But Chiron! Zeus started it!

[empirestategods]

Who: Chiron and the claimed kids of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades
When: June 6th, afternoon
Where: The Big House, Rec Room
What: So we need to have A Talk
Warnings: Gods are dicks.

The Big Three tend to cause a lot of Problems. Arguments among them end up in hurricanes, and getting along is virtually impossible for them. Kind of because Zeus is a dick. But more than that they literally create a lot of problems--their children. Children of the Big Three are very powerful, very ambitious and tend to be good leaders. And it's just a sad fact that leaders don't always agree. And when leaders don't agree, they bring their power up behind them.

And when their power happens to be that of, oh, the three strongest Olympian gods, there's... a big problem. And parents can't always control their kids. This is how wars start.

Of course, Chiron doesn't explain that right off the bat when he calls the kids to the Big House. The sky blue house that serves as the main administration building, as well as home to the camp staff, is fairly spacious inside, if a little cluttered. Though the kids don't get to do much sight seeing, as they're directed to the Rec Room right off the bat. A battered ping-pong table sits in the middle of the room, surrounded by 13 folding chairs.

Not so very long ago, cabin heads held meetings here. He remembers the 12 children very well. And a month later, there are more problems than they started with, and they're no closer to finding those they lost.

There's a look of terrible sorrow in his eyes when Chiron greets the campers who come in. Who it's for, though, isn't clear.

He doesn't expect them to sit, just waiting for them all to gather (and possibly stand around uncomfortably), before addressing the half-dozen kids or slightly-older-than-kids who he knows this conversation is not fair to.

"I understand none of you asked to come here," he begins with. "I understand this wasn't your choice." Maybe, he thinks, better than anyone. No one asks for their parents. "So I ask you not to speak until I finish.

"For those of you who didn't grow up with an understanding of Greek Myth, there are three gods who are considered the most powerful. Zeus, the King of the Gods and Lord of the Sky, who tricked his father, the titan, into expelling his siblings in order to overthrow the titans. Poseidon, the Lord of the Sea and the Earthshaker who fought alongside his brother in the Titan War. And Hades, Lord of the Dead, oldest of the three brothers, who now rules over the Underworld, rather than a throne on Olympus." A long, low rumble of thunder has been passing over the camp through his entire speech. "The three are the most powerful of the gods, and... they do not always get along. Their children are much the same.

"It is for that reason that not so long ago, the Big Three made a pact to not father any more demigod children. And so far as I understand, this pact has not been broken yet. However, there is a grey area surrounding..." there isn't any nice way to put this, is there? "You."

Yeah there's no nice way to put that at all.

"It was supposed to have been understood that there would be no children of the Big Three brought back from other worlds. But one of the first of you brought to this world was a son of Zeus. In retaliation, it appears his brothers also brought back their own children. Which is, of course, why you're here." And of course, why he has to bring them together today. Because the Big Three are more stubborn than they are old.

And of course this is the hard part to explain. "The Big Three have been arguing since the first of you were claimed. The power behind each of you is... dangerous. Wars have been started by their children countless times in history.

"And the gods have been arguing over you. Some of them believe that it would be better to avoid the possibility at all. While some feel you should be given a chance, others feel you should be..." a long, long pause, "... put down, before you are given the opportunity.

"Now, the decision isn't final yet. But... it would be for the best that you acted in a way that proved you won't end the world if you should survive. You only have until the solstice to do so."

And now he waits for it. A half-dozen of the most powerful demigods left in the world gathered in one room being told the gods might kill them.

This is a great job.

Comments

[sharkfoodbound]

[Squalo was likely one of the very few who'd actually sat down. But at the words 'put down' he was out of his chair as quick as a wink, snarling.]

Are you fucking kidding? You kidnap us here and now you're expecting us to sit quietly or we're gonna be murdered? For WHAT? HAVING BEEN BORN?!

[empirestategods]

[Pretty much.]

It isn't decided, yet.

[sharkfoodbound]

It's impossible to prove something isn't the case.

[Besides, it can always not be the case yet.]

as ota as anything.

[deadexmachina]

[This guy's been keeping to a corner the whole while. He's still got his beanie on, with no respect for indoors or meetings. But he's glowering at the Centaur now and the world at large.]

Tch.

[It figures. Claim or no claim - Shinjiro's not actually wanted here. But it's pretty ridiculous even for the gods to bring someone back from the dead only to then give them another death sentence.]

Re: as ota as anything.

