"Familiar." I think as I steer my chariot in Olympus' direction. That's how I'd describe him.
Flying high through the sky, the moon follows my trajectory.
The wind and rain washed away the lingering aura of his cold presence.
Never before have I seen him. Never before have I talked to him.
Yet when I looked at him, I saw something that I recognized.
When he talked to me, I couldn't move anymore.
What kind of creature is he, to be able to freeze a goddess in her spot?
"She who runs along the wolves? Who talks like that?" I think.
"And why did he seem like he knew father? Things just aren't adding up."
I let my thoughts dwell in my confusion, seeing Olympus slowly appear in the distance.
The moon lights up as if echoing my feelings as I aggressively slap the reins to speed up my approach.
"Father will have answers. He has to." I whisper.
"He spoke about father with familiarity. What is their connection?"
A clap of thunder in the moonlit sky breaks my thoughts.
As I gaze upon Olympus, I see tendrils of pure power extend from the open roof of the βηλὸς θεσπέσιος.
"The council will want their answers," I say with force, the sound of my voice barely rising above the wind and rain.
I push all thoughts on the subject away as I descend onto the mountain of the gods.
"I do not know what will happen. But somehow, he will be at the center of it all. I know it."
"This council is called into session!"
Olympus. The mountain of the gods. A place of unimaginable beauty. Palaces litter its range. A canvas of red, gold, silver… A place where cultures clash and mingle. Where all higher beings can find their place. Normally so vibrant and lively.
But not today. When storms rage and shadows dampen the colors of the world, it is best to seek sanctuary in the safety of your home.
For at the top of the mountain stands the βηλὸς θεσπέσιος. The heavenly threshold. The seat of power for the mightiest of the mighty. The house of justice from where the world is ruled.
Sat upon their thrones are the twelve Olympians—the ruling body of the Greek world.
"Apollo!" The Thunder Bringer rumbles. "You speak in riddles. This is not one of your poems."
"I'm telling you, father, fate has been changed." The godly seer said, an intense look in his eyes.
"The threads spun by the Moirai have changed. The council doesn't understand the importance of the situation. It's not just that I can't see fate. The problem is that there is no fate. I cannot see it because there is nothing to see."
"How could this be?" Came the voice of The Traveller.
"Never before has something like this happened. What about the Moirai? Have they nothing to say about these happenings? Surely they will not stand for this blasphemy?" Hermes says, with a frown on his face.
"Far be it from you to interpret our intentions, son of Maia. While what the Seer says is right, we do simply plan to stand aside and let it play out." The foreboding message was the sole indication of the goddesses' arrival.
"How could you know of this and not warn us?!" Uttered The Queen.
A furious glint in her gaze. Her regal features were undermined by the unhinged gaze in her eyes.
"Be wary of how you speak to us, child. We are far older and much wiser. Don't presume to be able to speak to us in such a way." Clotho told her with a barely controlled rage.
"I believe the conversation has gotten away from us. The council requires your help, my Lady's. Tell us how we can fix this problem. Please." The lord of thunder spoke with an even voice.
His request is fair. And when the Wise king requests, his subjects answer.
"Very well, Lord Zeus. We cannot provide you with the answers you seek. We do, however, find ourselves in the position to guide you to someone who can."
"Your daughter brings information. Information that will lead you to the person you seek." Atropos says, fixing her withered stare on Artemis.
"Speak, child. Tell the council of your earlier ordeal."
"What do they speak of, my child?" Zeus wonders with a curious stare.
"Earlier today, my hunt and I assisted the Half-bloods in their mission to Maine." Artemis began.
"It started as quite the routine mission. In their mission, the Demigoddesses had encountered the Manticore. The speed of his attacks proved to be too much for the Demigods." She says, dreading the next part.
"When I went to instruct my Hunters to attack, I found them rooted in their spots. They later told me that to them, it felt as if their blessing was forcing them to stay still." Artemis says, forcing the last part out.
"They were forced into stillness by their blessing. My blessing."
She said, forcing the hard truth through her teeth.
A murmur began to spread among the council; the thought of someone having the power to turn Artemis' blessing into a curse was an unwelcome one.
"What else happened there, child?" An unexpected but not unwelcome voice traveled through the room.
Hestia didn't speak up in council meetings often. But when she let her voice be heard, it always brought peace and serenity with it.
Artemis sighed, immediately soothed by the voice.
"After noticing my Hunters' situation, I tried to reevaluate and get a grip on the situation.
"This is when I noticed that a sudden mist was starting to set in. A chilling cold was crawling over the land. A man appeared." Artemis' thoughts immediately went back to the feeling of familiarity.
"This man, he was like nothing I've ever seen. He appeared in the middle of a giant snowstorm. Animals stilled in his presence."
