressing the three parents before him. "I am sure you all must be very proud of your children, but if I may offer a little bit of prophetic advice from a former father, please, do not push your children too hard to succeed in life, that sort of predestined expectation of greatness can mess up a young and impressionable mind as well as damage your relationship them, almost beyond repair."
As he spoke, more memories came rushing back to Apollo, memories of him attempting to train a young Asclepius in the art of archery, to teach him the Way of the Assassin, to make him a worthy inheritor to the legacy of the great Hero of the Gigantomachy… to very little success.
Unlike his sister and himself, Asclepius just had no exceptional skill with either the bow or the blade, something that earned both his son and himself mockery from their fellow Gods at the Olympic court, Apollo could still recall how exactly how many so-called immortals who were now long dead, commenting on how the warrior gene had skipped his son's generation when they thought he was not listening.
There were perks to having a talking bird with exceptional senses sitting on your shoulder, sometimes.
Such insults to his pride and the damage it brought to his legendary reputation only made Apollo double down on his son's warrior training, which only worsened their relationship even more, to the point where Asclepius and he had finally had it out with each other over the issue after another failed attempt at assassin training.
"No son of mine will be an embarrassment with a bow." Apollo had declared at the end of the arguing over the matter, his voice harsh and his words cold, words he would after forever regret saying…
"Then maybe I'm not really your son, my lord!" Asclepius had retorted, tears in his eyes as he looked up at his father's disappointed face, before throwing the bow down at his feet and running off, leaving Apollo to stare stunned at his departing figure and desperately trying to ignore the painful ache that was forming in his heart as he did so.
His son had not spoken to him for a very long time after that argument and for the longest time, that had been just fine by Apollo, firmly believing that Asclepius was the one in the wrong and the one who needed to apologise to him first, before he would ever welcome that boy of his home with open arms, despite what his friends and family said to the contrary.
What a stubborn, prideful fool he had been, to allow his precious reputation to create such a long-lasting divide between him and his only child.
It had taken Apollo nearly dying during one the many failed Telchine Rebellions to realise it to, as he lay there, surrounded on all sides by the fallen bodies of the Telchines few remaining human worshippers, with several dark magic infused daggers lodged in his torso, slowly draining the light energy out of him.
It took him staring up at his own setting sun to finally realise he might leave this world without letting Asclepius know he was not an embarrassment or a disappointment to him, to let his son know he was sorry for what he said and that he was so wrong to have ever said it in the first place, to let him know that his father still loved him before he died.
Fate though, fortunately, was on the Sun God's side that day, as Apollo was not only saved by an exceptionally skilled healer's hands, but that healer was none other than his own son, Asclepius.
In the time since they had last spoke, his boy had apparently undergone some form of spiritual training to enhance his already considerable medical skills, to the point where it was rumoured that he could actually bring people back from the brink of death with ease, a rumour which was proven to be true when Asclepius saved his father's life out on the battlefield that day.
His son had left behind any notion of following in his father's footsteps as an Assassin and gone on to become the Greatest Healer in all of Ancient Greece instead, a saviour to both gods and humans alike.
As both a father and Greek God, Apollo could not have been any prouder of his boy and the Sun God had made sure that was the second thing he had told Asclepius once he had awoken in his son's healing temple, right after he had apologised for being a bad father.
To his great relief, Asclepius had not only forgiven him for the cruel things he had said in his prideful anger, but also assured the recovering Sun God that he was not a bad father, but still, while his son had clearly forgiven him a long time, that did not mean that Apollo could forgive himself just yet, he had vowed there and then, in Asclepius's temple, that from that day forth to be better…
… and Apollo had kept that vow, right up until the day his son had died before his eyes.
Greetings to all my fellow fanfic readers and writers, I hope you all enjoyed Superman, Son of Hippolyta Chapter 24: Coming to the Crossroads, to all of you readers who have been waiting for more DC characters to enter this story for a while now, I hope this chapter delivered a small taste of what is to come as I expand into the greater DC roster, I just ask you to be patient as I do so.
Speaking of the DC characters introduced in this chapter, Dr Julia Kapatelis design is based off her appearance in Wonder Woman: Bloodlines, while Lionel Luthor's is inspired by his appearance in the Smallville live action series and finally Giovanni 'John' Zatara design is based off his appearance in Young Justice, season one specifically.