[airdives]

[ She's probably in a similar corner whilst glaring situation, for largely the same reasons. Of course, she wasn't promised a second chance. Just smite her now, get it over with. ]

I can't believe this.

[deadexmachina]

This is ridiculous.

[Seriously. Wasn't him dying once enough?]

[emperor_with_no_groove]

[Akihiko shoots a look at his best friend, gray eyes already blazing.]

Don't even think about it, Shinji.

[deadexmachina]

[Shooting him a look right back.]

I'm not thinking about anything.

[He's even trying to keep his temper in check, because so far his temper has been what's made hurricanes and earthquakes.]

[dragon_blossom]

You have a fun job.

Umi isn't quite sure what to think, to be honest. She has to act in a way that proves she won't end the world - in order to save her own life. She has to rely on the others to show that they all aren't such a bad idea that they should simply be murdered to protect the world, and she has to extend the same to them.

That's the only reason she doesn't throw a fit over how stupid, and unfair, and utterly cruel and ridiculous this is. The gods are the ones with the egos here, right? Their egos are why this is a problem in the first place, and their powers.

Her hands clench, her teeth grind, but she doesn't give in to the outburst welling up inside. Yet. "They will get their proof." Still, her voice is incredibly tense and strained.

How is Mokona so much more reasonable than these guys? Marshmallow god: 1, everyone else: 0.

ota

[youridethebitchseat]

If anything, Aisha was pissed beyond belief. The more she heard about these gods, the more she wanted to punch her own so called 'father' in the face. So not only were they brought to this strange place without a say in it, but now they were thinking about killing them just for being born?

"If they were so worried about this, maybe they should've thought twice about using protection."

Oh she wanted to scream so badly but of course, kept herself in check.

[dragon_blossom]

...despite the situation, the seriousness of their mutual impending doom, Aisha went there, and covered her mouth as she snorted in laughter. Too sudden to turn into a cough. Hopefully no one though she wasn't taking this seriously, but c'mon sister you totally went there.

[youridethebitchseat]

Of course she was, it's her life too. That means she heard you laughter.

"I'm being serious on this. No parent should force their problems on their kids like this."

[deadexmachina]

He'd have liked to have a sense of humour about this. And to maybe laugh. But, yeah, no, not happening. He just agrees with his sister(?) sullenly.

"Or about bringing us here, if they weren't supposed to in the first place."

[youridethebitchseat]

She nodded, agreeing with her new brother.

"Some of us have dire emergencies back home. The fact that we were brought here in the middle of it does hurt the outcome there."

She couldn't let Valtor get away with poisoning her people...her home. And what if he moves onto the entire Magical Dimension? She was the only one with her Enchantix at the moment and the one able to beat the guy into a pulp. This was not earning points for the gods at all.

[pheromonecoffee]

[Minato didn't sit. He watched from the wall of the rec room, standing as he always had, relaxed, hands in his pockets. His expression is blank for the most part, though he glances at Shinjiro, Ken and Akihiko as soon as he understands what's being said here. Okay he's p. much used to dying for the good of the world at this point. But there is a terrible bitter part of him that just feels... disappointed. So much for another chance.

And there's another, stronger part of him that is absolutely furious. Half of his team is in this room. Including himself, two of them have died already. Another one is eleven. None of the four of them deserve to die because they were born. Besides, if he dies here, how does he know the seal won't be broken back home?

He can't, can't risk that.

Free of his pockets, Minato's hands clench at his sides.]

Why not just send us back?

[empirestategods]

[He's been watching the mess unfold. Feeling the growth of anger and despair and fear and distrust. A slow churn of things so very close to madness. But out of all the questions, so far only one seemed worth answering, really. Seemed valid enough to bother with, and while he can't deny the boy his rage, he has to give him credit for minding his tone.

So he appears out of the nonexistant woodwork, or rather, allows himself to be seen for a moment.]

Because it is a complicated process. It can not simply be put in reverse like a car or rewound like a video tape. If we stopped it to send you back now, that would be the end of it. We would not be able to bring back any further demigods.

[pheromonecoffee]

So?

[So you can't kidnap more people who don't deserve it and then you have to start sending everyone home.

He'd be a lot more sympathetic if you didn't want to kill his friends.]

[emperor_with_no_groove]

[Akihiko patiently listens, waiting for Chiron to finish speaking. At the end of the spiel, the silver-haired teen releases a low grunt of disdain.] Hmph.

[He’s still torn on what to believe about the whole situation. This revelation, however, definitely adds fuel to the fire of his determination. Someone else was going to decide whether or not they were to be executed? So they had to put on a performance in order to prove they were worthy of living? What kind of bullshit was that?

