FIRST INSTALLMENT
DIVINE
PROLOGUE
BATTLE OF BERLIN
APRIL 16TH 1945
WORLD WAR 2
Journal of ………………….., entry 01
The sound of artillery filled the air, shouts of the warring factions and cries of fatally wounded soldiers, breathing their last breath on the battlefield. Smoke and soot filled the air, darkening the already dark night sky, casting an ominous shadow over the bloody battlefield. This is the first world war. Some say it is the worst war in the world's history, others say it is a catalyst of a great future. To most, it is just a war, and war means pain, war means suffering, it means chaos. There was no glory in this battle, no pride, just blood and endless carnage. The true harbingers of this chaos remain anonymous from world history, demigods, beings of magnificent power able to greatly influence the world of men and of the divine. Extraordinary mortals, born from the meeting of humans and heavenly powers. Strife among their ranks brought the world this carnage, more especially, strife among the offspring of the three greatest divinities, the gods Zeus, Poseidon and Hades. Brothers, of the same mother and father, with millennia rivalry amongst them. A rivalry that trickled down the generations to their children, resulting in such a devastating war. The mutual hatred of these demigods forced the hand of their divine parents and by the battle of Somme, divine interference entered the mix, making this war the bloodiest one yet.
I am one of these demigods, one of those whose power shakes the foundations of the earth and changes destiny. I am Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi party, chancellor and Fuhrer of Germany and a son of Hades.
Journal of field marshal Bernard montgomery
NOVEMBER, 30TH 1942
Entry 213
When my siblings and I declared war on Hitler and his ilk we did not expect this much destruction. Our fighter jets were our greatest asset, of course this would be so, seeing as we were the children of the Zeus, King of the gods, ruler of Olympus. The mortals, of course, did not know the true reason for this war, but we did. Years of bitter rivalry and competitiveness among us of the divine triumvirate of the gods. It was our own sense of self-importance and our presumptuousness that destroyed the lives of many innocent mortals. The blood that flows on the battlefield, gods be damned, it is so much, makes me wretch, makes me question the true purpose of our existence as demigods. Chiron taught us that we had a duty to lead the world and steer it to a great destiny, yet we have driven the world to madness. Many of my siblings are still very much hard-headed, I suppose we all inherited it from our father. Their pride would not let them seize the fighting for the sake of the mortals. This generation has had enough of the carnage, on my hands is the blood of many. I will no longer fight for this useless cause.
MEMOIRE OF ADMIRAL Dudley pound, FIRST SEA LORD of the royal navy
October 26th 1944
ENTRY 111
I have now been named sea lord of the royal navy by His Majesty King George V. It should be an honor, I should be burning offerings to my father, the god Poseidon, for this privilege. Yet all I feel is numbness, what honor is there in the blood shedding my brothers and sisters have undertaken in the name of our father. The day I saw Triton, immortal son of Poseidon, rise from the dark waters of the Leyte Gulf, is the day I knew that the war will take a turn for the worse. Enough blood had already been spilt, both demigod and mortal alike, and now that the gods had decided to interfere, I knew it would get worse. I always thought the gods were above fighting in human battle, but I should have known better, the history of Troy is enough to testify. My men grow weary, day by day. Months of battle on the sea seemed to drain the life from them. They are not like me, the sea does not rejuvenate them, it does not improve their senses, strengthen or embolden them. To them, it was tempestuous and unyielding, threatening to wash away the unwary. Well my father is known to be loving to his ilk, but extremely dangerous to those he does not favor. The Axis forces made their mark here at Leyte gulf, many died, the carnage was unprecedented, a testament to the true horrors of this war. If mankind is to prevail, there must be an end to this war.
