by G. E. White
“Whateva,” he muttered. Turning to Quinn, he gave the young man a questioning look. “So who’s the kid?”
Surina moved her hands between the two men as she did the introductions, “Leo this is Quinn, Quinn this is Leo Russo.”
“Is he one of us?” Leo asked her.
“One of you,” she corrected, “and Sebastien’s convinced he is, so I wouldn’t talk about him like he’s not here.”
“One of us?” Quinn said, “You mean he’s a god?”
“Yeah,” Leo answered, jumping in. “Let me ‘properly’ introduce myself: Leonardo Vincent Russo, six-hundred-thirty-fourth incarnation of the God of War Ares – give or take a few years, but you can call me Leo.”
Quinn took in the laid-back demeanor of the man. “You? You’re the God of War?” he said disbelief marring his features.
“Yeah, you got a problem with that?” the man challenged jokingly.
“Well, it’s just hard to believe that when you’re acting as doorman,” Quinn replied.
Surina stifled a snort of laughter.
“That’s Cosmic Doorman, to you,” Leo corrected, placing his hands on his hips and puffing out his chest dramatically. “I mean, look at this,” he said waving his hand to the other strange doors lining the empty walls. “It’s not like I’m just watching this one door. This is some pretty serious business. I’m in charge of entrances into the lower levels all over the world. Gates are the main mode of transportation for gods and the like. You might think that you’re still under the city but this place exists outside of normal space, allowing transit from one end of the world to the other, even to a different realm completely – and I’m in charge of it.”
“Still, it seems to be a strange thing for the God of War to be doing.”
Surina smirked. “Leo here has been put on probation since his last, well… job.”
“Job?”
“He’s been working with a small African tribe in Angola who are trying to put pressure on the local government due to some questionable laws – It’s not going very well…” she trailed off.
“Hey, it’s going as well as can be expected,” Leo defended. “These people have been losing their civil rights. I’m just making sure they stand up for themselves, ya know?”
“Even though they probably won’t succeed?” Surina questioned.
Leo gave a dismissive wave of his hand. “All wars can get a bit bloody, and sometimes they go on longer than people would like. You’d think everyone had forgotten that.”
Quinn scratched the back of his head. “Well, no one really likes war.”
“That’s debatable,” the older man replied. “But whether ya like it or not, sometimes it’s unavoidable and even necessary. What’d’ya think would have happened if no one went up against the Nazis? Probably a lot more dead people and a very different world than the one we got now.”
Quinn nodded, “I see where you’re coming from… doesn’t mean I like it.”
“Every person to his pie,” Leo said with a chuckle.
“I wouldn’t know – haven’t eaten much pie,” Quinn said.
“Well that’s just sad. My Nona used to make the best pie in the Second Realm, I’ll have to get you to try her recipe sometime”
While Quinn appreciated the offer of dessert, it was another word that truly captured his attention.
“That’s the second time you’ve mention the word ‘realm’, what exactly did you mean by that?” he asked.
Leo rounded on Surina in a huff, “You didn’t explain the three Realms to him?” he accused.
“I was trying to convince him to come with me, I didn’t really have time for a full history and geography lesson,” she replied.
“So what does he know?”
Quinn stepped in-between the bickering adults, “I know that supposedly the gods of the ancient Greek pantheon are real and have been reincarnated many times over the centuries… supposedly.”
“We got ourselves a skeptic here, huh, Surina?”
“Do you really blame him?”
“I suppose not,” the War god conceded.
“So are you going to tell me what these Realms you keep talking about are, or not?” Quinn pushed, wishing to get back on track.
“Alright,” Leo said with a sigh. He wandered over to one of the couches and flopped down into it. “Take a seat, this might take a while.”
Quinn did as he was told taking a seat on the love seat opposite Leo, while Surina perched herself on its arm.
“Now how did it go again?” Leo asked himself, “Oh, yeah…”
In the beginning, there was the Creator; without gender or form, this being would be the spark of what we would one day know, as the Big Bang. Filled with love, knowledge, peace, wisdom and understanding it is difficult to believe that this being could feel incomplete.
But, the universe can be a lonely place, even to the one who created it.
So, the Creator looked out across the galaxies and planets and chose one as a child, an experiment. What we call Earth.
Onto the planet the Creator sowed the seeds of evolution and watched It’s children grow. The first result was an array of creatures of beauty, strength, brutality and loyalty – you know them as the dinosaurs. But while the Creator had set almost all things into motion, It could not control the outcomes. Calamity struck and with it, the first of the Creators children died.
But all was not lost. To fill this void that grew within It, the Creator tried again and out of the simplest of life forms evolved what were known as the five races.
First were the Centaurs; wisest of the races, half beast, half man, who constantly looked to the stars.
Second came the Fauns; creatures of the wild, diverse in appearance, filled with energy and love of art.
Next were the Merfolk; dark creatures of the deep, full of jealousy and secrets.
Fourth born were the Fey; varying in size and stature, they were the swiftest of the races, blessed with magic, though prone to mischief and curiosity.