Fearlessly, Akihiko steps forward and addresses Chiron with a cool and calm exterior.]

I really don’t care what they decide. I’m not ready to die yet. I’m sure everyone else feels that way too. [Though he does turn his head briefly to give Shinji a pointed look, daring him to challenge his words.] Besides, it’s not their damn choice to make. They can’t dictate our lives, and we’re not helpless puppets.

[One by one, he pulls his gloves on tighter, and then curls his fingers into resolute fists.] Tell them to do their worst, if that ends up being their conclusion. We’ll be ready.

[empirestategods]

[Chiron is calm. Understanding, but wary. He knows the gods. These kids don't.]

It isn't wise to make enemies of the gods, Akihiko. They can dictate their lives more than you know--don't test them.

[emperor_with_no_groove]

Don’t test them? [Akihiko echoes back at the other, sounding just as calm.] I’m pretty sure it’s the other way around. Besides, they shouldn’t underestimate us, just because we’re human.

[That’s right, he said human. He doesn’t consider himself a demi-god, despite the claims.]

Can you blame anyone for reacting like this? Finding out about the sudden parentage was shocking enough – and now, we might get killed because of it? [Akihiko frowns and props a hand against his side.] What do they want, exactly?

take two;

[orangehoodie]

[Ken was standing off to the side, listening quietly, but once Chiron is finished he turns right around, glaring at the centaur with lightning seeming to crackle in his eyes. When he speaks, his voice is low, a little hushed, audible yet quiet.]

That's just crap.

[He's fuming, teeth gritted and eyebrows furrowed.]

Retaliation? What is this to them... just a race to see who can break their agreement the most?!

[meeting_at_dusk]

Ruka's expression was impassive the moment she walked in and it didn't change much during Chiron's explanation.

She couldn't say she was particularly angry about her situation. She had lived a long life already, after all. Besides, she had to admit that these gods were far more generous than her father had been (it was impossible to stop thinking of him as such even if she now knows they're not related).

At least they hadn't already sent assassins after them.

"I'm far too old to be trying to change my ways just to impress someone." Never mind the fact that, should her father ask of it, she would give up her life. It was what she had offered to father who raised her; it was only fair to offer the same to the man she owed her existence to.

She glanced around at the others. Ruka couldn't bring herself to be angry or to feel regret at her fate, but looking at the assembled individuals she felt a weariness that betrayed her age.

Her voice though, was still clear and impassive when she spoke.

"But perhaps you would like to elaborate on how we are supposed to prove such a thing."

what do you mean this is a wall of text shhh

[totheno1]

At such news and idle threats of death, a human's urge might be to claw, hiss and fight back.

Nanjo wasn't that type. There were two things to do in such a situation that he'd been taught since he was young; keep a cool head, then provide concrete evidence to argue against the issue. The business market wasn't exactly a forgiving one, and being raised right in the middle of an all-encompassing empire had taught Kei well when to put up a facade...even if he might have been fuming inside. He had a feeling that They were listening in anyway. It might even just be a simple test of nerves, a twist to see what they were capable of. Regardless, he wasn't just going to stay there idly and let them walk all over them like a bunch of unwanted trash when clearly there was a divide between them on what they should do. Obviously their fear was overcoming them. Irony that, to see gods filled with doubt.

Well, if he WAS a son of Zeus, he was going to act like one.

"Wars may have been starting by our half-siblings, but that would be looking only at one side of a coin. I recall that heroes such as Heracles, Perseus and Theseus had mortal mothers and divine fathers, and while perhaps not being quiet men by their own, they also moved civilization forward positively, and were honored for it. This world might have been different without their presence."

It was probably picking from the most well known, but Nanjo's knowledge of mythology was woefully shorter than what Eriko would have been able to say.

"It may be true that we may never return to our old worlds, but there is a business term that I was taught very early on; Nemawashi. It is an informal process where one lays the groundwork for a major change, by talking to the people involved and creating a feedback loop so that all are informed as to what is coming. It is considered an important element in any large impacting issue, and is done before more formal steps are taken. This allows all parties involved to understand and carry out with those ideals in mind. However, in this case, being let into a small area, giving us this information and then an ultimatum...it is hard not to think that there wouldn't be a backlash. We feel cornered and I think the Gods have already seen what humanity has to offer. They know...and you do as well what a typical reaction to this news would be."