MAY 8TH 1945
DAY OF THE DEATH OF ADOLF HITLER
The waves washed up against the shores of a rocky beach and the sun finally set beyond the distant horizon. The water was eerily calm today, neither turbulent nor overwhelming as it had been for much of the duration of the war. Perhaps it was in sync with the tidings of peace that were seemingly approaching due to the death of Hitler. Yes, it was an auspicious day indeed, not because of the death of the tyrannical dictator, no, no, no, but because something special was about to happen for the first time since before the birth of the human race. A gathering of sorts, and at what better time than at the end of one of the bloodiest wars in human history. Right after the last rays of sunlight departed from this end of the earth, and Artemis began her majestic dance across the beautiful night sky, a man walked out of the water, and what a strange man he was, for he glowed with some otherworldly power and his powerful arms were covered in what seemed to be fish scales, edged in gold, with a silvery sheen. The man, though having an ethereal quality to his visage, looked haggard and battle weary, as though he carried the weight of a thousand burdens. The same could not be said for the beach the said man appeared on, for the waves beat against the shore a thousand times more powerfully and the flora and fauna of the beach, from the littlest to the largest, crawled out of their crevices, as though to herald the coming of this strange man. He held in his hand a long trident, bronze in color with its tips covered in glowing dark green runes of power. The man sat upon the rocks of the beach and studied the ocean in contemplation. His weariness was apparent, his grief plain to see. One could only wonder what could put someone as powerful as him in such a state. Across the sea, dark, ominous clouds rolled in, disrupting the peaceful scenery of before. The man gazed at the approaching storm clouds with unease. Thunder rolled across the sky, followed by crackles of lightning. The wind suddenly picked up, blowing everything. Through all this chaos, the man sat unwavering as though ready to face the impending storm head-on. He seemed unbothered by the thunder or the lightning, the harsh winds did not even ruffle the edges of his cloak and did not move a strand of his hair. He did not shield his eyes from the icy, biting wind nor did he pull his cloak closer for warmth, the storm became harsher, as though angered by the lack of effect it had on him. Out of the blue, a brilliant white light broke through the dark clouds, and a powerful, golden lightning bolt struck the rocky shore before the sitting man, he glanced at the bolt of lightning and chuckled, the only sign of joy he had portrayed since his arrival. When the light of the lightning bolt faded, there stood another man. He looked almost the opposite of the other. He too had a heavy presence, the air around him seemed to crackle with lightning and the ground under his feet quaked and crumbled slightly. "You do not stand to greet your king, brother?" the new man asked, "Am I not a king myself, brother, yet you do not stand at my arrival on Olympus." The seated man remarked with amusement, the tension between the two deities was palpable, any mortal in their presence would've balked and soiled himself with excrement before proceeding to breakdown mentally, then physically. "You will not sit?" the seated man asked his brother while gesturing to his side. "I did not come here to entertain your games brother, far too much is at stake." The other remarked angrily, the sky rumbling in response. "Do not presume to be more aware of the stakes than I am," the seated man responded, his mood shifting like the waves of the sea, the tides becoming stronger as a result of his rising anger, "I lost children to this war Zeus, Triton faded for half a century to come." He continued with a mixture of sorrow and anger. Zeus did not know how to respond, he studied his brother closely, finally seeing the sorrow in his eyes. His brother, Poseidon, loved deeper than all of his other siblings, it was a blessing he got from their mother and at times like this, a curse. Zeus did not know how to comfort others and it was not always he saw his brother in such a state. "The war hit all of us hard, I did not foresee our offspring delving into such madness." Zeus said, his anger fading, slowly being replaced by understanding of his brother's plight, but pride would not let Zeus console him as he should, the way he could when they and the world was young. "Steps must be taken to prevent such an atrocity from occurring again." He said. He glanced at terrain as though searching for someone, "Hades?" he asked his brother with a side glance. "Has not yet arrived." Poseidon replied. "A cloud of anger passed over Zeus' face. "That upstart" he grumbled out, before bellowing a mighty roar that shook the earth heavily, causing accidents in the cities nearby, "HADES!" As the shaken came to a halt, a voice spoke up drily from the shadows, "I have been here the entire time, before Poseidon, I suggest your refine your senses brother. They seem to be growing weaker with age," he quipped, "Or is it Hera's tantrums that have dulled them?" Hades questions sarcastically, Zeus' terrible anger rose further, causing the wind to blow harder and the sky to rumble with thunder. This time, it did ruffle Poseidon's cloak and shift his hair. Zeus was not as friendly with his eldest brother as he was with Poseidon, and even they were not friendly. "Your blatant lack of restraint bores me," Hades says, "Seize this storm before more mortals die." He finished. Despite his anger, Zeus calmed the storm, the winds died down and the dark clouds withdrew. "Brothers, for the first time in centuries the chaos and destruction in the mortal world in not the fruit of our labor. Our children grow too powerful, destructive, lacking restraint." Zeus said, "I have come to a conclusion thereafter, a pact must be made, one on the River Styx, that no longer we sire a child." Zeus declared. Poseidon quickly glanced upward alarmed, a flash of surprise passed briefly over hades' usually impassive face. This was monumental, for Zeus' sexual escapades in the mortal world were well known by all. But alas, the pact was made and the vows said. For the next nigh a century, no more triumvirate children were sired and a calmness settled over the world, but they are gods, immortal and unchanging, and soon, their children will grace the world once again.