Chapter Text
Apollo's PoV:
I waited impatiently as Zeus droned on, the meeting I had been called to nearing its end. I planned to visit Meg once this was over. We loved to gossip about the latest drama on Olympus after these meetings, as there was always a fight occurring during them. Just today, Ares had made a comment on how much time I had been spending with Meg, likely in an attempt to start something. Of course, this caused Demeter to once again rant about how Hades had kidnapped her poor daughter, Persephone, all the while berating me for my friendship with Meg. The idea of me and Meg being romantically involved had me fighting a gag, while Artemis tried not to laugh at the face I made once the accusation had been delivered.
I glanced over at Zeus, and almost startled when I saw the thunderous lightning in his gaze. I shrugged it off, assuming—no, hoping—that he was just tired of Demeter's antics.
Finally, Zeus waved the council away with a flick of his wrist. I hummed as I packed up my notes for the meeting, having to contain my glow as I radiated excitement in my eagerness to visit Meg. Surely, we'd get a laugh out of what her mother had said about me.
Once everyone else had taken their leave, I was about to flash away as well until a voice rumbled behind me, the crackling of the sky right before a storm lacing that one word, the word that started this whole mess.
"Stay." Zeus commanded, and my heart dropped.
I teleported my notes to the sun palace, someone else would have to deal with those. "Yes, father?" I asked, dipping my head slightly down.
Zeus sighed, as though bored. He looked down at me from his throne, designed to be taller than the others. His eyes searched my face, almost like he was waiting for any kind of reaction, any weakness. I knew well enough by now not to show it, my eyes meeting his stubbornly. He started to talk; his hands folded neatly on his lap as though he was just a regular office boss admonishing his worker.
"I heard what Ares and Demeter said about you and Meg, and I believe they may have a point." He stated, and I tilted my head.
"Huh? About us- erm, dating? Because we're not, she's thirteen." I spoke, my voice a few octaves higher than normal. I swear, if that's what this was about, I would go bury my head in the sand like an ostrich.
"No, about you spending so much time with her. Really, you seem to be visiting many different mortals, not all of them your children, and much more often." Zeus responded, his eyes sharp as they studied me relentlessly. His finger drummed against his armrest, a slow, repetitive tap, tap, tap.
I swallowed nervously as he continued, "You know that we don't interfere with mortals, it is against the advice of the ancient laws." As he grumbled, I noticed his hand twitch towards where I knew his master bolt was strapped. I fought back a flinch, catching it just before it would have given me away.
"They're my friends, father, and I believe the ancient laws only refer to us interrupting their quests?" I formatted my response as a question, despite my certainty that the law was, in fact, worded so. I knew better than to imply that he was wrong about something, instead leaving it up to him to decide whether I was right about it or wrong.
"They're your friends," he barked out a sharp laugh, using his hands to put quotations around the word friends, "don't be ridiculous!"
I wanted to distance myself, an animal-like instinct within me yelling to take a step back. Father would only see this as a weakness to be exploited, however, so I stood my ground. I didn't even shift around on my feet, despite every bone in my body yearning for some kind of action. I glanced around out of the corner of my eye, spying my throne. Weirdly enough, it seemed to glow dimmer as my anxiousness rose. I noticed Artemis poking her head in through the doorway, and I ever-so-slightly jerked my head at her, telling her to leave. Since my trials, she had become more insistent to constantly know my whereabouts. This, however, was not the time.
She left.
Zeus continued, voice rising as he got further into his speech. "You can't be friends with mortals, Apollo! We are above them, in every right! They are for quests, and quests alone. We only answer prayers, real prayers, not 'Apollo, it is time for my piano lessons, get down here' whenever we, as gods, and we alone, wish it." He looked out the window, as though admiring the view from Olympus.
Shit, he had been listening in on my prayers. Meg liked to use them to talk to me, treating them more as a way to converse than a way to request godly interference.
"Father-" I started, before he cut me off, his head snapping violently towards me.
"No! Do not 'father' me, you will cut all ties with these mortals, and I will make sure of it. You are not to leave Olympus, except to do your duties as a god, for a year." I inhaled sharply, my eyes widening.
"You're- what, grounding me?" I asked, my eyebrows scrunched with confusion as I tried to hide my panic.
"In simpler terms, yes. Try to leave, and you know what happens. You are dismissed." He said, smiling as he unclipped his master bolt, twirling it on his finger like a basketball. My breath caught in my throat, but I managed to speak anyway.