As always, I recommend my friend and Greek mythology expert Luke5921 Superman story, Kal Son of Odin which is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with some DC elements added into it, so if you are a fan of both Superman and Marvel, which I AM and I know many of you are, go check it out, it keeps getting better all the time.
Also, If any of you would like to support my work in other ventures, I have YouTube channel under the same name as my fanfic account, T-Rexcellent Reviews, if you are interested, please consider giving it a look, a like and subscription as it would really help me out.
Now onto answering some more fan questions from all of you guys…
NexusPrime42 - First off, thank you for the fantastic question, mate, to be completely honest with you though, I don't have any real plans for the Legion of Superheros to appear in this story, it could still happen down the line, but they would most likely all be posthumous characters, famous heroes who died long ago with one or two surviving characters to act as mentors to the younger generation, as one of the major thematic points of this story, is that Kal is first superhero in this new Age of Heroes, he's the living legend they all hear about, he's one the others all look up to, one whose example they follow, one who inspired them to become heroes in their own right.
Second, I know a lot of my T-Rexcellent Readers have been getting impatient for more DC characters to enter this story, and I can now say that with this chapter, that is starting to happen, but it won't just be side characters, you can expect other DC heroes to show up in the near future.
Silverwingzz - Define going easy on him? I mean, Hermes wasn't actually trying to kill or seriously harm the boy, he doesn't kill or kidnap children after all. But he still didn't hesitate to mock or annoy the boy into chasing him or making foolish mistakes, because doing so amused him, but he did have a altruistic motive behind it as well, which was to teach Kal to fight smarter, not harder, to think quickly on your feet in battle, to appreciate the value of trickery as a skill and to always remember that your enemy is not going to fight fair, honour does not win wars after all, deceit does.
That being said, Hermes wasn't faking at any of the moments Kal actually managed to get the better of him during their game, that would completely contract with his lesson to Kal, Hermes is a very tough love and learn on the job sort of trainer, but he never gives out false praise, he meant every word he said to the boy near the end of their battle.
As for al himself, remember that at this point, experience counts for everything here, Hermes might be one of the weakest of the Greek Gods, but he still a Greek God, a powerful being with literally hundreds of years of combat experience, Kal is super powerful and mentally mature young boy who is only just now starting to come into his powers, the fact that Kal was able to hold his own against a skilled adult warrior with super speed after only just learning it himself says a lot about his future potential.
But regardless, Kal is both strong and fast enough to keep pace with Hermes and match him blow for blow, he just lacks the experience that Hermes obviously has with this specific power.
Nu47781 – Thank you mate, your kind words are very much appreciated, by both Luke and myself, we each work very hard to make our respective stories the very best they can be and I'm delighted to hear that you enjoy them so, I likewise hope that this chapter was to your likening.
As always, a shout out to my amazingly supportive friend and fantastic fellow fanfic writer Ricardo753 for supporting my work, go check out his own stories, their T-Rexcellent as well as my creative consultant and Greek mythology expert Luke5921, proud to have you onboard as an advisor as I write this story mate.
Now please allow me to thank all of you who have followed, favourited, and especially reviewed this story so far.
Big thanks to SuperWonderStan, ManOfSteel, Luke5921, cabrera1234, Joel, HeartOfChaos13, GR8ER3241, Kalel4444, JustAnotherIntern14, Erika Lopes, SilveerKnighT, SuperKamiGuest, dakota, Shall-lin, d,Chinook, MoonKnight030, StevenBodner, Daka, evolution-500, Goldenhue, welcome007, Dak, Arik Kkuznetsov, Yeye anaawangazia, HaywireEagle, TheCrackKing, Artimuos Sen, CrazyCaz, Bashleyz, Falcon6, Al, 80sarcades, Vahn, Djberneman, XxGargantuaxX, beastblau12, epantoja521, Supabec, gomezgerman17, give-evil-a-win, justareader21, ed, Ltbutterfly287, Barbatos, DaddysLiitleGirl, Bigreader in the Omniverse, Lightbringer616, 698capa, Andy, hehelove1, major wallace, NexusPrime42, Silverwingzz, nu47781, myafroatemydog and all of my unnamed guest reviewers.
Please keep the kind reviews coming guys, their what fuels these chapters and to all my other readers, if you write me some kind reviews in the future, then you can be seeing your name here to, until next time this is T-Rexcellent Reviews signing off.