And then there were humans, whom were known as the race of chance, as they were the ones who held the most potential for good and evil.
For a time, the five races existed together in harmony.
But that which is different – unknown – often breeds fear.
What began as small misunderstands fanned into blazes of distrust and anger. War broke out among the races giving birth to torture, grief and hatred.
Yet in this destruction some were conceived and thrived.
These creatures were known as the Wrathborn but soon earned names of their own: Harpy, Goblin, Reverent and so many more. They were born from the mutilation and rape between the different races, while others were born from the use of dark magic to manipulate the dead and experiments on their enemies.
The Creator looked down on Its creations, which had cloaked themselves in hatred, blood and fear, and wept.
It couldn’t allow Its children to kill one another, so It selected a few dozen individuals, all humans, and changed them. Made them immortal and more powerful than any other creature; these individuals became the gods. Unfortunately, these Gods, though immortal and powerful, were young and impetuous.
The gods, were supposed to be impartial, but ended up choosing sides and the wars, while slightly more organized, continued. In the end humans, the last race to evolve before the wars broke out, were labelled the instigators.
The Creator didn’t have the heart to destroy them, so instead divided the world
into three separate realms. Dimensions that would exist, one over lapping the other, but forever separate.
Into the First Realm it placed the first four races along with the so called Wrathborn.
The Second Realm became home to the Fifth race: humans, though members of the other four races would sometimes slip through cracks into their Realm.
Finally, the Third Realm, Olympia was made as a place where the Gods could cast judgment over the lesser beings should anything
happen. Yet as the Gods must travel from Realm to Realm to perform their duties, Olympia stands almost completely empty.
However, as a reminder to the Gods for their mistakes, the Creator stripped them of their immortality, and cursed them to die and be reborn for all eternity. For while they had once been mortal they had yet never died and therefore didn’t fear death. This fear, this knowledge of the swinging pendulum is what motivates all life at its most basic level. So now the gods too shared this knowledge, this dread in order to better understand the mortal creatures they watched over.
And so, it has been ever since – the gods live, serve, die and live to serve again, standing as the few pillars of order against the ever-present chaos of life…
As Leo finished his story, Surina gave an obligatory, but unenthused slow clap. “Excellent history lesson Professor.”
“Better than what you were able to come up with,” he shot back.
“Touché.” She turned to Quinn, “Does that help make things clearer? Or just more crazy?”
Leo snorted. “Don’t act like you don’t believe in this yourself Surina.”
“Overall it does seem kind of crazy,” Quinn said. “But I could see it making sense… science has explained a lot, the formation of the universe, evolution… your story just gives it a ‘why’.”
“So you’re willing to believe us?” she pushed.
“I’m willing to see this through… I mean, what have I got to lose?” Quinn said.
Leo gave Quinn a hearty slap on the back, “That’s the spirit! Now, let’s all have a drink. Erica has some craft beers on tap.”
“We’re not here to have a drink with you Leo – besides Quinn isn’t old enough,” Surina butted in.
The man groaned. “Spoil-sport. It’s always business with you isn’t it Surina?”
“Unfortunately one of us has to get some work done.”
“Fair enough. So, let me guess, the Hall of Erebus?” he asked.
“If you’d be so kind,” she replied.
Quinn watched the exchange with growing curiosity. The two obviously knew each other well enough, but were they actually friends or just work associates? And what was this Hall of Erebus they talked about?
“Hey Quinn, let’s get a move on.”
Quinn pulled out of his musings to see the other two waiting for him at one of the doors. He jogged up to them as Leo swung the door open and beckoned them through with a sweep of his long arm.
“M’Lady,” the man said as Surina stepped past him, the woman giving a snort in reply.
“Good luck, kiddo” Leo said as the teen approached. “And make sure to stop by when you can. Hopefully by then we’ll both know who you are.”
What a strange thing to say.
Nevertheless, he grinned at the other man, “I will.”
“And don’t let Surina here scare ya too much. She’s okay when ya get to know her,” he assured.
“Whatever you say. Oh, by the way, Sebastien says you have a dumb face.” Surina called from ahead of them.
Leo snorted, “How would he know?”
“He just does,” Surina replied pulling a scowl from the War god. “Come on Quinn, let’s go,” she called to the other.
The teen gave a small bob of his head in parting before moving into the cramped corridor after the dark-haired woman. The door closed swiftly behind them leaving them in the dark, save for a small light at the end of the tunnel.
~ Chapter 8 ~
As they exited the dank hallway Quinn paused in awe.
The chamber they entered sprawled out for almost a mile - vastly cavernous, with rows of enormous stone pillars supporting the roof far overhead.
The ceiling opened in the center to a large circular window, about twenty feet in diameter. Quinn saw the early evening sky and the light of the setting sun. He had been certain more time had passed since leaving Cedar Hills.
“Where are we?” he asked.
“Somewhere under San Francisco, I believe,” Surina replied.
“But that skylight,” he said, stumbling along behind her. “I mean, doesn’t anyone notice it?”