"Y- yes, father." I stammered, my heart a hummingbird batting its wings, trapped in a cage and trying desperately to escape. I quickly vanished to the sun palace. I stumbled blindly towards my room. I collapsed onto my bed, though I only stayed there for a second before I began pacing my room. Heat radiated off me, intense and dry, though I didn't notice. I vaguely knew that New York must be suddenly experiencing a heat wave, as a small part of my consciousness remained in the sun chariot.
I stopped in front of my mirror, looking at my reflection. I tried to even out my now laborious breathing, a habit that I had chosen not to get rid of since my time as a mortal. My gaze turned to steel, cold and hard as I stared at the god looking back at me from the mirror. The perfect blonde hair, the sharp blue eyes. My father's sharp blue eyes. For once, I looked at myself and could not imagine my soul fitting this body.
I reached a decision.
No. I would not let Zeus keep me here like his own fucked up Rapunzel. I growled, a plan half-formed inside my mind. It was risky, dangerous, and certainly impulsive, but I would not be trapped here. I would not break my promise to Jason.
I sent more of my consciousness to the sun chariot, landing it prematurely. I teleported it back to the sun palace, petting my horses one last time before sending them to their stables. I soon gathered all of my essence into my room in the palace, where my plan was still swirling in my head.
"Forgive me, Artemis." I spoke aloud, apologizing to my sister as I teleported down to Indiana. The Waystation was my best bet.
As my feet touched my ground, I closed my eyes. Being the god of prophecy had made me very clearsighted, more so than most, evidenced by my ability to see Ouranos and Gaea as they slumbered, way back when I was still frolicking around on Delos. I used this to my advantage, finding the thrum of godhood stored within my very essence.
My eyes opened, shining a ferocious golden hue as I closed my metaphorical hand around the bundle of power, gripping it tightly.
And ripped it outwards.
Artemis's PoV:
I was resting in my tent, my hunters enjoying the warmth of the fire we had set up. We had been on the trail of this monster for a few months now and had decided to take a break. The girls giggled around the fire. Reyna, our newest recruit, seemed to be fitting in nicely. They all traded stories of relationships gone wrong before they ended up with me, those who had a story to share, at least.
Suddenly, my face twinged. I became uneasy, for no apparent reason. I closed my eyes, listening around our camp for any signs of a monster stalking us, but there was none.
I winced as I felt a small, sharp pain. My gut twisted uncomfortably. I felt a strong urge to check on my brother.
I looked up at the sun, it danced wildly, becoming darker, and then brighter as quickly as Ares's moods changed. I furrowed my eyebrows, before sending some of myself up to Olympus.
I walked around, stopping at my brother's palace. I stepped inside, navigating the halls as easily as I would my own. I entered his room, as that was usually where he was after a meeting with father, and I knew he had been in one today.
He wasn't there.
Suddenly, I heard a loud bellow, so loud it could only be one thing. I jumped, racing towards the sound.
Zeus stood in the center of Olympus. I found the other gods standing around, looking at each other in fear and confusion as lightning popped in the air around us.
"Just today, I banned Apollo from leaving Olympus, and now he is gone." His voice was calm, slithering into my ears like a snake. His eyes flicked around, searching the audience, before landing on me.
I tried to keep my face impassive, though I couldn't help the gasp that left my lips before my father's words could register. He had banned Apollo from leaving Olympus? How, and why?
"He seems to have done something to hide his essence from my detection." He spat, shaking with barely concealed anger.
"Find. Him."
Leo's PoV:
I had just been working on Festus, adjusting some things here and there. A normal morning, you know? The Waystation had been calm, for once. Lit hadn't accidentally injured someone while sparring, nothing had exploded as a result of a failed invention, so overall, it had been a peaceful day.
Maybe that should have been my sign that it was not going to remain that way.
I whistled a tune, oil dripping from my hands as I finished adding a part that would allow Festus to light himself on fire. Only slightly inspired by those dragons from that one movie.
"Hey, Leo." Someone giggled behind me, I turned and tried not to gasp.
There stood Apollo, except, he looked like Lester. That alone wasn't too unusual, as he liked to alternate between forms while visiting. However, what was unusual, was the amount of smoke billowing off of his body. He swayed on his feet, unsteady as he took another step towards me.
"So, funny story-"
I never got to hear his 'funny' story, as he passed out, faceplanting into the ground with a dull thud.
Today just got interesting. Screw my life.