"However, it is rather pointless to blame the messenger," he added, looking at Chiron. "You are simply telling us what was relayed to you. Becoming angry would provide useless. I do not completely understand the power of those watching us, but a gentleman once told me that Gods and demons alike are only manifestations of man's soul. Obviously, this may not prove to be true here. But for a god to exist, someone must believe for that god to have power, otherwise, there is simply no point. Therefore, the gods must have some belief in us for them to worry about what we may do. However, they seem to assuming based on past experiences, and from what I understand, never involving children from completely different worlds. We may have been raised differently, but a common theme that I seemed to notice is that none of us have lived simply. Many may or already have fought for that other world which was our home. I know that personally I have stopped the world from falling at least once."

"Of course it is a valid worry to have children from the highest gods present, but also I believe that we've already proven of what we are capable. I may not speak for all the others, but I do know that even when I had the power of Persona, I did not abuse it for selfish purposes, even if there was ample opportunity to do so. It is poor business practice to terminate someone due to a possibility, especially considering that, as I understand it, this situation is rather unique in itself."

He pushed up the glasses on his nose a little more upward.

"I cannot offer an iron-clad promise that nothing will happen, as that would be folly. In fact, I have fought with my friends countless times, but it is through their aid that I was able to grow and learn. I promised Yamaoka that I would become the number one man in Japan, and that is something I intend to keep, even if I must start from zero here. But I won't do it by causing wars. I was not raised that way. I believe in honesty and hard work, not the easy path."

But enough about him, let's talk about the real issue at hand.

"If we are, then, as powerful as you say, and with this current situation befalling us and this encampment, it be a foolish decision to simply eliminate the first row of a possible defense line. We may provide the risk of a war...but, like the previous heroes before us, we may also be the ones who will be able to stop one as well."

[dragon_blossom]

Should she applaud? Umi gathered just from talking to him a little that Kei Nanjo was a smart guy, but where she was calm by simply forcing herself not to say much, Kei was not only keeping a cool head, but immediately going off into a long, well-reasoned and well-informed presentation, completely off the cuff, of his opinion of the situation, and his expectations of what the gods might be thinking or looking for. Referencing past demi-god heroes, and, more importantly, their own records in their own worlds.

Except, in Umi's case, this is a problem. Umi, along with Fuu and Hikaru, took part in a ritual of sorts so horrific that by the time they realized what they were doing, it was all they could do to complete it just to save their lives. In a tiny little corner of her heart, she will always feel like a murderer. No matter the necessity, no matter that it was desired by others, the three of them ended two lives without knowing the full picture, not even until they returned. Sure, they struggled desperately, and in many ways were successful in reversing the damage in unimaginable ways, but what if she were so impulsive again? With the power of a demigod, where that power is among the greatest in the world?

"I'd like to say that I'd have come to those same conclusions given enough time, but I don't think I'd ever think of all of that, let alone put it into words." Umi shook her head; at least not for a while. Maybe, with Fuu's help.

"While in my own world, the Earth that I come from, I'm not anyone of particular importance, in a connected world I was given a great deal of power, and while I... made my mistakes, perhaps it's for the best that I made them before arriving here." Never making them would have been better. "I've learned from them the price of using that power with too little thought or caution. By taking those who have already fought in their own worlds, the gods have gotten a lot of children who, I imagine, have learned those lessons." There's conviction beyond just BS to save herself and the others in her voice. "Beyond that... well, I can say that I agree with a lot of what he just said," Umi nodded in Kei's direction, "and not just to save our skins. I can't help the kids who are already missing if I'm dead."

...she didn't know she had all that in her, thanks for the nudge dude.

[brat_from_hell]

Phibrizzo listened quietly to the expectation. At the moment, he wished he had some of his old power - he would have enjoyed a veritable buffet of negative emotions rather than feeling the same unease and anger as everyone else here. How could he be reborn into this half-human, half-god body only to be killed because of what he might do? It was beyond frustrating.

Less than a year ago, the concern that he would end the world would have been a completely valid one. It was a goal he'd personally worked toward out of devotion to the father who wasn't actually his real father after all. Now that he'd been reborn as a son of Hades, his priorities had changed. If the Lord of the Dead wanted him alive and to be a hero, then so be it.

He listened to what everyone else had to offer before speaking up himself. It was both out of a display of respect, and to have time to think of what exactly he wanted to say. He had plenty of opinions, but the others had already expressed most of them.

"Sir, which gods think we should be 'put down', and which ones think we should be given a chance? And are there any that haven't made up their minds yet?"

If there were any who were undecided, some burnt offerings might not be a bad idea, he thought.