“Sadly enough no,” she said, with a sigh. “And to think that only a small glamour conceals it.”
“Glamour?” Quinn echoed.
“Basically a special kind of magic that hides the true forms of things – remember that ‘Employees Only’ door we went through at the subway?”
“Yeah.”
“Well any normal person would just see a wall.”
Quinn paused in thought as he took in her words. A normal person would only see a wall?
“Wait,” he called after her. “If I can see the door doesn’t that already prove that I’m… you know…”
“A god?” Surina supplied. “It’s okay to say it. Remember, we don’t mean god in the same way other humans mean it. No need to worry about blasphemy or anything.”
“Is that my answer?”
“Not only gods can see through glamours, well most glamours that is,” she explained. “I mean, I’m not a god, but I could see it, so it’s possible you’re not a god, but still hold some sort of connection to our world. As for everyone else, there are some things that people shouldn’t know about, and this is one of them.”
“So this is the Hall of Erebus?”
Surina shook her head. “Not yet. This used to be one of the gods meeting halls, but we had to move the gatherings around to please those living farther away. In the end, it just got forgotten I guess. The Hall of Erebus is up ahead.”
“I see… So, what exactly is it?” Quinn asked.
“You said you’ve read quite a few Greek myths; tell me, what do you know about Prometheus?”
Quinn stopped for a moment as he racked his brain for the information. Within a couple of seconds he could recall everything he had read about the Titan.
“There are a couple different stories, some say he was a Titan that created man out of clay, others that tricked Zeus and the other gods into accepting the inedible parts of a sacrifice, like bones of a cow. That story goes on to say Zeus took back the gift of fire so that that humans would be unable to cook their food and that Prometheus went on to steal the fire back from Olympus for the humans… others say we didn’t have fire in the first place and only because of Prometheus’ theft do we have it. Either way, Zeus punished him, chaining him to a rock and sending a bird every day to peck out his liver. But it would just grow back during the night so the bird could return the next day to start again… Seemed like a pretty harsh punishment for just trying to help people out.”
Surina turned to face Quinn, her brows furrowed under her ever-present sunglasses. “It’s not that simple, Quinn. Prometheus didn’t bring normal fire to mortals. We’d already figured out how to make fire on our own, we’re pretty resourceful when need be.”
Quinn cocked his head to the side, confused. “Then what exactly happened?”
“Prometheus didn’t just take regular fire from Olympus, but the fire: Olympian fire. Only found in the Third Realm of Olympia. And for good reason. Olympian fire is made up of the echoes of the souls of the gods. A living soul is represented as a spark or flame, and when a person dies it goes out and they become something else.”
“What do they become?”
Surina shrugged her shoulders in ignorance. “Beats me – only the Death Gods would know. Anyway, Olympian fire burns the hottest and since its not actual fire in the traditional sense, it can never be put out. It’s a dangerous weapon that could end everything if it fell into the wrong hands. Not only is it unstoppable but once unleashed has the power to show us for who and what we truly are. Can you imagine how people would react to seeing monsters and powerful beings everywhere?”
Quinn wondered for a moment if Surina had meant to give away as much as she did with those few words. Strangely enough he had begun to truly accept that there were gods walking among them; even if he wasn’t sold on the idea that he was also one of them. But despite his interact
ions with small fey that buzzed about the Cedar Hills he had never considered the flip side of that coin until Surina had just mentioned it. Monsters. Monsters were real.
He shook his head, filing that thought away for the moment.
“What do you mean – show us for what we truly are? How does that work?” he asked.
“You’ll see soon enough,” was her cryptic reply.
Quinn pushed back his sandy colored hair and frowned. He couldn’t help but notice Surina had used the term ‘Us’ when describing the danger of revealing who, and more importantly what, they are. She had already corrected Leo earlier, making it clear that she was no god. So, the question was: What exactly was she?
He glanced up at his guide, deciding to put the question away for another time. “You don’t give people enough credit, they’re more intelligent than you think,” he commented in answer to her earlier question.
“No,” she corrected. “Individuals are intelligent, but in a group, they become panicky creatures – slow to think, but quick to act. As a race, humans have forgotten too much to be able to handle the truth. As for Olympian fire, luckily we’ve been able to contain it away from human hands.”
“And that’s what’s in the Hall of Erebus?”
“Well, yes but it’s not actually a Hall – not like this one. The Hall of Erebus is actually an off-shoot of the Underworld, though no one is buried there. It’s a place of complete darkness. At one time the dead would pass through it on their way to the Underworld, but now only the souls of the gods pass through it on their way to their next incarnation. Olympian fire is the only light in it and creates one very important thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Shadows.”
Surina turned and continued towards the doors at the other end of the large room. Quinn took this as a sign that the conversation was over and wisely said nothing more.
Exiting the former gathering hall, Quinn found himself and Surina in a much smaller room with a single set of stairs leading down. What looked like police tape hung over the entrance to the stairway. A sign attached to the tape read: “Stairs Out of Order – Sorry for the inconvenience”.