"When I spoke to him, he didn't give me the time of day. Yet without looking at me, he knew exactly who I was."
"He spoke in a language not our own," Artemis continued to explain.
As she spoke, that very same cold and foreboding feeling crawled into the throne room.
A look of realization came over Zeus, as he shot a glance at his brother.
"We know of who you speak," Zeus spoke, throwing a reprehensive look at Poseidon and Hestia.
"Be careful what you speak of, brother." The Earthshaker warned.
"What you wish to reveal, is strictly off limits."
"While that may be true, brother. If he has decided to reveal himself, it might be time to reveal the truth."
Hestia had been carefully tending to the hearth, listening to the meeting. She might have spoken, just now, to get the conversation back on track, but it honestly wasn't all that common for her to speak during meetings.
Hestia was calm. Hestia was peaceful. But above all, Hestia was smart.
The Caretaker of Elpis knew that Wisdom breeds favor. She sat, and she listened. And when the situation called for it, she spoke. And others listened.
But in all of her time, keeping the peace and balance alive in this council, she had never seen something like this.
As she watched the meeting unfold, a mist started cascading over the edges of the Oculus, trailing down the columns, forming a thin sheet on the ground.
Snowflakes started falling from the heavens.
"What is happening?!" The Blood Spartan yelled, seeing the frost crawl up his blood-red throne.
"Are we under attack?" Followed the voice of The Unwearying. Her owl-like eyes scanned the room for any possible attackers.
Several gods and goddesses stood up, frantically arguing over who the possible attacker could be.
When Hestia heard the voice of her youngest nephew theorize as to who the would-be attacker could be, she couldn't help but let out a tiny laugh.
"Is this the work of Khione?" The wine God said, his flask of Kool-Aid spilling, from the madman's erratic movements.
"Khione couldn't replicate his levels of power if she had the whole pantheon on her side." She thought.
"Summon our brother. We will need his presence here if we are to explain." Zeus said, leaning over to silently speak into Poseidon's ear.
Poseidon nodded, immediately flashing out of the throne room.
Hestia watched as Zeus slowly and silently stood up. His action was not noticed by the squabbling and arguing council members.
A tiny movement from his hand tells her that no interference from her is needed.
Zeus looked around, his patience lessening by the minute.
Zeus wasn't an inpatient man. But the moment that he saw weapons being summoned, thus breaking one of their ancient laws, he decided that enough was enough.
"Enough."
The order left his lips as a silent whisper, yet was still enough to freeze the room in its tracks.
"I will not allow you to break laws that were put into effect before you were even born." He said, his voice rolling like thunder.
A withering look at his children was enough to make them send away their weapons and retake their place.
"As for you." He growled, fixing his sky-blue gaze upon his two sisters.
"I will not have you behave as children."
As The Bringer of Law sat down, The queen of the Gods remained standing.
An angry and defiant look in her eyes.
"Sit. Down."
With the command, lightning started creeping down his arms. The erratic staticity moves in a way quite akin to snakes.
"I suggest you do as he says, sister. Don't seek problems where there are none."
The rich one's voice was not something the younger gods expected to hear.
Yet its job was done. Hera sat down, a furious but subdued look dawning on her regal features.
From the shadows behind the hearth came Poseidon and Hades.
As he walked, the God of the Underworld only stopped to place a hand on his favorite sister's shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze.
"So the time we fretted has finally arrived, brother?" Hades said, coming to a stop in front of Zeus' throne.
"It seems that the time has indeed arrived for the truth to come out," Poseidon said, standing shoulder to shoulder with Hades.
"Then are we supposed to take this as a sign? Is this show of power meant to warn us of what is to come?" Zeus asked his brothers with a weary sigh.
A sudden wind blew, as the grand doors of the throne room burst open, a lone man walking in.
"In that, you would be correct, Zeus." The man spoke, his milky white eyes fixed on Zeus.
"My name is Hodr, and my Lord sends his regards. He bade me to tell you that The Conclave has allowed you to make your council aware of the truth."
"And why, pray tell, am I only now made aware of this decision?" Zeus asked, an irritated look in his eye.
"This decision was made only recently. The Lord of Winter had me leave as soon as he heard of the decision." The man said, letting his unseeing gaze move over the council.
"And I do so apologize about the show of power. My lord thought a bit of flair and drama would make the situation more…." The man hesitated for a moment. "Amenable. Given the younger ones among us." He said with a grin, as he let his gaze finally come to a rest on the god of war.
"Is that a challenge?" Ares growled as a bloodthirsty grin dawned upon his features.
"Not a challenge, merely an astute observation from a blind man." He answered, letting his hands glide over the handles of the short axes he had on his belt.
"But alas, my time here has come and gone, it seems." He said, turning around and walking back to the door at a brisk pace.
"I do hope that we might meet again, all be it under different circumstances. Hopefully." Hodr said.
As he walked through the doors, they seemed to close all on their own. The mist started seeping out through the crack between the doors.
And then they were closed. The mist and snow were gone. And all of a sudden it seemed like no one had even been there.
The Gods just sat there, as the sound seemed to return to the world.
"It seems you have much to explain, father." This time, it was Athena who spoke, her thirst for knowledge always so overpowering.
"Indeed it seems so, niece. But allow me to be the one who starts the explanation." Hades spoke, seeing that Zeus had no intention to start speaking.
"What do you wish to hear first?"
"Who was the man I met?" Artemis jumped in, ignoring the dirty glare thrown her way by her sister.
"I have to know who he is, why he feels so familiar." She thought.
"Very well. Then allow me to tell you the story of how we first met the now Lord of Winter. And how the Grand Conclave came to be."
"I don't like us being here, Zeus. This world is not our own. We are at a disadvantage."
Poseidon spoke softly, warily looking around at all the unfamiliar faces.
"We are here at the invitation of Odin, brother. I was promised that no harm would come to us." Zeus, always the optimistic one, told his brother.
He stopped in his tracks as what looked to be a woman with a hippo head almost bounded into him.
"Sorry, sorry. My fault!" She yelled, hurriedly walking away from him.
"I hate to agree with our younger brother, Poseidon. But Zeus is right. This might be our best chance to make allies for the future. And if not, then we will be able to gather valuable intel, in case it were to come to war." Hades butted in.
"Safe your speculations for a later moment, brothers. It seems like Odin is about to speak." came the voice of their sister, pulling them back to their purpose for being here.
The four of them looked to the stage in the center of the giant hall.
Three men stood there, all exuding a powerful aura.
"I thank you all for coming here!" The front one, Odin, spoke.
"So many faces I see here," He spoke.
"I see the wise Egyptians, having come all the way from the deserts in the south. The rulers of mighty Japan, all the way from the mountainous spires of the east."
"And so many more, have joined us here today." Odin finished, shooting a look at the man beside him.
"And now, as we all gather here, we stand before you with a grand proposal." The man, Tyr, continued.
"Some of you might look around you, and see possible enemies. But we would have that changed." The god of war and justice said, passion lighting up in his eyes.
"We would have you look around, and see brothers and sisters."
"Every day, the evils in the realms grow stronger. Not only ours but yours as well." He said, his voice oozing with passion and goodwill.
"We would have us face those threats together."
"And so our proposal is this," The third man spoke up.
"Every pantheon would push forward a few of its most influential gods. Together, we would form a Council. The Grand Conclave." The man spoke, his loud voice reaching all the edges of the room.
"Together, we will be responsible for maintaining the balance, for keeping the peace, and for nurturing hope," Njord called out, quieting for a moment.
Their proposal was a difficult one. In the long run, it could ensure peace and balance. But it all hinged on peace being kept between pantheons who are so different.
This is exactly the question that was raised by Zeus.
"And who would ensure that peace will be kept in this Conclave you speak of? Have we any reason not to believe that at the most minor of inconveniences, some, if not all would turn their backs on this idea?"
A murmur of doubt started picking up among the present gods. His point was a fair one. One that needed to be considered.
"Of course. we understand your doubts, Lord Zeus." Tyr said, shooting a look at Njord.
Njord gave a quick nod to Tyr, turning to look for someone in the crowd.
When he found her, he gave a small swirl of his wrist, motioning her forward.
From the crowd walked a woman, with a crown of ice on her head, and a baby boy on her hip.
Njord gently took the baby from her arms, cradling it in his own.
"Three nights ago," He started, gently swaying from side to side.
"My wife and I were blessed with a son." He said, his eyes full of pride. The kind of pride only a father could know.
"When he was born, the Norns came to us in a vision. They called him The Unbound. The Thread Weaver."
As he spoke, the crowd seemed to still. Every pantheon had its own version of the Norns. Their words were always weighed heavily.
"They told us that my son would be the one to unite the pantheons. They told me that he will not be of the Norse. He will be of all worlds. He will make them one."
"My son will train with all of you. He will learn your ways. And through him, we will be bound."
A whisper started to pick up, at the back of the hall. It slowly carried further, and more voices joined in. It was a whisper of agreement. A whisper of trust. A whisper of…. hope.
And the baby opened his eyes.
βηλὸς θεσπέσιος = heavenly threshold.
A massive thanks to TemplarHalo for helping me a lot with this chapter. And to Arkkkk for helping me with the fine-tuning.
Hope you all enjoyed chapter three.
Check out TemplarHalo on AO3.
Check out Arkkkk on Fanfiction,net
Spartan, signing off.